Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site. 0108263 License for publishing multimedia online Registration Number: 130349 Registration Number: 130349 Chinese vice premier encourages multinationals to expand investment in China Xinhua) 08:43, October 11, 2025 Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with the leaders of three multinational companies: Abbott Laboratories from the United States, Prudential from Britain, and SK Group from the Republic of Korea, in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 10, 2025. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei) BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng on Friday encouraged multinationals to expand their investment in China as the country will continue to expand its high-standard opening up. He, who is also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks when he met with the leaders of three multinational companies: Abbott Laboratories from the United States, Prudential from Britain, and SK Group from the Republic of Korea. He said that China's economy has stable foundations, numerous strengths, remarkable resilience and vast potential, noting that the dominant trend of a long-term, sound Chinese economy and the elements supporting it have not changed. He encouraged the multinationals to expand their investment in China, deepen cooperation with China and share development opportunities. The company leaders expressed their optimism about China's economic prospects, stating their willingness to strengthen their presence in the Chinese market and expand their cooperation with China. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Ahead of the 2027 general elections, the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Akwa Ibom State, has endorsed the second term bids of President Bola Tinubu, Senate President Godswill Akpabio and Governor Umo Eno According to the chairman of ALGON, Dr. Uwemedimo Udo, who also serves as the chairman of Uyo LGA, the association's stance became necessary for the sustenance of the ongoing socio-economic reforms anchored by reform-driven leadership at the national and subnational levels. He, therefore, declared the readiness of the association to mobilise the electorates across the 31 LGAs for the success of the leaders at the polls. The pledge was reaffirmed during a breakfast meeting hosted by governor Eno in Uyo, to commemorate the chairmen's first anniversary in office, which underscored the alignment between federal, legislative, and state governance structures for sustainable development. Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines "President Tinubu, has taken bold and decisive steps to rebuild the Nigerian economy. The removal of fuel subsidy, though tough, has significantly increased accruals to local governments, enabling us to channel more funds into meaningful developmental projects that directly impact the lives of our people," Udo stated. The chairman explained that the increased fiscal inflows have expanded local councils' capacity to implement social intervention programmes, upgrade infrastructure, and boost rural enterprise as vital pillars of inclusive growth at the grassroots. Passing a vote of confidence on the governor, the ALGON chairman said the decision of the 31 local government leaders was inspired by Governor Eno's performance, people-centred policies, and inclusive governance style. "We have seen visible development across all sectors. Your leadership has been people-centered, inclusive, and development-driven. "We have just marked our first anniversary in office under the leadership of His Excellency, Pastor Umo Eno. This milestone gave us the opportunity to review the level of support and cooperation we have received from the state government in the past one year. The results have been phenomenal and have positively impacted our collective performance as council chairmen," he noted. Udo lauded the ARISE Agenda for complementing President Tinubu's Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI), describing both as synchronised frameworks advancing economic stability, empowerment, and inclusive development. Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Governance By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later. The ALGON chairman equally commended senate president, Godswill Akpabio for his transformative leadership at the National Assembly, which he said has brought visible results to Akwa Ibom State through people-focused projects and programmes. "We want him to return to the Senate and continue to lead the National Assembly in 2027. His experience and influence are invaluable to Akwa Ibom's development journey," he stressed. In a rare demonstration of bipartisan unity, Hon. Kufre Umoren, the chairman of Onna LGA - the only opposition council boss, pledged full support for governor Eno's 2027 re-election bid. Responding, governor Eno, commended the local government chairmen for translating the ARISE Agenda into visible community-level projects. "There is no local government that I am not happy with. I'm proud of all of you because you're doing well. Continue in that spirit of cooperation and healthy peer review so that development reaches every corner of our state," the governor assured. "As local government chairmen, you are my eyes in your areas. Galvanize your people, build trust and confidence, and let them feel the impact of governance," he added. APC state chairman, Obong Stephen Ntukekpo, praised the chairmen for demonstrating unity in the pursuit of good governance, while Ambassador Assam Assam (SAN), director-general of the Umo Eno Campaign Organization, reminded them to remain loyal and people-focused. A California-based company has issued a sweeping recall of almost 245,000 pounds of cooked pasta linked to a deadly listeria outbreak. Retail giants Walmart, Trader Joe's, and Sprouts have withdrawn products made with the pasta from Nate's Fine Foods, which is based in Roseville, according to the Associated Press. Consumers who purchased items from the recalled batches are urged to check their packaging and either return or dispose of the meals immediately. Nates Fine Foods produces linguine, fettuccine, penne and other pastas that are sold to major producers of heat-and-eat meals and pasta salads found in supermarkets nationwide. The company issued the recall on September 25, according to a US Food and Drug Administration notice posted Thursday. The FDA alert listed nine pre-prepared pasta salads and ready-to-heat meals that may contain the contaminated pasta. Scroll down to see the full list. The recall came after tests found possible contamination with Listeria monocytogenes a bacteria known to cause serious illness and even death in vulnerable populations. Tests showed that pasta made by Nates Fine Foods contained the same strain of listeria found in another deadly outbreak that has killed four people and sickened 20 since August of last year, including one illness reported in September. FreshRealm, a San Clemente company that used Nates pasta in its prepared meals, confirmed the genetic match between the samples and the ongoing outbreak. California-based company Nates Fine Foods has issued a sweeping recall of almost 245,000 pounds of pasta products Listeria, pictured here, is especially dangerous for pregnant women, potentially resulting in miscarriages (stock image) Marketside Linguine with Meatballs - which is sold at Walmart - was one of the products with a possible contamination Unlike most bacteria, Listeria can grow even in refrigerated environments, making it especially insidious in packaged foods. This outbreak comes days after the USDA issued a public health alert Monday for two microwavable meals from HelloFresh after an inspection found one ingredient, spinach, may be contaminated with listeria. Recalled products include 10.1-ounce containers of Hello Fresh Ready Made Meals Cheesy Pulled Pork Pepper Pasta and 10-ounce containers of Hello Fresh Ready Made Meals Unstuffed Peppers with Ground Turkey. Target has announced seven brandnew stores opening this fall as part of a massive push to bring the retailer closer to more Americans and five will open their doors today. The new locations will be spread across Arizona, California, Florida, Nebraska, South Carolina, Texas and Virginia. Six of the new stores will be bigger than the retail giant's average footprint of 125,000 square feet. The stores set to open on October 12 are in Queen Creek, AZ, Wesley Chapel, FL, Grand Island, NE, Indian Land, SC, and South Riding, VA. Each will offer expanded fresh food sections, shop-in-shop experiences like Apple and Disney at Target, and same-day pickup and delivery services. A week later, on October 19, additional stores will open in Fresno, CA, and Stafford, TX. Target says it plans to build more than 300 new stores over the next decade as part of its vision to make stores not just retail outlets but 'fulfillment hubs' meaning physical locations that also handle online-order delivery logistics. According to the company, its stores currently fulfill 95 percent of all digital orders, and its same-day 'Target Circle 360' delivery service now reaches 80 percent of US households. Target is opening seven new locations across the country The new Target locations will bring hundreds of new jobs to those areas With each opening, Target is also touting its job-creation impact. The new stores alone are expected to bring hundreds of new positions, with starting wages between $15 and $24 per hour, depending on the role and location, plus tuition-free education support for employees. Target's newest expansion comes just months after the retailer announced plans to launch 48 stores 'from the Big Apple to the California coast and in between.' The company has around 2,000 stores nationwide, with the highest concentration being in California, where there are 320 locations. In September, Target expanded its next-day deliveries to 35 of the top 60 US metro markets to fight back against Walmart and Amazon. Cities added onto the service included San Diego, California, and Orlando and Tampa, Florida. Target plans to add another 20 cities by next year. The company currently offers same-day delivery to more than 80 percent of the nation's population giving those shoppers the option to order online, and pick them up inside stores or at curbside. 'I think about us moving from this national fulfillment model to this market-based approach,' Gretchen McCarthy, Target's chief supply chain officer, told the Associated Press, explaining that keeping products in more local depots increase speed. The expansion is part of Target's push to make their brand accessible to more Americans Target's CEO Brian Cornell said he would step down from his position at the start of 2026 - he will stay on board as the executive chairman Targets transformation push began in 2017, and by 2029 the company offered same-day delivery of over 65,000 items. The service's popularity grew during the pandemic as Americans were forced to do more online shopping. The company began testing an Amazon-style shipping model this year, delivering products directly to customers' homes from factories. The plan is similar to services from Chinese e-commerce platforms like Shein and Temu. Two Chinese warships arrived Friday on what China called a friendship and training visit to Cambodia, Beijings closest ally in Southeast Asia, at a time of some diplomatic disquiet. The visit comes as China is trying to maintain a delicate balance in its relations with Cambodia and neighbouring Thailand, with which it is also friendly. The two Southeast Asian nations in late July were in armed conflict for five days over competing claims to border territory and Beijings supplying weaponry to Cambodia has caused irritation in Thailand. The border dispute has not been resolved and tensions remain high. Sam, a spokesperson for the Cambodian navy, said the main goal of the visit is to strengthen cooperation and that the warships were not intended to show support for Cambodia. Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh has said protecting the separation of powers of states and the Centre is not only a constitutional necessity, but it also helps promote a political culture of respect, dialogue and accommodation. Addressing a session at the 68th Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference in Bridgetown, Barbados, he said Indias experience has shown that unity in diversity is possible while safeguarding federal provisions. Indias experience shows unity in diversity is possible while safeguarding federal provisions. Indias journey can serve as a guiding principle for other nations in promoting equitable regional development within a democratic framework, Harivansh said in his concluding remarks. The Rajya Sabha deputy chairman participated in the session on National Parliaments vs Provincial, Territorial, Devolved Legislatures at the conference on Thursday. He apprised the participants from various countries about the key features of Indias federal structure and how some of the constitutional provisions operate with practical insights. The session was aimed at identifying the structure of decentralisation in various Commonwealth nations, focussing on the balance between national and sub-national legislatures and the sharing of best practices, the Rajya Sabha Secretariat said in a statement. The deputy chairman touched upon the federal balance outlined in Schedule VII of the Constitution and the critical role played by successive finance commissions in managing the fiscal transfers between the national and state governments. Protecting the separation of powers is not only a constitutional necessity, but it also promotes a political culture of respect, dialogue and accommodation, he noted. In addition to the formal separation of powers enshrined in the Constitution, there are government bodies that facilitate vibrant discussions and foster the cooperative spirit of federalism. For instance, the NITI Aayog Governing Council provides a platform to discuss inter-sectoral, inter-departmental and federal issues to accelerate the implementation of the national development agenda, he said. The delegation at the conference, consisting of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and other members of Parliament (MPs), participated in different workshops, including on leveraging technology, climate change and financial transparency. The delegation also held bilateral meetings with presiding officers from the parliaments of Jamaica, Australia, Zambia and Barbados. The theme of the conference is The Commonwealth: A Global Partner. On the sidelines of the conference, the delegation also interacted with the Indian diaspora. The Indian delegation is being led by Birla and besides Harivansh, has MPs Anurag Sharma, D Purandeswari, K Sudhakar, Ajeet Gopchade, Rekha Sharma and presiding officers from various States. You could well describe it as a "smart campus" if we were to deploy a contemporary description, for an academic space which packed so much within its moderate geographical land area. The University of Ilorin when it was birthed in 1975, germinated from the facilities of the erstwhile Government Technical College, Ilorin. It equally appropriated adjoining parcels of land around and about it, where it sat between the thighs of Agbo-Oba and Adewole Estate, in the capital of Kwara State. While a futuristically planned, idyllic, eye-catching campus spread across a land area of more than 10,000 hectares was gradually in the works elsewhere in Ilorin, academic activities began decisively in the primal mini campus of the institution. By the time I was admitted into the institution in 1982, the faculties of Arts, Social Sciences, Education and Clinical Medicine, were already domiciled in the fledgling school. So compact was that academe, that you could actually walk through the entire expanse in about an hour. Extracurricular activities flourished side by side with approved academic curriculums. I was always inclined towards performing and creative arts, including acting and creative writing. Indeed, I acted the role of King Odewale in the classic play The gods are not to Blame, written by the renowned Nigerian first generation playwright, Ola Rotimi. It was the convocation performance of the Kwara State College of Technology, (Kwaratech), Ilorin, just months before. As a student in the School of Basic Studies, (SBS) of the school where I wrote the Higher School Certificate Examination, (HSC) moderated by the University of Cambridge, I was auditioned for the role and selected. The University of Ilorin, which we abridged as Unilorin was going to provide more opportunities for the blossoming of this flair. Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn The Unilorin Creative Writers Group and the Ajon Players Drama Troupe were two extracurricular bodies which brought students together, outside the classroom space. David Cook, the venerated British scholar who nurtured several East African writers including Ngugi wa Thiong'o during his stint in Makerere University, Uganda, reenacted his baby project in Unilorin. He developed a creative writing course for final year students of English, in addition to the writers' group. The writers' group drew enthusiasts predominantly from the Department of Modern European Languages, which prosecuted courses in English and French. The department has since been unbundled into separate departments for both pursuits. Notable members of the Unilorin Creative Writers Group included: Sola Babatunde, Tivlumun Nyitse, Blessing Wikina, Mopah Aileku, Sunnie Ododo, Wumi Raji, Rasheed Na'Allah, Hakeem Bello, Olufunmilayo Olusunle, (then Adedeji), among others. Guided by Cook and some of our other teachers including Prayag Tripathi, (Indian); Russell Chambers, (American); Stephen Hesbon Lubega, (Ugandan); and Olu Obafemi, we met every week to discuss our teething efforts as cub writers. Some of us were concurrent members of Ajon Players which further cemented our friendships and relationships. It was from this background that Hakeem Babatunde Bello and I met and became good friends and brothers. I was in my final year when he was in the first year, but this was no barrier between Hakeem and I. Indeed, I graduated in 1985, but returned two years later for a masters when he was in his final year. Once I completed my postgraduate work in 1989, my eyes were focused on a career in the media, where a number of my classmates were already cutting their teeth. I got a job in the Daily Times of Nigeria in Lagos in 1990, when the revolutionary, charismatic Dr Yemi Ogunbiyi, was Managing Director. Hakeem was rounding up his masters at the University of Ibadan at the time and he equally had abiding interest in the media. A second class upper honours degree graduate in English, I was sure he could contribute to the Ogunbiyi rebuild project in the Daily Times. In 1991, I was redeployed from the Sunday Times, my first stop in the newspaper octopus, to the Daily Times, the flagship of the organisation. My reassignment left a vacuum in the Sunday Times and I was desirous that Hakeem replaced me. I sure didn't have the political or administrative leverage to bring him in at my level. But I had ideas which I believed we could explore. I tutored Hakeem to get referrals from any two of Ogunbiyi's contemporaries who Ogunbiyi held in very high esteem. I told him to speak with Professors Femi Osofisan, Niyi Osundare and Olu Obafemi. I assured him that recommendations from any two of these literary giants, all Emeritus Professors now, and all recipients of the Nigerian National Order of Merit, (NNOM), will easily sway Ogunbiyi. My suggestion worked. Hakeem was engaged. Ayo Akinkuotu, Wole Olatimehin, Maurice Ogar, Edwin Baiye, Gbenga Ayeni, all alumni of Unilorin were already embedded in the Daily Times system. Tunde Rahman joined us along the line. It was my privilege to help Hakeem acclimatise in his new official address. Hakeem was deployed to the same responsibilities I handled in Sunday Times. The brief necessitated standing astride the features and arts desks, and Hakeem acquitted himself competently. You couldn't be a product of that premier university in the whole of present day Kwara, Kogi and Niger states, without being a standout in your vocation. The University of Ilorin was the archetypal ilo-irin, the flaming forge where metals were beaten into shape. -Tunde Olusunle, PhD, Fellow of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA), is an Adjunct Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Abuja Hakeem and I had several editorial collaborations along the way. I was for instance assigned a full page in the Daily Times on Tuesdays, beginning from early 1994, for topical interviews with a broad spectrum of societal concerns. The series was titled Dialogue this Week. Hakeem and I conducted a few such engagements including a very explosive one with Ken Saro-Wiwa, the famous Ogoni rights activist and prolific author. It was so insightful that it was serialised over two editions of the newspaper. I dared the "lion's den," literally on one occasion, with Hakeem in tow. I wrote to Major General Mohammed Christopher Alli, the first Chief of Army Staff, (COAS), during the administration of General Sani Abacha, asking him for an interview. Alli acknowledged my correspondence, surprisingly and fixed a date for our engagement. I laugh out loud to myself whenever I remember how fear-frozen Hakeem was on that visit. From the gate of the Army Headquarters in Lagos at the time, through the reception area on the ground floor of the complex, all the way to the floor of the COAS, we were confronted with the sight of armed-to-the-teeth, helmeted, mean-looking uniformed soldiers. Hakeem held very tightly to my dress all the way, seeking comfort and reassurance in me! Sat Guru Marahaji, a self-styled sect leader who was based in Ibadan, who was always in the news those days, once caught our attention. Hakeem and I invited him to our office in the Agidingbi, Ikeja, Lagos office, for an interview. Yes we expected Sat Guru Maharaji would be accompanied by a few devotees of his sect, we didn't expect the wholesale takeover of the sprawling expanse of our official space, by his adherents. How would our bosses react to this invasion? The Managing Director of Daily Times had offices in our Kakawa, corporate headquarters on Lagos Island, and in Agidingbi, respectively. We had very senior managers and editors who could be averse to the situation. Hakeem and I looked in each other's eyes, even as he was confident I would typically conjure a solution to the situation. Happily, we had an understanding management which perceived we operated in the line of professional duty. Hakeem got wedded December 1993. Despite not having a car of mine, I was determined to attend the event with my fiance at the time. We hitch-hiked in public transportation from Lagos to Ibadan, and thereafter from Ibadan to Ejioku, Oyo State, which we thought was the venue of the wedding. We traced the home of Hakeem's in-laws in the community, only to be told that the ceremony had been concluded and Hakeem had, as tradition dictated, taken his bride away! My fiance, now my wife of over 30 years and I, looked at ourselves and the overhead night sky. Hakeem's mother-in-law interjected. As if reading our minds, Mama said she wouldn't even accept that we travelled so late in the night, even if we came with our vehicle. A room had been prepared for us in the house and we will spend the night with them. Hakeem rose to become editor of the most important publications in the stable of the organisation, Sunday Times and Daily Times respectively. It doesn't get bigger or better for a professional in our vocation. I had left the newsroom to function as an aide to former President Olusegun Obasanjo at the dawn of the Fourth Republic. My relationship with Hakeem continued to flourish despite our geographical distances. I looked out for him whenever I was in Lagos, and he reciprocated whenever he was in Abuja. In the course of one of his trips to Abuja, back in 2007, he let me into the fact that he was functioning as media aide to Babatunde Fashola, SAN, who was Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu at the time. Fashola was being primed to succeed Tinubu and Hakeem was on the project. Having served three Governors in my state in media and public information roles, and having been campaign media attache to Obasanjo during his own electioneering, he sought my advice. We sat together through several sessions, fashioning probable items on a schedule of duties, cork sure the Tinubu influence would swing it for Fashola. That Hakeem was a constant fixture on Fashola's core of principal officers for a record 16 years, between Fashola's years in Government House, Lagos, and the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing in Abuja, speaks to his sterling qualities, both as an individual and a professional. Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Education By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later. That we've served principals of different political inclinations, has never affected or coloured the relationship between Hakeem and I. We are primarily friends and brothers, inseparably joined together, for over four decades. I literally dragged him to the Nasarawa State University, (NSUK), a few years ago, to go register for his doctoral programme. He ended up at the University of Abuja where I also did my doctorate. Hakeem shouldn't let that intellectual flair, wither, I thought. My wife and I flew in 2023, from Abuja to attend the wedding of his eldest child, Barakah, in Lagos. A few years before, Hakeem's wife joined us in Ilorin, as we began the final rites of passage for my father, Pastor Jacob Adeniyi Olusunle. Hakeem learnt during the yuletide in 2019, that I was hospitalised in Ibadan. Here is a friend he considers too rugged to nurse a fever. He got into his car in Lagos and drove straight down to check up on me. Between us, we have nicknames, patented specifically by us. He hails me Kogi O, with reference to my abiding love for the state, much as the quality of leadership and governance of the nearly 34 years old state, has been pitifully underwhelming. I call him Rapsy Kima, the last bit an adaptation of his name, Hakeem. Both of us indeed share the same middle name, Babatunde. I've heard him hailed as Funky Alhaji by some of our propositions colleagues. What is more, Hakeem shares the same birthday, October 10, with my only daughter! Hakeem Babatunde Bello has been as humble, self-effacing and amiable as much as the prototype Yoruba omoluabi can be. He is loyal to friendship, unassuming in carriage. I am personally and specifically excited to welcome my brother to the "sixth floor" which to the glory of God I ascended earlier this year. Hakeem has "beaten" me to becoming a grandpa! I will join you in no distant time, by God's grace. May the lines continue to fall in pleasant places for you and may you remain the source of pride and happiness you've always been to us all. Hearty congratulations, my beloved brother. Together, we shall advance deep into old age in good health by divine grace. Tunde Olusunle, PhD, Fellow of the Association of Nigerian Authors, (FANA), is an Adjunct Professor of Creative Writing at the University of Abuja In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah, who sent down the Book as a clear exposition of all things; I bear witness that there is no deity but Allah, alone without partner, and I bear witness that our Prophet Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. O Allah, send Your peace and blessings upon him, upon his family, companions, and those who follow them with excellence until the Day of Judgment. Servants of Allah, O blessed gathering, we continue with you in the realm of the hadeeth about removing the veil from the tangle of things and lifting the veil from certain Friday matters for the lay folk. Among the issues before us today is the question of women's presence at the Friday prayer, one of the weightier issues that demands our careful consideration and explicit guidance. Servants of Allah, with Allah's help and by His favour, and after close and patient scrutiny of all that the eminent authorities have said on the matter of women's attendance to Friday prayers, ranging from absolutely prohibited, to disliked, to permitted, and including the decisive position of the Maliki school--our official jurisprudential school in Nigeria--where their presence is viewed with caution and where there is no harm to men in their gathering, especially in light of Ibn Rushd's classifications for women into four states: aged and withdrawn from public life, mixed company but modest, noticeably young and modest, and noticeably young and dissolute, and what the Qarafi and others differed on, making their attendance obligatory by choice, though Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines The majority of Malikis hold that their attendance suffices for the noon (Dhuhr) prayer, even if they are not explicitly summoned to attend. Servants of Allah, after careful study of the hadeeths that permit their attendance and others that stress the superiority of their prayers in their homes, and after examining the reasons for the prohibition across the four categories, these are the matters we undertake to address: Reasoned explanations for the diminution of obligation for the servant, and the hardship for the sick and the traveller, and the prevention of the corrupting vice of fornication by blocking its avenues. Servants of Allah. O people of blessing, this is a measure shaped by prudence, a safeguarding of public interest in a time when the number of Muslims seeks to augment in a society where religions contend for strength or wane, where nakedness and moral decay are widespread, and where religious motive wanes and concern for religious duties diminishes. Therefore, we deem it commendable that women attend Friday prayers in all four categories--the aged and withdrawn, the visibly young yet modest, the visibly young yet remarkable, and the visibly young yet unobtrusive--within a community ravaged by such ills. This follows the maxim: "Prevention of harm takes precedence over the pursuit of benefit." If it be decreed or assumed that in their presence there is a peril of temptation--which is not at all evident in this era, given that every mosque or a Friday Masjid houses women with veiled curtains, partitions, and walls--then that peril is not greater than the dangers already mentioned. For the harm of incurring fornication is not greater than the harm caused by ignorance of the faith; indeed, the aim of preserving faith among the scholars of Maqaasid is higher than the aim of safeguarding lineage and honour. When two harms conflict, the greater is not sacrificed for the lesser; and their presence (for prayers in the Masjid) is less harmful than their absence, for absence gives rise to the spread of degeneracy and moral decay among the young. The mothers have missed the mission of the Friday sermon--its teaching, admonition, and guidance--and they need to learn and adhere to it in order to manage their households effectively and fulfil the rights of their husbands and children. Allah bless Ibrahim's memory, who sang: The mother is the teacher of teachers, whose achievements fill the horizons. The mother nourishes life if you take care of her with kindness. The mother is a schoolteacher if you prepare her for the task. And another said: The first filth of water is the filth of its soil. The first filth of people is the filth of marriage. Servants of Allah, the danger of temptation when women attend the mosques--the very thing that has occasioned the admonitions--has been mitigated and, indeed, addressed by erecting a barrier between the male and female prayer spaces, and by maintaining their modesty and decorum. The ruling follows its underlying cause, whether it exists or not; if the cause is removed, the ruling is also removed. Our Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him, did not conceal this truth: "Do not prevent Allah's maidens from attending the Masaajids of Allah; they should go out, modestly veiled, not provocatively, to safeguard against temptations." This guidance covers Friday and the congregational prayer: they may attend with modest dignity, without exposing themselves to Fitnah. Add to this the fact that the Prophet, peace be upon him, permitted and even urged women to attend the two greater congregations of prayer: Eid prayers, which are more numerous and more public than Friday, and the attendance of which is sunnah, then their attendance at Friday--which was originally obligatory--remains superior and preferred. Servants of Allah, in the Prophet's statement, peace be upon him: "If the wife of any one of you seeks his consent to go to the mosque, let him not prevent her"--a sign of the permissibility of their attendance, for had sitting at home been the preferred course, the Prophet would not have forbidden husbands from preventing them to attend. Moreover, the indications in the hadeeths that speak of women's non-exit from their dwellings are explicit that their prayer at home is best, yet they are not explicit in prohibiting them from going out to pray. Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later. And, O people, nothing in the texts authorises a prohibition to prohibit a wife from leaving for prayer when she is appropriately adorned, chaste, and with her husband's permission. Servants of Allah, there is no doubt that jurists have long taught that a legal ruling may differ across four dimensions: time, place, persons, and circumstances. We do not deny that rulings shift with changing times and places, for our Nigerian society may require filtering and refining of women--a task not achieved by staying alone in their homes. If we miss the chance for them to attend and listen to the sermon in a society such as this, who then will carry out their legitimate and social role? How could she be spared from deception, or misguidance--intellectually, ideationally, behaviourally, credally, and religiously? Especially in a society where wolves abound and scoundrels have their day. What we say, Servants of Allah, is a practice in line with the Maqaasid of priorities and the jurisprudence of environments, and how much we need them in these perilous times. Contemporary scholars--such as Sheikh Al-Sha'rawi in his fatwas, and Sheikh Qais al-Sheikh, a member of the Majlis of Senior Scholars of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, along with Sheikh Muhammad al-Hassan Walad al-Dodou and other venerable scholars--affirm this view. Servants of Allah, pray and send blessings upon the guiding Prophet, Muhammad, peace be upon him. State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada Zip Code The Colleges of Education Academic Staff Union (COEASU) has awarded N4 million in scholarships to six outstanding Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE) students drawn from the country's six geopolitical zones. The scholarship came as part of the union's activities marking the 2025 World Teachers' Day in Abuja yesterday. This was disclosed during the valedictory address of the outgoing COEASU president, Dr Smart Odunayo Olugbeko, at the celebration, which also featured the inauguration of the new National Officers' Council and an award ceremony. The event was organised under the theme "Teachers: Leading in Crisis, Reimagining the Future." Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines Dr Olugbeko, who delivered his farewell speech titled "Legacy of a Collective Progress," said the scholarships formed part of COEASU's National Scholarship Award for Outstanding NCE Students, introduced in 2024 to promote merit and academic excellence in teacher education. "Following a rigorous national examination conducted by the Union, we are pleased to honour the best NCE students from each of the six geopolitical zones with a scholarship of N500,000 each. And to the overall best student in Nigeria, we present a scholarship of B1 million, a symbol of national pride and academic distinction," he said. He also announced the renaming of the national best student prize in honour of the late Khalid Yunusa, a student of Jigawa State College of Education, Gumel, who tragically lost his life en route to the zonal stage of the scholarship examination in September. "In honour of his memory and the ideals he represented, the Union has resolved to rename the National Best NCE Student Award as the Khalid Yunusa Best NCE Student Award in Nigeria," Olugbeko stated, noting that COEASU's development partner, AFFIT, had also pledged to immortalise the deceased student through a scholarship for learners in his community. Dr Olugbeko, who served as COEASU president from 2021 to 2025, used the occasion to recount key milestones of his administration. In his goodwill message, the minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, commended COEASU for maintaining constructive engagement with the government and contributing to reforms in the teacher education sub-sector. "Teachers are the custodians of stability and the architects of change. At the ministry, we are driving a clear agenda to reposition the teaching profession, professionalising, empowering and rewarding teachers," Dr Alausa said. Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Education By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later. Represented by Dr Iyabo Ali, a director from the ministry, the minister reaffirmed the federal government's commitment to the Dual Mandate Policy, which enables Colleges of Education to run degree programmes alongside NCE programmes. The minister lauded Dr Olugbeko's leadership for fostering industrial harmony within the system and urged the incoming executive to build on the achievements recorded between 2021 and 2025. The incoming president of the union, Dr Ahmed Lawan Bazza, said the mandate given to him was to protect the welfare of members, advance the cause of teacher education, and build a stronger, more united COEASU. "We shall, therefore, continue to engage the government and relevant agencies to ensure the full implementation of the basic instrument with which these aspirations of ours can be achieved the FGN-COEASU 2010 Agreement. "We shall also ensure that the rights and privileges of our members are honoured as appropriate. We shall strengthen our advocacy for the repositioning of Colleges of Education, ensuring adequate funding, infrastructural development, and improved conditions for teaching practice and demonstration schools," Bazza stated. The national president of Orluzurumee Youth Assembly (OYA), Prince Izunna Obiefule, has accused the Imo State government-sponsored vigilante outfit, Ebubeagu Security Network, of extra-judicial killing, maiming, unlawful arrest, and detention of innocent youths in Orlu, Orsu, Oru West, Oru East and other parts of Imo State. According to him, while the atrocities were being meted out on hapless innocent villagers, government, and security agencies were mum about such activities, saying the local vigilante was doing the job of the police and judiciary within Orlu zone. Obiefule made the disclosure while speaking during a report presentation and campaign launch, tagged "A Decade Of Impunity, Attacks And Unlawful Killings In South East Nigeria", by Amnesty International in Enugu on Tuesday. He called on the authorities to caution the vigilante operatives to stop being reckless and hostile to the villages, adding that such illicit community policing was very inimical to the porous insecurity situation in the state. Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines Further, he called on government to adequately equip security agencies to enable them combat crime and insecurity to a standstill, so as to restore security, peace and comfort in Imo State, particularly in Orlu senatorial zone. OYA opined that adequate fighting equipment, gadgets and operational vehicles will strengthen security agencies to be proactive in fighting criminals who also use sophisticated arms and ammunition to unleash mayhem on the people especially those who are helpless. Obiefule however regretted that government and the security agents were not doing enough to curtail crime, violence and killing in Imo State particularly in Orlu zone, otherwise insecurity could not have lingered. While he frowned at the unlawful arrest, long detention, imprisonment, maiming and killing of law-abiding citizens, Obiefule called on government to punish any security agent, whether Police, Army or Vigilante who operated contrary to the law in carrying out security duties. He said, "Orlu senatorial zone is the worst hit of the insecurity situation in Imo State. The Police and the judiciary should rise and caution the excesses of some security agents including the vigilante outfits. It is a thing out of place that law-abiding youths are being dehumanized and killed on daily basis in Orlu, Orsu, Oru West and Oru East especially. "Security agents should be professional in dealing with the insecurity situation so that innocent people and their property would not be destroyed as violations of human rights in South East have grown beyond control", he said. Close Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox Top Headlines Nigeria Human Rights By submitting above, you agree to our privacy policy. Success! Almost finished... We need to confirm your email address. To complete the process, please follow the instructions in the email we just sent you. Error! Error! There was a problem processing your submission. Please try again later. Further, he listed greed, corruption, selfishness, wickedness by government officials as the major cause of insecurity in the region, adding that good governance and youth empowerment can contain and curtail crime and violence if they are prioritized. Obiefule said, "For crime, violence and insecurity to reduce or be eliminated entirely in South East, government officials should shun greed, corruption, selfishness and marginalization and embrace good governance, purposeful leadership as obtained in a democratic setting. "OYA, as the apex and umbrella youth body of Orlu senatorial district, is calling on security forces to improve in securing law-abiding citizens. "Government should adequately equip security apparatuses with modern weapons, gadgets to be able to combat insecurity. Youth should shun crime and violence - organ harvesting, kidnapping, armed robbery, cultism, banditry, terrorism and embrace hard work to become useful", Obiefule said. The housing crisis is an issue on the tip of nearly every Australian's tongue, whether you're a homeowner, a first-home buyer or a renter. The lack of housing supply is pushing up prices, leaving many everyday Aussies fearing they will be locked out of homeownership and some without a home at all. Governments and local authorities are doing what they can to bridge the gap, and developers are scrambling to meet ambitious targets to build more affordable housing to match the demand. But a sinister and lesser-talked-about problem is emerging as a result of the push to build new homes waste. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Corners are being cut when it comes to removing rubbish from construction sites and the sheer volume of waste emerging as a consequence of the race to build homes is leaving a catastrophic and ugly mark on the environment. This was laid bare by an "incredibly brazen" dumping of over a tonne of construction waste on the side of the road in one of the country's fastest-growing municipalities on the outskirts of Melbourne. Shocking photos supplied to Yahoo News show timber, concrete, and rubble littered along Holdern Road in Toolern Vale, suspected to have been dumped there with a tip truck on October 5. It prompted a scathing warning from the town's mayor, who has been fighting to crack down on the pervasive issue. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mayor Steve Abboushi told Yahoo News that there is "no excuse" for illegal rubbish dumping, an ongoing crisis in the region costing the City of Melton over $3 million a year to clean up. Council workers scrambled to clean up the hazardous scene. Source: Supplied If caught, offenders risk fines of up to $2,000 for individuals and nearly $10,000 for businesses," he said. Abboushi said in the last financial year, 143 fines were issued for illegal dumping and 14 matters were referred to court. "If you dump your rubbish illegally in our City, you risk getting caught and penalised," he warned. Concrete, wood and rubble were among the illegally dumped waste on the side of the road. Source: Supplied Calls for 'patrols' to catch illegal waste dumpers in the act It comes as the council cracks down on the building industry, but there is just one problem. Council has no idea who dumped the waste. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While the council has introduced proactive measures to deter illegal dumping, including cameras installed in high-risk dumping locations, there will always be cases that slip through the cracks. Last financial year, the City of Melton alone spent over $3 million cleaning up illegally dumped rubbish. Thats equates to more than 6000 tonnes or approximately 200 big garbage trucks. The waste was so close to the road that it would have been "easy" for someone to inadvertently drive into it in the dark, the resident who took the photos said. "Whoever dumped that waste had zero concerns for the safety of other road users," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He called for regular patrols to catch dumpers in the act. "If there were regular patrols, perhaps some of the dumpers would be caught," he said. EPA given 'greater powers' to crack down on illegal dumping A Victorian government spokesperson previously told Yahoo News it is aware of the impact illegal dumping has on local communities and the government. "That's why we have given the EPA greater powers to crack down on offenders, including tougher penalties for repeat offenders," he said. "The EPA is working with local governments across the state, along with industry and community to address this issue as part of its Illegal Waste Disposal Program, which aims to disrupt systematic illegal waste disposal." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rubbish dumping and littering on public land is illegal, with the maximum penalty for businesses being $3,951,800, or for individuals $800,000 or 5 years imprisonment, or both. Victorians are urged to report illegal dumping by contacting the EPA on 1300 372 842. Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com. You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube. Derry-based author, Sue Divin, recently delivered a creative writing workshop for the local writers group in Raphoe, to find out that her novel is on the Junior Cycle Curriculum. Congratulations on getting your novel onto the curriculum, said a lady in the group. Sue wondered if shed heard correctly. It turns out, not that shed known until then, that her second novel, Truth Be Told, has indeed been included in the Junior Cycle English curriculum. Sues previous book, Guard Your Heart, made references to Donegal and her upcoming novel, to be released next year, Runaway Road, will feature the Inishowen Peninsula. Truth Be Told, which was shortlisted in the Irish Book Awards, is described as Derry Girls meets Parent Trap. As a YA/Crossover, it will appeal to adults and teenagers. Up front, its the story of two sixteen-year-old girls, Tara (from Derry) and Faith (from Armagh), who meet on a youth trip for the first time and discover they look virtually identical. The mystery is why? Sue, who says she is both thrilled and honoured to have her novel on the curriculum, says her novel is A quest set in the context of the north of Ireland in Autumn 2019. Readers should expect laughs, tears, and a rollercoaster of a read. Its also a novel about truth, forgiveness and the stories of women across three generations. Id love it if some of the schools in Donegal chose to study it, she says. One of my favourite things as an author is having the opportunity to engage with readers. Sues first novel, Guard Your Heart (A Romeo and Juliet set in Derry in 2016), won the Great Reads Award (Ireland) and was shortlisted for the prestigious Carnegie Medal, formerly won by C.S.Lewis (author of the famous Narnia series). Guard Your Heart had many scenes set in Donegal, including Lisfannon Beach, Grianan Fort and Kinnagoe Bay. Fans of her writing, or adults and teens looking for a good read, may be interested to know that her next novel, Runaway Road (out in May 2026), is set along the Inishowen Wild Atlantic Way. Its not quite top secret, the author says of her next book, but I cant say too much until it's published! Suffice to say, though, Donegal, especially the Amazing Grace coastline, is a part of the world I adore, and features strongly in Runaway Road. Lets hope the discerning Donegal readers like it! READ NEXT: Connect North offers free drop-in sessions for Positive Ageing Month To celebrate being on the Junior Cycle curriculum, the author is doing a free giveaway. Any Donegal post-primary school considering teaching Truth Be Told who would like a free copy of the novel as a donation to their school library, can request one via the authors webpage www.suedivin.com To mark World Arthritis Day, the charity Versus Arthritis, in partnership with local councils, will light prominent buildings across Northern Ireland blue to raise awareness of a condition it says is far too often ignored and misunderstood. The two-day campaign will take place on Sunday, October 12, and Monday, October 13. Among the landmarks to be illuminated are: Causeway Coast and Glens Council HQ at Cloonavin, Coleraine; Derry City and Strabane - Alley Theatre, Strabane and the Council Offices, Strand Road; Mid Ulster - Ranfurly House, Dungannon, and Burnavon Arts & Cultural Centre, Cookstown. In Northern Ireland, there are currently as many as 525,000 people, around 29% of the adult population living with musculoskeletal conditions, including arthritis, today. Speaking on the action from the charity on World Arthritis Day, Siobhan Edgar, aged 63 from County Armagh, shares her experience of living with osteoarthritis: I have lived with arthritis for 36 years now and underwent knee replacement surgery in 2024 after waiting for over seven years for the operation. Now I need my other knee replaced and with the waiting times like they are, I cant help but feel back where I started. I was referred to orthopaedics in August for total knee replacement surgery and was told last month that the waiting list, just to see the surgeon, is four and a half years. I wont be placed on the surgery waiting list until after I have been seen by the surgeon. Although being on the waiting list for a long time isnt something that is new to me after getting my first knee replaced, I am now very aware of the impact it will have on my life. Living with pain that affects every aspect of your life is incredibly tough. I cant help but feel every time I try and do something, it feels like I'm going 2 steps forward and then one step back. Nearly 24,000 people are waiting to be admitted for orthopaedic surgery in Northern Ireland, with 64% waiting more than a year. The statistics also show that in some areas, one in twenty are waiting around six years for surgery, such as a hip or knee replacement - a treatment that could transform their lives. Sara Graham, Head of Northern Ireland at Versus Arthritis said: The impact that arthritis has on the community is huge and is often overlooked and misunderstood. It can affect people of all ages and can significantly affect their quality of life, something that Siobhan knows all too well. Now more than ever it is so important we continue to highlight the issues people who live with arthritis in Northern Ireland face every day. We are so grateful to councils collaborating with Versus Arthritis across Northern Ireland who plan to light up buildings in blue to mark World Arthritis Day. It is a great reminder to the community who live with arthritis and MSK conditions of hope, that they are not alone and the people of Northern Ireland take arthritis seriously. Arthritis affects 10 million people in the UK. Many people experience severe pain, fatigue, and reduced mobility everyday affecting the ability to work, care for a family, and live independently. The charity wants the light-up of buildings to inspire people with arthritis in the community to share their stories and experiences, and to know they are not alone and there is support available to those who need it. As well as raising awareness of arthritis and investing in research, the charity offers practical support through a range of services. These include information about the conditions, self-management advice, exercise programmes, online communities and how you can get involved. To find out more about the support on offer provided by the charity, please CLICK HERE. Irish premier Micheal Martin has said he is deeply sorry for how Fianna Fail candidate Jim Gavin had fared during the presidential race. The Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader said he had not spoken to the partys former presidential contender but said he was in touch with friends of Mr Gavin. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender last Sunday after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 euros in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. Ive been speaking to people close to Jim, he said. I think Jim is obviously having time with himself and his family, and I think that should be respected, and I think its been very traumatic for him and very difficult for him and for his family, and Im very conscious and aware of that. I have been talking to close friends of Jim. He said he is glad to see that that has been resolved in relation to Mr Gavin reportedly repaying his former tenant 3,300 euro. I think the tenant is also a victim in all of this, he said. I listened to the podcast (the tenant spoke on) and I think he spoke frankly and candidly and in a very reasonable manner. So Im glad that that has been resolved. He made the comments at the annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how presidential candidate Mr Gavin fared. Addressing the event, he said he was deeply sorry for how things turned out, and acknowledged the disappointment within the party. Clearly we need to have a new procedure for deciding when we run a candidate for president and who that candidate is to be, he said. I for one support the idea that we move to a process which is in tune with the wider reforms which we have introduced in the past. Tonight, we think of Jim Gavin and his family who have gone through a very traumatic time, he added, which drew applause from the room. Jim Gavin has made a very significant contribution to our country as UN peacekeeper, public servant and in his impactful work in the North East inner city of Dublin where he is hugely respected. This needs to be said. Speaking to the media before his address, Mr Martin also explained his decision not to direct party members to vote a certain way, stating it would represent a certain degree of arrogance if he did. He said he would vote for Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys, as its important that the president of Ireland is one who can get on with other countries, but said he would not campaign for her. Earlier, Ms Humphreys thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her. Presidential candidate Catherine Connolly said on Saturday that Mr Martin was entitled to back Ms Humphreys and said: I think he probably has actually clarified the situation that for the leadership of Fianna Fail there is very little difference between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, so the people of Ireland have a clear choice to make now. Mr Gavins withdrawal has left just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks. On Saturday, Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. She said: We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 euros of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach Micheal Martin for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. According to data compiled by the Gasgoo Automotive Research Institute, China's automotive smart components market showed strong localization for the Jan.-Jul. period, high concentration, and rapid iteration. In key areas such as smart speech solution, cockpit domain controller, head-up display (HUD), and screen integration, Chinese suppliers gained a dominant position due to their fast response, tailored technology, and integrated ecosystems. iFLYTEK led the smart speech solution segment with a 44% share, while Desay SV and Foryou Multimedia also maintained leading positions across several niches. Meanwhile, premium features such as augmented reality HUD (AR-HUD) and large-screen integration are spreading quickly, pushing supply-chain technology competition to a deeper, more complex stage. Against the backdrop of accelerating localization, the market is moving toward clearer technology tiers, tighter ecosystem collaboration and more differentiated innovation. Top cockpit domain controller suppliers Desay SV: 751,163 sets installed, 15.6% market share Bosch: 428,784 sets installed, 8.9% market share Autolink: 338,630 sets installed, 7.0% market share ECARX: 323,211 sets installed, 6.7% market share PEGATRON/Quanta (Tesla): 306,564 sets installed, 6.4% market share Megatronix: 294,036 sets installed, 6.1% market share Foryou General Electronics: 260,260 sets installed, 5.4% market share Huawei Technologies: 260,041 sets installed, 5.4% market share Honeycomb Electronics: 254,921 sets installed, 5.3% market share HARMAN: 245,179 sets installed, 5.1% market share From Januarary to July, China's cockpit domain controller market took shape around a few clear leaders and a growing mix of challengers. Desay SV led the pack with 751,163 sets installed (15.6% share). Bosch (8.9%), Autolink (7.0%) and others formed a solid second tier, while Huawei Technologies (5.4%), Foryou General Electronics (5.4%) and PEGATRON/Quanta (Tesla) (6.4%) added a strong tech edge to the field. With cockpit integration accelerating, scale, software capability and ecosystem ties became decisive, and both traditional suppliers and new players reshaped the competitive map. Top brands of smart cockpit domain controller chip Qualcomm: 3,660,753 units installed, 74.5% market share AMD: 311,880 units installed, 6.3% market share Huawei: 277,874 units installed, 5.7% market share SiEngine: 245,790 units installed, 5.0% market share Renesas Electronics: 143,123 units installed, 2.9% market share SemiDrive: 89,339 units installed, 1.8% market share MediaTek: 59,173 units installed, 1.2% market share Samsung Semiconductor: 53,117 units installed, 1.1% market share Texas Instruments: 34,286 units installed, 0.7% market share Intel: 10,964 units installed, 0.2% market share Cockpit domain controller chip market showed a clear "one dominant, many contenders" pattern, with Qualcomm holding over 70% of the market thanks to its scale and technical strength. China's local players such as Huawei (5.7%), SiEngine (5.0%) and SemiDrive (1.8%) steadily increased their shares, pushing localization above 10% and signaling real progress in homegrown automotive chips. While Qualcomm's lead remains hard to challenge in the short term, the rapid advances in technology and installations by Chinese suppliers are opening space for import substitution and pointing to a more diversified market ahead. Top HUD suppliers Foryou Multimedia: 446,244 sets installed, 21.5% market share DENSO: 273,499 sets installed, 13.2% market share New Vision: 266,994 sets installed, 12.8% market share FUTURUS: 195,398 sets installed, 9.4% market share E-LEAD: 195,202 sets installed, 9.4% market share FinDreams Precision: 156,985 sets installed, 7.5% market share Huawei: 135,999 sets installed, 6.5% market share Continental AG: 124,888 sets installed, 6.0% market share Hefei Jiangcheng Technology: 101,612 sets installed, 4.9% market share Crystal-Optech: 97,944 sets installed, 4.7% market share Foryou Multimedia led the HUD market for the Jan.-Jul. period with a 21.5% share, followed by DENSO (13.2%) and New Vision (12.8), with top suppliers benefiting from scale and established client networks. FUTURUS and E-LEAD held similar shares (9.4%), reflecting tight competition, while tech companies like Huawei (6.5%) and Continental AG (6.0%) alongside traditional Tier-1s captured notable portions of the market. As differentiation in automotive displays accelerated, HUD suppliers increasingly focused on AR-HUD innovation, deeper integration with OEMs, and production capacity expansion to secure growth opportunities. Top AR-HUD suppliers Foryou Multimedia: 151,733 sets installed, 22.3% market share. E-LEAD: 149,236 sets installed, 21.9% market share. Huawei: 135,999 sets installed, 20.0% market share. Crystal-Optech: 97,944 sets installed, 14.4% market share. FinDreams Precision: 44,936 sets installed, 6.6% market share. New Vision: 36,523 sets installed, 5.4% market share. FUTURUS: 19,778 sets installed, 2.9% market share. Hirain Technologies: 17,978 sets installed, 2.6% market share. Hefei Jiangcheng Technology: 14,813 sets installed, 2.2% market share. LG Electronics: 7,849 sets installed, 1.2% market share. From January to July, China's AR-HUD market highlighted the growing strength of domestic suppliers, with a clear concentration at the top. Foryou Multimedia (22.3%), E-LEAD (21.9%) and Huawei (20.0%) ranked the top 3 with a combined share of over 64%, underscoring their scale advantage. China's local players accelerated breakthroughs through technology innovation and supply chain integration, driving rapid penetration of AR-HUD in passenger vehicles. Meanwhile, a diverse group of smaller suppliers competed in niche segments such as optics and interaction design. Overall, localization gained momentum, and mass-production capability and cost control emerged as core competitive factors as the market entered a phase of faster adoption and reshaping. Top suppliers of integrated center console display Desay SV: 2,172,008 sets installed, 18.5% market share BYD: 1,822,795 sets installed, 15.5% market share HSAE: 870,950 sets installed, 7.4% market share BICV: 566,088 sets installed, 4.8% market share Foryou General Electronics: 562,183 sets installed, 4.8% market share Panasonic: 508,363 sets installed, 4.3% market share Innolux: 444,821 sets installed, 3.8% market share HIWAY: 420,698 sets installed, 3.6% market share FULSCIENCE: 369,192 sets installed, 3.1% market share BOE: 312,817 sets installed, 2.7% market share From January to July, China's integrated center console display market was dominated by local suppliers. Desay SV (18.5%) and BYD (15.5%) held the top two positions with a combined share of over 34%, underscoring their strong competitiveness. Players such as HSAE (7.4%) and BICV (4.8%) also leveraged technology and supply-chain synergies to secure key positions. As in-vehicle smartization accelerates, China's local suppliers are rapidly expanding their share by aligning closely with local demand and responding quickly, driving the localization of supply. Top suppliers of integrated LCD instrument cluster Desay SV: 1,352,610 sets installed, 12.1% market share Tianyouwei: 933,688 sets installed, 8.4% market share Continental AG: 882,644 sets installed, 7.9% market share DENSO: 871,382 sets installed, 7.8% market share Visteon: 809,208 sets installed, 7.3% market share Foryou General Electronics: 687,127 sets installed, 6.2% market share BYD: 674,668 sets installed, 6.1% market share HSAE: 502,066 sets installed, 4.5% market share LG Electronics: 345,293 sets installed, 3.1% market share Bosch: 332,825 sets installed, 3.0% market share From January to July, China's passenger vehicle LCD instrument cluster market displayed a competitive landscape with multiple strong players. Desay SV led the pack with a 12.1% share (1,352,610 sets installed), followed by Tianyouwei (8.4%), Continental AG (7.9%), DENSO (7.8%), and Visteon (7.3%), each holding 7.3%-8.4%. Chinas local companies like Desay SV and BYD competed closely with international Tier-1s such as Continental and Bosch, highlighting the growing capability of local suppliers to rival global brands. The market reflects both high concentration at the top and a diverse competitive environment driven by the widespread adoption of high-definition LCD clusters. Top smart speech solution suppliers iFLYTEK: 4,601,319 sets installed, 44.0% market share AISpeech: 1,824,071 sets installed, 17.4% market share Cerence: 1,538,889 sets installed, 14.7% market share Baidu: 789,765 sets installed, 7.5% market share DreamSmart: 342,188 sets installed, 3.3% market share Tesla: 306,564 sets installed, 2.9% market share ECARX: 272,140 sets installed, 2.6% market share VW-Mobvoi: 224,113 sets installed, 2.1% market share Xiaomi EV: 188,305 sets installed, 1.8% market share Megatronix: 101,999 sets installed, 1.0% market share Chinese suppliers dominated the smart speech solution market for the Jan.-Jul. period. iFLYTEK led the pack with a 44.0% share, leveraging its technical expertise and deep industry experience. AISpeech (17.4%) and Cerence (14.7%) followed closely, driving the rapid iteration of voice functionalities. Baidu (7.5%), DreamSmart (3.3%), and other ecosystem players participated through cross-industry initiatives, while global brands like Tesla (2.9%) held relatively limited shares. Overall, local suppliers shaped the market through adaptability and fast service, with future competition expected to hinge on technological iteration and ecosystem integration, requiring foreign brands to strengthen localized innovation to enhance their market influence. Micheal Martins hands shook slightly, some attendees of Wednesday evenings Fianna Fail parliamentary party meeting said, and his voice threatened to break. In an emotional address, the Taoiseach apologised for his partys presidential election debacle and acknowledged the hurt and shock of party members, saying he was devastated. Mr Martin had been obviously upset in the days after Jim Gavins bombshell withdrawal from the presidential election late on Sunday night, in the midst of a controversy over a dispute he had with a former tenant about an overpaid 3,300. Fianna Fail members are angry that without a presidential candidate they will be locked out of the Aras for at least another seven years. The parliamentary party meeting the PP, as its members call it was billed as the fight of the Taoiseachs life, with some members claiming there would be blood in the air. In the end, it turned out to be nothing of the sort. Mr Martin gave what some of his harshest critics acknowledged was a sincere and contrite address, followed by an exhaustive account of the due diligence the party had undertaken prior to selecting Mr Gavin. The Taoiseach said he was open to any suggestions on changing the presidential selection process, adding that he always had the best interest of the party at heart. Speaker after speaker outlined their disappointment, with most stressing the duty of care the party had to Mr Gavin and his family. In truth, the heat had probably gone out of the PP by lunchtime on Wednesday, when justice minister Jim OCallaghan, who is still seen by some as a future leader, announced that he was happy that Mr Martin was doing a very good job as leader of Fianna Fail and, indeed, as Taoiseach. One of the Cork rebels had actually predicted on Monday that something like that would happen, telling this reporter bitterly: Big Jim is after marching us up to the top of the hill more than once, and hell probably march us back down again this week, too. It was striking that in the week of one of the biggest set-pieces of the parliamentary calendar, the main question seemed to be Budget? What budget? That wasnt the main question in The Groves in Blackpool on Tuesday, as the lunchtime crew glared at the budget on the big screen, while they gave out about a measly tenner on the pension, the cost of living, and the (untouched) price of the pint. There, the main question was: Cmere, is Micheal f**cked or what? As the week unfolded, it turned out he probably wasnt, or at least not yet. Still, there was a telling moment in the PP when former ceann comhairle Sean O Fearghail suggested that there needed to be a major rethink in the party come January 2027, when Ireland completes its presidency of the European Union. The office of Taoiseach is due to rotate to Fine Gael in November 2027, and Mr Martin has repeatedly said he intends to lead Fianna Fail in to the next election, which is expected to occur at the end of 2029. If he were to so much as hint that he was not planning on leading the party in to the next election it would immediately be game over for him, but, even so, Mr Martin does appear genuine in his desire to stay on until at least then. Mr O Fearghails intervention now challenges that. If the immediate threat to Mr Martins position appears to have passed, Jim Gavins name remaining on the ballot means he wont be able to draw a line under this catastrophe just yet. Meanwhile, back at the race, Paddy Power has already paid out on a President Connolly, so perhaps its all over. Perhaps not, though. They paid out on Cork, too. Mr Martin has often said that most people those who are not politicians, journalists, or insatiable nerds only tend to really tune in during the final four or five days of any election campaign. If the Taoiseach is right even if his own heart is gone out of it now Heather Humphreys may still have it all to play for. On Tuesday, Mr Martin said he would not be asking Fianna Fail supporters to lend their votes to the Fine Gael candidate, saying: Look, people will make their own individual decisions I dont believe in dictating to people, or telling them how to vote. That never works. Maybe he was still smarting at being called a dictator by Galway county councillor Michael Regan, or maybe the party faithful will get the message the same way Fianna Fail councillors didnt need to be specifically told not to nominate anyone else to run for the presidency. One local Fianna Failer a Micheal man didnt need to be told, saying this week that he would have to rewrite his own political DNA and vote for Heather Humphreys, for once allowing ideology to outweigh history. There is an adage among seasoned political reporters that presidential elections always deliver, but few have ever delivered so magnificently as this one. Still, for connoisseurs of the genre, it might be worth recalling the 2011 election, which was truly a golden age of presidential spectaculars. Senator David Norriss campaign came a-cropper when it emerged that he had, years earlier, written a letter on Oireachtas-headed paper to an Israeli court pleading for leniency for his former partner, Ezra Nawi, who had been convicted of statutory rape of a 15-year-old Palestinian boy. Mr Norris withdrew from the campaign in early August, before returning in late September. Following encouragement from Labour candidate Michael D Higgins, four councils nominated Mr Norris, and he went on to come fifth of seven candidates. During the TV3 presidential debate, host Vincent Browne grilled Martin McGuinness about his membership of the IRA, producing from under his desk, one after another, eight books, which each contended that the Sinn Fein candidate had been a leading member long after he had claimed he had left. It was described at the time as an ambush worthy of General Tom Barry. And Dana Rosemary Scallon declared we must assume erroneously that a burst tyre was an assassination attempt. Memorable, too, was the reaction of RTEs David McCullagh, who responded to this possibly Kennedyesque near-miss via the medium of both eyebrows, while employing the full name and title of the saviour. During the 1997 United Kingdom general election campaign, the Labour Party, enjoying a sizeable lead in the polls and terrified of doing anything to frighten the horses, began to shed potentially controversial policy commitments. As leader Tony Blair strove to find a balance between keeping his own party onside and courting the wider electorate, Liberal Democrats peer Roy Jenkins likened him to a man carrying a delicate Ming vase across a polished museum floor: One slip and it smashes. This week, while Fianna Fail was attempting to deal with what Malcolm Tucker might have termed an omnishambles, the two remaining candidates did their best with their own Ming vases, neither one entirely successfully. Responding to a question on the issuing of a gender certificate for a trans prisoner, Heather Humphreys said: A woman is a female adult and a man is a male adult. Thats my belief. But we know the world is not black and white, and there are complexities there. Obviously, its a difficult situation. This response was celebrated by some as common sense and condemned by others as a betrayal of trans people. Catherine Connolly took 24 hours to eventually answer that, no, she would not hire a convicted rapist who had served his time. Ms Humphreys had to take down a video that accidentally used a clip of the Bundestag instead of Belfast City Hall. Ms Connolly had to take down a video that used a clip of her political enemy and Paddy Power assumes her predecessor in the Aras, Michael D Higgins, which she had apparently used without his permission. Thirteen more days of this. Gardai stopped and searched a car being driven on the N25 at Little Island and seized over 16,000 worth of cannabis, and in follow-up searches of two houses in the Dungarvan area they found another 97,000 worth of cannabis, a court has heard. Garda Stephen Condon objected to bail being granted to Krzysztof Szelagowski, aged around 50, with an address at 28 Estuary Heights, Dungarvan, Co Waterford. Garda Condon testified at Cork District Court yesterday: Our concern is that if Krzysztof Szelagowski is released on bail that he would leave the jurisdiction, given the substantial amount of cannabis herb. It is our belief that there are no bail conditions strong enough to eliminate our concerns of him leaving the jurisdiction. Krzysztof Szelagowski was represented in court by barrister Elaine Audley, and he was also assisted by a Polish interpreter. He faces a number of charges under the Misuse of Drugs Act, including three counts of possessing cannabis for the purpose of sale or supply to others. Garda Condon said it was alleged that at around 3.30pm on October 8, Mr Szelagowski was stopped driving a car on the N25 at Little Island and that over 16,000 worth of cannabis was found in the car after a search. The defendant was the only person in the car when it was stopped. He was arrested and interviewed. At 5.30pm, gardai with search warrants went to two houses in the Dungarvan area. They went to a house at Killineen East, Dungarvan, and found 93,000 worth of cannabis. Finally, at his home address at Estuary Heights in Dungarvan, more than 4,000 worth of cannabis was found. The total amount of cannabis across the three seizures of drugs was 113,800, Garda Condon said. Judge Dorgan remanded the accused in custody with consent to bail to appear at Clonmel District Court on October 14. Bail conditions include his own bond of 15,000, of which 5,000 has to be lodged, an independent surety of 10,000 of which there has to be a 4,500 lodgement, and he must surrender his passport. He is also required to abstain from intoxicants, undergo urinalysis every 21 days, sign on daily at Dungarvan Garda Station, and keep a curfew between 10pm and 7am. A man who stole 700 worth of electrical goods from Tesco in Youghal, Co Cork, had recently changed his medication and had acted out of character, the district court was told. Sergeant Linda OLeary told Youghal District Court that Avtandil Otarshvili, aged 36, of Briar Wood, Old Youghal Road, Cork, was charged with two counts of theft relating to the theft of electrical goods on two separate dates from Tesco in Youghal. The court heard the first theft occurred on April 19, 2025, when Otarshvili stole electrical goods to the value of 436. On April 28, Otarshvili returned to the store and on that occasion electrical goods worth 264 were taken. The court was told Otarshvili had no previous convictions for theft but had two convictions for road traffic matters. Defence solicitor Aiden Desmond said Otarshvili could not remember the incidents but was pleading guilty and had done so from the earliest opportunity. He said his client suffered from mental health issues and had changed his medication around the time of the thefts and the offences were out of character. He said Otarshvili had very limited means but had brought 110 to court. Judge John OLeary said one in four people in Ireland suffered mental health issues but most of them did not steal. He said it was positive Otarshvili had brought some compensation and he remanded him on continuing bail to appear again on December 12, by which time he was expected to bring the balance of the loss to court. This article is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme A Cork woman with 49 previous convictions who appeared before Youghal District Court charged with several offences had a clean record two years ago, the court was told. Sergeant Linda OLeary said Tara Scuffins, aged 51, of Woodlands Grove, Greencloyne, Youghal, Co Cork, was charged with two counts of theft, one count of public intoxication, one count of threatening and abusive behaviour and one count of failing to appear in court. The court heard on August 8, 2025, Scuffins went into Tesco in Youghal at 6pm and took two cans of alcohol valued at 7 and left the store without paying. At 8.45pm on the same day, Scuffins returned to the store and this time took cans valued at 12.40 and left the store with them but did not pay. Scuffins was identified by CCTV footage and later admitted the thefts when she was interviewed by gardai. On September 24, gardai responded to report of a person behaving erratically at Upper Strand in Youghal. When they arrived shortly after midday, Scuffins was found to be highly intoxicated and was unable to stand without assistance. Scuffins became aggressive and shouted at one of the attending gardai: Im going to punch you in the face you fucking c**t. Scuffins was arrested and charged with public intoxication and threatening and abusive behaviour. The court was told that earlier in the same day September 24 Scuffins was due to appear at Youghal District Court in connection with the previous thefts at Tesco but failed to do so and was later charged with failing to appear in court. The court heard that Scuffins had 49 previous convictions and was also on a suspended five-month sentence which she received before the incident at Upper Strand. Defence solicitor James Moore said it was a sad case and Scuffins had not been in trouble before 2023. He said something has clearly gone catastrophically wrong. Mr Moore said Scuffins wished to apologise to the court and to the gardai and was in the grip of a very serious addiction and was struggling to deal with it. Mr Moore said Scuffins wanted to get treatment and he was asking the court to give her some hope for the future. Judge John OLeary said hopefully Scuffins would get the assistance she needed while in prison. For the two thefts, he convicted Scuffins and fined her 50 on each count with a default prison sentence of three days. For failing to appear, she was convicted and sentenced to four months in prison. For public intoxication, she was convicted and fined 50, with a default sentence of three days. For the abusive behaviour, she was convicted and sentenced to two months in prison. Recognisance for appeal was fixed in her own bond of 300. This article is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme Cork citys fire service is the most expensive in Ireland but also the fastest, reaching the scene in under 20 minutes for more than 99% of fires in 2024, new figures from the National Oversight and Audit Commission (NOAC) 2024 annual report have shown. NOAC, the independent statutory body responsible for overseeing the performance of the local government sector, assesses local authorities in several areas. The report looks at the per capita cost of the fire service and found that Cork citys fire service was the most expensive in Ireland last year. The report explained: costs might fluctuate greatly from year to year due to the impact of severe weather events and that the cost per capita of providing the fire service was higher in 2024 than in 2023 in 26 local authorities and lower in just one, Sligo. Cork city had the most expensive fire service in Ireland for the second year in a row, with a per capita cost of 105.68, up from 93.44 in 2023, and ahead of Dublin City at 100.22, while the lowest cost was Meath at 34.78. Cork citys fire service was also the fastest responding to both fires and other emergencies for the second year in a row. Cork city continued to have the lowest percentage where first fire tender attendance took longer than 20 minutes with 0.88% for 2024, as well as the highest percentage of incidents where the first fire tender reached the scene in less than 10 minutes, with 84.91%, an improvement on an already high percentage, 83.29%, for 2023. For all other emergency incidents, Cork city also recorded the lowest percentage (1.86%) where first attendance took longer than 20 minutes. Cork city fire brigade took on average one minute and 24 seconds to mobilise fire brigades for a fire, and one minute and 16 seconds for all other emergency incidents, while Cork county took four minutes and 34 seconds to mobilise in respect of fire and three minutes and 31 seconds for other emergencies. At least 10 Cork early years providers have withdrawn from core funding in the last three years and have not rejoined, meaning significant cost increases for families, new data from Pobal shows. Core Funding is a state-provided grant in Ireland for Early Learning and Childcare and School Age Childcare providers, which sees the operators paid by the state rather than parents. Cork providers have previously expressed concern at the low level of capitation provided through the scheme, saying it is insufficient to cover costs of running the service and paying staff. The high level of administrative work required for the scheme is also putting particularly smaller services under staffing pressure, they said. Overall, more than 50 Irish services have left the sector since 2022, with nine of these in Cork, documentation provided to The Echo under the Freedom of Information act shows. Providers to withdraw from the scheme include two this summer, ahead of the 2025/2026 academic year. One of these was in Cobh and one in Glounthaune, while in 2024, one service in Mallow and one in Friars Walk withdrew. No Cork services withdrew from the scheme ahead of the 2022/2023 academic year, but five withdrew the following year, in Macroom, Midleton, Dripsey, Vicarstown and Kerry Pike. At least one further service, which catered to 450 children in Carrigtwohill, has since withdrawn from core funding, Cork Fianna Fail TD Padraig OSullivan said. There are about 300 families with 450 children affected, and they are faced with the prospect of a 34% hike in fees because the provider has decided to go outside of the core scheme, he said. Minister for children, Norma Foley, revealed in the Dail recently that as of August 5, a total of 553 childcare services were registered with Pobal in Cork. She said that 26 services left Core Funding but later rejoined, and added: The fourth year of Core Funding began on 1 September 2025 and uptake continues to remain on par with the same point in previous years. Every year there are a number of services which sign up to Core Funding in the weeks following the commencement of the programme year. For this reason, it is not yet possible to make an accurate assessment regarding whether further services have made the decision to no longer participate in Core Funding. Two men accused of assaulting another man and production of a slash-hook during the alleged incident in January 2022 had the cases against them put back until November 3. Sergeant Liam Lingane formally arrested the two accused for the purpose of charging. They were both released on bail until next month at Cork District Court to allow time for preparation and service of a book of evidence. Trevor OBrien, aged 47, of 16 Meadow Walk, The Meadows, Hollyhill, Cork, is charged with assault causing harm to another man and production of a slash-hook during an incident on January 28 2022 at Meadow Walk. Jamie OBrien, aged 24, of the same address is accused of assault causing harm to the same man and producing a slash-hook in the course of the same alleged incident. On the application of Sergeant John Dineen, Judge John King remanded the two accused on bail after the DPP decided that the cases should proceed by indictment at Cork Circuit Criminal Court. A couple who booked their wedding in famous Gougane Barra could never have imagined that their big day would coincide with the epic flooding caused by Storm Amy. American bride Elisabeth Villa and her Irish husband Anthony McSweeney tied the knot in the popular oratory wedding venue on an island near Ballingeary. But the island became a no walk zone and the couple had to pull out all the stops to keep their big day from being ruined as Storm Amy took hold. Couple tied the knot in flooded island during Storm Amy. Picture: John Sexton Photography Photographer John Sexton told the Neil Prendeville Show on Red FM that the rainfall was biblical in nature. The rain came off the mountains. By the time of the wedding the island was flooded. It was under two foot of water. Fr Sean OSullivan went up to the couple and said lads we are in trouble. Because all of the paperwork is signed and ready to go it does need to be signed on the island of Gougane. He said that Neil Lucey of the Gougane Barra Hotel ferried the family members over in a 4x4 jeep, making five or six trips, and the ceremony was described as quick. There was a possibility we would get stuck there if we didnt hurry up, said Mr Sexton. He added that he wanted to get at least one photograph of the couple outside the church. I had to venture out onto what was the island, but was now a lake. I was able to venture out with small plastic bags, but they were too small, so Fr Sean gave me two refuse bags to put on my legs, said Mr Sexton, who got a stunning picture of the couple in the door of the church. Couple tied the knot in flooded island during Storm Amy.Picture: John Sexton Photography "The harpist had a huge harp. That had to be lifted on and off the island. Meanwhile, the bride Elisabeth joked that the so-called lucky charm, the Child of Prague statue, brought the couple flooding instead of sunshine. I had the best bridesmaids who were willing to get wet themselves to save me and my dress. I still have the cleanest dress around, as we didnt do as many pictures outside. She said her Dad had to lift her out of the car but the weather made it a lot more fun. "I dont think I would change anything. All we needed was Anthony and me to be there. It will be a great story to tell in the future. Darragh Mc Donagh A chartered flight used to deport 24 men from Ireland to Pakistan two weeks ago cost the Government around 473,000, the Minister for Justice, Home Affairs and Migration has revealed. It was the fourth and most expensive chartered deportation flight to date this year, following two flights to Georgia and one to Nigeria between February and June, which cost 530,941 combined. The cost of the flight that departed for Pakistan on September 23rd does not include support services such as ground-handling, on-board paramedics, and flight management. A total of 130 people have now been deported on chartered flights since the beginning of this year, while another 137 have been removed by the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB) on commercial airlines. The first chartered deportation flight saw the removal of 32 people to Georgia at a cost of 102,476, working out at 3,302 per person. Another chartered flight to Georgia in May deported 39 people at a cost of 103,751 or 2,660 per person. A return flight to Nigeria in June costing 324,714 facilitated the deportation of 35 individuals, including five children, working out at 9,278 per person. The deportation of 24 men to Pakistan on a chartered flight on September 23 at an approximate cost of 473,000 worked out at almost 20,000 per person, making it the most expensive deportation flight to date. Justice Minister Jim OCallaghan, who revealed the figure in response to a parliamentary question from Social Democrats TD Gary Gannon this week, said the cost could still rise as the invoicing process was not complete. Deportations are costly and complex to enforce, he said. It is the preferred option to return people voluntarily and my department has a voluntary return programme to assist people to return prior to the issuance of a deportation order. If a person does not remove themselves from the state following the issuance of a deportation order, they will be removed, and my department has taken action to significantly improve immigration enforcement measures and increase removals. The number of deportation orders issued increased by 180% to 2,403 last year compared to 857 in 2023. This year, a total of 3,035 deportation orders were signed up to October 3rd. The chartered flight to Pakistan on September 23 involved the removal of 24 adult males, said Mr OCallaghan. I can confirm that the returnees on this flight were accompanied by Garda personnel, medical staff, an interpreter, and a human rights observer. The cost for provision of the aircraft for the fourth charter operation is approximately 473,000 for a return flight to Pakistan. The total costs for this operation are not yet available as the invoicing process has not yet been completed. Beijing (Gasgoo)- GAC Group announced its September sales results on Oct. 10. The automaker sold 173,000 vehicles last month, up 27.6% month-on-month (MoM), with all five major brands posting sequential growth. Exports reached 9,200 units in September, bringing the group's total exports for the first nine months to 92,000 units, of which self-owned brands contributed more than 85,000 units, up 16.5% year on year (YoY). Photo credit: GAC Group GAC Trumpchi sold 36,078 vehicles in September, up 3.8% from the previous year and 35.4% from August. Its MPV lineup recorded sales of 14,672 units (+36.7% MoM), while sales of SUVs reached 20,135 units (+29.7% YoY), exceeding 10,000 units for the eighth consecutive month. From January to September, sales of Trumpchi's hybrid and new energy models surpassed 57,000 units, growing 7% from a year ago. The new energy vehicle brand, GAC AION, delivered 29,113 vehicles in September, representing a 7.7% MoM rise. Boosted by the August launch of the AION V Home, sales of the AION V lineup surged 256% MoM to 6,072 units. As to joint-venture brands, GAC Toyota sold 71,220 vehicles in September (+7.8% MoM), resulting in a year-to-date volume of 567,515 units. Deliveries of the bZ3X totaled 9,017 units last month, hitting a record high and marking five consecutive months of growth. The Camry posted sales of 20,517 units (+24% YoY), the Sienna 8,168 units, and the Frontlander 13,715 units. GAC Honda, on the other hand, sold 32,808 vehicles in September, which surged 60.7% MoM. Sales of the Accord lineup reached 15,792 units (+32.6% YoY), while the Breeze posted 12,953 units (+6.9% YoY). The controversial preservation order requiring OpenAI to indefinitely keep records of its ChatGPT data has been terminated. Federal judge Ona T. Wang filed a new order on October 9 that frees OpenAI of an obligation to "preserve and segregate all output log data that would otherwise be deleted on a going forward basis." The case kicked off in late 2023, with the New York Times suing OpenAI for copyright infringement, alleging that the AI giant trained its models with the news outlet's intellectual property without proper compensation. In May of this year, OpenAI was ordered to retain all of its chat logs so that the NYT could investigate claims of copyright violation. In response, OpenAI appealed the court order, arguing that the preservation order was an "overreach" and risks its users' privacy. However, this latest decision means the AI giant no longer has to preserve chat logs as of September 26, except for some. The judge in the case said that any chat logs already saved under the previous order would still be accessible and that OpenAI is required to hold on to any data related to ChatGPT accounts that have been flagged by the NYT. Moving forward, the NYT is allowed to expand the number of flagged users, as it continues to comb through OpenAI's preserved records. Support Us Your Support will ensure EPWs financial viability and sustainability. The EPW produces independent and public-spirited scholarship and analyses of contemporary affairs every week. EPW is one of the few publications that keep alive the spirit of intellectual inquiry in the Indian media. Often described as a publication with a social conscience, EPW has never shied away from taking strong editorial positions. Our publication is free from political pressure, or commercial interests. Our editorial independence is our pride. We rely on your support to continue the endeavour of highlighting the challenges faced by the disadvantaged, writings from the margins, and scholarship on the most pertinent issues that concern contemporary Indian society. Every contribution is valuable for our future. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- On October 11, DiDi Autonomous Driving announced the completion of its Series D funding round, raising a total of 2 billion yuan. The round drew participation from a range of strategic and institutional investors, including the Zhongguancun Science City Science and Technology Growth Investment Guidance Fund, Beijing Information Industry Development Investment Fund, Beijing Artificial Intelligence Industry Investment Fund, GAC Group, Guangzhou Guanghua Fund, and DiDi itself. Photo credit: DiDi Autonomous Driving Proceeds from the funding will be used to expand research and development in artificial intelligence, accelerate the deployment of Level 4 autonomous driving technologies, and promote high-quality development across China's transportation sector. Zhang Bo, Co-founder of DiDi and CEO of DiDi Autonomous Driving, said that Level 4 autonomous driving represents one of the most significant technological shifts of the coming AI decade, poised to greatly enhance the safety, efficiency, and overall experience of mobility. He added that the company has built nearly a decade of expertise across AI, mass production, and operations, and will continue to pursue responsible innovation while exploring new employment opportunities. DiDi Autonomous Driving aims to advance autonomous technology in a measured and sustainable way, contributing to the broader development of China's intelligent and connected vehicle industry. Shanghai (Gasgoo)- on Oct. 9, 2025, Parkopedia, a global provider of in-car mobility and payment solutions, announced that it will offer high-quality charging services for Leapmotor vehicles abroad. The collaboration coincides with the international rollout of the Leapmotor B10, which first debuted at the Paris Motor Show late last year and made a return appearance at the IAA MOBILITY 2025 held in Munich this September. Photo credit: Parkopedia Starting at the end of 2025, Leapmotor owners in overseas markets will gain access to Parkopedia's advanced charging information services, covering dynamic and static charging data, pricing, charging speed, and connector types. These features are designed to ease the stress of locating charging stations and navigating routes, while delivering verified pricing data to ensure the in-car experience is intuitive and reliable for new energy vehicle (NEV) drivers. Parkopedia's system will continuously update and monitor charging rate data to ensure broad coverage and support automakers in displaying or recommending the most favorable pricing options. On Leapmotor's vehicle interface, the technology can highlight the most cost-efficient charging stations or enable drivers to access exclusive membership perks and charging-card benefits through select partners. By integrating real-time rate data from verified networks, Leapmotor aims to enhance its connected vehicle services and deliver a seamless smart mobility experience for international customers. According to Parkopedia's global NEV owner survey, more than 90% of overseas respondents reported experiencing "charging anxiety", while 60% said that accurate charging information was "critically important". The findings highlight the growing demand among international NEV users for trustworthy, data-driven charging solutions and underscore how premium connected-car services can influence purchasing decisions in the NEV market. As a subsidiary of the global mobility services platform Arrive Group, Parkopedia leverages a vast international database of parking and charging resources to support numerous automakers worldwide. Its collaboration with Leapmotor marks another key step in assisting Chinese NEV brands with global expansion, aiming to deliver locally tailored, high-quality mobility experiences to overseas users through its extensive global service network. What happens when Thailands most iconic dishes meet cocktails that do more than just accompany them? With Thai cuisine, your choice of pairing can reveal more about you than your zodiac sign ever could. Are you the daring, adventurous soul who dives headfirst into spicy, tongue-tingling curries? Or the cozy, mellow type who finds comfort in the creamy embrace of coconut broths and fragrant jasmine rice? At Nara Thai, we were invited to explore this dance of flavours. Their cocktails dont just complement the dishes. They converse, challenge, and play on the palate, creating moments that linger long after the last bite. Dining here is a reminder that food and drink are never just sustenance. With two outlets in Mumbai (Worli and BKC) your next cab ride can have a very delicious destination. So, which side are you on? Are you chasing the thrill of fire, or sinking into the bliss of comfort? Your Thai pairing isnt just a meal. Its a mirror to your personality. For Beginners Start with the Tom Yum soup, that fierce broth layered with lemongrass, galangal, kaffir lime, and the kind of chilli that makes you sit upright. Anywhere else, you would be handed a cooling drink. Not here. At Nara Thai, it is paired with a Smoky Old Fashioned, bourbon deep, citrus charred, the smoke curling like a dare. The cocktail does not fight the fire, nor does it soothe it. Instead, it folds it back into warmth, rounds its edges, and suddenly it feels less like food and drink and more like two elements speaking the same language. Fire and smoke, meeting eye to eye. From there, the night does not unfold like a script. It splinters into personalities, each person at the table finding their rhythm, their pairing, their story. For the Adventurous Soul This is the friend who orders before anyone else, who always finds the dish no one was even considering. They will begin with Crispy Lotus Stem glazed in honey and chilli, a crunch that shocks and then soothes. Their drink is a Ginger Lemongrass Mule, ginger amplifying the heat, lemongrass cutting through like a blade of light. It is bold, unapologetic, impossible to ignore. Later, they will move to the Thai Red Curry, fiery and unapologetically chilli-driven, paired with a Chilli-Infused Paloma. Tequila warmth, grapefruit bitterness, a salt rim that insists on being noticed. They are the ones who will finish first, already looking at the menu for what to try next. Even their vegetables are dramatic. Stir-Fried Morning Glory, wok-charred and garlicky, finds its echo in a Dirty Saketini of vodka, sake and olive brine. A salty, umami bridge that no one else at the table saw coming. For the Comfort Seeker This person knows their favourites, and they know how to stay there. They will start with Tom Kha Soup, coconut milk wrapping around galangal and lime leaf like a warm blanket. The Pineapple and Chilli Margarita that comes with it is a gentle surprise, sweetness to mirror the coconut, a rim of heat just sharp enough to keep it alive. For their main, it is Massaman Curry, slow and indulgent, with potato melting into tender meat. The Coconut Rum Negroni arrives, bitter enough to cut, soft enough to soothe. It is a pairing that feels like sinking into something familiar but knowing it has more depth if you want to look for it. And of course, they will close on Thai Coconut Ice Cream, doubled down with a Coconut Mojito. Coconut on coconut. Sweet on sweet. Comfort that does not apologise for being comfort. For the Spice Chaser Every group has one. The one who asks for extra chilli, who judges the whole meal on heat alone. Their dish is Pad Kra Pao, that holy basil storm with minced chicken, every bite a slow crescendo. Their drink is a Spicy Mango Margarita, sweet mango that tempers, chilli rim that provokes. It is not relief. It is a duel they relish. They will have started with Thai Fish Cakes, paired with a Coriander Gimlet, herbal and sharp, or they will snatch a forkful of Som Tam, papayas crunch sparring with a Thai Basil Mojito. Every choice, for them, is about chasing fire and finding it. For the Refined Palate This is the one who savours, who pauses, who closes their eyes between sips. They start with Thai Spring Rolls, light and crisp, but made transcendent with a Lychee Martini, floral, delicate and balanced. Their main is the Thai Green Curry, that lush weave of coconut, kaffir lime and herbs, paired with a Kaffir Lime Gin and Tonic. Clean, bitter, herbaceous. It does not cut the richness, it lifts it. Even something simple, like Thai Basil Fried Rice, becomes an experience when paired with a Lemongrass Collins. Effervescent, citrus-bright, suddenly fried rice feels crafted, deliberate, worthy of attention. For the Nostalgic One Food, for them, is memory. They will order Pineapple Fried Rice, cashews tumbling with sweet chunks of pineapple, and pair it with a Mai Tai with a Thai twist. Rum and orgeat carrying them somewhere half-remembered. They will hold on to Shrimp Tempura or Prawn Satay, not because it is the most daring choice, but because it is what they have loved before. A Tamarind Whiskey Sour makes it new, tamarinds tang cutting through, whiskey warmth grounding it. They will taste, and for a second, they will be somewhere else. For the Social Butterfly Every table has one, the one who makes sure nothing is just eaten, it is performed. They will order Crispy Lotus Stem and line up the shot before anyone takes a bite. Their Ginger Lemongrass Mule gleams in its copper mug, another story waiting to be told. The Tom Yum with Smoky Old Fashioned pairing is their showpiece. Smoke rising from glass domes, spice swirling in broth. They will pass around glasses, insist everyone taste everything, orchestrating the table into a theatre of clinks, gasps and laughter. For the Sweet Tooth They have been waiting all along. Mango Sticky Rice is their temple dish, mango golden against glutinous rice, coconut cream pooling like silk. Paired with a Pandan Espresso Martini, it becomes revelation: sweetness cut by bitterness, coconut deepened by pandan. And just when everyone else taps out, they will order Tub Tim Grob, cool water chestnuts in coconut milk, and match it with a Lychee and Rose Spritz. Light, floral, sparkling. It tastes like the meal itself is giving you one last gift before it ends. At Nara Thai, no one leaves wrong. Every choice is valid, every appetite understood. And that is the quiet brilliance of it: the menu does not just feed you, it meets you. Also Read: 5+ Dishes You Must Try Off Nara Thais New Summer Menu In this throwback from a special 2017 issue of Filmfare dedicated to Amitabh Bachchans 75th birthday, his old Delhi friend Jeetendra spoke about the legends professionalism and his ability to reinvent and work hardI had met Amitabh in the capital much before he became an actor. Those days, I used to visit Shobha (Kapoor), who was an airhostess, in Delhi. We used to hang out at Tabela, a discotheque at the Oberoi hotel there. Amitabh used to visit that place as well. Shobha had a friend, who knew him. I remember meeting him there with that friend. In Mumbai, we were both strugglers, working our way to get films. We worked together only on one film, Gehri Chaal (1973), which we shot in Madras. The memories are faint, but we had a good time working together. Hes remained a friend since.As an actor, Amitabh is a class apart. His dedication is exceptional. There is no word like chalega in his dictionary. He puts complete effort in anything and everything that he does. Also, one cant work hard unless one is passionate about his/her work. Like we believe that my daughter Ekta (Kapoor) undergoes so much work-related stress but actually, for her its not hardwork or stress, shes only enjoying the process. Its the same with him. I remember when I went to meet him at Breach Candy hospital, post his near-fatal accident on the set of Coolie (1982), he said, Ive forgotten how to walk. He'd been lying in bed recuperating for so long that he was unable to walk. But his willpower helped him fight back.Often, after achieving success, one tends to forget what made them successful, what got them so far. But Amitabh, on the other hand, grew more and more conscious and never lost a grip on himself. Ive never seen him make producers wait, Ive never seen him while away time or chatting away on the set. He respects his time and more importantly that of others. He has always led a disciplined life. In the early days, even when we all sat drinking together till 3 am, hed reach the shoot dot at 7 am. Unlike others who wouldnt be able to make it after a late night. Clearly, he never took his position or stardom for granted. Thats why he has kept growing. Even today, his stamina is unbelievable. Hes everywhere. In films, on television, on social media... and he sends such lovely handwritten letters to everyone. I guess its his mind from where he derives his strength. Despite his age and status, hes full of fun. Hes got a tremendous sense of humour! His life is definitely an inspiration for all.Also Read: Jeetendra: Amitabh Bachchan never took his stardom for granted Exclusive OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA / ACCESS Newswire / October 10, 2025 / Lincoln University is notifying certain Lincoln University current and former employees, students, and applicants of a data security incident that may have involved personal information. However, Lincoln University was unable to locate last known address information for all individuals whose information was involved. This notice explains the incident and Lincoln University's response. On October 9, 2024, Lincoln University became aware of a disruption to its computer network. Lincoln University took immediate action to secure the systems. Lincoln University partnered with cyber incident response professionals to investigate the nature and scope of the incident. As part of the investigation, it learned that certain data was likely taken from the network by an unauthorized actor. After a comprehensive review, on May 2, 2025, Lincoln University learned that certain files within that data set contained personal information. Lincoln University then engaged in a process to identify last known contact information for as many individuals as possible, which was completed on September 22, 2025. The information that was involved varies by individual, but may have included individuals' first and last name, in combination with one or more of the following data element(s): Social Security number, driver's license or state identification card number, passport number, individual taxpayer identification number, date of birth, and/or student identification number. Upon learning of the incident, Lincoln University took immediate steps to address it, including securing its systems. Lincoln University partnered with cyber incident response professionals and notified federal law enforcement. Lincoln University is reviewing existing security policies and protections already in place on the network and adopting additional security to safeguard against evolving threats moving forward. To date, Lincoln is not aware of any evidence of the misuse of any personal information involved in this incident. However, Lincoln University is offering individuals whose information was involved access to 12 months of complimentary credit monitoring and identity protection services. If you believe you may have been impacted by this incident, Lincoln University has established a toll-free call center through HaystackID to answer questions about the incident and provide individuals with other resources and assistance. To confirm if you were impacted or to verify your eligibility for monitoring services, contact the call center. Haystack ID call center representatives are available Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 6:00 pm and Saturday from 9:00 am - 3:00 pm Pacific time on Saturdays (excluding U.S. national holidays) and can be reached at 888-844-1265. Lincoln University is committed to the privacy and security of its community's personal information. SOURCE: Kennedys CMK LLP View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire:https://www.accessnewswire.com/newsroom/en/business-and-professional-services/notice-of-data-breach-1085784 Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - October 10, 2025) - Deveron Corp. (TSXV: FARM) ("Deveron" or the "Company") announces that, further to its press release of April 28, 2025, the Company has entered into a first amending agreement to forbearance agreement (the "Amending Agreement") dated October 9, 2025, with Toronto Dominion Bank (the "Lender") amending the forbearance agreement (the "Forbearance Agreement") dated April 25, 2025, in connection with the repayment of a loan advanced by the Lender, which currently has a principal amount outstanding of approximately $25 Million in term debt and drawn on an operating line of credit (the "Loan"), pursuant to the terms of a secured credit agreement dated May 15, 2023, as amended (the "Credit Agreement"), among the Company, its subsidiary A&L, and the Lender. Subject to the terms of the Amending Agreement, the Lender has agreed to forbear from exercising its rights and remedies under the Credit Agreement in respect of or arising out of certain defaults under the Credit Agreement, until the earlier of (i) December 12, 2025, or (ii) the occurrence or existence of any Forbearance Termination Event (as defined in the Forbearance Agreement). The Forbearance Agreement provides for the continuation of the Company's strategic review process, which involves a review and evaluation of strategic alternatives that may be available to the Company to satisfy its short-term liquidity needs. The Company will provide an update when further disclosure is required or otherwise appropriate. 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. About Deveron: Deveron is an agriculture technology company that uses data and insights to help farmers and large agriculture enterprises increase yields, reduce costs and improve farm outcomes. The company employs a digital process that leverages data collected on farms across North America to drive unbiased interpretation of production decisions, ultimately recommending how to optimize input use. For more information and to join our community, please visit www.deveron.com . This news release includes certain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of that phrase under Canadian securities laws. Without limitation, statements regarding future plans and objectives of the Company are forward looking statements that involve various degrees of risk. Forward-looking statements reflect management's current views with respect to possible future events and conditions and, by their nature, are based on management's beliefs and assumptions and subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, both general and specific to the Company. Although the Company believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in our forward-looking statements. The following are important factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward looking statements: changes in the world-wide price of agricultural commodities, general market conditions, risks inherent in agriculture, the uncertainty of future profitability and the uncertainty of access to additional capital. Additional information regarding the material factors and assumptions that were applied in making these forward looking statements as well as the various risks and uncertainties we face are described in greater detail in the "Risk Factors" section of our annual and interim Management's Discussion and Analysis of our financial results and other continuous disclosure documents and financial statements we file with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities which are available at www.sedarplus.ca. The Company undertakes no obligation to update this forward-looking information except as required by applicable law. The Company relies on litigation protection for forward-looking statements. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/270102 SOURCE: Deveron Corp. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 10, 2025) - Perseverance Metals Inc. ("Perseverance" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has issued a total of 4,902,099 common shares and 2,451,027 common share purchase warrants ("Warrants") pursuant to the conversion of 4,902,099 subscription receipts of the Company issued on September 5, 2025. The net proceeds from the sale of the subscription receipts, being C$3,186,398, have also been released to the Company from escrow. The common shares are expected to commence trading on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol "PMI" as of market open on October 14, 2025. Each Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one additional common share at an exercise price of C$0.90 for a period of three years from the date of issuance. The expiry date of the Warrants is subject to acceleration such that, should the closing price of the common shares on any Canadian stock exchange equal or exceed C$1.20 for 10 consecutive trading days, the Company, within 15 business days of such event, shall be entitled to accelerate the expiry date of the Warrants to a date that is 30 calendar days from the date that notice of such acceleration is given via news release, with the new expiry date specified in such news release (the "Acceleration Clause"). In connection with the conversion of the subscription receipts, the Company issued 28,245 finder's warrants (the "Finder's Warrants") and paid commissions of C$17,980 to certain finders. Each Finder's Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one additional common share at a price of C$0.60 for a period of 24 months from the date of issuance, subject to the Acceleration Clause. For further information on the terms of the subscription receipts, escrow release conditions and finders' fees, please refer to the Company's news releases dated June 26, 2025, September 24, 2025, and October 8, 2025, and the Company's prospectus dated September 26, 2025 (the "Prospectus"), which can be accessed under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Satisfaction of the Lac Gayot Free Carry Right The Company is pleased to announce that it has satisfied and extinguished the free carry right (the "Lac Gayot Free Carry Right") under its option agreement dated December 19, 2022 (the "Option Agreement") with Coulon Mines Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of Electric Elements Mining Corp. ("EEM"), pursuant to which the Company has the exclusive right to earn an undivided 100% interest in the Lac Gayot Project. The Company issued 196,816 Additional Shares (as defined below) to EEM concurrently with the conversion of the subscription receipts to terminate the Lac Gayot Free Carry Right. Pursuant to the Lac Gayot Free Carry Right, from the effective date of the Option Agreement, any time the Company issued common shares from treasury, whether by way of equity financing, property acquisition, the exercise of stock options, share purchase warrants or other convertible securities (the "Equity Issuances"), the Company was required to issue to the optionor such number of common shares ("Additional Shares") representing 9.9% of the particular Equity Issuance (calculated after giving effect to the issuance of such Additional Shares), such that the optionor would hold a pro rata 9.9% interest in the Company. The cumulative issue value of the Equity Issuances reached $15,000,000 upon closing of the subscription receipt offering on September 5, 2025, resulting in the termination of the Lac Gayot Free Carry Right upon deemed conversion of the subscription receipts and concurrent issuance of the remaining Additional Shares. The 196,816 Additional Shares are subject to a hold period pursuant to Canadian securities laws. For additional information on the Option Agreement and Lac Gayot Free Carry Right, please refer to the Prospectus. About Perseverance Metals Perseverance Metals' critical minerals project portfolio is strategically positioned in key North American Ni-Cu-Co-PGE and hard rock lithium regions, including Quebec's prolific James Bay district and Michigan's Mid-Continent Rift. Our strict science-driven approach and extensive track record of discovery, coupled with an industry-leading team armed with next-generation exploration tools, provide us with a distinct competitive advantage. This offers a unique opportunity for investors to be part of multiple discoveries, the advancement of significant critical mineral deposits, and the development of a portfolio poised for strategic industry consolidation, all vital for the clean energy transition and the creation of new mining districts. Perseverance's exploration assets include: the Lac Gayot high-grade Ni-Cu-Co-PGE and lithium pegmatite project, which covers the entirety of the Venus Greenstone Belt in Quebec, featuring multiple, very high-grade Ni-Cu-Co-PGE showings and numerous large spodumene-bearing pegmatites with consistent, high lithium grades in channel sampling; the Voyageur Ni-Cu-Co-PGE project which covers 680km2 of the Upper Peninsula in Michigan, 65 kilometres west of the only producing nickel mine in the United States, and the Armit Lake Ni-Cu-Co project, which is the consolidated and underexplored western half of the nickel- and gold-rich Savant Lake Greenstone Belt in Ontario. Additional information about Perseverance Metals can be found at perseverancemetals.com. On Behalf of the Board, Michael J. Tucker CEO and Director Forward-Looking Statements This news release includes certain forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein including, without limitation, statements regarding the TSXV listing, use of proceeds, and the anticipated business and exploration plans of the Company, are forward-looking statements. Although the Company believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. Often, but not always, forward looking information can be identified by words such as "pro forma", "plans", "expects", "may", "should", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates", "believes", "potential" or variations of such words including negative variations thereof, and phrases that refer to certain actions, events or results that may, could, would, might or will occur or be taken or achieved. Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to differ materially from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, risks related to the TSXV listing, the anticipated business plans and timing of future activities of the Company, as well as those factors discussed under the heading "Risk Factors" in the Company's Prospectus and other filings of the Company with the Canadian Securities Authorities, copies of which can be found under the Company's profile on the SEDAR+ website at www.sedarplus.ca. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any of the forward-looking statements, except as otherwise required by law. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/270100 SOURCE: Perseverance Metals Inc. IronGate Capital Advisors, one of the country's most active defense tech venture capital firms, announced last week that its investment portfolio has grown to over 540 companies across its two funds, ranging from seed stage start-ups to later-stage growth equity companies. Since its founding in 2018, IronGate Capital Advisors has sought to be the most collaborative partner in the defense tech ecosystem by co-investing with many of the leading investors in this space. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251010885867/en/ IronGate Capital Advisors, in collaboration with Stellar Ventures, hosted the 2025 Strength Through Innovation Summit along with their participating sponsors. IronGate Capital Advisors announced this portfolio milestone at their "Strength Through Innovation Summit," hosted in collaboration with frequent co-investment partner and fellow defense tech VC firm Stellar Ventures, in Washington, DC. Other major announcements from portfolio companies presenting at the event included: Atomic 6 discussed their new product line Space Armor, the first radom for space that protects satellites from debris and DEW while allowing for radio frequency permeability; Clearspeed secured a $60 million Series D funding round for their dual-use voice-based risk assessment technology, to further their mission to build trust at speed and scale for clients across the globe; Delta Black announced the successful first flight of their Raider 330 Group 3 drone that will dramatically change the logistics and kinetic terrain in the INDOPACOM theatre; Skyfi showcased how its Earth Intelligence platform delivers real-time answers from space for government and commercial users, helping decision-makers monitor global activity and act faster. The two-day, invite-only, sold out summit brought together top officials from the defense, intelligence, and space communities, as well as private sector innovators and investors. The annual event focuses on the critical challenges and investment opportunities facing the national security landscape. This year the conference was co-sponsored by 15 different companies led by: Albers Aerospace, AWS, Cooley, Delta Black, Stifel and Victory6. "We are in a tech arms race where speed, innovation, and capital allocation are decisive," said Ryan Morfin, Founding Partner at IronGate Capital Advisors. "Venture capital must be more than just a source of funding; we must be strategic partners to both our portfolio companies and the government, helping them navigate the complex federal landscape to deliver solutions at the speed of relevance." Similar to IronGate Capital Advisors' "Founders Summit" hosted in conjunction with ARLIS at the University of Maryland earlier this year, the "Strength Through Innovation Summit" discussed strategies to achieve scale and catalyze corporate growth while providing cutting-edge defense innovation and executing on the Reindustrialization of American manufacturing. Fireside chats and panel discussions were led by a distinguished roster of speakers, including: Former U.S. Secretary of Defense Christopher C. Miller, who delivered a keynote fireside chat on the future of the national security landscape and the role of private innovation; Devin Nunes, Chairman of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board and CEO and Chairman of Trump Media Technology Group; Major General Dennis Q. Bythewood, Special Assistant to the Chief of Space Operations at USSF; Rt Hon Dr. Liam Fox, Chairman of the Abraham Accords Prosperity Group and former Secretary of the UK's Ministry of Defence. "Stellar Ventures is proud to have added space as a central theme of the Strength Through Innovation Summit. By uniting government leaders, prime contractors, and entrepreneurs building the next generation of companies and capabilities, we fostered conversations needed to accelerate America's most critical technologies," said Celeste Ford, Managing Director at Stellar Ventures, Board Chair and Founder of Stellar Solutions Inc. About IronGate Capital Advisors: IronGate Capital Advisors is an early-stage venture capital investment firm focused on dual-use national security technologies. The firm's mission is to direct capital to the highest-performing ventures in the advanced technology arena, with a specific focus on innovations in aerospace, defense, and intelligence, and national security. IronGate's investment approach enables it to deploy capital into companies developing technologies that meet the most demanding national security requirements and strengthen the United States. More information can be found on our website at www.irongatevc.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251010885867/en/ Contacts: Media Contact: Lauren Chase Manager, Investor Relations lauren@irongatevc.com China's market regulator launches antitrust investigation into Qualcomm Xinhua) 08:55, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's State Administration for Market Regulation has launched an investigation into Qualcomm for suspected violation of the country's anti-monopoly law. The case was filed because in its acquisition of Autotalks, Qualcomm failed to declare the concentration of undertakings in accordance with the law, the market regulator said in an online announcement. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Ford's Special Vehicle Team (SVT) has been the brand's performance skunkworks since 1991, transforming everyday Fords into track-ready machines that could hang with the best from Europe and Japan. The division brought serious engineering expertise to the Blue Oval, focusing on handling dynamics, power delivery, and driver engagement rather than just slapping on body kits and louder exhausts. SVT proved that American performance could be sophisticated and nuanced, not just brutally powerful. Over three decades, they've delivered some truly memorable machines that changed how enthusiasts viewed domestic performance. Here are the 12 SVT vehicles that left the biggest mark on automotive history. Ford SVT Cobra Image Credit: Spunjo,-Public Domain/WikiCommons. The original SVT Cobra launched the entire division and set the tone for everything that followed. With 235 horsepower from a massaged 5.0-liter V8, it wasn't the most powerful Mustang ever, but the comprehensive chassis upgrades made it a genuine handler. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Cobra proved Ford could build a pony car that worked on a road course, not just a drag strip. Ford SVT F-150 Lightning Image Credit: Image Credit: Calreyn88 - Public Domain/Wiki Commons. The first-generation Lightning created the modern performance truck segment before anyone knew they wanted it. SVT dropped a 240-horsepower version of the 5.8-liter V8 into a street-focused package with lowered suspension and aggressive styling. It ran 0-60 in the high six-second range and changed how people thought about pickups. Ford SVT Contour Image Credit: Ford This compact sport sedan was criminally underappreciated during its brief production run. The European-derived chassis worked beautifully with the 195-horsepower V6, and SVT sharpened everything from the suspension to the six-speed manual transmission. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It was one of the best-handling sedans under $25,000 at the time. Ford SVT Lightning (Second Generation) Image Credit: Ford. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The supercharged second-gen Lightning took the formula to absurd levels with 380 horsepower initially, later bumped to 450. It could hit 60 mph in under five seconds, which was genuinely shocking for a full-size truck in 2000. The sound of that supercharger whine coming from a pickup still turns heads today. Ford SVT Mustang Cobra (Terminator) Image Credit: Marylandstater at English Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0/ Wiki Commons. The supercharged "Terminator" Cobra is legendary among Mustang enthusiasts for good reason. With 390 horsepower from the factory, it was an underrated beast that typically made closer to 420 at the crank. The forged internals and bulletproof 4.6-liter engine meant these things could handle massive power upgrades without breaking a sweat. Ford SVT Shelby GT500 Image Credit: Steve Lagreca / Shutterstock.com. When SVT revived the Shelby GT500 name for the modern era, they went all-in with a supercharged 5.4-liter V8 making 500 horsepower. It was the most powerful factory Mustang ever built at the time and brought legitimate supercar performance to the masses. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The combination of retro styling and modern grunt was exactly what enthusiasts wanted. Ford SVT Focus Image Credit: IFCAR, public domain / WikiCommons. The SVT Focus showed that the team could extract fun from modest displacement with a naturally aspirated 2.0-liter four-cylinder making 170 horsepower. What mattered was the whole package: Recaro seats, six-speed manual, European suspension tuning, and genuine steering feel. It was proof that driving enjoyment doesn't require big displacement or massive power. Ford SVT Cobra R Image Credit: Elise240SX - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0/Wiki Commons. Advertisement Advertisement The limited-production Cobra R was SVT's stripped-down, naturally aspirated track weapon built in small numbers. With 385 horsepower from an iron-block 5.4-liter V8 and no back seat or air conditioning, it was uncompromising. Only 300 were built, making it one of the most collectible modern Mustangs. Ford SVT F-150 Lightning Concept (7.0L) Image Credit: Ford. While not a full production vehicle, the experimental 7.0-liter Lightning concept showed SVT's engineering ambition. They squeezed 500 horsepower from a naturally aspirated V8 in a truck platform, showcasing what was possible without forced induction. It hinted at the extreme performance that would become common in later performance trucks. Ford SVT Raptor Image Credit: betto rodrigues / Shutterstock.com The original Raptor redefined what a performance truck could be by focusing on off-road capability rather than drag racing. With 411 horsepower from a 6.2-liter V8 and Fox Racing shocks with massive travel, it dominated desert running. Advertisement Advertisement SVT created an entirely new segment that other manufacturers scrambled to copy. Ford SVT Shelby GT500 Image Credit: F H F / Shutterstock.com. This generation pushed the power envelope even further with a supercharged 5.8-liter V8 producing 662 horsepower in its final year. It became the most powerful production V8 ever built at the time and could hit 60 mph in the mid-three-second range. The combination of accessible pricing and supercar performance made it a bargain. Ford SVT Focus ST Image Credit: North Monaco / Shutterstock.com. Advertisement Advertisement Bringing the ST badge to America was a smart move that gave enthusiasts an affordable hot hatch option. The 252-horsepower turbocharged four-cylinder delivered strong torque and everyday usability. It proved that SVT's philosophy worked just as well with modern turbo engines as it did with traditional V8s. Conclusion Image Credit: F H F / Shutterstock.com. The SVT division earned its reputation by consistently delivering more than just straight-line speed. They understood that genuine performance comes from balanced engineering, careful tuning, and attention to how a vehicle communicates with its driver. From supercharged trucks to nimble hot hatches, SVT explored every corner of the performance spectrum and usually got it right. While the SVT badge was eventually retired in favor of Ford Performance branding, the vehicles that wore it remain some of the most engaging and collectible Fords ever built. The legacy lives on in current models like the Shelby GT500 and F-150 Raptor, which still carry that same commitment to comprehensive performance. Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - October 10, 2025) - Newpath Resources Inc. (CSE: PATH) (FSE: 0MZ) (OTC Pink: RDYFF) ("Newpath" or the "Company") announces that Douglas Turnbull has resigned as Chief Operating Officer of the Company, effective immediately, to pursue another professional opportunity. Mr. Turnbull has been a key member of the Company's executive team, providing invaluable leadership and operational oversight during a pivotal period of growth and development. His contributions have been instrumental in advancing the Company's exploration and development initiatives, optimizing project execution, and enhancing stakeholder value. While stepping down from his executive duties, Mr. Turnbull, a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, will remain engaged with the Company in a technical advisory and consulting capacity. His continued involvement ensures continuity and ongoing support as Newpath progresses its portfolio of mineral assets. "On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Newpath team, I want to thank Douglas for his outstanding contributions," said Alexander McAulay, CEO of Newpath. "We sincerely wish him success in his new opportunity and are pleased that he will continue to support Newpath as a technical advisor and Qualified Person." The Company wishes Mr. Turnbull continued success in his future endeavors and looks forward to his ongoing involvement. About Newpath Resources Inc. Newpath is a Canadian exploration company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol PATH. Newpath holds a 100% interest in the early-stage Alpha/Bravo critical metal exploration project, approximately 50 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay and the Northshore Gold Project located 4 kilometres south of Schreiber, Ontario. On Behalf of the Company, NEWPATH RESOURCES INC. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information This release contains statements and information that, to the extent that they are not historical fact, may constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, projections, beliefs and assumptions made by management of the Company. Forward-looking information is generally identified by words such as "believe", "project", "aim", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend", "strategy", "future", "opportunity", "plan", "may", "should", "will", "would", and similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because the Company can give no assurance that it will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions, by its very nature it involves inherent risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking information in this news release. The forward-looking information included in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and 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, unless so required by applicable laws. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/270105 SOURCE: Newpath Resources Inc. BWI Group produces its 11 millionth MagneRide damper as fourth-generation production ramps up worldwide. The SDV-ready technology enables 1,000 Hz damping control through real-time sensor data and dynamic algorithms. BWI Group has produced its 11 millionth MagneRide damper at its production facility in Krosno, Poland. The company marked the milestone during an online technology forum, which brought together engineers, academics, and vehicle manufacturer representatives to discuss the system's performance and applications. "We expect significant growth in demand as the industry moves toward greater digitisation and next-generation software-defined vehicle architectures," said BWI Group CEO Liu Xihe. "MagneRide is ideally positioned for this transition. Its ability to adapt instantly to changing conditions through software control aligns perfectly with the requirements of future vehicle platforms. Our global production network is ready to support this growth, with the flexibility and infrastructure needed to meet rising customer demand worldwide." BWI Group's production facilities span Europe, North America and Asia. The Krosno plant in Poland, which supplies brands including Ferrari, Lamborghini, and other brands, has undergone a significant update to maximise automation and production efficiency. MagneRide has fitted to more than 100 vehicle applications worldwide. Luxury brands including Ferrari, Lamborghini, Cadillac, Audi, and Mustang have long relied on BWI Group's MagneRide suspension systems. BWI Group has seen strong demand for MagneRide in Asia, and the system has recently been adopted on the newly launched Deepal L06 long-range electric coupe. In China, the Shenzhen plant, which opened in March 2025, and the Zhangjiakou facility together are expected to produce two million units annually. MagneRide uses a valveless design and magnetorheological fluid to adjust damping forces up to 1,000 times per second. Real-time sensor data and dynamic algorithms create a closed-loop control system, allowing the vehicle to respond instantly to changing road conditions and driver inputs. This digital capability makes it ready for software-defined vehicle architectures, where suspension systems must integrate seamlessly with vehicle electronics, ADAS, and over-the-air software updates. "Unlike other semi-active solutions, MagneRide continuously adapts through software, making it fully compatible with SDV architectures," said Alessandro Manca, senior vice president of sales, marketing, and program management. "This allows OEMs to adjust handling and comfort characteristics without hardware changes and offer vehicles that can evolve over time." During the technology forum, rally driver Tomasz Czopik demonstrated a MagneRide-equipped vehicle on roads and track in Poland, showing how the system maintains stability and comfort under challenging conditions, such as sharp turns, uneven surfaces and rapid acceleration and braking. The technology forum is now available to watch on-demand here (https://mobex.io/webinars/digitising-chassis-systems-upgrading-semi-active-suspension-systems-for-modern-vehicles/). Viewers can access the full event to see expert discussions, a live factory tour and vehicle demonstrations. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251010246522/en/ Contacts: aneta.kwiatkowska@bwigroup.com LONDON (dpa-AFX) - AstraZeneca announced a major agreement with President Donald J. Trump's administration aimed at reducing the cost of prescription medicines for American patients while supporting domestic pharmaceutical innovation. Under the deal, AstraZeneca will offer Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) sales at discounts of up to 80% off list prices for eligible patients with prescriptions for chronic conditions. These discounted medicines will be available through the TrumpRx.gov platform, enabling patients to purchase directly from AstraZeneca at reduced cash prices. In addition, AstraZeneca has secured a three-year delay on Section 232 tariffs through a separate agreement with the U.S. Department of Commerce. This reprieve will allow the company to fully onshore its medicines manufacturing operations, ensuring that all products sold in the U.S. are made domestically. The initiative is part of AstraZeneca's broader $50 billion investment in U.S. manufacturing and R&D over the next five years, with a goal of reaching $80 billion in total revenue by 2030-half of which is expected to come from the U.S. market. Looking ahead, AstraZeneca plans to open a cell therapy manufacturing facility in Rockville, Maryland in early 2026, followed by the launch of its second major R&D center in Cambridge, Massachusetts later that year. This marks the second such agreement between a pharmaceutical company and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services in recent weeks. Last month, Pfizer Inc. reached a similar deal with the Trump administration, securing a three-year exemption from broad pharmaceutical tariffs that had previously been threatened. Specific terms of AstraZeneca's agreement remain confidential. Copyright(c) 2025 RTTNews.com. All Rights Reserved Copyright RTT News/dpa-AFX Werbehinweise: Die Billigung des Basisprospekts durch die BaFin ist nicht als ihre Befurwortung der angebotenen Wertpapiere zu verstehen. Wir empfehlen Interessenten und potenziellen Anlegern den Basisprospekt und die Endgultigen Bedingungen zu lesen, bevor sie eine Anlageentscheidung treffen, um sich moglichst umfassend zu informieren, insbesondere uber die potenziellen Risiken und Chancen des Wertpapiers. Sie sind im Begriff, ein Produkt zu erwerben, das nicht einfach ist und schwer zu verstehen sein kann. TORONTO, Oct. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Revival Gold Inc. (TSXV: RVG, OTCQX: RVLGF) ("Revival Gold" or the "Company") wishes to update its shareholders on details regarding the Company's upcoming annual general and special meeting, which is to be held at the offices of Peterson McVicar LLP, at 110 Yonge Street, Suite 1601, Toronto, ON M5C 1T4 on November 20, 2025 at 10:00 A.M. (Toronto time) ("Meeting"). The Company confirms the availability of its meeting materials and wishes to advise its shareholders, due to the Canada Post mail strike, of alternative ways to vote their shares for the Meeting. The Meeting is being held for the following purposes: (a) to receive the Company's financial statements for the years ended June 30, 2025, and 2024, and the report of the auditors thereon; (b) to set the number of directors of the Company at seven (7); (c) to elect the directors of the Company for the ensuing year; (d) to appoint MNP LLP, Chartered Accountants, as the auditors of the Company for the ensuing year and to authorize the directors to fix their remuneration; (e) to consider and, if deemed advisable, to pass, with or without variation, an ordinary resolution to re-approve the Company's 10% "rolling" stock option plan for the ensuing year; and (f) to transact such further and other business as may be properly brought before the meeting or any adjournment thereof. Electronic copies of the Notice of Meeting, Circular, form of proxy and all other proxy-related materials ("Meeting Materials") have been filed and are available under Revival Gold's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca and are posted under the heading "Investors" on the Company's website at https://revival-gold.com/agm-materials/. Shareholders are encouraged to access the Meeting Materials via SEDAR+ and the Company's website, or to contact the Company at info@revival-gold.com or (+1) 416-366-4100 to obtain copies. Shareholders are not required to be present at the Meeting and can vote their shareholdings in advance of the Meeting. All proxies must be received by the Company's transfer agent, Computershare Investor Services Inc., by 10:00 am (Toronto Time) on November 18, 2025. Registered shareholders may vote online at www.investorvote.com, or vote by telephone by following the instruction on the form of proxy. Registered shareholders who require their voting control numbers may obtain the voting control numbers by calling Computershare at 1-800-564-6253 (toll-free in North America) or 1-514-982-7555 (international direct dial). Beneficial holders should contact their brokerage house or depositary company directly, as each intermediary has its own form of proxy return instructions. Copies of the Company's audited financial statements and management discussion and analysis for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024 (collectively, the "Financial Statements and MD&A") have been filed and are available on the Company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. The Company will provide physical copies of the Financial Statements and MD&A to shareholders upon request by email at info@revival-gold.com. Following the conclusion of the mail strike, shareholders requesting Financial Statements and MD&A will be delivered those documents in the ordinary course. The Company has complied with the filing requirements for proxy-related materials in Section 9.3 of National Instrument 51-102 - Continuous Disclosure Requirements and has posted them on its website. Due to the ongoing Canada Post strike, delivery of printed copies to certain registered shareholders may be delayed. Shareholders are encouraged to access the materials online and may vote their shares electronically or by telephone, without using the mail, as described in this news release. In the event the postal strike is ended prior to the Meeting, the Company will mail printed copies to registered shareholders who request them as soon as practicable. The Company confirms it is satisfied all the conditions to rely, and is relying, on the exemption from the requirement to send proxy-related materials in the Canadian Securities Administrators Coordinated Blanket Order 51-932 - Re Temporary Exemption from requirements in National Instrument 51-102 Continuous Disclosure Obligations and National Instrument 54-101 Communication with Beneficial Owners of Securities of a Reporting Issuer to send certain proxy-related materials during a postal suspension (the "Order"). In the event that the mail strike ends prior to the Meeting, the Company will mail the Meeting Materials in accordance with the Order, but there can be no assurance that the Meeting Materials will be received by the shareholders prior to the Meeting. About Revival Gold Inc. Revival Gold is one of the largest, pure gold mine developers in the United States. The Company is advancing development of the Mercur Gold Project in Utah and mine permitting preparations and ongoing exploration at the Beartrack-Arnett Gold Project located in Idaho. Revival Gold is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol "RVG" and trades on the OTCQX Market under the ticker symbol "RVLGF". The Company is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with its exploration and development office located in Salmon, Idaho. For further information, please contact: Hugh Agro, President & CEO or Lisa Ross, Vice President & CFO Telephone: (416) 366-4100 or Email: info@revival-gold.com Cautionary Statement 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 press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Company's future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as "believes", "anticipates", "expects", "estimates", "may", "could", "would", "will", or "plan". Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet management's expectations. Risks, uncertainties, and other factors involved with forward-looking statements could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to: statements regarding the status and potential impact of the Canada Post mail strike and the timing of the resumption of regular postal service and related mailing of printed materials and the conduct and timing of the Meeting. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to: the status and duration of the Canada Post mail strike and related disruptions to shareholder communications and voting; the availability, performance and acceptance of electronic voting channels and third-party service providers, the Company's ability to finance the development of its mineral properties; uncertainty as to whether there will ever be production at the Company's mineral exploration and development properties; risks related to the Company's ability to commence production at the projects and generate material revenues or obtain adequate financing for its planned exploration and development activities; uncertainties relating to the assumptions underlying resource and reserve estimates; mining and development risks, including risks related to infrastructure, accidents, equipment breakdowns, labour disputes, bad weather, non-compliance with environmental and permit requirements or other unanticipated difficulties with or interruptions in development, construction or production; the geology, grade and continuity of the Company's mineral deposits; the uncertainties involving success of exploration, development and mining activities; permitting timelines; government regulation of mining operations; environmental risks; unanticipated reclamation expenses; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services; uncertainties involved in the interpretation of drilling results and geological tests and the estimation of reserves and resources; unexpected cost increases in estimated capital and operating costs; the need to obtain permits and government approvals; material adverse changes, unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's public filings with Canadian securities regulators, including its most recent annual information form and management's discussion and analysis, available at www.sedarplus.ca. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additionally, the Company undertakes no obligation to comment on the expectations of, or statements made by, third parties in respect of the matters discussed above. AMSTERDAM, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Sungrow, global leading PV inverter and energy storage system (ESS) provider, announced last month the successful grid connection of the first 400MWh of ENGIE's 200MW/800MWh battery energy storage project in Vilvoorde, Belgium. The largest of its kind on mainland Europe, the project utilizes 320 units of Sungrow's innovative PowerTitan liquid-cooled battery storage units. The second and final phase of this 200MW/800MWh battery energy storage project is set to connect to the grid by the end of 2025. The two-phase development is set to enhance grid stability and provide reliable, clean energy for up to 96,000 households in Belgium. "Battery storage is one of the most critical, yet often overlooked, components of a successful energy transition. This project is a key demonstration of how Sungrow's technology provides the grid flexibility that is essential for the next phase of Europe's renewable energy journey," said Moritz Rolf, Vice President of Sungrow Europe, responsible for the business in DACH, BeNeLux, Nordics, and Turkey. "Our strategic and successful partnership with ENGIE on the Vilvoorde project, emphasizes the important role of battery storage in delivering clean power for all, and strengthens our commitment to the European market." Optimistic step forward for modern energy infrastructure The Vilvoorde project represents an optimistic step forward in modernizing Europe's energy infrastructure as the continent works towards its 2050 sustainability goals. By absorbing surplus energy during periods of high production and releasing it back to the grid when demand is high, large-scale battery storage ensures flexible, but stable electricity supply from renewable sources. This installation of a large-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) serves as a blueprint for effectively integrating renewable energy into legacy infrastructure - balancing the grid and mitigating issues with net congestion. Safe, smart and efficient BESS Both phases of the ENGIE project are enabled by Sungrow's PowerTitan units deployed on-site. Sungrow's BESS solutions are engineered with compact design for quick deployment and operational efficiency - both of which are critical factors for large-scale infrastructure. The system's slim design optimizes land use and features intelligently connected, liquid-cooled technology, ensuring a temperature-controlled, cost-effective, and reliable system. These technological elements guarantee a safe and sustainable integration of large-scale energy storage into the power grid. "With the first series of batteries now operational in Vilvoorde, ENGIE is delivering part of the additional flexibility the electricity grid requires to balance supply and demand. The efficient construction of this battery park is only possible thanks to strong partnerships. By working hand in hand with trusted and innovative partners such as Sungrow, we can continue to accelerate the integration of renewables into the grid, and help deliver a more reliable, sustainable and affordable energy system," said Vincent Verbeke, CEO of ENGIE Belgium. Strong local presence Sungrow has established a strong local presence in the BeNeLux region, with a dedicated team providing technical support, sales, and after-sales services with its main offices as well as an RnD center in Amsterdam. The company also takes part in the important industry events like Intersolution or Laadinfra congress and hosts own events like an EV Charging Summit in Amsterdam in October. This strong local presence ensures that Sungrow can offer timely and effective solutions to its partners, reinforcing its commitment to the renewable energy sector in BeNeLux. Please find more information about the project here: CASE STUDY. About Sungrow Sungrow, a global leader in renewable energy technology, has pioneered sustainable power solutions for over 28 years. As of June 2025, Sungrow has installed 870 GW of power electronic converters worldwide. The Company is recognized as the world's most bankable PV inverter and energy storage company (BloombergNEF). Its innovations power clean energy projects across the globe, supported by a network of 520 service outlets guaranteeing excellent customer experience. At Sungrow, we're committed to bridging to a sustainable future through cutting-edge technology and unparalleled service. For more information, please visit: www.sungrowpower.com. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2793961/Sungrow_ENGIE_BESS_First400MWh_2.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1344575/Logo.jpg View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/sungrow-and-engie-complete-first-400-mwh-of-europes-largest-battery-storage-project-302581332.html The century-old tradition of Italian footwear is now facing new demands for comfort and sustainability. Amidst this wave of industry transformation, the Chinese brand STARAY, jointly with JO SYSTEM SRL, established the STARAY JO SYSTEM Joint Design and Production Center, a collaborative R&D hub that infuses technology into design and empowers design with the innovation of technology. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251011284684/en/ STARAY Joins Hands with Italy: A Cross-Border Fusion of Chinese Technology and European Design Entering Everyday Life Based on Technology Founded in 2020, STARAY is the world's first consumer brand to achieve large-scale production of fully 3D-printed shoes. STARAY footwear is produced in a single 3D-printed piece. This design makes them lightweight, breathable, soft, elastic, and easy to clean and maintain. With models designed for city walking, travel, sports, and other purposes, STARAY has leveraged its advanced production capabilities to make 3D-printed shoes widely accessible to households around the world. The reason why STARAY has gained global recognition lies in its brand philosophy of "Less, but better." In an era of over-consumption, we adhere to the principle of consumption reduction, committed to creating footwear that embodies both ultimate comfort and full life-cycle sustainability. Shaping the Future of Footwear Together When design meets technology, shoes transcend being mere symbols of "traditional craftsmanship" or "cutting-edge technology." They become a new fusion of expression: the elegance and artistic flair of Italian design combined with the comfort, lightness, and futuristic appeal of 3D-printed footwear. A STARAY spokesperson said, "We hope that 3D-printed shoes will not be seen merely as a novelty but as a genuine part of Italy's design context. We value design because it brings technology closer to human's needs. Technology makes shoes more comfortable to wear, while design makes them more inspiring. Both are indispensable." This collaboration marks a new trend in the industry: design and technology are now dependent on each other rather than advancing side by side as before. In the future, footwear will embody both Italian aesthetics and technological performance. In an era that values innovation and sustainability equally, such cross-border collaborations are poised to redefine the industry's future paradigm. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251011284684/en/ Contacts: Media Contact Company Name: Hangzhou Staray Technology Co.,Ltd Contact: Jie Luo Email: staray@starayglobe.com Website: www.starayglobe.com Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images Carolina Panthers fans are out in full force, demanding an apology or acknowledgement from ESPN reporter David Newton following a question to wide receiver Xavier Legette about his father. As the Panthers prepare to take on the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday, Newton was among a gaggle of reporters speaking with Legette in the locker room. The South Carolina product, who is in his second season with the Panthers, fielded a question from Newton about his upcoming opponent. The Cowboys are always Americas Team, did you grow up following them? Newton asked. Yeah, when I was little, my daddy was a Cowboy fan, said Legette in his lovely Southern drawl. Im thinkin he wont be this week, added Newton. For sure, for sure, aint a Cowboy fan no more, responded Legette, while looking away and deeply sighing before he was asked another question. Panthers wide receiver Xavier Legette talks preparing for the Cowboys, run blocking and more. pic.twitter.com/0tM6RyWllM Carolina Blitz (@KeepBlitzin) October 10, 2025 The cause for consternation? Legettes father died of a heart attack in 2019, while his mother passed after a battle with cancer four years prior. Now, one might say its unreasonable to expect a reporter to know that off the cuff. Usually, that would be true, but Newton, who has been ESPNs Panthers beat reporter since 2013, has written about Legettes situation before. Most notably, he profiled the wide receiver just last year and included a passage about his parents. Legettes unique Southern drawl has endeared him to people across the country after hearing him speak for the first time. Oh, yeah, theyve been dragging it all over social media, Legette said of his accent. I just tell them folk, man, they really just have not never heard anybody talk from Mullins. Neal said Legette sounds just like his dad, Anthony, who died of a heart attack in March of 2019, four years after the receivers mom, Anita, passed after a long battle with cancer. It is entirely possible that Newton just forgot in an insensitive moment where no offense was meant, but many Panthers fans dont seem to have seen it that way. Thats perhaps because there has been a healthy disdain for Newtons coverage over the years from some members of the fan base (a Change.org petition to have his credentials revoked has garnered over 1,200 signatures and has been active for a year). Hey @ESPNPR @espn youve got a reporter covering the Carolina Panthers that has been out of touch for a while. You now have him making one of the most insensitive comments Ive ever heard. Everyone following this team knows XLs parents passed away. I cannot imagine this https://t.co/KuLNXSs2Y9 Two Shows One Host (@2shows1host) October 10, 2025 Newton hasnt mentioned the comment on his social media accounts, though hes certainly hearing about it from Panthers fans and those upset by it. Sony India has announced the launch of the RX1R III, the third iteration in its acclaimed line of compact full-frame cameras. The new model integrates a 61-megapixel 35 mm full-frame Exmor R CMOS image sensor with the latest BIONZ XR image processing engine and a fixed ZEISS Sonnar T* 35 mm F2 lens. High-Resolution Imaging and Optics At the core of the RX1R III is the 61-megapixel back-illuminated Exmor R CMOS sensor, which, paired with the BIONZ XR processor, aims to deliver high-resolution images with a wide dynamic range and low noise. To maximize image sharpness, the sensors surface features an Anti-Reflection (AR) coating, and the camera is designed without an optical low-pass filter. The integrated ZEISS Sonnar T* 35 mm F2 lens has been optically matched to the sensor to maintain high performance within the cameras compact body. Advanced Autofocus and Creative Flexibility The RX1R III incorporates an AI processing unit, a feature found in Sonys professional Alpha series cameras. This unit enables advanced subject recognition, tracking human eyes, bodies, and heads with high precision for both still photography and video recording, even when the subjects face is partially obscured. The cameras autofocus system utilizes up to 693 phase-detection AF points, covering approximately 78% of the image sensor area for still images. While the camera has a fixed 35 mm lens, the Step Crop Shooting function offers digital focal length versatility, allowing users to switch between 35 mm, 50 mm, and 70 mm equivalent fields of view. For RAW shooters, the focal length can be reselected during post-production. A dedicated macro ring on the lens allows for close-up photography, with a minimum focusing distance of 20 cm. The camera also includes twelve built-in Creative Looks that provide pre-set color profiles for both photos and videos. Design, Ergonomics, and Hardware The RX1R III is constructed from a lightweight magnesium alloy. Its design features embedded dials and a Multi-Interface (MI) Shoe, contributing to a flat top surface. The grip has been designed for a secure hold. For composition, the camera is equipped with a 2.36 million-dot XGA OLED electronic viewfinder, offering approximately 0.70x magnification. The camera is powered by the NP-FW50 rechargeable battery, rated for up to 300 still images on a single charge. It includes a USB Type-C port that supports USB Power Delivery for fast charging and can be powered by external sources for extended use. Corporate Responsibility and Accessibility In line with Sonys Road to Zero environmental plan, the RX1R III is produced in facilities operating on 100% renewable electricity. Its packaging utilizes Sonys Original Blended Material, foregoing plastic. For accessibility, the camera includes features such as a Screen Reader function and Display Magnification to assist visually impaired users. Optional Accessories Sony also announced several dedicated accessories for the RX1R III: TG-2: A thumb grip that attaches to the MI Shoe for enhanced stability. LCS-RXL: A custom-fit body case designed to protect the camera while allowing access to all ports and controls. LHP-1: An aluminum lens hood with a bayonet mount for protection and quick attachment. Price and Availability The Sony RX1R III is priced at an MRP of Rs. 4,69,990 and will be sold through Sony Authorised Retail Outlets, Sony Camera Lounges, Alpha Flagship stores, Sony Centers, the ShopatSC.com portal, and major e-commerce platforms. Commenting on the launch, Mukesh Srivastava, Head of Imaging Business, Sony India, said: The RX1R series has always stood for uncompromising image quality in a compact form, and with the RX1R III, were taking that legacy to the next level. This camera embodies Sonys commitment to innovation bringing together the power of a 61-megapixel full-frame sensor, AI-driven precision, and a timeless design that empowers photographers and creators to express their vision without limits. 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Ireland Uruguay, Eastern Republic of Uzbekistan Vanuatu Venezuela, Bolivarian Republic of Viet Nam, Socialist Republic of Wallis and Futuna Islands Western Sahara Yemen Zambia, Republic of Zimbabwe 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. Tue Tuesday 51 /34 Mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the low 50s and lows in the mid 30s. Government to restore Police's right to collect intelligence Beehive.govt.nz - The official website of the New Zealand Government 9 October 2025 Hon Mark Mitchell Police Cabinet has taken decisions to amend the Policing Act, to reaffirm Polices ability to gather intelligence in public places, and expand Police's powers to temporarily close areas in response to antisocial behaviour or public safety risks. "Recent court decisions have created uncertainty around Police's ability to record images in public places for lawful purposes," says Police Minister Mark Mitchell. "The proposed amendments will reaffirm the prior common law position, making it clear that Police can collect and use images in public spaces, and in places where Police are lawfully present, for all lawful policing purposes. This includes intelligence gathering and crime prevention and other Policing functions and associated activities." These changes restore Police's ability to detect and prevent crime, support prosecutions, and ensure that vital information can be lawfully collected and retained for lawful purposes. The amendments will also help Police respond to evolving threats, such as organised crime and gang activity, and support a wide range of interventions, from public safety to youth offending and family harm. The amendments will also expand Police's powers to temporarily close areas in response to antisocial behaviour or public safety risks. Police will be able to: Close a broader range of areas, not just roads, to manage disorder or emergencies. Direct vehicles and individuals to leave closed areas and, where necessary, arrest those who fail to stop their vehicle for Police, for the purpose of issuing a direction. Issue infringement notices and, where necessary, arrest those who refuse to comply or provide identifying information. Detain and move individuals who refuse to leave closed areas, ensuring Police can respond effectively where danger or disorder exists, or serious crimes have been committed. These new powers will provide clarity and consistency for frontline Police, ensuring they have the necessary tools to manage non-compliance and keep communities safe. As with all Police powers, these changes will be subject to strict oversight and accountability. Police will exercise discretion and act proportionately in all circumstances, with continued monitoring by independent authorities. Legislation will now be drafted, and the changes will go through a legislative process in due course. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Statement on Middle East peace plan Media statement Thursday 9 October 2025 Prime Minister Anthony Albanese The Hon Anthony Albanese MP Prime Minister of Australia Senator the Hon Penny Wong Minister for Foreign Affairs Australia welcomes President Trump's announcement that Israel and Hamas have signed off the first phase of the plan to bring peace to Gaza. After more than two years of conflict, hostages held and a devastating loss of civilian life, this is a much needed step towards peace. Australia has consistently been part of international calls for a ceasefire, return of the hostages, and the unimpeded flow of aid to Gaza. We urge all parties to respect the terms of the plan. We thank President Trump for his diplomatic efforts and acknowledge the important role of Egypt, Qatar and Turkiye in delivering this agreement. Australia strongly supports the plan's commitment to denying Hamas any role in the future governance of Gaza. There is a very long road to recovery in Gaza, securing long term peace and building the Palestinian state. Together with our partners, Australia will continue to do what we can to contribute to a just and enduring two-state solution. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Swiss Government Press release Published on 9 October 2025 Bern, 09.10.2025 -- National Armaments Director Urs Loher held technical discussions with representatives from the US Department of Defense in the Pentagon in Virginia, USA on 2 October 2025. The talks focused on the next steps in the procurement of long-range ground-based air defence (GBAD LR National Armaments Director Urs Loher was on a working visit to the USA from 1 to 3 October 2025. He met with representatives from the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) and the Office of the Secretary of War for Policy (OSW(P)) in the Pentagon in Arlington, Virginia to discuss the next steps in the GBAD LR project. Course of technical discussions with the representatives of the US government In mid-July 2025, the US Department of Defense informed the DDPS of an adjusted prioritisation in the deliveries of Patriot systems and the possible delay for Switzerland. The effects on the contracts and the payment schedule were discussed at the meeting. Some important points could not yet be clarified satisfactorily. The Swiss delegation emphasised the significance of the Patriot systems for the protection of Switzerland against threats from the air and the importance of imminent training of the troops on the systems. The US government is currently looking at options which meet the needs of various countries procuring Patriot systems while minimising disruption to the nations involved. The formation of a combined working group is being considered to work on the open points for deciding jointly on the options. The talks will be continued, with the US government promising to provide Switzerland with more detailed information on the deliveries dates and any additional costs in the coming weeks. The government condemned Russian aggression against Poland Government of the Czech Republic 10. 9. 2025 18:54 The Czech Republic condemns the incursion of Polish airspace by Russian drones on Tuesday night. At its meeting on Wednesday, 10 September 2025, Petr Fiala's government adopted a clear resolution in support of Poland following the latest provocation by the Russian Federation. Among other things, it also set the rules for calculating the amount of tax revenues that regional and municipal governments receive to provide for education in the school facilities they establish, or set the amount of insurance premiums for state insured persons next year. At its next regular meeting, the Petr Fiala-led cabinet discussed the recent security incident as part of which a large number of Russian drones entered Polish airspace. It adopted the following resolution: The Government of the Czech Republic condemns the Russian aggression through the incursion of the airspace of Poland, expresses its support for Poland and is ready to fulfil all our allied commitments as members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation. "We stand firmly on the side of our Polish friends, we are in contact with them and in the event of an urgent need we are ready to help protect the borders of the European Union against Russian provocations," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala. "Apparently it was not a mere coincidence, but a deliberate act. Putin's regime is threatening the whole of Europe and is systematically testing how far it can go," said Prime Minister Petr Fiala, describing the situation as very grave. "We were happy to find out that Polish air defences have worked, but it is also clear that Russia is trying to harm the people of European countries. And yet we hear political voices in our country saying that the North Atlantic Alliance is the aggressor, that we should not strengthen our defence. But this is not a political position, an individual opinion; rather it is support to Russian propaganda. And we must not let such support to Russian propaganda win in the Czech Republic," the Prime Minister warned. "Czech security is not a given. We have to take care of it, we have to invest in defence, and anyone who says otherwise and questions defence spending wants the Czech Republic to be weak. And we want a strong and secure Czech Republic," said Prime Minister Fiala. According to the Prime Minister, the presence of Russian attack drones in the airspace of Poland an allied state near the Czech border clearly upends the contention that Russia's war against Ukraine does not concern us. "This is a serious political situation and clear evidence that we are directly affected by these security risks," the Prime Minister said, calling on all political forces in the Czech Republic to clearly condemn the attack on Poland. "Whoever fails to do so serves Russia's interests, consciously or not," he added. The Government has approved by way of a decree thecoefficients, according to which regions, municipalities and voluntary associations of municipalities that are founders of educational institutions receive tax revenues to finance non-teaching staff. The decree takes into account the numbers of children, pupils and students and the differences in unit costs of different types of education and school services. Regions will share an amount of CZK 10.5 billion next year and municipalities will receive CZK 23 billion; this adds up to a total of CZK 33.5 billion, about CZK 2 billion more compared to this year. For details see the press release of the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports. The cabinet also decided to increase the amount the state pays into the health insurance system for the so-called state insured persons. The monthly flat-rate payment will increase by CZK 61 from the current CZK 2,127 to CZK 2,188. The state will thus pay out roughly CZK 4.4 billion more than this year on non-discretionary spending. For more details see the press release of the Ministry of Finance. The cabinet meeting was preceded by a meeting of the Committee for the European Union at the government level. The cabinet members discussed, among other things, a change in the Czech Republic's position on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council laying down rules for preventing and combating sexual abuse of children, which would introduce the so-called chat control within the EU. The Czech Republic originally wanted to abstain from the vote on the proposal, but the government has reconsidered the position and decided that the Czech Republic would vote against it. The main reason for the rejection is the desire to break encrypted communications directly on the devices of their users as part of the intensified fight against the sexual abuse and molestation of children. In the government's view, this would pose a significant risk of weakening or even undermining cyber security and the protection of the fundamental rights of users of these communication tools. "I'm glad we have proceeded to this change of position because I believe we must protect the privacy and freedom of every citizen. Therefore, the Czech Republic will actively vote against the plan in Brussels, should it be put to a vote in the near future," Prime Minister Petr Fiala said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address EDA's head Kallas urges EU unity, resolve in support of Ukraine European Defence Agency 09 October 2025 Kaja Kallas, the Head of the European Defence Agency (EDA), is working for a "common European vision for defence", also warning that Russia must not be allowed to prevail in its war against Ukraine. Speaking during a visit to EDA's headquarters, Kallas who is the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission urged EU Member States to spend wisely and as collaboratively as possible in defence at a time of rising budget demands. Addressing EDA staff, Kallas said that Member States, EDA, the European Commission and industry are in the process of designing a common European vision for defence. She stressed the need for close cooperation with Ukraine and within the EU, and to "join forces and break down the barriers between defence policy, capability development and defence industrial policy." Kallas also recalled that EDA was at the heart of that vision: "This agency is the catalyst to help Member States grow their military capabilities further, and we have a very clear task at hand: defence readiness by 2030." She also laid out what was at stake for Europe and the United States. "If aggression pays off (in Ukraine), it serves as an invitation to use it elsewhere", she said. During her visit, Kallas, who was appointed Head of the Agency and EU High Representative in December 2024, held closed-door talks with EDA Chief Executive Andre Denk, as well as with EDA's senior management. As the intergovernmental platform for EU defence, EDA supports Member States through five core tasks: Finding common priorities so that EU armed forces have the capabilities they need; Supporting joint defence research, technology, and innovation; Working together on capability development while making sure systems work together; Bringing together demand for joint purchasing to address gaps in capabilities; Coordinating with EU policies and representing the positions of Ministries of Defence. Capability development means helping countries build and maintain the equipment, technology, skills, and systems they need to operate effectively. This includes planning new capabilities, designing and acquiring equipment, training personnel, and making sure everything works together across land, air, sea, cyber, and space domains. EDA also supports a range of services to Member States, missions, and EU bodies, including satellite communications, maritime surveillance, air medical evacuation, diplomatic clearances for cross-border movements, and cyber defence. Kallas stressed the importance of that work. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Minister Tsahkna's comment on the agreement to implement the first phase of the Gaza peace plan Republic of Estonia - Ministry of Foreign Affairs 09.10.2025 | 10:38 Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna's comment on the agreement to implement the first phase of the Gaza peace plan. "I welcome the agreement on the first phase of the peace plan. I highly value the diplomatic efforts of the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkey in achieving this. For the first time in a long while, there is a real opportunity to bring an end to the violence, improve the daily lives of civilians, and build trustworthy political relations. We hope that the hostages will be released swiftly and that the fighting will come to an end. Lasting peace and security for both Israelis and Palestinians can only be achieved through a two-state solution. Estonia supports international efforts to make this a reality." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Berlin Process: New impetus for the Western Balkans moving closer to the EU Germany Federal Foreign Office 09.10.2025 - Article Foreign Minister Wadephul is travelling to Belfast to join partners in the Berlin Process in pushing forward the Western Balkan countries' approach to the EU. On 8 and 9 October 2025, the Foreign Ministers of the Berlin Process will meet in Belfast to support the countries of the Western Balkans on their path towards regional integration and towards the EU. The British chair's focuses this year are reconciliation, security, regional economic integration and migration. This meeting will be followed by the summit of heads of state and government in London on 22 October. Launched in 2014, the Berlin Process aims to promote regional cooperation with the six Western Balkan countries. In addition to Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Serbia, the format includes several EU member states, the United Kingdom and EU institutions. Prior to his departure for Belfast, Foreign Minister Wadephul said: The Western Balkans is part of our European family. It is therefore clear to us that we will accompany the six countries in the region on their path towards the EU. The Berlin Process is the catalyst in the EU accession process of the Western Balkan countries. This mechanism is more important than ever. After all, people are beginning to lose confidence that they will be part of the EU in the near future. We cannot afford to let that happen because we would then run the risk of a return to the old days of hostility and a bigger role for Russia and China. The prime focus of the Berlin Process is on joint endeavours for a future with strong neighbourly relations and a competitive regional economy. The aim is to overcome divisions and achieve tangible improvements in people's everyday lives - whether it be through cross-border youth work, freedom of travel or the mutual recognition of qualifications. A more strongly integrated regional market will promote growth and draw the six countries closer to the EU in economic terms as well. The location for the meeting was chosen deliberately: more than almost anywhere else, Belfast is a symbol of successful reconciliation after decades of social division. Of course, in some cases there is still a long way to go - especially when it comes to reconciliation. For that reason, too, the location our British friends and hosts have chosen for this year's Foreign Ministers' Meeting is of special importance: Belfast symbolises how reconciliation became possible after decades of social division. Not overnight. But with patience, political will and, above all, the courage of many people to reach out to each other time and again in difficult circumstances. -Foreign Minister Wadephul prior to his departure for Belfast NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister congratulates President Trump on success of Gaza peace plan India - Press Information Bureau Prime Minister's Office Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 9:17PM by PIB Delhi The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi spoke to the President of the United States, Donald Trump and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan. During their conversation, the two leaders also reviewed the good progress achieved in ongoing trade negotiations. They agreed to remain in close touch over the coming weeks to further strengthen bilateral cooperation. In a post on X, Shri Modi said; "Spoke to my friend, President Trump and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan. Also reviewed the good progress achieved in trade negotiations. Agreed to stay in close touch over the coming weeks. @POTUS @realDonaldTrump" MJPS/ST (Release ID: 2177080) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister congratulates Prime Minister, H.E Benjamin Netanyahu on progress made under President Trump's Gaza peace plan India - Press Information Bureau Prime Minister's Office Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 10:17PM by PIB Delhi The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi spoke to Prime Minister of Israel, H.E. Benjamin Netanyahu, and congratulated him on the progress made under President Trump's Gaza peace plan. Shri Modi welcomed the agreement on the release of hostages and enhanced humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza. He reaffirmed that terrorism in any form or manifestation is unacceptable anywhere in the world. The Prime Minister wrote on X; "Called my friend, Prime Minister Netanyahu, to congratulate him on the progress made under President Trump's Gaza peace plan. We welcome the agreement on the release of hostages and enhanced humanitarian assistance to the people of Gaza. Reaffirmed that terrorism in any form or manifestation is unacceptable anywhere in the world. @netanyahu" MJPS/ST (Release ID: 2177101) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Latvia to strengthen defence infrastructure with EIB advisory support Republic of Latvia - Ministry of Defence 10/09/2025 - 14:23 Infrastructure Information prepared by Press division The European Investment Bank (EIB), the Latvian government and the State Real Estate Agency (VNI) have joined forces to develop a military base and training area in the southeastern region of Selonia, along with a storage facility in Kuldiga Municipality. The initiative aims to enhance both national and regional defence capabilities. The agreement was formalised today in Riga through the signature of key documents between the EIB, the Latvian government and State Real Estate, marking the official launch of the advisory assignment to assess a potential PPP structure for the defence base project. This support will help ensure the base and associated facilities is developed in line with international best practices and is attractive for financing. "In response to the geopolitical challenges and threats posed by Russia's war in Ukraine, we are actively and thoughtfully implementing the National Armed Forces Development Plan for 2025-2036, which was approved in 2023," said Latvian Minister of Defence Andris Spruds. "Public-private partnerships have been identified as one of the effective and forward-looking models we can apply in the future for the development of defence infrastructure". "The Selonia base is a landmark project for Latvia and the Baltic region," said EIB Vice-President Karl Nehammer. "It's not just about infrastructure - it's about resilience, readiness and regional solidarity. The EIB is proud to support this effort with our advisory expertise to help ensure the project is bankable, sustainable and impactful." The EIB advisory support stems from a request by the Latvian Ministry of Defence and covers the development of the base, training area and storage facility infrastructure. This would mark Latvia's first defence infrastructure PPP, which follows successful cooperation with a PPP involving a bypass road in the city of Kekava near Riga and comes amid advisory support for a planned affordable-housing programme. The EIB will offer free advisory support through its European PPP Expertise Centre, helping Latvia prepare the project with strong financial planning, feasibility analysis, and impact assessment. The goal is to make sure the base is well designed, financially sound, and attractive to private investors. "Cooperation with the European Investment Bank is a strong commitment of how to use state resources wisely - by leveraging the expertise of the private sector and international experience that provides valuable knowledge to public administration specialists and additional capital to strengthen Latvia's defence and economy. I highly appreciate that since the opening of the EIB office in Riga, its presence in Latvia has become increasingly significant. This year, EIB investments already exceed EUR 330 million that is a significant contribution to the development of our economy," emphasizes Latvian Minister of Finance Arvils Aseradens. Renars Griskevics, Chairman of the Management Board of State Real Estate (VAS "Valsts nekustamie ipasumi"), said: "We are honoured to contribute to this strategically important project for Latvia's and the region's security. State Real Estate will oversee the project from the implementation phase through to the end of the availability period. Our team brings extensive experience in managing security infrastructure projects, and our expertise in the public-private partnership model will enable us to deliver this large-scale initiative efficiently and to the highest standards." The EIB's support for Latvia's defence infrastructure development reflects its growing role in strengthening European security and resilience. The Bank is increasingly involved in defence-related projects across Europe, including barracks, logistics hubs, critical infrastructure, industrial capacity, advanced technologies, and support for SMEs. These efforts support EU initiatives such as REARM Europe and underscore the EIB's commitment to Europe's security and resilience. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Allied Air Command enhance Partnership interoperability during Mobile Training Team event in Colombia NATO Allied Air Command Oct 9 2025 RAMSTEIN, Germany -- From September 29 to October 1, 2025, a team from Allied Air Command (AIRCOM) conducted a Mobile Training Team (MTT) event in Bogota, Colombia focussed on Public Affairs in Operations. AIRCOM's MTT programme strives to enhance the operational readiness and effectiveness of Allied and Partner Air Forces. This is achieved through comprehensive training in air doctrine, tactics, techniques, procedures, and methods across a wide range of operational and tactical air power concepts. primary objective of the Public Affairs in Operations engagement was to equip personnel from the Colombian Air and Space Force (COLAF) with the necessary knowledge and tools at the operational and tactical levels to effectively plan and execute Public Affairs (PA) activities in support of NATO military operations. The training was facilitated by two subject matter experts from AIRCOM's Strategic Communication Division, whose expertise ensured a high-level exchange of best practices in PA planning. The three day event focused on aligning Public Affairs objectives with operational effects, synchronizing media operations, and maximizing the strategic impact of communication efforts to support the commander's intent and mission success. "NATO values its close partnership with Allied Partner Colombia, the Strategic Communications branch of the COLAF are extremely professional and have a great deal of PA experience, the engaging and open dialog during the MTT has been mutually beneficial. We look forward to working with, and alongside the COLAF in the future" said Chief Public Affairs Officer, Allied Air Command, Lieutenant Colonel Marco DeSimone. During the same period, Joint Force Command Naples Military Partnership Branch, supported by the Allied Air Command, conducted a NATO Evaluation of a Colombian Air Force unit. The unit involved was the 811th Air to Air Refueling Squadron, operating a Boeing KC-767/MMTT Jupiter. This evaluation builds on the successful Self-Evaluation Level 1 conducted by the 811th Squadron last year. Colombia, the host partner nation, contributed 11 trained assessors to the team, underscoring its growing role in collective operational development. The 811th Squadron was assessed as meeting NATO standards at NEL1, reflecting strong progress in operational capability and interoperability. A number of learning points were identified, which will be addressed as Colombia works towards a Self-Evaluation Level 2 in the coming year, part of a broader commitment to long-term capability building - Read More - JFC Naples. Colombia joined the NATO Partnership for Peace (PfP) programme in 2017 and numerous meetings and collaborative activities between AIRCOM and Partners had been conducted. A valued PfP Nation. AIRCOM has a regional partnership framework with 41 nations. This initiative highlights the continued cooperation and mutual commitment between NATO and Colombia, aimed at strengthening strategic communication capabilities and interoperability in modern air and space operations. Story by Allied Air Command Public Affairs Office NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address New Zealand welcomes Middle East peace deal Beehive.govt.nz - The official website of the New Zealand Government 9 October 2025 Rt Hon Winston Peters Foreign Affairs New Zealand welcomes the announcement of the first phase of the US-led peace deal between Israel and Hamas, Foreign Minister Winston Peters says. "Over the past two years, both Israelis and Palestinians have suffered immensely," Mr Peters says. "Today is a positive first step in bringing that suffering to an end." "We commend the efforts of the parties involved in the negotiations, including the US, Egypt, Qatar, and Turkiye. "We said in New York two weeks ago that countries with leverage over the situation needed to step up and show leadership. We commend them for doing just that. "We have long called for the release of all the hostages and for a ceasefire, so that the immense suffering can end. The parties must now deliver on their promises. Hamas needs to release all of the hostages and Israel must withdraw their troops to the agreed-upon line. "This is an essential first step towards achieving lasting peace. We urge Israel and Hamas to continue working towards a complete resolution. "There has been a lot of protest in New Zealand over the past two years relating to the situation in Gaza. We look forward to all those protestors, and their political allies in Parliament, joining the Government today in applauding the deal that has been struck," Mr Peters says. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address OIC Welcomes Gaza Ceasefire Announcement Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) 09-10-2025 The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) welcomes the Gaza ceasefire agreement announced today, hailing the move as a step towards achieving a permanent and comprehensive cessation of the Israeli aggression, enabling the return of the displaced to their homes, the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces, the unhindered and adequate delivery of humanitarian assistance, and commencing the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip. The OIC also commends the efforts exerted by all mediators brokering this agreement, stressing the need to continue these efforts to eventually achieve justice and peace though ending the Israeli occupation, establishing an independent Palestinian state on the June 4, 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital - in accordance with the relevant resolutions of international legitimacy, the Arab Peace Initiative, and New York Declaration and its annexes, issued by the International Conference for the Peaceful Settlement of the Question of Palestine and the Implementation of the Two-State Solution. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address AFP: No brewing destabilization plot among ranks Philippine News Agency By Priam Nepomuceno October 9, 2025, 5:22 pm MANILA -- The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Thursday maintained that there is no brewing destabilization plot against the government among its ranks stemming from corruption issues hounding flood control projects. In an interview with reporters, AFP Public Affairs Office chief Col. Xerxes Trinidad insisted that claims on social media regarding the supposed plot are just "disinformation". "Definitely there are no plans of destabilization among the ranks of the AFP," he said. Trinidad called on the public to be very critical and discriminating when it comes to information circulating on social media, and to only source facts and details from credible sources. "The AFP remains a disciplined and professional organization and we remain to be that kind of organization," Trinidad said. The AFP earlier cautioned the public against using soldiers for partisan agenda, affirming its commitment to upholding the Constitution and remaining loyal to the chain of command. President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., through Executive Order 94, has created an independent fact-finding body to investigate the alleged irregularities in government flood control and other infrastructure projects. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Japan-PH military access deal activated for Cebu quake relief Philippine News Agency By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora October 9, 2025, 2:31 pm MANILA -- The Japan Air Self-Defense Force is set to provide support for transporting relief supplies to earthquake victims in Cebu, at the request of the Philippine side one of the first activities to be conducted by Tokyo under the new Reciprocal Access Agreement (RAA) with Manila. In a statement on Thursday, the Japanese Embassy in Manila announced that the RAA had been applied to the bilateral humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise Doshin-Bayanihan between the Japan Air Self-Defense Force and the Philippine Air Force conducted in the Philippines on Oct. 7. "Furthermore, taking advantage of this bilateral exercise opportunity, Japan Air Self-Defense Force will provide support to transport relief supplies within the Philippines, in response to the request from the Philippines, for the relief operations responding to the earthquake in Cebu that occurred late on September 30," it said. "The Japan-Philippines RAA will also be applied to this transport of relief supplies." Last Sept. 30, Tokyo and Manila convened the Joint Committee meeting on RAA, where arrangements to implement the deal were discussed among officials of the Japan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Defense for Japan, and the Department of National Defense and other relevant Philippine agencies. The arrangements will pave the way for the smooth conduct of cooperative activities such as joint exercises and disaster relief operations by both countries while enhancing interoperability between their respective forces. "Amid an increasingly challenging regional security environment, security and defense cooperation with the Philippines a strategic partner sharing fundamental values and principles with Japan, which is located at a point of strategic importance on sea lanes will be further promoted," it said. "This will provide robust support for peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region." The RAA was ratified by President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. and was concurred by the Senate on Dec. 16. It entered into force on Sept. 11, 2025. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Serbia Braces For Fallout After US Sanctions On Oil Firm NIS Take Force By RFE/RL's Balkan Service October 09, 2025 Summary The US imposed sanctions on Serbia's sole oil refiner, NIS, due to its Russian ownership, aiming to curb Kremlin's war financing. NIS stated it has sufficient oil stocks and gas station supplies despite losing its special license from the US Treasury. Serbia, reliant on Russian gas, is negotiating with Moscow while refusing to join Western sanctions against Russia. The US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) said sanctions against the Russian-owned Oil Industry of Serbia (NIS), Serbia's sole crude oil refiner, have taken force after several delays, a move that could hit the Balkan nation hard. NIS said on October 9 that a special license from the US Treasury that allows the company to operate was not extended after being delayed eight times since the company was first put on the US sanctions list in January for its "secondary risk," its Russian ownership. The sanctions are aimed, among other things, at preventing the financing of the Kremlin's war in Ukraine by Russian energy companies. "The company has not been extended a special license by the United States Department of Finance, which enables smooth operational business," NIS said in a statement. "Since the listing of the company on the SDN (Specially Designated Nationals) list in January, NIS has been carefully monitoring the situation and trying to adapt its operations to the new circumstances...NIS has secured sufficient stocks of oil for processing at this time, while gas stations are properly supplied with all types of oil derivatives." Kremlin-controlled Gazprom Neft, directly or through its subsidiaries, is the main owner of substantial energy assets in Serbia. Since 2008, Gazprom has owned a large stake in NIS, Serbia's national oil and gas company. Although Serbia has repeatedly condemned Russia's invasion at the United Nations and other international forums, it has so far refused to join Western sanctions against Moscow. Serbia is heavily dependent on Russian gas and is currently in talks for a new supply deal. Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic said on October 7 that Belgrade will discuss ways to resolve problems created by the sanctions with Russia. "We no longer have anything to discuss with the Americans. The United States has imposed its will on others and Europe will support American sanctions," said Vucic. The ownership structure of NIS has been changed several times as the company looked to avoid the sanctions, but it is still mostly in the hands of Russian companies. Gazprom in September transferred its shares to one of its subsidiaries based in St. Petersburg, which now holds 11.3 percent of the company's shares, according to data published on the website of the Belgrade Stock Exchange on September 21. Gazprom Neft, a subsidiary of Gazprom, still holds the largest share in NIS at 44.9 percent, while Serbia owns 29.9 percent. The remainder is held by small shareholders. In January, Vucic rejected the possibility of nationalizing NIS, adding that Serbia "will not participate in the seizure of Russian property." "The financial sector will have to stop working with NIS - halt all transactions and cooperation immediately - to avoid being considered a bank dealing with a sanctioned entity," he added. Industry experts said crude oil deliveries to Serbia, as well as exports of fuel, and higher gasoline prices are likely to be among the negative consequences of the US sanctions against NIS, which supplies over 80 percent of Serbia's diesel and petrol fuels. The consequences of the US sanctions against NIS are likely also to ripple across neighboring countries, with the Serbian oil firm having operations in Croatia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Romania, and Bulgaria. Croatian President Economy Minister Ante Susnjar said on October 9 that his country is ready to buy the NIS if Serbia sees the sale as a potential solution, noting Croatia's oil firm Jadranski Naftovod has been closely linked to NIS for 40 years "without any pretensions to dominate the retail market in Serbia." "That would make it easier for both us and Serbia," he said. Serbia, which applied to join the European Union in 2009 and started negotiations in 2014, has not responded to the comments. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/serbia-oil- sanctions-nis-ofac/33555386.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Amid Strained Relations With Baku, Putin Admits Russian Role In Azerbaijan Jet Crash By RFE/RL's Russian Service, RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service and Mykyta Peretiatko October 09, 2025 President Vladimir Putin admitted to Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev that Russia played a role in the downing of an Azerbaijan Airlines passenger jet that killed at least 38 people, his first acknowledgement of Russian responsibility. Putin told Aliyev when they met on the sidelines of a summit in the Tajik capital, Dushanbe, on October 9 that local Russian air defense systems had been deployed against Ukrainian drones and were to blame for the crash-landing of the flight from Baku to Russia's Grozny in December 2024 in Kazakhstan, after it was rerouted from southern Russia. "The two missiles that were launched did not hit the jet directly," Putin said, adding that if they had, "it would have crashed on the spot, but, they exploded, perhaps as a self-destruction measure, a few meters away." "The Russian side will, of course, do everything possible to provide compensation and give a legal assessment of the actions of all responsible officials," Putin said, giving no concrete details. Putin added that he had learned the cause of the crash only two days prior his meeting with Aliyev, saying it would "take some more time" to complete the investigation. Aviation expert Vadim Lukashevich noted that the explosion of missiles near the aircraft, rather than a direct hit on the fuselage, is "normal behavior" for air defense missiles. "This was not a self-destruction that occurred hundreds of meters away from the aircraft, but rather the standard activation of the missiles' proximity fuses," Lukashevich claimed in a Facebook post. Putin had previously issued an apology to Aliyev last year for the "tragic incident," but he wouldn't admit fault on Russia's side, which led to a 10-month diplomatic row between Moscow and Baku, which continued to demand compensation and accountability. Russian authorities, meanwhile, carried out arrests of ethnic Azerbaijanis this summer as part of an investigation into alleged crimes. In response, Azerbaijani security forces also detained several Russian nationals. Moreover, Aliyev skipped Russia's annual World War II Victory Day celebrations, a major snub of Putin in the eyes of many. During the October 9 meeting, Putin expressed "hope" for restoring cooperation between the two countries. Aliyev, in turn, thanked the Russian leader for investigating the cause of the crash saying he appreciated his "personal control" over the situation. "The messages we are sending today to our societies will meet a positive response," Aliyev said. Speaking to RFE/RL's Azerbaijani Service, independent political expert Shahin Hajiyev said the level of hostility between Russia and Azerbaijan is now likely to ease. "It can be seen from Ilham Aliyev's statements during the meeting with Putin that he is satisfied with the Russian side's position and expects the problems in bilateral relations to be resolved," he said. Hajiyev added that he also expected pressure on Azerbaijanis working in Russia to ease and that those arrested earlier in the year would be released. However, Elkhan Shahinoglu, a political analyst at the Atlas Research Center in Baku, questioned Putin's technical explanations, adding that the lengthy period of tension had already damaged cooperation between the two countries. "If Putin points out that the investigation is not yet complete, why does he claim that the missile did not hit the aircraft?" Shahinoglu asked in his post on Facebook. "If Putin had said what he said now in the first days after the tragedy, relations would not have become so strained," he added, noting that "the normalization of relations will depend on how Putin fulfills his promise." Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-azerbaijan-ukraine- putin-plane-crash/33555688.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova's answer to a media question about an Israel-Hamas agreement to cease fire in the Gaza Strip 9 October 2025 18:34 1678-09-10-2025 Question: Reportedly, on October 9, following several days of indirect talks in the Egyptian town of Sharm el-Sheikh, Israel and Hamas reached an initial agreement to cease fire in the Gaza Strip and to exchange detainees. Under the deal, all remaining Israeli hostages in the enclave, as well as the bodies of deceased Israelis, will be released soon. In return, Israel will free around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, including 250 serving life sentences. The agreement also provides for a partial withdrawal of Israeli forces to the agreed-upon positions, the lifting of the Gaza blockade, and unfettered access to humanitarian aid for the people in need. What does the Foreign Ministry make of this agreement? Maria Zakharova: Russia welcomes the deal which was largely made possible through the persistent and coordinated efforts of Egyptian, Qatari, Turkish, and US mediators. These diplomatic efforts certainly deserve high praise. For us, putting an end to the suffering of civilians is the top priority. It is crucial that both parties fully and consistently implement all their commitments at this and ensuing stages. We hope the ceasefire will be sustainable this time and help ensure long-term stability in the Gaza Strip, make possible the return of internally displaced persons, and create proper conditions to begin large-scale reconstruction of the infrastructure that was almost completely destroyed during the hostilities. We believe that successful implementation of the agreement will open the door to a renewed political process for a Middle East settlement based on well-established international legal principles that call for the creation of an independent Palestinian State coexisting peacefully and securely with Israel. We are convinced that the realisation of the two-state formula approved by UN General Assembly and Security Council resolutions will help establish a lasting and just peace in the Middle East. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Secretary Rubio's Meeting with Romanian Foreign Minister Toiu US Department of State Readout Office of the Spokesperson October 9, 2025 The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott: Secretary of State Marco Rubio met yesterday with Romanian Foreign Minister Oana Toiu. They reviewed elements of our bilateral strategic dialogue, including strengthened defense, energy, and border security cooperation. Secretary Rubio recognized Romania's work to meet defense spending commitments and role as a security provider on the Black Sea. The Secretary and Foreign Minister also discussed the role of U.S. companies in Romanian civil nuclear and gas projects, as well as opportunities for further economic cooperation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address No: 204, 9 October 2025, Regarding the Ceasefire in Gaza Republic of Turkey Ministry of Foreign Affairs We welcome the establishment of a ceasefire in Gaza and hope that this ceasefire will bring an end to the genocide that has continued for the past two years. We expect the ceasefire agreement to be fully implemented. With the ceasefire in place, it is imperative that humanitarian aid be delivered to Gazawhere a humanitarian catastrophe has been unfoldingand that efforts for the reconstruction of Gaza be launched without delay. Turkiye will continue to provide substantial humanitarian aid to Gaza in the period ahead. Lasting peace in the Middle East can only be achieved through a just resolution of the Israeli-Palestinian question. We hope that the momentum achieved in the ceasefire negotiations will also contribute to the realization of a two-state solution in the coming period. We commend the efforts of Qatar, Egypt, and the USA in mediating the ceasefire negotiations. Turkiye reaffirms its commitment to actively contribute and extend its support throughout the implementation phases of the ceasefire agreement. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Daily Press Briefing by the Office of the Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Department of Public Information . News and Media Division . New York 9 October 2025 The following is a near-verbatim transcript of today's briefing by Stephane Dujarric, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General. ** Guests Today and Briefing Tomorrow Good afternoon. We are going to start with our guest today, if we can put Mr. Fletcher on the screen. We are delighted to be joined by Tom Fletcher, who as you know is the Emergency Relief Coordinator and Head of the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). He is briefing us from Riyadh, in Saudi Arabia, and we thought it would be good for you to hear from him today, after the SG spoke to you about Gaza. [briefing not transcribed] Just a programming note. Tomorrow, at 1:15 p.m., there will be an in-person briefing by Reem Alsalem, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women and girls, its causes and consequences, following her presentation to the [General Assembly's] Third Committee (Social, Humanitarian and Cultural). ** Secretary-General/Gaza As you heard earlier today, the Secretary-General welcomed the announcement last night of an agreement to secure a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza, based on the plan presented by President Donald J. Trump. Speaking to you, he urged all parties to fully abide by the terms of the agreement and to fully embrace the opportunities it presents. He said the United Nations will provide its full support. We and our partners are prepared to move now. Supplies are in place, and our teams are on standby, as you heard from Mr. Fletcher. But the Secretary-General added that we need full, safe and sustained access for humanitarian workers, the removal of red tape and impediments, and the rebuilding of shattered infrastructure. The Secretary-General urged all to seize this momentous opportunity to establish a credible political path forward. ** Occupied Palestinian Territory And to stay on Gaza, just a bit more numbers from our humanitarian colleagues who are finalizing the preparations as soon as conditions allow. The UN 2720 mechanism has secured clearance from the Israeli authorities for 170,000 metric tons of food, health and nutrition supplies, as well as shelter items, and other critical aid that is all in our pipeline. These supplies are currently in the region mainly in Israel, also in the West Bank, in Jordan, Egypt and Cyprus and they are ready to be shipped to Gaza, as partners submit more supplies for approval. OCHA tells us that the humanitarian community's initial response plan for the first 60 days of the ceasefire prioritizes the restoration of community-based and household-level distributions and services, which is a proven way to reach the most vulnerable. Partners are set to increase support for local food production, malnutrition screening and treatment, the restoration of essential health services, repair of the decimated water grid and a massive surge in emergency shelter provision, among other things. ** Deputy Secretary-General Just to note that our Deputy Secretary-General, Amina J. Mohammed, as you know, is in Belgium and she attended the second edition of the Global Gateway Forum in Brussels. She is doing that on behalf of the Secretary-General. In her remarks to the meeting, she highlighted the strong partnership between the United Nations and the European Union delivering on humanitarian response, climate action, and the protection of human rights. With only five years remaining on the 2030 SDG [Sustainable Development Goals] clock, she underscored the potential of the Global Gateway to accelerate SDG implementation on the ground. To keep delivering at scale, Ms. Mohammed emphasized the urgency of closing the $4.2 trillion annual SDG funding gap, scaling up climate action to limit long-term warming to below 1.5C, and upholding the rule of law and territorial integrity in Europe and everywhere. On the margins of the Forum, she met with senior EU officials to discuss strengthening UNEU collaboration to drive progress on the SDGs and the Pact for the Future. This evening, the Deputy Secretary-General will head to South Africa to participate in the Kgalema Motlanthe Foundation Drakensberg Inclusive Growth Forum, taking place in KwaZulu-Natal. ** Security Council This morning, our Special Envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg and the Assistant-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Joyce Msuya, briefed the Security Council in closed consultations on the situation in Yemen. Later in the afternoon, Khaled Khiari, our Assistant Secretary-General for the Middle East, Asia and the Pacific will also brief the Council in closed consultations on the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF), which is our peacekeeping mission that is tasked to maintain the ceasefire between Israel and Syria. ** Sudan Meanwhile, as global attention is drawn to many pressing events, I don't want us to overlook the tragic situation in Sudan, most horrifically in El Fasher, which as you know is the besieged capital of North Darfur. Our humanitarian colleagues tell us that since the start of October alone, more than 50 people have reportedly been killed. That's what a medical association and other local sources are telling us. We condemn this escalation of violence and the killing of innocent civilians. The Sudan Doctors Network said that yesterday, at least a dozen civilians were killed, including women and children, with 17 others injured, in an attack on a hospital in El Fasher, allegedly carried out by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This follows reports of a deadly attack on the hospital's maternity ward on the previous day. The people of El Fasher are trapped, terrified and cut off from aid, and their last lifeline for medical care is under threat. And it goes without saying that the targeting of hospitals is to be condemned and never acceptable. We are also alarmed by reports of a deadly attack that happened yesterday on a mosque where families in El Fasher had sought shelter. More than a dozen people were reportedly killed. If you will recall, last month a mosque came under attack in which 70 people were killed. International humanitarian law is clear. It demands the protection of religious sites and those who worship in those sites. Meanwhile, we and our partners remain committed to supporting the people of El Fasher and all those impacted by the conflict across Sudan. However, humanitarians need rapid, safe, sustained and unimpeded access, and civilians, including front-line responders, must be protected. An immediate humanitarian pause in and around El Fasher is urgently needed. ** Ukraine Turning to Ukraine, our humanitarian colleagues tell us that over the past three days several civilians were killed and injured across Ukraine. Most civilian casualties were recorded in the regions of Kherson, Sumy, Donetsk and Kharkiv. This is what local authorities are telling us. Our humanitarian colleagues also note that Ukraine's energy system remains under sustained pressure. Substations, power plants and oil depots were damaged in the regions of Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Donetsk. Those attacks temporarily cut off electricity to hundreds of thousands of households and businesses. As colder weather sets in, strikes on critical infrastructure are deepening humanitarian needs. Despite growing challenges, we, along with our humanitarian partners, are continuing to support the response. In the first half of this year, our health partners provided essential care to nearly 1 million people, while food and livelihood programmes supported over 1.1 million displaced and vulnerable families across Ukraine. ** Haiti Turning to Haiti, our friends at the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) tell us that the number of children displaced by violence Haiti has almost doubled in the past year. There are now 680,000 boys and girls who have been uprooted from their homes in Haiti. Overall, as we have mentioned here before, more than 1.3 million people are currently displaced in the country. UNICEF's child alert adds that about a third of the 246 displacement sites nationwide lack basic protection infrastructure, leaving children and women at heightened risk of violence, exploitation and abuse. Schools often double as shelters, further disrupting education for nearly half a million students. UNICEF is calling for urgent international support to scale up assistance and protection for displaced children. The agency's appeal for Haiti remains severely underfunded, as we have been telling you. ** Elsie Initiative Today, the Elsie Initiative Fund for Uniformed Women in Peace Operations launched its fourth Programming Round with a new call for proposals to advance inclusive peacekeeping. The Elsie Initiative was set up in 2019 to promote women's meaningful participation and to implement gender-responsive approaches to peacekeeping. Hosted by UN-Women, today's event brought together senior UN colleagues, Member States, partners, and donors and highlighted results from projects supported by the Fund in Senegal, Uruguay and other places. Applicants to this new round of proposals include troop- and police-contributing countries and UN entities that wish to apply for funding to implement or plan barrier assessments, institutional reforms, or the deployment of Gender Strong Units. ** World Post Day Today is, besides Thursday, today is World Post Day. Grab a postcard and send it to a loved one. In his message, the Secretary-General says that today and every day, we thank the 4.6 million postal workers around the world, and we recommit to supporting a strong, sustainable postal service for communities around the world. Ms. Fasulo? ** Questions and Answers Question : Thank you, Steph. Apropos of the UN's role in the new Gaza deal, do you anticipate that the SG will be traveling to the region or perhaps even meeting with President Trump? Spokesman : I don't have any travel to share with you at this point. Question : And one other thing, I realized the SG noted in his statement that all hostages must be released in a dignified manner. And I know he's mentioned this before. Is there any role that the UN may be playing in facilitating that? Spokesman : I mean, right now, our understanding is that the details of how the hostages will be released is being worked out. We're of course ready to assist in any way that we may be asked by the parties. Sherwin? Question : Steph, thanks. There are some reports out today that quoting Iran's First Vice-President, Mohammad Reza Aref, as saying that the Secretary-General told him during a meeting in Turkmenistan in August that the SG believed the 12-day conflict in June had closed the file on attempts to topple the Iranian Government. Can you confirm those remarks? And if the SG expressed a view that the war in June was in fact an effort to topple the regime in Iran? Spokesman : No. I cannot confirm. It doesn't I'm not able to confirm that the Secretary-General would ever have said that. I would refer you to the readout that we issued on 5 August, which I think is an accurate description of what was said in the meeting from our side. Question : And you just announced that it was World Post Day. I wonder what World Post Day means in the twenty-first century? Spokesman : Well, I, for one, still love getting a letter in the mail, a postcard. That is not a bill. Farnoosh? Question : Thanks, Steph. Wondering if I mean, Mr. Fletcher didn't have time, but wondering if you guys have been told if GHF [Gaza Humanitarian Foundation] will have any role in this upcoming, and will they work alongside the UN? Spokesman : Look, I'm not aware of them having any role. Our standards for working with partners are unchanged, right? Independence, humanitarian, the fact that getting aid shouldn't increase your risk of getting killed, all those things stand today as they did before. Yes, sir? And then Gabriel. Question : Thank you, Steph. I didn't have a chance to ask Mr. Fletcher a question about, as now, we are talking about the food supplies and emergency relief and everything and essential health supplies. Is there any provision to allow for mental health experts and specialists to get into Gaza after two years of brutal war? Spokesman : Of course, the issue of mental health is at the forefront of our efforts. Even during the fighting in the last two years outside of the ceasefire periods, our colleagues were offering psychosocial support in the best way they can, and it is part and parcel of humanitarian assistance. Gabriel? Question : Thank you, Steph. I know you don't have any travel to announce, but does the Secretary-General want to visit Gaza? Spokesman : Yes. I mean, the Secretary-General has wanted to visit Gaza and would be keen to visit Gaza. Question : And it's still your understanding that Israel still reserves the right to clear the cargo coming into Gaza; is that correct? Spokesman : I mean, all these details are going to be worked out, but I think, based on past experience, that would be our expectation. But, again, we are having a lot of discussions with Israelis and others on how to be able to bring in the most amount of humanitarian aid as quickly as possible. Jordan? Question : I did not attend this morning briefing by the SG, unfortunately, but I read his statement twice last night. Something missing from the statement. It was very comprehensive, very nice, but he forgot the Palestinian prisoners. Yet, if you look at the 20 points of plans by Mr. Trump, it's clear. It's one point that the Palestinian prisoner will be released. Why the statement is not mentioned? Spokesman : I think this is an issue that we have talked about, that we have called for the release of the Palestinian detainees, and we welcome it as part of the deal. Pam? Question : Thanks, Steph. There have been several reports about, and as part of the ceasefire, an international force is being developed. Have you heard anything about it? How will it interact with aid deliveries? What are you hearing, especially when? Spokesman : I mean, we're seeing we're obviously seeing this we're seeing the same reports that you are. I think that's still a little bit away. We hope that whatever is developed will allow and create space for humanitarian delivery to be done along the basis that we've always done them, which is not in a militarized setting. Question : And just to be clear, the international force for the recovery of deceased hostages? Spokesman : I mean, we've seen our reports. I don't see how that would interfere with humanitarian aid. Lenka? Question : Thank you, Steph. So, President Trump has said that the UN Secretary-General has never called him to congratulate him on deals. Is the Secretary-General going to call him and or has he already called him? Spokesman : I will share with you any connection on that end as soon as I can. Question : And follow-up, because they might ask, as well. Any update on the escalator investigation, please? Spokesman : No, ma'am. Yes. Please go ahead. Question : Thank you, Steph. So, the Secretary-General called on all parties to abide by President Trump's plan. Can we assume that he finds the deal to be fair? That's why he called on everyone to abide by it. Spokesman : I mean, the deal was agreed to by the warring parties. This is what counts, right? And that's why he's welcomed it. Question : Does he have any issues with the content of the plan at all? Spokesman : The Secretary-General is not a party to this, right, to this conflict. Through the efforts of President Trump, through the efforts of Qatar, of Egypt and Turkiye, we've gotten a deal. The important thing now is that all the parties abide by it. For our part and our responsibility with this deal is the delivery of humanitarian aid. And I think you heard from a very passionate Mr. Fletcher to explain what we're ready to do and what we will do as soon as possible. Abdelhamid, and I'll come back to the room. Question : Thank you, Steph. Yesterday, the settlers attacked the village of Deir Jarir, north of Ramallah, killed a young man, Jihad Muhammad Ajaj, he's 26, and wounded three Palestinians. Why there is no separate statement to condemn such a heinous crime by the settlers? Spokesman : I have not seen a report on this particular case, but I can tell you we have repeatedly and will continue to condemn settler violence against Palestinian civilians and against their agricultural lands. I think we talked about that yesterday, pretty much in detail about the attacks against the trees and the saplings, as well as civilians. Kris and then Edie and then, yep. Go ahead. Question : Hey, Steph. Has the Secretary-General had any communication with President Trump, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or President [Mahmoud' Abbas today? Spokesman : Not in the last 12 hours, but things have been moving fast. Question : And then in light of National Post Day, has the Secretary-General sent any postcards today? Spokesman : I do not know. Alright. Edie? Question : Thank you, Steph. A follow-up on the timing of an upsurge in the delivery of aid. From what Mr. Fletcher said, these talks with the Israelis and it would be nice to know who in the UN is actually doing that, is going on and this great upsurge that he's announced is really dependent on the results of those talks. Spokesman : Of course. I mean, the point person on the ground is Ramiz Alakbarov, our humanitarian chief for the [Occupied Palestinian Territory] and the acting head of UNSCO [United Nations Special Coordinator's Office]. He is in more than daily contact with COGAT and other parties. We will have to continue to work through the system that's in place. Our hope is that the amount of space that we're given will grow exponentially in the next few days. Question : Alright. Is the United Nations expecting the United States, Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye to actually pressure for this surge in aid? Spokesman : That would be very nice, indeed. Denis and then Dezhi. Question : Hello, Steph. I have a question about Ukraine. So, I want to raise Bucha topics. So, what's the position? Spokesman : Sorry, what's the topic? Question : Bucha. What's the position of Secretary-General about provocation in Bucha? And how could you comment on the Russian side's regular requests for needed data necessary for the investigation? Spokesman : On Bucha, I can tell you this is a topic that is often raised in the discussions between the Russian Federation and the Secretary-General. It was raised by Foreign Minister [Sergey V.] Lavrov just a few weeks ago. There is information that we have, and there's information that we do not have, and this we clearly cannot provide. There is information that the UN has, which is information that the Office for the [United Nations] High Commission for Human Rights (OHCHR) has, and they have certain ways to proceed with that kind of information. And the way they are guided is by a set of important principles, which includes ensuring informed consent and respecting confidentiality. They only publish or share information with explicit consent of victims and witnesses. And I can give you a bit more detail, but all of these constraints that are faced by our human rights colleagues have been [] communicated to the Russian authorities, both by OHCHR and by the Office of the Legal Counsel. Alex and then Dezhi. Sorry. We'll get to you, Dezhi. Question : Thanks, Steph. Quick follow-up. You just mentioned that the Secretary-General had no contact with President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu for the last 12 hours or about 24 hours? Spokesman : I can tell you that in the last 36 hours or so, maybe 40 hours, the Secretary-General and to honour the day that we're honouring today has sent a letter to President Trump, talking about the express intent of the United Nations, of him to work with the US on a number of peace initiatives. It was sent. It was a letter that was sent. Now, I don't think the letters that are sent are usually sent via the permanent missions, so I'm not sure they qualify for International Post Day. No, ma'am. Dezhi, very patient. Question : Yeah. On the letter, it's 40 hours, which means that the talk is still going on. So the? Spokesman : It was prior to the it was not it was not pegged to the announcement, which only came late yesterday evening. Question : Okay. My question actually is also on the peace deal. Maybe it's not a good time, but we know that hundreds of people, hundreds of humanitarian workers, journalists passed away, and we have tens of thousands of people died during the two0year conflict. Will there still be accountability? Spokesman : There needs to be accountability. But, I think the sad the reality, let's be honest, is that accountability in international conflicts takes a long time. But, it doesn't mean that we are allowed to give up or allowed to stop pushing for accountability. On that note Islam, I'm sorry. On that note, I will take Islam's question. Question : Thank you, Stephane. I have two questions. One is about the financial aspect of the humanitarian aid. Mr. Fletcher called for the financial support from the Member States. So far, since the ceasefire was on the air, has UN made any contact with the donors? Any commitments so far? Spokesman : I don't have any commitments to report. But, again, all of this happened in the last 12 hours. But, as you know, the UN can't print money, the UN can't borrow money. So, when we have an operation, we need to ask for money. So again, we have humanitarian appeals for the [Occupied Palestinian Territory]. We will no doubt be in touch with major donors. And also, there's various ways for the public to support UN's humanitarian agencies. Question : And if I may ask a second question. I know the ceasefire details are not really, we don't know. At least I don't know. But when the Israeli forces withdraw from the certain areas, do Palestinians, Gazans, can go back where they were forcibly removed from? Because there was a video, some Palestinians, they were trying to go to north, and the Israeli tank fired them. What is? Spokesman : What we hope is that the Palestinians in Gaza will be able to return to their homes and be safe in their homes or what remains of their homes. On that note oh, Fethi, quick one because we have to go. Question : UN cannot print money, but can the UN issue its own crypto coin? Spokesman : No. On that note, bon appetit. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Jubilation in Gaza as news of possible ceasefire deal sinks in 9 October 2025 - As Gazans and Israelis celebrated the news that a potential ceasefire deal had been reached between the Hamas political leadership and Israel, UN aid agencies on Thursday underscored their readiness to inundate the famine-hit enclave with relief supplies, while urging the immediate release of all hostages. "There is a very positive, jubilant mood in Gaza this morning and there was overnight," said Olga Cherevko from the UN aid coordination office, OCHA. "There were people whistling and partying and celebrating." Speaking to UN News from the devastated enclave, Ms. Cherevko stressed that immediate humanitarian priorities remain unchanged: "to reach the most vulnerable with the assistance that we need to be entering now at adequate volumes and to be able to deliver it to the people in need...Obviously no amount of humanitarian aid will ever be able to take the place of peace. So, this deal is more important than ever." UN humanitarians have some 170,000 metric tons of food, shelter, medicine and other critical items waiting in storage outside Gaza. These can be loaded onto trucks and enter the Strip as soon as a ceasefire is implemented, the aid worker explained, adding that fighting had not stopped on Thursday morning. "We are looking forward to seeing what our role will be down the line and how to quickly and efficiently get this aid to the people now who of course need it desperately." US plan progress The development follows the announcement by US President Donald Trump on Wednesday evening that Israel and Hamas had "signed off" on the first phase of his 20-point peace plan, following days of intensive indirect negotiations in Egypt. President Trump published the news on social media that Hamas had agreed to release all hostages, later adding that that this could happen on Monday. His comments came at the end of a third day of indirect talks between Hamas and Israel in Egypt, where in addition to US mediators, representatives from Qatar and Turkey also steered the talks. During the Hamas-led terror attacks on Israel that triggered the war on 7 October 2025, 251 people were taken hostage. Reports indicate that 48 of them are still being held in Gaza and around 20 are still alive. Other elements of the reported deal include the withdrawal of Israeli military forces to "an agreed upon line", Mr. Trump noted. In reportedly confirming the deal, Hamas political leaders called on the international community to ensure that Israel abides by its terms, which include the release of Palestinian prisoners. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hailed a "great day for Israel", ahead of a meeting of his security cabinet on Thursday afternoon to approve the first phase of the deal - including an immediate ceasefire which would begin immediately, according to news reports. Guterres encouragement "I welcome the announcement of an agreement to secure a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza, based on the proposal put forward by President Donald J. Trump," said UN chief Antonio Guterres in a statement. Echoing those comments and welcoming the development, UN aid chief Tom Fletcher echo issuing an appeal to "get the hostages out and surge aid in - fast". He added: "Our teams are fully mobilised to get the trucks moving at scale and save lives. They need safe access." Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA, described the "huge relief" felt by all those impacted by the war, which has killed tens of thousands of Gazans, in addition to the nearly 1,200 Israelis murdered by Hamas in their unprecedented attack across southern Israel two years ago. "The agreement to finally secure a ceasefire in #Gaza and release the hostages is a huge relief," Mr. Lazzarini said in an online post. "It will bring respite to people who survived the worst bombardment, displacement, loss and grief for two long years. After their excruciating ordeal, hostages and Palestinian detainees will finally join their families." WHO stands ready: Tedros Also welcoming the announcement of a deal, head of the UN World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus highlighted the still "dire" needs of patients across Gaza and said that the agency "stands ready to scale up its work...to support rehabilitation of the destroyed health system". From the UN World Food Programme (WFP), Executive Director Cindy McCain supported the UN chief's call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and stressed the need to "move NOW" to get aid in. "Unrestricted humanitarian access is urgently needed to deliver life-saving food & assistance," she said. "WFP is on the ground and ready to scale up operations, but we need to move NOW - there is no time to waste." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza deal: UN and humanitarian partners 'prepared to move - now,' says Guterres By Vibhu Mishra 9 October 2025 - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has urged Israel and Hamas to "fully abide" by the ceasefire and hostage release deal, calling it a "desperately needed breakthrough" that must mark "the beginning of the end of this devastating war." Speaking to reporters at UN Headquarters in New York on Thursday, Mr. Guterres welcomed the agreement, based on a proposal by United States' President Donald Trump, and said it must be "fully implemented." "We have all waited far too long for this moment. Now we must make it truly count," he said. "All hostages must be released in a dignified manner. A permanent ceasefire must be secured. The bloodshed must stop once and for all." According to media reports, the Israeli cabinet is due to endorse the internationally brokered agreement on Thursday. A ceasefire is expected to begin in Gaza within 24 hours of that endorsement. The deal also reportedly includes a 72-hour window during which Hamas must release the remaining hostages, alive and deceased. 'Full, safe and sustained access' Mr. Guterres said the UN and its partners were ready to "move now," with teams and supplies already in place to scale up food, water, medical and shelter assistance inside Gaza. "To turn this ceasefire into real progress, we need more than the silencing of the guns," he added, stressing the need for "full, safe and sustained access for humanitarian workers" and sufficient funding for recovery efforts. The UN chief urged all parties to seize the opportunity for a "credible political path forward" toward ending the occupation and achieving a two-State solution for Israel and Palestine. UN rights chief urges accountability UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk called the announcement "extremely significant" and urged all States to ensure that the ceasefire is implemented in good faith. "All action going forward must be guided by the immediate goals of ending the killing, starvation and destruction," he said from Geneva. Mr. Turk also called for a "comprehensive process of transitional justice" to ensure accountability for gross human rights violations, warning that peace would remain fragile without it. 'The best medicine is peace' World Health Organization (WHO) Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the agency stood ready to support Gaza's shattered health system. "The best medicine is peace," he said, urging respect for the agreement "so the suffering of all civilians finally ends." World Food Programme (WFP) Executive Director Cindy McCain said her agency was "on the ground ready to scale up operations, but we need to move now - there is no time to waste." Philippe Lazzarini, Commissioner-General of the UN's Palestine refugee agency (UNRWA) called the deal "a huge relief," noting that enough food is ready to be trucked into Gaza to feed the entire population for three months. "There are over 660,000 children eagerly waiting to go back to school," he underlined. "UNRWA teachers stand ready to help them rebuild their lives." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sudan: El Fasher mosque and hospital attacks leave at least 20 dead 9 October 2025 - At least 20 civilians were reportedly killed this week in attacks targeting a mosque and the last hospital in El Fasher, the besieged capital of North Darfur state in Sudan. On Thursday, the UN humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, reported that the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) paramilitary group reportedly opened fire on Tuesday and Wednesday at the Saudi hospital and a local mosque, where displaced families had sought refuge. The Saudi hospital "is the last functioning medical facility in the city, serving thousands of war-affected people," the agency said in a tweet. Healthcare under attack OCHA "strongly condemned" the attacks and others carried out recently by the RSF in El Fasher - the last bastion under the control of the government in Khartoum in the region, where famine was declared last year. "Civilians must never be attacked," OCHA said. "We once again echo the UN Secretary-General's call for an immediate cessation of hostilities." The UN reproductive health agency, UNFPA, said Tuesday's attack targeted the maternity ward, killing 12 people and injuring many others, including patients and health workers. "This marks the third attack on the hospital in one week," UNFPA said, calling for "an immediate end to hostilities, protection of civilians and health facilities, and safe, unhindered humanitarian access to deliver lifesaving aid to those in desperate need." People in El Fasher "are trapped, terrified and cut off from aid, and their last lifeline for medical care is under threat," UN Spokesman Stephane Dujarric said in the daily media briefing from New York. "And it goes without saying that the targeting of hospitals is to be condemned and never acceptable." City under siege El Fasher has been under siege for more than a year. Over the past few months, the RSF - formerly the Janjaweed militias responsible for atrocities against non-Arab communities in Darfur in the early 2000s - have intensified artillery shelling and drone attacks in efforts to capture the city. Beyond Darfur, Sudan remains engulfed in a civil war that has raged since April 2023. It has created one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with more than 30 million people in need of assistance. Around 12 million people have been displaced, including over four million who have escaped to neighbouring countries such as Chad, the Central African Republic and beyond. Conflict, clashes and displacement The fighting is now compounded by communal clashes. On 7 and 8 October, field teams from the International Organization for Migration (IOM) recorded some 250 people displaced from the town of Kernoi, near the border with Chad, following an intra-communal conflict between members of the Zaghawa tribe, one of the four major non-Arab communities in the region. Civilians continue to flee El Fasher and nearby Zamzam camp, where the population has plummeted by 70 per cent in the past six months. Humanitarians estimate that the number of people residing in the area has fallen from 700,000 in March to 200,000 in September. Thousands of families have fled to nearby towns such as Tawila, which now hosts some 600,000 displaced people. While the UN and partners remain committed to supporting the people of El Fasher and across Sudan as a whole, Mr. Dujarric stressed the need for safe humanitarian access, greater protection of civilians, and an immediate humanitarian pause in and around the city. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address World News in Brief: Deadly attacks in Ukraine, Zaporizhzhya nuclear plant update, first humanitarian flight for Syrians in Libya 9 October 2025 - More civilians have been killed and injured in Ukraine over the past three days with most casualties recorded in the Kherson, Sumy, Donetsk and Kharkiv regions, UN Spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told journalists in New York on Thursday. Substations, power plants and oil depots were damaged in Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Donetsk, temporarily cutting off electricity for hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses in those regions. "As colder weather sets in, strikes on critical infrastructure are deepening humanitarian needs," warned Mr. Dujarric. "Despite growing challenges, we, along with our humanitarian partners, are continuing to support the response." In the first half of this year, UN partners provided essential care to nearly one million people, while food and livelihood programmes supported over 1.1 million displaced and vulnerable families in the country. Ukraine: Off-site power to be restored at nuclear plant Meanwhile, following intensive consultations with the Russian Federation, a process has begun to restore external electricity to Ukraine's Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant (ZNPP), International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director Rafael Mariano Grossi announced on Thursday in an update. On 23 September, the ZNPP lost connection to the grid for the 10th time since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of the country in February 2022. Both sides blamed the damage on military activities. Since then, the ZNPP had been forced to rely on emergency diesel generators to power its cooling pumps, further challenging an already dangerous nuclear safety and security situation at the site. Following the incident, Mr. Grossi had been engaging with the two sides on concrete proposals to enable the plant to receive the off-site power needed to cool its six shutdown reactors and spent fuel. "While it will still take some time before the grid connection of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant has been restored, the two sides have engaged with us in a constructive way to achieve this important objective for the sake of nuclear safety and security," he said. "No one stands to gain from a further deterioration in this regard." The IAEA team at the site continues to confirm that there has been no temperature increase within the coolant in the reactors or the spent fuel pools. First voluntary humanitarian return flight for Syrian migrants in Libya The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has facilitated the voluntary return of 152 vulnerable Syrians from Libya to Damascus. "IOM is expanding its operations and services in Syria with the primary objective of supporting the country's recovery after years of conflict and ensuring dignified and sustainable returns of Syrians, whether displaced internally or returning from abroad," said Othman Belbeisi, Director of the Regional Office for the Middle East and North Africa. Marking the first Voluntary Humanitarian Return (VHR) flight to Syria organized by IOM in 2025, the Tripoli-Damascus flight was arranged at the request of Syria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and supported families who had lived in Libya for over a decade. Strengthened presence Since 2015, IOM Libya has assisted over 105,000 migrants to return safely to their countries of origin. "This flight is a testament to IOM's ongoing commitment to voluntary, safe, dignified, and sustainable returns for the most vulnerable Syrian migrants," said Eleonora Servino, the agency's Acting Chief of Mission in Syria. In July, IOM received approval from Syria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs to re-establish its presence in Damascus and expand operations nationwide. Active in northwest Syria since 2014, IOM continues to provide life-saving aid and support programs, including displacement tracking, protection, mental health and psychological support (MHPSS), shelter, and relief assistance. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Sudan, Ukraine UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Occupied Palestinian Territory UN Relief Chief outlines 60-day plan to deliver vital aid after Gaza ceasefire The Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, told journalists today that President Trump's peace plan must be the basis for life-saving work throughout the region and for saving tens of thousands of lives. "We must seize this moment with collective will, with determination, and with generosity," he said. "There must be no backsliding on the agreements that have been made." Speaking from Riyadh, Fletcher said that this moment "cannot be a false dawn for civilians in Gaza and Israel who are so desperate for peace." The Under-Secretary-General outlined what the humanitarian community plans to deliver during the first 60 days of the ceasefire. "Our plan - detailed and tested - is in place," he said. "Our supplies, 170,000 metric tons - food, medicine and other supplies - are in place. And our team - courageous and expert and determined - are in place." Fletcher said the UN and its partners would aim to increase the pipeline of supplies to hundreds of trucks every day and scale up the provision of food to reach 2.1 million people across Gaza and some 500,000 who need nutrition support. He stressed that humanitarians would also work to restore the decimated health system and scale up medical supplies and healthcare. Some 1.4 million people would be prioritized for water and sanitation services, and the provision of shelter would be massively scaled up to help families prepare for winter. Temporary learning spaces would reopen to support learning for 700,000 school-aged children. For humanitarians to deliver, the Emergency Relief Coordinator stressed the need to ensure protection of civilians and efforts to identify unexploded ordnance. He said cooking gas and at least 1.9 million litres of fuel would need to enter Gaza each week. Relief supplies must also come into Gaza through multiple corridors, with more functional crossings and security guarantees. Fletcher said that basic infrastructure must be restored, humanitarian workers must be protected, NGO access must be facilitated, and the passage of humanitarian relief must be able to proceed rapidly and without impediment. Aid operations must also receive adequate support, with this year's Flash Appeal for the Occupied Palestinian Territory only 28 per cent funded. "For those tens of thousands of Palestinians and Israelis who have lost their lives in the last two years, on October 7th and since, including the hundreds of our humanitarian colleagues who have died trying to save lives; for those who have hoped against all hope for reason to prevail and this day to come; for those who yearn for food, medicine, shelter, security, to be reunited with their families and loved ones; and for those whose future can still be one of peace, we must act," Fletcher said. "And we will act." Sudan Deadly attacks hit hospital and mosque in El Fasher OCHA condemns the escalation of violence in El Fasher, the besieged capital of Sudan's North Darfur State. Since the start of October alone, more than 50 civilians have reportedly been killed, according to a medical association and other local sources. The Sudan Doctors Network said that yesterday, at least a dozen civilians were killed - including women and children - with 17 others injured, in an attack on a hospital in El Fasher, allegedly carried out by the Rapid Support Forces. This follows reports of a deadly attack on the hospital's maternity ward the previous day. The people of El Fasher are trapped, terrified and cut off from aid - and their last lifeline for medical care is under threat. OCHA is also alarmed by reports of a deadly attack yesterday on a mosque where families in El Fasher had sought shelter. More than a dozen people were reportedly killed. As the Humanitarian Coordinator in Sudan, Denise Brown, stressed last month following a separate attack on a mosque in El Fasher, international humanitarian law demands the protection of mosques and the civilians worshipping in them. Once again, OCHA echoes the UN Secretary-General's call for an immediate humanitarian pause in and around El Fasher. The UN and its partners remain committed to supporting the people of El Fasher and all those affected by the conflict across Sudan*. However, humanitarians need rapid, safe, sustained and unimpeded access, and civilians - including front-line responders - must be protected. *Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Sudan with urgent support. Ukraine Hostilities cause civilian casualties and damage energy infrastructure OCHA says that attacks and hostilities across Ukraine continue to kill and injure civilians. Over the past three days, authorities report that at least a dozen civilians were killed and more than 80 injured. Most civilian casualties were recorded in the regions of Kherson, Sumy, Donetsk and Kharkiv. Ukraine's energy system remains under sustained pressure. Substations, power plants and oil depots were damaged in the regions of Chernihiv, Kharkiv, Odesa and Donetsk, temporarily cutting off electricity to hundreds of thousands of households and businesses. As colder weather sets in, strikes on critical infrastructure are deepening humanitarian needs. The town of Shostka, in the Sumy region, was among those hardest hit, with weekend attacks leaving some 70,000 people without electricity and disrupting gas and water supplies. Humanitarian partners quickly responded, opening warming points and providing hot meals, essential supplies and psychosocial support. They also registered affected families for cash assistance. Despite growing challenges, the UN and its humanitarian partners continue to support the response. In the first half of 2025, partners working on health provided essential care to nearly 1 million people, while food and livelihood programmes supported over 1.1 million displaced and vulnerable families across Ukraine. Posted on 09 October 2025 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Mr. Tom Fletcher, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator - Remarks at the Daily Press Briefing at UN Headquarters, 9 October 2025 UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 9 October 2025 Thank you, colleagues. It's nice to be joining you on a day with some good news, at a moment of hope and opportunity, as the Secretary-General has set out earlier. I'm conscious today of that George Mitchell line about [700] days of failure and one day of success is the nature of diplomacy and of peacemaking. And we've had to wait almost [that long], and let's make this day of success count now. President Trump's peace plan must be the basis for life-saving work throughout the region and for saving tens of thousands of lives. So we must seize this moment with collective will, with determination, and with generosity. There must be no backsliding on the agreements that have been made. There will be some who will seek to prevent President Trump's plan from being implemented, and that must not be allowed to happen. This cannot be a false dawn for civilians in Gaza and Israel who are so desperate for peace, to see again their loved ones and their families after so long waiting, and to live lives free from fear. So our plan - detailed and tested - is in place. Our supplies, 170,000 metric tons - food, medicine and other supplies - are in place. And our team - courageous and expert and determined - are in place. So here is what we plan to deliver in the first 60 days of the ceasefire: We will aim to increase the pipeline of supplies to hundreds of trucks every day. Food - we will scale up the provision of food across Gaza to reach 2.1 million people who need food aid and around 500,000 people who need nutrition. Famine must be reverted in areas where it has taken hold and prevented in others. So we will be distributing in-kind rations. We'll be supporting bakeries, community kitchens. We'll be supporting herders and fishers in restoring their livelihoods. And we will be providing cash for 200,000 families to cover basic food needs and bolster their ability to cope, and also to give them their sense of - and this is so important - dignity and agency by choosing their own food from the markets. Nutrition - we'll increase nutrition screening, and we'll provide nutrition supplies, including high-energy, nutrient-dense food items for the most vulnerable groups, including pregnant and breastfeeding women and children and adolescents. On health, we'll restore the decimated health system. We'll aim to deliver more essential medical commodities and medical supplies. We'll aim to reestablish community-level disease surveillance, to support emergency referrals and more medical evacuations, to supplement the workforce by deploying more emergency teams, and we'll help scale up emergency care: primary health; child health; sexual, reproductive, maternal and neonatal health; non-communicable diseases, mental health and rehabilitation. And we'll enhance outbreak preparedness, surveillance, logistics and referral systems to meet the health needs of the people. On water and sanitation, we're targeting 1.4 million people with water and sanitation services. We'll help to restore the water grid - so to [reduce] people's reliance on water trucking, including by providing fuel, generators, chemicals, materials and supplies. We will install latrines at the household level. We will repair sewage leaks and pumping stations. We will move solid waste away from residential spaces. And we'll provide hygiene supplies: soap, shampoo, laundry detergent, sanitary pads. Shelter - we will now carry out a massive scale-up in shelter provision, including to help families to prepare for winter. We'll bring in and distribute thousands of tents every week, in addition to tarps and other items. We'll focus on bigger and more vulnerable families and those in particularly dire conditions in underserved and overcrowded sites. And we'll prioritize people who have been newly displaced and the returnees who have lost their homes. Through all of this, we hope to prepare families for the rainy season, the winter season ahead. Education - we will reopen temporary learning spaces to provide activities for 700,000 school-aged children, and we'll provide them with learning materials and school supplies. This is the plan. We can deliver it. We've done it before, and we will do it again. To deliver it, we need to ensure protection for civilians, particularly women and girls. We need to identify where the unexploded ordinance is to reduce that risk to civilians, particularly as they return to their home areas. We'll have to boost support for child protection and to support those who've been the victims of sexual violence. And we'll have to constantly prioritize. Our teams are ready to make the tough decisions ahead about where to focus support and to ensure that it reaches - and this is very, very important - that it reaches civilians, and civilians only. For all of this to happen, we need 10 things: One, sustained entry of at least 1.9 million litres of fuel every week. Two, the resumption of cooking gas. Three, relief supplies to come in through multiple corridors, and we've had useful clarifications today on more crossings becoming open in the hours and days ahead. We then need more functional crossings, and that means also making sure that we've got the additional scanners in place so that our convoys and our trucks can move more swiftly to where they are needed. We need the security guarantees for those crossings. It is notable that looting has fallen in recent days, and as we get more supplies in at the scale needed, we expect that looting to fall further and faster. We need the basic infrastructure to be restored. We need the protection of humanitarian workers. We need the facilitation of NGO access, including through ensuring that NGOs are not deregistered. The UN can deliver at scale, but we cannot deliver without our partners in the humanitarian movement. Nine, we need that rapid and unimpeded facilitation - the passage of our humanitarian relief for civilians in need wherever they are in the Gaza Strip. And finally, we need to ensure that our operations are adequately funded. This is critical to our ability to meet these overwhelming needs. At the moment, only 28 per cent of the US$4 billion needed for the 2025 Flash Appeal for all these areas for the OPT [Occupied Palestinian Territory] has been funded - only 28 per cent. So every Government, every state, every individual that has been watching this crisis unfold and wondering, what can we do - if only there was something we can do? Now is the time to make that generosity count, to help us to deliver, to help us to save so many lives in the Gaza Strip, to respond to this plan at the scale required and with the level of kindness and generosity that, frankly, the world owes right now. We need those quick injections of aid to get the pipeline open and the aid flowing. For those tens of thousands of Palestinians and Israelis who have lost their lives in the last two years, on October 7th and since, including the hundreds of our humanitarian colleagues who have died trying to save lives; for those who have hoped against all hope for reason to prevail and this day to come; for those who yearn for food, medicine, shelter, security, to be reunited with their families and loved ones; and for those whose future can still be one of peace, we must act, and we will act. Thank you. Q: Thank you very much, Mr. Fletcher, on behalf of the United Nations Correspondents Association, for doing this important briefing. My name is Edith Lederer from the Associated Press. A couple of quick follow ups. First, have the Israelis signed and Hamas signed on to the UN leading this major humanitarian effort, particularly in, especially in Gaza, for the 2 million Palestinians still there? Secondly, will UNWRA [the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East] be playing a role? And thirdly, you said that some people were going to try to prevent this agreement from taking hold. Could you elaborate on who you're worried about that might impede the implementation of this agreement? Thank you. Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: Well, thank you, Edie, thank you, Steph [Dujarric, Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General]. So the 20-point plan that was outlined by the mediators, by the negotiators, has excellent language in it on the importance of the UN role at the heart of the humanitarian response. And so we're being guided by that. That's the scaffolding within which we will be working, and we are determined to do everything we can to play our part in delivering this important agreement. And that means that the entire UN family is mobilized to deliver. We've often said, I've often spoken about the indispensable role of UNRWA in delivering in our operations across our work to support Palestinian civilians. I've also spoken again today about the importance of our NGO colleagues and partners being mobilized to back this effort. We also, of course, need the private sector to be involved as well, we need the commercial routes to be running. Saving lives at this scale - given the level of needs, the level of starvation, the level of misery and despair - will require a massive collective effort, and that's what we're mobilized for. On the point about those who might seek to derail this process, I think it's no secret, I think there are hardliners on both sides of the argument who have sought in the past to delay or impede efforts to get the hostages out, to get the aid in. They've been explicit in their rejection of what we all recognize as a path towards peace. And I hope that the way in which the world has come out so clearly backing President Trump's initiative and the work that's been done by the regional foreign ministers - many of whom I've been in touch with today - that very, very strong welcome from the international community for this plan will serve to marginalize those voices who would seek to prevent its success. Q: And UNRWA? UNRWA's participation? Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: As I say, the whole UN humanitarian family is mobilized to do everything we can to get aid through. We will take a judgment day to day on what is needed on the convoys, where we can best save lives, but we'll be doing that as one UN family. Q: Thank you very much, Biesan Abu-Kwaik with Al Jazeera Arabic. So you laid out this plan. You're ready to, it seems, to be on the go immediately. So just a couple of questions. Do you feel that you have enough people on the ground to actually deliver what the plan promises? And from conversations that you have been having with donors or relevant parties, since this agreement has come to light, have you sensed a desire for more people coming forward to raise more money in terms of funding all of these operations since you actually mentioned the percentage of money that's still available now? And one last, and a third follow up, a lot of the people who have been displaced are going to go back to areas where there are no homes. Homes have been destroyed. Do you have enough supplies in terms of tents, caravans, all of that for people who are displaced to actually find a place to stay when they go back to their areas? Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: Thank you so much. So we are, in the words of my extraordinary colleague, Cindy McCain, who runs the World Food Programme: we are ready to roll. It's something she regularly says in meetings, and we are, in this case, absolutely ready to roll and deliver at scale. And I pay tribute to the work of WFP colleagues and colleagues from across the UN and the wider humanitarian family for the preparations that they've been doing. They've been wanting to be getting in at this scale for months. Let's be clear, we've been asking, demanding, imploring for the access, which we hope that in the coming days we will now have, and so we are absolutely ready to go. As part of that, if you look at my phone now, you'll see countless messages from colleagues from across the UN humanitarian family, people putting their hands up to get out there and help deliver this. For all of us, I think we feel the sense of purpose and a sense of mission about the importance of the work we have in the days ahead so we have no shortage of volunteers, and we'll be taking those judgments about what expertise we need in-country and in the region in the days ahead to make sure that we're not going to miss this opportunity. We must seize this opportunity to deliver at a much, much greater scale than we've been able to do, really, since the last ceasefire, when I was there back in [February]. On whether the donors will come forward: of course, let's wait and see. This is the moment when we test that commitment. We test whether the world will react with the generosity which I certainly feel is demanded in the situation. And I'm an idealist here, and I refuse to believe, I cannot believe that the world will not come forward at this stage and make sure that these operations are fully funded. Anyone who has watched any of the news over the last two years, whose heart has been repeatedly broken by what they've seen, anyone who cares about getting the hostages home and the food in, as we all do, will surely come forward and get wholeheartedly behind this response. We do have significant supplies of tents []. Many Palestinian civilians, as they told me they would do, will now be heading back to destroyed homes to try to restart their lives and start that long and painful process of rebuilding. This morning, when the news broke, there was huge celebration in Gaza, there was hope that this conflict was over, but then for many people, they returned to the desperation of just surviving, and a large part of that will be thinking about how they survive the winter, and so we have to get that shelter in for them, and I'm determined we'll do that. Q: Hi, thank you. My name is Ibtisam Azem, al-Araby al-Jadeed newspaper. I want to follow up on, you talked about sustained entry, but, as a matter of fact, there is the issue of the blockade, and it is something that was before the beginning of this war, also hindering access to Gaza. So are you hoping for the lift of the blockade, and what do you think should be done about it? And then you talked about the need for bringing in hundreds of trucks. But there is also the issue of the quality of the aid that should enter, which includes probably machines and others to help you with your work, the other issues that you want to do. So how fast do you want to see all of this happening? And what about the Rafah crossing? Are you working on having aid delivered through Rafah? Thank you. Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: So my assumption is we are going to have - and we must have - unimpeded humanitarian access, and so the blockade must be lifted. We've been demanding that for months, and we'll continue to demand that, and my reading of the agreement is that we will have that unhindered access that is so important for our life-saving work. As you say, there will be a phase beyond the immediate humanitarian response when we can turn our minds to rebuilding and that long-term resilience of Gaza - we're not there yet. We will do the planning with our colleagues, with the parties on the ground, with the region, to prepare a plan for that phase. But for now, our focus is on the ceasefire, and on delivering on this life-saving work and saving as many lives as we can in the conditions that we find ourselves in. To do that, to your final question, yes, we need all crossings open. When we talk unimpeded access, that means opening up all of those crossings, opening up those secure routes. And so that is a key part of our dialogue, and we're obviously in very close dialogue, our team on the ground, with the Israeli authorities, with the Palestinian authorities, with the region as well, including the neighbours, to ensure that we can get those crossings open. Q: Hi, Mr. Fletcher, this Xu Dezhi with China Central Television. Two questions. First, do you have a plan to visit Gaza in person if this ceasefire deal holds? And secondly, you just mentioned that your assumption is that you're going to have and you must have unimpeded access, humanitarian access, into Gaza. What about your coordination with Israeli authorities on this so far? Do they have a concrete agreement on this? Or you're going to have a dialogue with them day by day to see how many trucks get into Gaza? Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: Many thanks, Dezhi. The Gaza crisis is, as you can imagine, very much at the top of my in-tray, and I would very much anticipate visiting to meet the team, to check on the progress of our aid delivery, and to ensure that we're doing everything we can to remove any obstacles, and to work with everyone, everyone, to get life-saving aid through. So I very much hope to visit, and I hope the conditions will be in place for that. In terms of the coordination: absolutely, we have a close dialogue with the Israeli authorities, with COGAT, who oversee much of this work, and that dialogue has been ongoing even when we've gone through these very difficult months and when we've disagreed on many things. And so the team are, of course, engaged with them and engaged in the spirit of wanting to solve problems, and my hope is that that is the mindset of all of us in this next phase - that we want to work together to save as many lives as possible and make sure that President Trump's deal sticks in all its aspects. Q: Mr. Fletcher, thank you so much for holding this briefing, Kris Reyes with Canadian Broadcasting. Given that Israel has had such a combative relationship with the United Nations throughout this war, how much of a green light do you need from Israel to carry out this ambitious plan? And perhaps you can give us some insight into the dialogue that you say that you're holding right now with Israeli forces. Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: I'll leave you to choose the adjective for some of the back-and-forth that we've clearly had over a long period now as we sought to secure maximum humanitarian access and save as many lives as we can, but also sought to bear witness to what we've seen in Gaza these last two years. We have got that dialogue, and that dialogue continued all the way through this time with our team on the ground, able to talk to their counterparts in COGAT and the Israeli authorities about what we need and the restraints that we face. I don't think that any of this is rocket science. We've worked with the Israeli authorities in the past, as we did during the 42-day ceasefire back at the beginning of the year, to deliver aid at massive scale: 500, 600 trucks going in every day. So we have the muscle memory between us all, and if we have the right spirit of dialogue, cooperation, and we can work to rebuild trust, then I am confident that we can save lives at scale. That life-saving work, getting the hostages home, the aid in - it's something that surely we can all agree on, and that's the spirit in which I'm ready to work and we're ready to work. Q: Amelie Bottollier from AFP news agency. I have a question about the volume and the timeframe. You said that there are 170,000 tons of aid around the outside of Gaza and the plan is over two months, 60 days. Does this volume of aid already pre-positioned around Gaza enough for covering the plan for the two first months, or do you need extra aid to come in to be able to feed the 2 million people of Gaza for these two first months? Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: Thank you, so that number refers to the aid which is ready to go. We will need, then, to position more aid. We pre-positioned a lot of it, but we will need to bring more aid over the coming two months. And let's be clear, this problem won't go away in two months. There will still be an enormous amount of effort that is needed beyond that, and that's why we'll be seeking to get those pipelines moving and seeking the generosity of our donors. Q: On humanitarian aid to Gaza, what percentage would you say you are using your capacity at the moment recently, and after the ceasefire tonight, in the coming 60 days, what percentage capacity are you aiming to increase? What's your projection on that? [] Under-Secretary-General Fletcher: So I'd say we've been delivering probably less than 20 per cent a day of what we should be getting in. We should be getting hundreds of trucks in. Today was a better day. We're still counting the trucks that we got in and were able to distribute. I hope tomorrow will be an even better day. And I hope in the days to come, we'll be able to carry on giving you a positive trajectory, and we will certainly share the data that we have day by day. Steph [Dujarric], I know that he'll be grilling us for those facts and figures to share with you, to indicate what we're able to do, and, of course, what we're not able to do if we do encounter blockages. But the scale that we need is much, much more, as we've been saying consistently, than what we've been allowed to get in in recent months, and so we need to see that visible surge, that real sea change in what we can get in. And that's what we're working for flat out right now. Posted on 09 October 2025 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Fact Sheet: President Donald J. Trump Authorizes Construction of Arctic Security Cutters Fact Sheets The White House October 9, 2025 GROWING OUR ARCTIC FLEET: President Donald J. Trump has signed a Presidential Memorandum to authorize the construction of up to four Arctic Security Cutters (ASCs) abroad to address urgent national security needs in the Arctic region. The Memorandum invokes the President's authority under 14 U.S.C. 1151(b) and 10 U.S.C. 8679(b) to permit foreign construction as a national security necessity. It directs the U.S. Coast Guard to submit a plan for phasing ASC construction in a manner that promotes the on-shoring of expertise to build follow-on ASCs domestically. In line with this decision, the President has also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Finland to construct these four ASCs in shipyards located in Finland, followed by the leveraging of Finnish expertise to construct up to seven new ASCs in shipyards located in the United States. The United States and Finland will engage in close collaboration to enhance the ASC fleet of the United States on an accelerated schedule, to revitalize the shipbuilding industry of both countries. BOLSTERING ARCTIC DEFENSE: This Memorandum addresses growing strategic competition, aggressive military posturing, and economic encroachment by foreign adversaries, all of which threaten U.S. interests in the Arctic. The U.S. Coast Guard's fleet of ASCs and Arctic-capable vessels is insufficient to meet current operations demands and presents a national security risk. Currently, the Coast Guard's operational polar fleet includes just two operational ASCs: One was commissioned in 1976; the other was previously a commercial vessel and commissioned into the Coast Guard just last month. The Coast Guard assesses that at least 9 ASCs are needed in order to serve our national security needs year-round in the Arctic. Adversaries' aggressive military and economic actions in the Arctic jeopardize U.S. sovereignty, shipping lanes, and energy resources. Foreign construction of ASCs is a temporary measure to bridge a critical capability gap while spurring future domestic shipbuilding investment that will ensure the Coast Guard has the full supply of cutters it requires. The deals with Finnish shipyards will create great jobs for Americans, bring cutting-edge shipbuilding intellectual property to the United States, and result in billions of dollars of new investments in America. These ships, most of which will eventually be made in America, will be among the most modern icebreaking vessels in the world. ADVANCING OUR NATIONAL SECURITY INTERESTS: President Trump is ensuring the United States has the robust defense capabilities needed to protect American interests against global threats, particularly in the Arctic. In his first term, President Trump signed a Presidential Memorandum to speed up the U.S. icebreaker program. In August, the U.S. Coast Guard added an ASC to its fleet for the first time in 25 yearsthe first in a series of ASCs expected to join the Coast Guard in the near future. President Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill includes nearly $9 billion to build a series of heavy, medium, and light ASCs. President Trump: "We need icebreakers in the U.S. And if we can get some inexpensively, I'd like to do that." President Trump is restoring America's status as a great Arctic power after previous administrations allowed our ships and arctic capacity to rust and decay. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Finland to participate in NATO's annual nuclear deterrence exercise Finnish Ministry of Defence 10.10.2025 11:53 Finland will send F/A-18 Hornet fighters and staff officers to NATO's annual nuclear deterrence exercise 'Steadfast Noon' taking place between 13 and 24 October 2025. "Nuclear deterrence is part of NATO's everyday work. Finland participates in NATO's nuclear planning and policy-making, and therefore it is natural that we also join NATO's annual nuclear exercise. Finland sends combat aircraft and staff officers to the exercise", Minister of Defence Antti Hakkanen said. NATO's deterrence and defence posture is based on an appropriate mix of nuclear, conventional and missile defence capabilities, complemented by space and cyber capabilities. The fundamental purpose of NATO's nuclear capability is to preserve peace, prevent coercion and deter aggression. "Finland's defence is ultimately supported by the military power of the entire Alliance, including its nuclear deterrence. Nuclear exercises ensure the credibility, effectiveness, safety and security of NATO's nuclear deterrent. This also increases security in Finland," Hakkanen said. Steadfast Noon is part NATO's annual routine and recurring training activities. The exercise does not involve any live nuclear weapons. Minister of Defence Hakkanen represents Finland in NATO's Nuclear Planning Group (NPG). NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address More than SEK 5 billion for increased anti-drone capabilities and Gripen capabilities Government Offices of Sweden Press release from Ministry of Defence Published 10 October 2025 The Government is investing more than SEK 5 billion to strengthen the Swedish Armed Forces' anti-drone capabilities and expand JAS 39 Gripen capabilities. The investment in anti-drone capabilities will enable the Swedish Armed Forces to shorten its lead times by eight years. The previous 2036 deadline for final delivery will now be brought forward to 2028. This decision will also enhance the resilience of the combat air system in times of peace, crisis and war. It marks the first use of the funds allocated in the Spring Amending Budget for 'opportune purchases'. "The Government is now taking steps to rapidly operationalise anti-drone capabilities and increase the availability of our combat aircraft. There is a significant need for new anti-drone capabilities, and we are shortening lead times by eight years. This will result in increased safety and security for the Swedish Armed Forces and for Sweden," says Minister for Defence Pal Jonson. "The Government has made extensive investments in defence during this electoral period. Now we're boosting the Swedish Armed Forces' capability to deal with drones. This is a very important decision in terms of protecting us against the growing threat from drones," says Minister for Public Administration Erik Slottner. Anti-drone investment of more than SEK 3.5 billion The anti-drone investment will significantly enhance Swedish Armed Forces units' capabilities to tackle threats from drones. The funding will enable the Swedish Armed Forces to bring forward acquisition by around eight years. The investment will be used to acquire weapons and sensors to combat hostile drones. It also encompasses large quantities of warning devices and jammers, both wearable and vehicle-mounted, and interceptors to protect air bases etc. Gripen capabilities increased by more than SEK 1.5 billion The Government is also investing in increasing the capabilities of the JAS 39 Gripen combat air system. This includes the acquisition of additional spare parts and mission equipment, and base equipment, which will increase the Swedish Air Force's capability to deploy across more air bases and the availability of the combat air system. It will also increase capabilities to operate from temporary road bases. The resilience of the Swedish Air Force will thus increase, enabling it to act with high mission frequency in times of peace, crisis and war. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Press Briefing by IDF Spokesperson BG Effie Defrin-October 10, 2025 Israel Defense Forces October 10, 2025 10.10.25 IDF Today at 12:00 noon, a ceasefire came into effect after two years of operations in the Gaza Strip. With the deployment of our troops on the agreed readiness lines, the 72-hour period has begun, during which the hostages will be returned. Last night the government approved the agreement for the return of our forty-eight hostages. Our brothers and sisters held in Hamas captivity, the living and the fallen, to their families, to their home and to their country. We led the military operation responsibly and systematically, and above all, with determination and with deep love for the people and the land, as demonstrated by our troops. This operation produced unprecedented achievements across all sectors and enabled the return of hostages. This is an emotional moment for the people of Israel and for the soldiers and troops of the IDF who fought and acted over the past two years with courage, bravery and dedication. At this time our troops under Southern Command have deployed to the agreed readiness lines, in accordance with this "yellow line", these readiness lines provide forward operational defense and control along the Gaza Strip. These are moments of heightened alert; IDF soldiers will act to remove any threat to their security, no unnecessary risks will be taken. We will do whatever is necessary to ensure the safety and security of the Southern Negev communities, the south of the country and the State of Israel as a whole. From here, I call to Gaza residents: avoid entering areas under IDF operational control, honor the agreement and ensure your own safety. Our troops' deployment line is a forward defense line. The IDF will defend our citizens and our country against any threat. On the morning of Simchat Torah two years ago, on October 7th, the most important bond between the IDF and the citizens of Israel was shattered. We were not there for Israeli citizens in their hour of need. Since then, led by Southern Command together with all branches and directorates of the IDF, we have not ceased fighting for a moment, and so it shall always be. A brave generation of Israel's heroes stands firm as a buffer between Israeli citizens and any enemy. The mendatory service soldiers, the career soldiers and the reservists, they are the generation of victory. We are proud that these are our sons and daughters and that these are our commanders. In recent days we have been preparing to receive the returning hostages with the necessary sensitivity, responsibility and with great anticipation. At this moment, the entire IDF is preparing to receive the hostages. We continue to accompany the hostages' families and remain in close contact with them. This morning we sorrowfully announced the death of Sergeant First Class (Res.) Michael Mordechai Nachmani, of blessed memory, from the Combat Engineering 614th Battalion, who fell yesterday in the Gaza Strip. We share the family's grief in these difficult hours. I ask to extent our collective embrace to the bereaved families. More than ever today we remember the 914 IDF fallen who fell in operations, who fought with great bravery and sacrifice, and the hundreds of civilians and security personnel who gave their lives. We remember today the 20,000 wounded in operations, both physically and mentally, who were injured defending the State and who lost comrades along the way. We must be there for them, to hold them and to assist them in every way. The return of the hostages is due to that very bravery and was at the forefront of the minds of each of these soldiers throughout the war. Families of reservists, of career soldiers and of the mandatory troops, none of this would have been possible without you and your support; we are aware of your sacrifice and appreciate it now as well. As the Chief of the General Staff said: the operation is not over. Many complex challenges still lie ahead. We are prepared and determined to defend the State of Israel and its citizens on all fronts. In the coming days we will begin to see the sacred mission of returning the hostages take effect. We will not rest until the mission is fully complete and until they all return. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Statement by Prime Minister Netanyahu Israel - Prime Minister's Office Type: Events and Speeches Government: The 37th Government Publish Date: 10.10.2025 Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a statement to the press (translated from Hebrew): "Citizens of Israel, We mark today one of our tremendous achievements in the War of Redemption: the return of all of the hostages, both the living and the deceased. This is a crucial goal which we have insisted upon throughout the war. Throughout the two years that have passed since the beginning of the war, I have promised to the families of the hostages - and also promised to you, the citizens of Israel - that we will return everyone, with no exceptions. We made that promise and we are keeping our promise. I'd like to remind you that there were those who said, in the beginning of the war: "we must get used to the idea that we won't be able to return even a single hostage alive". I thought differently - and I acted differently. I believed that if we apply heavy military pressure on Hamas, combined with heavy diplomatic pressure, we will indeed be able to return all of our hostages. And that's exactly what we did. But I also say to you: it wasn't easy, to say the least. I had to face enormous pressure, both domestic and foreign: pressure not to go into Rafah, pressure not to capture the Philadelphi Corridor, pressure not to act in other theaters, pressure to stop the war and pull out of the Gaza Strip - while Hamas, Hezbollah, the Assad regime and Iran are all at the peak of their power. Yet, I steadfastly resisted all that pressure, because my focus was on one single consideration: Israel's security. That means achieving the aims of the war, including the release of the hostages; removing the nuclear and ballistic missile threats from Iran, which have endangered our existence here; and breaking the Iranian axis, of which Hamas is a central element. Despite all the pressure I mentioned, we continued to fight in Gaza and continued to fight throughout the region. Before President Trump entered the White House, we returned to Israel 158 hostages, 117 of them - living hostages. Some of the hostages were released in daring and heroic operations by our forces, which you know and remember, and bow your head in memory of the fallen. After the start of President Trump's tenure in the White House, we returned home another 49 living and deceased hostages - ten of them in additional daring operations of our forces. But the hardest challenge of all remained: returning home all the other hostages, 20 living hostages and 28 deceased hostages. And as you will recall: one pundit after another, every evening, every day, explained to us: "There is no way on earth to return the hostages, without acquiescing to the central demand of Hamas - pull out the IDF forces from all of the Gaza Strip, including the perimeter, including the Philadelphi Corridor, including the dominating areas, and everything that entails". Here also, I thought differently, and I acted differently. I knew that if we enter in full force the last remaining Hamas stronghold - Gaza City - and destroy the centers of power within it, Hamas would want to save its regime. I also believed that if in addition to our massive military pressure, we apply massive diplomatic pressure by our great friend, President Trump - that combination will cause Hamas to return all of our hostages, while the IDF remains deep inside Gaza territory and controls all of its dominating points. And this is what's happening. In this manner, we are encircling Hamas from all directions, ahead of the upcoming stages of the plan, in which Hamas will be disarmed, and Gaza will be demilitarized. If this is achieved in the easy way - it's all for the better. And if not - it will be achieved the hard way. I wish to make this point as clear as possible: Anyone who says that this hostage deal was always on the table - is simply not telling the truth. Hamas has never agreed to release all of our hostages while we are inside the Gaza Strip. Hamas only agreed to this deal when it felt the sword on its neck - and the sword remains on its neck. Hamas agreed to the deal only after the Trump Plan, which I agreed on with the President in Washington, isolated it diplomatically on an unprecedented scale. At the present stage of the plan, our focus is on releasing the hostages. I must tell you that during the heart-rending meetings with the families of the hostages during the past two years, my wife and I have shed tears. It can't be any different. The heart is torn, the heart goes out to them. I have promised to the relatives of the hostages that we will not give up on anyone. And indeed, all of the hostages will be returning to us. In the next few days, God willing, we will bring back all of them. Alongside the great joy of their return, they will be faced with the difficult task of physical and mental rehabilitation. The entire nation of Israel will embrace them to help them get back on their feet. The hostages that are deceased will be brought to a proper Jewish burial. We will act to locate all of them as soon as possible - we will do that as a sacred duty of communal responsibility. Citizens of Israel, On this emotional day, I recognise our debt of gratitude to our heroic fighters in the IDF and in the security apparatus. Since the outbreak of the war, they report to the various fronts in order to defend our common home. Without the marvellous sacrifice of our soldiers, we could not have the privilege of returning the hostages home. We embrace the families of the fallen, each family in its own pain, and wish on our dear wounded of this war, in flesh or in spirit, a complete recovery. I wish to thank President Trump for his global leadership and his relentless efforts to develop this plan for the return of the hostages. On this matter, he again proved his tremendous friendship for our nation and our country. I thank the envoys of President Trump, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, who have done a great deal to reach the agreement for the release of the hostages. And on our side, a very warm gratitude must go to our head of the negotiation team, Minister Ron Dermer, and the entire negotiation team. They have done dedicated and creative work to bring us this far. . Citizens of Israel, Two years ago, the holiday of Simchat Torah turned into a day of national grief. This holiday of Simchat Torah will turn, God willing, into a day of national joy, with the return of all our brothers and sisters taken hostage. The name of the operation, "Returning Home", is a paraphrase of the promise given to Our Mother Rachel in the Book of Jeremiah [34:16]: "and your children shall return to their own border". Our sons and daughters shall return home. Two years ago, we have emerged from rock bottom - and fought back in kind against our enemies. Owing to your steadfastness and solidarity, citizens of Israel, we have stood through the ordeals. We have achieved great victories, victories that change the face of the Middle East. But, as the IDF Chief of General Staff has said: the battle isn't over yet. We still face great challenges, but also great opportunities. Together, we will overcome the challenges; together, we will fulfil the opportunities; together, we will complete our missions; together, we will expand the circle of peace NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Remarks at the government meeting for the approval of the hostages release framework Israel - Prime Minister's Office Type: Media Statements Government: The 37th Government Publish Date: 10.10.2025 The remarks by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the government meeting for the approval of the hostages release framework, together with President Trump's Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, and with the President's son-in-law, Jared Kushner Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: "We are at a momentous development. In the last two years, we've fought during these two years to achieve our war aims. And a central one of these war aims is to return the hostages. All of the hostages, the living and the dead. And we're about to achieve that. We couldn't have achieved it without the extraordinary help of President Trump and his team, Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner. They worked tirelessly with Ron and his team, our team. That, and the courage of our soldiers who entered Gaza, had a combined military and diplomatic pressure that isolated Hamas. I believe these brought us to this point. I want to personally thank both of you, Steve, Jared. It's been long hours. You worked around the clock, but not only worked - I think you put in your brains and your hearts. We know that it's for the benefit of Israel and the United States, for the benefit of decent people everywhere. And for the benefit of these families who will finally get to be with their loved ones. And I want to thank you on their behalf, as well as on behalf of the people of Israel. Thank you". Jared Kushner: "Obviously, bringing the hostages home has been a priority for President Trump for a very, very long time, and we've all worked very tirelessly to do that. But I really want to say that this all would not have been possible without the bravery of the IDF and the soldiers, what they've accomplished not just in Gaza, but also what they've done in the theater over the last couple of years to eliminate Hezbollah in the north and really degrade them, what you were able to do in Iran. It really helped set a big tone. But particularly seeing the way that your citizen army... I know a lot of you, probably all of you have family, friends who were in this effort, really put your sacrifices on the line to fight for your country and to try and make a difference. I think that made a very, very big difference in there. And I want to just give a very, very special thanks to Prime Minister Netanyahu, who really did an incredible job with this and did a great job with the negotiations. You held your lines firm. And I think that between you and President Trump, you had a lot of alignment on what the end state should be". :Special Envoy Steve Witkoff "The hard job was the Prime Minister's. He had the job of protecting this country. He had the job of making tough choices with regard to how tough to be with Hamas, when to be flexible, when not to be flexible. I think to myself all the time, I lost sleep over it, what would I have done in some of those circumstances? There were times that I thought we should be more flexible or your country should be more flexible. But the truth is, as I look back, I don't think we'd get to this place without Prime Minister Netanyahu playing it out. Thank you. And I'm not just saying that. They're not just words. The president believes that. My president believes it. He believes that Prime Minister Netanyahu made some very, very difficult calls. And lesser people would not have made those calls. And here we are today because Hamas had to. They had to do this deal. The pressure was on them. They were backed up. And you've got the bigger army. You were making inroads. And that's what led to this deal". NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address NATO Ambassadors visit SHAPE NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation 09 Oct. 2025 Last updated: 10 Oct. 2025 On 9 October 2025, the Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR) General Alexus G. Grynkewich hosted a visit of NATO Ambassadors to Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe (SHAPE) in Mons, Belgium. During the visit, they discussed the importance of strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence as well as continuing support to Ukraine, including through the NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) command in Wiesbaden, Germany. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address NZ Army and RNZAF test high-readiness interoperability New Zealand Defence Force The ability to rapidly deploy personnel and equipment in our region and further afield is crucial for the New Zealand Defence Force's (NZDF) military response options. Exercise Cassino is set to put personnel through their paces over the coming weeks. 10 October, 2025 Hundreds of personnel drawn from the New Zealand Army's high-readiness force elements, supporting units from Burnham Military Camp, the broader NZ Army and Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) have completed the first scenario of an active exercise in the Marlborough Sounds by successfully executing a rapid mobilisation and deployment of personnel and equipment into the region. An advance party made up of 2nd/1st Battalion, Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment (RNZIR) soldiers, the Female Engagement Team and RNZAF Security Forces loaded up two C-130J Hercules flights from the Harewood terminal at Christchurch Airport before deploying to RNZAF Base Woodbourne, where the initial stage of the exercise is being conducted. In Woodbourne the team was met by members of Headquarters Deployable Joint Interagency Task Force (HQDJIATF), who provided the command and control for deployed high-readiness force elements. Commanding Officer 2/1 RNZIR, Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Mateparae, said testing and validating the NZDF's high-readiness units through high-quality exercises like these is vital. "Exercise Cassino is our opportunity to confirm that our high-readiness force elements can rapidly mobilise and deploy to support global operational tasks. "With the global security environment becoming increasingly volatile, ensuring our team is good to go when called upon, provides assurance that we are ready." The contingent is deploying to the fictional Pacific country of Belisia where it will run through various tactical scenarios that may be encountered during a period of unrest. Rehearsing joint interoperability between the NZ Army's land forces and the RNZAF's air assets is crucial to be able to rapidly respond to a potential situation. "Our high-readiness force elements rely on RNZAF platforms to project personnel and equipment around the world, so training and testing this is key to success for future deployments. "Additionally, HQDJIATF deploying into the exercise to provide the initial command function for our high-readiness forces gives realism and enables key relationship building to occur, allowing us to start on the front foot in the event of a real time deployment," Lieutenant Colonel Mateparae said. No. 40 Squadron Commanding Officer Wing Commander Bradley Scott said it was also a useful chance for RNZAF personnel to test their skills in working with the Army. "The exercise has provided a valuable opportunity for the C-130J Hercules to be employed in an agile and reactive scenario, which included tactics such as engine running offload to minimise exposure to simulated threats, while demonstrating the ability for the NZDF to rapidly project our forces, in our wider region." The advance party's primary role was to set the early conditions for the evacuation of non-combatants from Belisia, before they were joined later in the week by more than a hundred additional Army personnel and supporting enablers, in preparation for the remainder of the exercise. On top of this, the Burnham based logistics team from 2/1 RNZIR and 3rd Combat Service Support Battalion will operate tactically throughout, providing real life support and enabling personnel to conduct the tasks required. The exercise runs in the Marlborough region through until October 24. Training will involve NZDF personnel moving on roads by heavy vehicle, moving by boat across waterways in the Marlborough Sounds, and by NZDF aircraft from Base Woodbourne by day and night. During the activity soldiers with weapons will be patrolling across Blenheim, Seddon, Havelock, Ward, Dip Flat, and the Howard Valley within the St Arnaud area. The New Zealand Defence Force thanks the community for their ongoing support in allowing our personnel to conduct the required training to keep New Zealanders safe. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sudan: UN Human Rights Chief appalled by continued killing of civilians in El Fasher Press releases Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights 10 October 2025 GENEVA -- UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk on Friday condemned in the strongest terms the continued killing and injuring of civilians in El Fasher. This follows reports that at least 53 civilians were killed and more than 60 injured by the Rapid Support Forces between 5 and 8 October alone. Preliminary information from the area suggests the number may be even higher. "I am appalled by the RSF's endless and wanton disregard for civilian life," said Turk. "Despite repeated calls, including my own, for specific care to be taken to protect civilians, they continue instead to kill, injure, and displace civilians, and to attack civilian objects, including IDP shelters, hospitals and mosques, with total disregard for international law. This must end." The UN Human Rights Office has confirmed that at least 46 civilians were killed in artillery and drone strikes in the Abu Shouk and Daraja Oula neighbourhoods and the Abu Shouk IDP camp. This includes at least 14 civilians who were killed during attacks on 5 and 7 October on the Saudi Hospital - the last major functioning health care facility in North Darfur. The hospital, which has repeatedly come under attack, was already operating at a reduced capacity, before suffering further substantial damage in these latest attacks. At least seven other civilians were reportedly summarily executed in home-to-home searches during RSF ground attacks. Initial information indicates that these killings may have been ethnically motivated, targeting members of the Zaghawa community. "I urge the RSF - indeed all parties to the conflict - to draw lessons from this week's conviction of Ali Kushayb by the International Criminal Court for the war crimes and crimes against humanity he committed in Darfur,"said Turk. The High Commissioner also reiterated his call for UN Member States with direct influence to take urgent measures to protect civilians and to prevent further atrocities in El Fasher and across Darfur. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Lebanon: UN expert calls for stronger, victim-centred investigations to ensure accountability for unlawful killings Press releases Special Procedures 10 October 2025 BEIRUT - The UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Morris Tidball-Binz, today expressed his solidarity with survivors and the families of those killed in Lebanon, amid the widespread destruction, loss of life and civilian suffering resulting from hostilities by Israel. "Every potentially unlawful death must count, and every family is entitled to truth and justice," the Special Rapporteur said in a statement concluding an official visit to Lebanon. "Lebanon has the legal tools to act now and demonstrate that casualties are not mere numbers, they have names," he said. The expert paid tribute to those who lost their lives in the line of duty, expressing deep admiration and support for journalists, healthcare workers, and others who continued their vital work despite the dangerous circumstances. Tidball-Binz welcomed ongoing legislative efforts to strengthen the independence of the judiciary, and encouraged authorities to report and, where appropriate, prosecute conduct that may amount to international crimes, in accordance with Lebanon's obligations under international human rights law and, where applicable, international humanitarian law. "Accountability requires prompt, effective, thorough, independent and impartial investigations and criminal proceedings, which enable access to reparation for victims and their families," the expert said. The Special Rapporteur - who is also forensic doctor - observed the urgent need to enhance the medico-legal death-investigation capacity in Lebanon, which represents a critical component of any investigation into potentially unlawful deaths, whether arising from suspected suicide, deaths in custody or alleged war crimes. During his visit, the expert explored the possibility of establishing a national medico-legal institute, with standardised procedures, quality assurance and independent oversight, to ensure competent determination of the cause, manner and circumstances of death. "Building modern forensic capacity, consistent with the Minnesota Protocol on the Investigation of Potentially Unlawful Death (2016), is indispensable to credible investigations," he said. Tidball-Binz said investigations must be victim-centred, ensuring meaningful participation of families, protection of witnesses and professionals, and the preservation of evidence and the chain of custody. He also underscored the need for systematic data collection and public reporting on casualties and investigative findings, as well as close coordination among justice, health and security institutions, including with specialised forensic services, to guarantee accountability and transparency. During his visit, the Special Rapporteur met with government officials, members of the judiciary and prosecution services, security and investigative authorities, medico-legal and health professionals, UN representatives, civil society organisations, academics, and survivors and families of victims in Beirut, Naqoura, Tyre, Saida, Nabatiyeh, Baalbek, and Tripoli. He expressed appreciation for the access and cooperation extended by authorities and for the constructive engagement and contributions of all interlocutors. The Special Rapporteur will present a full report on his visit to Lebanon to the UN Human Rights Council in June 2026. Morris Tidball-Binz is the Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Special Rapporteurs/Independent Experts/Working Groups are independent human rights experts appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. Together, these experts are referred to as the Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not receive a salary for their work. While the UN Human Rights office acts as the secretariat for Special Procedures, the experts serve in their individual capacity and are independent from any government or organization, including OHCHR and the UN. Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of the UN or OHCHR. Country-specific observations and recommendations by the UN human rights mechanisms, including the special procedures, the treaty bodies and the Universal Periodic Review, can be found on the Universal Human Rights Index https://uhri.ohchr.org/en/ NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address ICC junks Duterte's request for interim release Philippine News Agency By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora October 10, 2025, 6:34 pm MANILA -- The International Criminal Court (ICC) on Friday denied former president Rodrigo Duterte's request for an interim release, citing flight risks in its order for his "continued detention." In a court document dated Oct. 10, the ICC Pre-Trial Chamber I ruled that Duterte "continues to pose a flight risk" and that his detention remains necessary to ensure his presence during pre-trial proceedings and a possible trial. The chamber pointed to the Duterte family's public rejection of his arrest, their calls for his immediate return to the Philippines, and his reported wish to go back to Davao City if released - all of which, it said, demonstrate his rejection of the proceedings and his family's willingness to help him evade detention and prosecution. In its 23-page decision, the chamber cited an online article quoting Vice President Sara Duterte allegedly indicating that the former chief executive wishes to return to Davao City, "in contradiction with the Defense's assertion that he would remain in the state he would be released to." "Moreover, given Mr. Duterte's position as former President of the Philippines, he appears to have the necessary political contacts, as well as to benefit from a network of support within that country, including his daughter, who currently holds the office of Vice-President of the Philippines, that may help him abscond," read the court document, signed by Presiding Judge Iulia Antoanella Motoc, and Judges Reine Adelaide Sophie Alapini-Gansou and Maria del Socorro Flores Liera. The chamber also noted Duterte's continued popularity, as evidenced by his election as Davao City mayor in May 2025. It warned that returning to Davao City could enable him "to commit the crimes for which his arrest and surrender were initially sought." "In conclusion, the Chamber finds that, at present, the detention of Mr. Duterte is required so as to ensure his appearance in these proceedings, that he does not obstruct or endanger the investigation or the Court's proceedings, and to prevent the commission of related crimes within the jurisdiction of the Court," it said. Duterte faces multiple charges comprising several murders and attempted murders as crimes against humanity over his campaign against illegal drugs while he was the mayor of Davao City and the Philippine president. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PH, Japan forces hold air drop exercise over Tacloban City Philippine News Agency By Priam Nepomuceno October 10, 2025, 1:20 pm MANILA -- Philippine and Japanese air force personnel participating in the ongoing "Doshin-Bayanihan 05-25" on Thursday conducted a "low-cost, low-altitude" (LCLA) air drop exercise over Tacloban City. During the activity, dummy training cargo loads were released to demonstrate precision airdrop techniques, interoperability, and rapid response capabilities in simulated disaster relief scenarios, Philippine Air Force (PAF) spokesperson Col. Ma. Christina Basco said Friday. "The exercise strengthened both air forces' ability to coordinate effectively during humanitarian missions and respond swiftly in times of crisis," Basco said in a statement. C-130 transport planes from PAF and the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) were deployed for the exercise, Basco added. This year's "Doshin-Bayanihan" drills are scheduled from Oct. 7 to 11. Meanwhile, aside from the LCLA, Basco said the participating air forces also transported over 800 boxes of drinking water from Tacloban City to Lapu-Lapu City, Cebu in support of the ongoing humanitarian assistance and disaster response operations for earthquake-hit communities in Central Visayas. "This act of cooperation underscores the shared commitment of the Philippines and Japan to deliver life-saving aid and enhance regional disaster response readiness," she said. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Teodoro hails Brunei's contribution to Mindanao peace process Philippine News Agency By Priam Nepomuceno October 10, 2025, 12:56 pm MANILA -- Department of National Defense (DND) Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. on Thursday hailed the valuable contribution of Brunei Darussalam in the ongoing peace process in Mindanao during an official visit to the Southeast Asian country. Teodoro extended this message during his meeting with Pehin Datu Lailaraja Maj. Gen. (retired) Dato Paduka Seri Awang Haji Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof, Minister at the Prime Minister's Office and Minister of Defense II of Brunei Darussalam, according to DND spokesperson Assistant Secretary Arsenio Andolong. "The two officials discussed common defense interests amid evolving regional security dynamics and exchanged views on peace and stability in Southeast Asia, with particular attention to developments in the Southern Philippines," Andolong said in a statement. He added that Teodoro "acknowledged Brunei Darussalam's contributions to the International Monitoring Team (IMT) and the Independent Decommissioning Body (IDB), both of which support peace processes in Mindanao." Teodoro also presented the Philippines' ongoing defense modernization efforts, which are focused on safeguarding national interests, ensuring maritime security, and supporting blue economy initiatives. Andolong said Teodoro's visit sought to strengthen bilateral defense cooperation between the two nations and address shared regional security priorities. "He (Teodoro) also proposed increased collaboration in defense training and education between the two countries. The Secretary also extended an invitation to his counterpart, Minister Pehin Halbi, to visit the Philippines for continued discussions on expanding both bilateral and multilateral defense cooperation," he said. While in Brunei, Teodoro also met with Philippine Ambassador Marian Jocelyn Tirol-Ignacio, as well as representatives of key partner countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, India, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States. "He provided updates on regional developments and sought support for the Philippines' bid for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2027-2028 term," Andolong said. A key highlight of the visit was Teodoro's audience with Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah Mu'izzaddin Waddaula, held at the Istana Nurul Iman, the Sultan's official residence. "Secretary Teodoro's official visit to Brunei Darussalam underscores the Philippines' continued commitment to deepening defense relations and promoting regional peace, security, and prosperity," Andolong said. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PH hopes Gaza deal leads to long-term peace, stability in Middle East Philippine News Agency By Joyce Ann L. Rocamora October 10, 2025, 8:47 am MANILA -- The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) on Friday welcomed the ceasefire peace deal reached between Israel and Hamas, which will facilitate the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza. The DFA said this agreement represents a "monumental step towards de-escalation and breathes fresh hopes for all those affected in the region, especially the hostages and the people in Gaza." In a statement, it said it recognizes the diplomatic efforts of the mediators the United States, Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey in bringing about the necessary pause in the hostilities. "We welcome this breakthrough and congratulate the peacemakers," the department said. "The Philippines hopes this initial step will usher in long-term peace and stability in the region, where 2 million Filipinos live and thousands of seafarers sail through." US President Donald Trump formally announced on Thursday that Israel and Hamas have reached a deal on a plan that would end the two-year war in Gaza. In a press conference, Israeli Ambassador to the Philippines Dana Kursh said the first phase of the agreement, which will see the release of all hostages from the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, will take effect with a ceasefire at 5 p.m. on Oct. 9 (Philippine time). Asked how Israel envisions the final phase to take form, Kursh reiterated Israel's goal of "living in peace" with its neighbors. "That's the end game. There's no other solutions. We all have strived for the same piece of land. We have to find a solution, but the solution has to come from leaders of Israelis and Palestinian leadership," she said. (PNA) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Iran's Cautious 'Yes' To Trump's Gaza Plan By Kian Sharifi October 10, 2025 When US President Donald Trump unveiled his peace plan for the Gaza Strip, it was first met with official silence in Iran, then state media condemnation, and finally cautious acceptance. Iran's posture, experts say, is a calculated effort to avoid being seen as a spoiler while allowing Tehran to preserve its influence over Hamas, the US-designated Palestinian terrorist group. Iran's restrained endorsement of the US peace plan also reflects Tehran's waning clout in the region as well as its shifting priorities after a costly 12-day war with Israel in June, experts say. Israel and Hamas agreed to a first phase of the plan that includes a cease-fire and hostage release. Other thorny issues in Trump's peace plan unveiled last month have been left for later negotiations. 'Keeping Ties With Hamas Alive' "Iran is trying to avoid being branded as a spoiler, seeing the negotiations and possibility of a cease-fire as beneficial for keeping ties with Hamas alive," said Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa Program at Chatham House. Iran has for years provided financial and military support to Hamas. But Tehran's leverage over Hamas has diminished as Israel has degraded the armed group's military capabilities during two years of war in Gaza. Tehran's ability to shape outcomes in Gaza, too, has been reduced. Iran's so-called axis of resistance, its loose regional network of proxies, and armed groups against Israel, has been severely weakened over the past year. The alliance includes Hamas, Lebanon's Hezbollah, Yemen's Huthi rebels, and Shi'ite militias in Iraq. During the brief war in June, Israel and the United States carried out a bombing campaign that degraded Iran's nuclear and military capabilities. "Even if it wanted to spoil the plan, [Iran] understands very, very clearly that it doesn't really have the ability to do that," said Raz Zimmt, director at the Israeli-based Institute for National Security Studies. Iran is preoccupied with rebuilding its military capabilities, including missiles and air defense systems, and restoring its strategic footprint in the region, Zimmt said. The Future Of Hamas Trump's peace plan requires Hamas, the governing authority in Gaza, to fully disarm and surrender power. Control of the territory would then pass to a transitional Palestinian administration. When Iran expressed support for the plan, it commended Hamas's "smart" response to Trump, noting that the group had agreed to the hostage release but rejected disarmament and its surrender of power. "Israel would like to disarm Hamas, to disarm the Gaza Strip, but I think it's very realistic to assume that it's not going to be that easy," said Zimmt. If a cease-fire holds in Gaza, Iran will just look for other opportunities to insert itself in Palestinian politics, most likely via the Israeli-occupied West Bank, experts say. "Tehran will [shift] resistance support to the [Israeli-occupied] West Bank and also support civil society resistance," said Vakil. Iran could also use the "media and social platforms to promote" anti-Israeli narratives, she said. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-cautious- trump-gaza-plan/33556511.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address In 'Dangerous' Escalation, Pakistani Drone Strikes Kill Two Senior Taliban Members In Kabul By Daud Khattak October 10, 2025 Summary Two senior members of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) were killed in Pakistani drone strikes in Kabul, though the group's leader Noor Wali Mehsud's fate remains unclear. The strikes mark a major escalation between Pakistan and the Afghan Taliban, amid tensions over alleged sheltering of TTP militants by the Afghan Taliban. Suspected Pakistani air strikes also hit Paktika province, targeting a market and shops, prompting condemnation from Afghanistan's Taliban government. Two senior members of the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) extremist group have been killed in unprecedented Pakistani drone strikes in the Afghan capital, sources told RFE/RL's Radio Mashaal, marking a major escalation of tensions between the two side. The target of the strikes in Kabul late on October 9 was Noor Wali Mehsud, the leader of the TTP, which is also known as the Pakistani Taliban, a Pakistani security official and a member of the TTP said. It was not clear if Mehsud was killed in the strikes. A TTP source said the militant leader was alive but two "important" members of the group were killed, without disclosing their names. Longtime allies, the sides have fallen out over the Afghan Taliban's alleged sheltering of the TTP, which has waged a deadly insurgency against Islamabad for years. The Taliban returned to power in August 2021 as international troops left Afghanistan. The attacks in Kabul were followed by suspected Pakistani air strikes in the eastern Afghan province of Paktika, which borders Pakistan, early October 10. Witnesses said a market selling second-hand weapons, a shop selling computers, and a restaurant were hit. No casualties were reported. In a statement issued on October 10, the Taliban's Defense Ministry condemned what it said were Pakistani air strikes in Paktika and Islamabad's violation of "Kabul's sovereign territory." Pakistan's military spokesman, in a televised press conference on October 10, did not directly respond when asked if Islamabad was responsible for the attacks. "To safeguard Pakistani lives and properties, what measures need to be taken will be taken," General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry told reporters. The attacks inside Afghanistan came two days after the TTP killed 11 Pakistani security personnel, including a lieutenant colonel and a major, in an assault in northwestern Pakistan. 'Huge Escalation' Former US ambassador to Afghanistan and Iraq Zalmay Khalilzad posted on X that "Pakistani strikes against Afghanistan's capital are a huge escalation and pose dangerous risks." Khalilzad added that "military escalation between Pakistan and Afghanistan is not the answer. It is unlikely to work and will increase death and destruction in both countries." The strikes coincide with a groundbreaking trip by Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to India, Pakistan's archenemy. Muttaqi arrived in New Delhi on October 10 for a week of talks, in the Taliban's highest-level visit to the country since the hard-line Islamist group took power. During the first day of talks between Taliban and Indian officials, New Delhi announced it was upgrading its mission in Kabul to a full embassy. The sides were also expected to discuss trade and economic ties. The Taliban's outreach to India as well as the TTP's increasing attacks in Pakistan is "taking the situation towards a very serious level," said Mansoor Mehsud, director of the Islamabad-based FATA Research Center. "Pakistan will react more seriously, and this will make the situation dangerous," he said. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pakistan-taliban-ttp- afghanistan-strikes-drone/33556513.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Romania and the Kingdom of the Netherlands coordinate their efforts within the European Union and NATO Romania - Ministry of National Defence Press release No. 178 10.10.2025 On Thursday, October 9th, Minister of National Defence, Liviu-Ionut Mosteanu, received, at the MoND headquarters, the visit of the Ambassador of the Kingdom of the Netherlands to Bucharest, H.E. Willemijn van Haaften. The talks aimed at enhancing bilateral defence cooperation, with an emphasis on the development of industrial partnerships, the security situation in the Black Sea and the "Drone Wall" initiative, a project designed to contribute to increasing surveillance and defence capabilities on the Eastern Flank. In the current security context, the two officials reconfirmed their firm support for Ukraine in the face of the Russian Federation's illegal aggression. Thus, they mentioned the joint commitment to strengthening regional resilience and maintaining stability on NATO's Eastern Flank, as well as the contribution to the Air Force Capability Coalition, through the European F-16 Training Center in our country. "The Hague is one of Romania's most important partners and allies, with essential contributions to regional security and to the allied deterrence and defence posture in the Black Sea," the Minister of National Defence stated. The two officials also discussed the priorities of the agenda of the upcoming NATO Defence Ministers' Meeting, which is to take place next week in Brussels, with an emphasis on rendering operational the allied decisions adopted at The Hague Summit . From the EU defence perspective, Minister Mosteanu and Ambassador van Haaften reaffirmed the need to enhance cooperation and joint commitment to strengthening the European defence profile. The officials also discussed maximizing the opportunity offered by the SAFE financial instrument, especially for the defence industry, with benefits for strengthening the European states' capacities and developing this field of activity. The Press Office NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Proposed ceasefire provides glimmer of hope for children in Gaza UNICEF Remarks This is a summary of what was said by UNICEF Deputy Spokesperson Ricardo Pires - to whom quoted text may be attributed - at today's press briefing at the Palais des Nations in Geneva 10 October 2025 GENEVA, 10 October 2025 - "Let me begin by sharing the reaction to yesterday's news of this agreement to secure a ceasefire and end the war in the Gaza Strip from two children UNICEF spoke to in Deir al Balah, southern Gaza. Their words are far more powerful than anything I can say here today. "Maisara is 13 years old. He said: 'I felt happy the moment I heard the news about the ceasefire. Finally, I will return to my city in the north, because like all children, we are tired of war. We want to live our childhood again. What makes me even happier is that we will no longer suffer from hunger. 'I will hug the soil of my city because I missed it so much. Returning to my city means going back to school and to our normal life.' "Rasha is also 13 years old. She said: 'I miss my cousins. And we want to go visit them in the cemetery in East Bureij camp. And we want to go see our families in Gaza. Since the ceasefire was announced, we have all been happy.' "These are just two of the more than one million children who have been waiting for this day for more than two years - two years of unimaginable suffering. "The news of an imminent ceasefire brings a much-needed, long-overdue glimmer of hope for them and their families. This hope must be met with immediate, urgent action. "It is critical that all parties to the conflict do absolutely everything they can to ensure the deal is implemented, sustained, and leads to lasting peace. In the hours until the ceasefire officially takes hold, children must be protected. "The ceasefire will bring hope that the killing and maiming of children may finally stop. Over 64,000 children have either died or been injured due to attacks by Israel's military. Around 25 per cent of them have potentially life-changing injuries. "UNICEF is ready. The aid must flow. Israel must open as many entry points as possible. The situation is critical. We risk seeing a massive spike in child deaths, not only neonatal, but also infants, given their immune systems are more compromised than ever before, nor have they had access to proper food for what is now years. "To add to this a cold winter, without adequate shelter and clothing, will be lethal - we saw neonates die last year from hypothermia. "But UNICEF knew this situation was coming. It takes months to get these supplies from around the world and into Gaza. We factored this in and started ordering tarpaulins and winter clothes in July. "So, we aim to give two winter clothing kits to every baby under 12 months. And bring in one million blankets for every single child in Gaza. "The list goes on. We have assisted devices for the many thousands of wounded children in the pipeline, since we have been blocked for so long in getting children items like wheelchairs and crutches. "We are ready to support the restoration of water supply systems along with the drainage and sanitation systems, including solid waste management to serve all children and families in the Gaza Strip. "And of course, nutrition. "As an ultimate priority, the deal should be used to avert malnutrition and the extension of famine. UNICEF has the capacity to swiftly improve the nutrition status of 50,000 children below five years of age who are at high risk and 60,000 pregnant and breastfeeding mothers. We have been doing it in the past months, but we need to be able to flood Gaza with nutritious supplies and treatment. "A genuine ceasefire must be more than words; it must be sustained and respected, placing children's rights at the very centre. This means opening all crossings for humanitarian aid and ensuring that every child, north to south, is reached with the essentials for survival. "Humanitarian relief is only the beginning. Children in Gaza also need schools reopened, play spaces restored, and time to heal from unimaginable trauma. This ceasefire must create conditions for both emergency aid and long-term recovery, so children like Maisara and Rasha can reclaim their childhoods. It will be a long road." ##### NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Nobel Peace Prize winner Machado's values represent best hopes of Venezuelans: UN rights office 10 October 2025 - The UN human rights office, OHCHR, on Friday welcomed the Nobel Peace Prize committee's decision to name opposition leader Maria Machado as this year's laureate, in recognition of her work promoting the Venezuelan people's democratic hopes. "We congratulate Maria Corina Machado on being announced as the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize," said OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan. "This recognition reflects the clear aspirations of the people of Venezuela for free and fair elections, for civil and political rights and for the rule of law. The High Commissioner has consistently spoken out in support of these values." The 58-year-old politician who was barred from running in last year's presidential elections, lives in hiding inside Venezuela and was briefly detained after attending an opposition rally in January. She was rapidly released reportedly following international pressure. Ms. Machado thanked the Nobel committee for the honour saying it was the "achievement of a whole societyI am just one person. I certainly do not deserve this." 'A champion of democracy' UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres congratulated her, saying she had been "a champion of democracy and a voice of unity in her country of Venezuela." The tools of democracy "are the tools of peace," he continued, adding that as democracy and the rule of law are increasingly under threat, the prize was a tribute to everyone working to safeguard civil and political rights around the world. The UN Human Rights Council-established independent investigative body known as the Venezuela Fact-Finding Mission, said the award "underscores the importance of the fundamental right to political participation and the urgent need to ensure the human rights of those who exercise it." Opposition figures held incommunicado Strong evidence of serious restrictions on civic freedoms in Venezuela has been documented in numerous reports mandated by the Human Rights Council. Earlier this year, independent human rights investigators reporting to the Council in Geneva urged the authorities to stop the reported practice of holding political opponents incommunicado. They insisted that these "targeted detentions" were illegal and amounted to enforced disappearance, a major human rights violation if proved and potentially an international crime. The High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, has also consistently expressed concerns about alleged abuses in the Latin American nation. In December 2024, Mr. Turk highlighted the "disproportionate use of force and violence" during post-electoral protests earlier in the year, "including by armed individuals supporting the government" that resulted in at least 28 deaths. In July, the Venezuelan National Assembly declared Mr. Turk and OHCHR staff persona non grata, effectively barring UN human rights work there. Universal rights Speaking to journalists in Geneva, Mr. Al-Kheetan stressed that OHCHR sought to engage with the Government of Venezuela and all other stakeholders. "We remain firmly committed to continue working to defend and protect the human rights of all Venezuelans, whether they are in Venezuela or abroad, and based of course on information and with the victims at the centre of our work," he said. "The bottom line here is that we need more engagement with the authorities," he continued, noting that the National Assembly of Venezuela had regretfully voted in favour of declaring the High Commissioner persona non grata. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Gaza: Aid teams repeat calls for unhindered access to stricken enclave 10 October 2025 - As displaced Gazans jammed the main route leading north on Friday after the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas reportedly came into effect, UN aid teams repeated their call to open all crossings into the devastated enclave to prevent famine spreading. "There is little information available on the details or how the agreement will be implemented. However, we call for all crossings into Gaza to be open immediately so that humanitarian supplies can flow into the war-torn enclave," said Juliette Touma, Director of Communications for the UN agency for Palestinians, UNRWA. Her comments came as Israeli forces reportedly pulled back from parts of Gaza, in line with an agreement between Israel and Hamas, brokered in Egypt this week by US mediators and representatives from Qatar and Turkiye. Pushing back on famine "This food from UNRWA is critical for averting and controlling famine," Ms. Touma stressed, as the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) pointed to 50,000 "at risk" youngsters suffering from acute malnutrition. "They need to be treated immediatelywith the ceasefire, we hope we can get the therapeutic treatment that they so desperately need," said spokesperson Ricardo Pires. The UN's top aid official, Tom Fletcher insisted on Thursday that "the whole UN humanitarian family" is mobilized to get aid into Gaza. Speaking to journalists, he underlined the "indispensable role" of UNRWA in distributing aid supplies across the Strip while also highlighting the central role assigned to the UN in US President Donald Trump's 20-point plan now being enacted. Active conflict ongoing Aid teams still working in the enclave reported that the ceasefire had not come into effect early Friday morning. Nonetheless, vital humanitarian work continues, including one UNICEF mission to Gaza City on Thursday "to rescue two babies who were in incubators and fighting for their lives", said Mr. Pires. "Luckily, with the hard work of colleagues and health workers on the ground, they survived and they got reunited with their families today." The UNICEF spokesperson explained that the mission had to wait 15 hours to gain access to Gaza City because "the situation on the ground was still very, very unstable and kinetic activity was taking place - a lot of violence". Echoing that assessment, UNRWA's Ms. Touma noted that colleagues in the enclave reported ongoing airstrikes on Friday morning. The UN agency spokesperson also noted that more than 370 UNRWA staff members have been killed over the course of the conflict sparked by Hamas-led terror attacks on southern Israel on 7 October 2023. "This is the highest death toll in the United Nations since it was first established," she added. Joining the call for "unimpeded" aid access across "all possible routes", UN health agency (WHO) spokesperson Christian Lindmeier stressed the need to resume urgent medical evacuations from Gaza to the West Bank including East Jerusalem, along with flexible funding "to drive the recovery". UN agencies have 170,000 metric tons of food, medicine and other supplies ready to deliver into Gaza. The aim is to scale up the provision of food across Gaza to reach 2.1 million people and some 500,000 people who need nutrition support. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN urges restraint as US strikes in southern Caribbean escalate tensions with Venezuela 10 October 2025 - The UN on Friday warned of mounting risks to regional peace after a series of US military strikes on boats it accused of drug trafficking left at least 21 dead in the southern Caribbean, prompting Venezuela to declare a state of emergency and denounce the attacks as a breach of international law. Briefing ambassadors in the Security Council, UN Assistant Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca said the US operations, conducted between 2 September and 3 October, have heightened tensions in the region and drawn sharp criticism from Caracas. "Venezuelan authorities have announced that they remain on high alert since the United States military deployments were first reported in August," he said, noting that President Nicolas Maduro has mobilized 4.5 million members of the Bolivarian Militia to support the armed forces. Mr. Jenca said that according to US authorities, the strikes targeted vessels in international waters carrying illegal drugs bound for the United States. Eleven individuals were reportedly killed in the first attack on 2 September, with subsequent operations bringing the total reported fatalities to 21. The exact locations of the incidents have not been publicly disclosed, and the UN is not able to independently verify these reports. Trading of allegations Mr. Jenca stated that Washington has defended its actions as consistent with the laws governing armed conflict and necessary to protect American citizens from the flow of illicit drugs from South and Central America. "A White House spokesperson said that 'the President acted in line with the law of armed conflict', seeking to protect the US 'from those trying to bring deadly poison' to its shores," he told the Security Council. Venezuelan officials, however, view the strikes as provocative and a violation of sovereignty. The Permanent Representative of Venezuela to the UN wrote to the Security Council on 9 October, stating that the "ulterior purpose" of the US actions continues to be to "advance its policies of regime change". Caracas has also reported overflights by US fighter jets near its shores and the detention of a fishing boat in Venezuelan waters, while Washington said that two Venezuelan military aircrafts flew over a US Navy vessel in international waters. Repeated calls for restraint The UN has repeatedly called on both parties to exercise restraint and resolve differences through peaceful means. Ms. Jenca emphasised that efforts to counter drug trafficking "must be carried out in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter," and that any use of force in countering illicit trafficking must respect human rights standards. "The United Nations recognises the devastating impact of violence driven by transnational organised crime, which affects production, transit, and destination countries alike," Mr. Jenca said. "We continue to emphasize the need for all efforts to counter transnational organised crime to be conducted in accordance with international law." He said the UN would continue to support diplomatic dialogue and measures to prevent further escalation, calling on both Washington and Caracas to prioritise de-escalation and constructive engagement. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Today's top news: Occupied Palestinian Territory, Ukraine UNOCHA - United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs Occupied Palestinian Territory UN and partners ready to scale up humanitarian response in Gaza OCHA says that the announcement of a ceasefire has generated a new hope for relief at last. Yesterday, partners in Gaza reported that Israeli tanks had blocked Al Rashid road along the coast after people attempted to move north. Today, within minutes of the announcement by Israeli authorities that the ceasefire had taken effect at noon local time, thousands of people resumed movement north - mainly on foot, but also in vehicles and animal-drawn carts. Some of the people who have already managed to reach Gaza city reported that they arrived back to find their homes had sustained further damage. The UN and its partners stand ready to scale up the humanitarian response immediately. As the Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, Tom Fletcher, noted yesterday, in order to deliver on this plan, the humanitarian community needs the opening of additional crossings, safe movement for aid workers and all other civilians, the unrestricted entry of goods, visas for staff, and the space for the UN and its NGO partners to operate, in line with humanitarian principles. As Fletcher outlined, the humanitarian community has 170,000 metric tons of supplies - including food and medicine - all cleared and ready to move into Gaza, with much more aid already in the pipeline. During the first 60 days of the ceasefire, the aim is to increase the volume of incoming supplies to hundreds of truckloads every day. After two years of war, the rehabilitation of infrastructure in Gaza is urgently needed to enable recovery. The private sector is also critical. OCHA appeals to all leaders backing the ceasefire to help secure the conditions to carry out unimpeded humanitarian operations. It is also essential that Member States extend their generous funding for the response so that the humanitarian community can scale up, given the level of needs*. OCHA stresses that all parties to the conflict must allow and facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need. Aid must flow at scale in order for the UN and its partners to reach everyone in need and alleviate people's suffering. Yesterday in Gaza, humanitarian teams deployed an ambulance, helped prepare a low-lying area for the winter, and collected fuel, medical items and other critical supplies from the Kerem Shalom crossing, where they also offloaded incoming supplies to replenish stocks that will enter in the coming days. *Donations made to UN Crisis Relief help UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs reach people in Gaza and the West Bank with urgent support. Ukraine Attacks strike Kyiv, other areas overnight OCHA reports that ongoing hostilities and a massive overnight attack between 9 and 10 October claimed additional civilian lives across Ukraine. According to Ukrainian authorities, six civilians - including a child - were killed and another 56 injured in the attacks. The strikes also caused widespread power outages across nine regions: Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Dnipro, Donetsk, Kharkiv, Kyiv, Odesa, Poltava and Sumy. In the capital, Kyiv, at least 12 people were injured, and half of the city was left without power and water. Humanitarian partners rapidly mobilized and provided shelter materials, hygiene kits, food, hot meals and psychosocial support in the regions of Odesa, Zaporizhzhia and Cherkasy, while also registering families for cash assistance. Meanwhile, evacuations from front-line areas continue. Over the past day, 300 people - including more than 70 children - were evacuated from the Donetsk region amid deteriorating security conditions. Earlier this week, the Humanitarian Coordinator for Ukraine, Matthias Schmale - together with representatives of OCHA, UNICEF and the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund - visited the region to discuss key issues with local authorities and partners, including preparations for winter, evacuation of civilians, the needs of displaced people, protection, and the uninterrupted operation of critical civilian infrastructure. Posted on 10 October 2025 NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Refugees in Ethiopia face rising hunger as WFP forced to reduced rations World Food Programme 10 October 2025 ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia -- The UN World Food Programme warned today that refugees in Ethiopia are at risk of rising hunger as critical funding shortages force cuts to food rations. In October, WFP was forced to reduce rations for 780,000 refugees in 27 camps across Ethiopia from a 60 percent ration to just 40 percent. This means each person will now receive food assistance equivalent to less than 1,000 calories per day. Only 70,000 newly arrived refugees who fled conflict in neighbouring Sudan and South Sudan will continue to receive full rations for the next six months. Hunger and malnutrition rates are very high among the new refugees. "We are making impossible choices," said Zlatan Milisic, WFP Ethiopia Country Director and Representative. "We are trying to reach as many refugees as possible with meaningful amounts of food assistance. But without more funds, these reductions are just another step towards stopping food distributions completely, putting the lives of those we currently assist at risk. "This isn't a future risk it's happening right now. Every ration cut is a child left hungrier, a mother forced to skip meals, a family pushed closer to the edge," said Milisic. WFP is urgently calling for US$230 million to sustain humanitarian operations for the next six months. Without immediate new funding, WFP could be forced to completely suspend food assistance for all refugees in Ethiopia in the coming months. WFP's supplies of specialized nutritious foods provided to malnourished children and mothers are also running dangerously low. They are expected to run out completely by December, meaning that WFP's support for one million malnourished children and pregnant and breastfeeding women would also end unless additional funds are received. WFP issued an urgent appeal back in April warning that it was running out of funds for nutrition supplies, putting support for children and mothers in need at risk. Donors thankfully responded and WFP's nutrition programmes were able to continue. WFP is also working closely with the Government of Ethiopia to meet the needs of 700,000 people in the southeastern Somali region. The area has been hit by both localized drought and flooding. WFP is working to stretch the limited humanitarian food supplies available so it can continue to provide full rations. "Our operations have been hanging by a thread for months now," said Milisic. "This is not only undermining our ongoing support to food insecure Ethiopians and refugees, but also our preparedness to respond to new crises, which could span new refugee influxes, drought conditions or other climate shocks." WFP last reduced rations for refugees in May 2023. Since then, the gap between humanitarian needs and available resources has only widened. WFP supported 4.7 million vulnerable people in Ethiopia between January to October this year with food assistance, nutrition support, school meals and resilience activities. In addition to funding challenges, ongoing insecurity, particularly in the Amhara region, continue to disrupt WFP's humanitarian operations. # # # 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. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Countries' forces combine for jungle assault By Lieutenant Tahlia Merigan 9 October 2025 The sharp sound of simulated gunfire and mortars echoed through the jungle as coloured smoke billowed across the canopy. The culminating land activity of Exercise Bersama Lima, a multilateral company assault, had found its target - an enemy camp. Australian soldiers from Darwin's 1st Brigade played a central role in the high-intensity operation, working alongside troops from Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom under the Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA). Lieutenant Alastair Wuth, a troop commander from 1st Combat Engineer Regiment re-rolled as infantry platoon commander of 3 Platoon for the exercise, said it had been a privilege to learn alongside other nations. From classroom briefings to ambushes and assaults, soldiers adapted to each other's tactics, techniques and procedures (TTPs), with the penultimate activity being a complex company-sized ambush along a key main supply route. "We learn from each other's TTPs, we practise each other's TTPs, and most importantly, we end up moulding those realities together to create successful actions in the jungle," Lieutenant Wuth said. Among the Australian contingent was Sapper Daniel Bernard-Smith, who participated in an attack alongside British Gurkhas, Singaporean and Malaysian troops, with Singaporean soldiers mixed in with Australian sections. "We had one of their machine gunners and two of their grenadiers to assist us with our assault," Sapper Bernard-Smith said. "Working with the Singaporeans has been a bit of an eye-opener. Just learning how they work with their [standard operating procedures] SOPs and TTPs; it's been good to adjust our own to integrate with them." British forces brought their own jungle expertise to the table, particularly through the Royal Gurkha Rifles, whose experience proved invaluable. Platoon commander of the Gurkhas 2nd Lieutenant Kit Greenacre said some of his troops had infantry jungle experience beforehand. "We really utilised their knowledge - from survival basics like putting your shoes upside down to avoid snakes and spiders, to tactical navigation and movement in dense terrain," he said. 2nd Lieutenant Greenacre praised the integration. "It was amazing to work with the other three nations. We integrated really well and conducted various lessons and attacks. It was really, really good fun," he said. Gurkha Rifleman Deepen Gurung said it had been great working with the other nations. "We get to know the skills and tactics they use and we get to action ours as well. It's been a great experience," he said. Soldiers also shared meals, stories and traditions. "Whether it's enjoying a meal with them after a long day of work or just sitting down and sharing experiences from their armies and lives, that's probably been the most valuable takeaway for all of us," Lieutenant Wuth said. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Indigenous firms win Defence contracts 9 October 2025 Defence has awarded more than $70 million in construction contracts to two First Nations-owned businesses, supporting explosive ordnance infrastructure upgrades in New South Wales and strengthening sovereign capability. The announcement coincides with Indigenous Business Month, which celebrates the achievements of First Nations businesses and leaders across Australia. More than $41.3 million has been awarded to Wamarra, a First Nations-owned and operated contractor, to deliver three new light construction explosive storage buildings, explosive ordnance decanting concrete hardstands, and infrastructure and security upgrades at Myambat Explosive Depot in NSW. TVN On-Country, a majority First Nations-owned business, has been awarded more than $30.3 million for a similar project at Jennings Explosive Depot, also in NSW. In April, Indigenous-owned and operated Intract was awarded an $18.3 million contract to deliver Defence's first sovereign, fit-for-purpose missile assembly facility at Port Wakefield, South Australia. Deputy Secretary Security and Estate and Defence Indigenous Champion Celia Perkins said the completion of these projects will support one of the Government's key capability priorities by providing guided weapons and explosive ordnance capability in NSW and SA, and also contribute to Closing the Gap. "These facilities are crucial in helping to drive the National Defence Strategy's commitment to boosting guided weapons explosive ordnance capability. That these three contracts have gone to Indigenous businesses shows the maturity of the Indigenous business sector and demonstrates their important contribution to crucial Defence strategic outcomes," Ms Perkins said. First Assistant Secretary Commercial Division, Capability Acquisition and Sustainment Group, Racheal Kuczma, said Defence has now awarded more than $6.5 billion in contracts under the Indigenous Procurement Policy, more than half of the Government's total contribution to the Indigenous business sector. "These outcomes reinforce the efforts invested in pursuing positive, sustainable growth of Indigenous businesses through the Indigenous Procurement Policy," Ms Kuczma said. This year's Indigenous Business Month theme, 'Strength Through Collaboration', reflects Defence's ongoing engagement with First Nations businesses and leaders. Defence was recently named Supply Nation Government Member of the Year for 2025, recognising its Indigenous roundtables and co-design workshops held across the country with former Assistant Minister for Defence Matt Thistlethwaite. Indigenous businesses interested in working with Defence can contact the Indigenous Procurement Policy team via indigenous.procurement@defence.gov.au NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address New advanced attack helicopters land 9 October 2025 Army's first new attack helicopters were delivered to RAAF Base Townsville last month. The two AH-64E Apaches arrived on September 28 aboard a United States Air Force C-17 Globemaster. Defence Minister Richard Marles said the Apache provided a critical change in attack aviation capability for the Australian Army, building on the ADF's ability to operate from Australia's northern bases. "The Apache is the most advanced attack helicopter operating today and the Albanese Government is pleased to welcome the first two helicopters to Townsville," Mr Marles said. "Our investment in North Queensland to support the Apache fleet will not only provide significant training and employment opportunities through a 'train local to stay local' approach, but will make Townsville Australia's largest defence helicopter industry hub." Boeing Defence Australia will provide support to the new fleet of Apaches under a seven-year contract, delivering maintenance, engineering, training and logistics services. The establishment of the Townsville Aviation Training Academy will deliver technical courses to train new industry maintenance personnel for the Apache and CH-47F Chinook fleets. Infrastructure upgrades and facilities works at RAAF Base Townsville will support the introduction of the Apache fleet, along with the relocation of 1 Aviation Regiment and 16 Aviation Brigade Headquarters. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy said the new helicopters were critical to modernising the ADF and transforming the Army into a force optimised for littoral manoeuvre and long-range strike. All 29 Apaches are expected to be delivered by 2029. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address System to better address graying challenge 09:02, October 11, 2025 By Li Hongyang ( Chinadaily.com.cn Seniors play touhu, or arrow throwing, in a park located at a center for home and community-based eldercare services in Hohhot, the capital of the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, on Sept 11. (DING GENHOU/FOR CHINA DAILY) China is taking major steps to tackle the challenges of an aging population by expanding and enhancing its eldercare system, officials said on Friday. Lu Zhiyuan, minister of civil affairs, said at a news conference on Friday that by the end of last year, the country had increased the number of its eldercare facilities and institutions to 406,000, providing nearly 8 million beds. The percentage of nursing beds rose from 48 percent in 2020 to 65.7 percent in 2024. "These efforts are part of a national strategy to improve benefits for the elderly as the country is taking a proactive approach to population aging," Lu said. The efforts also include financial support and the development of senior-friendly communities and services, he said, adding that over the past five years, China has built 2,990 such communities, and has served 3 million elderly residents daily. Various forms of financial assistance including advanced-age allowances and nursing care subsidies for seniors with disabilities reached nearly 50 million eligible recipients, he added. The central government had planned to expand a subsidy program for eldercare services consumption nationwide, Liu Zhenguo, vice-minister of civil affairs, said at the news conference. The government started implementing the program in some pilot provinces and cities in July, providing 1.16 billion yuan ($163 million) in support. The subsidy program covers home-based, community and institutional eldercare services. Among these, home-based and community care services include meals and bathing, as well as rehabilitation nursing and day care. Liu said that during China's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-25), the nation's life expectancy has been increasing, reaching 79 years at present. This represents a rise of 1.07 years from 2020 and is five years above the global average. "As life expectancy rises, the country's population is aging more rapidly," Liu said, adding that by the end of last year, the number of people aged 60 and older in China had grown to 310 million, making up 22 percent of its total population. "The government is working to create a more senior-friendly environment by updating old neighborhoods, making travel easier for the elderly and promoting senior-friendly healthcare," Liu said, adding that China also aims to enhance social participation among seniors by improving policies and the social environment. He said that the Silver Age Action is central to this effort, fostering sustained elderly volunteer services. As of the end of September, more than 50 million aged volunteers had registered. "The initiative broadens opportunities for seniors to engage in society and encourages them to create value and find fulfillment in their later years through meaningful activities," Liu said. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) News / National by Mandla Ndlovu In April 2017 Waswe Media posted on Youtube a video of what he alleged as King Lobengula's grave site.The King is said to be buried somewhere in Zambia. Waswe said the location was recorded in his book The Ancient Ruins of MonomatapaVeteran Journalist once told a story that in January 1980, an elderly Msimanga Ndebele man who was accompanied by a boy of about eight or nine years arrived at Zimbabwe House, PF-ZAPU headquarters in Lusaka.He found one Andrew Mafu and said he had been sent by the Ndebeles to the late Vice President Joshua Nkomo to tell him that he should go and see the grave of the last king of the Ndebeles before he returned home.Attempts to reach Nkomo by telephone took the whole day, but eventually, they contacted him and he was at Shabani (Zvishavane).He was campaigning and said he found it both ill-advised and well-nigh impossible to return to Zambia at that very critical time.Watch the video below: Flying high alongside international partners By Lieutenant Tahlia Merigan 9 October 2025 Flying alongside fighter jets and aircraft from Australia, Malaysia, Singapore and the United Kingdom over maritime assets from the same nations is a rare and remarkable experience. Flight Lieutenant 'Milo' had the honour of serving as aircraft captain of the F-35A Lightning II during a multinational photo exercise, where Malaysian helicopter crews captured stunning images of Five Power Defence Arrangements (FDPA) aircraft flying in formation above naval vessels. "We flew out in the South China Sea with all the other nations," he said. "We brought together a wide range of aircraft and carriers and had the opportunity to take some photos to show everyone what we're doing here on exercise." This deployment also marks a significant milestone as the first time F-35A Lightning II fighter jets have operated out of Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF) Kuantan Airbase in Malaysia. Working in tandem with the Royal Australian Air Force's C-27J Spartan, which provided exposure flights for FPDA participants, the F-35As showcased their capabilities with dynamic flyovers - some performed with the Spartan's ramp down for a dramatic view. RAAF's 75 Squadron also welcomed members of the Gurkhas from the Gurkha ARRC Support Battalion, offering them a guided tour of the F-35As and sharing insights into the aircraft's advanced capabilities. Beyond tactical operations, Flight Lieutenant Milo highlighted the importance of cultural exchange and collaboration. "My favourite thing about Exercise Bersama Lima is getting to come here to Kuantan and operate with all the different countries," he said. "We get to experience their culture, learn their ways of operating, and they get to learn from us as well." The exercise plays a vital role in promoting regional stability and strengthening defence ties among FPDA nations. "It's really important for us to practise in this region," Flight Lieutenant Milo added. "It promotes regional stability and gives us the opportunity to integrate with all the other nations as part of the FPDA." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Air Force Poseidon deployed on sanctions enforcement Issued by Defence Media 10 October 2025 The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has deployed a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and crew to Japan as part of Operation Argos, supporting the enforcement of United Nations Security Council (UNSC) sanctions on North Korea. Operating from Kadena Air Base, the P-8A and its crew will undertake coordinated surveillance missions to deter and disrupt illegal maritime activity by monitoring and recording ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned goods at sea. Since 2006, the UNSC has passed nearly a dozen resolutions imposing sanctions against North Korea for developing nuclear weapons and related activities. These sanctions effect trade and activities relating to weapons and military equipment, dual-use technologies, industrial machinery, rare earth metals and coal; and caps the import of oil and refined petroleum products. The Australian Defence Force has enforced these sanctions through Operation Argos since 2018, using a combination of aircraft and ship deployments. Sanction enforcement operations are also conducted by Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Republic of Korea, United Kingdom, and United States. Quotes attributable to Chief of Joint Operations, Vice Admiral Justin Jones: "Through Operation Argos, the Australian Defence Force continues to play a vital role in maintaining peace and security in the Indo-Pacific, working alongside our international partners to enforce UNSC sanctions. "Australia remains committed to enforcing United Nations Security Council sanctions against North Korea until it takes concrete steps towards denuclearisation. "Our deployment reinforces Australia's strong commitment to uphold international law and support the rules-based global order. Quotes attributable to RAAF No 11 Squadron Detachment Commander, Squadron Leader Tristan Hull: "This is the 16th time Australia has deployed maritime patrol aircraft to enforce these sanctions, with our most recent P-8A deployment occurring in April this year. "The P-8A Poseidon is an effective platform for sanctions enforcement, able to loiter for long periods and use a sophisticated suite of sensors to monitor and record maritime activity. "The crew is well trained and prepared for the Operation Argos mission, and our deployment forms part of No 11 Squadron's proud history of service in the Indo-Pacific region." NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Tsikhanouskaya Must Vacate Home 'Within 2-3 Weeks' As Lithuania Downgrades Security By Ray Furlong and RFE/RL's Belarus Service October 09, 2025 Summary Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya faces a downgrade in security and must vacate secure housing in Lithuania after five years. The Lithuanian government cites adjusted risk assessments and financial concerns as reasons for the decision, sparking safety fears for Tsikhanouskaya. A former Foreign Minister warns the move benefits Belarusian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko. Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya has been told she must vacate secure housing in Vilnius amid a downgrade to her security detail by the Lithuanian authorities, according to a note one of her aides sent to Western embassies. The note, provided to RFE/RL by a diplomatic source from an EU/NATO country and confirmed by two others, said the decision was communicated to Tsikhanouskaya's office on October 1, with the security downgrade beginning on October 6. "We were also told that she would need to vacate her secured housing within 2-3 weeks, after residing there for the past five years. Close protection was also withdrawn," the note says. Diplomatic sources told RFE/RL Tsikhanouskaya will lose her round-the-clock bodyguards, receiving instead lower-level police protection. Two aides to Tsikhanouskaya acknowledged they are in touch with the authorities over the situation, but stressed there have been no "official requests" made. "We haven't sent any official letters, but I can say that we communicated with diplomats personally about the ongoing situation," Dzianis Kuchynski, an adviser to Tsikhanouskaya, told RFE/RL's Belarus Service. Tsikhanouskaya herself did not immediately comment on the issue. Earlier on October 9, however, she posted a short message on social media stating "no matter the obstacles, we will not stop." "My team and I will keep fighting for political prisoners, defending the interests of Belarusians, and drawing the world's attention to Lukashenka's crimes," she added. Safety Fears Earlier, a close aide to the Belarusian opposition leader told RFE/RL her team was waiting for more details from the Lithuanian authorities. The move has raised concerns about Tsikhanouskaya's safety amid fears she could be targeted by Belarusian agents. The downgrade of her security detail was first publicly reported on October 6. "Following the announcement, our team members unfortunately began experiencing heightened pressure on their relatives in Belarus, explicitly linked to the downgrade of protection in Lithuania," the note to Western embassies said. Tsikhanouskaya has been an official guest of the Lithuanian government since being coerced to leave her country in 2020 and runs the main exiled Belarusian opposition organization from an office in Vilnius. This office temporarily moved to remote working after the security downgrade. Lithuania is host to 57,511 Belarusians, according to official figures released in January. While many are in the country for economic reasons, Lithuania has provided a sanctuary to people fleeing Belarus since a brutal crackdown on mass protests there followed a disputed 2020 election that saw authoritarian leader Aleksandr Lukashenko claim victory. Opposition leaders and most European governments -- including Lithuania -- refused to acknowledge Lukashenko's sixth consecutive election win saying the balloting was rigged. Lithuania Pledges Ongoing Support A new government took power in Vilnius over the summer that some critics say has softened its stance toward Minsk. But Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys assured journalists on October 8 that Lithuania's position towards Belarus has not changed. "We need to do a lot together. Lithuania is ready, I am ready to continue cooperation. And all issues related to the organization of security, I hope, will be professionally and promptly resolved," Budrys told the ELTA news agency. Earlier, Prime Minister Inga Ruginiene said that the decision to downgrade Tsikhanouskaya's security was made based on an assessment of risk. "Tsikhanouskaya has security, but it has been adjusted to take into account current realities," Ruginiene was quoted as saying by Delfi, a news outlet. Lithuania's public service TV and radio broadcaster has reported that reducing a 1-million-euro annual price tag for Tsikhanouskaya's protection was also a factor. Remigijus Motuzas, a lawmaker for the governing Social Democrats, told ELTA "this is definitely a question of funds. It also seems that this level of protection was not necessary." Former Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, now in opposition, disagrees. He has responded to the decision by claiming that Lithuania is "betraying" Tsikhanouskaya. "The reasons behind the decision remain obscure, but it is clear that the main beneficiary is Lukashenko - forcing Svyatlana out, hoping to silence her, questioning her legitimacy is exactly what he has been dreaming about for a long time," he wrote. A Diplomatic Thaw The decision comes as Lukashenko is seeking to emerge from the diplomatic isolation that he has faced since his 2020 crackdown. This has included a phone call with US President Donald Trump and deals with Washington to release a number of political prisoners, including Tsikhanouskaya's husband, Syarhey Tsikhanouski. In return, Washington has dropped on the Belarusian state-owned airline Belavia. Landsbergis said the current government also wished to improve ties with Lukashenko. "The current Lithuanian government, especially its more radical elements, always wanted to return to business as usual with the Belarusian dictator," he wrote. Whatever the reasons for the move, concerns remain for the safety of Tsikhanouskaya and other Belarusian political exiles. Police protection was not enough to stop Russian opposition activist Leonid Volkov being attacked with a hammer in Vilnius in March 2024. Two Belarussian activists abroad have disappeared this year. Anatol Kotau went missing in Turkey in August. Angelika Melnikova was last seen in Poland in March. Prominent opposition figure Paval Latushka, who also lives in Poland, told RFE/RL's Belarus Service that "Several times I was informed by the Polish special services that they managed to prevent the actions of the Belarusian regime's special services." "If you count how many threats I received through social networks, e-mails, and from ambassadors, I received at least 160 threats," he added. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/belarus- opposition-leader-tsikhanouskaya-security-lithuania/33555677.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Secretary Rubio's Call with Foreign Minister Vieira of Brazil US Department of State Readout Office of the Spokesperson October 9, 2025 The below is attributable to Principal Deputy Spokesperson Tommy Pigott: Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a positive call with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira to coordinate next steps following Monday's conversation between President Donald J. Trump and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Secretary Rubio and Foreign Minister Vieira agreed to meet soon and establish a bilateral mechanism to advance mutual economic interests and other key regional priorities. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun's Regular Press Conference on October 9, 2025 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China Updated: October 09, 2025 17:56 CCTV: China announced that President Xi Jinping will attend the opening ceremony of the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women and deliver a keynote speech. Can you share more details? Guo Jiakun: This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the United Nations and the 30th anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women organized by the UN, which was held in Beijing. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action was adopted at the conference 30 years ago, which became a milestone in the development of women's cause globally. In 2020, President Xi Jinping attended the High-Level Meeting of the UN General Assembly on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women via video link and delivered an important speech, in which he proposed to convene another Global Leaders' Meeting on Women in 2025. To deliver on this important proposal of President Xi, China will co-host with UN Women the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women together in Beijing from October 13 to 14. The meeting will bring parties together to renew the spirit of the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing, accelerate the implementation of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, provide new impetus for promoting gender equality globally and the all-round development of women, and jointly build a community with a shared future for humanity. President Xi Jinping will attend the opening ceremony of the meeting and deliver a keynote speech. Dozens of heads of state and government, leaders of parliament, deputy prime ministers, ministerial-level officials, heads of international organizations and friends from around the world will attend the meeting. We look forward to working with the international community to make this meeting a great success and set it up as another milestone in the history of the development of women's cause globally. RIA Novosti: Italian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said he has asked the Chinese side to support the proposal for "an Olympic Truce for all wars, including Ukraine and the Middle East," during the Olympic Winter Games in February 2026. Does China support Italy's proposal? Guo Jiakun: The Olympic Truce is a time-honored tradition. It embodies humanity's pursuit of peace for all and support for each other, and reflects the founding mission of the UN, that is, safeguarding world peace and security. At the moment, the world is neither peaceful nor tranquil, and regional security hotspots keep cropping up. China supports taking the Olympic Truce resolution as an opportunity to bridge differences through dialogue and replace confrontation with cooperation, enhance mutual understanding and safeguard world peace and development. China Daily: It's reported that the 60th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council adopted by consensus the resolution tabled by China on economic, social and cultural rights. Can you further brief us on that? Guo Jiakun: The 60th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on Monday adopted by consensus the resolution on "Promoting and protecting economic, social and cultural rights within the context of addressing inequalities" submitted by China on behalf of nearly 70 countries, including Bolivia, Egypt, Pakistan, and South Africa. The resolution calls for stronger multilateralism and international cooperation and efforts of fully leveraging the role of the knowledge hub for economic, social and cultural rights, which was established under China's proposal, so as to better provide technical assistance and capacity-building support for countries in need. Representatives of various countries extended their congratulations to China. Developing countries said that the resolution reflects the real needs of people around the world and serves as a strong response to the developing countries' call for greater input into economic, social and cultural rights. China will continue upholding true multilateralism, enhancing dialogue and cooperation with all sides based on equality and mutual respect and helping to promote the sound development of the international human rights cause. Global Times: It's reported that the House Select Committee on China recently released an investigationHow visa policies enable Chinese defense entities to tap U.S. higher educationto spread disinformation and propose restrictions on normal exchange and cooperation in education between the two countries. What's your comment? Guo Jiakun: There is nothing credible about the committee you mentioned which keeps attacking and smearing China for its political agenda. Over its irresponsible investigation, the Chinese side has protested to the U.S. side. Let me stress that exchange and cooperation in education between China and the U.S. is mutually beneficial. It is in the interest of both sides, is what the two countries expect, and is conducive to interaction and understanding between the two peoples. Some U.S. politicians overstretch the concept of national security and interfere in and disrupt normal educational cooperation and people-to-people and cultural exchanges between the two countries. Their attempts find no support and will lead nowhere. We urge the U.S. to act on President Trump's commitment to welcoming Chinese students to study in the country and stop harming relevant parties' interests and China-U.S. ties. China will keep a close eye on what the U.S. says and does and will do what is necessary to firmly defend its legitimate rights and interests. CGTN: India's Foreign Ministry said that direct flights between India and China will resume before the end of October. What's China's comment? Guo Jiakun: China and India will restart direct flights before the end of October this year. This is the latest move that demonstrates how the two sides faithfully act on the important common understandings reached between President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Tianjin on August 31. It's also an active move that facilitates the friendly exchanges of over 2.8 billion Chinese and Indian people. China stands ready to work with India to view and handle bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, be friends enjoying good-neighborliness and partners helping each other succeed, and realize a cooperative pas de deux of the dragon and the elephant so as to deliver more tangibly for the two peoples and make due contributions to upholding peace and prosperity in Asia and beyond. BBC: What is China's reaction to allegations that it instructed two British men, Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry, to spy on the UK? Guo Jiakun: Now that the UK judicial authorities have dropped the case you mentioned, it is all the more evident that the so-called "spying for China" allegation is pure fabrication. China firmly opposes peddling "spying activities" and "China threat" narratives to vilify China, and we urge some in the UK to avoid being paranoid. AFP: Premier of the State Council Li Qiang arrived in the DPRK today for the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Workers' Party of Korea. This is Chinese Premier's first visit to the DPRK since 2009. What message does China want to send to the world through this trip? Guo Jiakun: We've released information on Premier Li Qiang's visit to the DPRK, which you may refer to. China and the DPRK are traditional friends and neighbors. It is an unswerving strategic policy of the Party and the Chinese government to maintain, consolidate and develop China-DPRK relations. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea. China stands ready to work with the DPRK through this visit to follow the guidance of the important common understandings reached between the top leaders of the two parties and two countries, enhance strategic communication, strengthen exchanges and cooperation and advance China-DPRK traditional friendship and cooperative ties. BBC: Can we ask for information about APEC? Can you confirm that President Xi will attend APEC in South Korea later this month and early November? And can you confirm that he will visit South Korea and have a meeting on the sidelines with President Donald Trump? Guo Jiakun: China attaches great importance to APEC. We stand ready to work with other parties at this year's meeting to produce positive outcomes and contribute to the economic growth of the Asia-Pacific and the wider world. As for the specifics you asked about, I have no information to share at the moment. China Youth Daily: It's reported that recently the 31st regular meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers of the Andean Community was held and through discussion accepted China as an observer state of the organization. What's China's comment? Guo Jiakun: The Andean Community is a major integration organization in Latin America. In 2000, China established a political consultation mechanism with the Andean Community. China's relations with member states of the organization have maintained a sound momentum of development with solid political mutual trust, fruitful practical cooperation and diverse people-to-people exchanges. As China becomes an observer state of the organization, we stand ready to take this opportunity to work with the Andean Community to forge a new cooperation paradigm featuring complementary bilateral and multilateral interactions, in an effort to deliver more benefit for people in China and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) and contribute to building a China-LAC community with a shared future. AFP: The U.S. government said yesterday that it fired a State Department employee for concealing a romantic relationship with a Chinese national. What's the Foreign Ministry's comment? Guo Jiakun: We have no comment on the U.S.'s domestic affairs. That said, we oppose drawing lines along ideological difference and maliciously vilifying China. AFP: I want to know what is China's response to the proposed deal on Gaza? Guo Jiakun: China hopes that a full and permanent ceasefire in Gaza will be realized as early as possible, the humanitarian crisis will be effectively eased, and tensions in the region will be diffused. China upholds the principle of "the Palestinians governing Palestine" and promotes the implementation of the two-State solution. We stand ready to work with the international community to make unremitting effort towards an early, full, just and lasting solution to the Palestinian question and a peaceful and stable Middle East. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Guo Jiakun's Regular Press Conference on October 10, 2025 Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China Updated: October 10, 2025 20:41 CCTV: We noted that Foreign Minister Wang Yi just concluded his visit to Italy. Could you share more information about the visit? Guo Jiakun: From October 8 to 9, Foreign Minister Wang Yi paid a visit to Italy upon invitation. In Italy, he met with President Sergio Mattarella. He also held talks with Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Antonio Tajani, and together they attended the 12th Joint Meeting of the China-Italy Government Committee. The two sides had candid and in-depth exchanges of views on bilateral relations and international situation and reached important common understandings on fostering a more stable and fruitful China-Italy relationship. The visit was a full success. This was a journey to carry forward friendship. China and Italy have a long history of friendly exchanges, which have grown stronger over time. The development of China-Italy relations is built upon historical interactions and driven by the need for win-win cooperation. Both sides agreed to carry forward the traditional friendship, deepen political mutual trust, and actively implement the action plan on strengthening the comprehensive strategic partnership, so as to contribute to the economic development of both countries and benefit the two peoples. The Italian side stated its firm commitment to the one-China policy and said it will never waver in this regard. This was a journey to deepen common understanding. Both sides agreed that China and Italy, both time-honored civilizations, should draw wisdom and inspiration from history, of which they have rich resources, to offer rational and practical solutions to pressing global challenges. Both China and Italy advocate the values for peace and cooperation, support multipolarity and multilateralism, and stay committed to addressing differences through dialogue and consultation. The Italian side agreed with the vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity and welcomed the series of major initiatives proposed by President Xi Jinping, believing that they are what the international community needs and people across the world want. This was a journey to expand cooperation. Both sides agreed that the China-Italy Government Committee, as the most important mechanism for planning and coordinating the development of bilateral relations, has played a positive role in delivering on the important common understandings reached by leaders of the two countries and promoting exchanges and cooperation across various fields. It has earned the trust and wide support from various sectors in both countries. The minutes of the meeting are detailed and substantive, covering economy and trade, investment, people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and sub-national cooperation. They chart the course for China-Italy cooperation moving forward. The two sides stand ready to promote the sustained growth of trade and investment and provide facilitation for enterprises from both sides to invest in each other's market. The two sides agreed to hold the 14th China-Italy Science, Technology & Innovation Week and the forum of university presidents this year, and promote cooperation and experience sharing in agricultural technology, marine science, renewable energy, health, environmental protection, disaster management and other fields. The two sides will take the opportunity of the Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics to enhance mutual support and deepen people-to-people friendship and bond. China News Service: On October 10, Lai Ching-te delivered an address, in which he once again made "Taiwan independence" remarks, asking the mainland to "cease its distortion of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758" and saying Taiwan "will work to uphold the status quo" and "ensure peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait." What's your comment on that? Guo Jiakun: Lai Ching-te's address called white black and confused right and wrong. He peddled the false narrative of "democracy v.s. authoritarianism," repeated the same old fallacies for "Taiwan independence," and distorted and challenged historical facts and international consensus. These words once again laid bare his true nature as a diehard troublemaker, danger-creater and warmonger. There is but one China in the world and Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory. This is the real status quo across the Taiwan Strait. The biggest threats to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait at present are the separatist activities for "Taiwan independence" and external interference. The Lai Ching-te authorities made up various disinformation in an attempt to seek "Taiwan independence" and resist reunification through military buildup. Such moves will only push Taiwan towards the danger of military conflict. To maintain cross-Strait peace and stability, one must uphold the one-China principle and unequivocally oppose "Taiwan independence." The Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair. Opposition to "two Chinas" or "one China, one Taiwan" and support for the complete reunification of China are part of the international community's commitment to the one-China principle. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, and the restoration of Taiwan. International legal instruments, including the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, have affirmed China's sovereignty over Taiwan. Taiwan's restoration to China is an important outcome of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War. Once and for all, UNGA Resolution 2758 resolved, politically, legally and procedurally, the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN. It solemnly confirms and fully demonstrates that the one-China principle is not only the iron rule that must not be bent, but also an absolute principle that is part and parcel of the existing international order. Any attempt to tamper with historical facts or challenge Resolution 2758 amounts to challenges to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, the UN's authority and the post-war international order. Such moves blatantly turn back the wheel of history. They are not only ridiculous but also extremely dangerous. China firmly opposes any form of official interactions between China's Taiwan region and countries having diplomatic ties with China. We urge the few foreign politicians who are visiting Taiwan to stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop abetting and supporting "Taiwan independence" activities at once. These wrongful words and moves, be it for selfish gains or for the malign attempt of using Taiwan to contain China, are all miscalculating, and it is just futile to try to stop China's inevitable reunification. Anadolu Agency: Yesterday, the Israeli government approved an agreement to end the war in Gaza. The agreement is reported to include the withdrawal of Israel's forces from the territories that they invaded during the war and exchange of prisoners with Palestinian factions. What is China's comment? Guo Jiakun: China hopes that a comprehensive and permanent ceasefire in Gaza will be realized as early as possible, the humanitarian crisis will be effectively eased, and tensions in the region will be diffused. China upholds the principle of "the Palestinians governing Palestine" and promotes the implementation of the two-State solution. We stand ready to work with the international community to make unremitting effort towards an early, full, just and lasting resolution of the Palestinian question and a peaceful and stable Middle East. Reuters: Taiwan will build a new multi-layered air defense system called "T-Dome." Does the Foreign Ministry have any comment? Guo Jiakun: The Lai Ching-te authorities' attempt of seeking "Taiwan independence" and resisting reunification through military buildup will only push Taiwan towards the danger of military conflict. To uphold peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, one must uphold the one-China principle and unequivocally oppose "Taiwan independence." China is firmly opposed to the U.S.'s arms sales to and military ties with China's Taiwan region. This position is consistent and unequivocal. Al Arabiya: The International Criminal Court accused Israel of committing war crimes in Gaza and started the judicial proceedings against Israeli government officials. There have been growing calls within the international community for holding relevant individuals, including Netanyahu, legally accountable. My first question is whether China will join them in making these calls? Many believe this is critical for ending the Israeli war crimes in Gaza. Second, does China intend to impose sanctions on Israeli settlers who attack Palestinians in the villages and towns on the West Bank? Will China impose sanctions on extremists within the Israeli government, like the sanctions that European countries imposed on Israeli Security Minister Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Smotrich? Guo Jiakun: On your first question, on the question of Palestine, China always stands on the side of fairness and justice, and on the side of international law, opposes all acts that violate international law including international humanitarian law, and condemns all moves that harm civilians and all attacks on civilian facilities. China supports all effort in the international community conducive to realizing fairness and justice and defending the authority of international law on the question of Palestine. On your second question, China opposes Israel building settlements on the occupied territories of Palestine. The UN Security Council has clarified that the construction of such settlements violates international law. With a ceasefire just reached and the situation still highly fragile in Gaza, Israel should refrain from taking any inflammatory and escalatory actions. The Paper: A recent Western media report said that China provided a large amount of weapon supplies to Cambodia. The report, which drew some attention, questioned China's neutral position on the border conflict between Cambodia and Thailand, and misrepresented China's defense cooperation with relevant country. What is China's response to this? Guo Jiakun: Since the outbreak of the border conflict between Cambodia and Thailand, as a friendly neighbor of both countries, China has upheld a just and fair position and made active effort to promote talks for peace. The foreign ministers of China, Cambodia and Thailand reached outcome in China's Anning, Yunnan Province; the three countries held an informal consultation; and the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Special Envoy for Asian Affairs made several shuttle-diplomacy trips for peace between the two sides. With the active efforts of China, Malaysia and various parties, Cambodia and Thailand reached a ceasefire agreement and the two sides are in communication via bilateral mechanisms. Relevant parties have spoken highly of China for playing an irreplaceable role in this process. China supports Cambodia and Thailand in settling disputes through dialogue and consultation, and supports Malaysia, as the rotating chair of ASEAN, in promoting the political settlement of the issue through the ASEAN Way. China stands ready to, in light of the will of Cambodia and Thailand, continue promoting talks for peace in our own way and playing a constructive role for consolidating the ceasefire agreement and advancing the peaceful settlement of the dispute. China carries out normal defense cooperation with all ASEAN countries, including Cambodia and Thailand. Individual Western media outlet tried to use such cooperation to sow discord between China and relevant country. Such attempt will never succeed. AFP: Can you tell us who China will send to COP30 next month? And also has the lack of accommodation in the host city affected the size of China's delegation which appears to have done with other countries? Guo Jiakun: China supports Brazil in making the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Belem a full success. On China's attendance at the conference, we will release information in due course. Please stay tuned. Reuters: The Trump administration on Thursday proposed banning Chinese airlines from flying over Russia on route to and from the U.S., saying that the reduced flight time puts American carriers at a disadvantage. Does the Foreign Ministry have any comment? Guo Jiakun: I'd refer you to competent authorities for the specifics. Barring Chinese airlines from flying over Russia on flights to and from the U.S. would hinder travel and people-to-people exchanges. Rather than punishing other countries and passengers around the world, perhaps it's time the U.S. took a hard look at its own policy and the impact on American businesses. Shenzhen TV: We've learned that recently another Chinese national was wrongfully interrogated and detained when entering the U.S., whose personal freedom was restricted for more than 48 hours before repatriation. Can I have your comment on that? Guo Jiakun: In disregard of China's repeated serious representations, relevant U.S. departments have been wantonly harassing, interrogating and repatriating Chinese nationals with harsh law enforcement. Such moves severely damage the lawful rights and interests as well as the dignity of Chinese nationals concerned, and disrupt normal people-to-people exchanges between China and the U.S. China expresses strong indignation and condemns the incident. We call on the U.S. law enforcement authorities to immediately stop this kind of erroneous practice, act faithfully on the important common understandings between the two presidents, uphold friendly exchanges between the peoples of the two countries and take effective steps to prevent such incidents from happening again. China will stay firmly committed to safeguarding the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese nationals overseas, and we once again remind those traveling to the U.S. to be mindful of such risks. Bloomberg: The U.S. has sanctioned more than 50 individuals, firms and vessels involved in exporting Iranian oil and liquefied petroleum gas. This includes a Chinese company. Would the Ministry like to comment? Does the Ministry foresee this causing any energy security problems? Guo Jiakun: China opposes unilateral illicit sanctions that have no basis in international law or authorization of the UN Security Council. We urge the U.S. to abandon the wrong practice of arbitrarily resorting to sanctions. Countries' normal cooperation with Iran within the framework of international law is legitimate and justified. China will do what is necessary to ensure its energy security and safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies and citizens. Kyodo News: Japan's Komeito has decided to leave the ruling coalition formed with the Liberal Democratic Party. What's China's comment? Guo Jiakun: This is Japan's internal affair and we have no comment on that. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Germany Federal Foreign Office 09.10.2025 - Press release Foreign Minister Wadephul issued the following statement prior to his departure for Belfast and Paris (8 October 2025): The Western Balkans is part of our European family. It is therefore clear to us that we will accompany the six countries in the region on their path towards the EU. The Berlin Process is the catalyst in the EU accession process of the Western Balkan countries. This mechanism is more important than ever. After all, people are beginning to lose confidence that they will be part of the EU in the near future. We cannot afford to let that happen because we would then run the risk of a return to the old days of hostility and a bigger role for Russia and China. At the same time, the Berlin Process is also about fostering day-to-day cooperation and achieving tangible improvements in people's lives - whether it be through cross-border youth work, freedom of travel or the mutual recognition of qualifications. Of course, in some cases there is still a long way to go - especially when it comes to reconciliation. For that reason, too, the location our British friends and hosts have chosen for this year's Foreign Ministers' Meeting is of special importance: Belfast symbolises how reconciliation became possible after decades of social division. Not overnight. But with patience, political will and, above all, the courage of many people to reach out to each other time and again in difficult circumstances. The situation in the Middle East continues to demand our attention this week. There is finally hope for the families of the hostages and for the people of Gaza. Hope of ending the nightmare of the last two years. Hope of a life in dignity, freedom and safety. In these hours and days of diplomacy, it is important to work together and take action. That is why I will be travelling on from Belfast to Paris where, at the invitation of my French colleague, a meeting attended by ministers from European as well as Arab and other Muslim states will take place. Many countries are prepared to work to ensure that the US peace plan succeeds and that the hope for peace quickly becomes reality. To achieve this, Gaza must not be allowed to pose any further danger to Israel, and that means ensuring that people in the Gaza Strip are not only provided with urgent humanitarian assistance but, above all, political and economic prospects for the future. Internationally, Germany is a sought-after partner when it comes to humanitarian assistance, stabilisation and reconstruction. We stand ready to make our contribution together with our international partners. We will coordinate this and further steps in Paris. India-UK Joint Statement India - Press Information Bureau Prime Minister's Office Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 3:24PM by PIB Delhi At the invitation of Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer MP, Hon'ble Prime Minister of the United Kingdom paid an official visit to India from 08-09 October 2025. Prime Minister Starmer was accompanied by a high-level delegation including Secretary of State for Business and Trade and President of the Board of Trade the Rt Hon Peter Kyle MP, Secretary of State for Scotland the Rt Hon Douglas Alexander MP, Minister for Investment Mr. Jason Stockwood, and 125 CEOs, entrepreneurs, university Vice Chancellors and cultural leaders. This is Prime Minister Starmer's first official visit to India. The visit follows the visit of Prime Minister of India to the United Kingdom on 23-24 July 2025, during which both sides signed the historic India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) and adopted the India - UK Vision 2035 and a Defence Industrial Roadmap. Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Starmer delivered keynote addresses at the Global Fintech Fest in Mumbai on 09 October 2025. The Leaders held restricted as well as delegation-level talks in Mumbai on 09 October 2025, where they expressed satisfaction at the upward trajectory of the India-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and reaffirmed common commitment to global peace, stability, and a rules-based international order. They also discussed global and regional issues of mutual interest. Growth The Prime Ministers welcomed the meeting of the CEO Forum in Mumbai on the sidelines of the India-UK Summit. Both leaders looked forward to the ratification of the India-UK Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) as early as possible to realise its benefits. The Prime Ministers also welcomed the resetting of the Joint Economic and Trade Committee (JETCO) which will support the governance and utilisation of the CETA and drive forward our wider trade and investment partnership. The strong business delegation accompanying UK Prime Minister demonstrated the opportunities for investment in both countries in the focus sectors of construction, infrastructure and clean energy, advanced manufacturing, defence, education, sport, culture, financial and professional business services, science, technology and innovation, consumer goods and food. The existing UK India Infrastructure Financing Bridge (UKIIFB), between NITI Aayog and City of London Corporation, is an example of our shared ambitions for sustainable growth. Both Prime Ministers reiterated their commitment to improving connectivity and enhancing cooperation in the aviation sector and welcomed that both sides are discussing the renewal of India-UK Air Services Agreement, along with other aviation related matters. This provides an opportunity for both countries for closer cooperation across the aerospace sector. Technology and Innovation The Prime Ministers of India and the United Kingdom reaffirmed their shared commitment to harnessing frontier technologies to drive inclusive economic growth, strengthen national security, and shape the future of global innovation. Building on the landmark Technology Security Initiative (TSI), both leaders welcomed the tangible progress made across critical and emerging technologies, including telecommunications, critical minerals, AI, and health tech. Under the TSI, the leaders expressed happiness at the establishment of: The India-UK Connectivity and Innovation Centre, a joint hub focused on developing AI native network for 6G, Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTNs), and cyber security for telecoms, with at least 24m of joint funding in the first phase of the project. The India-UK Joint Centre for AI, advancing responsible and trustworthy AI across health, climate, fintech, and engineering biology. UK - India Critical Minerals Processing and Downstream Collaboration Guild to build concrete partnerships which strengthen and diversify critical mineral supply chains and deliver investment and growth in both nations. They also announced Phase 2 of the UK-India Critical Minerals Supply Chain Observatory to expand Mineral coverage, further integrate advanced technologies, unlock new bilateral investment opportunities and establish a new satellite campus at IIT-ISM Dhanbad. The UK and India continue to work together to advance biotechnology with strategic partnerships being signed between institutions like Centre for Process Innovation (CPI) UK and Biotechnology Research and Innovation Council (BRIC) institutions in India, Henry Royce Institute (HRI) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Oxford Nanopore Technologies (ONT) and BRIC - Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (BRIC-CDFD), to deliver transformative outcomes in Biomanufacturing, 3D Bioprinting, and Genomics. Defence and Security The Leaders agreed to expand bilateral exchanges between the armed forces of India and UK through joint exercises, training and capacity building. Prime Minister Modi welcomed the port call of UK's Carrier Strike Group and the Royal Navy's exercise KONKAN with the Indian Navy. Both sides committed to robust maritime security collaboration in the Indo-Pacific, including establishment of the Regional Maritime Security Centre of Excellence (RMSCE) under the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI). In the context of cooperation on training, the two Leaders welcomed progress on an arrangement that will see Indian Air Force Qualified Flying Instructors integrated into UK Royal Air Force training, alongside an agreement that will facilitate our strong training and education relationship. Both Prime Ministers are pleased to the intent to finalize an India - UK Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) on cooperation in developing maritime electric propulsion systems for Indian Naval platforms. Both leaders also announced the agreement to proceed via government to government route on an initial supply of Lightweight Multirole Missile (LMM) systems. This will further support India's air defence capabilities and, in the spirit of Atmanirbhar Bharat, meet the current and future requirements of the Indian Ministry of Defence, and support a long-term collaboration on complex weapons between the two countries. The two Prime Ministers unequivocally and strongly condemned terrorism and violent extremism in all its forms and manifestations. They called for zero tolerance for terrorism and concerted international efforts to combat terrorism in a comprehensive and sustained manner, in accordance with the UN Charter and international law. They agreed to counter radicalisation and violent extremism; combat financing of terrorism and the cross-border movement of terrorists; prevent exploitation of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes; tackle terrorist recruitment; enhance cooperation in information sharing, judicial co-operation, capacity building; and strengthen bilateral and multilateral co-operation in these spheres, including at UN and FATF. They condemned in the strongest terms the April 2025 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. They committed to strengthen co-operation to take decisive and concerted actions against globally proscribed terrorists, terror entities and their sponsors. Climate and Energy The Leaders reaffirmed the importance of collaboration to achieve net-zero goals. The Prime Ministers welcomed the 'India-UK Climate Finance Initiative' to enable scaling up of climate finance, unlocking green growth and new financing opportunities for both countries They announced a new joint investment in the Climate Tech Start-up Fund. This strategic initiative, under the MoU between the UK Government and State Bank of India, will enhance support for innovative entrepreneurs working in frontier sectors such as climate technology and AI, driving innovation and fostering growth. The Leaders welcomed the establishment of Offshore Wind Taskforce.They reiterated their intent to explore possibilities for working together through the Global Clean Power Alliance (GCPA). Education, Culture and People to People The leaders underlined the importance of youth, cultural and educational exchanges in shaping the future of the bilateral relationship. They expressed commitment to the first Annual Ministerial Strategic Education Dialogue, and the implementation of the Programme of Cultural Co-operation signed by both Ministers of Culture in May 2025. Acknowledging education as a key area of bilateral cooperation, both sides expressed happiness on the progress in opening of campuses of nine leading UK universities in India. The University of Southampton has welcomed its inaugural cohort of Indian students to its campus in Gurugram.The University Grants Commission has also handed over Letters of Intent (LoI) for establishment of branch campuses of University of Liverpool, University of York, University of Aberdeen and University of Bristol in India. Further, Queens University of Belfast and Coventry University have been authorised to open their branch campuses in GIFT City. During the visit, Indian authorities also handed over the LoI for opening of campus of Lancaster University in Bengaluru and accorded in-principle approval for opening campus of University of Surrey in GIFT City. The Prime Ministers expressed their commitment to continue implementing the Migration and Mobility Partnership (MMP). While noting the progress in cooperation for curbing irregular migration, both sides reiterated their commitment to continue collaboration in this domain. Both Leaders recognised the Indian diaspora in the United Kingdom as a living bridge between the two countries and appreciated its contribution to strengthening bilateral economic, cultural, and societal links. The Leaders acknowledged the potential of the UK-India Programme of Cultural Cooperation to bring together the talent in both countries in the areas of Culture, Creative Industries, Arts, Tourism and Sports. Regional and Multilateral Cooperation The Prime Ministers reiterated their shared commitment to global peace, prosperity and a rules-based international order. They agreed to work closely in promoting reformed multilateralism, including reform of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). The UK reiterated its long-standing support for India's legitimate aspirations for permanent membership in a reformed UNSC. The Leaders acknowledged that the shared values of 2.5 billion peoples spread across diverse geographies constituting the Commonwealth was its strength. They agreed to work closely in the areas of Climate Change, Sustainable Development, and Youth Engagement with the new leadership at the Commonwealth Organisation. The two Prime Ministers expressed support for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter. They welcomed the ongoing diplomatic efforts by various countries to achieve this. They reiterated their commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East, calling for restraint, protection of civilians and to comply with international law, and refrain from taking actions that could further escalate the situation and compromise regional stability. They expressed their support for the US peace plan for Gaza and their commitment to working with regional partners to secure an immediate and lasting ceasefire, the release of the hostages and the delivery of humanitarian aid, and their shared commitment to a lasting and just peace as a step towards a Two-State solution, with a safe and secure Israel, alongside a viable Palestinian state. Prime Minister Starmer thanked Prime Minister Modi for the warmth and hospitality extended to him and members of his delegation. The visit reaffirmed the strong growth and positive trajectory of the India - UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership which is built upon shared democratic values and deep and enduring bonds of friendship between the two countries. **** MJPS/ST (Release ID: 2176767) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address English Translation of Prime Minister's Press Statement during Joint Press Statement with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom India - Press Information Bureau Prime Minister's Office Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 12:55PM by PIB Delhi Your Excellency Prime Minister Starmer, Delegates from both countries, Friends from the media Namaskar! I am delighted to welcome Prime Minister Keir Starmer here in Mumbai today on his first visit to India. Friends, Under Prime Minister Starmer's leadership, India-UK relations have made significant progress. During my visit to the UK in July this year, we concluded the historic Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA). This agreement will reduce import costs between the two countries, create new employment opportunities for youth, boost trade, and benefit both our industries and consumers. Your visit to India along with the largest-ever business delegation, just months after the Agreement, reflects the new energy and broad vision driving the India-UK partnership. Friends, Yesterday marked the largest summit of business leaders between India and the UK. Today, we will also be addressing the India-UK CEO Forum and the Global FinTech Festival. These will bring valuable insights, and open up new avenues for further strengthening India-UK cooperation. Friends, India and the UK are natural partners. Our relationship is built on the shared values of democracy, freedom, and the rule of law. In today's time of global uncertainty, our growing partnership stands as an important pillar of global stability and economic progress. In today's meeting, we also shared views on the Indo-Pacific, peace and stability in West Asia, and the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. On the issues of the Ukraine conflict and Gaza, India supports all efforts to restore peace through dialogue and diplomacy. We are fully committed to enhancing maritime security cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region. Friends, There are immense possibilities in the technology partnership between India and the UK. We are working to connect the UK's industrial expertise and R&D with India's talent and scale. Last year, we launched the India-UK Technology Security Initiative. Under this initiative, we have created a strong platform for joint research and innovation in critical and emerging technologies. To connect the youth of both countries through an innovation bridge, we have taken several steps, including establishing the 'Connectivity and Innovation Centre' and the 'Joint AI Research Centre'. We have decided to establish an Industry Guild and a Supply Chain Observatory for cooperation on critical minerals. Its satellite campus will be located at ISM Dhanbad. We have a shared commitment to the Sustainable Development Goals. In this direction, we welcome the formation of the India-UK Offshore Wind Taskforce. We have established the Climate Technology Startup Fund. This will provide support to innovators and entrepreneurs from both countries working in the fields of climate, technology, and AI. Friends, From defense and security to education and innovation, India and the UK are shaping new dimensions in their relationship. Today, Prime Minister Starmer is accompanied by the largest and most influential delegation from the education sector so far. It is a matter of great pleasure that several UK universities are now establishing campuses in India. The Gurugram campus of Southampton University was recently inaugurated, and the first batch of students has already joined. Additionally, the construction of campuses for three other UK universities in GIFT City is currently underway. Our defense cooperation has also deepened. We are moving towards defense co-production and connecting the defense industries of both countries. Taking our defense collaboration a step further, we have signed an agreement for cooperation in military training, under which Flying Instructors from the Indian Air Force will serve as trainers with the UK's Royal Air Force. It is a special coincidence that while this meeting is taking place in the country's financial capital Mumbai, our naval ships are participating in the joint exercise "Konkan 2025." Friends, The 1.8 million Indians residing in the United Kingdom are a living bridge of our partnership. Through their valuable contributions to British society and the economy, they have strengthened the bonds of friendship, cooperation, and progress between our two nations. Friends, India's dynamism and the United Kingdom's expertise together create a unique synergy. Our partnership is trustworthy, and driven by talent and technology. And today, as Prime Minister Starmer and I stand together on this stage, it is a clear reaffirmation of our shared commitment to work hand in hand towards building a brighter future for the people of both our nations. Once again, I extend my heartfelt thanks to Prime Minister Starmer and his delegation for their visit to India. Thank you very much. DISCLAIMER - This is the approximate translation of Prime Minister's remarks. Original remarks were delivered in Hindi. *** MJPS/ST (Release ID: 2176681) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raksha Mantri holds bilateral meeting with Australian Foreign Minister in Canberra India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Raksha Mantri pays Homage to the Fallen Heroes at Australian WarMemorial by Laying a Wreath at Tomb of the Fallen Soldier Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 9:18PM by PIB Delhi Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with the Foreign Minister of Australia, Ms Penny Wong, in Canberra on October 9, 2025. Both leaders reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthening the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and enhancing cooperation in defence, security and regional stability. Shri Rajnath Singh underlined the growing 'dosti' (friendship) between India & Australia, built on mutual trust and shared democratic principles rather than transactional interests. Ms Wong praised the significant contribution of the vibrant Indian diaspora to Australian society and emphasised that while the two nations are geographically distant, their perspectives & values remain closely aligned. Shri Rajnath Singh also paid homage to the fallen heroes at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra by laying a wreath at the Tomb of the Fallen Soldier. He honoured the memory of Indian soldiers who fought valiantly alongside their Australian comrades in distant lands, symbolising the enduring camaraderie and shared sacrifices between the Armed Forces of the two nations. Earlier in the day, the Raksha Mantri was accorded a warm welcome in the Australian Parliament. The Speaker of the Parliament, Mr Milton Dick, welcomed Shri Rajnath Singh as a distinguished visitor. Several Australian Members of Parliament, including the Prime Minister of Australia Mr Anthony Albanese, greeted the Raksha Mantri and exchanged pleasantries, reflecting the warmth & strength of the bilateral partnership. ***** VK/SR/KB (Release ID: 2177083) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raksha Mantri holds Bilateral Meeting with Australian Counterpart in Canberra India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence RM Urges International Community to Come Together Against all Forms of Terrorism Terror & Talks cannot go together, Terror & trade cannot go together and water & blood cannot flow together: RM Key agreements Inked: Agreement on Information Sharing, MoU on Submarine Search & Rescue Cooperation and Terms of Reference on establishment of Joint Staff Talks Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 2:12PM by PIB Delhi Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held a wide-ranging bilateral meeting with the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence of Australia, Mr Richard Marles, in Canberra on October 09, 2025, during his official two-day visit to Australia. The meeting marked five years of the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, with both sides reaffirming their shared commitment to deepening defence cooperation across a wide spectrum, including military exercises, maritime security, defence industry collaboration and joint research in science and technology. Raksha Mantri underlined the deep-rooted cultural ties and shared democratic values that underpin India-Australia relations, noting that the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership has witnessed significant expansion in defence cooperation aligned with the overall trajectory of bilateral relations. The talks culminated in the signing of three key agreements: an Agreement on Information Sharing, an MoU on Submarine Search and Rescue Cooperation and Terms of Reference on the establishment of Joint Staff Talks. During the meeting, Shri Rajnath Singh reiterated India's stand with regards to the threat of terrorism that Terror & Talks cannot go together, Terror & trade cannot go together and water & blood cannot flow together. He also urged the international community to come together against all forms of terrorism. Prime Minister of Australia, Mr. Anthony Albanese, briefly joined the meeting and extended a warm welcome to Shri Rajnath Singh. Raksha Mantri also conveyed the greetings from Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and congratulated Mr. Albanese on his emphatic election victory in May 2025. Mr. Anthony Albanese lauded India's remarkable economic progress under the dynamic leadership of Shri Narendra Modi, particularly in the fields of Defence, cyber security, and IT. He also commended India's success in lifting millions out of poverty and expressed enthusiasm for strengthening bilateral cooperation in the coming years. A Joint Statement was issued following the meeting, underscoring the growing depth and mutual trust that define the India-Australia Defence partnership. Earlier in the day, Shri Rajnath Singh was received by Assistant Minister of Defence of Australia Mr Peter Khalil and was accorded a ceremonial stair guard welcome. As part of his engagements, a live air-to-air refuelling demonstration was organised onboard the KC-30A Multirole Transport and Tanker Aircraft (MRTT), refuelling an F-35 aircraft en route to Canberra. It showcased a demonstration of growing interoperability following last year's Implementation Arrangement on Air-to-Air Refuelling. Upon arrival at the Australian Parliament House, Shri Rajnath Singh was accorded a traditional welcome in the presence of Mr Richard Marles. *** VK/SR/KB (Release ID: 2176712) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address India-Australia Defence Ministers' Joint Statement India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Posted On: 09 OCT 2025 12:37PM by PIB Delhi Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh held a bilateral meeting with Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence Mr Richard Marles on October 09, 2025. The joint statement of the Australia-India Defence Ministers' Dialogue is as follows: "Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, the Hon Richard Marles MP, welcomed Minister of Defence of India, Shri Rajnath Singh, to Australia for the inaugural Australia-India Defence Ministers' Dialogue. The Dialogue reflected unprecedented progress in the bilateral defence partnership and Ministers' ambition to enhance cooperation, following the four bilateral meetings between the Ministers since the elevation of the Australia-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2020. Ministers advanced their Prime Ministers' long-term vision for collaboration between the two countries to enhance collective strength, contribute to both countries' security, and make an important contribution to regional peace and security. They discussed a Joint Maritime Security Collaboration Roadmap to advance maritime cooperation, and looked forward to Prime Ministers renewing and strengthening the Joint Declaration on Defence and Security Cooperation. Ministers committed to expand the bilateral defence architecture and enhance consultation and cooperation by conducting an annual Defence Ministers' Dialogue. Ministers welcomed the signing of the Australia-India Implementing Arrangement on Mutual Submarine Rescue Support and Cooperation. They welcomed progress towards operationalising the Australia-India Implementing Arrangement on Air-to-Air Refuelling signed in 2024. Ministers highlighted closer cooperation on information sharing. Ministers were pleased the defence partnership now extended across all domains. Ministers welcomed the establishment of Joint Staff Talks as a forum to progress joint exercises, operations and interoperability across all domains. Australia welcomed India's participation in Australia's Exercise Talisman Sabre in 2025 and looked forward to India's participation in 2027. Ministers appreciated the growing frequency and complexity of defence exercises and exchanges and the increasing interoperability through implementation of the Mutual Logistics Support Arrangement. They welcomed the Royal Australian Air Force's participation in the Indian Air Force's Exercise Tarang Shakti in 2024 as well as the Royal Australian Navy's and Indian Navy's participation in navy-to-navy engagements in 2026. India welcomed Australia's invitation for participation in submarine rescue exercise Black Carillon. Ministers welcomed additional Indian students at the Australian Defence College in 2026, and a position at the Australian Defence Force Academy in 2027 for the first time. Ministers underscored the strategic importance of defence industrial collaboration and engagement. They welcomed Australia's first defence trade mission to India from 7 to 10 October 2025 and the inaugural India Pavilion at Australia's Land Forces Expo 2024 as reflecting growth in the bilateral defence industry relationship. Ministers acknowledged the Australia-India Defence Industry Roundtable to be held in Sydney on 10 October. Both sides also agreed to pursue defence collaboration in contemporary technology, including through the Joint Working Group on Defence Industry, Research and Materiel. Australia thanked India for the offer of maintenance, repair and overhaul of Royal Australian Navy ships in Indian shipyards during their deployment to the Indian Ocean Region. Ministers affirmed the importance of enhancing cooperation with regional partners to help maintain a free, open, peaceful, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific. Ministers underscored their strong support for freedom of navigation and overflight, unimpeded trade in the region, and other lawful uses of the sea consistent with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Ministers were pleased with the collaborative maritime domain awareness and anti-submarine warfare activities by Australian and Indian maritime patrol aircraft in the Indian Ocean. They also agreed to continue aircraft deployment from each other's territories to build operational familiarity. Ministers welcomed the ongoing cooperation under the Australia-India-Indonesia trilateral format to address common challenges. Ministers welcomed the ongoing progress in defence cooperation among Australia, India, Japan and the United States, underscoring the growing strategic convergence among the partners. They reaffirmed their commitment to enhancing collaboration on maritime domain awareness and looked forward to a second collaborative activity on the margins of Exercise Malabar in November 2025. Australia and India expressed strong support for initiatives that advance closer maritime surveillance cooperation among the four partners and welcomed the opportunity to observe the India-United States air exercise Cope India in 2025 for the first time, alongside Japan. Both sides noted with satisfaction the growing engagement between their respective Armies. Ministers reaffirmed their commitment to deepening army-to-army cooperation, particularly in amphibious exercises and operations, and through participation in exercises such as Exercise Puk Puk. Ministers welcomed the enhancement of Exercise Austrahind in both scope and complexity. They underscored the value of sharing best practices in emerging and critical domains such as integrated air and missile defence, secure communications, uncrewed aerial systems (UAS), counter-UAS, and special operations through subject matter expert exchanges. Ministers acknowledged the participation of Indian Naval Ship Kadmatt in Papua New Guinea's 50th Anniversary of Independence celebrations and port call in Fiji, in September 2025. The Deputy Prime Minister invited India to participate in future iterations of Australia's Operation Render Safe. Deputy Prime Minister Marles accepted the invitation of Defence Minister Singh to visit India for the Annual Defence Ministers' Dialogue in 2026." **** VK/SR/KB (Release ID: 2176670) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address PM press statement from Mumbai: 9 October 2025 Speech Prime Minister Keir Starmer's press statement in Mumbai. From: Prime Minister's Office, 10 Downing Street and The Rt Hon Sir Keir Starmer KCB KC MP Published 9 October 2025 Delivered on: 9 October 2025 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered) Namaskar doston. Prime Minister Modi, it was an honour for me to host you in the United Kingdom in July at Chequers, and I am so delighted to be making this return visit just a few short months later. And can I just extend my thanks to the very warm welcome that you and the whole country extended to me as Prime Minister, to the whole delegation and through us, to the whole of the United Kingdom. It is very much appreciated, very much noticed, and it is an important statement as we stand here, about our shared commitment to this special relationship. Because we are building something here, we are creating a new, modern partnership focused on the future and on winning the opportunities that it offers, and we're doing it together. And that's why we struck the UK-India Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement in July. A breakthrough moment, years in the making. Slashing tariffs, increasing access to each other's markets to drive growth and create jobs for our people and making life better in both of our nations. Beyond the words on the page of the agreement is the spirit and the confidence that that has given to our two great countries to work even more closely together, something which we've seen evidence during the course of this visit here over the last two days. It is significant that we're meeting here in Mumbai as India's economic and financial capital, because India's growth story is remarkable. I want to congratulate the Prime Minister on his leadership, aiming to be the world's third largest economy by 2028. And your vision of Viksit Bharat is a completely developed country by 2047, and everything I've seen since I've been here is absolute proof to me that you're on track to succeeding in that. So we want to be partners on that journey, and my visit this week is about doubling down on the potential of our trade deal for the benefit of all of us, and that's why I brought a record 126 British businesses with me to India this week. We had to get a bigger plane to travel over here than the one we planned, but that delegation is some of our biggest, most iconic businesses, and smaller and medium sized businesses, but also leaders from education, some of whom are with us here, and sport and the arts. As I say, our largest trade delegation for a decade, and so my first as Prime Minister, so of course, the destination for that had to be here, had to be India. Later today, the Prime Minister and I will convene a renewed CEO forum, and that was much discussed yesterday as a direct channel for business. There was a real buzz in the room yesterday that this forum is going to have real life breathed into it to embody the agreement that we've already reached to ensure that the deal does deliver the opportunities that we want to see. And we are committed to that, and when we leave India later on tonight I expect that we will have secured major new investments creating thousands of high-skilled jobs in the sectors of the future for both of our nations. The UK and India stand side by side as global leaders in tech and innovation, and so we've also taken the opportunity to deepen our cooperation through our Technology Security Initiative with new commitments on AI, advanced communication, defence technologies and much, much more. We're announcing a deal to make Bollywood films in the United Kingdom after a fantastic visit to the studio yesterday. And we're deepening our cooperation in education as we've evidenced here on the film and with the people that we have in the room. It is the younger generation in India who will lead the charge to deliver on that 2047 target. The demand for the best quality higher education is very high, so I'm really pleased that we're announcing today that all British universities will be setting up campuses right here in India, making Britain India's leading international provider of higher education and delivering on our Vision 2035 that we set out in July. These incredible economic bonds are the jewel in the crown of this relationship, but of course, our cooperation goes much wider too, and so we've had the opportunity to discuss issues of vital importance to global stability and security, including the situation in the Middle East. I strongly welcome the news that a deal has been reached on the first stage of the peace plan in Gaza. This is a moment of profound relief that we felt around the world, but particularly for the hostages, their families and for the civilian population of Gaza who have all endured unimaginable suffering over the last two years. I'm grateful for the tireless diplomatic efforts of Egypt, Qatar, Turkiye, United States and many others in securing this crucial first step. This agreement must now be implemented in full, without delay and be accompanied by the immediate lifting of all restrictions on life saving humanitarian aid to Gaza. The UK will support these crucial immediate steps and the next stages of the talks to ensure the full implementation of the peace plan. The Prime Minister and I also discussed the need for a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, the need for stability and security in the Indo-Pacific, and the need to cooperate in critical areas like climate and energy, including breaking away from dependence on fossil fuels. India is a global player. We sit together in the Commonwealth, the G20, and we want to see India taking its rightful place on the UN Security Council too, so we are committed to strengthening our strategic partnership and in fact has already been mentioned, our carrier strike group is, is here in India right now exercising with the Indian Navy, showing the strength of that relationship on defence and security which we've discussed this morning we want to take even further. And look, the whole thing, this particular partnership, goes much deeper because in the end it is about people. The human connections between India and the UK are unique, forming what Prime Minister Modi has called the living bridge between our two countries. A bridge between people, a bridge between hearts, and in that spirit Prime Minister, I want to express my deepest sympathies to all the victims of the Air India crash earlier this year. A terrible day and a tragedy for both of our nations, and it showed, frankly, that we are family. And I am proud this week that we are taking this incredible partnership between our two nations and making it stronger than ever for working people on both sides of that bridge. Finally, I'd like to take this opportunity, as we enter the festive period, to wish the people of India joy and happiness and a very happy Diwali. Diwali ki shubhkamnayein. Thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raksha Mantri visits HMAS Kuttabul on Day Two of Australia Tour; Co-chairs maiden India-Australia Defence Industry Business Roundtable in Sydney India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Posted On: 10 OCT 2025 5:17PM by PIB Delhi RM interacts with Indian community in Sydney; Lauds their role in strengthening India-Australia ties Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh visited the historic and strategic naval facility HMAS Kuttabul in Sydney, Australia, on October 10, 2025. Accompanied by Australia's Assistant Minister of Defence, Mr Peter Khalil, the Raksha Mantri was briefed on the state-of-the-art facilities at Sydney Harbour and taken on a tour onboard Admiral Hudson. The visit underscored the growing synergy between the two nations' maritime forces, with both leaders emphasising that India and Australia stand to gain significantly from deeper naval collaboration and enhanced cooperation in Maritime Domain Awareness across the Indo-Pacific region. Later, Shri Rajnath Singh co-chaired the maiden India-Australia Defence Industry Business Roundtable with Mr Peter Khalil to advance industrial partnerships and capability development between the two nations. The discussions focused on exploring opportunities in defence technology, manufacturing and innovation particularly within the frameworks of 'Make in India' and 'Aatmanirbhar Bharat'. The Roundtable was attended by leading industry representatives from both sides, who expressed keen interest in joint projects and investments aimed at strengthening the India-Australia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. In the evening, Raksha Mantri addressed members of the Indian community at a special event hosted by the Consulate General of India in Sydney, acknowledging their contribution to strengthening the cultural and economic bridge between the two nations. ****** VK/SR/KB (Release ID: 2177414) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Sanjay Seth Meets Minister of State for Defence of UK Mr Vernon Coaker in Mumbai India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Posted On: 10 OCT 2025 3:46PM by PIB Delhi Raksha Rajya Mantri Shri Sanjay Seth held a bilateral meeting with the United Kingdom's Minister of State for Defence (Minister for the House of Lords), Mr Vernon Coaker, in Mumbai on October 10, 2025. The meeting was held on the sidelines of the visit of the UK Carrier Strike Group (CSG) to India. During the meeting, both sides reviewed the ongoing defence engagements and discussed ways to further deepen cooperation between India and the United Kingdom. Raksha Rajya Mantri noted with satisfaction that the UK CSG, led by Prince of Wales, successfully completed the sea phase of the bilateral maritime exercise Konkan-25 with the Indian Navy off the western coast of India. The CSG is currently engaged in the harbour phase activities at Mumbai and Goa. Shri Sanjay Seth emphasized that such operational interactions enhance mutual understanding of operational philosophies and significantly contribute to interoperability between the two navies. During the meeting, both ministers reviewed the various facets of bilateral defence cooperation and discussed about India's growing capabilities in manufacturing equipment and development of indigenous systems bolstering Aatmanirbharta. They reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen the ties in all spheres including collaboration and opportunities in Global Defence Supply Chains. They also reiterated their commitment to strengthen maritime cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and Indian Ocean Region in support of a free, open and rules-based world order to ensure freedom of navigation. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to a robust, multifaceted and mutually beneficial defence partnership, guided by the India-UK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the 'India-UK Vision 2035', adopted during the visit of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in July 2025 to the United Kingdom. ******* VK/SR/SS (Release ID: 2177330) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh addresses the maiden India-Australia Defence Industry Business Round Table in Sydney India - Press Information Bureau Ministry of Defence Under the banner of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership 2020, we stand at a pivotal juncture to re-position our defence relations as co-creators of a secure & prosperous Indo-Pacific: Raksha Mantri India is on a transformative journey of structural reforms, particularly in manufacturing. Today, India is globally the fourth-largest economy and the fastest-growing large economy in the world: RM "To accelerate defence R&D in private sector, we opened avenues for free-of-cost technology transfer through DRDO. There are attractive schemes for development of cutting-edge technologies & they are giving excellent results" RM welcomes Australian companies to co-develop & co-produce high-end systems, including propulsion technologies, autonomous underwater vehicles, flight simulators and advanced materials Posted On: 10 OCT 2025 10:15AM by PIB Delhi Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh addressed the maiden India-Australia Defence Industry Business Round Table in Sydney on October 10, 2025, reaffirming the growing synergy between the two nations across strategic, industrial, and technological domains. "Under the banner of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, established in 2020, we stand at a pivotal juncture to re-position our defence relations, not merely as partners, but as co-creators of a secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific," stated Raksha Mantri. He also added that the Round Table is not merely a dialogue, it is a declaration of intent to make India and Australia natural allies in business, industry and innovation. Shri Rajnath Singh recalled the series of high-level engagements that have strengthened bilateral relations including the India-Australia Summit in November 2024, the 2+2 Ministerial Dialogue in October 2024, the visit of the Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister of Australia to India in June 2025 and his ongoing visit to Australia. Raksha Mantri underlined that the foundation of the bilateral relationship lies in shared democratic values and institutional similarities. "Both India and Australia are part of the Commonwealth of Nations. Our shared history is built on democracy, diversity, liberty, and similar governance structures," he added. Raksha Mantri highlighted that strong bilateral ties rest on three essential pillars: a forward-looking government-to-government collaboration, people-to-people connect and convergence of business interests. "Our governmental frameworks are robust and getting further strengthened. On the people's front, we have a large Indian diaspora in Australia, complemented by an increasing Australian presence in India. However, our defence industrial partnership, based on joint R&D, innovation, co-creation and co-production, still has untapped potential," he stated. Shri Rajnath Singh highlighted the details of India's recent economic and industrial achievements, stating that India is on a transformative journey of structural reforms, particularly in manufacturing. "Today, India is globally the fourth-largest economy and the fastest-growing large economy in the world. Our defence production touched Rs 1.51 lakh crore (approximately USD 18 billion) last financial year, the highest ever with an 18% increase from the previous year. Our defence exports reached Rs 23,622 crore (USD 2.76 billion), with Indian companies now exporting to nearly 100 countries," he added. Calling for closer industrial collaboration, Shri Rajnath Singh stated, "I see this forum as an important instrument to make India and Australia natural allies in business and industry too. This alliance has compelling economic reasons to be successful and mutually beneficial." Raksha Mantri underscored that Australia excels in niche technologies such as quantum systems, autonomous underwater vehicles and advanced maritime surveillance, while India offers vast manufacturing scale, software capabilities, and indigenous strength in shipbuilding, missile technology and space. "This Round Table can be a great catalyst to tap the unrealised potential in our defence industry collaboration," he added. Raksha Mantri underlined that initiatives such as Make in India, Production Linked Incentive schemes and digital transformation have created an enabling environment for innovation and investment. He stated that government has liberalised the FDI policy up to 74% under the automatic route and beyond that with government approval, especially when modern technology is introduced. Shri Rajnath Singh added that the defence production ecosystem is being continuously liberalised through policy interventions and simplification of compliance mechanisms. "To accelerate defence R&D in the private sector, we have opened avenues for free-of-cost technology transfer through DRDO. There are attractive schemes for development of cutting-edge technologies and they are giving excellent results," highlighted Shri Rajnath Singh while underscoring the steps taken to promote research and innovation. He added that the DRDO and Australia's Defence Science & Technology Group are already collaborating on towed array sensors, and discussions are advancing in quantum technology, AI, cyber security, information warfare, and advanced science and technology. Raksha Mantri brought light to the fact that India welcomes Australian companies to co-develop and co-produce high-end systems, including propulsion technologies, autonomous underwater vehicles, flight simulators, and advanced materials. He underlined that the ventures can help build interoperable platforms aligned with the strategic objectives of both nations. Highlighting specific areas for partnership, Shri Rajnath Singh stated that India with its robust shipbuilding capabilities, diverse manufacturing base and a growing ecosystem of private sector innovators & start-ups, stands ready to be a trusted partner. "Our shipyards have a proven track record in building and maintaining a wide range of naval platforms. Indian yards can offer refit, mid-life upgrades, and maintenance services to the Royal Australian Navy and vessels under Australia's Pacific Maritime Security Program," he added. Raksha Mantri cited examples of active industrial partnerships such as Indo-MIM Pvt. Ltd. with Thales Australia, Tata Advanced Systems with W&E Platt Pty Ltd, and Munitions India Ltd. with Aqusport. "These examples show how our industrial ecosystems complement each other and how businesses can become the driving force behind our governments' strategic intent." He exuded confidence that this list can grow much bigger in the near future, allowing both sides to fully benefit from the existing potential. Shri Rajnath Singh also welcomed Australia's proposal for a reciprocal provision of defence articles and services MoU. "We welcome this initiative. Importantly, Australia has identified India as a Top Tier Partner, removing certain regulatory barriers to enable easier technology sharing. This is a testament to the trust and confidence that bind us," he added. Raksha Mantri underlined the vast opportunities that lie ahead for the two nations. "There are huge opportunities for co-production of naval vessels and sub-systems, ship repair, refits and MRO support in India for Australian and partner nation vessels, joint R&D in autonomous systems and green shipbuilding technologies," he highlighted. Shri Rajnath Singh stated that by diversifying supply chains, building joint capacities and investing in innovation, the two nations can contribute to a resilient, secure, and self-reliant Indo-Pacific. "I invite the Australian business community to invest, collaborate, and innovate with India. Together, we can develop cutting-edge technologies, build advanced platforms, and ensure that our industries are not just suppliers, but strategic enablers of peace and security in the region," underscored Shri Rajnath Singh. He urged them to seize this moment to build a partnership that is not only economically beneficial but also strategically transformative. Raksha Mantri highlighted that the India-Australia defence partnership is at a defining moment and the convergence of the strategic interests, combined with the energy of the industries & the vision of the leaderships, gives the nations a unique opportunity to shape the future together. The Round Table was jointly organised by the Ministry of Defence (Government of India), the Australian Department of Defence, the Newland Global Group and the Australia-India Business Council. The event was attended by Assistant Minister for Defence of Australia Mr Peter Khalil along with senior government officials, diplomats, industry leaders, research institutions and innovators from both countries. **** VK/SR/KB (Release ID: 2177149) NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sweeping Sanctions on Iran's Energy Exports US Department of State Press Statement Thomas "Tommy" Pigott, Principal Deputy Spokesperson October 9, 2025 Today, the Department of State is acting to deny the Iranian regime funds it uses to conduct its malign activity. We are sanctioning approximately 40 individuals, entities, and vessels involved in the trade of Iranian energy products that generates hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue for the Iranian regime. These designations include some of the largest buyers of Iranian petrochemical products by volume and value, as well as the leadership of the companies involved in that trade. The Department is also designating a China-based liquid petrochemical products terminal and multiple shadow fleet operators and vessels. Concurrently, the Department of the Treasury is sanctioning over 50 individuals, entities, and vessels involved in exporting Iranian petroleum and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to global markets. Treasury is designating a network of actors that facilitate hundreds of millions of dollars in LPG shipments, a China-based crude oil terminal, and a Chinese refinery purchasing Iranian oil. These actions aim to disrupt funding for Iran's regime and its military activities that threaten the United States and regional allies. The Trump Administration continues to vigorously implement and enforce all U.S. sanctions on Iran as part of its maximum pressure campaign. So long as Iran attempts to generate oil revenues to fund its subversive activities, the United States will act to counter and to promote accountability for Iran and its partners in sanctions evasion. Today's actions are being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13902, which targets those operating in certain sectors of the Iranian economy, as well as E.O. 13846, which targets Iran's petroleum and petrochemical sectors. This action further targets Iranian oil sales in support of the President's National Security Presidential Memorandum 2 (NSPM-2). This is the fourth sanctions action of this administration targeting China-based refineries that receive Iranian oil, and it builds on actions in July and August targeting key enablers of Iran's oil exports. For more information, please see Treasury's Press Releases and State's Fact Sheet. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Sanctioning Entities Trading in Iranian Petroleum and Petrochemicals US Department of State Fact Sheet Office of the Spokesperson October 9, 2025 Today, the Department of State is sanctioning approximately 40 individuals, entities, and vessels to stem the flow of revenue that the Iranian regime uses to support terrorism abroad. These targets have been involved in the trade of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products that generate hundreds of millions of dollars of revenue for the Iranian regime. The designations include some of the largest buyers of Iranian petrochemical products by volume and value, as well as the leadership of the companies involved in the trade. The Iranian regime continues to fuel conflict in the Middle East and fund its destabilizing activities. This behavior enables Iran's ability to fund its nuclear program, support terrorist groups, and disrupt trade and freedom of navigation in waterways crucial to global prosperity and economic growth. The United States will continue to take action against the network of terminal operators, port agents, shippers, brokers, and service providers involved in the trade of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and petrochemical products. The Department of the Treasury is simultaneously sanctioning approximately 60 individuals, entities, and vessels for their roles in facilitating the shipment of oil and liquified petroleum gas (LPG) from Iran to overseas end users. For more information about Treasury's actions, please see Treasury's Press Releases . All Department of State targets are being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13846 , which authorizes and reimposes certain sanctions with respect to Iran. Targeting of Iran's Petrochemical Networks Iran's petrochemical industry and exports are a critical sector of the Iranian economy that has grown in recent years to generate billions of dollars in illicit funds for Iran's destabilizing activities. Like the regime's illicit oil exports, Iranian petrochemical products are frequently transshipped through intermediaries in third countries to obfuscate their origin. Today's action targets those intermediaries, as well as the buyers of Iranian petrochemical products. It also includes the first China-based terminal that the United States has designated for receiving Iranian-origin petrochemical products. JIANGYIN FOREVERSUN CHEMICAL LOGISTICS CO., LTD. (FOREVERSUN) is a China-based operator of a petrochemical terminal located in Jiangyin, China. On February 2, 2025, FOREVERSUN facilitated the port call and discharge of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from U.S.-designated vessel SUNRISE (IMO: 9615092) , which is linked to the U.S.-designated NATIONAL IRANIAN TANKER COMPANY. FOREVERSUN has received at least five discharges of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from SUNRISE and a further five discharges from other vessels transporting Iranian-origin liquid petrochemical products since August 2023. FOREVERSUN is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. HENGYANG PETROCHEMICAL LOGISTICS LIMITED (HENGYANG) is a Singaporean registered but China-based petrochemical logistics and storage service provider. HENGYANG owns and controls FOREVERSUN, which serves as its principle operating entity. HENGYANG is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(v) of E.O. 13846 for owning or controlling FOREVERSUN, with knowledge that FOREVERSUN engaged in the activities referred to in section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846. GU WENLONG is a Chinese national and the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of FOREVERSUN and the Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director of HENGYANG. GU WENLONG is being blocked pursuant to section 5(a)(vii) of E.O. 13846 as a principal executive officer or person performing similar functions and with similar authorities, of FOREVERSUN. Targeting Importers and Exporters of Iranian Petrochemical Products These sellers, buyers, and leadership of trading companies, across multiple jurisdictions, are being designated for their ties to Iran's petrochemical products trade. DINA PETROKIMYA SANAYI TICARET ANONIM SIRKETI (DINA PETROKIMYA) is a Turkiye-based petrochemical trading company that imported approximately $400,000 worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies, including U.S.-designated JAM PETROCHEMICAL COMPANY , between January and September 2024. These shipments included products such as polyethylene. DINA PETROKIMYA is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. C. J. SHAH AND CO. (C. J. SHAH) is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported approximately $44 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies, including U.S.-designated ALSEERAH TRADING LLC , between January 2024 and January 2025. These shipments included products such as toluene. C. J. SHAH is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. CHEMOVICK PRIVATE LIMITED (CHEMOVICK) is an India-based petrochemical trading company in India that imported more than $7 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from U.S.-designated SOLVENT ORGANICS FZE between 2024 and 2025. PIYUSH MAGANLAL JAVIYA is a Director of CHEMOVICK. CHEMOVICK is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. PIYUSH MAGANLAL JAVIYA is being blocked pursuant to section 5(a)(vii) of E.O. 13846 as a principal executive officer, or person performing similar functions and with similar authorities, of CHEMOVICK. YESIL BASAK TARIM SANAYI VE TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI (YESIL BASAK) is a Turkiye-based company that imported approximately $840,000 worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from Iran-based KERMANSHAH PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRIES CO. between February and March 2024. These shipments included products such as urea. YESIL BASAK is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. KERMANSHAH PETROCHEMICAL INDUSTRIES CO. (KERMANSHAH PETROCHEMICAL) is an Iran-based petrochemical trading company that exported approximately $840,000 worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products to YESIL BASAK between February and March 2024. These shipments included products such as urea. KERMANSHAH PETROCHEMICAL is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. B K SALES CORPORATION (B K SALES) is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported approximately $235 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies, including GOLDEN INTERNATIONAL FZE, between January 2024 and February 2025. These shipments included products such as methanol. B K SALES is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. GOLDEN INTERNATIONAL FZE (GOLDEN INTERNATIONAL) is a United Arab Emirates-based company that exported Iranian-origin petrochemical products to B K SALES between September 2024 and February 2025. These shipments included products such as methanol. GOLDEN INTERNATIONAL is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. MIKROTEKNIK KIMYEVI MADDELER LABORATUVAR MALZEMELERI VE CIHAZLARI SANAYI TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI (MIKROTEKNIK) is a Turkiye-based chemical company that imported approximately $3 million worth of Iranian-origin products, including petrochemical products, from multiple companies, including SOFT AIR GENERAL TRADING L.L.C and U.S.-designated MARUN PETROCHEMICAL COMPANY , into Turkiye in just a nine-month period. AYKUT YAVRUCU (AYKUT) is a Turkish national and the company manager of MIKROTEKNIK. SOFT AIR GENERAL TRADING L.L.C (SOFT AIR) is a United Arab Emirates-based company that exported Iranian-origin petrochemical products to Turkiye-based MIKROTEKNIK. MIKROTEKNIK and SOFT AIR are being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. AYKUT YAVRUCU is being blocked pursuant to section 5(a)(vii) of E.O. 13846 for as a principal executive officer, or person performing similar functions and with similar authorities, of MIKROTEKNIK. ABY PLASTIK AMBALAJ VE ENERJI SANAYI TICARET ANONIM SIRKETI (ABY PLASTIK) is a Turkiye-based chemicals company that imported Iranian-origin petrochemical products valued at over $16 million from multiple Iran-based companies, including U.S.-designated ARYA SASOL POLYMER COMPANY and BAKHTAR COMMERCIAL COMPANY between January and September 2024. ABY PLASTIK is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. MODY CHEM is an India-based company that imported Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies. These shipments totaled approximately $49 million and were primarily composed of bulk shipments of methanol between January 2024 and February 2025. MODY CHEM is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. CHEMIX TRADING L.L.C (CHEMIX) is a United Arab Emirates-based company that exported Iranian-origin petrochemical products valued at approximately $9 million to MODY CHEM between August 2024 and February 2025. CHEMIX is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. PAARICHEM RESOURCES LLP (PAARICHEM) is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported over $2 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies, including U.S.-designated SHIVNANI ORGANICS FZE, between May and November 2024. These shipments included products such as toluene. PAARICHEM is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. INDISOL MARKETING PRIVATE LIMITED (INDISOL) is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported approximately $74 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from U.S.-designated SOLVENT ORGANICS FZE, between January and December 2024. These shipments included products such as methanol. NITI UNMESH BHATT (BHATT) is an Indian national and director of INDISOL. BHATT is also the 100% shareholder of INDISOL. INDISOL is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. BHATT is being blocked pursuant to section 5(a)(vii) of E.O. 13846 as a principal executive officer, or person performing similar functions and with similar authorities, of INDISOL. HARESH PETROCHEM PRIVATE LIMITED (HARESH PETROCHEM) is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported approximately $10 million worth of Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple companies, including U.S.-designated SOLVENT ORGANICS FZE and ALSEERAH TRADING L.L.C, between January 2024 and February 2025. These shipments included products such as methanol. KAMLA KANAYALAL KASAT (KAMLA KASAT), KUNAL KANAYALAL KASAT (KUNAL KASAT), and POONAM KUNAL KASAT (POONAM KASAT) are Indian nationals and directors of HARESH PETROCHEM. They are also shareholders of HARESH PETROCHEM. HARESH PETROCHEM is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. KAMLA KASAT, KUNAL KASAT, and POONAM KASAT are being blocked pursuant to section 5(a)(vii) of E.O. 13846 as principal executive officers, or persons performing similar functions and with similar authorities, of HARESH PETROCHEM. ERBIUM TRADING L.L.C is a United Arab Emirates-based company that exported Iranian-origin petrochemical products valued at approximately $65 million to multiple companies based in India between January and October 2024. ERBIUM TRADING L.L.C is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. SHIV TEXCHEM LIMITED is an India-based petrochemical trading company that imported Iranian-origin petrochemical products from multiple United Arab Emirates-based companies, including the U.S. designated SHIVNANI ORGANICS FZE. These shipments totaled approximately $2 million. SHIV TEXCHEM LIMITED is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. Ongoing Targeting of Iran's Shadow Fleet These vessel management companies have been involved in the trade of Iranian petroleum and petrochemical products. The vessels managed by these entities have moved millions of barrels of Iranian crude oil, petroleum products, and petrochemical products and play a key role in the Iranian export supply chain. They have also regularly engaged in dark activity and other deceptive shipping practices, endangering other vessels and trade flows. DIMOND TOWN SHIPPING COMPANY (DIMOND) engaged in a significant transaction for the transportation of Iranian petrochemical products when PK MARIT (IMO 9235464), a vessel commercially managed by DIMOND, loaded Iranian methanol in Iran in November 2022. PK MARIT also loaded Iranian petroleum products in March 2023. DIMOND's other vessels listed below have regularly conducted dark activity for the trade of Iranian cargo: TRIMA (IMO : 9252072) is a Cook Islands flagged chemical/products tanker (IMO 9252072) is a Cook Islands flagged chemical/products tanker PK PHOENIX (IMO: 9326902) is a Panama flagged, chemical/products tanker (IMO: 9326902) is a Panama flagged, chemical/products tanker HAI LONG BRAVO (IMO: 9312353) is a Panama flagged, general cargo tanker DIMOND is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(iii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petrochemical products from Iran. TRIMA, PK MARIT, PK PHOENIX, and HAI LONG BRAVO are being identified as property in which DIMOND has an interest. TETHIS SHIPPING CO (TETHIS) engaged in a significant transaction for the transportation of Iranian petroleum products when WORLD COURAGE (IMO 9289740), a vessel commercially managed by TETHIS, loaded Iranian naphtha in Iran in January 2022. WORLD COURAGE also loaded Iranian origin petrochemical products in May 2023. TETHIS' vessels listed below have regularly conducted dark activity for the trade of Iranian cargo: LOANNA (IMO: 9251884) is a Palau flagged, chemical/products tanker (IMO: 9251884) is a Palau flagged, chemical/products tanker WORLD PROGRESS (IMO: 9300996) is a Cook Islands flagged, chemical/products tanker (IMO: 9300996) is a Cook Islands flagged, chemical/products tanker WORLD PERFORMANCE (IMO: 9301005) is a Cook Islands flagged, chemical/products tanker (IMO: 9301005) is a Cook Islands flagged, chemical/products tanker TETHIS 7 (IMO: 9251896) is a Palau flagged, chemical/products tanker (IMO: 9251896) is a Palau flagged, chemical/products tanker THANASIS (IMO: 9239989) is a Palau flagged, chemical/products tanker TETHIS is being designated pursuant to section 3(a)(ii) of E.O. 13846 for on or after November 5, 2018, knowingly engaging in a significant transaction for the purchase, acquisition, sale, transport, or marketing of petroleum or petroleum products from Iran. WORLD COURAGE, LOANNA, WORLD PROGRESS, WORLD PERFORMANCE, TETHIS 7, and THANASIS are being identified as property in which TETHIS has an interest. SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the sanctioned persons described above that are in the United States or in possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to the Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Additionally, all entities that are owned, either directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. All transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons are prohibited unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or exempt. These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person. The power and integrity of U.S. government sanctions derive not only from the U.S. government's ability to designate and add persons to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List, but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. Petitions for removal from the SDN List may be sent to: OFAC.Reconsideration@treasury.gov. Petitioners may also refer to the Department of State's Delisting Guidance page. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address From Tehran To Times Square? Netanyahu's Missile Warning By Kian Sharifi October 10, 2025 What You Need To Know Could Iran Target American Cities?: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has raised alarms about Iran's missile ambitions, claiming Tehran is developing intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of reaching the US East Coast with minimal enhancements. While Netanyahu's warnings emphasize an emerging threat to American cities, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi rejects these assertions as unfounded, stating Iran's longest-range missiles are limited to about 2,000 kilometers and serve purely defensive aims. Calls Grow To Shut Women's Prison: At least two inmates have died in Qarchak Prison, which is billed by Iranian media as one of the world's largest women's prisons. The deaths have reignited calls for the authorities to close the prison, which has long been a grim symbol of repression in Iran. RFE/RL's Radio Farda spoke with activists who served time in Qarchak, with one describing the facility as "uninhabitable." Iranians Feel The Pinch As UN Sanctions Return: Videos showing young women riding motorcycles through the streets of Tehran have taken social media by storm this week amid a debate over Iran's longstanding ban on issuing motorcycle licenses to women. Under current law, only men can obtain a license, leaving women who ride motorcycles without insurance coverage or legal protections. Lawmakers are now reviewing a new bill that could finally address the issue. The Big Issue How Long Is Too Long? Benjamin Netanyahu reignited debate over Iran's missile capabilities this week, claiming that Tehran's latest missile developments could threaten major cities well beyond the Middle East. Netanyahu stated Iran is working on intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) with a range of up to 8,000 kilometers -- enough to strike the US East Coast if the range is extended further. But Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi swiftly dismissed the warnings, labelling them as "fabricated" and "imaginary." He reiterated Iran's stance that its longest-range missiles reach approximately 2,000 kilometers, targeting only regional adversaries such as Israel, and maintain that their program is strictly defensive in nature. But conservative lawmaker Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani contradicted Araqchi in an interview with a local news outlet. Ardestani, who is a member of the parliament's influential National Security And Foreign Policy Committee, claimed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "has lifted all restrictions" on the range of Iranian missiles. Why It Matters: Though Iran formally denies pursuing nuclear armament for its ballistic missiles, a senior Iranian commander hinted this month that missile ranges may be extended further if future security concerns warrant it. This follows strategic shifts after the Israel-Iran war in June, which saw launch sites pushed further east inside Iran, necessitating greater reach for future deterrence. In a segment of a 2021 documentary released by the supreme leader's office, Khamenei tells a small gathering that military leaders "wanted a range of four to five thousand kilometers, but I wouldn't allow it; I told them not to build anything over 2,000 kilometers for now." When someone in the audience asked for the justification, Khamenei replied, "There's a reason," and added that the commanders continue to complain to him because he won't lift the restriction. What's Being Said: Netanyahu warned on during an interview with American conservative political commentator Ben Shapiro that Iran is developing ICBMs capable of putting "New York City, Boston, Washington, or Miami under their atomic guns." "Iran can blackmail any American city," Netanyahu explained. "People don't believe it. Iran is developing intercontinental missiles with a range of 8,000 kilometers; add another 3,000 and they can get to the East Coast of the [United States]." Araqchi responded on X, writing that "Israel is now trying to make an imaginary threat out of our defense capabilities" and accusing Netanyahu of goading Washington into fighting "Israel's Forever Wars." Expert Opinion: The United States and its allies remain deeply concerned that Iran's space program may serve as a cover for developing long-range missile technology, including ICBMs. Tehran, meanwhile, insists its program is peaceful, focused solely on communications and research. Farzin Nadimi, a senior fellow at The Washington Institute, recently told Radio Farda that Iran's satellite launch vehicles (SLVs) could, with some modifications, be converted for use as ICBMs. "Normally, it's the other way around: you turn long-range missiles into SLVs," Nadimi noted, reflecting the dual-use nature of the technology. Iran has sent several satellites into orbit using vehicles like Zoljanah -- a hybrid-fuel, road-mobile rocket -- but with a mixed record: numerous launch failures show the technology is still maturing. Nadimi added that while it may be "impossible" right now to turn Zoljanah into a true ICBM, "it has the potential" for future adaptation. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/farda-briefing- iran-israel-icbm-missile-us-east-coast/33555492.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Treasury Takes Aim at Iran-Backed Militia Groups Threatening the Safety of Americans U.S. Department of the Treasury October 9, 2025 Iranian Militia Proxies are Responsible for Deaths of U.S. Personnel WASHINGTON Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is taking action against individuals and companies that assist the Iranian regime in evading U.S. sanctions, smuggling weapons, and engaging in widespread corruption in Iraq. The Iranian regime relies on various Iraqi militia proxies, including U.S.-sanctioned foreign terrorist organization Kata'ib Hizballah, to penetrate Iraq's security forces and economy. These Iran-backed groups are not only responsible for the deaths of U.S. personnel but also conduct attacks against U.S. interests and those of our allies across the Middle East. The militias actively undermine the Iraqi economy, monopolizing resources through graft and corruption, and hinder the formation of a functioning Iraqi government that would make the region safer. The targets today include bankers abusing the Iraqi economy to launder money for Iran and a terrorist front company that provides support and services to Iraqi militia groups. Treasury is also taking action against Iraq-based Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) assets that operate a source network that gathers information, including on U.S. forces. "Treasury is targeting Iran-backed militia groups responsible for the deaths of U.S. personnel," said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley. "Under Secretary Bessent's leadership, we are working to dismantle the financial networks that enable these terrorist groups to operate. Cutting off their financial flows is essential to protecting American lives and our national security." Today's action is being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, which targets terrorists and their supporters. The Department of the Treasury designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Qods Force (IRGC-QF) as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) pursuant to E.O. 13224 on October 25, 2007 for providing support to multiple terrorist groups. The Department of State designated the IRGC, inclusive of the IRGC-QF, as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) pursuant to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) on April 8, 2019. Kata'ib Hizballah was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 and as an FTO on June 24, 2009. This action builds on OFAC's July 3 and September 2, 2025 actions targeting individuals, entities, and vessels that have used Iraqi territory to smuggle Iranian oil fraudulently sold as Iraqi oil. MUHANDIS GENERAL COMPANY: MASSIVE BUSINESS CONGLOMERATE SUPPORTING POPULAR MOBILIZATION FORCES AND IRAN Kata'ib Hizballah is the most significant player in the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), which pushed for the creation of Muhandis General Company for Construction, Engineering, Mechanical, Agricultural, and Industrial Contracting (Muhandis General Company) to facilitate the formation of a PMF-run conglomerate. The Muhandis General Company is controlled by Popular Mobilization Commission Chief of Staff and U.S.-designated Kata'ib Hizballah leader Abd al-Aziz Malluh Mirjirash al Muhammadawi (Abu Fadak). Muhandis General Company, under the control of Kata'ib Hizballah, uses a sub-contracting method to divert funds from Iraqi government contracts. As of 2025, Muhandis General Company facilitated the award of Iraqi government contracts to companies in exchange for illicit revenue and has a contract with the Iraqi Government for undisclosed real estate projects. Baladna Agricultural Investments (Baladna) is a commercial front for Muhandis General Company. Iran continues to smuggle weapons to its militia proxy groups, and the Muhandis General Company, under its cover as an agricultural business and through connections to the IRGC-QF, played a central role in the weapons supply. Muhandis General Company is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Kata'ib Hizballah and the IRGC-QF; and for being owned or controlled or directed by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Kata'ib Hizballah. Baladna is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Muhandis General Company. IRGC-QF ILLICIT FINANCIAL NETWORKS IN IRAQ Iran continually seeks to take advantage of Iraq's economy to evade sanctions, despite progress made by many Iraqi government and financial professionals to secure and modernize their institutions. OFAC is designating three Iraqi bank executives today for abusing their positions within Iraq's commercial banking sector to benefit the IRGC-QF, Kata'ib Hizballah, and Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq. These individuals have exploited their control over several Iraqi banks to generate revenue and launder money for terrorist groups and their Iranian backers. Iraqi bank executive Ali Mohammed Ghulam Hussein Al Anssari (Ali Ghulam) has used his position at the top of several Iraqi commercial banks to enrich his family, the IRGC-QF, and Iranian-aligned militia groups. Ali Ghulam has given the IRGC-QF a degree of control over banks under his purview, where it has generated millions of dollars in revenue for itself and its militia proxies. Ali Ghulam has managed Kata'ib Hizballah's finances, including investing the fortunes of Kata'ib Hizballah's highest-ranking leaders outside of Iraq. Ali Ghulam has similarly provided financial services to Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, including procuring U.S. dollars and laundering funds using counterfeit documents and receipts to avoid government scrutiny. Despite his illicit activities, Ali Ghulam has avoided justice in Iraq by bribing judicial authorities. Ali Meften Khafeef Al Baidani (Ali Meften) and Aqeel Meften Khafeef Al Baidani (Aqeel Meften) are brothers who own and manage an IRGC-QF-associated Iraqi commercial bank. Ali Meften and Aqeel Meften have close relationships with senior intelligence officials of the IRGC and help generate and transfer funds for militias in Iraq that support the IRGC-QF. Ali Meften and Aqeel Meften have used their positions of ownership to support the IRGC-QF and Kata'ib Hizballah, working closely with Ali Ghulam to exploit U.S. dollar access and assisting in laundering proceeds of corruption for political parties. For decades, the Meften brothers have laundered tens of millions of dollars for Iran, and smuggled oil and drugs and abused Aqeel Meften's position as president of Iraq's National Olympic Committee to engage in corruption. Ali Ghulam, Ali Meften and Aqeel Meften are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, the IRGC-QF. IRGC INTELLIGENCE COLLECTION ON AMERICAN INTERESTS In early 2025, Kata'ib Hizballah and IRGC officials coordinated on operations against U.S interests in Iraq. Hasan Qahtan Al-Sa'idi (Hasan)is a Baghdad-based Kata'ib Hizballah leader who operates a source network that gathers information, including on U.S. forces and presence in Iraq, on behalf of the IRGC. The network works closely with, and takes direction from, Mahmud Baghlani, a noted IRGC affiliate designated by the United States. The network also includes reported Popular Mobilization Forces members Muhammad Qahtan Al-Sa'idi (Muhammad), Hasan's son, and Haytham Sabih Sa'id (Haytham), all of whom have gathered and shared intelligence for the purported use of the IRGC. Hasan, Muhammad, and Haytham are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, the IRGC. SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the designated or blocked persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC's regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of blocked persons. Violations of U.S. sanctions may result in the imposition of civil or criminal penalties on U.S. and foreign persons. OFAC may impose civil penalties for sanctions violations on a strict liability basis. OFAC's Economic Sanctions Enforcement Guidelines provide more information regarding OFAC's enforcement of U.S. economic sanctions. In addition, financial institutions and other persons may risk exposure to sanctions for engaging in certain transactions or activities involving designated or otherwise blocked persons. The prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any designated or blocked person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person. Furthermore, engaging in certain transactions involving the persons designated today may risk the imposition of secondary sanctions on participating foreign financial institutions. OFAC can prohibit or impose strict conditions on opening or maintaining, in the United States, a correspondent account or a payable-through account of a foreign financial institution that knowingly conducts or facilitates any significant transaction on behalf of a person who is designated pursuant to the relevant authority. The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions derive not only from OFAC's ability to designate and add persons to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List), but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. For information concerning the process for seeking removal from an OFAC list, including the SDN List, or to submit a request, please refer to OFAC's guidance on Filing a Petition for Removal from an OFAC List. Click here for more information on the persons designated and any property identified as blocked today. ### NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address UN Human Rights Council 60: UK Statement for the Interactive Dialogue on Technical Cooperation in Libya Speech UK Statement for the Interactive Dialogue on Technical Cooperation in Libya. Delivered by the UK's Human Rights Ambassador, Eleanor Sanders. From: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office and Eleanor Sanders Published 3 October 2025 Location: Geneva Delivered on: 3 October 2025 (Transcript of the speech, exactly as it was delivered) Thank you, Mr Vice President. We welcome OHCHR and United Nations Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) technical assistance and capacity building in Libya, and their growing cooperation with the Libyan authorities. We support Libya's renewal of this Item 10 resolution so that it stays on this Council's agenda. The OHCHR's report raises a number of concerns, including arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances, and torture, with limited accountability. We urge Libya to address threats to civic space, including reprisals against civil society and restrictions on youth organisations. Women and girls reportedly face violence and discrimination while migrants suffer abuse and are subjects of disinformation. We call for international non-governmental organisations to be permitted to operate in accordance with international humanitarian law and domestic regulations, and deliver vital services to vulnerable groups. We urge the Libyan authorities to adopt legislation on reconciliation, women's protection, and to close all unofficial detention centres. We welcome the extension of the ICC's jurisdiction in Libya, and we support calls for a comprehensive, rights-based transitional justice process. The UK stands ready to support inclusive Libyan-led efforts to restore the rule of law and deliver justice for victims. Mr Vice President, how can the international community support Libya to ensure transitional justice efforts are inclusive, victim-centred, and lead to meaningful accountability? NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Transcript of the Weekly Media Briefing by the Spokesperson on Friday, 10 October 2025 Pakistan Ministry of Foreign Affairs Assalam-o-Alaikum, Welcome to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. At the invitation of the Prime Minister, Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif, embarked on an official visit to Malaysia from 5-7 October 2025. The Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, other Federal Ministers and senior government officials accompanied the Prime Minister as part of his entourage during the visit. Upon his arrival in Kuala Lumpur on 5th October 2025, the Prime Minister received a warm welcome from the Prime Minister of Malayasia, H.E. Anwar Ibrahim, followed by a ceremony at Perdana Putra. The two Leaders held bilateral talks on 6th October 2025 on a wide range of issues, with a particular focus on trade and investment, climate, defense, education and tourism, to further strengthen Pakistan-Malaysia historic ties. The Prime Minister welcomed Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's announcement of the import of halal meat worth USD 200 million as a significant milestone in Pakistan-Malaysia engagement in the Halal sector. Both Leaders launched the Urdu translation of Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim's book 'SCRIPT: for a Better Malaysia', a vision built on the Prime Minister's experience in public service of more than four decades with the tenets of Sustainability, Care and Compassion, Respect, Innovation, Prosperity and Trust. They also exchanged views on key regional and global developments, including the situation in the Middle East and South Asia and presented a joint statement upon conclusion of the visit which emphasized the importance of maintaining regular high-level exchanges. Both leaders also expressed their agreement to reconvene for a Joint Commission Meeting at the level of Foreign Ministers at a mutually convenient time. The Leaders also expressed satisfaction with the pace of ongoing defense collaboration under the framework of Joint Committee on Defense Cooperation (JCDC) platform, established in 1997. Both sides agreed to further deepen bilateral defense cooperation, particularly in the field of defense, science, technology, and industry, through knowledge and technology transfer. Condemning the ongoing genocide in Gaza, both leaders reiterated their unwavering support for the Palestinian people's right to self-determination and for the establishment of a sovereign, viable, contiguous, and independent Palestinian state, based on pre-June 1967 borders with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital. The leaders further noted active cooperation on key issues in multilateral fora, particularly the UN, OIC and D-8, reiterating their commitment toward mutual support for each other's initiatives and candidatures in international bodies. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also reiterated Pakistan's strong support for Malaysia's ASEAN Chairmanship. Both leaders welcomed the progress made in implementing the ASEAN-Pakistan Sectoral Dialogue Partnership: Practical Cooperation Areas 2024- 2028. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also addressed the Pakistan-Malaysia Business and Investment Conference in Kuala Lumpur where he invited Malaysian companies to explore Pakistan's sizeable labor force, its rapidly expanding market and its investor-friendly environment. Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim also participated in the event. The leaders also witnessed the signing of Agreements/MoUs for cooperation in several existing and new sectors. The Prime Minister of Pakistan was also accorded with an honorary degree of Doctor of Leadership and Governance by the Queen of the State of Pahang Tunku Azizah Aminah Maimunah of Malaysia. The visit underscored Pakistan's continued commitment to strengthening ties with Malaysia. It also reaffirmed the importance placed by both countries on working together to promote peace, stability, trade & investment and sustainable development. On 3rd October 2025, the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, addressed the National Assembly, apprising members of Pakistan's active engagement during the 80th Session of the United Nations General Assembly. Among other points, he reiterated Pakistan's consistent and principled position on the issue of Palestine which calls for the establishment of a contiguous, independent and sovereign State of Palestine based on pre-1967 borders, with Al-Quds Al-Sharif as its capital, deeming it the only viable path to a just and lasting peace in the region. The Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister also briefed the House on Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif's bilateral meeting with the U.S. President, Donald Trump, at the White House which was joined by Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir. He noted the cordial exchanges, appreciation for Pakistan's counterterrorism efforts, President Trump's role in facilitating the Pakistan-India ceasefire understanding in May, and the agreement to expand trade while inviting U.S. investments in agriculture, IT, mines and minerals and energy. Pakistan strongly condemned the interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla and the subsequent unlawful detention of 500 international activists on the Gaza bound vessels, bringing much needed humanitarian assistance to the besieged and beleaguered people of Gaza by Israeli forces, deeming it as another flagrant violation of international law and international humanitarian law by Israel. In light of this development, Pakistan Foreign Office closely monitored the situation and took all possible steps to ensure safety of Pakistani nationals aboard the Flotilla, including Senator Mushtaq. Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister held a telephone conversation with former Senator Mushtaq where he lauded the Senator's courage and steadfastness for his participation in the Global Sumud Flotilla. Former Senator Mushtaq, the last Pakistani national under Israeli detention, was released from Israeli custody on 7th October 2025 and has now returned to Pakistan. Senator Mushtaq thanked the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister for efforts made by Pakistan Foreign Office in reaching out to him in Tel Aviv via a mission of a friendly European country and for facilitating his stay and safety at the Pakistan Embassy in Amman, Jordan. Pakistan welcomes the announcement of an agreement of ceasefire in Gaza and believes that it is a historic opportunity to secure lasting peace in the Middle East. We appreciate President Trump's leadership throughout the process of dialogue and negotiations which are reflective of his unwavering commitment to world peace. We also applauded the role of the leaders of Qatar, Egypt and Turkiye for their untiring efforts in negotiating the deal. We appreciate the Palestinian people - who have suffered in an unprecedented manner - one that should never, ever be repeated. Pakistan strongly condemns the provocation at Masjid Al Aqsa. The world must hold occupiers and illegal settlers to account and prevent any further actions that undermine the enormous efforts made by President Trump to reduce tensions and pave the way for lasting peace. With regard to Gaza and Hamas response to President Trump's Peace Plan, the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, held telephonic conversations with Egyptian and Saudi Foreign Ministers on 4th October 2025. In his conversation with the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, His Highness Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, the two leaders discussed regional developments, including the situation in Gaza and reviewed ongoing diplomatic efforts, including engagements and consultations among the eight Arab-Islamic countries and the United States in New York, aimed at achieving an immediate and durable ceasefire, ensuring unhindered humanitarian assistance, and to secure lasting peace in Gaza. The Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister appreciated the Saudi Foreign Minister's continued engagement and constructive role in these efforts. They also discussed recent developments, including Hamas response to the proposal of President Donald Trump. Both Ministers reaffirmed their firm commitment to the Palestinian cause and agreed to remain closely engaged with Arab and Islamic partners, as well as the international community, to advance a just, comprehensive, and lasting peace based on the two-state solution. In his telephonic call with the Foreign Minister of Egypt, the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister exchanged views on key matters of bilateral relations and regional developments, particularly the grave situation in Gaza. His Highness Prince Mansour bin Mohammad Al Saud, Chairman of the Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council, leading a high-level Saudi business delegation, arrived in Islamabad on 7th October 2025. During their stay, His Highness and the accompanying delegation held meetings with the Pakistani leadership, including Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar, and engaged with senior government officials, chambers of commerce and leading business groups to explore avenues for enhanced bilateral trade and investment cooperation. The visit underscored the deep-rooted and brotherly ties between Pakistan and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and reflected their shared commitment to expanding economic and investment partnerships under the framework of Saudi-Pakistan Joint Business Council. Discussions during the visit focused on trade/investment facilitation and collaboration across priority sectors aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 and Pakistan's economic growth agenda. On 1st October 2025, Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister Senator Mohammad Ishaq Dar held a telephone conversation with the Foreign Minister of Iran. The two ministers reviewed fraternal Pakistan-Iran relations and discussed the evolving regional situation and ongoing diplomatic efforts to promote peace and security. They reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral cooperation as well as their collaboration in multilateral fora. The 6th Session of Bilateral Political Consultations (BPC) between the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and the Republic of Tajikistan was held in Dushanbe on 29-30 September 2025. The Pakistani delegation was led by Additional Foreign Secretary (West Asia), Syed Ali Asad Gillani, while the Tajik side was headed by Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, Farrukh Sharifzoda. Discussions covered wide range of bilateral matters, including political and parliamentary ties, trade and investment, defence and security, energy, connectivity, cultural and educational exchanges, multilateral cooperation, and consular affairs. They explored avenues to enhance trade, particularly through increased collaboration in textiles, logistics, agriculture and food, and pharmaceuticals. They underscored the significance of regional transport corridors and reaffirmed their commitment to the early operationalization of CASA-1000, aimed at strengthening regional integration and energy security. Defense and security cooperation was reviewed, with discussions covering counter-terrorism efforts, training programs, and exchange of visits. Consultations were held in a cordial and constructive atmosphere. Both sides agreed to hold the 7th session of Bilateral Political Consultations in Islamabad in 2026. Ambassador Mohammad Sadiq, Pakistan's Special Representative for Afghanistan, represented Pakistan in the meeting of Quadripartite Group of countries, comprising Pakistan, China, Iran and Russia in Moscow and subsequently in the meeting of Moscow Format. He also held important bilateral meetings, including with Foreign Minister Muttaqi and other senior diplomats from the regional countries. I thank you all. * (Zeeshan Syed, Neo TV): I would like your comment on the Foreign Minister of Afghanistan's visit to India and the ensuing discussions on bilateral issues where India has stated its willingness to reopen its Embassy in Kabul and resume its relations with Afghanistan. Secondly, what information do you have on last night's airstrikes on the capital of Afghanistan conducted by Pakistan? Spokesperson: About the first question, our position on Afghanistan's bilateral relations with any other country remains that it is a matter between those two countries. Afghanistan is a sovereign, independent country, and we do not have any particular comment to offer on it. We follow the regional developments, and our request to Afghanistan, while respecting their sovereign right to pursue the foreign policy they desire for their country, has been that the Afghan territory should not be allowed to be used against Pakistan. Secondly, the question you are referring to, we have also seen the media reports, and the matter is going to be discussed at length in the press conference of DG ISPR, but I can broadly, explain our principled position on this issue. Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the security and well-being of its people. Our security forces and law enforcement agencies conduct targeted operations in border regions to safeguard our citizens from terrorist threats, particularly those posed by groups such as Fitna al Khwarij or the TTP. These operations are meticulously planned based on credible and actionable intelligence and executed with precision. Pakistan respects the sovereignty of Afghanistan, and remains steadfast in its commitment to fostering dialogue and cooperation with our neighbor to address the shared challenges of terrorism. Pakistan has consistently prioritized diplomacy, even in the face of persistent threats emanating from terrorist hideouts and sanctuaries inside Afghanistan. We urge the Afghan authorities to ensure that their territory is not used as a launch pad for terrorist activities against Pakistan. Groups like TTP represent a common threat to the peace and stability of our region, necessitating collective action to counter their malignant influence. We remain dedicated to resolving challenges through dialogue and constructive engagement. Pakistan believes that both nations share a mutual interest in combating terrorism and restoring stability. We believe that Afghanistan should be able to reclaim its sovereignty and security and terrorist groups like TTP need to be combated robustly. (Adnan Aamir, Nikkei Asia): A few days ago, it was reported by a global media outlet that Pakistan was proposing to build a new port in Pasni, with the help of US investment. What is your official comment on this? And can such a proposal be floated officially to the US? Spokesperson: First of all, various commercial proposals remain under discussion, and it is not an official thing for us to comment on as no official position or initiative has been taken by the Government of Pakistan. Our efforts in pursuing positive relations with the United States are based on mutual respect. Pakistan is not and does not wish to be part of any bloc politics. Our priority is to stabilize our economy and ensure our security. (Zeeshan Yousafzai, Dunya News): I have two questions. Firstly, Ambassador Sadiq Khan met Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi where they also discussed terrorism, so, what is the stance of the Afghan side after we have provided them with evidence on cross-border terrorism? Secondly, when President Trump announced his 20 point-peace plan, we saw that the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister, in his briefing, initially took credit but refused to own Trump's peace plan the very next day. However, now that the Plan is in place, the Deputy Prime Minister/Foreign Minister has reverted to his initial position, what was the reason behind this constant change of stance? Is the lag in information exchange to be blamed for this? Spokesperson: About the first question, question of terrorism emanating from Afghanistan is a constant part of all our interactions and dialogues, at multiple levels, with the Kabul authorities. We have been impressing upon the seriousness of this issue and from the Prime Minister to the level of senior officials, we have articulated our position very clearly and firmly. About the second question, I think this is your reading of the whole situation, which I may not agree with. But for us, the most important point is that the eight Islamic Arab countries, joined together with the US to launch a process, and we are seeing its fruit. We hope it is sustainable and we have welcomed it. Palestinians have welcomed it. All Arab and Islamic countries have welcomed it, and we hope the ceasefire is established and it is sustainable, it is permanent, which leads to a permanent solution of the conflict based on the principle of the two-state solution. (Naveed Siddiqui, Business Recorder): Yesterday, in his address to the National Assembly, the Defense Minister disclosed that a high-level Pakistani delegation is scheduled to visit Kabul to discuss terror related issues. Can you share the details on the composition of this delegation? Spokesperson: I am sorry, I will have to check from the Ministry of Defense. I do not have specific information on this, but let me check. (Shaukat Piracha, Aaj News): I have two questions. Firstly, referring back to the speeches by the Prime Minister to the Cabinet and the Defense Minister to the National Assembly, it seems clear that Pakistan will now not spare anything emanating from Afghanistan because the Prime Minister has said that 'enough is enough'. So, what message has Pakistan conveyed to Afghanistan via the airstrikes on Kabul by our security agencies to secure our own people as it is not situated on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan? My second question is how disappointed is Pakistan over President Donald Trump not being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize since Pakistan was the first to nominate President Trump for the Prize at the state level? Spokesperson: About the first question, I have already articulated our position on terrorism emanating from Afghanistan, and as I mentioned, this question is being addressed right now in the press conference, with more specific details, by DG ISPR, but from the standpoint of our principal position, I will particularly reiterate that Pakistan reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the security and well-being of its people. About the second question, we made a decision to nominte President Donald Trump for Noble Peace Prize keeping in view the clear and very important and positive role played by the United States in the de-escalation of tensions between Pakistan and India in May, leading to the ceasefire. It is unambiguous, and it is clear for everyone to see, except for those who do not want to see. So based on that, we feel President Trump played a very important role, and that is why we nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize. So, what happens after that, I am not in a position to comment on it. (Anwar Abbas, 24 News): I have two questions. My first question is on Afghanistan, during the Moscow Format and the Quadripartite Dialog which preceded it, Pakistan stressed that the international community should increase the provision of humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan and also stated that the Afghan government should not use it for other purposes. What does this reflect? Do you confirm that the Afghan government is using humanitarian assistance for terrorism and other purposes? Secondly, what is the current status of consular access for Mr. Asif Merchant, Mr. Pahalwan and three to four other Pakistanis? Why is it that despite having good relations with the US, the US is still not granting consular access to these Pakistanis? As it has been more than a year now. Spokesperson: About the first question, I will not get into speculative discussion as our words are clear. You can interpret them by calling for "efficient utilization" I am not going to comment beyond that. For your second question, I will just give you some information on the two cases you have referred to, but please remember that consular access, at times, hinges on the willingness of the person requesting for the consular access. I will check on the specifics of these cases but this is the broad information which I can share with you. On 4th March 2024, Muhammad Pahalwan was indicted on charges by the US judicial system. On 5th June 2025, he was convicted and his sentencing is scheduled soon. If he is sentenced to further incarceration, he will serve his time in the US federal prison. Otherwise, he will be deported, and the Pakistan Mission in Washington DC will try to facilitate it. In similar cases, eight other individuals, Pakistani mariners involved with Mr. Pahalwan have already been issued Emergency Travel Documents (ETDs) by our embassy. About the Asif Merchant case, US federal authorities indicted Asif Merchant in August 2024 on charges including attempted commission of an act of terrorism. He remains in US Federal detention and with the next court appearance scheduled in the future. (Aijaz Ahmed, GNN News): Yesterday, the Minister of defense has made a claim in the National Assembly that Afghanistan demanded 10 billion rupees to hand over terrorists of TTP. What Foreign Office has to comment on this? Spokesperson: I don't think he said it this way. He said that Afghan side asked for 10 billion rupees for relocating the terrorists. We asked them for if they could guarantee to ensure that they would not attack Pakistan from the new location. The Afghan side however, did not have an answer to this query. So, actually this is what was stated by the Defense Minister. (Tahir Khan, NNI): First question is that Muttaqi is visiting India and he was scheduled to visit Pakistan as well in the first week of August, but that was postponed. We heard from people here that US had opposed the said visit during the UN Security Council meeting, and the visit didn't occur. India, according to some people here, had withdrawn its application for the visit. But now Mutaqqi is visiting India for six days and will also be visiting Darul Uloom Deoband. So, what about his visit to Pakistan? Have we stepped back or have we surrendered to the US, will we follow what they tell us? Secondly, you are a diplomat. Pakistan and Afghanistan have Embassies in each other's countries and the diplomatic channels are open. So, do you think that use of force can solve the problem, and by firing missiles at Afghan capital Kabul, are we not complicating things further or are we going towards a solution? If Pakistan did this, though you did not confirm it, but something has definitely happened. Is this our frustration, or we are disappointed because of which Pakistan is using force. Spokesperson: Sir, both questions are slightly speculative. Regarding your first question, this was addressed in an earlier briefing, where I conveyed our position that dates of the visits were not confirmed. But you had some other proof, also, that there was an invitation for a dinner. I remarked that people can make mistakes in issuing invitations before confirmation. The visit was not confirmed, and we said that there were technical details to be worked out, and as soon as they were worked out, the schedules would be finalized. This is part of the regular interaction between two countries, and it won't be out of the ordinary for the Afghan Foreign Minister to visit Pakistan. Our Foreign Minister/Deputy Prime Minister has visited Afghanistan. So, in the fullness of time, we hope that the visit should take place. About the second question, a philosophical one on what is use of force, how it is used in international politics or in diplomacy. That's a topic for another day, but I'll again refer you to the statement I have already read on this subject. (Mohammed M. A. Elakkad, Russia State News Agency): Sir, Pakistan was one of the eight Islamic and Arab countries who participated in making the deal, a Trump proposal regarding Gaza. And yesterday, there was a conference held in Paris, France regarding this issue. And there was no news about Pakistan's participation in this conference. Is there any reason behind that? Spokesperson: We are not in every meeting. Frankly speaking, we are not supposed to be in every meeting. But what I mean is that we are part of the process which led, and ultimately contributed to the ceasefire. This is what I can say on this. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Beginning of Russian-Tajikistani expanded-format talks October 9, 2025 10:20 Dushanbe President of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon: Mr Putin, members of the Russian delegation, I extend a warm welcome to you once again in Tajikistan. Today's meetings reaffirm our commitment to the agreements we have previously reached within the framework of our strategic partnership. Russia remains one of Tajikistan's principal political and economic partners. We cooperate closely in trade, the economy, culture, humanitarian sphere, and security. Many issues find resolution through the Intergovernmental Commission; as you know, its latest meeting recently took place in Moscow. Today, we will sign a new package of bilateral documents that will significantly strengthen the legal foundation of cooperation between our two countries. I am convinced that the outcomes of today's talks will provide fresh impetus for collaboration between Tajikistan and Russia. Once again, welcome. Mr Putin, it is my great pleasure to give the floor to you. President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much. Mr Rahmon, thank you once again for the invitation. We have just had the opportunity to speak face-to-face on the most sensitive issues, though this actually began yesterday evening. I would like to express my gratitude for last evening, when, in a friendly atmosphere over a cup of tea, we were able to discuss calmly everything that concerns us - both regional matters and the most interesting and promising areas of our bilateral cooperation. As I mentioned at the start of today's proceedings, progress is being made across all areas under our fundamental 1993 Treaty on Friendship and Alliance. Much has been accomplished during this time, and no less work lies ahead. Indeed, today we plan to sign a series of documents prepared by our teams, including during the visit of your Prime Minister to Moscow on April 23 this year, when a protocol was signed outlining further terms of cooperation across numerous fields, including energy. So, thank you very much - to you and your entire team - for this joint work. <> NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Second Russia - Central Asia Summit Vladimir Putin took part in the second Russia - Central Asia Summit, held in Tajikistan's capital, Dushanbe. October 9, 2025 17:10 Dushanbe The discussion centred on expanding cooperation between Russia and the states of the region across a range of areas, including trade, economic, financial, industrial, logistics, and energy ties. Particular attention was paid to strengthening regional security in light of the tense situations in Afghanistan and the Middle East. The meeting concluded with the adoption of a final communique and a joint action plan for 2025-2027. * * * Speeches at second Russia - Central Asia summit President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon: Heads of State, members of the delegations, friends, A very warm welcome to you all in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan. We see today's meeting as a logical continuation of the close partnership our states have cultivated across various formats. I am confident that its outcomes will give further impetus to the development of cooperation between Russia and Central Asia. The meeting's agenda addresses key aspects of our regional collaboration. Our priorities include promoting trade and economic ties, facilitating investment growth, expanding cultural and humanitarian contacts, and ensuring regional security within the six-party format. I am certain that the decisions we adopt today will serve as a beacon, guiding us as we further strengthen the spirit of solidarity and mutually beneficial partnership among us. May our work at this summit be both productive and rewarding. I also wish all participants a pleasant and comfortable stay in Dushanbe. Welcome again! The second meeting of heads of state in the Central Asia-Russia format is declared open. <> President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Thank you very much. Mr Rahmon, friends and colleagues, Our entire delegation and I are delighted to see you all here. As President Rahmon has already noted, this is our second meeting in this format, following the first one in Astana, which was also held on the sidelines of a CIS summit. Of course, we all remain in constant contact. I greatly value the dialogue I maintain with each of you, and I genuinely enjoy our conversations. We have a strong foundation of being able to consult one another and seek solutions to pressing issues. That said, I am sure you will agree that this more multifaceted format also offers its own distinct "added value." I would like to underscore that Russia is firmly committed to further strengthening the strategic partnership and alliance with your states, as well as deepening constructive political, economic, and cultural ties. Significant progress has already been achieved in all these areas. For instance, last year's trade between Russia and the Central Asian states, the five nations, exceeded $45 billion. This is generally a good result. However, I would like to draw your attention - and I always cite this example in such cases -and tomorrow, Alexander Lukashenko will participate in our work within the CIS framework. With Belarus, our trade exceeds $50 billion. Let me remind you that Belarus has a population of 10 million, Uzbekistan nearly 40 million, Tajikistan over 10 million, and Kazakhstan - how many? Already more than 20 million. Well, you can imagine - I will not even mention other countries - what enormous potential this represents. This means there are also excellent prospects for advancing our economic relations. Indeed, in January-July of this year, mutual trade grew by another 4 percent. A gradual transition to the priority use of national currencies in mutual settlements is underway. The Russian financial messaging system, along with similar systems in your countries, is widely utilised for contract payments. The practice of opening direct correspondent accounts between credit institutions of our states has become widespread. Russia is a leading investor in the economies of the region, with its total investments exceeding $20 billion dollars. Though, in my view, this is still insufficient. Approximately 25,000 companies with Russian capital operate in your states. Industrial cooperation is expanding dynamically. With Russia's involvement, joint industrial parks, trading houses, and wholesale distribution centres are being established in Central Asia, alongside major projects in automobile manufacturing, agricultural machinery, mineral fertilisers, and so forth. The scope of our joint work is exceptionally broad. Naturally, we are interested in companies from your states joining large-scale Russian development programmes in industry, high technology, import substitution, and other areas more actively. Moreover, we observe with great pleasure the successes achieved in your countries across all the aforementioned sectors. If this is the case, then the opportunities for cooperation expand accordingly. We are ready to work jointly with you on developing new logistics and transport chains. The key objective here is to facilitate the construction of the North-South and East-West international transport corridors that pass through the territories of our countries, as well as to develop new transcontinental corridors. Furthermore, these and other Eurasian logistics projects could be integrated into a single transport network complete with modern digital and transport services. This would significantly increase the volume of international freight traffic across our shared region. Russia and the five Central Asian countries are strengthening their partnership in the energy sector, and not only in the production and trade of traditional hydrocarbons, but also in the construction of nuclear power plants using the latest Russian technologies, and in the adoption of renewable energy sources. Our country is taking part in the modernisation of the largest hydroelectric power plants in Central Asia, many of which were built during the Soviet period. Russian companies are also ready to contribute to the construction of new hydroelectric facilities and to projects aimed at ensuring the safe operation of aqueous energy infrastructure, as well as the sustainable use of water resources and transboundary rivers. Let me remind you that Russia has already allocated more than $33 million for joint programmes with Central Asian states. These include monitoring the condition of the Amu Darya and Syr Darya river basins, introducing water conservation and reuse technologies, and supporting systematic afforestation in the Aral Sea region and on the reclaimed bed of the Aral Sea. We see promising opportunities for joint work in the field of natural resource development. Russia also has much to offer in the sphere of high technology. I am referring primarily to Russian digital solutions for optimising public administration: here, I believe you will agree, we have significant experience to share, including the creation of smart urban environments, among other initiatives. Our country is also interested in developing cooperation with its Central Asian partners in the area of epidemiological and sanitary security. More than 20 mobile laboratories have already been supplied to the region's states; they are operating effectively and are deployed where and when required. Joint exercises to localise outbreaks of infections are also conducted on a regular basis. I should point out the existing cooperation opportunities within the Eurasian Economic Union, including for those countries that are not its full members. Thus, the Eurasian Fund for Stabilisation and Development allocated over one billion dollars to support Central Asia economies. The funds can be channeled towards maintaining stability of their national budgets and balance of payments and on strengthening the system of public administration. Similarly, the Eurasian Development Bank has already financed projects in Central Asia worth 8.7 billion dollars, the amount that makes up over a third of all funds allocated to the region via international financial institutions. Cultural and humanitarian contacts are truly intensive. Around 212,000 students from your countries currently study in Russia. Russian universities have 25 branches operating successfully in the region, and new schools with Russian as the language of tuition are opening here. And indeed, it is very important that Russia and the five Central Asian states stick to identical or close approaches towards key issues on the regional and global agendas and coordinate their positions at the UN and other multilateral platforms. Our states traditionally hold the situation in Afghanistan in the focus of their attention, as President of Tajikistan has just mentioned. Regrettably, terrorist organisations are still trying to use Afghanistan's territory for disseminating extremist ideology and criminal activities. We see the incumbent authorities in Afghanistan expressing readiness for mutually beneficial cooperation in various areas, including in combating terrorism and drug mafia. We are definitely ready to support these aspirations. Regarding the situation in the Middle East, ways to end the Palestine-Israel conflict are being actively sought amid the humanitarian tragedy, a catastrophe in the Gaza Strip. President Trump has come up with certain well-known initiatives, and as you saw, Russia promptly supported them. We see what is unfolding. As per media reports, a final decision has been reached. We are very hopeful that these initiatives of the US President will actually be translated into life. The initiative was generally positively received both in the Arab world and in the overall Islamic world. The main thing, I repeat, is that all of this must be implemented. Let me emphasise that Russia has always believed that the problems of the Middle East can only be resolved through political and diplomatic means. We are, of course, ready to support any peaceful efforts aimed at stopping the bloodshed and restoring calm to the region. I believe you will agree that this was the consistent position of the Soviet Union - a legacy inherited by all the republics of the former USSR. We are convinced that the most critical and indispensable condition for enduring stability and the resolution of all related issues is the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. We are not merely observing this situation; we are actively working with our partners in the Middle East to contribute to a settlement. By the same logic, the situation surrounding the Iranian nuclear programme can only be resolved through diplomacy and negotiations. There is no reasonable alternative. We maintain close contact with our Iranian partners and are encouraged by their stated resolve to find mutually acceptable solutions and resume constructive engagement with the IAEA. You may have noted the IAEA Director General's recent visit to Russia, where we discussed this issue at length. He, too, confirmed the Iranian side's commitment to resolving outstanding issues. While certain technical details remain, the implementation of the agreements reached would represent a significant step towards a final settlement of this highly complex dossier. Finally, we continue our trust-based dialogue with Israel. The Israeli leadership has signalled to us its interest in a further settlement of these issues, as opposed to any kind of confrontation, and has asked that we convey this position to our Iranian friends. Friends, a Communique and Action Plan have been prepared for our approval following today's discussions. I am confident that their implementation will contribute significantly to the further deepening of friendly and mutually beneficial relations between Russia and the states of Central Asia. Thank you. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Meeting with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev President Vladimir Putin met with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev in Dushanbe. October 9, 2025 15:00 Dushanbe President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Aliyev, We saw each other briefly in Beijing not long ago. Before that, we had several telephone conversations. I would like to begin our meeting with discussing the most sensitive topic, namely, the air tragedy that occurred in our skies. During our first telephone conversation, I not only apologised for the fact that the tragedy took place in Russia's airspace, but expressed my deepest condolences to the families of the passengers who died in that crash as well. I would like to say those words again and reiterate that, as agreed, we are cooperating with the investigative authorities. The investigation is nearing completion and, at this point, we can discuss the causes of this tragedy, this catastrophe. It was caused by several factors. The first is that a Ukrainian drone was mid-air at the time of the tragedy. We were tracking three drones crossing the Russian Federation's border during the night of the tragedy. The second factor involves technical malfunctions in Russia's air defence system. Two missiles that were launched did not hit the aircraft directly. Had that happened, the plane would have crashed immediately. They exploded, possibly through the self-destruction mechanism, a few metres, maybe ten metres, away from it. As a result, the damage was caused mainly not by the warheads, but most likely by missile fragments. That is why the pilot sensed the impact as a collision with a flock of birds which he reported to Russian air traffic controllers. All of that was recorded by "black boxes." He was also advised - and this is clearly audible on the recordings - to make an emergency landing in Makhachkala, but he decided instead to return to his home base and then to Kazakhstan. Nevertheless, this is the fact. This is what caused the tragedy. All of this is documented following a thorough analysis of the technical data and a second-by-second review of the black box recordings. You and I have discussed this issue on a later occasion. Naturally, the Russian side will do everything that must be done in these tragic circumstances, including compensation payments and a legal assessment of the actions of all officials involved. Of course, these words of support and sympathy for the families affected by this tragedy cannot solve the main problem. They cannot bring back the people who lost their lives. To reiterate, our duty - we agreed on this from the very beginning - is to provide an objective assessment of the events and identify the true causes. However, that needs time. We will need more time before we can put this matter to bed. Overall, I outlined the information I received literally on the eve of this meeting, yesterday and the day before. Frankly, I called Moscow last night for more details. I have shared with you practically everything I know myself. This is my first point. Secondly, I would like to note that, despite this, our mutual interests in many spheres coincide and are closely aligned. First and foremost, this naturally concerns trade and economic ties. Despite the nuances related to this tragedy, which I have just mentioned, and certain matters arising in connection with it, trade and economic relations have continued to develop successfully. Last year, we saw an increase of approximately six percent, and this year trade turnover has already grown by more than 16 percent. This is a very good indicator. Thanks to your attention to this matter, our cultural ties have always remained at a high level. But we will discuss this further shortly. And we are: a) grateful to you for this; and b) naturally, for our part, we will do everything to ensure this positive dynamic continues. Of course, our foreign ministries have always worked very closely together on the situation in the region and the broader situation on international platforms. I hope this cooperation will not merely be restored but will continue in the spirit of our relations, in the spirit of our alliance. We never forget this; we remember the treaty that was signed not long ago, and for our part, we will do everything to implement all its key provisions. Thank you. President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev: Thank you very much, Mr Putin. First of all, I would like to express my gratitude for this meeting. As you noted, we had a brief conversation in Beijing, and just two days ago, I called you on your birthday. I would like to take this opportunity to congratulate you once again and wish you all the best, as well as to your loved ones and the friendly people of Russia. Of course, special thanks for this detailed information regarding the tragedy last December, when an Azerbaijani airliner crashed. We were in immediate contact. As you recall, on that tragic day, I was flying to a meeting in St Petersburg and called you directly from the plane when I was informed of the incident, and we expressed our condolences to each other. I also asked you to convey to our colleagues, who were participating in the event, that due to objective reasons, I would be unable to attend the informal CIS summit. I would also like to thank you for personally overseeing this situation. We have exchanged views repeatedly, and members of our teams remain in constant contact. You are personally monitoring the progress of the investigation, and we had no doubt that it would examine everything objectively. Therefore, I would like to once again express my gratitude that you deemed it necessary to address this matter during our meeting. As you noted, not only have trade and economic ties developed successfully this year, but all other areas of our relations have also progressed. As you mentioned, there is positive momentum in trade growth. Similarly, there has been no slowdown or regression in all other domains. On the contrary, the roadmaps we approved are being successfully implemented. The Russian-Azerbaijani intergovernmental commission also met relatively recently, where the co-chairs discussed a wide range of issues in detail, not limited to trade and economic matters. Naturally, today provides a good opportunity to revisit our agenda, which is quite extensive and positive. So once again, thank you for this information, and I am confident that the messages we are sending today to our societies will also be received positively. <> NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Who's Who In The Fractured Russian Opposition Fighting Against Putin By Steve Gutterman October 09, 2025 Summary Russian opposition faces increased repression since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, with most prominent figures in exile. Aleksei Navalny died in a Russian prison under suspicious circumstances; his widow Yulia Navalnaya has taken up the cause. Disputes among opposition figures and factions have hindered unity against the Kremlin. Long before Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the Russian opposition had been struggling against a spiraling state clampdown on dissent - a campaign of oppression that stretched back at least as far as the quashing of street protests that erupted late in 2011, amid anger over election fraud and dismay at Vladimir Putin's decision to return to the presidency after a stint as prime minister. The clampdown tightened further when Russia launched the all-out war in February 2022. Two years later, Aleksei Navalny - the most prominent opposition leader for at least a decade and the head of the Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK), which needled the Kremlin with frequent investigations detailing evidence of the extravagant misuse of public funds by Putin and his circle -- died in prison under suspicious circumstances. His widow and associates blame Putin for his death. As its invasion of Ukraine grinds on, repression at home has increased still further, with the authorities seeking to stifle all dissent and quash any questioning of a war that has killed or wounded more than 1 million Russian soldiers. Numerous critics of the war are behind bars, but almost all of the most prominent opposition figures are abroad -- some fleeing in the face of prosecution, others released from prison and removed from Russia. Collaboration & Conflict In The Russian Opposition Alliances and disputes that have defined the Russian opposition's struggle against Putin. December 2011 Russia's two main liberal parties at the time Yavlinsky's Yabloko and the Union of Rightist Forcesboycott Kasparov's "Other Russia" conference over inclusion of nationalist and extremist groups, illustrating rifts in the opposition to President Vladimir Putin's government. August 2013 During Navalny's 2013 Moscow mayoral bid, Kats serves as a deputy campaign manager. Despite hurdles thrown up by the state, Navalny comes in second behind the Kremlin-backed incumbent with more than 27 percent of the vote, rattling Putin's government. 2016-2017 Kats serves as chief of staff for Gudkov's 2016 parliamentary campaign, in which he lost his Duma seat as the Kremlin tightened its control. Kats also collaborates with Gudkov in a program to train opposition candidates to challenge the ruling part in municipal elections in September 2017. April 2017 Khodorkovsky urges supporters to back Navalny's 2018 presidential campaign. Navalny is later barred from the ballot and Putin secures a new term in a vote marred by evidence of fraud. Mid-2017 Gudkov chastises Navalny for not supporting his slate in Moscow municipal elections, while former Navalny staffer Kats publicly accuses Navalny of collaborating with the city government. May 2018 Navalny organizes "He's Not Our Tsar" protest against Putin. Yashin attends.Navalny is detained, one of many instances in which he is jailed for short periods of time before his final imprisonment, which ends with his death in February 2024. February 2021 Yavlinsky publishes a widely discussed article labeling Navalny a xenophobic, authoritarian nationalist and arguing that democratic Russia was incompatible with his politics. October 2021 Yabloko's leadership cuts ties with members who support Navalny's Smart Voting strategy, arguing that the initiative is "playing into the Kremlin's hands." February 2022 Days after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Khodorkovsky, Kasparov, Kara-Murza, Gudkov, and others announce the creation of the Russian Antiwar Committee. The committee "appeals to all true patriots of Russia to consolidate in the fight against the aggressive dictatorship of Vladimir Putin, regardless of any political differences, ideological differences and personal sympathies or antipathies." February 16, 2024 Navalny dies in an Arctic prison in suspicious circumstances, more than three years after he was arrested upon return to Russia following treatment in Germany from a nerve-agent poisoning in Siberia in 2020. Days later, Yulia Navalnaya vows to pursue his cause and "continue to fight for our country." August 2024 Kara-Murza and Yashin are freed from prison and flown out of Russia in a major prisoner swap involving the United States and other countries. Those released from Russian custody also include Andrei Pivovarov, a former head of Khodorkovsky's Open Russia group, and several associates of the late Navalny. September 2024 Navalny's Anti-Corruption Foundation (FBK) accuses Russian-Israeli billionaire Leonid Nevzlin, a longtime business partner of Mikhail Khodorkovsky, of ordering a March hammer attack on former FBK chairman Leonid Volkov. October 2024 Maksim Kats releases an investigation accusing FBK of receiving funds from fugitive bankers. November 2024 & March 2025 Navalnaya, Kara-Murza, and Yashin lead a "No to War, No to Putin" march and rally in Berlin. A few thousand people attend, and the crowd at a subsequent rally in March 2025 is smaller. October 1, 2025 The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) votes to create a Platform for Dialogue with Russian Democratic Forces in exile. A related memorandum lists Khodorkovsky, Kasparov, Kara-Murza, Gudkov, and their groups as key players. It also mentions Navalnaya and lists the FBK, but says that "as of now" the foundation "[does] not qualify as Russian Democratic Forces as defined by the Assembly." Credit: RFE/RL Graphics Source: Media reports, RFE/RL Exile has made the opposition's struggle for relevance more difficult than ever - and frequent disputes between factions, such as an argument over a resolution aimed at giving Kremlin opponents a stronger voice at the Council of Europe and its Parliamentary Assembly (PACE), have not helped their cause. Here's a look at who's who in the Russian opposition today, a week after PACE decided to create a "Platform for Dialogue" between the Assembly and Russian democratic forces in exile. Yulia Navalnaya/Anti-Corruption Foundation Three days after her husband's sudden death in an Arctic prison, Yulia Navalnaya vowed to step up and continue his cause, urging Russians to share her "rage, fury, and hatred for those who dared to murder our future." Navalnaya chairs the advisory board of the Anti-Corruption Foundation, which is outlawed in Russia as an "extremist organization" but continues to operates from abroad. Other prominent Navalny associates with roles in the Anti-Corruption Foundation include Leonid Volkov and Maria Pevchikh. Longtime head Ivan Zhdanov was replaced in September after what he said were internal tensions, and the new CEO is Vladislav Romantsev. Navalnaya, 49, was elected chair of the New York-based Human Rights Foundation in July 2024. She has joined with opposition activists Ilya Yashin and Vladimir Kara-Murza in organizing protests in Berlin against Putin and Russia's war on Ukraine. But Navalny's allies have frequently clashed with other opposition figures. The PACE initiative created a new bone of contention when a memorandum accompanying the declaration said that as of now, the FBK does "not qualify as Russian Democratic Forces as defined by the Assembly." Mikhail Khodorkovsky Once Russia's richest man and head of its top oil producer, Khodorkovsky fell afoul of the Kremlin during Putin's first term, when he aired corruption allegations, challenged state control over energy exports, and funded opposition parties. Arrested in 2003, he was convicted twice on charges he contends were fabricated. After 10 years in prison, he was freed and flown out of Russia following a pardon from Putin that was widely seen as PR ahead of the 2014 Sochi Olympics. Now based in London, Khodorkovsky, 62, has continued his opposition to Putin. He founded Open Russia, which pursued a range of pro-democracy activities in Russia and was eventually banned there. Days after Russia launched the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Khodorkovsky and other Putin foes -- including Garry Kasparov, Dmitry Gudkov, and Vladimir Kara-Murza - formed the Russian Antiwar Committee. Khodorkovsky urged supporters to back Navalny's bid to challenge Putin for the presidency in 2018. But a conflict erupted in 2024 when Navalny's team accused Khodorkovsky associate Leonid Nevzlin of ordering violent attacks on top Navalny allies. Tensions persist, and Khodorkovsky sharply criticized the FBK as disputes over the PACE decision erupted. Garry Kasparov A chess grandmaster who reigned as world champion from 1985 to 2000, Kasparov has devoted himself to opposition politics for two decades. He was instrumental in creating the United Civil Front and a broader opposition coalition, Other Russia, one of the organizers of "Dissenters' March" protests in the 2000s. Kasparov sought to run for president in 2008 but withdrew after he was unable to rent a venue big enough to meet requirements for a gathering of supporters to get on the ballot, running up against the kind of tactics frequently used by the Kremlin to marginalize opponents and keep them out of elections. A vehement Putin critic who opposed Russia's takeover of Crimea and the invasion of Ukraine, Kasparov, 62, has lived in the United States for a dozen years. In 2016, Kasparov co-founded the Free Russia Forum, which has held numerous opposition and antiwar conferences in Vilnius. The Russian state declared Kasparov a "foreign agent" in 2022 and branded the Free Russia Forum an "undesirable organization" in 2023. In April 2024, a Russian court issued a warrant for Kasparov's arrest on charges of creating and leading a "terrorist" group. Vladimir Kara-Murza Kara-Murza worked closely with Boris Nemtsov before the opposition politician was assassinated in 2015. He was a key advocate for the 2012 Magnitsky Act, US sanctions legislation that targets rights abusers and has inspired similar laws in Britain, Canada, the EU, and elsewhere. A Russian-British citizen, Kara-Murza, 44, has spent much of his time in the United States. He was hospitalized on trips to Russia in 2015 and 2017, in what US authorities have investigated as cases of intentional poisoning. Like Navalny, Kara-Murza returned to Russia despite risks. Shortly before his return, he accused the "dictatorial regime in the Kremlin" of committing "war crimes" in Ukraine. Kara-Murza was arrested in April 2022 and was convicted of treason and sentenced to 25 years in prison. He was one of 16 people freed from Russian custody in a prisoner exchange with the West in August 2024. Vice President of the US-based Free Russia Foundation and a former coordinator at Open Russia, Kara-Murza has joined Yulia Navalnaya and Ilya Yashin in leading protests in Berlin against Putin and the war in Ukraine. In August 2025, he became "dissident-in-residence" at the Georgetown School of Foreign Service. Ilya Yashin A Putin foe and peaceful street protester for decades, Yashin led a group of activists and journalists who completed a report on Russia's involvement in the war in eastern Ukraine that Boris Nemtsov was working on when he was shot dead in 2015. Yashin was the elected head of Moscow's Krasnoselsky district from 2017 until 2021, when he stepped down amid mounting state pressure after being barred from running for parliament. The authorities were tightening the screws further still after the arrest of Navalny, who once described Yashin as his "first friend in politics." Yashin went on to protest Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and, in December 2022, was sentenced to 8 years in prison on charges stemming from YouTube posts in which he spoke about the killings of civilians by Russian troops in Bucha, outside Kyiv. In court, Yashin urged Putin to "stop the madness" and end the war by withdrawing Russia's forces from Ukraine, adding: "Your name is now firmly associated with the words 'death' and 'destruction.'" Yashin, 42, was one of 16 people released from Russian custody in the August 2024 prisoner exchange that included Kara-Murza. Dmitry Gudkov Gudkov was one of the last remaining liberal opposition politicians in the Russian parliament, holding a State Duma seat as an independent from 2011-2016. The son of Gennady Gudkov, a Soviet KGB officer who became an opposition lawmaker and Putin critic, Dmitry Gudkov was among the leaders of the 2011-13 Bolotnaya protests. Gudkov left Russia in 2021, citing concern that he would be prosecuted in what he called a "fake criminal case" involving an alleged unpaid debt on a past rental property. He said people close to Putin's administration had told him he would be arrested if he remained in the country. A vocal critic of the invasion of Ukraine, Gudkov, 45, is a founding member of the Russian Antiwar Committee. He is also a co-founder of the Center for Analysis and Strategies in Europe (CASE), a Cyprus-based think tank. Maksim Kats The Moscow-born Kats emigrated to Israel with his family in childhood and returned to Russia in 2001, during Putin's first term. A decade later, with opposition figures pushed to the margins, he -- like Yashin -- was at the center of a movement to gain a foothold in municipal politics, winning a seat in a Moscow district assembly in 2012. Kats has helped manage election campaigns for opposition politicians including Navalny, whose strong second-place showing behind the incumbent in a 2013 Moscow mayoral election frightened the Kremlin, and Dmitry Gudkov. Kats left Russia shortly before the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In August 2023, a Russian court sentenced him in absentia to eight years in prison over a video he posted on YouTube in April 2022 about the killings of civilians by Russian soldiers in Bucha, outside Kyiv. Now based in Israel, Kats, 40, has more than 2.4 million subscribers to the YouTube channel he launched in 2010, which is focused on Russian politics. He has sought to build an opposition coalition but has clashed repeatedly with Navalny and his associates - including in 2024, when Kats claimed the FBK had tight ties to fugitive Russian bankers accused of fraud. Grigory Yavlinsky Yavlinsky, who remains in Russia, is an economist who gained prominence when he authored a "500 Days" plan in 1990 to shift the Soviet Union to a market economy. It was never put in place, and he criticized the "shock therapy" reforms launched by President Boris Yeltsin after the Soviet Union's collapse. Yavlinsky, 73, went on to co-found and lead the liberal opposition party Yabloko, and was a lawmaker in the State Duma in 1994-2003. His influence has faded: he received more than 7 percent of the vote in the 1996 presidential election and just over 1 percent in 2018 - though that result was compromised by claims of widespread fraud in Putin's favor. He has called Russia's war against Ukraine a "crime against humanity" and said that for Russia, it is akin to a "self-imposed nuclear strike." Yavlinsky has clashed with other opposition leaders, some of whom have accused him of being soft on Putin. In 2021, he charged that Navalny's Smart Voting initiative played into the Kremlin's hands. Yabloko still operates inside Russia. Several prominent members, including Lev Shlosberg, Maksim Kruglov, and Boris Vishnevsky, have faced prosecuted or pressure from the state in recent months. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-opposition- exile-figures-factions-putin-navalny/33555227.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov's interview with RT's Bridges to the East project, Moscow, October 9, 2025 9 October 2025 16:32 1675-09-10-2025 Question: Moscow is hosting the first Russian-Arab Summit. Why has our country come forward with this initiative right now? What are its goals? Can you now announce which countries have accepted the invitations, and if they will be represented at the highest level? Sergey Lavrov: There's a saying: there's always a first time. That certainly applies here. To understand the context for this first summit, it's important to note that the Russia-Arab world dialogue has a long history and has never ceased. After the respective states gained independence, the USSR, and after 1991 the Russian Federation, built close strategic relations with most of our Arab friends. In 2013, we decided to systematise these processes and place them on a multilateral foundation. Alongside our bilateral ties with each Arab country, we proposed creating the Russian-Arab Cooperation Forum - a Russia-Arab World/Russia-Arab League partnership and dialogue platform at the level of foreign ministers. Six such ministerial meetings have already taken place, roughly once every two years. The most recent one was held in December 2023 in Marrakech, Morocco. It was there, following President Vladimir Putin's instruction, that I put forward the initiative to organise the first summit between the Russian Federation and the League of Arab States. The summit has been scheduled by mutual agreement for October 15. A meeting of foreign ministers will be held on October 13, a couple of days before, to finalise the summit's draft documents. All Arab League member states have been invited, including the Secretary-General, Ahmed Aboul Gheit. He is an Egyptian citizen with whom we have worked closely for a long time, including at the UN. The level of representation is expected to be quite high. Predictably, many of our Arab colleagues are deeply concerned about the Palestinian issue now, with some currently engaged in relevant consultations to promote mediation efforts. However, we have reason to believe that the overwhelming majority of Arab League members will join us at the level of heads of state or government. Question: The war in Gaza has been on for two full years now with tens of thousands of fatalities on top of a devastating humanitarian disaster. We hear Tel Aviv saying it is going to take full control of the enclave. Some are even talking about moving the Palestinians to third countries. The Trump plan is being widely discussed. How do you envision a potential settlement? Can Russia and China act as guarantors, as some Arab countries want them to? Sergey Lavrov: It is a disaster, no question about it. We hear officials from many European capitals and international organisations say words like "genocide" and "famine." Children are dying of starvation and exhaustion. According to official data, 65,000 people died in the past two years, most of them civilians, including women, children, and the elderly; 170,000 have been wounded. Hundreds of thousands have lost their homes. To put it in perspective, 65,000 civilian deaths in two years is double the number of civilian casualties during the entire Ukraine situation that followed the coup. The number of civilian casualties in Ukraine over 12 years is smaller than the number of victims in Palestine in only two years. The situation is extremely grave. You mentioned exotic ideas, such as Riviera of the Middle East, relocation of Gaza population, and building world-class resorts that were put forward in the early days of Trump administration when they first started looking into these issues. The Arab countries, primarily, Egypt and Jordan, close neighbours of Palestine, which our American colleagues picked as recipient countries for Gaza residents, firmly pushed back against these proposals. It was reported afterwards that with the Arabs strongly opposed to the idea, other options, such as Somaliland and even Indonesia and South Sudan, were considered as alternatives. It appears everyone has realised by now that solutions of that kind would mean a humanitarian disaster for the Palestinians and a serious blow to the UN, which proclaimed the establishment of a Palestinian State alongside the State of Israel in 1947. Indeed, the Arabs may have acted rashly back in the day triggering the events that ultimately led to bloody clashes and the shrinking of the territories intended for the Palestinian State. Nonetheless, the UN Security Council and the General Assembly resolutions have never been rescinded. The state must be created. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who recently discussed the Palestinian settlement, among other matters, with President Putin, has repeatedly and publicly stated that creating the Palestinian State was out of the question. If you look at President Trump's plan, which we regard as a positive step given the urgent need to stop the carnage, save human lives, and rebuild Gaza, or what remains of it, you will see that he proposed a 20-point peace plan that mentions the word "statehood." However, its language is rather vague and covers only what remains of the Gaza Strip. The West Bank is not mentioned in this regard. However, we are realists. We are fully cognisant of the fact that this is the best solution we have on the table. At least, the best one in terms of being potentially acceptable to the Arab side and not being rejected by Israel, which is how I can describe Netanyahu's position. Most importantly, though, the plan must be acceptable to the Palestinians. Hamas is part of the Palestinian people and part of the problem. We strongly condemned the terrorist attack against civilians carried out by Hamas two years ago, on October 7, 2023. Twelve hundred people were killed, and dozens were taken hostage. That was a crime. However, collective punishment of the Palestinian people for such attacks also represents gross violation of international humanitarian law. When told that such a response was unacceptable and only the culprits, not innocent people, not women, children, or the elderly, must be punished, some Israeli officials retorted there were no civilians in Palestine and everyone there starting from the age of three was a terrorist. True, extremism is being fuelled there. But for many years, during my stint in New York and later as Foreign Minister, I have been telling my Israeli counterparts that they should abandon their intransigence and their attempts to stall the implementation of the UN resolutions. We have repeatedly let them know that the Palestinian issue, which remains unresolved for nearly 80 years now, is the main factor fueling extremism in the Middle East. Children are born and then go to school, where they are taught that they should have had their own country, their own state, and that there is a UN resolution to that effect. Israel was created, whereas Palestine was not. Some of my Israeli colleagues (many of them even friends) have taken offence, accusing me of trying to make excuses. But things are not that simple. When generation after generation grows up in a society where their legitimate UN-approved aspirations are ignored, such sentiments can hardly be contained. To get back to President Trump's plan, it is quite realistic provided the Palestinians find it acceptable. We wish success to the indirect talks currently underway in Egypt with the participation of Turkiye, Egypt, Qatar, the United States, and, of course, Israel. They are using intermediaries to talk with Hamas. It is absolutely essential to cease the hostilities. Hamas's particular emphasis on guarantees against renewed strikes or resumption of fighting in Gaza, especially in Gaza City, reflects the lessons they have learned from their previous experiences. Earlier this year, proposals were made that appeared to about to go live, but upon completion of the first phase, Israel resumed hostilities citing Hamas's failure to hold up its end of the bargain. It is vital to work through the details to prevent this from ever happening again. You may have seen on television President Trump and Prime Minister Netanyahu speak with the Prime Minister of Qatar from the Oval Office. Live on air, Trump tried to extract from him a guarantee that no actions like that would occur again. In that case, it was directed against Qatar under the pretext that Hamas leaders were residing in Doha. We wish them success. If we can be of assistance, we will, of course, be there to help. Speaking at a recent meeting of the Valdai International Discussion Club, President Putin made it clear that we would like to help establish a Palestinian State, but we must start with something. Statehood will come later. This goal should remain part of the agenda. Our Western colleagues must also bear their share of responsibility for having played a key role in stalling the implementation of the decisions on creating an independent Palestine on the West Bank and in Gaza. In June, President Emmanuel Macron, later joined by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said he would go to the UN General Assembly and recognise everything there. If you decided to recognise it back in June, why not do so? Perhaps, they hoped that within two to three months there would be nothing left to recognise and nothing would remain of Palestine. The situation on the West Bank remains worrisome. From the standpoint of future Palestinian statehood, as required by UN resolutions, almost the entire territory has been taken up by Israeli settlements. The word I'm getting (it has never been officially stated, but political scientists and experts are talking about it) is that plans are in place to allocate two to three municipalities in the West Bank to be headed by Palestinian leaders who would be governing I'm not sure what or whom. Such things are being discussed. To reiterate, stopping the bloodshed is our number one priority. In this regard, President Trump's plan gives hope. Question: Another topic concerns Syria. You met with your Syrian counterpart Asaad al-Shaibani in Moscow in July this year, as well as on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. At what stage is cooperation with the current leadership of this country? What are the prospects for collaboration, including the future of Russian military bases? Sergey Lavrov: In 2024, we marked 80 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations. Since Soviet times, we have maintained friendly ties and close cooperation. Our country has made a significant contribution to shaping the foundations of Syria's economy, the social sphere, national personnel training, and strengthening the defence capabilities of the Syrian Arab Republic. Undoubtedly, after 2011 - when, as part of the Arab Spring, the hot phase of the conflict in Syria began, and the Western-backed opposition armed itself, relying on extremist and terrorist elements - we came to the aid of the legitimate authorities of the Syrian Arab Republic. President Vladimir Putin made that decision. We played a substantial role in normalising the situation. We had agreements with the Americans and multilateral arrangements - a resolution was adopted in New York and Geneva. Had that resolution been implemented, we likely would not be witnessing the current situation in Syria, marked by confrontation between the central authorities and a number of regions in the country. Our friendship with the Syrian Arab Republic is not opportunistic. Immediately after the events of December 2024, we resumed contact. President Vladimir Putin spoke by phone with the head of the new authorities, Mr Ahmed al-Sharaa. An interagency delegation visited Damascus at the beginning of this year and conducted an inventory of projects - alongside Syrian colleagues - that had been launched under President Bashar al-Assad and which, in our view, could continue under the current conditions with certain adjustments. I met with Minister of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates of the Syrian Arab Republic Asaad al-Shaibani earlier this spring in Antalya, where we participated in the Antalya Diplomatic Forum. He then visited us in July this year, and we met again in New York. In early September this year, another interagency delegation - led by Deputy Prime Minister of Russia Alexander Novak - visited Damascus. Discussions were held with their counterparts and with interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa. We are keen to ensure that all initiatives - some dating back to Soviet times, others launched after 2011-2014 - related to supporting Syria's national economy, industry, agriculture, and energy continue. Naturally, they must be adapted to the new realities. This also applies to our military bases. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly stated that we will not remain in Syria against the will of its leadership. However, it appears that the Syrian government, along with a number of regional states, has an interest in maintaining our presence there. Of course, this presence is no longer about providing military support to the legitimate authorities against opposition forces. The function must be reconfigured. One clear task that could benefit the Syrians, their neighbours, and many other countries is establishing a humanitarian hub, utilising the port and airport to deliver humanitarian supplies from Russia and the Persian Gulf states to Africa. There is a shared understanding that this will be in demand, and we are prepared to coordinate the details. The matter has, in principle, been discussed, and there is mutual interest. Another issue concerning Syria is the domestic political situation. Syria categorically demands an end to foreign interference in its internal affairs. Vast areas of the Syrian Arab Republic remain under the control of foreign troopsnot always at the invitation of Damascus. A particularly volatile situation persists in the south, where Israel insists on creating a buffer zone. We understand Israel's legitimate security concerns. President Vladimir Putin has repeatedly emphasised that without addressing these, lasting peace in the Middle East will remain unattainable. Yet, the interests of other actors must also be safeguarded. In the northeast, there are the Kurds, whom the Biden administration began courting, actively encouraging separatist sentiments. Our Turkish counterparts maintain a presence in the north, along their border with Syria. Meanwhile, Alawites and Christians continue to face persecution - recently exemplified by a barbaric attack on a church. Syria's unity must be a priority for all nations with influence over Damascus and the various ethno-confessional and political factions across the country. A longstanding concern is the potential explosion of the Kurdish issue - if these "games" with Syrian Kurds over autonomy and separatism escalate, the Kurdish problem could destabilise the entire region. These are serious risks. rom every perspective, we will continue assisting our Syrian partners. We are prepared to collaborate on these matters with other nations pursuing their interests in the Syrian Arab Republic. Of particular significance will be the participation of transitional government head Ahmed al-Sharaa in the First Russian-Arab Summit on October 15. I anticipate substantive discussions there. Question: The situation in Iran holds a key to regional stability. Following the use of force by Israel and the United States this summer, how do you see the situation unfold next? Do you think full-scale talks on the Iranian nuclear programme have a chance to ever materialise? Sergey Lavrov: Iran has a stake in it. Since January, when the West began seriously playing with the idea of re-imposing sanctions - without any legal grounds for doing so - Iran consistently advocated for talks showing flexibility and creativity in its approaches, striving not to succumb to provocations. The West kept luring Iranian negotiators into yet another "round" of talks, where some preliminary understandings were reached giving hope that this would finally settle the question of what to do next. However, the West later backed out of its own proposals, preliminary agreements, and compromises, and continued instead to act through blackmail, diktat, and threats. The idea of re-imposing the sanctions which the West is trying to present as a legitimate legal procedure is utterly outrageous. As you may recall, the resolution approving the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) on Iran's nuclear programme was not violated by Iran. The Islamic Republic had been fulfilling it since 2015 when it was first adopted. Then, in 2019, the United States said it did not like the deal and would no longer comply with it. The Europeans, who were also obliged to fulfill the "fruit of their own labour," instead of taking a principled stand in favour of preserving the deal, chose to play along with Washington, persuading the Iranians not to take offence and to make more concessions. This is plain and simple dishonourable, not to mention that it represents a blatant violation of international law. The UN Charter requires all resolutions to be implemented. But they decided otherwise. They exploited a provision in the deal (I was involved in this process) that raised serious questions back in 2015. Then US Secretary of State John Kerry told then Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who was negotiating on behalf of his country, that now that they've agreed on everything (it was a massive document with detailed technical, legal, and practical provisions) it would make sense to "sell it" to Congress and Washington, where many distrust Tehran. To reassure them, he proposed inserting a clause that if Iran were ever to violate or fail to fulfill its obligations, a resolution on automatic re-imposition of sanctions would be adopted. There's nothing one can do about it. This mechanism was clearly designed to benefit anyone wishing to re-impose sanctions on Iran. I am convinced that the Iranians accepted this arrangement for only one reason: they had no intention of violating anything. That is why they signed this unprecedented instrument with a clear conscience and peace of mind - an instrument the West has now grossly abused, turning everything upside down. They punished a country that had not violated a thing and had been fulfilling its obligations until the West walked away from the deal. Iran remains ready for dialogue. The West, however, is deliberately going to great lengths to prevent direct talks between Iran and the United States (although Tehran has always been open to them) and to block the resumption of normal cooperation between Iran and the IAEA, as if making a special effort to provoke a major conflict. Perhaps, that is exactly what some parties are looking for. We are discussing Arab affairs here. We are preparing for the upcoming Arab summit. In recent years, including with our assistance, there have been positive shifts in relations between Iran and the Arab states. Iran has had relations with a number of countries for quite some time. A few years ago, it reached an agreement on normalising relations with Saudi Arabia, a critically important player in the Persian Gulf. We welcomed this step, as we have for many years been promoting the concept of collective security in the Gulf region encouraging all littoral states - six GCC countries and Iran - to establish a process of confidence-building and to develop mutually beneficial projects. Yet, many out there are clearly opposed to this. They do not want to see Iran overcome the problems imposed on it (I mentioned them), or to face fewer unilateral demands to renounce not only its nuclear programme, including the peaceful one, but also to disarm unilaterally. Many actors prefer to keep the Gulf Arab states wary of Iran. This is the West's game. The British have long been known for their divide-and-conquer approach. In this particular case, though, it is not even about divide and conquer, but about pit against one another and conquer. Sadly, colonial and neocolonial instincts have continued to guide some of our Western colleagues' actions to this day. Question: You mentioned the 2015 talks at the Palais Coburg in Vienna. I remember well the number of months it took to arrive at signing the final document and the ensuing jubilation on July 15, 2015. Let's get to other matters. You mentioned Saudi Arabia. Next year marks the 100th anniversary of Russia's diplomatic relations with that country. What's your take on Russian-Saudi cooperation over time and today? Sergey Lavrov: I believe our relations are excellent. The Soviet Union was the first to recognise Saudi Arabia (it had a different name then). We did that and established close and trust-based relations. Soviet diplomats that worked in Saudi Arabia during that period left good memories of themselves. Later, in the 1950s, our relations became somewhat strained for reasons that everyone is well aware of. However, the groundwork laid in 1926 helped us quickly restore them. Today, we enjoy a trust-based dialogue and productive contacts at the level of President Vladimir Putin and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, as well as at the level of ministers, deputy prime ministers, and the officials in charge of sector-specific cooperation. Many concrete projects, primarily in the investment sphere, and joint ventures in energy, agriculture, and industry are underway. Without a doubt, we enjoy close political interaction. We want to see the initiatives that Saudi Arabia has been promoting in the international arena for quite some time now, including on the Palestinian issue, implemented. In 2002, at the Arab League summit in Beirut, King Fahd of Saudi Arabia put forward the Arab Peace Initiative, which provided for fully normalised relations between Arab countries and Israel, with the understanding that a Palestinian State would first be established. This was yet another reminder of the importance of implementing UN decisions. Most notably, the principle "create a Palestinian State, and we will recognise Israel and live in peace" was supported not only by Arab nations, but by all Muslim countries. A special summit of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation in Tehran approved the Saudi initiative. I'm not saying that everything has fallen apart now. Odds that this will end up taking place are still there. However, had everyone followed the voice of reason from the Arab and Muslim world which called for fulfilling international obligations back then, the situation would probably be different today. Over the past seven or eight years, the Americans have been trying to turn this formula upside down by promoting the Abraham Accords, suggesting that all Arab countries recognise Israel first, and then we'll see what we can do with Palestine. The main focus was on Saudi Arabia. Quite recently, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman publicly stated that Saudi Arabia's position remains unchanged: first, the establishment of a Palestinian State and then normalisation of relations with Israel. This stance commands respect. The first visit by then Crown Prince, later King Faisal, to the Soviet Union took place in 1932. That also helped build close and trust-based relations. Speaking of our humanitarian ties, every year, about 25,000 Russian citizens perform the Hajj. We appreciate the attention given by the Saudi authorities to our pilgrims. There are other areas of humanitarian cooperation as well. The talented Saudi performer Zeina Imad gave a remarkable performance at the Intervision Song Contest. The Saudi leaders said they were willing to host the next annual competition. We will use this occasion to mark the 100th anniversary diplomatic relations between our countries. Question: One of the most promising regions in the world in terms of development potential is Africa. It is believed that countries such as Algeria or Egypt could serve as Russia's door to this continent. How is cooperation progressing in this direction? Sergey Lavrov: Our doors have long been open - since the days of the struggle for decolonisation. The legacy left by the Soviet Union from that period, beginning with the initiation of the United Nations Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples, adopted in 1960, includes practical military, military-technical, economic, financial, and educational assistance that we provided to national liberation movements. Later, after African nations gained independence, we supported them in establishing their statehood. In the 1990s, for reasons that are well understood - our country was on the brink of collapse after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and centrifugal tendencies were at play even within the RSFSR - we found ourselves in catastrophic debt. The International Monetary Fund, the World Bank I remember it all. We had to cut costs. Another question is: how did we come to such a state? At that time, there simply was no money. Several embassies were closed, including a dozen in Africa. Much has changed since then. Under the leadership of President Vladimir Putin, as Russia grew stronger, regained its sense of identity, and understood the role it must continue to play in the world, we began returning to Africa. In 2024, we reopened two embassies; this year, we will reopen two more and establish a new one. Another three embassies are next in line. Within a few years, eight embassies will have been restored on the African continent. A crucial point, one of global strategic significance, is that Africa is undergoing a second "awakening." Now, if you look at the map of Africa, you will see borders drawn with a ruler. None of the colonisers cared who was on the left or right side of those straight lines. They sliced through ethnic groups - Rwanda and Burundi, Hutus and Tutsis. You mentioned Algeria and Mali. There, the straight line means the Tuareg people live on both sides of the border and do not get along particularly well. Their discord is further exacerbated by external forces egging them on against each other. We are attempting to bring some order to these processes. In its wisdom, the African Union once decided that borders should not be redrawn - given how things had unfolded. Otherwise, it would lead to a free-for-all, with long-lasting and tragic consequences. That is the correct stance. Yet the fact remains that Africa did not achieve full sovereignty after decolonisation. I remember attending various G20 events, other forums, and gatherings. In major African countries, it was impossible to refuel the aircraft provided for our delegation. We had to resort to workarounds, negotiating with military bases. All other refuelling stations in most African airports are owned by Western multinational corporations, which refuse to service Russian government aircraft. We now see Africa establishing its own institutions - not just the African Union, where they convene and discuss abstract topics. The African Export-Import Bank has been created, in which we participate with special status. Investment programmes are being developed. Africa does not want to merely sell its raw materials; it seeks assistance in learning how to process them. This applies to Algeria as well. President Abdelmadjid Tebboune visited us in 2023. He raised precisely this issue - not just selling their resources and buying, say, fertiliser, but asking whether we could establish fertiliser production in Algeria. This matter is currently under consideration. The goal is not to remain an appendage of former colonial powers but to build domestic processing industries, where the bulk of value-added is generated. Two Russia-Africa summits have been held - in Sochi in 2019 and in St Petersburg in 2023. At the 2023 summit, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni cited the global coffee market - or more precisely, Africa's coffee market - as grounds for the continent's urgent need for a second "awakening." He estimated its value at 460 billion dollars, of which only 2.4 billion remained in Africa. These are raw beans, harvested and shipped to Germany and other European countries, where they are processed, roasted, ground, packaged, and so on. This exemplifies Africa's desire to harness its own wealth, first and foremost for the benefit of its people. North Africa - Algeria, Morocco, Egypt - is home to our strategic partners, as enshrined in official documents. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune visited Russia in 2023. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi attended the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War on May 9 this year and was received by President Vladimir Putin. We have major, promising projects with Egypt, including a nuclear power plant, the establishment of a Russian industrial zone near the Suez Canal, and more. Our trade turnover with Africa, while not yet as substantial as China's or the West's, is growing rapidly and has reached nearly $30 billion - though 70 percent of this is concentrated in seven or eight countries. Diversification is needed here. As I mentioned, we have held two summits with Africa. At the 2023 St Petersburg summit, it was decided to establish a permanent annual ministerial-level mechanism. We convened in Sochi in autumn 2024. In just over a month, we will hold the second annual Russia-Africa Partnership Forum in Egypt. There will be much to discuss regarding the economic dimensions of Africa's second "awakening" and the political challenges that will persist by then. The key is to prevent them from escalating. Question: Libya is another country from that region. I can't help but ask about it as well. This year marks 70 years of Russia's diplomatic relations with Libya. Since 2011, Moscow has sought to maintain dialogue with all meaningful political forces in that country. What are the prospects for establishing cooperation with Libya? Can we talk about joint oil production or the opening of a Russian military base in Libya? Sergey Lavrov: September 4 marked the anniversary of diplomatic relations between our countries. From the very beginning, since the time Libya gained its independence, we maintained friendly relations with it and, for that matter, with the overwhelming majority of other countries in that region. In 2008, President Putin visited the Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya to sign documents of major importance, such as the Declaration on Strengthening Friendship and Cooperation, and a Statement of Intent Concerning the Development of Multisectoral Cooperation between our countries. Many Russian companies, including oil companies and others such as Russian Railways, signed agreements - both framework and contractual - on implementing joint projects. The railway sector was in particularly high demand. Then the Arab Spring came. I mentioned earlier how the West criminally and deceitfully carried out an act of aggression in violation of a UN Security Council resolution followed by the events the consequences of which are being felt to this day. All these years, Russia has been involved in international efforts to reconcile eastern and western Libya. We maintained relations with both. Our position has remained unchanged. There is the Libyan National Army, with which we never broke off relations. In Tripoli, there is the interim Government of National Unity, which was supposed to operate for one year, but has already exceeded that mandate multiple times over. Nevertheless, we support the continuation of a dialogue between western and eastern Libya and their efforts to reach an agreement on how to live together in a single country. Our companies stand ready to fulfill all agreements with their Libyan partners. First, there were hostilities followed by a ceasefire, which is thankfully holding. Of course, there is still not enough stability to resume practical cooperation projects. The dialogue continues, and we maintain contacts. I hope that one day Libya will return to a full-fledged peaceful life. Question: You talked about the United Nations today. Many Arab countries pin their hopes on Russia and China these days when discussing regional matters within the UN, including when it comes to the way the UN Security Council votes with calls to reform the organisation becoming increasingly frequent. What is Russia's position in this regard? Sergey Lavrov: The UN Security Council is an instrumental body. Refraining from abusing one's mandate is another matter, especially for a permanent member of the UN Security Council. The only reason why the parties agreed to vest the P5 members with veto power consisted of preventing the UN from following the League of Nations in its footsteps when no one bore any responsibility for the way it voted. Today, the European Union - and sorry for bringing up this structure - wants to switch to voting on its decisions. This way, it will adopt its decisions on major matters by voting. This includes matters of war and peace. They want to deny European Union members their veto power, which primarily targets countries like Hungary and Slovakia, the ones that want peace, not war. By using their veto power, since the consensus rule basically consists of vesting every country with veto power, they have been preventing the European Union from turning into a war machine instead of seeking to deliver on the promise of creating the economic and social heaven on Earth. This is what Ursula von der Leyen and other Fuhrers standing at the helm of the European Union are after. Veto power within the UN Security Council is also designed to prevent excesses on behalf of its permanent members. As for Palestine, by the way, we have been talking about "Arab Affairs." When Israel launched its operation following the October 7, 2023, terrorist attack, Russia submitted five draft resolutions, including co-sponsored by our Chinese friends to the UN Security Council setting forth the demand to stop the bloodshed immediately and sit down at the negotiating table, but every time the Americans used their veto power. This happened under the Joe Biden administration. In fact, every time they voted this way, they offered a carte blanche to continue a practice which is designated as collective punishment as per the international law. Only recently, under the administration of the current President of the United States Donald Trump, ten non-permanent members of the UN Security Council submitted a draft resolution on the need to enact a ceasefire, achieving a truce and respecting humanitarian pauses. But the United States was strongly against it. Several other Western countries opposed this decision as well. Unfortunately, the West has long since embarked on what has been quite a successful push to privatise, so to say, the UN Secretariat, which is basically a technical body. According to Article 100 of the UN Charter, the UN Secretariat must remain impartial without seeking or receiving instructions from any government. In addition, there is an agreement to abide by the principle of fair geographic representation within the Secretariat so that every country is represented in keeping with specific criteria. For example, you can have a certain person joining the Secretariat. Suppose he or she comes from a developing country, be it in Asia, Africa or Latin America. This person signs a permanent contract with the Secretariat, which is something we opposed even back in the Soviet era in order to prevent the Secretariat from becoming too rigid in its operations. However, the West has managed to institutionalise these permanent contracts by voting. So, once a person signs this permanent contract, we must understand that he or she has a family and children who go to school, and after that they enrol in universities, while this person keeps his money with one of the US banking institutions. As times go by, he or she gets a green card, and then goes on to become a US citizen which changes the designation in the Secretariat's ledger to "African country/US." It is quite clear whom this person will take his or her cues from in this situation. This effort to privatise has already gone too far and transcended all reasonable boundaries. There are five or six key positions, including the UN Secretary-General and his under-secretaries in various domains who control the money flows, contributions, etc., and they all come from NATO countries. Russia has always advocated within the Security Council for taking into consideration the opinion of countries representing the region in question. There is one Arab country on the UN Security Council at all times. Right now, this is Algeria. In December 2025, its term as a non-permanent member expires, and Bahrain will take its place. We already know this. The vote has taken place. We will always seek to ensure that their opinion counts. Here is my advice for our Arab friends for ensuring that this is the way others view them too. Ideally, the country representing the Arab world on the UN Security Council could be vested with an informal mandate by the Arab League to decide on matters of principle for the Arabs, since it would be impossible to cover all possible issues. This would be very important. This is what I had to say about the Security Council. From a broader perspective, in terms of Russia's relations with the Arab world outside of the United Nations, here is what I wanted to mention. Arab countries have demonstrated a lot of interest towards the SCO. Right now, six countries, i.e., Egypt, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar and Bahrain, are SCO's dialogue partners. This is much more than simply coming to its meetings, attending them, listening, making a statement and leaving. They have been proactive in contributing to SCO projects. At this stage, President Vladimir Putin has been pushing for establishing a Greater Eurasian Partnership as part of the Eurasian concept. This would lay the foundation for a Eurasian security architecture, which would create a link between the security situation in our part of the continent with security across the Eurasian space. This way, security would no longer operate as an exclusive Euro-Atlantic apanage, as during many decades. There was a time when Russia worked with the Euro-Atlantic community and the OSCE, and within the Russia-NATO Council, and thought that everything was fine. But things took a turn for the worse. We overlooked the pan-continental aspects of security. Moreover, NATO is now saying that its objective consists of ensuring security for its member countries, while the threats it is facing are coming from the South China Sea. They were the ones to say this. They have been proactive in expanding their infrastructure in Eurasia's eastern part. This is why these are important matters. Of course, this goes beyond the United Nations, but this does matter in the context of shaping the Greater Eurasian Partnership as a tangible foundation and building a pan-continental security architecture. Our Arab colleagues have a lot of potential for working on these processes, we believe. This will be one of the topics on the agenda of the first Russia-Arab Summit. Question: China announced the Global Governance Initiative at the SCO Summit it hosted. Sergey Lavrov: This was the right thing to do, as we have said. To ensure greater justice within the global governance framework, Russia stands ready to work with its partners in China who put forth this initiative in order to better understand their vision. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Indra 2025: servicemen of two countries undergo practical exercises 09 October 2025 02:32 As part of the Indra 2025 joint Russian-Indian exercise, soldiers had drills at the Mahajan training ground in the Indian state of Rajasthan to run through an obstacle course and train tactical firing. The classes took place in conditions of high temperatures characteristic of the region. At the firing line, the servicemen carried out combat firing from various positions: prone position and sitting behind shelters with a change of firing positions. The strikes were aimed at dynamic targets simulating a mock enemy. While passing the assault obstacle course, the servicemen had to consistently overcome more than ten obstacles. During the training, the Indian servicemen demonstrated how to overcome the most difficult areas of the course. The drills allowed Russian servicemen not only to practise special skills in difficult climatic conditions, but also to share their experience with Indian partners. The Indra 2025 joint Russian-Indian exercise will last until 15 October this year. Its main purpose is to improve the interaction between the units of the two countries in the fight against international terrorism, including improving counter-terrorism tactics. Particular attention will be paid to increasing interoperability of units and sharing best practices in combat operations in modern conditions. Servicemen of the Eastern Military District take part in the exercise from the Russian side. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Statement: Shadow Fleet Task Force Republic of Estonia - Ministry of Foreign Affairs 10.10.2025 | 09:43 On October 8, 2025, Canada and Denmark convened a meeting of the Shadow Fleet Task Force. The following statement was jointly decided by participating members of the G7 and the Nordic-Baltic 8++: Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, European Union, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Further to a commitment made by G7 Foreign Ministers in March 2025, we, members of the G7 and the Nordic Baltic 8++ Shadow Fleet Task Force, met today to enhance our cooperation and move forward to further disrupt and deter the global shadow fleet engaged in illegal, unsafe or environmentally perilous activities. This builds on recent meetings of the NB8++ Shadow Fleet Experts Group. The Task Force represents a response to International Maritime Organization (IMO) Resolution A.1192(33) of 6 December 2023 calling on Member States and all relevant stakeholders to promote actions to prevent illegal operations in the maritime sector by shadow fleets, including illegal operations for the purposes of evading compliance with safety or environmental regulations, avoiding insurance costs, circumventing sanctions, or engaging in other illegal activities. These illegal operations pose significant risks to the safety of global shipping and to fragile marine and coastal environments. We remain deeply concerned by the rise of unsafe and illicit shipping practices by certain operators, with the willing collaboration or negligent oversight of certain state actors, such as the use of older, underinsured, and poorly maintained ships that routinely disable or manipulate their automatic identification systems to circumvent G7+ sanctions, and the use of stateless or falsely flagged vessels. We reaffirm our shared commitment to uphold international law, as reflected in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. We recognize and underline the important role of flag states, flag registries, port states and coastal states, as well as international and regional organizations, in preventing illegal operations, and call for further collective action to ensure proper control of safety, security, environmental and insurance requirements, in accordance with relevant IMO and International Labour Organization conventions and resolutions. We will continue to advance our modalities for swift information-sharing to inform our sanctions development and other policy responses. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address China sharpening forces for possible future attack, Taiwanese report says Beijing is using war games and patrols to hone the military and online efforts to spread disinformation, Taiwan's defense ministry says. By RFA staff 2025.10.09 -- China is growing more aggressive in its military activities near Taiwan and also in its online efforts to weaken Taiwanese trust in government, the island's defense ministry said on Thursday. In a new edition of a report released every two years, the defense ministry said that Beijing is sharpening its ability to stage a surprise attack against the democratically governed island, which China claims as its territory. The report cited seven rounds of major Chinese war games around the island since 2022 and other non-combat operations known as grey zone tactics as forms of military pressure on Taiwan. "The Chinese communists have adopted grey zone harassment tactics, combined with joint combat readiness patrols, targeted military exercises and cognitive warfare, posing a comprehensive threat to us," the report said. Among the Chinese operations reported earlier this year were a live-fire exercise off the coast of the Taiwanese port city of Kaohsiung, amphibious landing exercises in the South China Sea, and a series of sorties in the Taiwan Strait. Online, China is using artificial intelligence tools to search for security vulnerabilities and employing a "professional cyber army" to spread disinformation and sow discord, the report said. Earlier this year, RFA's Asia Fact Check Lab reported on Chinese digital influence campaigns in Taiwan and groups that communicated through online polls, influencers and cross-strait collaborations. For its part, Taiwan has toughened its language about China this year, with President Lai Ching-te in March calling Beijing a "foreign hostile force" intent on "absorbing" the island. Taiwan's own military exercises were broadened this year and included simulating a response to an amphibious invasion of the Penghu Islands. Includes reporting by Reuters. Copyright 1998-2025, 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 October not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address "Taiwan independence" forces' so-called indigenous submarine no match for PLA: Defense Spokesperson Ministry of National Defense of the People's Republic of China Source China Military Online EditorLiu Sen 2025-10-10 18:55:12 BEIJING, Oct. 10 -- "The 'Taiwan independence' forces' so-called 'indigenous' submarine, an exorbitantly costly patchwork assembled at great expense, would be no match for the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA)," said Senior Colonel Jiang Bin, spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense (MND), at a press briefing on Friday. According to reports, the first submarine reportedly built in China's Taiwan region, named Hai Kun, has encountered technical difficulties during construction and may not be delivered as scheduled. When being asked to comment on this, Spokesperson Jiang Bin emphasized that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities, disregarding the safety and well-being of the people in Taiwan, are squandering the taxpayers' hard-earned money in an attempt to seek "independence through military means". Persisting on this perilous path of harming, endangering, and ruining Taiwan will only push the island into the abyss of disaster. "The 'Taiwan independence' forces' so-called 'indigenous' submarine, an exorbitantly costly patchwork assembled at great expense, would be no match for the Chinese PLA. Such overconfidence is sheer folly and will ultimately lead to their own destruction," stressed the spokesperson. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address How Russia Targets Trains In Effort 'To Paralyze' Ukraine's Logistics By Rostyslav Khotin, RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service and Ray Furlong October 09, 2025 Summary Russia has intensified attacks on Ukraine's rail infrastructure, targeting trains, stations, and substations. Ukraine's railways remain critical for military logistics, economic exports, and humanitarian aid despite disruptions. Over 220 strikes on railway infrastructure have been recorded in the past two months, causing delays and rerouting efforts. Glass crunched underfoot as the RFE/RL camera operator passed through the charred carriage. At the end of the corridor, twisted wreckage smoldered. The Russian attack on a passenger train at Shostka, in northeastern Ukraine, on October 4, was the latest in a series of strikes at trains and rail infrastructure which have caused deaths, damage, and disruption. "Russia's desire is obvious: to paralyze Ukrainian logistics, because a significant portion of cargo, including military cargo, uses rail transport," former Ukrainian Infrastructure Minister Volodymyr Omelyan said in an interview with RFE/RL's Ukrainian Service. "We have seen strikes on railway depots, and rolling stock has also been damaged. Railway substations are the target of constant attacks," he added. Ukraine's rail network, and keeping it running, have been a major source of national pride, economic necessity, humanitarian transport, and a critical lifeline in a war effort that has lasted almost four years. Despite daily air attacks around the country by Russian drones and missiles, trains ferrying military equipment and troops, humanitarian missions to get food to war-torn regions, and cargo cars filled with grain and other exports to keep money flowing into Kyiv's coffers have managed to run continuously. An estimated 60-65 percent of the country's economic output still moves via rail despite the perils brought about by the war. Even world leaders have taken to Ukrainian trains to meet officials in an area where air travel is impossible. The strategic importance hasn't been lost on Moscow's military leadership. A Systematic Campaign Early on in the war, Ukraine's railways were largely left alone. Analysts say Russia likely thought the war would be quick so there was no need to unnecessarily damage key infrastructure. Russia did target Ukrainian railways at times, as witnessed by a deadly strike at Kramatorsk station in April 2022 that sparked global condemnation. But this year, Ukrainian officials say it has become a systematic campaign. Hours after the Shostka attack, Ukrainian Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko wrote on social media that "Russians have entered a new stage of barbarism" with repeated attacks since the summer. "Over the past two months alone, 220 Russian strikes on railway infrastructure including trains, stations, and electricity substations have been recorded," she wrote. Railway hubs have become a particular target. "There is a greater concentration of rolling stock at hub stations, and logistics are more complicated there - so hitting hub stations looks more attractive to the Russians," said Omelyan. The exact extent of the disruption is unclear. Svyrydenko said Ukraine's state-owned rail company was adjusting routes in frontline regions and using replacement buses on others. In fact, it has been doing so for some time. 'A Typical Night' On September 17, for example, the Visit Ukraine tourism website noted "night shelling caused damage to the railway" causing changes on six major routes serving regional centers including Dnipro and Kherson. That day, Ukrainian railways chief Oleksandr Pertsovsky noted on Facebook "a typical day - or rather night - for Ukrainian railways. The Dnipro line of the railway is hit and de-energized by a Russian drone attack." "Reserve locomotives are on standby, locomotive crews are leaving, they will help minimize delays and traditionally - get everyone to their destination!" Pertsovskyi added. Nearly half of Ukraine's network is electrified. But power outages make it impossible for electric locomotives to operate, and Ukraine has a limited and ageing stock of diesel-powered train engines. Recognizing the importance to act quickly, Ukraine's Budget Committee in August approved an expansion of a reserve fund that Pertsovskyi said allows the government to "swiftly fund critical repairs and make quick allocations to support Railways' operational needs." Russia's attacks strike military and economic blows. Military equipment is imported into Ukraine and transported within it by rail. This also applies to military vehicles. In parts of eastern Ukraine, where fighting is most intense, the roads are in such poor condition that rail connections are even more important to keep things moving. The railways are used to transport metals and iron ore to the western border and to ports in the south. Freight trains also transport grain. All of these are strategic products, the export of which helps to sustain Ukraine's war effort. The campaign of strikes also make rail travel a risky undertaking for both ordinary Ukrainians and visiting Western politicians. "This is terrorizing people. It causes constant disruptions to passenger traffic. And in addition to the attacks on cities, all this adds even more instability," said Serhiy Vovk, head of the Center for Transport Strategies, a Kyiv-based consultancy. "When a train is knocked off its schedule due to damage, it has a domino effect on other train routes, because the schedule is designed in such a way that trains do not stand idle for long," he told RFE/RL. On October 8, the impact of the relentless campaign continued. Ukrainian railways reported "enemy attacks" had led to delays, cancellations, and route changes of numerous trains. The previous day, the regional military administration in Poltava said direct hits and falling debris had caused damage and fires on buildings and rolling stock. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russia-targets-trains- paralyze-ukraine-war/33554435.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The military can now submit ratings and feedback on drones via DOT-Chain Defence Ministry of Defence of Ukraine 9 October, 2025, 10:35 AM EEST The DOT-Chain Defence weapons marketplace has launched a rating system, allowing the military to rate ordered drones and provide feedback on their use in combat. The new option will help military units make better-informed procurement decisions choices will be based not only on technical specifications but also on real combat experience. Each authorized user can submit a rating on a five-point scale from 1 (unsatisfactory) to 5 (excellent). Reviews may note both the strengths and weaknesses of drones, as well as the specifics of their use in field conditions, ease of operation, build quality, resilience to electronic interference, and other operational aspects. At present, ratings are visible only to the military; manufacturers will be granted access at a later stage. This will enable manufacturers to engage directly with end users and respond to comments from military personnel. The rating system was introduced at the request of service members, who were the first to participate in the pilot project. In general, this marks just the first step based on the list of proposals gathered during visits to brigades and surveys of service members. As a reminder, the Ministry of Defence's decision to implement DOT-Chain Defence simplified procurement processes and increased the autonomy of military units. The military can now order the UAVs they need without lengthy approvals or paperwork the process takes just a few clicks in the system. The Defence Procurement Agency (DPA) of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine handles financial, legal, and logistical processes, thereby significantly reducing delivery times to an average of 10 days. Over the course of two months of the system's operation, military units ordered nearly 17,000 drones worth approximately UAH 600 million. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukrainian Parliament regulates matters on the dispatch and presence of Armed Forces of Ukraine units abroad Ministry of Defence of Ukraine 9 October, 2025, 2:45 PM EEST Today, the Verkhovna Rada approved the Presidential Decree on the dispatch of units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine to other countries. "The Decree, in particular, provides for sending our military units to Turkey and the United Kingdom to service our naval vessels," said Minister of Defence of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal. He thanked Members of Parliament for their support of this decision. A total of 321 service members will be dispatched. All units remain under the command of the Ukrainian Navy. "The adoption of the draft law will help deepen our cooperation with allies and bolster security in the Black Sea and throughout Europe. This will, in turn, enhance the capabilities of the Ukrainian Navy," emphasized Denys Shmyhal. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Ukraine and Germany's Defence Ministries agree on long-term partnership in digitalisation Ministry of Defence of Ukraine 9 October, 2025, 4:58 PM EEST The Ministry of Defence of Ukraine has signed an additional agreement with Germany's Federal Ministry of Defence on cooperation in defence-sector digitalisation for 2026-2028. It provides for financial support of key projects such as DELTA, Army+, Reserve+, and other initiatives aimed at the digital transformation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. "This agreement sends a clear signal that support for the digitalisation of the defence sector continues to grow. It confirms that our allies recognise that technology ensures a significant advantage on the battlefield. We are grateful to our partners for their long-term cooperation in the digitalisation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine," emphasised Oksana Ferchuk, Deputy Minister of Defence of Ukraine for Digital Development, Digital Transformation, and Digitalisation. The strategic partnership defines the following key areas of cooperation: Support for the development, testing and technical maintenance of the Army+ and Reserve+ apps. Functionality enhancement, scaling, and protection of the DELTA combat system infrastructure. Expansion of the digital ecosystem: digitalisation of personnel, asset, and logistics management; the DOT-Chain Defence marketplace; the Armed Forces Medical Information System (MIS AFU); and other related initiatives. Enhancing cybersecurity capabilities, particularly through the expansion of the Ministry of Defence's Cyber Incident Response Centre. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address President Held Conversation with Leader of Czech Parliament Election-Winning Party, Andrej Babis President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 15:13 President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy held a phone conversation with Andrej Babis, leader of the party that won the recent parliamentary elections in the Czech Republic. The Head of State congratulated Andrej Babis and his party on their electoral victory and wished them success. Andrej Babis praised Volodymyr Zelenskyy's leadership and the bravery of the Ukrainian people in their struggle against Russian aggression. He stressed the importance of achieving a just peace as soon as possible. The President provided an update on Ukraine's diplomatic efforts to secure peace in cooperation with the United States, Europe, and other countries, as well as on the overall diplomatic situation. Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Andrej Babis agreed to discuss further cooperation during a personal meeting in the near future. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Dobropillia Counteroffensive Has Thwarted Russia's Summer Offensive Campaign - the President President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 11:21 The Dobropillia counteroffensive is very challenging, yet timely and successful, as it has thwarted Russia's summer offensive campaign. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated this while speaking with journalists. According to the Head of State, since the start of the operation on August 21, Russia has lost 12,000 troops, including 7,000 killed. "The most important point is that this operation of ours has disrupted all the plans that the Russians communicated to the American side, claiming they would supposedly occupy the Donbas - most of it - specifically by November. Initially, they said September, then pushed the deadline to November. This operation undoubtedly affects the defense of Pokrovsk. Understanding the heavy losses they suffered in Dobropillia, the Russians are now tasked with urgently taking Pokrovsk - at any cost," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. The Head of State also shared that, in the Kupiansk direction, the Special Operations Forces, Center of Special Operations "A" of the Security Service of Ukraine, and assault units are carrying out counter-sabotage measures. In the Lyman direction, Ukrainian troops have held back Russian forces in recent days and are regaining lost positions. At the same time, the President emphasized that the situation remains intense in the Novopavlivka direction, where Russia has concentrated four of its armies. Ukrainian defenders have completely cleared four villages of the occupiers, and fighting continues for the remaining four. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Volodymyr Zelenskyy: According to Our Data, Russia's Gasoline Shortage Is up to around 20% of Needs President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 11:11 After Ukrainian strikes, Russia faces a gasoline shortage of roughly 20% of its needs, and a ban on exports of gasoline and diesel is now in force in the Russian Federation. President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this while speaking with journalists. The Head of State stressed that Ukraine's strikes deep inside Russia are a response to Russia's daily attacks on Ukraine's critical infrastructure and civilian targets. The President is convinced that sanctions pressure and Russia's inability to continue financing the war can force it to stop. "We understand that Ust-Luga and Primorsk are now within reach. What happened, in my view, is really a major success. According to our data, the enemy's gasoline shortage is up to around 20% of needs; estimates vary from 13 to 20% - but it is confirmed that the shortage is already significant. In our view, it is about 20% today," Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted. The President also emphasized that Russia has begun importing gasoline from Belarus and China. In particular, Russia has increased imports from Belarus sixfold and removed import duties. In addition, a ban on exports of gasoline and diesel is currently in effect in the Russian Federation. "The enemy must bear the cost of this war. But we do not kill civilians. Ukrainian forces carry out only precision strikes exactly at the assigned targets," the Head of State stressed. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Next Week, the Ukrainian Team Is Visiting the United States - the President President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 11:00 Communication with the United States continues at various levels, and next week a Ukrainian delegation is visiting the U.S. This was announced by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy. According to the Head of State, the delegation will be led by Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko and will include the Head of the Office of the President, Andriy Yermak, and the Advisor - Commissioner of the President for Sanctions Policy, Vladyslav Vlasiuk. "Topics include air defense, energy, and sanctions steps, as well as the negotiation track. The issue of frozen assets will also be discussed with the U.S.," the President noted. Volodymyr Zelenskyy emphasized that Ukraine supports the proposals of U.S. President Donald Trump that could help bring the war to an end and is ready for the dialogue format that President Trump has declared. At the same time, Russia has shown no intention of peace and only continues to intensify its attacks on Ukraine in an attempt to portray supposed success. "I believe our meeting, combined with the actual facts, has given him (President Trump - Ed.) a broader understanding that the Russians are "selling" him something they are not capable of delivering - in other words, they are blatantly lying. I don't see any demonstration of real strength from the Russians today. What they're doing are terrorist acts - killing civilians, striking energy facilities, railways, and so on," the Head of State stressed. Volodymyr Zelenskyy underlined that Russia is trying to impose ultimatums through massive attacks. But Ukraine seeks a just peace - and therefore, there must be a just dialogue. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address The Task Now Is to Be Significantly More Active in Everything Related to the Preparation and Execution of Long-Range Sanctions Against Russia - Address by the President President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 19:43 I wish you health, fellow Ukrainians! The main points for today. Military issues. We discussed in great detail with the military leadership the employment of our long-range weapons - the use of our missiles, the use of our drones. Some issues concerning production, delivery to the armed forces, and crew training. The task now is to be significantly more active in everything related to the preparation and execution of long-range sanctions against Russia. The more effective Ukraine is in long-range capabilities, the sooner we will be able to achieve peace. The quality of Ukrainian long-range weapons is becoming substantially higher - we are working on this constantly, and we have already provided many different opportunities specifically for production, the necessary funding, and all the support required. We must also substantially scale up their employment. We have clear plans for this in the coming months. Everything must be implemented. Ukrainian precision is already evident, it needs to increase further. This is absolutely fair that Ukraine strikes back with precise, targeted attacks, and unlike Russia, we know exactly what we aim to achieve. Peace, of course. We are not waging war for the sake of war, as Russia does. Even Hamas shows deal-making acumen, but not Putin. For now. Together with our partners, we are creating the conditions to compel Russia to peace. And it will happen. We support all global diplomatic efforts aimed at achieving peace in the Middle East, and we strongly expect that just pressure on Russia will bring peace to Ukraine and to our entire region as well. It is important that the leadership of the United States continue to be effective. Today, I held a meeting with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine and the diplomatic team of the Office to discuss the drafts of our resolutions and documents in international organizations that are to be adopted later this year. I instructed them to engage partners to the fullest extent possible, our key partners, to ensure continued global support for our initiatives. This concerns, in particular, such sensitive issues as the return of Ukrainian prisoners, all those held in Russia. And we know of people who have been in captivity since 2014. This also concerns the children abducted by Russia - time is passing far too quickly, and it is not just every year but every month that matters for each child separated from their family and from their native environment - from Ukraine. We know a lot about Russia's utterly totalitarian programs to re-educate children so that they are willing to fight even against their true homeland, against their real home. Thousands of such Ukrainian children are in the occupied territories and in Russia. And I thank everyone who is working with us to bring them home. These are many different countries - from Canada to Qatar - that are helping us. Our coalition for the return of our Ukrainian children already includes more than 40 countries, as well as the European Union and the Council of Europe. And it is important that our joint efforts yield results. I have also scheduled a meeting for tomorrow to audit all of this year's agreements with our partners: what has been achieved, what has been implemented, and what still needs to be implemented. Ukraine's foreign policy in recent years has been significantly more active than ever before. And we must ensure that every meeting and every agreement delivers real results for Ukraine, and that everything we agreed on with leaders is actually carried out at the level of our teams. As a result of this foreign-policy audit, there will be corresponding conclusions and directives for the next three months. Arms for Ukraine, financing, support for the energy sector, all forms of pressure on Russia, and the negotiation track - these are the key priority areas. I expect a report from each institution: the Government, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defense, the Office, and the NSDC. Today, I also held a meeting with the Prime Minister of Ukraine, the Minister of Energy, and the head of NJSC Naftogaz on the main issues of our preparations for winter and, of course, on recovery in the regions after the Russian strikes. Each morning brings new tasks for our energy workers and repair crews. Russian strikes do not stop. Civilian infrastructure, energy infrastructure are the Russians' primary targets. We will counter them. We are countering them. And it is important that our partners are ready to help us. We determined who to contact and what exactly must be achieved in the coming weeks. Work at the community and regional level must also be carried out by everyone. Otherwise there will be conclusions regarding the performance of the responsible leaders. Glory to Ukraine! NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Office of the Military Ombudsman Represented Ukraine for the First Time at the International Conference of Ombuds Institutions for the Armed Forces President of Ukraine 9 October 2025 - 18:00 Presidential Commissioner for the Protection of the Rights of Military Personnel and Their Families Olha Reshetylova (Kobylynska) took part in the International Conference of Ombuds Institutions for the Armed Forces (ICOAF), which this year was held in Johannesburg, South Africa. Olha Reshetylova represented the newly established Office of the Military Ombudsman - the youngest institution at the conference. The event was also attended by Yurii Kovbasa and Olga Strepochenko, representatives of the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights. "Any armed forces exist and are maintained by the state to defend it, to be ready for war in a critical moment. The military ombudsman institutions are not created to weaken the army with restrictions or strict rules, but to strengthen it - through the protection of human rights and the promotion of the values in which democratic societies believe," said Olha Reshetylova. The Presidential Commissioner emphasized, in particular, that every military ombudsman institution must have a plan for peacetime, for the transition period, and for wartime. The only communication strategy that truly works during war, she noted, is trust. "For a military ombudsman, it is critically important to communicate in a way that makes people perceive them as one of their own. And for that, presence is key - constant presence 'in the field,' numerous personal visits, and sincere, human conversations. Trust is not built through slogans or campaigns. It grows through actions, results, and personal contact. When a soldier knows that their problem will be heard, that someone will help, then they are ready to listen to everything else - about responsibility, equality, and respect," she added. Olha Reshetylova also took part in discussion panels and had the opportunity to speak with military ombudsmen from more than 40 countries, including representatives from the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, and Norway. The military ombudsmen noted that Ukraine is the first country in the world to establish a Military Ombudsman's Office during wartime. On September 19, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a decree establishing the Office of the Military Ombudsman and appointed Olha Reshetylova as the first military ombudsman. Earlier, the Parliament had approved the law on the military ombudsman. According to the legislation, the new institution must be established within one year. The Office of the Military Ombudsman is currently in its final stage of formation. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address russians launched massive attacks on eight regions and Kyiv, killing a child, says Ihor Klymenko on the consequences of the enemy shelling Ukraine Government Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ukraine, posted 10 October 2025 11:03 It was a difficult night for the country: russians launched massive attacks on eight regions and the city of Kyiv. A child was killed and more than 20 people were injured. The enemy targeted energy facilities, civilian infrastructure, and residential buildings. "From the first minutes after the strikes, the emergency services of the Ministry of Internal Affairs were operating in a coordinated manner. Operational headquarters are working in each region to ensure a rapid response to calls. Work is continuing to eliminate the consequences of the shelling in Kyiv, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipropetrovsk, Kirovohrad, Cherkasy, and Chernihiv regions," the Minister said. Ihor Klymenko also reported that more than 1,200 State Emergency Service specialists and 200 units of specialized equipment have been deployed. Reserves were determined as well: another 1,000 rescuers and 200 units of equipment. If the situation worsens, they will be sent to the sites of the damage. Rescuers are using robotic equipment and remote foam generators at high-risk sites. Unfortunately, repeated threats are complicating firefighting efforts. "Since night, reinforced police crews have been working in each affected region - the number of personnel involved has been doubled. This is especially true in settlements where there is no electricity supply. At the sites of the strikes, headquarters have been set up to record statements from those affected," added Ihor Klymenko. Invincibility Centers have been set up at the territorial units of the State Emergency Service and the police. Citizens can use everything they need, including light, communication, and heat. For several weeks now, the russians have been doing everything they can to plunge the country into darkness. For the fourth year in a row, Ukrainians have been proving every day that the occupiers' terror is powerless against unity. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko: Emergency restoration work has begun following a massive attack on energy infrastructure Ukraine Government Department of Information and Public Communications of the Secretariat of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine, posted 10 October 2025 10:44 Today, October 10, Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko summoned a meeting with key ministries, public electricity companies, and services responsible for the restoration of critical infrastructure. Following a massive combined attack by russia targeting civilian infrastructure, particularly energy facilities, in all regions of Ukraine, restoration work began after the air raid sirens went off. "Russians have once again struck at Ukraine's civilian infrastructure a deliberate attack on the lives of people and communities. This was among the largest combined strikes on our energy system, with a significant share of ballistic missiles. Unfortunately, the damage to energy facilities is substantial," emphasized Yulia Svyrydenko. At the meeting, reports were heard from the Deputy Prime Minister for the Restoration, the Minister of Energy, and the Minister of Internal Affairs on the aftermath of the attack and the restoration plan. Repair crews, energy workers, and all necessary services are operating since 7:30 a.m. accross all affected regions. Instructions have been issued for every oblast to ensure coordinated recovery efforts to restore power and water supply as quickly as possible. In Kyiv and Kirovohrad region, water supply is expected to be restored by the end of the day. Critical infrastructure has already been reconnected in the capital, while work to restore electricity supply is ongoing. The Ministry of Energy shall provide updated information in a few hours. Emergency and special outage schedules remain in effect in Kyiv, Poltava, Kharkiv, and Sumy regions - the announcements will be made by the Ministry of Energy and Ukrenergo. Alternative energy sources have been provided for the duration of the work: generators, emergency shelters, and additional communications. In Kyiv and other regions, police patrols have also been reinforced to maintain security and public order in the streets and in the pubic transport. The Prime Minister stressed the importance of maximum coordination among local authorities, communities, and energy companies with central authorities to ensure effective emergency work. "I am grateful to everyone who is tirelessly working to restore power and normal life for our citizens," added Yulia Svyrydenko. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Parliamentary Secretary A. Ursulskis reaffirms Latvia's commitment to continued comprehensive support for Ukraine Republic of Latvia - Ministry of Foreign Affairs 10.10.2025 On 10 October 2025, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Parliamentary Secretary Artjoms Ursulskis met with representatives from the Chernihiv Municipality, the Chernihiv Ombudsman's Office, and specialists from Ukraine's Resilience Centres. From 6 to 12 October, the delegation is in Latvia for training and an exchange of experience within the framework of a Latvian-supported project for the reconstruction of Ukraine's Resilience Centres. The Parliamentary Secretary expressed his gratitude to the Ukrainian partners for their contribution, courage, and determination to serve their communities under wartime conditions. He reaffirmed Latvia's readiness to continue providing comprehensive support to Ukraine, including strengthening the Resilience Centres that offer direct assistance to women and children. A. Ursulskis emphasised that fostering societal resilience is one of Latvia's key priorities in its support for Ukraine. He highlighted in particular the importance of cooperation with partners who provide psychological and social assistance to those affected by the war. The Ukrainian delegation expressed appreciation for the consistent support provided by the Latvian government, society, and non-governmental organisations. The experts stressed the practical value and inspirational impact of such visits and training programmes for their ongoing work in Ukraine. The project to support Resilience Centres, launched in 2025 with a total value of EUR 400,000, is coordinated by the Central Finance and Contracting Agency (CFLA) and implemented by the non-governmental society "Centrs MARTA". The project includes the renovation of premises in the village councils of Kulykivka and Honcharivske, as well as training of the Ukrainian specialists. It contributes to the initiative "How Are You?" by Ukraine's Ministry of Social Policy and the First Lady of Ukraine, which promotes mental health and improves access to community support. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address US Ambassador Whitaker Says Trump Has 'Many' Cards To Bring Peace To Ukraine By Zoriana Stepanenko October 10, 2025 US Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker says President Donald Trump has "a lot more" cards to play to bring Russia to peace talks with Kyiv as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned what he called a "cynical and calculated" attack by Moscow that left parts of the capital without power. Zelenskyy said on October 10 that Russia had launched more than 450 drones and over 30 missiles across Ukraine and emphasized that "civilian and energy infrastructure...is the main target of Russia's strikes ahead of the heating season." He urged stronger international support, saying, "together, we can protect people from this terror. What's needed is not window dressing but decisive action -- from the United States, Europe, and the G7 -- in delivering air defense systems and enforcing sanctions." Speaking to RFE/RL in Brussels, Whitaker said that both sides in the nearly four-year-old conflict will have to make concessions to bring about peace. "There are almost, I don't want to say unlimited cards, but certainly there are a lot more, a lot again, consequences for not doing a peace deal that could be brought to bear against the Russians," he said. Zelenskyy has been looking for Trump to ratchet up pressure on Moscow to end its war -- the longest and deadliest conflict in Europe since World War II -- against Ukraine. Trump has said he could impose sanctions on Russia to stop the fighting but without similar actions from Europe, "we're all wasting a lot of time." Whitaker echoed the president's words, saying that sanctions against India for buying Russian oil, the opening of weapons stockpiles in the production capacity to Ukraine, and other measures have increased pressure on Moscow. But he added pushing Moscow to the negotiating table has to be a joint effort, meaning Europe must also take action. "Instead of...asking what the United States is going to do, I would prefer to ask what we all are going to do because Europe is consequential," he said, noting that some European countries need to wean themselves off of Russian oil. "We need to help them make that transition, the EU is very crucial to that as well." Air Attacks On Kyiv As diplomats continue to seek ways to put peace talks back on track, many residents of Kyiv were digging out of the rubble after another massive wave of air attacks. A drone set apartments on fire on the 6th and 7th floors of a high-rise block in a central district, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of Kyiv's military administration, adding that both drones and missiles had been deployed in the assault. RFE/RL Ukrainian Service correspondent Maryan Kushnir spoke to residents as firefighters battled the blaze in a central district of the Ukrainian capital. "There's no electricity at all. When [firefighters] were putting out the fire, there was still power in the house, then it went out, then came back on, and then it went out completely across the whole district," one woman in the capital told RFE/RL. Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy Klitschko said 12 people had been injured, with eight of them taken to the hospital. He said there were power outages in the eastern districts of the city. "The left bank of the capital is without electricity. There are also problems with water supply," Klitschko said on Telegram. The Energy Ministry said in a post on social media that at mid-afternoon, power outages continued around Kyiv, as well as in Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, and Zaporizhzhya. According to a Telegram post by Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Oleksiy Kuleba, the water supply has been restored for two million people in Kyiv, though approximately 4,000 buildings remain without water. "Despite major infrastructure damage, restoration efforts are underway across the country, with repair crews working tirelessly to restore electricity and water to homes as quickly as possible," he stated, just hours after Russia's massive strike on Ukraine's energy facilities. Russia has consistently denied targeting civilian installations in Ukraine despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. The Ukrainian Air Force described the attack as "massive" as multiple explosions and the sound of drones were heard over the capital. In the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhya, drones struck several targets overnight, killing a 7-year-old child, the regional governor said. "Tragic news. A 7-year-old boy who was wounded in a nighttime Russian attack has died in hospital," Ivan Fedorov said on Telegram. Fedorov said earlier that the drone strike triggered at least one fire in a dwelling. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-kyiv- attack-drones-energy-grynchuk/33556046.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address IAEA Says Process To Restore External Power To Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Plant Has Begun By RFE/RL October 10, 2025 The process to restore external power to the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant in southeastern Ukraine has started, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said on October 9. The process began after "intensive consultations" with authorities in Ukraine and Russia, Rafael Grossi said in a statement. The nuclear power plant has been under Russian control since shortly after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. It has relied on emergency diesel generators since September 23 when external power lines were cut. Since then Grossi has been engaging with Russia and Ukraine on proposals aimed at enabling the plant to receive the offsite power it needs to cool its six shutdown reactors and its spent fuel, the IAEA statement said. The focus has been on creating the necessary security conditions for repairs to be carried out on the damaged sections of two power lines located on opposite sides of the front line near the power plant. "While it will still take some time before the grid connection of the Zaporizhzhya Nuclear Power Plant has been restored, the two sides have engaged with us in a constructive way to achieve this important objective for the sake of nuclear safety and security," Grossi said in the statement. Each side regularly accuses the other of military actions compromising nuclear safety, and Grossi has repeatedly warned about the risk of a nuclear accident caused by fighting near the plant. The plant's nuclear reactors have been shut down, but the plant still requires electricity to maintain safety functions such as cooling the reactors. Russia's state nuclear corporation Rosatom has previously said it wants to restart the plant. But earlier on October 9, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov was quoted by Interfax as saying there were no grounds to restart it for now in the absence of an external power source. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy last week expressed concern about the situation at the Chernobyl nuclear power station in northern Ukraine after a drone attack on the nearby town of Slavutych cut off power to the decommissioned plant for three hours. The Chernobyl plant, site of the world's worst nuclear accident, remains without an external power line, Grossi said in the statement on October 9. Ukraine has said the plant is being supplied by other power sources. Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-russia-war-nulcear- power-plant-zaporizhzhya-iaea-grossi/33555736.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Melania Trump Says 8 Ukrainian Children Reunited With Families Following Talks With Putin By RFE/RL October 10, 2025 US first lady Melania Trump said eight Ukrainian children have been reunited with their families in the past 24 hours in an "ongoing effort" that follows three months of direct communication with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Melania Trump said Putin had responded to her letter, which raised the plight of children in Ukraine and Russia and was delivered by President Donald Trump to his Russian counterpart during their meeting in Alaska in August. "He responded in writing, signaling a willingness to engage with me directly and outlining details regarding the Ukrainian children residing in Russia," she told reporters at the White House on October 10. "Russia has demonstrated a willingness to disclose objective and detailed information reflective of the current situation," Melania Trump added. She then announced that eight of the Ukrainian children had already been reunited with their families, adding that she was provided with a "detailed report" about them. "We must foster a future for our children that is rich with potential, security, and complete with free will," she said. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 has since brought thousands of Ukrainian children into Russia and Russian-controlled territories in Ukraine. The International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants in 2023 for Putin as well as Russia's commissioner for children's rights, Maria Lvova-Belova, in connection with the deportation of Ukrainian children. Russia denied wrongdoing and claimed it was evacuating Ukrainian children from conflict zones to give them protection from war. Earlier in 2025, Kyiv estimated that more than 19,500 Ukrainian children were being held by Russia. In their meeting on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly at the end of September, Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska thanked Melania Trump for her "support of Ukraine" and "particular attention to children who became victims of Russia's brutal war." Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/us-russia-ukraine-melania-trump- children/33556589.html Copyright (c) 2025. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Hundreds of missiles delivered to Ukraine months ahead of schedule as UK leads Kyiv trade delegation Press release Crucial missiles for Ukraine are months ahead of their delivery schedule, as the Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard, led a UK trade delegation visit to Kyiv. From: Ministry of Defence and Luke Pollard MP Published 10 October 2025 Hundreds of air defence missiles delivered five months early, with production creating UK jobs. Follows Ukraine's largest drone producer investing 200m to build drones in Britain, creating 500 jobs. Comes as the UK leads trade delegation to Kyiv to increase military support for Ukraine. The missiles, manufactured in Belfast are used to defend Ukraine's airspace and have been delivered five months ahead of schedule under the UK gifting programme. The same weapons, known as Lightweight Multirole Missiles (LMM), have offered Ukraine protection against threats since Russia launched its illegal invasion in February 2022. The announcement comes as Belfast based Thales moves to the next phase of work with their Ukrainian partners. The latest phase of a 1.6 billion deal signed earlier in the year will enable those battle winning missiles to be integrated further into Ukraine's air defence system, in a significant step for Ukraine's own sovereign capabilities. The ongoing missile manufacturing work in the UK is directly creating 200 jobs as well as supporting a further 700 existing roles, driving economic growth and delivering on the Government's Plan for Change. Minister for Defence Readiness and Industry, Luke Pollard MP said: The UK is stepping up our ironclad commitment to help Ukraine defend itself against Russia's illegal invasion. This year alone we are spending 4.5 billion on military support for Ukraine, more than ever before. It was an honour to lead this trade delegation to Kyiv, and to see so many other countries participating in the event. Driving industrial partnerships is essential so that we can learn from their expertise and together build the industrial base we need to defend the UK, deter our adversaries and support Ukraine. Businesses from NATO countries attended Ukraine's International Defence Industry Conference, demonstrating a united multinational industrial front with global allies and deepening industrial cooperation and military support in the face of Russia's continued invasion. Deeper international collaboration between companies of all sizes is critical to Ukraine's long-term defence industrial resilience and bolstering its efforts in the war. The industry forum saw hundreds of attendees come together to showcase the collective support for Ukraine. Trade missions between the UK and Ukraine have already resulted in more than 30 joint ventures and partnerships, leading to jobs, prosperity and reinforced security in both nations. Kevin Craven, CEO of ADS said: The UK's defence industry stands united in our efforts to increase production capacity, develop innovative new capabilities, and build a resilient industrial ecosystem that endures against the most trying of circumstances. In what has been the most multinational trade mission to Kyiv of its kind, it has been an honour for industry to lead the UK in engaging both within Ukraine and with our Ukrainian counterparts. This week has been a stark reminder of the need to increase our industrial support and capacity across Europe. As illegal Russian aggression continues to intensify, European nations must come together and deepen their support. Continued industrial collaboration, both with our government counterparts and international allies, remains the only way we can secure a safe and prosperous future for the people of Ukraine. The partnership with Ukraine has resulted in major investment by Ukraine's largest drone manufacturer into the UK, as Ukrspecsystems will invest 200 million in two new facilities in the UK, creating 500 high-skilled jobs and boosting economic growth. This week's trade delegation visit follows a groundbreaking new technology sharing agreement, Programme LYRA, that will see UK will manufacture and jointly develop cutting-edge military equipment with Ukrainian industry, supporting hundreds of British jobs and strengthening both UK and Ukraine's national security. This agreement recently saw an industrial partnership between the UK and Ukraine to jointly develop an advanced new air defence interceptor drone, named Project OCTOPUS. It will lead to the UK mass producing thousands of drones per month to provide Ukraine support in its ongoing fight for freedom. These interceptor drones are considerably cheaper than regular air defence missiles and are highly effective in countering the waves of one-way attack drones Russia continues to launch at Ukrainian cities. As part of the historic UK-Ukraine 100 Year Partnership, UK Defence Exports (UKDE) has created the 'Working with Ukraine's Defence Sector' guide for SMEs. This first-of-its-kind resource provides comprehensive guidance on procurement pathways, coalition and donor mechanisms, partnership models, and contact points. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Andrii Sybiha condemns another Russian terrorist attack on critical civilian infrastructure of Ukraine Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine 10 October 2025 09:09 Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andrii Sybiha: "Russian terrorists struck critical civilian infrastructure, particularly energy, across Ukraine with hundreds of drones and missiles. I urge all partners to respond strongly. Putin did this on October 10ththe anniversary of the first massive attack on Ukraine's energy infrastructure in 2022. This is a deliberate demonstration that he has not changed his aggressive actions, terrorist methods, and ultimatums in three years, and he continues to reject any meaningful diplomacy and peace efforts. Russia is worse than HAMAS. Even HAMAS has agreed to a ceasefire and peace efforts. To the contrary, Moscow continues the senseless war it beganthe war it cannot and will not win. As a result of this massive strike, a 7-year-old boy was killed in Zaporizhzhia, and dozens more civilians have been injured across the country. In Kyiv, Kharkiv, Poltava, Zaporizhzhia, Dnipro, and other regions, many people remain without power following Russian strikes on civilian energy objects. Our energy workers are true heroes, who are now working to restore power, but we also require increased energy assistance from our partners. Depriving people of energy amid dropping autumn temperatures amounts to genocide under Article II (c) of the Genocide Convention: creating unbearable conditions of life in order to destroy a national group. Pressure on Moscow is the only recipe that can work, but it needs to be strong and consolidated. Economic pressure of biting sanctions, military pressure of stronger support for Ukraine, and political pressure of full isolation. Putin must feel that the cost of continuing the war exceeds the cost of stopping it. He must feel that continuing this war endangers his regime". NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Participation in PURL, defence industry cooperation and joint drone production: Sergiy Boyev meets with Finland's National Armaments Director Ministry of Defence of Ukraine 10 October, 2025, 1:18 PM EEST Ukraine's Deputy Minister of Defence Sergiy Boyev held talks with Finland's National Armaments Director, Olli Ruutu, on expanding industrial cooperation between the two countries. First and foremost, the Deputy Minister of Defence briefed the Finnish side on Ukraine's needs, particularly for the winter period. He emphasised that air defence and missile defence systems, associated missiles, drones, and ammunition remain among the top priorities. "We are grateful to Finland for its active stance and support since the first days of the full-scale invasion. Maintaining the current level of defence support next year is vital for us to address ongoing challenges effectively," underlined Sergiy Boyev. He noted that countering enemy strike UAVs and scaling up the production of interceptor drones remain among the significant challenges. These issues are particularly urgent in light of the increased intensity of the aggressor's attacks on civilian infrastructure. Finland's National Armaments Director, Olli Ruutu, reaffirmed his country's full support for Ukraine. He emphasised the readiness of the Finnish industry to supply weaponry under the 'New Europe' initiative, including ammunition, IT solutions and other defence products. The Ukrainian side, in turn, invited Finland to take part in the PURL initiative aimed at procuring U.S.-made weapons. Furthermore, the parties discussed the possibility of supplying specific models of Finnish weaponry to Ukraine, including radar systems. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Christine Lagarde Discussed the Fair Use of Frozen Russian Assets to Defend Against Russia's War and Rebuild Life in Ukraine President of Ukraine 10 October 2025 - 14:41 President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy had a phone call with President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde. The Head of State informed her about the overnight Russian attack and strikes on Ukraine's energy system. Russia launched more than 450 drones and dozens of missiles, including ballistic ones. Repair crews and power engineers are currently working across various regions to restore normal life. According to the President, it is important to truly hold Russia accountable for prolonging the war and attempting to destroy life. The parties discussed how to ensure the fair use of frozen Russian assets to protect against Russia's war and to help rebuild life in Ukraine. There are solutions for how this can be done. Volodymyr Zelenskyy thanked Christine Lagarde for her support. The Head of State emphasized that sufficient political will is needed in Europe, as most of these assets are concentrated there. He added that the majority of partners support Ukraine's position on this matter, and therefore Ukraine counts on action. Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Christine Lagarde agreed to work closely together with other European leaders. NEWS LETTER Join the GlobalSecurity.org mailing list Enter Your Email Address TORONTO, Oct. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Revival Gold Inc. (TSXV: RVG, OTCQX: RVLGF) (Revival Gold or the Company) wishes to update its shareholders on details regarding the Company's upcoming annual general and special meeting, which is to be held at the offices of Peterson McVicar LLP, at 110 Yonge Street, Suite 1601, Toronto, ON M5C 1T4 on November 20, 2025 at 10:00 A.M. (Toronto time) ("Meeting"). The Company confirms the availability of its meeting materials and wishes to advise its shareholders, due to the Canada Post mail strike, of alternative ways to vote their shares for the Meeting. The Meeting is being held for the following purposes: (a) to receive the Companys financial statements for the years ended June 30, 2025, and 2024, and the report of the auditors thereon; (b) to set the number of directors of the Company at seven (7); (c) to elect the directors of the Company for the ensuing year; (d) to appoint MNP LLP, Chartered Accountants, as the auditors of the Company for the ensuing year and to authorize the directors to fix their remuneration; (e) to consider and, if deemed advisable, to pass, with or without variation, an ordinary resolution to re-approve the Companys 10% rolling stock option plan for the ensuing year; and (f) to transact such further and other business as may be properly brought before the meeting or any adjournment thereof. Electronic copies of the Notice of Meeting, Circular, form of proxy and all other proxy-related materials ("Meeting Materials") have been filed and are available under Revival Golds SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca and are posted under the heading "Investors" on the Company's website at https://revival-gold.com/agm-materials/. Shareholders are encouraged to access the Meeting Materials via SEDAR+ and the Company's website, or to contact the Company at info@revival-gold.com or (+1) 416-366-4100 to obtain copies. Shareholders are not required to be present at the Meeting and can vote their shareholdings in advance of the Meeting. All proxies must be received by the Company's transfer agent, Computershare Investor Services Inc., by 10:00 am (Toronto Time) on November 18, 2025. Registered shareholders may vote online at www.investorvote.com, or vote by telephone by following the instruction on the form of proxy. Registered shareholders who require their voting control numbers may obtain the voting control numbers by calling Computershare at 1-800-564-6253 (toll-free in North America) or 1-514-982-7555 (international direct dial). Beneficial holders should contact their brokerage house or depositary company directly, as each intermediary has its own form of proxy return instructions. Copies of the Company's audited financial statements and management discussion and analysis for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2025 and June 30, 2024 (collectively, the "Financial Statements and MD&A") have been filed and are available on the Company's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca. The Company will provide physical copies of the Financial Statements and MD&A to shareholders upon request by email at info@revival-gold.com. Following the conclusion of the mail strike, shareholders requesting Financial Statements and MD&A will be delivered those documents in the ordinary course. The Company has complied with the filing requirements for proxy-related materials in Section 9.3 of National Instrument 51-102 - Continuous Disclosure Requirements and has posted them on its website. Due to the ongoing Canada Post strike, delivery of printed copies to certain registered shareholders may be delayed. Shareholders are encouraged to access the materials online and may vote their shares electronically or by telephone, without using the mail, as described in this news release. In the event the postal strike is ended prior to the Meeting, the Company will mail printed copies to registered shareholders who request them as soon as practicable. The Company confirms it is satisfied all the conditions to rely, and is relying, on the exemption from the requirement to send proxy-related materials in the Canadian Securities Administrators Coordinated Blanket Order 51-932 - Re Temporary Exemption from requirements in National Instrument 51-102 Continuous Disclosure Obligations and National Instrument 54-101 Communication with Beneficial Owners of Securities of a Reporting Issuer to send certain proxy-related materials during a postal suspension (the Order). In the event that the mail strike ends prior to the Meeting, the Company will mail the Meeting Materials in accordance with the Order, but there can be no assurance that the Meeting Materials will be received by the shareholders prior to the Meeting. About Revival Gold Inc. Revival Gold is one of the largest, pure gold mine developers in the United States. The Company is advancing development of the Mercur Gold Project in Utah and mine permitting preparations and ongoing exploration at the Beartrack-Arnett Gold Project located in Idaho. Revival Gold is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange under the ticker symbol RVG and trades on the OTCQX Market under the ticker symbol RVLGF. The Company is headquartered in Toronto, Canada, with its exploration and development office located in Salmon, Idaho. For further information, please contact: Hugh Agro, President & CEO or Lisa Ross, Vice President & CFO Telephone: (416) 366-4100 or Email: info@revival-gold.com Cautionary Statement 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 press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). Forward-looking statements are not comprised of historical facts. Forward-looking statements include estimates and statements that describe the Companys future plans, objectives or goals, including words to the effect that the Company or management expects a stated condition or result to occur. Forward-looking statements may be identified by such terms as believes, anticipates, expects, estimates, may, could, would, will, or plan. Since forward-looking statements are based on assumptions and address future events and conditions, by their very nature they involve inherent risks and uncertainties. Although these statements are based on information currently available to the Company, the Company provides no assurance that actual results will meet managements expectations. Risks, uncertainties, and other factors involved with forward-looking statements could cause actual events, results, performance, prospects, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to: statements regarding the status and potential impact of the Canada Post mail strike and the timing of the resumption of regular postal service and related mailing of printed materials and the conduct and timing of the Meeting. Forward-looking statements and information involve significant known and unknown risks and uncertainties, should not be read as guarantees of future performance or results and will not necessarily be accurate indicators of whether or not such results will be achieved. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from the results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements or information, including, but not limited to: the status and duration of the Canada Post mail strike and related disruptions to shareholder communications and voting; the availability, performance and acceptance of electronic voting channels and third-party service providers, the Company's ability to finance the development of its mineral properties; uncertainty as to whether there will ever be production at the Company's mineral exploration and development properties; risks related to the Company's ability to commence production at the projects and generate material revenues or obtain adequate financing for its planned exploration and development activities; uncertainties relating to the assumptions underlying resource and reserve estimates; mining and development risks, including risks related to infrastructure, accidents, equipment breakdowns, labour disputes, bad weather, non-compliance with environmental and permit requirements or other unanticipated difficulties with or interruptions in development, construction or production; the geology, grade and continuity of the Company's mineral deposits; the uncertainties involving success of exploration, development and mining activities; permitting timelines; government regulation of mining operations; environmental risks; unanticipated reclamation expenses; prices for energy inputs, labour, materials, supplies and services; uncertainties involved in the interpretation of drilling results and geological tests and the estimation of reserves and resources; unexpected cost increases in estimated capital and operating costs; the need to obtain permits and government approvals; material adverse changes, unexpected changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with the company to perform as agreed; social or labour unrest; changes in commodity prices; and the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations. For a more detailed discussion of such risks and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements, refer to other risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Companys public filings with Canadian securities regulators, including its most recent annual information form and managements discussion and analysis, available at www.sedarplus.ca. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release. Except as required by law, the Company disclaims any intention and assumes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Additionally, the Company undertakes no obligation to comment on the expectations of, or statements made by, third parties in respect of the matters discussed above. ORANGE, Calif. , Oct. 10, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Chapman University formally inaugurated Matt Parlow as its 14th president during a distinguished investiture ceremony held Friday, October 10, in the Musco Center for the Arts. The ceremony served as the centerpiece of a weeklong celebration honoring Chapmans legacy, community, and enduring commitment to academic excellence. Faculty, staff, students, alumni, friends, trustees, and delegates from universities across the world gathered for the historic occasion, which paid tribute to centuries of academic tradition and pageantry. The event also recognized Presidents Emeriti James Doti and Daniele Struppa, both in attendance, whose leadership helped shape the universitys modern era and who, along with Parlow, demonstrate Chapmans continuity and strength of leadership. Following a retrospective of his 20-year career in higher education, including more than 12 years at Chapman as dean of the Fowler School of Law, Parker S. Kennedy Chair in Law, and later executive vice president and chief advancement officer, Parlow was formally presented with the Presidential Medallion and University Mace. In his inaugural address, President Parlow emphasized the transformative power of education and reaffirmed Chapmans mission to empower students and advance social mobility. A college degree is inextricably linked to the American Dream, Parlow said. The indisputable truth is that there is no better way to achieve social mobility than through an education. Drawing on his own familys experiences, Parlow highlighted how higher education uplifts generations. We have experienced that transformative effect of a college degree to lift up hardworking families and provide better opportunities for the next generation. He concluded with a call to action for the Chapman community to continue advancing the universitys mission, Together, we will provide the transformative educational experience that will advance social mobility, contribute significantly to society, open up even greater opportunities for our students and alumni, and take Chapman to new heights. A Week of Dialogue, Discovery, and Inspiration The investiture ceremony was part of a weeklong series of events designed to reflect Chapmans scholarly depth and impact. The series began with Emmy, Peabody, and Webby Award-winning actor, writer, and producer Keegan-Michael Key, who joined Parlow and Chapman students for a lively fireside chat exploring creativity, storytelling, the importance of higher education, and the power of humor to connect people. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate and Chapman Presidential Fellow Nadia Murad followed with an inspiring conversation with Wilkinson College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences Dean Jennifer Keene, sharing her remarkable journey of survival, advocacy, and hope for a more peaceful and compassionate world. A panel discussion on Understanding and Addressing the Effects of Adverse Childhood Experiences brought together leading researchers and practitioners, including Dr. Dan Cooper (Professor of Pediatrics, UC Irvine), Dr. Laura Glynn (Professor of Psychology, Chapman University), Dr. Pete Simi (Professor of Sociology, Chapman University), and Dr. Michael Weiss (Vice President of Population Health, CHOC). The discussion was moderated by Dr. Kelli Fuery (Professor of Creative and Cultural Industries, Chapman University) and featured a keynote address by California Surgeon General Dr. Diana Ramos. In another highlight, Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law, joined Chapmans Vikki Katz, the Fletcher Jones Foundation Endowed Chair in Free Speech, for a timely and engaging discussion on free speech and civil discourse in higher education. The series concludes next week with inventor and entrepreneur Palmer Luckey, founder of Anduril Industries and creator of the Oculus Rift, in conversation with Parlow on innovation, leadership, and the future of technology in business. Inauguration events were thoughtfully planned to demonstrate Chapman's academic and scholarly richness, diversity of thought and student centricity. The events wove together important university and presidential priorities, including highlighting students talent and success; building on our academic excellence; supporting interdisciplinary collaborations; fostering community engagement and bridge building; and deepening our commitment to free speech and civil discourse. Broadcast-quality video and high-resolution photos are available by clicking here. Assets include: Broadcast-quality b-roll of the investiture ceremony Soundbites from President Matt Parlows remarks High-resolution photography from the event About Chapman University Founded in 1861, Chapman University is a nationally ranked private university in Orange, California, about 30 miles south of Los Angeles. Chapman serves nearly 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students, with a 12:1 student-to-faculty ratio. Students can choose from over 100 areas of study within 11 colleges for a personalized education. Chapman is categorized by the Carnegie Classification as an R2 high research activity institution. Students at Chapman learn directly from distinguished world-class faculty including Nobel Prize winners, MacArthur fellows, published authors and Academy Award winners. The campus has produced a Rhodes Scholar, been named a top producer of Fulbright Scholars, and hosts a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, the nations oldest and most prestigious honor society. Chapman also includes the Harry and Diane Rinker Health Science Campus in Irvine. The university features the No. 4 film school and No. 66 business school in the U.S. Learn more about Chapman University: www.chapman.edu. Media Contact: Bob Hitchcock, Director of Strategic Communications rhitchcock@chapman.edu 407-388-4657 PRESS RELEASE Bloomberg (THEON:NA) / Reuters (THEON.AS) 11 October 2025 Theon International Plc (THEON) has entered into a denitive agreement with HLD Europe SCA, Invest Prince Henri SCA and Invest Gamma Sarl, investment companies belonging to Groupe HLD (HLD), to purchase a 9.8% stake in Exosens SA (EXOSENS) for a cash consideration of 268.7 million corresponding to 54.0 per share. EXOSENS is a leading French company specializing in advanced electro-optical technologies, including light amplication, detection and imaging systems. Following the completion of the transaction, THEON will become the second largest shareholder in EXOSENS, after Groupe HLD. The closing of the transaction remains subject to regulatory notications in a selected number of countries, and is expected to take place in early Q1 2026. In connection with the transaction, UBS Europe SE and Citibank Europe PLC have agreed to provide a bridge facility, which is intended to be renanced with a combination of debt and newly issued equity within existing shareholders authorizations, to maintain a solid and exible capital structure. UBS Europe SE acted as sole nancial advisor to THEON, while Clifford Chance provided legal advice. Christian Hadjiminas, Founder and CEO of THEON, commented: THEON and EXOSENS have been close commercial partners for years, having been awarded landmark contracts in Europe and Middle East. THEON remains committed to maintaining its long- standing commercial relationship with EXOSENS, which remains governed by existing contractual arrangements. For inquiries, please contact: Investor Relations Nikos Malesiotis E-Mail: ir@theon.com Tel: +30 210 6772290 Media Contact Elli Michou E-Mail: press@theon.com Tel: +30 210 6728610 About THEON GROUP THEON GROUP of companies develops and manufactures cutting-edge night vision and thermal Imaging systems for Defense and Security applications with a global footprint. THEON GROUP started its operations in 1997 from Greece and today occupies a leading role in the sector thanks to its international presence through subsidiaries and production facilities in Greece, Cyprus, Germany, the Baltics, the United States, the Gulf States, Switzerland, Denmark, Belgium, Singapore and South Korea. THEON GROUP has more than 220,000 systems in service with Armed and Special Forces in 71 countries around the world, 26 of which are NATO countries. RNATIONAL PLC has been listed on Euronext Amsterdam (AMS: THEON) since February 2024. www.theon.com Attachment SINGAPORE, Oct. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- On October 10, 2025, the cryptocurrency market witnessed an unprecedented crash as Bitcoin and other digital currencies plummeted following a series of economic measures by the U.S. President Donald Trump. His decision to impose additional tariffs on China sparked panic within the crypto space, leading to some altcoins crashing by more than 70%. 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Website: www.bexback.com X(Twitter): https://x.com/BexbackOfficial Official Telegram Group: https://t.me/BexBack Contact: Amanda business@bexback.com Disclaimer: This content is provided by BexBack. The statements, views, and opinions expressed in this content are solely those of the content provider and do not necessarily reflect the views of this media platform or its publisher. We do not endorse, verify, or guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of any information presented. We do not guarantee any claims, statements, or promises made in this article. This content is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial, investment, or trading advice. Investing in crypto and mining-related opportunities involves significant risks, including the potential loss of capital. It is possible to lose all your capital. These products may not be suitable for everyone, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved. 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We do not assume any responsibility or liability for the accuracy, content, images, videos, licenses, completeness, legality, or reliability of the information presented herein. Any concerns, complaints, or copyright issues related to this article should be directed to the content provider mentioned above. Photos accompanying this announcement are available at: https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b7b9c260-043c-46d0-a48a-239153f40a7a https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/440154af-967f-4914-bfe4-370113b07fed https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2e1f673a-21d0-459f-b336-28ea5acc1437 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/f1fed277-091f-44ba-aaab-b04de7ed487 https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/0d2214dc-d705-417d-9139-b58def6e12a8 SAN DIEGO, Oct. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP announces that purchasers or acquirers of Dow Inc. (NYSE: DOW) securities between January 30, 2025 and July 23, 2025, both dates inclusive (the Class Period), have until Tuesday, October 28, 2025 to seek appointment as lead plaintiff of the Dow class action lawsuit. Captioned Sarti v. Dow Inc., No. 25-cv-12744 (E.D. Mich.), the Dow class action lawsuit charges Dow, The Dow Chemical Company, a Dow subsidiary, as well as certain of Dows executives with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. If you suffered substantial losses and wish to serve as lead plaintiff of the Dow class action lawsuit, please provide your information here: https://www.rgrdlaw.com/cases-dow-inc-class-action-lawsuit-dow.html You can also contact attorneys J.C. Sanchez or Jennifer N. Caringal of Robbins Geller by calling 800/449-4900 or via e-mail at info@rgrdlaw.com. CASE ALLEGATIONS: Dow, through its subsidiaries, provides various materials science solutions for packaging, infrastructure, mobility, and consumer applications. The Dow class action lawsuit alleges that defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Dows ability to mitigate macroeconomic and tariff-related headwinds, as well as to maintain the financial flexibility needed to support its lucrative dividend, was overstated; and (ii) the true scope and severity of the foregoing headwinds negative impacts on Dows business and financial condition was understated, particularly with respect to competitive and pricing pressures, softening global sales, and demand for Dows products, as well as an oversupply of products in Dows global markets. The Dow class action lawsuit further alleges that on June 23, 2025 BMO Capital downgraded its recommendation on Dow to Underperform from Market Perform while also cutting its price target on Dows stock to $22.00 per share from $29.00 per share, citing sustained weakness across key end markets and mounting pressure on Dows dividend. Following this news, Dows stock price fell by more than 3%, the complaint alleges. Then, the complaint further alleges that on July 24, 2025, Dow reported a second quarter of 2025 non-GAAP loss per share of $0.42, significantly larger than the approximate $0.17 to $0.18 per share loss expected by analysts and net sales of $10.1 billion, representing a 7.3% year-over-year decline and missing consensus estimates by $130 million, reflecting declines in all operating segments. Dows CEO, defendant Jim Fitterling, blamed these disappointing results on the lower-for-longer earnings environment that our industry is facing, amplified by recent trade and tariff uncertainties, while providing a dour outlook marked by signs of oversupply from newer market entrants who are exporting to various regions at anti-competitive economics, it is alleged. Dow also revealed that it was cutting its dividend in half, from $0.70 per share to only $0.35 per share, citing the need for financial flexibility amidst a persistently challenging macroeconomic environment, the Dow class action lawsuit further alleges. Following this news, Dows stock price fell by more than 17%, the complaint alleges. THE LEAD PLAINTIFF PROCESS: The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who purchased or acquired Dow securities during the Class Period to seek appointment as lead plaintiff in the Dow class action lawsuit. A lead plaintiff is generally the movant with the greatest financial interest in the relief sought by the putative class who is also typical and adequate of the putative class. A lead plaintiff acts on behalf of all other class members in directing the Dow class action lawsuit. The lead plaintiff can select a law firm of its choice to litigate the Dow class action lawsuit. An investors ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff of the Dow class action lawsuit. ABOUT ROBBINS GELLER: Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP is one of the worlds leading law firms representing investors in securities fraud and shareholder litigation. Our Firm has been ranked #1 in the ISS Securities Class Action Services rankings for four out of the last five years for securing the most monetary relief for investors. In 2024, we recovered over $2.5 billion for investors in securities-related class action cases more than the next five law firms combined, according to ISS. With 200 lawyers in 10 offices, Robbins Geller is one of the largest plaintiffs firms in the world, and the Firms attorneys have obtained many of the largest securities class action recoveries in history, including the largest ever $7.2 billion in In re Enron Corp. Sec. Litig. Please visit the following page for more information: https://www.rgrdlaw.com/services-litigation-securities-fraud.html Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Services may be performed by attorneys in any of our offices. Contact: Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP J.C. Sanchez, Jennifer N. Caringal 655 W. Broadway, Suite 1900, San Diego, CA 92101 800-449-4900 info@rgrdlaw.com NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, continues to investigate potential breaches of fiduciary duties by the directors and officers of Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE: EW). SO WHAT: If you currently own shares of Edwards stock, please visit the firms website at https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=29704 for more information. You may also contact Phillip Kim of Rosen Law Firm toll free at 866-767-3653 or via email at case@rosenlegal.com. 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 achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company at the time. 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 Sunrise, FL, Oct. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Itzhak Itchko Ezratti, founder and chairman of GL Homes, has long been recognized as a leader in Floridas homebuilding industry. Beyond building some of the states most sought-after communities, Ezratti has dedicated his career to ensuring that success is measured not only in homes constructed, but in lives improved through philanthropy and community engagement. Under Ezrattis leadership, GL Homes has become known for its commitment to giving back. Through longstanding partnerships with nonprofit organizations across Florida, Itchko Ezratti has helped address some of the regions most pressing challenges, including hunger, housing, and education. His philanthropic vision has positioned him among Floridas respected philanthropy leaders, shaping stronger, healthier communities throughout South Florida and beyond. One of the companys most impactful initiatives has been its partnership with Feeding South Florida and other hunger-relief organizations. With food insecurity affecting more than one million Floridians, Ezratti and GL Homes have consistently contributed resources and volunteer support to help ensure that families in need have access to nutritious meals. These efforts have brought tangible relief to children, seniors, and working parents across the region. Itchko Ezratti has also made housing stability a priority through support for Habitat for Humanity and similar initiatives. Recognizing that safe, affordable housing is a foundation for opportunity, Ezratti has directed philanthropic contributions that help families achieve long-term stability. These programs extend the reach of GL Homes beyond its own communities, offering second chances and new beginnings for families facing hardship. Education and youth development remain another central focus of Ezrattis philanthropic work. Through GL Homes Philanthropy, he has supported schools and youth-oriented nonprofits across Florida. These investments provide children with vital resources, safe spaces for learning, and mentorship opportunities that prepare them to become the next generation of leaders. By prioritizing education, Ezratti underscores his belief that strong communities are built by empowering young people to thrive. Ezrattis approach to philanthropy goes beyond financial contributions. He has fostered a culture of giving within GL Homes, encouraging employees to volunteer and engage directly with the communities they help serve. This hands-on involvement has amplified the companys impact, turning philanthropy into a shared mission rather than a corporate obligation. Today, Itchko Ezrattis legacy is seen not only in the quality of GL Homes communities, but in the lives touched through his philanthropic leadership. By weaving generosity into the companys foundation, Itchko Ezratti has created a model that blends business success with community responsibility. His efforts continue to shape Floridas philanthropic landscape, ensuring that GL Homes remains a trusted partner in addressing critical needs across the state. As Ezrattis vision is carried forward by the next generation of leadership at GL Homes, his philosophy of integrity, responsibility, and service will continue to define the companys impact. Through philanthropy and community engagement, Itchko Ezratti has demonstrated that true leadership is measured not just in accomplishments, but in the difference made for families and communities across Florida. About GL Homes Founded in 1976, GL Homes is one of the most successful homebuilders in Florida, known for its thoughtfully designed communities, quality construction, and commitment to customer satisfaction. Beyond homebuilding, GL Homes is dedicated to giving back through philanthropic partnerships that support hunger relief, housing stability, education, and community development across the state. Attachment New York City, NY, Oct. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Introduction In 2025, artificial intelligence continues to revolutionize the financial trading landscape, enabling faster, more accurate, and data-driven investment decisions. Finxor GPT emerges as a leading AI-driven platform that integrates advanced algorithmic intelligence with real-time analytics to deliver seamless trading experiences across multiple asset classes. Designed for both individual and institutional investors, the platform leverages machine learning models to optimize trading strategies, execute orders instantly, and mitigate market risks. With verified broker partnerships, global accessibility, and robust security protocols, Finxor GPT exemplifies the convergence of technology and finance , providing investors with a reliable, efficient, and highly automated solution. This article provides a comprehensive overview of Finxor GPT, its key features, underlying AI intelligence, operational mechanics, security measures, and verified performance data, offering insights into why it has become a pivotal tool for modern automated investing. Join Finxor GPT Now Visit Official Website Now What Is Finxor GPT Finxor GPT is an advanced AI-powered trading platform developed to automate investment strategies and streamline financial decision-making. Unlike conventional trading systems, Finxor GPT integrates machine learning algorithms, real-time market analysis, and automated execution to deliver consistently precise trades across a variety of financial instruments, including stocks, forex, commodities, and cryptocurrencies. The platform employs predictive modeling to identify market trends, assess volatility, and optimize trade timing, reducing the reliance on manual intervention. Its architecture is designed to process high-frequency market data with low-latency execution, ensuring that trades are performed at optimal prices. By leveraging deep learning and pattern recognition, Finxor GPT continuously adapts to evolving market conditions, updating its predictive models to enhance decision accuracy. The platform is fully web-based, allowing global access 24/7, and integrates seamlessly with regulated brokers to ensure compliance with international trading standards. Finxor GPT also supports customizable trading parameters, giving investors the flexibility to align automated strategies with their risk tolerance and investment goals. With verified performance metrics and transparent operational processes, Finxor GPT represents a significant technological advancement in algorithmic trading, bridging the gap between data-driven analytics and practical financial execution. Visit the Official Finxor GPT Website Now Key Features of Finxor GPT Accuracy, Speed, and Multi-Asset Trading Access Finxor GPTs architecture is built to combine accuracy, speed, and diversified asset access in a single platform. One of its primary features is precision in trade execution, achieved through high-frequency data analysis and AI-driven predictive models. The system monitors multiple financial markets in real time, analyzing millions of data points, including historical price trends, order book dynamics, and macroeconomic indicators. This enables the platform to execute trades at the most favorable prices while minimizing slippage. Speed is another defining characteristic, as Finxor GPT leverages low-latency algorithms to submit trades within milliseconds, critical for volatile markets where opportunities can appear and disappear rapidly. Furthermore, the platform offers multi-asset trading capabilities, supporting stocks, forex, commodities, indices, and digital currencies, all from a single dashboard. Investors can diversify their portfolios efficiently without switching between multiple brokers or platforms. The platform also integrates real-time analytics dashboards, providing continuous market monitoring and performance tracking. In addition, Finxor GPT features customizable trading strategies, allowing users to define entry and exit conditions, risk thresholds, and allocation percentages, all automated by AI. By combining these capabilities, Finxor GPT enables both active and passive investors to maximize opportunities while maintaining operational transparency and efficiency. Why Traders Trust Finxor GPT Transparency, Speed, and Verified Performance Data Finxor GPTs trustworthiness is rooted in its transparent operational framework and verifiable performance metrics. The platform provides real-time reporting, allowing investors to monitor trades, account balances, and strategy outcomes with full clarity. Each trade executed by the AI system is logged with timestamps, price levels, and execution speed, ensuring complete auditability. Speed is integral to trust, as Finxor GPTs low-latency processing ensures orders are filled promptly, reducing slippage and potential losses during market volatility. Verified performance data is another critical factor; the platform publishes aggregated metrics based on historical and live trading results, enabling investors to assess returns, drawdowns, and risk-adjusted performance without relying on unsubstantiated claims. Finxor GPT also complies with broker and regulatory standards, partnering exclusively with verified financial intermediaries to safeguard investor funds and maintain operational legitimacy. Security protocols, including data encryption and multi-factor authentication, further enhance confidence in the platforms integrity. Through a combination of transparency, rapid execution, and verified performance, Finxor GPT establishes itself as a reliable AI trading solution for investors seeking efficient, accountable, and technologically advanced automated investment strategies. Register on the Finxor GPT trading application Finxor GPT Account Setup Process Step by Step Creating a Finxor GPT account is a streamlined process designed for speed, security, and regulatory compliance. The step-by-step procedure includes: Step 1: Visit the Official Website Navigate to Official website to access the secure registration portal. Navigate to to access the secure registration portal. Step 2: Complete Registration Form Provide personal details including full name, email, phone number, and preferred currency. Provide personal details including full name, email, phone number, and preferred currency. Step 3: Verify Identity Upload government-issued identification and proof of residence to comply with KYC regulations. Upload government-issued identification and proof of residence to comply with KYC regulations. Step 4: Set Up Security Credentials Create a secure password and enable two-factor authentication for account protection. Create a secure password and enable two-factor authentication for account protection. Step 5: Fund Your Account Make an initial deposit, with minimum deposit requirements clearly displayed, via supported payment methods. Make an initial deposit, with minimum deposit requirements clearly displayed, via supported payment methods. Step 6: Configure Trading Preferences Select desired asset classes, risk levels, and automated trading parameters. Select desired asset classes, risk levels, and automated trading parameters. Step 7: Access Dashboard Enter the platforms main dashboard to view analytics, AI signals, and market performance. This structured process ensures regulatory compliance, security, and immediate access to AI-driven trading tools. Investors can also choose to start with a demo account before engaging with live markets, allowing for risk-free strategy testing. How Finxor GPT Uses Algorithmic Intelligence to Execute Profitable Trades Finxor GPT harnesses algorithmic intelligence to analyze vast streams of market data and execute trades with precision. At its core, the platform employs quantitative models that process historical price patterns, trading volume fluctuations, and macroeconomic indicators to predict short-term and long-term market movements. These algorithms assess volatility, liquidity, and momentum signals, generating optimized trading instructions that are executed automatically. By minimizing human intervention, Finxor GPT reduces delays, emotional bias, and manual errors, ensuring consistent, data-driven trade execution. The platforms algorithmic engine is capable of simultaneous multi-market operation, monitoring stocks, forex pairs, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies in real time. It uses pattern recognition and probability modeling to identify high-probability trading opportunities and adjusts strategies dynamically as market conditions evolve. This adaptability ensures that trades are aligned with current market trends, reducing exposure to unexpected volatility. Additionally, Finxor GPT incorporates risk-adjusted trade sizing within its algorithms, automatically calculating position sizes relative to account balance, market conditions, and user-defined risk parameters. The system logs every trade for auditability and post-analysis, providing verified performance data for investors. By combining predictive analytics, automated execution, and risk-sensitive adjustments, Finxor GPTs algorithmic intelligence enables precise, timely, and profitable trades while maintaining transparency and operational integrity. Unlock smarter trading with Finxor GPT Visit the Official Website Here AI Intelligence Behind Finxor GPT How Machine Learning Optimizes Every Trade Finxor GPT integrates machine learning models that continuously learn from historical and live market data to enhance trade efficiency. These models detect subtle market trends, correlations between assets, and recurring patterns that traditional analytical methods may overlook. Each executed trade feeds back into the learning system, allowing the AI to refine predictive algorithms over time. This continuous learning cycle improves trade accuracy, reduces latency, and optimizes risk-return profiles. The platform employs supervised and reinforcement learning frameworks to evaluate trading strategies across different market conditions. Supervised learning allows the AI to compare predicted outcomes with actual market movements, updating models to reduce prediction errors. Reinforcement learning enables Finxor GPT to test multiple strategies in simulated environments, selecting the approaches that maximize returns while minimizing drawdowns. This ensures that the system adapts to changing volatility, economic shifts, and asset-specific behavior. Moreover, machine learning integration supports multi-asset optimization, where correlations between stocks, forex, commodities, and digital currencies are analyzed to create balanced trade allocations. By leveraging predictive accuracy and adaptive intelligence, Finxor GPT continuously refines its strategy execution, providing investors with an AI-driven trading system that operates efficiently, transparently, and with minimal human oversight. How Finxor GPT Works Inside Its AI Algorithms, Smart Automation & Real-Time Analytics Finxor GPT operates through a combination of AI algorithms, smart automation, and real-time analytics dashboards. The AI engine continuously monitors multiple markets, analyzing price trends, order book dynamics, and global economic indicators to detect trading opportunities. Once a favorable opportunity is identified, automated trading protocols execute orders instantly, ensuring minimal latency and optimal pricing. Smart automation allows users to configure specific trading parameters, such as risk thresholds, preferred asset classes, and trade frequency, which the AI strictly follows. This ensures that every trade aligns with predefined investment strategies while maintaining operational flexibility for adjustments. Meanwhile, real-time analytics dashboards provide continuous monitoring of performance metrics, market conditions, and account balances. Investors can track algorithm efficiency, execution speed, and risk exposure in real time without manual intervention. Additionally, Finxor GPTs AI algorithms incorporate dynamic market adaptation, automatically adjusting strategies based on current volatility, liquidity, and historical performance. Data security and integrity are maintained throughout the process, with all trade logs encrypted and accessible for verification. By combining predictive intelligence, automated execution, and actionable analytics, Finxor GPT provides a fully integrated platform for precise, efficient, and fully accountable trading. Visit the Official Finxor GPT Website Now Deposits & Withdrawals Fast, Seamless, and Fully Secure Transactions Finxor GPT supports secure, fast, and seamless deposit and withdrawal processes, ensuring investors can fund and access their accounts efficiently. The platform integrates with verified financial intermediaries and payment gateways, allowing multiple funding options including bank transfers, credit/debit cards, and cryptocurrency deposits. Transactions are processed using advanced encryption protocols to safeguard sensitive financial information, maintaining compliance with international data protection standards. Deposits are reflected in accounts almost immediately, enabling investors to begin automated trading without delays. Withdrawal requests are processed with transparency, and Finxor GPT provides clear timelines for fund transfers. Multi-layer authentication, including two-factor verification, ensures that only authorized account holders can execute transactions, protecting against unauthorized access or fraud. Furthermore, the platform maintains full transaction auditability, logging every deposit and withdrawal for verification and regulatory compliance. Investors can monitor all account movements through the real-time dashboard, with notifications for each completed transaction. By combining speed, security, and traceability, Finxor GPT ensures that financial operations complement its AI trading engine, creating a fully secure and user-friendly investment environment. Why Choose Finxor GPT? Austria Consumer Report Released Here Finxor GPT Demo Account Practice Risk-Free Before Going Live Finxor GPT offers a demo account feature designed to allow investors to familiarize themselves with the platforms tools, AI functionalities, and trading environment without financial risk. The demo account replicates real-market conditions, providing simulated trading data, asset price movements, and order execution similar to the live environment. This functionality ensures users can test AI-driven strategies, monitor algorithmic execution, and understand performance analytics before committing actual funds. Through the demo account, investors can adjust trading parameters, explore multi-asset allocations, and analyze the AIs decision-making in real time. Each simulated trade is logged with identical transparency to the live environment, including execution timestamps, predicted versus actual outcomes, and risk-adjusted trade metrics. This facilitates a thorough understanding of the platforms algorithmic processes, allowing users to evaluate efficiency, execution speed, and predictive accuracy without financial exposure. Moreover, the demo mode integrates risk management tools identical to those in live accounts. Stop-loss thresholds, dynamic position sizing, and market condition alerts can all be tested, enabling users to identify optimal strategy configurations. By providing a fully functional, risk-free environment, Finxor GPT ensures that investors gain confidence, understand AI trading mechanics, and optimize their strategy setup prior to engaging in live markets. This combination of education, testing, and transparency highlights the platforms commitment to operational integrity and user preparedness. Finxor GPT Cost, Minimum Deposit, and Profit Finxor GPT operates on a transparent pricing model , designed to provide accessibility while maintaining platform sustainability. The platform requires a minimum deposit, which is clearly disclosed during account setup, allowing investors of varying scales to access AI-driven trading. Costs are structured around subscription tiers or platform usage fees, ensuring users are aware of their investment obligations prior to initiating trading. No hidden charges are applied, and all transaction-related fees are displayed within the dashboard for full transparency. Profit generation on Finxor GPT is driven by the AIs predictive analytics, algorithmic execution, and real-time market monitoring. The platform does not guarantee specific returns but leverages data-driven strategies to maximize the probability of positive outcomes. Trade allocations, position sizing, and risk management protocols are built into the system to optimize potential returns while maintaining security. Users can track AI-generated profits, trade performance, and account growth via real-time analytics dashboards, which provide detailed breakdowns of gains, losses, and risk-adjusted metrics. In addition, Finxor GPT ensures cost-effectiveness by automating processes that would otherwise require significant manual effort and market analysis. This reduces operational overhead for users, allowing for efficient capital deployment. By combining clear cost structures, accessible minimum deposits, and algorithmically optimized trading potential, Finxor GPT delivers a professional, transparent platform for systematic and efficient investment management. Why Choose Finxor GPT? Germany Consumer Report Released Here Countries Where Finxor GPT Is Legal Finxor GPT operates within the legal frameworks of multiple jurisdictions, ensuring compliance with international financial regulations. The platform partners with regulated brokers and financial institutions to provide AI trading services legally and securely. Legal availability is subject to country-specific regulatory approvals, including adherence to anti-money laundering (AML) protocols, Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements, and other investor protection laws. Currently, Finxor GPT is accessible in major regions including North America, Europe, parts of Asia, and Oceania. Each jurisdiction supported by the platform maintains active regulatory compliance, ensuring that investors can operate with confidence and legality. For countries where direct access is restricted due to local trading laws or cryptocurrency regulations, Finxor GPT provides clear guidance to ensure users remain within legal boundaries. The platform continuously monitors regulatory changes, updating its accessibility protocols and broker partnerships accordingly. Open Your Finxor GPT Account for Free Now Finxor GPT Supported Assets Finxor GPT supports a wide range of tradable assets, designed to accommodate diverse investment strategies and portfolio allocations. The platform includes equities, foreign exchange pairs, commodities, indices, and digital assets, all managed through a unified AI-driven dashboard. This multi-asset access allows users to diversify risk, optimize returns, and capitalize on global market movements efficiently. The AI algorithms integrated into Finxor GPT continuously analyze price trends, volatility, and market correlations across all supported assets. Equities and indices are monitored for corporate and macroeconomic events, forex pairs are assessed for global monetary and trade indicators, while commodities and cryptocurrencies are evaluated based on supply-demand dynamics and historical trends. This ensures the AI is able to identify actionable opportunities across multiple markets simultaneously, applying dynamic asset allocation strategies to balance risk and reward. Why Traders Are Choosing Finxor GPT Over Manual Platforms Finxor GPTs technological framework addresses many limitations of manual trading systems, making it a highly efficient solution for algorithmic investing. The platform automates data analysis, trade execution, and market monitoring, which eliminates delays and errors associated with human intervention. Its AI algorithms operate continuously, ensuring that trading opportunities are identified and acted upon in real time, even when markets are highly volatile. The platforms verified performance metrics and transparency provide traders with insight into algorithm effectiveness, execution speed, and asset allocation efficiency. Unlike manual platforms that rely on individual judgment, Finxor GPT applies machine learning and predictive analytics to optimize each trade according to historical and current market data. Multi-asset integration allows simultaneous monitoring of equities, forex, commodities, and cryptocurrencies, streamlining the investment process within a single interface. Additionally, Finxor GPT incorporates robust security protocols and verified broker partnerships, ensuring that capital is protected and trades comply with international regulations. Automated risk management, customizable strategies, and access to real-time analytics empower traders to execute well-informed, data-driven decisions. By combining these features, Finxor GPT enhances operational efficiency, reduces potential errors, and provides a reliable, technologically advanced alternative to traditional manual trading systems. Final Verdict Why Finxor GPT Is Reshaping the Future of Automated Investing Finxor GPT represents a significant advancement in AI-driven trading , combining real-time analytics, machine learning intelligence, and automated execution to deliver a highly efficient investment platform. Its architecture is engineered to monitor multiple asset classes simultaneously, including equities, forex, commodities, indices, and cryptocurrencies, enabling investors to optimize portfolio allocation and react to market conditions instantly. By integrating predictive algorithms with smart automation, Finxor GPT reduces manual intervention, improves execution speed, and enhances precision across diverse financial instruments. The platforms robust security protocols and verified broker partnerships ensure that all transactions are conducted safely and in compliance with international financial standards. End-to-end encryption, multi-factor authentication, and continuous monitoring safeguard user data and capital, while broker verification guarantees legitimate trade settlement and regulatory adherence. Real-time reporting and trade logs further reinforce transparency, providing investors with actionable insights into execution quality, algorithm performance, and portfolio growth. Additionally, Finxor GPT offers features that enhance operational efficiency, including customizable strategies, risk management tools, and a demo account environment for strategy testing without financial exposure. Global accessibility and 24/7 support ensure uninterrupted AI-driven trading, making the platform adaptable to investors operating across different time zones and market hours. By combining advanced technology, verified performance data, and secure operational infrastructure, Finxor GPT is reshaping automated investing, providing investors with a reliable, data-driven, and fully integrated solution that aligns with the demands of modern financial markets. Visit Here to Register on the Finxor GPT - Select Your Country Here!!! Contact:- Finxor GPT 485 Bd de la Gappe, Gatineau, QC J8T 5T9, Canada Phone Support: Canada: +1 (437) 920-9751 Email: info@finxor-gpt.com Website: https://finxor-gpt.com/ General Disclaimer: The content provided in this article is for informational and educational purposes only. It does not constitute financial, legal, or professional advice. Readers are advised to consult a certified financial advisor, licensed loan officer, or legal professional before making any financial decisions. The information presented may not apply to every individual circumstance and is not intended to substitute professional judgment or regulatory guidance. The information provided on this website does not constitute investment advice, financial advice, trading advice, or any other sort of advice and you should not treat any of the website's content as such. We does not recommend that any cryptocurrency should be bought, sold, or held by you. Do conduct your own due diligence and consult your financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Trading Disclaimer: Trading cryptocurrencies carries a high level of risk, and may not be suitable for all investors. Before deciding to trade cryptocurrency you should carefully consider your investment objectives, level of experience, and risk appetite. The possibility exists that you could sustain a loss of some or all of your initial investment and therefore you should not invest money that you cannot afford to lose. You should be aware of all the risks associated with cryptocurrency trading, and seek advice from an independent financial advisor. ICO's, IEO's, STO's and any other form of offering will not guarantee a return on your investment. HIGH RISK WARNING: Dealing or Trading FX, CFDs and Cryptocurrencies is highly speculative, carries a level of non-negligible risk and may not be suitable for all investors. You may lose some or all of your invested capital, therefore you should not speculate with capital that you cannot afford to lose. Please refer to the risk disclosure below. Finxor GPT does not gain or lose profits based on your activity and operates as a services company. Finxor GPT is not a financial services firm and is not eligible of providing financial advice. Therefore, Finxor GPT shall not be liable for any losses occurred via or in relation to this informational website. SITE RISK DISCLOSURE: Finxor GPT does not accept any liability for loss or damage as a result of reliance on the information contained within this website; this includes education material, price quotes and charts, and analysis. Please be aware of and seek professional advice for the risks associated with trading the financial markets; never invest more money than you can risk losing. The risks involved in FX, CFDs and Cryptocurrencies may not be suitable for all investors. Finxor GPT doesn''t retain responsibility for any trading losses you might face as a result of using or inferring from the data hosted on this site. LEGAL RESTRICTIONS: Without limiting the above mentioned provisions, you understand that laws regarding financial activities vary throughout the world, and it is your responsibility to make sure you properly comply with any law, regulation or guideline in your country of residence regarding the use of the Site. To avoid any doubt, the ability to access our Site does not necessarily mean that our Services and/or your activities through the Site are legal under the laws, regulations or directives relevant to your country of residence. It is against the law to solicit US individuals to buy and sell commodity options, even if they are called "prediction" contracts, unless they are listed for trading and traded on a CFTC-registered exchange unless legally exempt. The Financial Conduct Authority has issued a policy statement PS20/10, which prohibits the sale, promotion, and distribution of CFD on Crypto assets. It prohibits the dissemination of marketing materials relating to distribution of CFDs and other financial products based on Cryptocurrencies that addressed to Austria/Hungary residents. The provision of trading services involving any MiFID II financial instruments is prohibited in the EU, unless when authorized/licensed by the applicable authorities and/or regulator(s). Please note that we may receive advertising fees for users opted to open an account with our partner advertisers via advertisers websites. We have placed cookies on your computer to help improve your experience when visiting this website. You can change cookie settings on your computer at any time. Use of this website indicates your acceptance of this website. Please be advised that the names depicted on our website, including but not limited to Finxor GPT, are strictly for marketing and illustrative purposes. These names do not represent or imply the existence of specific entities, service providers, or any real-life individuals. Furthermore, the pictures and/or videos presented on our website are purely promotional in nature and feature professional actors. These actors are not actual users, clients, or traders, and their depictions should not be interpreted as endorsements or representations of real-life experiences. All content is intended solely for illustrative purposes and should not be construed as factual or as forming any legally binding relationship RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH FUTURES TRADING Futures transactions involve high risk. The amount of the initial margin is low compared to the value of the futures contract, so that transactions are "leveraged" or "geared". A relatively small market movement has a proportionately larger impact on the funds that you have deposited or have to pay: this can work both for you and against you. You may experience the total loss of the initial margin funds as well as any additional funds deposited in the system. If the market develops in a way that is contrary to your position or if margins are increased, you may be asked to pay significant additional funds at short notice to maintain your position. In this case it may also happen that your broker account is in the red and you thus have to make payments beyond the initial investment. RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH ELECTRONIC TRADING Before you begin carrying out transactions with an electronic system, you should carefully review the rules and provisions of the stock exchange offering the system, or of the financial instruments listed that you intend to trade, as well as your broker's conditions. Online trading has inherent risks due to system responses/reaction times and access times that may vary due to market conditions, system performance and other factors, and on which you have no influence. You should be aware of these additional risks in electronic trading before you carry out investment transactions. Accuracy Disclaimer: All information included in this article is presented in good faith and believed to be accurate at the time of writing. However, no representations or warranties are made regarding the completeness, accuracy, reliability, or timeliness of any information presented. Any reliance placed on such information is strictly at the reader's own risk. The publisher does not accept responsibility for typographical errors, outdated information, or changes to products, terms, or policies after publication. Regulatory and Jurisdictional Disclaimer: Lending laws vary by jurisdiction, and not all services described in this article may be available in every state or region. It is the responsibility of the reader to understand and comply with local laws and regulations. The platforms mentioned are independently operated and are not controlled or endorsed by the publisher. Third-Party Liability Waiver: The publisher, its writers, editors, affiliates, and syndication partners shall not be held liable for any direct or indirect loss, damages, or legal claims arising from the use of this content or from reliance on any third-party services, platforms, or products mentioned herein. All loan agreements, terms, and disputes are strictly between the borrower and the lender or service provider. Syndication Partner Use: This content may be republished or syndicated by authorized partners under existing licensing or distribution arrangements. All syndication partners are free from liability regarding the editorial stance, financial suggestions, or any user outcome resulting from the reading or application of this content. Attachment Grid Metals Corp. (TSXV:GRDM) (OTCQB:MSMGF) ("Grid" or the "Company") is pleased to announce a proposed non-brokered private placement for aggregate gross proceeds of up to C$4,027,158 (the "Offering"). The Offering will consist of the issuance of common shares ("Common Shares") to a strategic investor (the "Investor") and an existing institutional shareholder and the issuance of flow-though shares of the Company to charitable purchasers (the "CFT Shares"). The Offering is expected to be completed in two tranches. The first tranche (the "First Tranche") is expected to consist of the issuance of 14,000,000 Common Shares to the Investor at a price of C$0.12 per Common Share for aggregate gross proceeds of C$1,680,000. The second tranche ("Second Tranche") is expected to consist of the issuance of up to 7,060,903 Common Shares to the Investor and an existing institutional shareholder at a price of C$0.12 per Common Share and up to 7,575,000 CFT Shares to charitable purchasers at a price of C$0.198 per CFT Share, for gross proceeds of up to C$2,347,158 under the Second Tranche. Each CFT Share will be issued as a "flow-through share" within the meaning of the Income Tax Act (Canada). Robin Dunbar, CEO of Grid Metals, commented, "Grid Metals is very excited to welcome an investment by a strategic investor to progress our Falcon West Cesium Property. We believe that Falcon West could be a globally important source of cesium to meet the demand for this highly rare and strategic metal in the near future. We look forward to the start of drilling at Falcon West." The gross proceeds of the Offering will be used to finance exploration, primarily at the Company's Falcon West cesium project and within the Bird River Belt in southeastern Manitoba targeting nickel, copper and PGM targets, as well as for general corporate purposes with respect to the proceeds raised from the issuance of Common Shares. There are no warrants or finder's fees associated with the Offering. The proceeds from the issuance of the CFT Shares are intended to be used for exploration of the Company's property portfolio in Manitoba (primarily the Falcon West Cesium Property) and will be used to incur "Canadian exploration expenses" that qualify as "flow-through mining expenditures" as defined in the Income Tax Act (Canada), and for Manitoba purchasers, the CFT Shares will be eligible for the 30% Manitoba Mineral Exploration Tax Credit (the "Qualifying Expenditures"). The Company will renounce all the Qualifying Expenditures in favour of the subscribers of the CFT Shares effective December 31, 2025. The First Tranche and Second Tranche are expected to close on or about October 15, 2025 and October 30, 2025, respectively. Closing of the Offering is subject to customary closing conditions, including the completion of definitive documentation and receipt of applicable regulatory approvals (including approval of the TSX Venture Exchange). The Common Shares and CFT Shares will be subject to a hold period of four months and one day from issuance in accordance with applicable securities laws. In connection with closing of the First Tranche, the Company expects to enter into an investor rights agreement with the Investor, pursuant to which the Company will grant the Investor certain rights, provided that it maintains stipulated ownership thresholds in the Company, including information rights with respect to its properties, participation rights in respect of future equity issuances and the right to nominate a member of the Company's board of directors. The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor shall there be any sale of the securities in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful. About Grid Metals Corp. Grid Metals is focused on exploration and development in southeastern Manitoba with four key projects in the Bird River area. The Makwa Property (Ni-Cu-PGM-Co), which is subject to an Option and Joint Venture Agreement with Teck Resources Ltd. ("Teck"). Teck can earn up to a 70% interest in Makwa by incurring a total of CAD$17.3 million, comprising project expenditures (CAD$15.7 million) and cash payments or equity participation (CAD$1.6 million) with Grid. Makwa is located on the south arm of the Bird River Greenstone Belt. The Mayville Property (Cu-Ni) is located on the north arm of the Bird River Greenstone Belt. The property is owned subject to a minority interest. The Falcon West Property (Li-Cs) is located 110 km east of Winnipeg along the Trans-Canada highway and contains highly anomalous cesium values in a number of historical drill holes including 2.2 m at 15.0% Cs 2 O and 3.2 m at 4.6% Cs 2 O. The Donner Property (Li-Cs) is adjacent to the Mayville Property, and Grid owns 75% of the project. Grid announced a cesium purchase agreement with Tanco on February 18, 2025. All of the Company's southeastern Manitoba projects are located on the ancestral lands of the Sagkeeng First Nation with whom the Company maintains an Exploration Agreement. On Behalf of the Board of Grid Metals Corp. For more information about the Company, please see the Company website at www.gridmetalscorp.com or contact: Robin Dunbar - President, CEO & Director - rd@gridmetalscorp.com Brandon Smith - Chief Development Officer - bsmith@gridmetalscorp.com David Black - Investor Relations - info@gridmetalscorp.com CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWAD-LOOKING STATEMENTS We seek safe harbour. This news release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and forward-looking information within the meaning of the Securities Act (Ontario) (together, "forward-looking statements"). Such forward-looking statements include the Company's closing of the proposed Offering, timing of completion of the closing of the First Tranche and Second Tranche, intended use of proceeds and receipt of regulatory approvals. The overall economic potential of its properties, the availability of adequate financing and involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward- looking statements to be materially different. Such factors include, among others, risks and uncertainties relating to potential political risk, uncertainty of production and capital costs estimates and the potential for unexpected costs and expenses, physical risks inherent in mining operations, metallurgical risk, currency fluctuations, fluctuations in the price of nickel, cobalt, copper and other metals, completion of economic evaluations, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, the inability or failure to obtain adequate financing on a timely basis, and other risks and uncertainties, including those described in the Company's Management Discussion and Analysis for the most recent financial period and Material Change Reports filed with the Canadian Securities Administrators and available atwww.sedparplus.ca. Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulations Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release. Not for distribution to United States Newswire Services or for dissemination in the United States SOURCE: Grid Metals Corp. CALGARY, Oct. 10, 2025 - Bocana Resources Corp. (TSXV: BOCA) (Frankfurt: VC1) ("Bocana" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an arm's length non-binding letter of intent (the "LOI") dated October 6, 2025 for a proposed equity investment interest in Venture Gold, Inc, a corporation formed under the laws of the State of Nevada ("Venture Gold or "VG") for a direct investment into VG's treasury, with VG retaining ownership of all its properties and using the investment proceeds exclusively for development and exploration of the properties and related working capital needs, for a total investment of up to US$20,000,000 (the "Transaction"). The Transaction is expected to also be made through the newly formed joint venture entity, Arizore LLC, a limited liability company registered in the state of Nevada. This joint venture to finance and complete the Transaction is still under review by the TSXV. The Transaction Pursuant to the LOI, and subject to the negotiation and execution of a definitive investment agreement ("Definitive Agreement"), the satisfaction or waiver by Bocana of any conditions precedent, and receipt of all required regulatory and third-party approvals, Bocana intends to subscribe for and receive a substantial interest in newly issued shares of VG that are issued and outstanding on a fully-diluted basis immediately following such investment and the exact amount to be disclosed once a binding Definitive Agreement has been reached. The transactions contemplated by the LOI are subject to the following conditions: The entering into of a Definitive Agreement in respect of the Transaction between Venture Gold and Bocana. The Definitive Agreement will describe the terms and conditions upon which the Transaction will be completed; Confirmation to Venture Gold that Bocana has obtained financing to cover the Transaction; the completion of satisfactory due diligence by Bocana; and regulatory approvals, including but not limited to the TSX Venture Exchange. A negotiated finder's fee is expected to be paid in connection with the Transaction. About Venture Gold Venture Gold is focused on the redevelopment of the entire Idaho Springs/Central City mining district ("District") of Colorado. VG has spent 15 years studying the District, acquiring properties, and obtaining numerous permits through purchases, options, mining leases, and other agreements; Venture Gold has control of over 500 acres of mining claims. "Bocana is pleased to announce the proposed equity investment in Venture Gold, a strategic step that strengthens our growth trajectory. The acquisition of our interest in these high?grade sites represents a significant opportunity to enhance our asset base and accelerate our corporate development plans. We are excited to collaborate with the Venture Gold team and remain committed to supporting their vision of unlocking the full potential of this highly prospective District", said Tim Turner, Bocana's Chief Executive Officer. The LOI was negotiated at arm's length. The Transaction does not represent a change of business. There will be no change of directors or officers of the Company as a result of this Transaction. The TSX Venture Exchange has in no way passed upon the merits of the Transaction and has neither approved nor disapproved the contents of this press release. About Bocana Resources Corp. Bocana is a mineral exploration company focused on the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in North and South America. Bocana, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Huiracocha International Service SRL, holds a 100% working interest in the mineral properties known as the Escala area concessions located in the Department of Potosi, Sud Lipez Province, Bolivia, as awarded by Comibol. Contact Information For more information on Bocana, visit: https://bocanaresources.com. For more information or interview requests, please contact: Timothy J. Turner - Chief Executive Officer info@bocanaresources.com (713) 858-3329 Forward-Looking Information This news release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities laws. Forward-looking information can be identified by words such as: "intend", "believe", "estimate", "expect", "may", "will", "approximately", "planning", "projected", "anticipate", and similar references to future periods. 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 Bocana, as the case may be, to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but without limitation, statements pertaining to the Transaction including Bocana's ability to obtain financing and the necessary approvals, including regulatory approvals for the Transaction, the negotiation and execution of the Definitive Agreement, and the ability of Venture Gold to operate the exploration and development programs for its claims. All statements included herein involve various risks and uncertainties because they relate to future events and circumstances beyond Bocana's control. Forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain, and the actual performance may be affected by several material factors, assumptions and expectations, many of which are beyond the control of the parties, including expectations and assumptions concerning (i) Venture Gold; (ii) the Transaction; (iii) the ability of the parties to negotiate and enter into the Definitive Agreement on satisfactory terms as proposed, (iv) the timely receipt of all required regulatory approvals (as applicable), including the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange, (v) if the Definitive Agreement is entered into, the satisfaction of other closing conditions in accordance with the terms of the Definitive Agreement, and (vi) the ability of the parties (as applicable) to complete the financing and/or the Transaction on the terms outlined in this news release (or at all). Although Bocana 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 not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as of the date hereof, and the Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, except as required by law. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in any jurisdiction. 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. SLAM Exploration Ltd. (TSXV:SXL) ("SLAM" or the "Company")is pleased to announce that is has raised gross proceeds of $211,000 from closing the second and final tranche of the previously announced non-brokered private placement (the "Offering") through the issuance of 527,500 units ("Units") issued at a price of $0.40 per Unit. Under both tranches of the Offering, the Company raised aggregate proceeds of $900,000 through the issuance of an aggregate of 2,302,750 Units. Each Unit consisted of: four (4) flow-through common shares (the "FT Shares"); one (1) non-flow-through common share (the "NFT Share"); and two and one-half (2.5) transferable non-flow-through common share purchase warrants (with two half-warrants comprising one whole warrant, each a "Warrant"). Each whole Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.12 for a period of 24 months from issuance. The Company may accelerate the expiry of the Warrants if, at any time prior to their expiry, the volume-weighted average trading price of the common shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") is at least $0.20 for 30 consecutive trading days. In that event, the Warrants will expire 20 days after the Company issues a press release announcing the acceleration. The gross proceeds from the sale of the FT Shares will be used to incur Canadian Exploration Expenses ("CEE") on the Company's New Brunswick properties. These expenditures are expected to qualify as "flow-through critical mineral mining expenditures" under the Income Tax Act (Canada) and to be renounced to subscribers with an effective date no later than December 31, 2025 (or such other date as permitted by law). Subscribers are expected to be entitled to claim the 30% Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit in respect of such expenditures. The proceeds from the NFT Shares and any Warrants exercised will be used for general corporate purposes, including working capital and corporate development activities. The Offering is subject to the final acceptance of the TSXV and all other required regulatory approvals. All securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day from the closing date that expires on February 11, 2026. The Company did not pay any finder's fees on the second tranche of the Offering. Insider Participation: one insider of the Company participated in the second and final tranche of the Offering and acquired an aggregate of 112,500 Units. The participation by such insider in the Offering constitutes a "related-party transaction" within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company relied on the exemptions from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements under sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101, respectively, on the basis that neither the fair market value of the securities issued to insiders, nor the consideration paid by such insiders, exceeded 25% of the Company's market capitalization. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States. The securities referenced 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 the securities laws of any state, and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, "U.S. Persons" (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to an available exemption. About SLAM Exploration Ltd: SLAM Exploration Ltd. is a publicly listed resource company with a 40,000-hectare portfolio of mineral claim holdings in the mineral-rich province of New Brunswick. Diamond drilling is in progress on the Goodwin copper-nickel-cobalt project in the Bathurst Mining Camp ("BMC") of New Brunswick. The drilling program follows significant copper, nickel and cobalt intercepts from 15 diamond drill holes reported by the Company in 2024 on the Goodwin project These include a 64.90 meter core interval grading 0.73% copper, 0.64% nickel and 0.05 % cobalt including 1.11% copper, 0.95% nickel and 0.07% cobalt over a 39.40 meter core interval as reported in a news release August 7, 2024. Induced Polarization ("IP") results for 3 lines over the Granges, Logan and Farquharson copper-nickel-cobalt zones show potential for depth extensions as reported July 18, August 7 and August 21, 2025 in News Releases by the Company. Prior to the Goodwin drilling campaign, the Company launched its 2025 exploration program with two new gold discoveries on its wholly-owned Jake Lee claims. Slam reported eight grab samples with assays ranging from 7.42 grams per tonne ("g/t") to 94.80 g/t gold in the initial discovery on July 9, 2025. A second discovery comprised quartz float grading 16.20 and 3.78 g/t gold respectively in Trench JT25-05 located 100 meters southwest of the initial discovery as reported August 28, 2025. SLAM drilled 2 holes and cut multiple gold-bearing veins on its wholly owned Menneval gold project in 2024. The Company previously reported gold bearing core intervals including 162.5 g/t gold over 0.2 m and 56.90 g/t gold over 0.5 m in news releases on December 13, 2021 and November 22, 2022. Assays are pending on 874 additional soil samples to expand the soil coverage and further define the target on this extensive vein system. The Company is a project generator and has received significant cash and share payments in 2025. SLAM received $9,000 cash and 1,200,000 shares from Nine Mile Metals Inc. (NINE) on February 28, 2025 pursuant to the Wedge project agreement. On March 29, 2025, the Company received a cash payment of $60,000 as well as 180,000 shares of a private company pursuant to the Ramsay gold agreement. The Company holds NSR royalties and expects to receive additional cash and share payments on the Wedge copper zinc project and on the Ramsay gold project. To view SLAM's corporate presentation, click SXL-Presentation. Additional information is available on SLAM's website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. Follow us on X @SLAMGold. Qualifying Statements: Mike Taylor P.Geo, President and CEO of SLAM Exploration Ltd., is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, and has approved the contents of this news release. CONTACT INFORMATION: Mike Taylor, President & CEO Contact: 506-623-8960 mike@slamexploration.com Jimmy Gravel, Vice-President Contact: 902-273-2387 jimmy@slamexploration.com SEDAR+: 00012459 Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements are not historical facts but instead represent management's expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events or circumstances. Forward-looking statements are often, but not always, identified by words such as "expects," "plans," "anticipates," "believes," "intends," "estimates," "projects," "potential," "may," "could," "would," "might," or "will," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements in this news release include, but are not limited to: the completion of the Offering and any other tranches thereof, the proposed use of proceeds, the expected tax treatment of the FT Shares, the timing of renunciation of CEE, and the receipt of final acceptance of the Offering by the TSX Venture Exchange. Forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions made by the Company at the date of this release, but involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, without limitation: that the Offering may not be completed on the terms announced or at all; that the TSX Venture Exchange may not approve the Offering; that the proceeds may not be used as disclosed; the availability of financing on acceptable terms; general economic, market and business conditions; uninsured risks; regulatory changes; delays or inability to obtain required approvals; and other risk factors described in the Company's most recently filed Management's Discussion and Analysis and in other filings with Canadian securities regulators. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company does not undertake to update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable securities laws. Not for Distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or for Dissemination in the United States SOURCE: SLAM Exploration Ltd. October10 - Cameo Resources Inc. (CSE: MEO) ("Cameo" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has entered into an arms-length Securities Exchange Agreement dated September 29, 2025 with 1315418 B.C. Ltd. ("Privco"), a British Columbia Incorporated company to acquire a 100% right, title, and interest in the Kempton Gold Project (the "Properties"), located in the Geita region of Tanzania (the "Acquisition")' The Securities Exchange Agreement provides for the purchase of all of the securities of PrivCo that are owned or held by the PrivCo shareholders at the time of closing. At closing, Cameo will issue 7 million common shares to PrivCo shareholders at a deemed price of $0.1125 per share to acquire 100% of all outstanding shares of Privco and the Kempton Gold Property rights contained within. Acquisition Terms Under the terms of the Securities Exchange Agreement, the Company will acquire 100% right and interest in the Properties by acquiring all the shares in PrivCo which holds the option to acquire the Properties by the issuance of 7,000,000 common shares as per the Securities Exchange Agreement. It is not anticipated that any new control persons will be created post-closing of this Acquisition. About Cameo Resources Inc. Cameo Resources Inc. is a dynamic mineral exploration company dedicated to discovering and developing valuable mineral deposits. The flagship project in Nevada represents a promising opportunity in the ever-growing field of clean energy. The strategic goal of the Company is to increase shareholder value by advancing the portfolio of lithium exploration projects located in the mineral- rich region of Nye County, Nevada, and through strategic acquisitions in precious metals. For more information on Cameo, please visit the website at www.cameoresourcesinc.com. On behalf of the Board of Cameo Resources Inc. Souhail Abi-Farrage Chief Executive Officer and Director Phone Number: 1-800-325-1308 For further information contact: Investor Relations; Email: IR@cameoresourcesInc.com Phone Number: 1-800-325-1308 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, relating to the timing for closing the LOI, or that the LOI will close at all, 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 Cameo, 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, risks that lease holder will not approve the sale of the Property, risks associated with possible accidents and other risks associated with mineral exploration operations, the risk that the Company will encounter unanticipated geological factors, risks associated with the interpretation of exploration results, the possibility that the Company may not be able to secure permitting and other governmental clearances necessary to carry out the Company's exploration plans, the risk that the Company will not be able to raise sufficient funds to carry out its business plans, and the risk of political uncertainties and regulatory or legal changes that might interfere with the Company's business and prospects. Readers should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements and information contained in this news release concerning these items. Cameo 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. The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed, approved or disapproved the contents of this press release, and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Copyright (c) 2025 TheNewswire - All rights reserved. Vancouver, October 10, 2025 - Newpath Resources Inc. (CSE: PATH) (FSE: 0MZ) (OTC Pink: RDYFF) ("Newpath" or the "Company") announces that Douglas Turnbull has resigned as Chief Operating Officer of the Company, effective immediately, to pursue another professional opportunity. Mr. Turnbull has been a key member of the Company's executive team, providing invaluable leadership and operational oversight during a pivotal period of growth and development. His contributions have been instrumental in advancing the Company's exploration and development initiatives, optimizing project execution, and enhancing stakeholder value. While stepping down from his executive duties, Mr. Turnbull, a Qualified Person as defined under National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects, will remain engaged with the Company in a technical advisory and consulting capacity. His continued involvement ensures continuity and ongoing support as Newpath progresses its portfolio of mineral assets. "On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire Newpath team, I want to thank Douglas for his outstanding contributions," said Alexander McAulay, CEO of Newpath. "We sincerely wish him success in his new opportunity and are pleased that he will continue to support Newpath as a technical advisor and Qualified Person." The Company wishes Mr. Turnbull continued success in his future endeavors and looks forward to his ongoing involvement. About Newpath Resources Inc. Newpath is a Canadian exploration company listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange under the symbol PATH. Newpath holds a 100% interest in the early-stage Alpha/Bravo critical metal exploration project, approximately 50 kilometres northeast of Thunder Bay and the Northshore Gold Project located 4 kilometres south of Schreiber, Ontario. On Behalf of the Company, NEWPATH RESOURCES INC. Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. Cautionary Note on Forward-Looking Information This release contains statements and information that, to the extent that they are not historical fact, may constitute "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation based on current expectations, estimates, forecasts, projections, beliefs and assumptions made by management of the Company. Forward-looking information is generally identified by words such as "believe", "project", "aim", "expect", "anticipate", "estimate", "intend", "strategy", "future", "opportunity", "plan", "may", "should", "will", "would", and similar expressions. Although the Company believes that the expectations and assumptions on which such forward-looking information are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on the forward-looking information because the Company can give no assurance that it will prove to be correct. Since forward-looking information addresses future events and conditions, by its very nature it involves inherent risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking information in this news release. The forward-looking information included in this news release is expressly qualified by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking information contained in this news release is made as of the date hereof and 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, unless so required by applicable laws. To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/270105 The Guam Memorial Hospital Authority is closer to implementing 36 new fees after it submitted them to the Guam Legislature. The 38th Guam Legislature held a public hearing on the new fees on Thursday, but no one testified other than GMH officials. The new fee package, dated June 19, 2025, lists 36 total fees amounting to $52,291.73. It was received by the Legislature on Aug. 13. Local law requires GMH to submit new fees to the Legislature to conduct a public hearing and approve them within 45 days of receipt. If the Legislature doesnt disapprove or amend the proposed new fees within 45 days, then it will immediately become effective. Representatives from GMH answered questions from senators during the Thursday hearing. Fees listed were for supplies, medicine, and professional service to its emergency room, radiology, interventional radiology, podiatry, cardiology, pharmacy, and the operating room. Apart from GMH Chief Financial Officer Yuka Hechanova and general accounting officer Sydie Taisacan, there were no other GMH representatives, community members, patients, or representatives from the Department of Public Health and Social Services present. Sens. Shawn Gumataotao, Telo Taitague, and Therese Terlaje all asked Hechanova and Taisacan housekeeping questions about potential delays in updating billing systems and charge codes, accurate recordings of use of services, and quarterly reports for GMHAs use of its $40 million bailout. All concerns were addressed and settled. Terlaje asked for more information about the largest fee on the hospitals summary, $25,630.95 for interventional radiology. This fee was clarified to have been for use of the hospitals brand-new angiography suite. Taisacan said there was something that happened where it turned out they didnt need to use it; however, the charge code had already been created. Taisacan added that item number 17, THORA GRFT 20F 19.5 26MMXIOCM, is a consignment and was returned to its vendor sometime after the cancelled procedure. It was supposed to be used for procedure, but were not sure if it was cancelled or what, but every time there is a new supply to be used for any procedure, we need to create the charge code as requested by that department, she said. The final concern addressed came from Taitague, who shared with Hechanova and Taisacan a public concern about the $40 million bailout for GMH being appropriated for salary increases, above-step hiring, changing titles, and reducing overtime hours. I want to make sure this money is for vendors and capital improvement and not toward salary increase or above-step recruitment, Taitague said. Hechanova assured the Legislature that all of the $40 million to be allocated is going to vendors and capital improvement, as stated in the public law. She added that GMH is required by Public Law 38-59 to provide a quarterly report of all uses of funds. It submitted an interim report and is expected to provide the Legislature with an official report by the end of October. After confirmation of legal jurisdiction from Assistant Attorney General Chisa Tillman, a resubmitted complaint to the Guam Board of Medical Examiners about an unlicensed physician is now being investigated. Chairman Dr. Nathaniel Berg previously tabled complaint GBME-CO-2025-003 during the boards last meeting on Sept. 10 due to uncertainty whether the complaint was in their jurisdiction. He wanted to hear from Tillman on how or if GMBE should look into this interesting situation, the Pacific Daily News previously reported. The complaint was regarding an unlicensed physician who was working under the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct physical examinations on veterans. Because the physician was licensed in California but not Guam at the time of the incident and submission of the original complaint, Berg and the rest of the board decided not to investigate and recommended the complainant file with the appropriate jurisdiction. However, the physician is now licensed on Guam, prompting Bergs question for Tillman about whether the board could look into an event that occurred prior to someone becoming a licensee during a Wednesday meeting. Tillman told the board that once the license is given within the complainants lodge, the board should investigate. The Guam statute gives you a very wide perimeter when it comes to protecting the citizens of Guam, Tillman said. Anything that comes to you as a complaint, you have every right to investigate. Berg said the complainant felt they had not received the proper medical examination as part of their evaluation of disabilities and did not meet the standard expected. Tillman added that some standard care could be considered deviation of care and is covered in the statute, so the board could hire an investigator to at least check the complaint just to be sure. She said the threshold isnt very high for lodging a complaint, but the board has every right to make sure every licensee on this island is living up to the high standards of the Medical Practice Act. Berg confirmed that the board will be opening an investigation, but he will also again advise the complainant to submit a complaint through California, because that is where the person was licensed at the time and was operating under the auspices of the VA. We can always decide at some point that we want to defer this to California, but I will personally call the complainant to let them know we are going to open the investigation, Berg said. Haiti - FLASH : At least 24 armed attacks in Artibonite in 9 months (investigation report) An investigative report by the National Human Rights Defense Network (RNDDH), published on October 9, 2025, reveals that at least 24 attacks and/or massacres were perpetrated between January and September 2025 by gangs ("Kokorat San Ras" "Gran Grif" and "Taliban/Mawozo") in the Artibonite department. These bloody attacks were recorded in 25 localities and cities, located in eight municipalities across the department. With eight armed attacks, the commune of Petite-Riviere in the Artibonite region is the one most targeted by bandits. The Artibonite department, once considered the country's agricultural breadbasket, today represents one of the most worrying hotbeds of violence. Indeed, eight of the 17 municipalities, namely Gros-Morne, La Chapelle, L'Estere, Liancourt, Marchand-Dessalines, Montrouis, Petite-Riviere de l'Artibonite, and Verrettes, are experiencing daily armed clashes, extrajudicial executions, massacres, rapes, gang rapes, arson, looting of private property, destruction of state property, kidnappings followed by sequestration, ransoming of the population, and mass and forced displacement of citizens. Hundreds of homes were looted and/or burned; nearly a hundred people were murdered (partial toll); numerous vehicles, including four armored vehicles and two cars, one of which belonged to the Haitian National Police, were burned. In addition, several motorcycles belonging either to the police or to private individuals, as well as other vehicles, were stolen. At least six state institutions were vandalized and/or burned. These included three police stations, one sub-police station, and two magistrates' courts. Download the full detailed report (PDF in English, 25 pages): https://www.haitilibre.com/docs/8-Rap-DH-Artibonite-09Oct2025.ENG_.pdf HL/ HaitiLibre Haiti - News : Zapping... FLASH : Haitian passport fee reduction To balance the processing of Haitian passport applications, the Chancery has adjusted the fees. The cost for an adult over 18 is now US$125 (instead of US$170), and for a minor, it is US$100 (instead of US$160). Emergency or extreme emergency services will no longer be offered to ensure a uniform process for all. The website of the Embassy of Haiti in the United States has been updated with these new fees : https://www.haiti.org/fees1/ 8 Armored Vehicles Arrive in Saint Marc On Thursday, after being blocked by residents in Pont Sonde, eight armored vehicles and more than thirty police officers from specialized units of the Haitian National Police (PNH) arrived in Saint-Marc, in the Artibonite region. Operations against the "Gran Grif" and "Korkorat San Ras" gangs will begin once all the necessary equipment and personnel are in place. Councilor Vertilaire Ready to Stay After February 7 Presidential Advisor Emmanuel Vertilaire acknowledges that the term of the Presidential Transitional Council (CPT) will end on February 7, 2026, in accordance with the agreement of April 3, 2024, and says he is ready to step down. However, the representative of the radical political party "Pitit Desalin" does not rule out the possibility of continuing to serve the country at this level, if a new agreement is reached between the various stakeholders. Digicel : 195th School Construction The Digicel Foundation launched its 195th school construction project at Calvaire Sainte Therese (Cap Haitien). This project, funded with US$600,000, also pays tribute to the artist Michael Benjamin, known as Mikaben, Ambassador of Digicel, who passed away in 2022. Haiti Embassies Closed Canada : Thanksgiving The Embassy of Haiti in Canada informs the Haitian community and the general public that its premises will be closed on Monday, October 13, 2025, for Thanksgiving. Activities will resume on Tuesday, October 14, 2025. USA : Columbus Day The Embassy of Haiti, Washington, D.C., informs the Haitian community that it will be closed on October 13, 2025, for the federal holiday: Columbus Day. Regular Embassy activities will resume on Tuesday, October 14, 2025. Inauguration of an Operating Room The Ministry of Public Health, with the support of the United Nations agency for sexual and reproductive health (UNFPA) and the "Timama 2" project, inaugurated the operating room of the maternity ward of the South Departmental Hospital. Support in the form of materials and equipment, supplies, and human resources was provided. HL/ HaitiLibre Germany's federal government plans to spend an additional three billion euros on new road construction on top of previous plans. This was agreed upon by the leaders of the coalition parties in the coalition committee. In two years' time, the coalition wants to see whether this is enough or whether more money is needed. "We will exhaust all financing options to realize this," says Federal Chancellor Friedrich Merz (CDU). This includes reducing the German chip subsidies. Originally, 20 billion euros were earmarked for this between 2025 and 2027. Continue after ad The government will also be giving a further three billion euros to those citizens with low and medium incomes who can afford an electric car. For taxpayers of retirement age, a tax reduction will come into force at the turn of the year. They will then be able to earn up to 2,000 euros a month tax-free. Conversely, social benefits will be more difficult to obtain: The citizen's permission system is to be remodelled into a "new basic income support for jobseekers" with stricter conditions than at present. Anyone who does not fulfill the conditions "must expect to face stricter sanctions," according to the federal government. "We decided all of this yesterday in a really good atmosphere," said Merz on Thursday, "I would like to thank my colleagues for the really, really good cooperation." With the reallocation of funds from chip funding to the federal budget, the government is taking up parallel proposals by Christian Lindner (FDP) and Robert Habeck (Greens) from the previous year. At that time, Lindner was Finance Minister and Habeck was Economics Minister. The background to this is that Intel has abandoned the construction of its chip factory in Magdeburg, for which subsidies totalling almost ten billion euros were planned. However, the ZVEI, the German Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association, is not giving the government any roses. Its Managing Director Sarah Baumchen recognizes the reallocation of funds earmarked for semiconductor projects as "a fatal signal not only for the economic future viability, but also for our country's strategic ability to act. Even with the funding provided to date, we would lose market share while other regions of the world are massively expanding their subsidies and creating much more attractive framework conditions." Microelectronics "determines the resilience of critical infrastructures, the operational capability of modern defense systems, and the competitiveness of entire economies," says Baumchen, explaining the strategic importance of her industry. (ds) Don't miss any news follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Mastodon. This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical assistance and editorially reviewed before publication. The Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs is steaming ahead with the Germany stack announced by department head Karsten Wildberger (CDU). It has drawn up and published an overview of the structure of the planned national sovereign technology platform for local public sector digital projects, an initial "map" of the technologies and standards of the layered model. It also provides an associated overview of the steps already achieved ("maturity level")"). The "D-Stack" is generally intended to play a leading role in the ongoing modernisation of public administration using digital means. Continue after ad "With the Deutschland-Stack, we are creating an open, secure and scalable IT infrastructure that facilitates federal collaboration, accelerates innovation and enables user-centred solutions," explains Digital State Secretary Markus Richter. The platform will provide basic components such as cloud and IT services that can be used by the federal government, federal states and local authorities. At the same time, Richter invited "all interested parties to contribute to the development of technical standards". The Ministry of Digital Affairs is conducting an initial consultation until the end of November to incorporate suggestions into the tech stack, particularly from the IT and digital economy as well as technical experts. This includes all "relevant standards and technologies for the realization of the Germany stack." Coalition agreement points the way The participation process will be supplemented by topic-specific workshops, which will also focus on start-ups, SMEs, specialized service providers, and science. For example, the ministry wants to know what requirements exist for potential new services and business models and which innovations should be included in the stack "to successfully implement the digital transformation." According to the ministry, the D-Stack comprises the technological basis of the planned platform, the strategic and organizational framework conditions as well as specific implementation projects and products. The aim is to jointly shape the model to strengthen the economy, increase the state's ability to act, and strengthen trust in the state. The work is to be carried out step by step: According to the plan, concrete offers for public administration will be developed by 2028. The use of technologies will be used to leverage potential to accelerate digitalization in a targeted and impact-oriented manner. The definition of the tech stack is based on the coalition agreement, which also emphasizes digital sovereignty. There is a particular focus on trustworthy, sovereign, interoperable, and European-compatible technologies and standards. From data centers to apps Continue after ad The interactive map for standards and technologies was developed by the Federal Ministry of the Interior's data laboratory. It is methodically based on the specifications of the Cloud Native Foundation and uses the tech stack defined in OpenCode as a basis. The overview visualizes the content and provides profiles of the individual components. It includes basic information, download options, and links to the GitHub code platform. A central element is the conformity assessment. It assesses how well a standard or technology fulfills the objectives of the German stack. This assessment is divided into six categories and leads to different levels. The map does not yet depict all available technologies but is to be expanded according to a fixed scheme. At the same time, the German government is clarifying the "layers and groups" of the tech stack. This is structured into six interlocking levels, which is reminiscent of the preliminary work of a think tank. The foundation is the infrastructure with buildings, data centers, and networks. The processes for development, security, and operation are based on this, which should enable automated, agile and secure software development and stable operation, including monitoring, virtualization, and storage. The central level is the platform, the technical backbone of the overarching Government-as-a-Platform (GaaP) approach. This should allow digital solutions to be scaled. This portal includes essential areas such as data (storage, analysis), integration (interfaces/APIs) and the use of artificial intelligence (AI). The basic services are to be based on the platform standardised, reusable central services for basic functions such as identity, payment, and signatures. These services, in turn, serve the programs and services that represent the actual core of specialist value creation and task fulfillment. These are, for example, specialized applications or administrative services. Finally, the interface and access level represent the direct interfaces for users, for example via browsers, apps and portals. (vbr) Don't miss any news follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn or Mastodon. This article was originally published in German. It was translated with technical assistance and editorially reviewed before publication. The board met on Friday for a full-day seminar to review four fare options: no increase, or hikes of 3.1 percent, 4.8 percent, or the originally proposed 6.4 percent. The board will decide on the matter at the end of October. Helsinki Region Transport (HSL) is considering reducing or removing low-traffic bus routes as one way to avoid raising ticket prices in 2026, according to information obtained by Helsingin Sanomat . The 6.4 percent rise would generate an estimated 15.5 million in additional revenue. However, HSL has acknowledged that higher fares could reduce passenger numbers and limit the actual income gained. Half of the proposed increase is tied to a central government decision to raise VAT on public transport. The other half stems from rising general costs. The fare increase plan has drawn strong opposition, particularly in Helsinki. Many politicians have called for a zero-increase solution. But resistance from other municipalities over increasing their financial contributions has pushed the board to examine cost-cutting measures. Eight member municipalities, excluding Helsinki, have signalled reluctance to raise their share of public transport funding, citing strained local budgets. Municipalities currently cover an average of 57 percent of HSLs operating costs using local tax funds. To offer alternatives to fare hikes, HSL has drafted a 19 million cost-saving programme. The plan includes cancelling poorly used bus lines, postponing new services requested by passengers, and limiting service frequencies on selected routes. HSL's ability to cut services is restricted by long-term transport contracts. Terminating them early would incur financial penalties. Other measures under review include lowering discounts for special groups. Cutting the current 40 percent discount for full-time students and those over 70 to 30 percent could increase revenue, but the proposal is considered politically sensitive. A similar suggestion to end free travel for passengers with pushchairs and prams is also under discussion, though this has been rejected in previous years. The boards 14 members remain divided. Some support the full 6.4 percent hike, while others prefer more moderate options. Interviews conducted by Helsingin Sanomat suggest the final decision may be made through a vote, likely settling between 3.1 and 4.8 percent. Municipal officials from Helsinki and Espoo have expressed concern about increasing their financial contributions, even though local politicians in both cities have promoted the zero-hike option. Forecasts suggest that 390 million public transport journeys will be made in 2026, up from 380 million expected this year. However, roadworks and construction delays across the region are likely to reduce ridership and fare revenue. HSLs 2026 target is 419.7 million in total fare revenue, a figure that assumes the full 6.4 percent increase. The infrastructure compensation paid to municipalities will remain unchanged next year, as current agreements cannot be amended in time. HT I dont know if I will return to Parliament, even during this term, he said. The doctors dont know either. No one knows if I will get my working ability back. Speaking to Hufvudstadsbladet , Zyskowicz said his recovery is ongoing but admitted that neither he nor his doctors can predict whether he will regain full working capacity. Finlands longest -serving Member of Parliament Ben Zyskowicz says he does not know whether he will be able to return to parliamentary work following a stroke suffered in late July . Zyskowicz, 71, has been on medical leave since the stroke and remains in rehabilitation. His current sick leave runs until the end of January, though he said the date was set only as a rough estimate. I think the doctors simply chose a date because Parliaments spring session begins in February, he told the newspaper. He added that in the first days after the stroke, he struggled to remember discussions with his doctors. For obvious reasons, I dont remember much of what was said then, he noted. Zyskowicz said his physical recovery is progressing but declined to speculate about his cognitive condition. Im recovering well, but when I speak of work ability, I mean what happens between the ears. Im as curious about that as your readers, he said. The veteran politician gave the interview on the same day he became Finlands longest-serving member of Parliament, marking 17,003 days, or 46 years, in office. He entered Parliament in 1979 as a representative of the National Coalition Party and has served continuously ever since. Over the decades, he has become one of Finlands most recognisable political figures and a symbol of parliamentary longevity. Colleagues from across party lines have praised his career and his characteristic directness in debate. Despite his current absence, Zyskowicz remains an honorary figure within the party and the legislature. The ongoing parliamentary term runs until spring 2027, leaving open the possibility of his return if his health allows. For now, Zyskowicz said he is focusing on recovery and following political events from home. He has received visits from fellow MPs, including members of the National Coalitions parliamentary group. Zyskowiczs long tenure has made him a fixture of Finnish politics across generations. Known for his sharp questioning and distinctive presence, he has witnessed major political shifts, from the Cold War era to Finlands entry into the European Union and its recent accession to NATO. Despite the uncertainty surrounding his future in Parliament, he remains philosophical. I have no complaints, he said in the interview. Im grateful for the life Ive had and for the work Ive been able to do. HT China to send new navy fleet for escort missions in Gulf of Aden Xinhua) 09:19, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China will send a new navy fleet for escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Somalia in mid-October, said a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense on Friday. The 48th escort task group of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy will be composed of the guided-missile destroyer Tangshan, the guided-missile frigate Daqing and the comprehensive supply ship Taihu, spokesperson Jiang Bin told a press conference. He said the escort task groups take concrete actions to build a maritime community with a shared future, and safeguard international sea lanes and regional peace and stability. The PLA Navy began conducting escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and the waters off Somalia in December 2008. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Opinion / Columnist Botswana's President is deeply concerned about an imminent coup in South Africa. The revelations from General Nhlanhla Mkwanazi's commission - unpacking the rot in councils and government institutions - have serious repercussions not only for South Africa but for the entire SADC region. Political upheavals of this nature are contagious. If South Africa burns, neighbouring countries will feel the heat. Botswana will struggle to cope with a refugee influx should a coup erupt.South Africa stands at the precipice. A coup is imminent. If President Ramaphosa fires General Mkwanazi as Head of the Police Department, the consequences will be dire. Black communities - those most affected by the ANC's systemic failures - will rise and demand the return of people's power. That's how collapsed and dire the situation has become.Since taking office, Ramaphosa has launched several commissions. None have yielded results. They all fizzled out like fog in the rain. The Mkwanazi Commission is expected to suffer the same fate - because it implicates Ramaphosa himself. His nephew, Hangwani Morgen Maumela, allegedly swindled R2 billion from hospital procurement funds.This isn't about millions - it's about billions stolen by individuals living lifestyles unimaginable by common sense. Whistleblowers who tried to expose corruption in municipal departments were eliminated. Not one or two, but potentially over 120 individuals have been shot dead to silence them. Others have fled the country for safety.Maumela's theft is one of the most excruciating scandals in post-apartheid South Africa. The R2 billion looted from Tembisa Hospital was meant for COVID-19 relief. Because of this diversion, thousands died due to lack of medical resources. The Special Investigative Unit (SIU) confirmed the theft.With the loot, Maumela bought villas - including one in Sandton worth R20 million - and four luxury cars, three of them Lamborghinis. These cars had mileage records of just 500 km, evidence of recent purchases. SIU also discovered R900 million in his bank account, linked to a network of criminal syndicates.Ramaphosa now claims he doesn't know Maumela - despite living just two kilometres apart in Sandton. Meanwhile, the millions stashed in sofas and mattresses at his Phala Phala farm remain unaccounted for.Those who once framed Nigerians as the continent's criminal masterminds must think again. Compared to South African corruption, Zimbabwe's Zvigananda are saints.Maumela's crimes are just the tip of the iceberg. Consider the R22 million flag project proposed by former Minister of Sports, Arts and Culture, Nathi Mthethwa. He wanted to erect a 100-metre-high South African flag at Freedom Park in Pretoria - arguing that France has the Eiffel Tower and America has the Statue of Liberty. But this colonial mimicry undermines South Africa's independence.Public outcry forced Mthethwa to retract the project. He claimed it was part of a broader Monumental Project - but the damage was done. His death is symbolic of the deep corruption plaguing the country. South Africa has no leadership. It is run by criminal syndicates with more power than the state.The criminality is convoluted - like spaghetti. It's hard to untangle. General Mkwanazi must be commended for his intellect and bravery. His courage is extraordinary. He is a man among men. It won't be easy to "unalive" someone of his stature - but in South Africa, nothing is impossible.After weeks of testimony, the dots are still difficult to connect. We are only scratching the surface. The disturbing question remains: what's next? Ramaphosa will be asked to testify about the cash in his house - and why it wasn't in a bank. He protects criminals. Will he go to jail? He should.Now that General Mkwanazi has completed his testimony under oath, the nation waits. Alternative media outlets are buzzing. The people are saying: enough is enough. It's clear now that the ANC was never about freedom for all - only for those in power.Mugabe once told the ANC: "So you fought to remove apartheid only?" That statement was telling.The ANC can work with capitalists and communists alike - because it lacks ideology. The Freedom Charter chills in Kliptown, mocking the residents who live in poverty. It's not far-fetched to say that factions within the army and police are regrouping. One day, they may revolt and take power from the ANC.The ANC doesn't see the danger. They believe they still hold a majority in parliament.And when crisis hits, migrants are scapegoated. Operation Dudula must go after real Zvigananda - not the migrants living on the fringes of capitalist South Africa. / by Source - All articles and letters published on Bulawayo24 have been independently written by members of Bulawayo24's community. The views of users published on Bulawayo24 are therefore their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Bulawayo24. Bulawayo24 editors also reserve the right to edit or delete any and all comments received. Only one United States president has ever been elected to serve more than two terms in office: Franklin Delano Roosevelt. After the extenuating circumstances of the Great Depression and the looming threat of World War II led to Roosevelt's 12-year grip on the Oval Office, the U.S. government was forced to take a closer look at making term limits official. Prior to Roosevelt, the two-term limit had been merely a tradition, upheld by even the most popular presidents. George Washington set the precedent in 1796 when he declined to run for a third term, leaving office with a historic address aimed at reminding the American people of the importance of national unity, but also political checks and balances. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After Thomas Jefferson and James Madison followed suit, the two-term limit became a well-respected tradition. Many political scholars credit Jefferson with further emphasizing the importance of making a leader's time in power quantifiably finite. Jefferson saw little distinction between a long-serving executive in an elective position and a hereditary monarch," historian Michael Korzi wrote in his 2013 book, Presidential Term Limits in American History. The nation's third president, who was not far removed from first-hand experience with a power-hungry tyrant, wrote in his autobiography in 1821 that he hoped the citizens of the newly minted United States would keep recent history in mind as they selected their leaders. "Should a President consent to be a candidate for a [third] election, I trust he would be rejected on this demonstration of ambitious views," he wrote. J. David Ake/Getty The statue of Thomas Jefferson inside the rotunda of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. The statue of Thomas Jefferson inside the rotunda of the Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C. Roosevelt, of course, was not rejected by voters when he bucked tradition, getting elected four consecutive times. But when he died in office in 1945 at the start of his fourth term, Americans decided to prevent his legacy from creating a slippery slope by amending the Constitution to make the two-term limit official. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The official language of the 22nd Amendment prevents using a national crisis as justification for remaining in office, simply stating, "No person shall be elected to the office of the President more than twice." Additionally, "no person who has held the office of President, or acted as President, for more than two years of a term to which some other person was elected President shall be elected to the office of the President more than once." This provision is for the case of a vice president who serves out the majority of a four-year term following a president's death or resignation. As Congress debated the amendment, many argued the same case as the Founding Fathers: that putting term limits on a U.S. president prevents "a definite step in the direction of autocracy," as West Virginia Sen. Chapman Revercomb put it. Ohio Rep. Edward McCowen agreed, saying that the 22nd Amendment would be a great step toward preventing a dictatorship or some totalitarian form of government from arising. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The amendment passed Congress on March 21, 1947. It was ratified by the necessary three-fourths of the states and officially made law on Feb. 27, 1951. FPG/Getty President Franklin D. Roosevelt outside his New York residence in the mid-1930s Despite the fact that the Constitution explicitly forbids it, President Donald Trump has frequently floated the idea of running for a third term as president, even going so far as to add TRUMP 2028 hats to the White House gift shop only a few months into his second term. President @realDonaldTrump showing President Zelenskyy and President Macron his 4 More Years hat pic.twitter.com/c7dhAkZMuF Margo Martin (@MargoMartin47) August 19, 2025 In March, during a phone interview with NBC News, Trump insisted he was "not joking" about considering a third term. A lot of people want me to do it, he said at the time. I basically tell them we have a long way to go, you know, its very early in the administration. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump, who will be the oldest president in U.S. history by the time his second term ends in January 2029, also said during the interview that there are "methods" by which he could subvert the rules and serve a third term. He didn't expand on the "methods" by which he could serve a third term, but Trump supporters have proposed a few different possibilities. The most straightforward would be amending the Constitution, either by a two-thirds vote in Congress or by two-thirds of U.S. states agreeing to call a constitutional convention to propose the changes both of which are considered highly unlikely. Another method would entail Vice President JD Vance winning the 2028 presidential election on a Vance-Trump ticket and then resigning so that Trump succeeds him. Similar chatter has emerged during past election years since the dawn of the 22nd Amendment, but usually in a more light-hearted nature. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "That talk never was all that serious," said Brian Kalt, a Michigan State University professor who has written about the so-called "loophole," in conversation with NPR. "But in a certain situation where the president is sort of more popular than the common understanding of the Constitution, you better believe people will jump all over any loophole they can and allow that person to flout term limits," Kalt continued. "And we've seen it in other countries. Everywhere there are term limits, there are vulnerabilities." Chip Somodevilla/Getty JD Vance and Donald Trump at their 2025 inauguration JD Vance and Donald Trump at their 2025 inauguration Some including Trump himself, while joking with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have alternatively proposed that the president could postpone an election under wartime circumstances, though legal experts have widely agreed that the president lacks that authority. "There is no wiggle room [on the 22nd Amendment]," William Baude, who leads the Constitutional Law Institute at the University of Chicago Law School, told NPR. "That's a clear statement of the Constitution, and I don't think any serious person is going to interpret it otherwise." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If Trump announced, Im canceling the elections, that has as much power as my announcing Im canceling the elections, Justin Levitt, a constitutional law professor at Loyola Marymount University, told The Associated Press. 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. Still, several of Trump's political allies have spoken publicly about the possibility of him serving another term. Three days after the president was sworn into office for a second time, Tennessee Rep. Andy Ogles introduced a House Joint Resolution to amend the Constitution and allow for a third term, as long as they're not all consecutive. South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham went on Fox News in September and said, "Trump 2028. I hope this never ends." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a March interview with Chris Cuomo on NewsNation, Trump's former chief strategist Steve Bannon said he was "working on" ideas to get the president elected again. "I think well have a couple of alternatives, Bannon said. Well see what the definition of term limit is. Im a firm believer that President Trump will run and win again in 2028, he added. Weve had greater long shots than Trump 2028. Read the original article on People Instant Club Hit (You'll Dance to Anything) The Dead Milkmen - Bucky Fellini - 1987, Restless Mapping Phew - Phew - 1981, Pass Chidori Teke Teke - Delux - 2025, Kill Rock Stars - Delux - Take Your Brain Out for a Walk Tagmemics - Chimneys 7-inch ep - 1980, Index Electric City Dead Fingers Talk - Storm the Reality Studios - 1978, Pye Records Not the One Dead Ex Girlfriends - take me to the afterparty - 2025, self-released - take me to the afterparty - Dead Air Heatmiser - Dead Air - 1993, Frontier Change Killing Joke - Killing Joke - 1980, Malicious Damage Record Store Day American Lips - On Strike! - 2025, - On Strike! - Autumnal 2 (excerpt) (Musical Bed) The Gateless Gate - Autumnal 2 - 2025, self-released - Autumnal 2 - Opening Song CAR287 - Looking Through the Lens - 2025, self-released Lost in the Jet Stream Eytan Mirsky - All Over the Map - 2025, self-released - All Over the Map - Movies in My Head The 6ths (w Georgia Hubley) - Wasps' Nests - 2000, Merge Keep Your Hands Upon the Throttle The Deep Dark Woods - The Circle Remains - 2025, self-released - The Circle Remains - Running Out of TIme Great Lake Swimmers - Caught Light - 2025, self-released - Caught Light - I Got By in Time (The Jam cover) Model Rockets - V.A.: English Rose - Tribute to The Jam - 1997, Alfa Neon Lights (excerpt) (Kraftwerk cover) Automatism - Sormland - 2025, Tonzonen Records In the City in the Rain The 6ths (w Lou Barlow) - Wasps' Nests - 2000, Merge Schadenfreude Baxter Dury - Allbarone - 2025, Heavenly R.A.F. 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At a regular press briefing of the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Friday, a reporter noted that in his address, Lai once again made "Taiwan independence" remarks, asking the mainland to "cease its distortion of United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758" and saying Taiwan "will work to uphold the status quo" and "ensure peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits." Asked to comment on that, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for the ministry, said that Lai's address called white black and confused right and wrong. He peddled the false narrative of "democracy v.s. authoritarianism," repeated the same old fallacies for "Taiwan independence," and distorted and challenged historical facts and international consensus. "These words once again laid bare his true nature as a diehard troublemaker, danger-creater and warmonger," Guo said. Guo stressed that there is but one China in the world and Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory. This is the real status quo across the Taiwan Straits. The biggest threats to peace and stability in the Taiwan Straits at present are the separatist activities for "Taiwan independence" and external interference, the spokesperson noted. Also commenting on Lai's address, Chen Binhua, a spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, said on Friday that in his speech, Lai stubbornly adhered to the "Taiwan independence" stance, hyped up the so-called "mainland threat," and pushed the narrative of "democracy versus authoritarianism." Lai also distorted the history of World War II and UNGA Resolution 2758, vainly attempting to "seek independence through force," "rely on foreign powers for independence," and expand armaments and prepare for confrontation, Chen said in a statement. Lai's words and deeds will only undermine peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits, escalate tensions, add burden on the residents of Taiwan, and jeopardize the island's economic lifeline and development prospects ultimately bringing disaster to Taiwan society, Chen said. Conversely, deviating from the one-China principle, denying the 1992 Consensus and pushing separatist schemes for "Taiwan independence" will only bring tension and turmoil to the situation in the Taiwan Straits, gravely harming Taiwan island's economy and the vital interests of residents, said Chen. The fact that Taiwan is part of China is clear, and its status is unequivocal. The historical trend toward China's reunification is unstoppable. No matter what Lai says or does, he cannot change the historical and legal facts that Taiwan is part of China, nor can he alter the global consensus recognizing Taiwan as part of China. He cannot halt the inevitable historical process of China's complete reunification, said Chen. "Double Ten Day" is a public holiday on the island of Taiwan, originally meant to commemorate the 1911 Revolution that began on October 10, 1911. However, analysts noted that the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities have tried to use the day to promote secessionist fantasies. And Lai's speech on Friday continued such an attempt. Lai's speech was deeply deceptive and misleading, and he remains firmly entrenched in his "Taiwan independence" stance, invoking World War II and UNGA Resolution 2758 to distort facts and challenge the one-China principle, Zheng Jian, a professor at the Taiwan Research Institute of Xiamen University, told the Global Times on Friday. Zheng said that Lai filled much of his speech with talk of regional affairs and self-congratulation in an attempt to divert attention from his political troubles, including plummeting approval ratings and poor handling of tariff negotiations with the US. "To find excuses for himself, he fabricated a series of political achievements, but did not back down on cross-Straits issues," Zheng said. Lai's words and deeds also face harsh criticism in Taiwan. On Friday, the head of Taiwan's legislative body Han Kuo-yu also made a speech in which he said Taiwan's society has been torn apart by large-scale recall campaigns, the risk of war has been heightened by "de-Sinicization," energy policy has been hampered by ideology, and Taiwan's future has been compromised by tariff negotiations, according to media reports in Taiwan. Han also noted that "we must never allow war to break out across the Taiwan Straits, nor continue endless partisan strife," he is quoted by Taiwan media as saying. Zheng said that since taking office, Lai and the DPP authorities have deliberately stirred hostility toward the mainland, ignored people's hardships, and kowtowed to the US in pursuit of "Taiwan independence" fantasies. As for who is truly fueling Taiwan's "invisible barrier lakes," Zheng said, the answer is clear. In his speech, Lai also claimed that Taiwan will significantly increase is "defense spending" and accelerate the building of an air-defense system called "T-Dome." Asked to comment on the building of so-called T-Dome at the press briefing on Friday, Guo said that the Lai Ching-te authorities' attempt of seeking "Taiwan independence" and resisting reunification through military buildup will only push Taiwan toward the danger of military conflict. "To uphold peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, one must uphold the one-China principle and unequivocally oppose 'Taiwan independence.' China is firmly opposed to the US' arms sales to and military ties with China's Taiwan region. This position is consistent and unequivocal," Guo said. Song Zhongping, a military affairs expert, said that Lai's address on Friday was filled with provocation and "two-state theory" rhetoric. Lai proposed increasing Taiwan's so-called "defense budget" from 3 percent of GDP to 5 percent, which mirrors targets set by the US and NATO, exposing Lai's attempt to curry favor with Washington. "However, US politicians have never regarded Taiwan as an ally, but as a cash cow. Even the US' NATO allies are pressured to pay 'protection fees,' let alone Taiwan region," said Song, adding that the DPP authorities' plan to build the so-called "T-Dome" is far beyond their actual capabilities, and Lai's rhetoric is pure wishful thinking, as "resisting reunification by force" is ultimately a dead end. Lai's speech has also been criticized by people from Taiwan island. Hung Hsiu-chu, former chairperson of the Chinese Kuomintang party, expressed "deep regret" over Lai's address, saying it was dominated by unconstitutional "two-state theory" rhetoric that splits the Straits into "two countries" and severs historical ties, according to a report from media outlet udn.com. Hsiao Hsu-tsen, executive director of the Ma Ying-jeou Culture and Education Foundation, said that Lai continues to call the mainland "China," reflecting his persistence in the "two-state" theory, which risks pushing cross-Straits relations to a dead end. He urged Lai to abandon the erroneous "two-state" theory to ensure cross-Straits unity and peace, according to udn.com. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) A wave of posts on TikTok have made a significant impact on the United States recently, and these videos are about luxury or designer products that are all made in China. The said posts allege that brands like Louis Vuitton, Lululemon, Hermes, and more are producing their expensive items in mainland China factories for dirt cheap but sells them egregiously after being labeled with their respective brands. However, this latest phenomenon did have a significant effect on American shoppers who have now panicked because they think that these claims are the real deal, with some already looking to buy directly from these sources instead of the actual brands themselves. Chinese Suppliers Troll US Customers: 'Cheap' Luxury According to a report from The Verge, many Chinese suppliers are now taking over TikTok with their erroneous claims that most of the luxury brands that we know of are manufacturing their goods right in Mainland China. All in all, the message that they want to share with the world is how most of these brands that sell at a premium are all "Made in China," and only given the company's branding to evoke luxury. This latest campaign from Chinese TikTokers is calling to "cut out the middleman," which are the said brands or companies that sell these under their luxury branding and are significantly more expensive. A specific account on TikTok called "@china.yiwu.factor" showed in its now deleted video a collection of China-made Birkenstock Boston clogs, which it only sells for $10 a pair, while usually, users would buy it for $165 retail. Are Their Claims Fake? Chinese TikTok Cause Panic However, Birkenstock is known for claiming that their products are "Made in Germany" and avoids having it made in other countries apart. As argued by The Verge, many brands claim to have their products made in the country of origin, e.g. "Made in Italy," but in reality, they source parts or components of their products from China and then finish them in their home country to label them as such. That being said, many American buyers are now panicking because of these TikToks, with many wanting to opt to buy directly from these Chinese suppliers despite their unsubstantiated claims online. Trump's US Tariffs and Its Effects President Donald J. Trump spared no country when he announced the tariffs to be imposed on all imported goods coming to the United States, and these include products from Canada, Europe, Mexico, and more. However, the most affected by this new "trade war" started by Trump is China as a massive rate was imposed against them, and they were not given any leeway. Because of this, many tech companies who rely on China and other countries for the manufacturing of components and parts, assembly, and other processes are set to suffer, with many already stockpiling units of their devices to curb the effects. That being said, there is also a grave effect on the e-commerce industry of the country, particularly with Amazon Haul refocusing its "cheap" storefront to items readily available in its US warehouses instead of China. There is currently a 90-day pause for the tariffs imposed by Trump of President Trump, but it does not include China in these exemptions, with the East Asian superpower still facing the 145% tariffs from the administration. Apart from this, there is also a temporary exemption for most digital goods like smartphones, laptops, and their semiconductors, which gives tech companies breathing room for now. Originally published on Tech Times YouTube revealed that it is giving "second chances" to a handful of previously banned creators to apply under the new program and get the chance to create new accounts on the platform. According to the company, they believe that some of the accounts they terminated are deserving of another shot to use the platform and distribute content. YouTube's Second Chance for Banned Creators is Now Here YouTube shared in its latest blog post that it is now giving second chances to select banned creators on the platform, which would give them new opportunities to join the community. "We know many terminated creators deserve a second chance YouTube has evolved and changed over the past 20 years, and we've had our share of second chances to get things right with our community too," said the company. According to YouTube, the program will be rolling out in the next several weeks. Apply to Create New Accounts It is being emphasized that only select creators would be given a second chance via an option to request a new channel after logging into their YouTube Studio accounts on desktop. As per TechCrunch's report, this latest program was created after Alphabet was subpoenaed by Rep. Jim Jordan, who is investigating whether the Biden administration "coerced or colluded" with platforms to censor speech. Misinformation on YouTube Led to Bans Misinformation has been a serious problem in the last few years that YouTube has been trying to address. The COVID-19 pandemic was one of the hotbeds for misinformation, with YouTube affecting a COVID-19 misinformation policy that led to banning videos and accounts that spread fake news about vaccines and more. Another hot topic on the platform that faced significant waves of misinformation from certain creators was the two elections that took place in the United States, alongside other elections worldwide. YouTube was one of the social media platforms that adopted election misinformation policies, and this led to the banning of certain accounts that talked about right-wing propaganda and spread fake news. Originally published on Tech Times World Travel Awards (WTA) has announced that Cancun, Mexico has been selected to host its Latin America Gala Ceremony 2025. The world-class city will welcome travel and tourism figureheads for the red-carpet on 27 September. The announcement was made at a VIP signing in Madrid, organised by Secretaria Municipal de Turismo Cancun, on the eve of FITUR International Tourism Trade Fair 2025. WTA's debut reflects the buoyancy of the travel and tourism sector in Cancun and the beautiful state of Quintana Roo. Nestled on the Caribbean coast of the Yucatan Peninsula, the destination offers the perfect blend of majestic beaches, historic sites, rich culture and a wealth of activities. Madeira Selected as Venue for ABTA Travel Convention 2026 - Image Credit ABTA The ABTA Travel Convention is scheduled to be held in Funchal, Madeira, from October 12-14, 2026, marking the first time the event will be hosted on the island. The ABTA Travel Convention is set to occur in Funchal, Madeira, from October 12 to 14, 2026. This marks the first occasion the convention will be held on the island. The announcement was made at the conclusion of the 2025 ABTA Travel Convention in Calvia, Mallorca. The convention will be hosted at the Savoy Palace Hotel, a five-star venue in Funchal. Delegates will also have accommodations at the nearby Next by Savoy Signature. The nearest airport, Cristiano Ronaldo Madeira International Airport, is approximately 20 minutes from the hotel. Visit Portugal and Visit Madeira will host the event. Registration for the convention is expected to open early next year, with industry participants advised to save the dates. This event follows previous conventions held in other parts of Portugal, including Lisbon in 2001 and the Azores in 2017. Madeira, an archipelago in the North Atlantic Ocean, is known for its subtropical climate, mountains, forests, and coastlines. The location is anticipated to offer various activities for attendees. The convention aims to bring together leaders from the British travel industry to discuss trends and developments within the sector. The selection of Madeira as the venue highlights the island's ongoing relationship with the UK travel market. UCP of Western Mass to Celebrate National White Cane Day PITTSFIELD, Mass. UCP of Western Massachusetts will host a community celebration for National White Cane Day on Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2025, from 2:30 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. in the Courtyard at 75 South Church Street in Pittsfield. This annual observance recognizes the importance of the white cane as a symbol of independence for people who are blind or visually impaired and raises awareness about accessibility, mobility, and inclusion. The event will feature: Official Mayoral Proclamation by Mayor Marchetti declaring Oct. 15 as White Cane Day in Pittsfield. White Cane Challenge Course, giving sighted participants the chance to experience navigating everyday activities with a cane while blindfolded with a spotter person. UCP's Assistive Technology department will have a demonstration of "Try It Stations" so that visual users can experience limited or low vision through technology. The department will have other practical devices for the low-vision community. "White Cane Day is both a celebration of independence and an opportunity for education," said Randy Kinnas, CEO of UCP of Western Massachusetts. "By inviting the public to participate in activities and conversations, we hope to build understanding and strengthen our commitment to accessibility and inclusion in our community." The event is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be provided. For more information & to RSVP, contact Liz Irwin at 413-442-1562 x 122, Eirwin@ucpwma.org or visit www.UCPWMA.org In case for inclement weather, we will hold the event inside 75 South Church St. (the Clocktower Building) Students at the University of Sydney in Australia. Photo courtesy of the University of Sydney International students now make up nearly half of enrollments at Australia's leading universities, including Sydney, RMIT and New South Wales. Australia's Department of Education reported that in the 20242025 academic year, 35% of all students in the country were from abroad, a 12.3% increase from the previous year, most of them from Asia, according to The Australian. At prestigious universities such as Sydney and RMIT, international students account for 50% of enrollments, while large numbers also study at Monash, Queensland and New South Wales. The University of Sydney in particular, for the first time in its 170-year-long history, had more foreign students than domestic ones last year, according to the Economic Times. The most popular majors for overseas students include information technology (65%), management and commerce (54%) and engineering (41%). By contrast, few domestic students choose these fields, preferring health and the arts. At Wollongong and Central Queensland, only 15% of IT students are Australian. The surge in foreign enrollment has raised concerns among experts over English proficiency. Jobs and Skills Australia has urged testing of language skills both at admission and graduation. Abul Rizvi, an immigration analyst and former deputy secretary of the Department of Immigration, has proposed independent testing to ensure fairness with domestic students, who must compete via the ATAR ranking system. He also suggested raising the IELTS requirement from 6.5 to 7.0. Australia has become one of the top global study destinations alongside the U.S. and Canada, with international student numbers up 62% in the past decade. Vietnam now ranks among the top four sources, with more than 33,000 students enrolled. From 2026, top universities plan to raise tuition fees for international students by 513%. The steepest increase will hit business major at the University of Sydney, where tuition will reach AU$60,600 (US$40,093) per year. 1Berkshire Welcomes New Economic Recovery Corps Fellow PITTSFIELD, Mass. 1Berkshire announced the arrival of its new Economic Recovery Corps fellow, Lani Willmar. The ERC Fellowship is a national program run by the International Economic Development Council thanks to funding from the United States Economic Development Administration. For the next year, Lani will be working with the Economic Development team at 1Berkshire, in partnership with the Berkshire Innovation Center, to assist existing and new efforts focused on supporting the region's innovation economy. 1Berkshire is one of only 64 host organizations across the country selected to host an ERC fellow, making it an exciting and rare chance to leverage highly skilled professional capacity for regional good. The ERC Fellowship role in the Berkshires is focused on four primary areas, including: Bridging opportunities for youth to engage significantly in entrepreneurial activities within small and innovative businesses in the region. Helping to build additional connective tissue across partners and qualified referral resource providers across the four counties of Western Massachusetts. Identifying and pursuing new funding and technical assistance opportunities to bring into the region to support current and future business success. Sharing the authentic narrative of existing innovative businesses, entrepreneurs, and powerful stories being written across the region's diverse economic landscape. Willmar is a Vietnamese American entrepreneur who began her journey in the Berkshires as a QuestBridge Scholar for low-income, first-generation students at Williams College. As the founder of Ethos Pathways and Ethos Admissions, she leads two youth-centered social impact organizations focused on education access, climate justice, and workforce development. Drawing on both lived and professional experience, Willmar strives to bridge gaps in educational and economic mobility for students. She brings a decade of expertise building cross-sector youth development programs along with private tech-sector experience in early stage talent acquisition and scaled hiring. Willmar's work draws from both a global and local lens, including her time as a Fulbright Scholar in rural Slovakia working with beekeepers and at an agriculture trade school, and most recently as a member of the Berkshire Innovation Center's Stage 2 Accelerator. State Rep. Carlos Gonzalez speaks to an assembly at Berkshire Arts and Technology Public Charter School on Friday for Hispanic Heritage Month. State Rep. John Barrett III of North Adams, left, with teacher Mayra Weiskotten and Gonzalez. Some of the students wear sombreros vueltiao brought back from Colombia by Spanish teacher Joaquin Bernal. Weiskotten with members of the student Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Union. The school's Director of Advancement Leah Thompson give the representatives a tour of the charter school. PreviousNext Berkshire Arts & Tech School Celebrates Hispanic Heritage Month State Rep. Carlos Gonzalez speaks with student Gineska Vazquez-Melendez on Friday. ADAMS, Mass. Berkshire Arts and Technology Public Charter School was filled with dancing, vibrant colors, and a conversation with state Rep. Carlos Gonzalez to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month. The month, which runs from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15, students in middle and high school learned about aspects of Hispanic culture all culminating in the daylong celebration on Friday. "I hope that you are taking this month to learn as much as you can about Hispanic culture, language and history and the foods and music, but also to remember that it's not only a month; its a year. It's a life commitment," Gonzalez said. "We must learn from each other, and you must learn from others ... in the State House of Representatives, we have so many different individuals that represent ideas, many ideas, many different ideas, many different districts, and they all come with different backgrounds and reasons why they're there. I went there because I wanted to make sure that education was funded appropriately." Gonzalez, a Springfield Democrat, represents the 10th Hampden district. Ahead of Gonzalez's speech the students in the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color Union presented on his background and mission. Gonzalez is bilingual and was born in New York to Puerto Rican parents. He has an eclectic background including a career in social work and opening a business, Hispanic Marketing Services, where he published a bilingual newspaper and directed a Spanish-language TV program, the students said. He marked a lot of firsts during his career, as the first Hispanic aide to the mayor of Springfield and the first Latino from Western Massachusetts to hold a House leadership position after being appointed third division chair in 2025. During the school visit, Gonzalez and state Rep. John Barrett III of North Adams toured the school, viewing the art done by the students and the different setups of the classrooms. Gonzalez said he was impressed with the students and the school's diversity. Upon walking into the multipurpose room, Hughes 507, he was presented with a room full of excited high school students, experiencing and appreciating Hispanic heritage, including the clothes, music, dancing, food, and more. "I was excited to see that, and to be honest, I was surprised what great a education is going on here," he said. The students were attentive and Gonzalez said it was powerful and touching to speak with the students and hear how they share the same thoughts he had spoken about. During his presentation with Gonzalez emphasized the impact of unity and diversity in American society. The foundation of his message is the importance of believing in yourself and the value of education and perseverance. Everyone, regardless of background, has something special to offer, so embrace your heritage, collaborate with others, and how standing up for your community leads to opportunity and success, he said. Hearing from the students that shared similar points of view as Gonzalez demonstrated how "there's hope, there's opportunity, and America will not be lost," he said. "I think that's one of the most important messages, that they are the future generation. No matter what, where you came from, you're the future in this country, and if we're to succeed as a country, we have to make sure that we embrace them and what they have to do to be our future," Barrett said. The school's Hispanic Heritage Month celebration fosters discussions not only in the classroom but out in the community, said Mayra Weiskotten, Spanish and student life teacher and coordinator of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging. "I'm hoping that the positive information spreads throughout the county. I'm hoping that other schools celebrate, not exactly the same way, but in some capacity, I'm hoping that our community expands and gets stronger," she said. The learning experience doesn't stop after the event because students will still be talking about it and other teachers may expand on it by doing assignments related to the experience, Weiskotten said. Having conversations about different heritages is important, both in and out of school, especially with what is going on right now where minorities are being targeted, she said. "Having conversations like this at home, on the bus, with the teachers, with your neighbor, might make them see a different reality of what immigration really is, what diversity really is, what respecting each other really is, because when you are sharing a moment like the ones we're doing right now hopefully its helping you see something that you have not seen before," Weiskotten said. The event began in 2011 with a dance workshop for the high school students. This year was the first time it was large-scale, inviting both the high and middle schoolers, in addition to having a dance workshop and contest, a mariachi band, which invited a student to perform the percussion, and a conversation with Gonzalez. "I think that we've done this before, but this year it's been very receptive with the students. Hopefully with the middle school, we haven't done the trial run, but usually they're like sponges," said Ginerys Vazquez-Melendez, senior. "They soak up the information they were very engaged throughout the slideshow. They took in information, great, and the trivia questions went great. So, I think that this is going to be a positive thing reflected on our school." "I feel like with this celebration, people learn to understand the importance of celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month, and it's an important celebration within this school," said Aiko Hosmer, a junior. Junior Isabella Luna has been in the states for a year, moving to the Berkshires from Peru. She shared part of her heritage with her school by wearing a traditional dress from Peru, which she had also worn as a dancer for the marinera nortena, a traditional dance. Spanish teacher Joaquin Bernal also shared with some students sombreros vueltiao, a traditional Colombian hat, and the other festive items he brought from Colombia, Weiskotten said. Several students of all different backgrounds dressed up in the traditional attire to honor Hispanic heritage wearing it with understanding and pride. Weiskotten said she teaches her students to embrace who they are, wear cultural clothing with respect, and always treat everyone with dignity. Students who insult teachers or classmates may be isolated from learning environment in Vietnam Students who assault, or even insult, teachers or classmates in Vietnam may face temporary isolation from the learning environment or be transferred to specialized institutions, and be hit with monetary fines. These are part of proposed amendments and additions to a decree on administrative penalties, and the Ministry of Education and Training is collecting feedback on them until Oct. 16. Under the new draft regulation, students who insult or harm others may face temporary isolation from the school environment and could be transferred to specialized institutions for counseling. These measures aim to ensure a safe learning environment and will involve coordination between the school, authorities, and the student's family. In specific, students who insult the dignity or honor of or assault classmates, teachers or other staff at school, but whose actions fall below the threshold of criminal liability, will be fined from VND5 million (US$190) to VND10 million and required to apologize publicly unless the victim waives it. If the behavior negatively affects the safety and activities of the school, the student will be subject to one of the following measures: temporary isolation from the learning environment; transfer to a specialized educational institution or an integrated education development support center, or facility for school counseling service, social work or specialized healthcare for psychological and behavioral counseling, as recommended by the school and decided by the competent authority. The draft also emphasizes that the application of these measures requires the involvement of the school, educational management agencies, the family, medical services, and the police (if necessary). The authority to make the decision rests with the direct management agency or the local People's Committee at the commune or provincial level, as assigned. The current regulations only impose a fine of VND5 10 million and require a public apology. The Ministry of Education and Training explained that the behavior of students harming their peers (both mentally and physically) has been increasingly common. Simply imposing fines and public apologies, they believe, is insufficient to deter such behavior and does not address the risk of recurrence or the negative impact on the learning environment. For students who insult teachers, the ministry believes the current penalties are not strict enough and fail to provide opportunities for intervention and support. According to the ministry, the new regulations ensure both strictness and safety for schools, while also being "humane and supportive" in correcting students' behavior. This mechanism also creates a legal framework for schools and management agencies when handling complex situations, ensuring participation from various parties. "The added regulations not only contribute to maintaining discipline and building a safe and healthy educational environment, but also reflect a humanistic approach, emphasizing education and support rather than purely punishment," the ministry said. On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Police in China have issued a notice and offered rewards of up to 10,000 yuan (1,000) for information on 18 Taiwanese military psychological operations officers accused of spreading separatist propaganda. It came a day after Taiwanese president Lai Ching-te said Taipei will build a new multi-layered air defence system called "T-Dome" during the celebrations to mark the National Day with a lavish military parade. The Public Security Bureau (PSB) in the Chinese city of Xiamen, which sits opposite Taiwan on the other side of the Taiwan Strait, released pictures, names, and Taiwan identity card numbers of the 18 people, identified as core members of the Taiwan military's "psychological warfare unit". The security bureau said the "psychological warfare unit" handles tasks such as disinformation, intelligence gathering, psychological warfare and the broadcast of propaganda. "For a long time they plotted to incite separatist activities," the bureau said, adding there would be rewards of up to 10,000 yuan for tips leading to their arrest. It said the unit allegedly launched websites for smear campaigns, created seditious video games to incite secession, produced fake video content to mislead people, operated illegal radios for "infiltration", and manipulated public opinion with resources from "external forces", the state Xinhua news agency said in a separate report. open image in gallery Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te waves during National Day celebrations in front of the Presidential Building in Taipei, Taiwan, Friday ( Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) It said the groups true goal was to promote Taiwan independence and conduct activities to incite secession. The bureau also called on Taiwanese people to draw a clear line with separatist forces and urged them to work together with the mainland to oppose Taiwan independence activities. Taiwan's defence ministry rejected the accusations as crude efforts to undermine the Taiwanese government and conduct cognitive warfare. It said accusations reflected the "despotic and pig-headed thinking of an authoritarian regime ... trying to divide our people, belittle our government, and conduct cognitive warfare." Democratically governed Taiwan has come under growing military and political pressure from China, which claims the island as its own despite strong opposition from Taipei and has vowed to reclaim the island. China has repeatedly issued such reports that "exploit the free flow of information in our democratic society to piece together and fabricate personal data," the ministry said. open image in gallery Drones and other armament formations pass during the military parade to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II held in front of Tiananmen Gate in Beijing, Wednesday ( Xinhua ) "Defending national security and protecting the safety and well-being of the people is the unshirkable duty of every military officer and soldier," it said. The wanted notice is largely symbolic, given that Taiwanese intelligence officers do not openly visit the country, and China's legal system has no jurisdiction on the island. It came as China lashed out at Mr Lais Double Tenth Day speech and again called him a stubborn troublemaker and "war-maker". Chinas Taiwan Affairs Office also warned that Mr Lais words and actions will only undermine peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait and seriously harm Taiwans economy as well as the well-being of its people. In his speech to mark the 114th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of China, Taiwans official title, Mr Lai vowed to increase the countrys defence spending to exceed 3 per cent of GDP next year and increase 5 per cent by 2030. He called on China to renounce the use of force to seize the island. For the first time, he publicly mentioned Taiwans intentions to deploy a T-Dome air defence system, without giving many details. "The increase in defence spending has a purpose; it is a clear necessity to counter enemy threats and a driving force for developing our defence industries," he said. "We will accelerate our building of the T-Dome, establish a rigorous air defence system in Taiwan with multi-layered defence, high-level detection, and effective interception, and weave a safety net for Taiwan to protect the lives and property of citizens," Mr Lai said. In June of this year, China issued a similar bounty for the arrest of 20 people Beijing said were Taiwanese military hackers. Taiwan dismissed that threat, saying it would not be intimidated. On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice The Taliban reportedly barred women journalists from attending a press event of visiting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in India, drawing anger from a wide section of Indian reporters, activists, and politicians. The women journalists, including this reporter for The Independent, who had gathered outside the Afghanistan embassy in Delhi on Friday, were stopped by the security staff and Delhi Police officials from attending the event despite multiple requests. India is hosting the Talibans interim foreign minister during a high-profile but controversial visit as it seeks to upgrade its diplomatic ties with Afghanistans hardline Islamist regime. Mr Muttaqi, a UN-sanctioned official, addressed a male-only gathering of press at Afghanistans embassy in the lush diplomatic enclave in the heart of the Indian capital. Following the withdrawal of US-led Nato forces from war-torn Afghanistan four years ago, India was forced to operate the embassy in New Delhi in a restricted manner as it has not formally recognised the Taliban group. The embassy was reopened for the first-ever diplomatic visit by the Taliban minister on Thursday. Following a social media backlash, Indias Ministry of External Affairs claimed on Saturday it was not involved in the press event held on Friday by the visiting Afghanistan minister. Taliban foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi sits in a car as he leaves the building of Vivekananda International Foundation after meetings in New Delhi ( Reuters ) The women present at the embassy had adhered to the conservative dress code imposed by the Taliban in Afghanistan and many were seen with scarves covering their hair. The Talibans enforcement of Sharia rule in Afghanistan has been the main roadblock to their international recognition. Their restrictions on women and girls and freedom of expression have drawn criticism from rights groups and foreign governments since the former insurgents resumed control of Afghanistan in 2021. On Friday, in response to a question on the Taliban curtailing the rights of Afghan girls and women, Mr Muttaqi claimed it was all part of a propaganda. Women in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan are currently barred from most of the ordinary activities their counterparts elsewhere in the world see as their natural right studying, working, going to a salon or the gym, midwifery, and even speaking or praying in public. A female cat has more rights than a woman in Afghanistan, Hollywood star Meryl Streep said last September, speaking at an event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Experts monitoring the Talibans activities have questioned the Indian governments stance on the incident. Despite the Ministry of External Affairs claim of no involvement in the Taliban Afghan foreign ministers press interaction, concerns persist about the Talibans activities on Indian soil, said author and journalist Nayanima Basu. The Afghan embassy had been inactive since the departure of former diplomats, yet it suddenly became operational within 24 hours of the new foreign ministers arrival in India. This raises questions about the embassys status and the governments role in permitting the Talibans activities, Basu said. ...Has Indias relationship with the new Afghan dispensation become so close that it will no longer verify the Talibans activities within Indias capital city or anywhere else? she told The Independent. The implicit ban on women covering Mr Muttaqis press conference in Delhi has also sparked outrage among the Indian opposition. Prime Minister @narendramodi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of womens rights isnt just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of Indias most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride, said senior Congress politician Priyanka Gandhi. The government has dishonoured every single Indian woman by allowing Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from the presser. Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites, said opposition MP Mahua Moitra. Mr Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them. In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti (womens power), said leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi. Indian lawmaker Priyanka Chaturvedi from the regional Shiv Sena UBT party said India should question the Taliban on humiliating our women journalists. India should take this up, and considering that we have upgraded them to our embassy, we would need to engage with the Taliban government on the backsliding of rights for women, she said. Especially when our laws are not being maintained inside the Afghan embassy for them to follow and to humiliate our women journalists, she told The Independent. The Taliban has not issued a statement yet on the latest incident. India upgraded ties with the Taliban administration, giving a boost to the diplomatically isolated group, by announcing it would reopen its embassy in Kabul that was shut after the Taliban seized power in 2021. The Afghan Taliban administration will also send diplomats to New Delhi, its foreign minister said. India closed its embassy in Kabul following the withdrawal of US-led Nato forces from war-torn Afghanistan four years ago, though it launched a small mission in 2022 to facilitate trade, medical support and humanitarian aid. About a dozen countries including China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey have embassies operating in Kabul, although Russia is the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban administration, whose members are under UN sanctions including a travel ban and asset freeze. Indias announcement came during talks in New Delhi between foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his counterpart, Mr Muttaqi, who is on a six-day visit after getting a temporary exemption on his travel ban. It was the first such trip to India by a Taliban leader since 2021. India will raise its technical mission to a diplomatic mission in Kabul, and our diplomats will also come here, Mr Muttaqi told reporters on Friday, adding that the aim was for the two countries to slowly return to normalcy. India and Afghanistan have historically had friendly ties. Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Get our free Health Check email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Europes wild bees and butterflies are facing an escalating extinction crisis, a new conservation assessment has warned, prompting urgent calls for action to reverse the dire state of these vital pollinators. Their decline poses a significant threat to natural systems and food production. The latest European-level assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Natures (IUCN) Red List now classify nearly 100 more wild bee species as at risk. This brings the total to 172 out of 1,928 assessed meaning one in 10 wild bees in Europe are now threatened, a sharp rise from 77 species in 2014. More than 20 per cent of both bumble bee and cellophane bee species are under threat, the IUCN reports. This includes 15 species of bumble bees, crucial for pollinating plants like peas, beans, and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, vital for plants in the daisy family and trees such as red maples, now listed as threatened. These essential insects are succumbing to pressures from agriculture, pollution, and rising temperatures, necessitating immediate intervention. open image in gallery A rising number of wild bees and butterflies in Europe are facing the threat of extinction, a new conservation assessment has warned ( Eric Leglise/PA Wire ) The situation is also severe for Europes butterflies, with 65 out of 442 assessed species, some 15 per cent, facing the threat of extinction, up from 37 species in 2010. More than 40 per cent of those butterflies that are only found in Europe are now threatened or close to being so. One species, the Madeiran large white which was only found on the Portuguese island of Madeira is now officially classed as extinct, the IUCN said. Conservation experts said the biggest threat to wild pollinators was habitat loss, as more intensive agriculture and forestry combined with land abandonment in less productive areas meant they were losing their traditional rural landscape homes such as flower-rich meadows. Nitrogen fertilisers and widespread use of pesticides, including herbicides that reduce the variety of flowering plants, are also hitting many pollinators. And climate change is bringing prolonged hot weather, droughts and wildfires which are increasingly damaging butterfly habitats in southern Europe and encroaching on bog and tundra habitats in Alpine and more northerly areas. More than half (52 per cent) of Europes threatened butterfly species are affected by climate change, the IUCN warns, and some, such as the critically endangered Nevada grayling in southeast Spain, are suffering from a combination of habitat loss and global warming. open image in gallery The findings have prompted calls for urgent action to reverse the dire state of the continents pollinators, which play a key role in natural systems and food production but face threats from agriculture, pollution and rising temperatures ( Sam Ellis/PA Wire ) But the effects of warmer temperatures on bees are more mixed, hitting cold-adapted bumble bees, while carpenter bees are benefiting from hotter conditions, which speed up their development and breeding. Dr Martin Warren, former chief executive of Butterfly Conservation and one of the lead coordinators of the European Butterflies assessment, said: Many European butterflies are threatened by habitat changes due to rising temperatures. However, by ensuring their habitats are managed as well as possible and populations are large and robust, they stand a chance. Others can be saved from extinction by preventing wildfires, which can obliterate habitats for years. Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN director general, said: Beyond their beauty and cultural significance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food systems and our economies sustaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us. In fact, four out of five crop and wildflower species in the EU rely on insect pollination. The latest European Red List assessments reveal serious challenges, with threats mounting for butterflies and crucial wild bee species. open image in gallery Nearly 100 more wild bee species on the continent are classified as at risk of extinction in the latest European-level assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Natures (IUCN) Red List of threatened species ( El Gritche/PA Wire ) But, she added, it also provided the data needed to drive urgent conservation action to reverse declining population. The European-level assessments of a range of species groups for the first time since the early 2010s was funded by the European Commission. The Commissions environment commissioner, Jessika Roswall, said: The new assessment shows that the conservation status of European wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators is dire. These are the foundation for our food systems, our ecosystems and our societies. Urgent and collective action is needed to tackle this threat. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice The RAC has urged operators against leaving drivers reliant on mobile apps for parking, as councils look to remove traditional payment machines. New research reveals that nearly three-quarters of drivers who use mobile apps to pay for parking experience problems. Commissioned by the RAC, the study of 1,709 UK drivers showed the most prevalent issue was a poor mobile signal. Other problems users flagged were the app not recognising the car park and the app crashing. Almost half of the survey respondents said they would prefer to pay by card or contactless payment. open image in gallery Research shows nearly three quarters of drivers who use mobile apps to pay for parking experience problems It comes as the government announced the launch of the National Parking Platform (NPP), which is aimed at enabling drivers to pay for parking in all participating car parks using their preferred app. The RAC said 10 local authorities are using the service, including city councils in Manchester, Liverpool and Coventry, with more expected to sign up shortly. RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis welcomed the NPP but said drivers should be offered at least two different ways to pay. He said: Mobile apps have an important and increasing role to play when it comes to parking our vehicles, and the best ones make parking an easier task for many of us. But our figures show theres still plenty drivers find frustrating about using them whether thats a lack of mobile signal, problems registering bank cards, or the app crashing or behaving strangely. All parking operators, whether public or private, should offer drivers at least two different ways to pay. No one should be forced to use a mobile app when parking if they dont want to, especially those who struggle with technology or just dont have a smartphone. open image in gallery Many councils have removed payment machines from their car parks and told drivers to use apps instead In Deansgate North Q-Park in Manchester, one young man told the BBC he got a ticket after having trouble connecting to a parking app. "I had to send receipts to basically prove I had a parking permit, he said. Margie Rimes, 77, from York, told the broadcaster she gets "panicky" about paying for parking on an app. But she endorsed the NPP, saying: "I think if they're going to have apps, it's better to be standardised." Mr Dennis encouraged drivers to ensure they have downloaded the latest version of each parking app they use, to reduce the chances of them not functioning properly. Recent Government figures show English councils made a 1.2 billion surplus from parking in the last financial year. The RAC commissioned research company Online95 to survey across June and July. Suspects in the kidnapping of a Korean man are held in Cambodia, on Sept. 23, 2025. Photo courtesy of Cambodian police South Korea's foreign minister summoned Cambodia's ambassador on Friday following a surge in reported kidnappings of South Korean nationals linked to job scams in the Southeast Asian country. The number of reported kidnappings of South Koreans in Cambodia -- previously averaging 10 to 20 cases a year -- surged to 220 last year and 330 as of August 2025, according to lawmaker Na Kyung-won's office. The recent death of a Korean college student in Cambodia -- reportedly kidnapped and tortured by a local crime ring -- has shocked South Korea. Many of the South Korean kidnapping victims are said to have been lured by fraudulent job offers promising high pay, according to lawmaker Na. "I summoned Cambodian Ambassador Khuon Phon Rattanak today to express grave concern over the continued cases of job fraud and confinement involving Korean nationals in Cambodia," Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said in a statement. He urged "swift and concrete action to eliminate online scams", Cho said, adding that Seoul had issued a special travel advisory for Phnom Penh, the Cambodian capital. "I also called for stronger measures to prevent another tragic loss of life and for closer cooperation between our police authorities." The late college student, found dead in Cambodia in August, was believed to have died of a heart attack caused by torture and extreme pain, local reports said. According to Amnesty International, abuses in Cambodia's scam centers are happening on a "mass scale", and there are at least 53 scam compounds in the country where organized criminal groups carry out human trafficking, forced labor, torture, deprivation of liberty and slavery. Its June report accused the Cambodian government of being "acquiescent" and "complicit" in the exploitation of thousands of workers. Sign up for the Independent Women email for the latest news, opinion and features Get the Independent Women email for free Get the Independent Women email for free Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Graphic and violent videos of women being tortured and murdered are being created using Googles AI generator and shared across the internet, intensifying concerns that the technology is fuelling misogynistic abuse. One account on YouTube, called WomanShotA.I, uploaded dozens of such videos showing women pleading for their lives before being shot, which had garnered nearly 200,000 views since June. It was removed only after tech reporting site 404 Media alerted the platform. The videos, made using Googles AI-generator Veo 3, were prompted to be made by humans and then shared across the internet. Some of the videos were titled captured girls shot in head, Japanese schoolgirls shot in breast, female reporter tragic end. Durham University law professor Clare McGlynn, a leading expert on violence against women and girls and gender equality, said when she spotted the video channel: It lit a flame inside of me that just struck me so immediately that this is exactly the kind of thing that is likely to happen when you dont invest in proper trust and safety before you launch products. open image in gallery Professor Clare McGlynn is a leading expert on violence against women and girls and gender equality ( Supplied ) Professor McGlynn stressed that Google and other AI developers must implement stronger safeguards before releasing their tools and address the issues as they come, condemning the industrys rush to produce technology. She told The Independent: Google says that this sort of material does not fall within their terms and conditions. They supposedly dont allow material with graphic violence and sexual violence, etc, yet this was able to be produced. What that says to me is they simply didnt care enough; they didnt have enough guardrails in place to stop this being produced. She said the fact that this content is able to be shared on YouTube, a popular platform for young people, is worrying as she fears it could normalise the behaviour. YouTube, which is owned by Google, said in a statement that its generative AI follows user prompts, and the channel had been terminated for breaching its terms of service. The channel had already been removed in the past. open image in gallery Veo 3 is Googles AI video generator that was released in May ( AP ) Generative AIs policies state that users must not engage in sexually explicit, violent, hateful, or harmful activities, or generate or distribute content that facilitates violence or the incitement of violence. Google did not respond to questions regarding how many videos of this nature it was aware had been created using its AI. Alexandra Deac, a researcher for Child Online Harms Policy Think Tank, believes that the issue needs to be treated as a public health priority. She said: The fact that AI-generated violent content of this nature can be created and shared so easily is deeply worrying. For children and young people, exposure to this material can have lasting effects, including impacting mental health and wellbeing. Ms Deac said new threats continue to emerge online, and the scale of exposure to violent, sexualised, or AI-generated harmful content is too great to leave to parents alone. The UKs Internet Watch Foundation has identified 17 incidents of AI-generated child sexual abuse material on a chatbot website, which has not been named, since June. open image in gallery The Internet Watch Foundation has found a chatbot website sharing AI-generated child sexual abuse ( AP ) It said users were able to interact with chatbots that simulate abhorrent sexual scenarios with children, some as young as seven. Olga Jurasz, law professor and director of the Centre for Protecting Women Online, said the videos hugely contribute towards the maintenance of a culture of sexism, of misogyny, a world where gender stereotypes thrive and are promoted, where women are seen as inferior, as ones that can be beaten, that can be violated, whose dignity does not really count. Dr Jurasz said a growing number of videos depicting extreme violence against women were being created and circulated online, which often promotes similar acts of violence both on and off the internet. It is a huge problem when we see videos or images that are AI-generated that portray sexualised violence against women and sexualised torture, she added. open image in gallery Violent AI-generated videos are from the imagination of humans, who prompt the AI ( Alamy/PA ) A Department for Science, Innovation, and Security spokesperson said: This government is determined to do everything we can to end violence against women and girls including online-based gender violence which is why we have set out an unprecedented mission to halve it within a decade. Social media sites, search engines and AI chatbots that fall under the Online Safety Act must protect users from illegal content, such as extreme sexual violence, and children from harmful content, including where it is AI-generated. In addition to criminalising the creation of non-consensual intimate images, we have also introduced laws which will make it illegal to possess, create or distribute AI tools designed to generate heinous child sex abuse material. The Online Safety Act came into effect in March this year after long delays and is designed to make the internet safer, especially for children. A central element of the bill is the new duties it places upon social media firms and the powers it gives Ofcom to enforce them. Earlier this year, prime minister Sir Keir Starmer vowed to make Britain an AI superpower, promising breakthroughs that it would export to the rest of the world. There have been several advancements since then, particularly in the health sector, where it has been rapidly adopted. Last month, AI giant Nvidia announced a 2bn investment in the UKs AI sector as part of the biggest-ever tech agreement between the UK and the United States. Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Tens of thousands of pro-Palestine protesters have gathered in central London for a march to mark two years of the war in Gaza. Arrests have been made after a clash with counter-protesters, while several people carrying placards that read We stand with Britains Jews have been removed from the crowd. Stalls were selling keffiyehs and outside Embankment station people were handing out placards that read from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free, its not a crime to act against genocide, and Starmer has blood on his hands, free Palestine. The demonstration comes as thousands of Palestinians began returning to their homes in Gaza following the withdrawal of Israeli forces after a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Friday. A counter-protest organised by Stop The Hate is also taking place, at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand. open image in gallery Police have imposed conditions on the march and a counter-protest (Yui Mok/PA) ( PA Wire ) In a post on X (Twitter), police said a small group of counter-protesters had breached conditions by demonstrating at the form-up area of the pro-Palestine march, leading to a scuffle between several individuals from the two groups. Officers separated those involved and made a small number of arrests, police said. Another individual held a sign, decorated with the image of a bee in the Star of David, which read It was never about Palestine, it was always about hate. A large stationary crowd of counter-protesters waving Israeli flags faced more than a hundred-thousand pro-Palestinian protesters passing from Waterloo Bridge onto the Strand. open image in gallery A counter-protester from Our Fight clashing with a pro-Palestine demonstrator ( Yui Mok/PA Wire ) A deafening loud speaker blared heavy rock music that included the lyrics you can stick your Palestine up your hole. Shouts of shame and free Palestine came loudly from the pro-Palestine crowd gathered along Victoria Embankment. The cheering crowd was led by a woman on a mobility scooter carrying a sign that said Palestine. Freedom peace, with a mannequin wearing a head-dress in the back. open image in gallery A police officer is seen with a demonstrator from Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, at the pro-Palestine march ( Yui Mok/PA Wire ) open image in gallery Another pro-Israel demonstrator seen in the crowds at the march ( Yui Mok/PA Wire ) Behind her walked a line of men and women in Palestine Solidarity Campaign hi-vis jacket, holding hands. One of them was wearing a white T-shirt and skirt covered in red paint that said no more blood sacrifice. Free Palestine. Your tax helps pay to bomb innocent civilians in Gaza. Your Party co-founder Jeremy Corbyn also walked at the front of the crowd across Westminster Bridge, helping to carry a large banner that said national march. Free Palestine. He stayed silent as a woman on a megaphone led the from the rivers to the sea chant, but was seen chanting Palestine will be free after she shouted Netanyahu you will see. Scotland Yard said it has imposed conditions on both demonstrations under the Public Order Act to prevent serious disruption and has set out specific areas that protesters can gather as well as a march route. open image in gallery The Met Police are expecting hundreds of thousands to attend the demonstration ( Yui Mok/PA Wire ) The pro-Palestinian protest is the 32nd national demonstration in support of Palestine since October 2023, according to organiser the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), and will see protesters march along Embankment before a rally in Whitehall. Last weekend, the government announced that police would be given greater powers to restrict protests by allowing them to consider the cumulative impact of repeated demonstrations. Home secretary Shabana Mahmood claimed repeated large-scale protests have caused considerable fear for the Jewish community. The Metropolitan Police said it was aware of the plans, but that at this time, the law remains unchanged. open image in gallery Scotland Yard have imposed conditions on both demonstrations to prevent disruption (Yui Mok/PA) ( PA Wire ) The government has also said it could launch a crackdown on some of the chants used at pro-Palestine protests. Some consider the slogan from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free to be antisemitic as they believe it calls for the eradication of Israel. Proponents of the chant claim they are calling for an end to conflict in Gaza and the West Bank. Almost 500 people were arrested at last weeks protest, with the majority on suspicion of supporting the banned terror organisation Palestine Action. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Approval for the planned Chinese mega embassy in London is reportedly set to be further delayed as tensions rise over Labours approach to Beijing. Officials in the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) are reportedly preparing to announce that the deadline on 21 October, will be pushed back, according to The Telegraph. Controversy has surrounded Chinas plans to build a large embassy near the Tower of London since 2018; no final decision has been made as it has been repeatedly delayed. China bought the 20,000 square metre complex in the Royal Mint Court at the time for 255 million. The potential delay follows changes in the department responsible for the planning case, made in the new Cabinet reshuffle, which saw Steve Reed take over from Angela Rayner, who resigned from her role. Critics connected the potential delay with the collapse of the trial of alleged Chinese spies. The prosecution of former parliamentary researcher Christopher Cash and teacher Christopher Berry was pulled after the Crown Prosecution Service tried over many months to get the evidence from the government it needed to show China was a threat to national security, but witness statements did not meet the threshold to prosecute. Luke de Pulford, the co-founder of the Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China, told The Telegraph: The reason for this delay stretches credulity, to put it kindly. Planning officials in Steve Reeds [the Communities Secretary] department have already had six weeks longer than planned, and done a very diligent job. Everybody knows the final call on the mega-embassy will be determined by politics, not planning law. The real reason for this delay is that current scrutiny makes giving the anticipated green light inconvenient. Sir Keir has said that responsibility lay with the previous Conservative administration, which was in power at the time of the alleged offences. The prime minister maintained on Thursday that because the last Tory administration had not designated China as a threat to national security, his government could not provide evidence to that effect, which the director of public prosecutions, Stephen Parkinson, said was required to meet the threshold for prosecution. Planning for the embassy has faced a number of setbacks after the initial planning application was rejected by Tower Hamlets Council in December 2022 due to security concerns and opposition from local residents. Another planning application was submitted shortly after the general election and ministers called in the proposal from the council, triggering an investigation by the Planning Inspectorate and a final decision from the Department of Communities. In August, Ms Rayner asked China to explain why parts of its plans for the new embassy were redacted. The MHCLG declined to comment. Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Sir Keir Starmer is reportedly gearing up to blame Nigel Farage and Brexit for Britains expected downturn in productivity at the Budget, as part of a new attack on the Reform UK leader. Treasury officials are bracing for the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) to lower its forecasts for productivity growth a downgrade that is likely to create an extra shortfall of around 20bn at Novembers Budget. The shortfall is expected to be filled by a swathe of tax rises. But sources told The Times Sir Keir and chancellor Rachel Reeves are planning to argue that this downgrade would not have happened were it not for Brexit, pinning the blame on the Reform leader for leading the campaign to take Britain out of the EU. open image in gallery Sir Keir Starmer has ramped up attacks on Reform UK ( PA Wire ) It comes after theThe Independent revealed that Brexit has cost UK business 37bn a year as a result of a 5 per cent drop in trade with the bloc. While the government has gone some way to remedy the drag on trade, signing a fresh cooperation agreement with the bloc earlier this year, there are fears it still wont go far enough to offset the barriers caused by the UKs exit from the EU. Sir Keir has previously accused Mr Farage of fantasy economics, comparing him to former Tory PM Liz Truss and claiming his tax cut pledges would crash the economy. But the prime minister has been ramping up his attacks on Mr Farage in recent weeks, using the Labour conference to claim his party is in a fight for the soul of the country with Reform UK, hitting back against the lies and division of the right-wing partys populism. open image in gallery Nigel Farages Reform UK have been surging in the polls ( PA Wire ) In an impassioned 54-minute speech at the partys conference in Liverpool, the prime minister pledged to defend British flags from the far right after a summer in which they became the focus of culture wars. Claiming Mr Farage doesn't like Britain, Sir Keir insisted that Labour is the patriotic party and used his address to set out his vision for a land of dignity and respect. He warned that the politics of Mr Farage and Reform, which he said would threaten the livelihoods of thousands of legal migrants, was racist and said anyone who argues that people who have lived here for generations should now be deported is an enemy of national renewal. The PMs new line of attack, expected to come at the Budget, is likely to take place alongside a series of further difficult choices for the government. There is a growing expectation that the Treasury will have to increase taxes by as much as 30bn in the upcoming Budget, as a result of sluggish productivity, government U-turns and higher than expected interest payments. Ms Reeves is facing increasing pressure to rescue the UKs troubled finances, but the government has repeatedly said it will not increase rates of VAT, income tax or national insurance at the Budget in November. Downing Street has been contacted for comment. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Venezuelan opposition leader and the newly awarded Nobel Peace Prize winner has dedicated her win to Donald Trump for his decisive support in her countrys fight for democracy. Maria Corina Machado said the award represents the struggle of all Venezuelans and serves as a boost in their mission to conquer Freedom. Her praise for Trump comes after the U.S. president missed out on the award that he has long hoped to win, when the winner was revealed Friday. In a post on social media site X, she said: We are on the threshold of victory, and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy. I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause. open image in gallery Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has won the Nobel Peace Prize ( AP ) Machado, a conservative politician, was awarded the prize for her work in promoting democratic rights. She has been forced to remain in hiding in the wake of socialist Nicolas Maduros recent election victory. Maduro has been accused of breaking human rights laws by a number of global watchdogs due to allegations of torture, corruption and killings. Since Trumps re-election, Machado has been an outspoken supporter of the U.S. president, describing him as a visionary and the biggest opportunity weve ever had for regime change in Venezuela. She has previously claimed to be in close contact with Trumps secretary of state Marco Rubio, who is the son of Cuban refugees. Since his first term in office, Trump has never shied away from his ambition to secure the Nobel Peace Prize, and had hoped his role in the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement could finally secure him the highly coveted award. During a press conference in the Oval Office on Friday, the president said: The person who actually got the Nobel prize called today, called me and said, Im accepting this in honor of you, because you really deserved it. A very nice thing to do. He then assured reporters that he didnt demand the award from Machado. I didnt say then give it to me, though; I think she might have, Trump said. She was very nice. And Ive been, you know, Ive been helping her along the way. She they need a lot of help in Venezuela, its a basic disaster. open image in gallery President Donald Trump has not shied away from his desire to win the Nobel Peace Prize ( Getty ) Despite several MAGA supporters and his own son calling for him to be awarded the prize, Trump gave a cautious answer when asked about his chances Wednesday. I have no idea, he answered her. I mean, look, I did settle Marco [Rubio] will tell you we did settle seven wars. Were close to settling an eighth, and I think well end up settling the Russia situation, which is horrible... I think well settle that, so... I dont think anybody in history has settled that many, but perhaps theyll find a reason not to give it to me. Five previous American presidents have been awarded the prize for their efforts in ensuring democracy, including Theodore Roosevelt (1906), Woodrow Wilson (1919), Jimmy Carter (2002), and Barack Obama (2009). The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice The U.S. military is moving forward with plans to build a dedicated facility in Idaho to train pilots from Qatar, an important U.S. ally in the Middle East, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday. Hegseth, who made the announcement during a visit by Qatar's defense minister, said the facility to be built at the Mountain Home Air Force Base would host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots to enhance our combined training, increase the lethality, interoperability. The arrangement is not unusual. Pentagon officials noted that similar facilities have been set up for other allies for decades, and the Idaho base already hosts a fighter squadron from Singapore. But the news drew a sharp rebuke from close Trump ally and right-wing influencer Laura Loomer, who called the plan an abomination and accused the Qataris of being associated with Islamic terror organizations. No foreign country should have a military base on US soil. Especially Islamic countries, Loomer wrote in one of several social media posts just hours after Hegseth's announcement. Although Loomer holds no formal position within the Trump administration, her online complaints have a history of achieving results. Her criticisms have led to the firing of officials on the National Security Council, Dr. Vinay Prasad, the Food and Drug Administrations vaccine chief, and Gen. Tim Haugh, the head of the National Security Agency. Qatar would pay for the construction of the new facility, a defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to provide information not publicly released. When asked for more details, Hegseths office said it had nothing to offer beyond the secretarys remarks. The announcement comes just days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order vowing to use all measures, including U.S. military action, to defend Qatar, which hosts the biggest U.S. military base in the Middle East. Loomer also criticized that decision, writing I dont want to die for Qatar. Do you? on social media. However, she was not alone. The Wall Street Journals editorial board also questioned the pledge, writing that "this is a decision that can be and should have been debated. Instead it comes out of the blue an executive order following no public debate, the board wrote. The small, gas-rich country played a key role in negotiating the most recent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas aimed at ending the war in Gaza, as well as in several other key negotiations. Doha, the capital of Qatar, came under surprise attack from Israel last month as members of Hamas were in the city last month to discuss a ceasefire. Qatar also lavished a $400 million jumbo jet on Trump for use as Air Force One. However, the Qataris' connection with U.S. military aviation predates these more recent developments. In 2020, the U.S. Air Force announced it has signed a deal with Qatar for the sale of more than 35 F-15 fighter jets. An Air Force environmental study, completed two years later, revealed that Mountain Home Air Force Base was proposing building a facility that would house 12 Qatari F-15 jets and about 300 additional Qatari and U.S. Air Force personnel. While the U.S. military has a long history of training pilots for allied countries, the practice received scrutiny in 2019 following a deadly mass shooting at Pensacola Naval Air Station that killed three U.S. service members and wounded several others. The shooter, Mohammad Saeed Al-Shamrani, was a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at the Pensacola base. The FBI said he was linked to the al-Qaida extremist group and had been in contact with it before the shooting. In the wake of the shooting, the U.S. sent home 21 other Saudi military students after an investigation revealed each had expressed jihadist or anti-American sentiments on social media pages or had contact with child pornography, including in internet chat rooms, according to officials at the time. However, the U.S. continued to train Saudi pilots. Loomer referenced the incident in her social media posts on Friday. Why are we trying to train more Muslims how to fly planes on US soil? Didnt we already learn our lesson?, she wrote on social media. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Sixteen people were killed in a devastating explosion at a Tennessee military supplier plant on Friday morning. Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said that investigators recovered no survivors," as he delivered an emotional update on the investigation Saturday. Later that day, officials confirmed the death toll and said they had notified the families of all 16 victims. It breaks my heart to tell you that, but I think that it can be said, Davis told reporters on Saturday night. The explosion occurred at the Accurate Energetic Systems facility in the Bucksnort area just before 8 a.m. local time. Officials initially said 19 people were missing and feared dead, but investigators later found three of those people safe off-site. Davis said crews are now working to clear the site foot by foot. open image in gallery Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said more than 300 people have combed through the plant in the wake of the explosion ( Getty Images ) The cause of the blast is still under investigation, and it could be weeks or months before authorities can rule out foul play, Davis said. He called it the most devastating scene hes ever seen on Friday, telling reporters, there's nothing to describe, its gone. Explosive specialists are investigating the incident, according to Supervisor Special Agent Guy McCormick with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. Theyre at the scene working to make the area safe for law enforcement officials, including agents from the National Repsonse Team, McCormick said. In a situation like this, what we find is that when these explosives are subject to the event that took place which is heat, the explosion being thrown, pressure they can change, and they can become different than how we know them to act, he explained. open image in gallery Smoke rises from the debris of a military explosives manufacturing plant in Tennessee. The plant exploded Friday morning ( AP ) Tennessee Governor Bill Lee said Friday he was monitoring the situation, and asked for residents to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident. Video from the scene showed the remains of the plant still ablaze with thick black smoke rising up. The eight-building facility is located around 60 miles southwest of Nashville. Nearby resident Gentry Stover recalled waking up to the massive explosion and thinking that his house had collapsed with him inside. I live very close to Accurate and I realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that, he told the Associated Press. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice New York City Mayor Eric Adams called a local beat reporter a dark, sick person over a story about a book written by a woman who alleged she had a romantic relationship with him. Former City Hall official Jasmine Rays new tell-all memoir, Political Humanity, describes an alleged secret relationship with Adams from 2014 to 2016 while he was serving as Brooklyns borough president, according to The New York Times. Adams went on to appoint Ray as the citys first director of the Mayors Office of Sports, Wellness and Recreation in 2022. She resigned from the role last month. Adams endorsed the book on Thursday, writing on X that Ray always led with integrity and that he enjoyed reading her book. But at a press conference the same day, Adams ripped into a journalist from the New York Daily News after the outlet reported that Ray described sleeping with Adams for the first time in his Brooklyn Borough Hall office. The mayor said it was never in the book as he appeared to slam a reporter involved in the story. "In the Daily News today, it was stated that there was a sexual action that happened in Borough Hall she reported in that book, and it wasnt, Adams said. You're a dark, sick person...your name was on the byline." New York City Mayor Eric Adams hit out at a reporter Thursday over a story detailing a new book by a woman describing her secret romantic relationship with him ( AP ) Some of you have been covering me for three-and-a-half years, some of you are so sick and dark, and you're the leader of that, Adams added. Youre one of the most dark writers Ive ever seen in this city." Adams went on to accuse the reporter of oversexualizing a Black man. The sickness of how you think of oversexualizing a Black man," he continued. "That in the book, you stated that there was a sexual action in Borough Hall, that was never in the book, but thats typical of the sickness and the darkness of your sick mind. Youre one of the sickest reporters I know." Ray wrote that she and Adams crossed that line in Borough Hall, but she didnt go into clear detail, according to an excerpt of her book shared on social media. He didnt ask. He didnt explain. He just looked at meAnd in that look, I knew. He had made up his mind, the excerpt reads. He closed the distance like a man stepping into something he couldnt walk back from. And then he said, F*** it. After we crossed that line, the love and the fun only intensified. New York Daily News Executive Editor Andrew Julien told City and State New York that the outlet is not the story here. The Independent has contacted the New York Daily News, Adamss office and Ray for comment. The New York Times described Rays book as an ardent love letter to the outgoing mayor, who ended his reelection bid last month. This comes as several polls show New York State Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani leading in the mayoral race, while his opponent, Andrew Cuomo, remains in second place. New Yorkers will elect their next mayor on November 4. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Gavin Newsom has called out podcaster Joe Rogan for talking about him so frequently, and challenged him to invite him onto his show to debate. Rogan has repeatedly poked fun at the Democratic California Governor and recently said he wanted to be president so bad. Many have speculated that Trump foe Newsom may be eyeing a presidential run in 2028. You cant ruin a city and then go on to ruin a state and say, Guys, that was just practice. Once I get in as president, Im gonna fix it all, he Rogan said, adding that he was a terrible politician and a bull**** artist. Speaking on the Higher Learning podcast, Newsom threw down the gauntlet. Hes been attacking me for years and years and years and wont have me on the show, Newsom told hosts Rachel Lindsay and Van Lathan. open image in gallery Rogan has repeatedly poked fun at the California governor and recently said he wanted to be president so bad ( The Joe Rogan Experience/YouTube ) open image in gallery The California governor has challenged Rogan to invite him onto his podcast to debate ( Copyright 2025. The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) Addressing Rogan directly he continued, Joe, why wont you have me on the show? He wont have me on the show. Its one way. And he has guests coming and attacking and bashing, but he will not have me on the show. Period. Full stop. Lindsay then suggested that Newsom host Rogan on his own podcast This Is Gavin Newsom with the governor agreeing. Lets have it. Lets do it, Joe. Come on my show, Joe. Rogan had also said that Newsom had managed to stay as Governor for so long due to low competition for the job in California. Theres no one whos good who is competing against him, theres no sincerity. The things that he says when he gets confronted with we're the highest this and the highest that everybody's leaving [California]... You have the highest unemployment, you have the highest homelessness, even Hollywood is missing... you killed Hollywood, like, Hollywood doesn't exist anymore. It's literally gone. Responding to a clip of Rogans criticism, Newsom wrote on X: Joe Rogan is too [chicken emoji] to have me on his show and expose his listeners to the truth, so Ill put it here, adding a list of his states achievements. He ended the post with, I could continue invite me on any time, @joerogan :). Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice CNN host Michael Smerconish said that theres no character requirement to win the Nobel Peace Prize, as he advocated for President Donald Trump to win the prestigious award next year if peace holds in Israel and Gaza. The Nobel committee announced Friday that this years prize went to Venezuelas opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who went on to dedicate her award to Trump. This came despite a flurry of last-minute lobbying from the president and his allies, who were calling for him to receive the award after he announced the first phase of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas earlier this week. However, the deadline for Nobel Peace Prize nominations is January 31, and awardees are determined following an eight-month screening process. On Saturdays episode of Smerconish, the CNN host said he polled his viewers on Friday about whether Trump should receive the prize next year if peace between Israel and Hamas lasts. He noted the president wasnt likely to receive it for this weeks deal given the timing and the deadline for the nominations. More than 35,000 people voted, not scientific, but interesting nonetheless, Smerconish said. In round numbers, 75 percent said no, which I thought was more reflective of Trump derangement syndrome than anything else. CNN's Michael Smerconish said Saturday that President Donald Trump should win the Nobel Peace Prize next year if peace between Israel and Hamas lasts ( CNN ) Smerconish went on to say he couldnt find any explicit reference to character in Alfred Nobels will, which describes the requirements for the Nobel Prizes. Ive looked at what Alfred Nobels will actually says, and character is not expressly stated. It speaks of establishing fraternity among nations, he said. So if hes able to do something that no one else was able to do, prepared and able to do, if a year from now the peace has held, then he ought to be the recipient of a Nobel Peace Prize. The Independent has contacted the White House for comment. This comes after the chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, Jrgen Watne Frydnes, addressed a reporters question about Trumps loss. We receive thousands and thousands of letters every year of people wanting to say what, for them, leads to peace, Frydnes said. This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. So we base only our decision on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel. Some on social media perceived his response as a slight to the president, even though Frydnes did not explicitly mention Trump or indicate he lacked those qualities. He reiterated in a follow-up interview with CNN that the committee is an independent body and reviews nominations based on the requirements in Nobels will. Meanwhile, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung accused the Nobel committee of placing politics over peace. President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives, he wrote on X. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will. Trump claimed Friday that Machado called him after she won the award and told him, Im accepting this in honor of you, because you really deserved it. Trump called it a very nice thing to do. I didn't say then give it to me, though, I think she might have, Trump continued. She was very nice. And I've been, you know, I've been helping her along the way. She they need a lot of help in Venezuela, it's a basic disaster. Passengers at Vietnam's Long Thanh airport won't need to remove shoes or laptops at security Travelers at Vietnam's upcoming Long Thanh International Airport will breeze through security without having to remove shoes, laptops or liquids thanks to new scanners launching with trial operations on Dec. 19. Pham Quang Hieu, Deputy Head of Technology and Environment at Airports Corporation of Vietnam (ACV), on Oct. 8 said the new security systems can detect items inside bags with far greater accuracy than current low-resolution scanners, which often require passengers to unpack electronics and accessories. Walk-through detectors at older airports also fail to pick up small, non-metallic items hidden under rubber soles. "With this new technology, passengers will enjoy greater convenience while security remains uncompromised. It also helps ease congestion at checkpoints," Hieu said at a digital economy forum. The U.S. scrapped its shoe-removal rule months ago, sparking calls in Vietnam to follow suit. Dang Hong Anh, chairman of the Vietnam Young Entrepreneurs Association, argued that removing shoes, belts and jackets wastes millions of labor hours annually, equivalent to losses of up to VND150 billion (US$6 million), and strains security staff as more than 1,000 travelers pass through major airports every five minutes. The new scanners are part of ACVs wider digital transformation push. From December, airports it manages will also pilot a "paperless airport" model using the national VNeID digital ID system. Passengers will be able to verify their identity with VNeID instead of showing ID cards or boarding passes, with biometric checks ensuring smoother journeys from ticket booking to boarding while cutting down on fraud risks. Long Thanh, under construction on a 5,000-hectare site in Dong Nai Province, 40 kilometers from Ho Chi Minh City, is envisioned as a "green and smart" airport designed to reduce carbon emissions and eventually reach Net Zero. Once fully built, it will be able to handle 100 million passengers and 5 million tons of cargo annually, positioning itself as a new regional hub competing with Singapores Changi and Thailands Suvarnabhumi. Phase one alone, costing nearly VND336.63 trillion ($13.2 billion), is designed to serve 25 million passengers and 1.2 million tons of cargo a year. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth who calls himself the War Secretary amid an administration rebranding of the Defense Department issued a clarification after widespread criticism from MAGA supporters over the news that the U.S. will host a Qatari air force facility on American soil. Speaking alongside Qatars Minister of Defense Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani, Hegseth announced Friday, Today, were announcing a letter of acceptance in building a Qatari Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho. The announcement sparked immediate backlash from conservative critics, most notably Laura Loomer, who has the ear of President Donald Trump, prompting Hegseth to post an important clarification on X later in the day. The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including todays announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United Statesnor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners, he wrote. Despite the clarification, far-right activist Loomer doubled down on her remark that allowing people linked to Hamas to train on U.S. soil poses a national security threat. open image in gallery Secretary of War Pete Hegseth clarified Friday on X that Qatar's training facility will be within a U.S. base, not a full foreign base of their own ( Getty Images ) Nobody wants the funders of HAMAS in America being trained to fly fighter jets on US soil. A jihadist in a suit is still a jihadi. Its a threat to our national security, Loomer replied to Hegseths follow-up post. Earlier Friday, Loomer called the plan an abomination. I dont think Ill be voting in 2026. I cannot in good conscience make any excuses for the harboring of jihadis. This is where I draw the line, she wrote. Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon and the Idaho Freedom Foundation also condemned the plan. "There should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America, Bannon told Newsweek. The MAGA-friendly Idaho Freedom Foundation said on X, To unilaterally decide that Idaho will host a foreign nations Air Force facility, which would house and train foreign nationals whose loyalties dont align with our own national and state interests, is a completely unacceptable overreach. open image in gallery Far-right activist Laura Loomer, a Trump ally, called the Qatar air force base an 'abomination,' and said she doesn't plan on voting next year ( Getty Images ) Meanwhile, the Qatari embassy confirmed that the training facility is part of a 10-year commitment to enhance interoperability between the two nations' air forces. The embassy also noted that the project will create American jobs and support broader U.S.-Qatari military cooperation. The establishment of the facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base, home to the 366th Fighter Wing, follows a precedent of hosting foreign military personnel for training. Similar arrangements have been made with other allies, such as Singapore, which has trained its pilots at the base since 1998. The facility is expected to accommodate 12 Qatari F-15 jets and approximately 300 personnel. In September, Trump signed an order pledging U.S. defense of Qatar if attacked and urged Israels leader to apologize for a deadly strike on a Qatari serviceman. Earlier this year, Qatars royal family gave Trump a $400 million jet, which he said would eventually go to his presidential library. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice President Donald Trump announced Saturday that military service members will receive their paychecks during the ongoing federal government shutdown. In a post on Truth Social, Trump stated that he had directed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to utilize "all available funds" to ensure troops are compensated, citing his authority as Commander in Chief in making this decision. Hegseth reacted to the news on X, sharing a screenshot of Trumps announcement and writing, President Trump delivers for the troops. The shutdown, starting October 1, furloughed many federal workers, while active-duty military faced potential missed paychecks despite being required to work. Trumps announcement that Hegseth could use identified funds to pay troops ensures that they received their scheduled pay on October 15. President Donald Trump shared Saturday on Truth Social that his administration found funds to pay troops during the government shutdown ( Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) The source of the funds to cover military pay has not been publicly disclosed. A White House spokesperson declined to comment when contacted by The Independent. The Department of Defense received nearly $160 billion in the "One Big Beautiful Bill" signed into law in July, which may be leveraged to continue operations during the shutdown. However, the administration has not specified whether these funds are being used for payroll purposes. As the shutdown extends into its third week, about 750,000 federal workers remain furloughed. While Republicans control both chambers of Congress, they lack the votes to overcome a Senate filibuster, leaving the government closed and negotiations stalled. The White House budget officer announced Friday that mass federal worker layoffs have begun. Over 4,000 employees are expected to be affected, with the largest cuts at Treasury, Health and Human Services, Education, and Housing departments. Other agencies, including Commerce, Energy, Homeland Security, and the Environmental Protection Agency, will also see significant staff reductions. Specific program impacts remain unclear. Democrats are demanding the continuation of health insurance subsidies as part of any agreement to reopen the government. Earlier legislative efforts to protect military pay during shutdowns lacked support, with House Speaker Mike Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune showing little interest in new proposals. They argue that Democrats are blocking a broader GOP-led bill that would also ensure military compensation. The shutdown continues with no clear resolution in sight. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice President Donald Trumps former National Security Adviser John Bolton is reportedly about to be indicted on criminal charges, according to a new report citing sources close to the matter. MSNBC reports that an indictment against John Bolton could arrive as early as next week. Two people close to the situation, speaking anonymously to the broadcaster, said that a grand jury in Maryland has been hearing evidence for several weeks relating to claims that Bolton kept classified national security information at his home. The sources said the pace of the case against Bolton has sped up recently. Bolton's potential indictment would make him the third of Trump's enemies to face criminal charges in just a matter of weeks. Both former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James have also been indicted on criminal charges. open image in gallery Former National Security Adviser John Bolton is reportedly about to be indicted, according to sources close to a Maryland grand jury. FBI agents raided Boltons Maryland home in September to search for alleged classified documents in his possession ( Getty Images ) Trump fired Bolton during his first administration and Bolton has been a vocal critic of Trump's leadership ever since. The sources told MSNBC that prosecutors in Virginia and New York are hesitant to bring cases against Comey and James, respectively, but prosecutors in Maryland reportedly believe the charges being brought against Bolton may actually be based in fact. Acting U.S. Attorney for Maryland Kelly Hayes has told her colleagues that she believes there is enough evidence to justify charging Bolton, the sources reportedly said. Bolton's home in Bethesda, Maryland, was raided by the FBI on August 22. Agents were executing a search warrant at his home in an attempt to locate classified records. The warrant was reportedly provided by the CIA and approved by a federal judge, according to MSNBC. open image in gallery FBI agents remove items from Donald Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton's house, as the FBI conducted a court-authorized search at his residence on August 22, 2025 in Bethesda, Maryland ( AFP/Getty ) FBI Director Kash Patel celebrated the raid on social media at the time. NO ONE is above the law... @FBI agents on mission," Patel wrote on X. Bolton's attorney, Abbe Lowell, has maintained that his client is innocent of all allegations made against him. He has repeatedly said that all of the classified documents Bolton had in his possession were from the George W. Bush administration during which he served as a U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and said those documents are typical of those that would be retained by a longtime government employee. An objective and thorough review will show nothing inappropriate was stored or kept by Ambassador Bolton, Lowell said in September. A heavily redacted version of the probable cause affidavit used by the FBI to justify the raid at Bolton's home was unsealed in September. A page titled "Hack of Bolton's AOL Account by Foreign Entity" is completely blacked out, but the sources speaking to MSNBC claim to have information about its contents. According to the insiders, the page details how the U.S. government found Bolton's AOL emails during an intelligence collection operation directed at a foreign government. The specific government is not named or was not provided by the sources. open image in gallery Former national security adviser John Bolton arrives at his house Friday, August 22, 2025, in Bethesda, Maryland ( Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. ) The discovery of Bolton's emails in the hands of a foreign government reportedly kicked off an investigation into whether or not the former ambassador had mishandled classified information. The indictments against Comey and James and soon, reportedly, Bolton have come down just weeks after Trump posted what appeared to be a private message to Attorney General Pam Bondi demanding she speed up prosecution of his political enemies. Senior Republicans were blindsided by the message and believed it was intended to be private. "What about Comey, Adam 'Shifty' Schiff, Letitia???" Trump wrote in the post. "Theyre all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done." Trump continued, saying, "We can't delay any longer, it's killing our reputation and credibility," and concluded with, "They impeached me twice, and indicted me (5 times!), OVER NOTHING. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!" open image in gallery President Donald Trump, left, and Attorney General Pam Bondi during a press briefing at the White House ( AP ) Trump later deleted the message and his staff acted as though it was intended for public view the entire time. According to a Wall Street Journal report citing unnamed sources, Trump was surprised to learn he'd posted the message to his Truth Social account, then said "Oh," and shrugged the mistake off. Two of the three people mentioned Comey and James have been indicted. It is unclear if or when an indictment will come down for Senator Adam Schiff. Both Comey and James have investigated Trump in the past. Comey led an investigation into Trump's first presidential campaign's alleged ties to Russia, and James investigated the Trump Foundation and sued it for fraud, alleging it was inflating the values of its properties and minimizing its debts to dupe potential investors. On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice More than 800,000 residents in Kyiv had their power restored on Saturday, following extensive Russian assaults on the nation's power grid that plunged vast swathes of the country into darkness. DTEK, Ukraines largest private energy firm, confirmed on Saturday that the main work to restore the power supply was complete, though some localised outages persisted across the capital in the wake of Fridays massive Russian attacks. The barrage of Russian drone and missile strikes on Friday morning injured at least 20 people in Kyiv, damaged residential properties, and triggered blackouts across significant parts of Ukraine. Prime minister Yulia Svyrydenko characterised the assault as one of the largest concentrated strikes against Ukraines vital energy infrastructure. Russias Defence Ministry stated on Friday that its strikes had targeted energy facilities supplying Ukraines military, without specifying locations. It confirmed the use of Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and strike drones in the operation. open image in gallery Emergency services personnel work to extinguish a fire following a Russian attack in Kyiv, Ukraine ( Associated Press/Dan Bashakov ) The nations energy sector has remained a critical battleground since Russias full-scale invasion began over three years ago. Each year, Russia has tried to cripple the Ukrainian power grid before the bitter winter season, apparently hoping to erode public morale. Winter temperatures run from late October through March, with January and February the coldest months. Ukraines air force said Saturday that its air defences intercepted or jammed 54 of 78 Russian drones launched against Ukraine overnight, while Russias defence ministry said it had shot down 42 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory. open image in gallery Ukraines largest private energy company, DTEK, said on Saturday that the main work to restore the power supply had been completed ( AFP via Getty ) The latest round of attacks came after the leaders of Britain, France and Germany said Friday they had agreed in a phone call to use the value of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraines armed forces. In a statement published by the German government, British prime minister Keir Starmer, French president Emmanuel Macron and German chancellor Friedrich Merz said they would act in close cooperation with the United States. The leaders said the joint action would increase pressure on Russian president Vladimir Putin and bring Russia to the negotiation table. On The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice One week into the Gaza ceasefire and there is still not enough aid going into the north of the war-torn enclave, with infectious diseases spiralling out of control, humanitarian organisations have warned. Around 560 metric tons of food have entered the Gaza Strip per day since the US-brokered ceasefire came into effect last Friday, but levels in the first week have been described as a trickle not the flood needed. UN humanitarian affairs chief Tom Fletcher has said thousands of aid vehicles would have to enter weekly to tackle widespread malnutrition, homelessness and a collapse of infrastructure. Aid groups now face growing uncertainty over crossing closures and administrative challenges as queues of trucks amass at the southern border. They have also not been allowed to bring food and medicine in through the major Rafah crossing, which has largely remained closed since the conflict erupted in 2023. Israel threatened to keep the crossing shut and reduce aid this week, accusing Hamas of returning the bodies of hostages too slowly. On the first day of the ceasefire, more than 500 aid trucks entered Gaza, Israel said. But in a major setback, Israels military aid agency COGAT this week said it would halve the number allowed in from 600 daily to 300. open image in gallery Trucks carrying aid line up at the Rafah crossing amid uncertainty about deliveries into Gaza ( Reuters ) With Gazas civilian population still facing hunger, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) warned that they were working in a narrow window of opportunity to scale up deliveries as others said millions of pounds worth of aid was sitting in warehouses waiting to go in. The issue is particularly impacting northern Gaza, where aid convoys are struggling to reach famine-hit areas. Around 950 trucks entered south and central Gaza on Thursday via the Kerem Shalom and Kissufim crossings with Israel, the UNs humanitarian coordination agency said, citing figures from Israels military aid agency COGAT presented to mediators. But the WFP said it had not begun distributions in Gaza City, pointing to the continued closure of two border crossings, Zikim and Erez, with Israel in the north of the enclave where the humanitarian debacle is most acute. Oxfam said on Friday it has more than $2.5m worth of lifesaving aid sitting in warehouses outside Gaza and ready to distribute. open image in gallery Gaza has been devastated by two years of war, but aid is still struggling to get in despite a fragile ceasefire ( AP ) Bushra Khalidi, Oxfams policy lead in the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Gaza, said: Right now, a trickle of aid is entering Gaza, when what is needed is a flood. The ceasefire promised access to aid organisations, yet many international NGOs with decades of experience remain blocked from entering and doing their jobs. Multiple aid groups say that bureaucracy is proving an obstacle in delivering the aid to where it is most needed. In March, Israel announced a registration process for all humanitarian organisations working in the Palestinian territories. Any groups seen to be delegitimising Israel, or employing someone who has called for a boycott of Israel in the last seven years, could lose their authorisation to operate. Milena Murr, spokesperson for aid group Mercy Corps, told The Independent it was exploring every possible avenue to scale up their response. However, we continue to face bureaucratic challenges linked to the interim period of the re-registration process, which has not been implemented as initially envisioned, she said. While these administrative barriers persist, our teams continue to focus on service delivery and will be prepared to move lifesaving assistance into Gaza and distribute it the moment access is granted. open image in gallery Food prices have shot up as the agreement struck last week shows signs of failing ( AP ) Israeli officials said Israel decided to slow aid and delay plans to reopen the border with Egypt because Hamas had been too slow to turn over the remains of dead hostages an issue that has placed enormous strain on the ceasefire this week. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday that Israel will not compromise and demanded that Hamas fulfil the requirements laid out in the ceasefire deal about the return of hostages bodies. Food prices in Gaza have meanwhile shot up amid fears the ceasefire will not hold, after coming down last week in anticipation of an armistice. But food is not the only concern. With medical centres woefully under-supplied, the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that infectious diseases in the enclave were spiralling out of control. Hanan Balkhy, regional director for the UNs health body, told the AFP news agency that there was a mammoth amount of work to do to tackle surging health conditions including meningitis and respiratory illnesses. open image in gallery Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians have been displaced from their homes by the war ( AP ) Balkhy stressed the urgent need for fuel, food, medical equipment, medications, medics and doctors in Gaza, with the enclaves health system decimated by two years of bombardment. Only 13 of 36 hospitals are even partially functioning despite the cessation of hostilities. With outbreaks of violence in Gaza in the last week there are fears that there may only be a limited time to deliver the support needed before the ceasefire fails. Abeer Etefa, spokesperson for the WFP, said: The ceasefire has opened a narrow window of opportunity, and WFP is moving very quickly and swiftly to scale up food assistance. The WFP was able to get some 560 tons of food per day on average into Gaza, she said on Friday, but some areas were still unreachable. The UN has a further 190,000 metric tons of aid waiting and ready to go in. Etefa said access to the north, including Gaza City, was extremely challenging, and that convoys were struggling to navigate damaged or blocked roads from the south. open image in gallery Palestinians are still awaiting news that aid groups can bring food and essentials through the Rafah crossing ( AP ) Then there is the ongoing issue of the Rafah crossing, which had been due to reopen but has yet to do so. COGAT said this was being coordinated between Israel and Egypt in accordance with the ceasefire deal. But a date has still not been set and even when it reopens it will only allow for the movement of people across the border, not aid. It should be emphasised that humanitarian aid will not pass through the Rafah Crossing, a COGAT spokesperson said. This was never agreed upon at any stage. Humanitarian aid continues to enter the Gaza Strip through the Kerem Shalom Crossing and additional crossings following Israeli security inspection, in full compliance with the signed agreement. The IDF, through COGAT, will continue to uphold its commitment to the agreement in accordance with the directives of the political echelon. Sign up to Simon Calders free travel email for expert advice and money-saving discounts Get Simon Calders Travel email Get Simon Calders Travel email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Visitors to Athens are now being treated to a sight not witnessed in decades: an unobstructed, scaffolding-free view of the iconic Parthenon temple. Strolling along the broad pedestrian street at the base of the famed Acropolis Hill, tourists can finally appreciate the 5th century B.C. UNESCO World Heritage site without the visual clutter that has marred its western facade for approximately 20 years. The removal of the conservation scaffolding from the Parthenons western side, completed in late September, is particularly significant. This elevation offers the most prominent street-level perspective, making its newfound clarity especially noticeable. Culture Minister Lina Mendoni highlighted that this moment also marks the first time in around 200 years that the Parthenons entire exterior is completely free of any kind of scaffolding. Speaking on Skai radio on Friday, Ms Mendoni remarked that for visitors, "it is like they are seeing a different, a completely different monument." open image in gallery The removal of the conservation scaffolding from the Parthenons western side, completed in late September, is particularly significant ( Associated Press ) However, this rare period of unblemished viewing will be temporary, as essential conservation efforts are set to continue. New scaffolding is to be erected along the Parthenons western side in about one months time, but it will be lighter and aesthetically much closer to the logic of the monument, Mendoni said. The renewed conservation work is expected to last until early summer in 2026. The minister said: The Parthenon will be completely freed of this scaffolding too, and people will be able to see it truly free. open image in gallery Culture Minister Lina Mendoni remarked that for visitors, it is like they are seeing a different, a completely different monument ( Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved ) The Acropolis is by far Greeces most popular tourist site, with 4.5 million people visiting in 2024, according to the countrys statistical authority. The marble temple was built in the mid-5th century B.C. to honor the citys patron goddess, Athena. Hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are trying to return to the piles of rubble that once were their homes, aid trucks are ready to move tons of medicine and food, and the tanks and artillery of the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) have been pulling out of Gaza City. These are the first signs that the initial phase of the Trump peace plan for Gaza is underway. But we have to wait until noon local time on Monday to have a real clue that the opening provisions of the plan are working. That is the deadline for the release of some 20 Israeli hostages still thought to be alive, and for the handing over of some 28 bodies of Israeli captives though it is feared that some cannot be located now. The success or failure of the Trump plan in the long-term pivots on one word, and one concept stabilisation. The plan itself is a strange mixture of blunt practicality and lofty, pious ambition. Gaza will be a deradicalised terror-free zone that does not pose a threat to its neighbours, states the first point. The last point, number 20, declares, The United States will establish a dialogue between Israel and the Palestinians to agree on a political horizon for peaceful and prosperous co-existence. This is an aspiration that has eluded national powers, insurgent movements and international bodies almost since Arthur Balfour raised the issue of a Jewish homeland in the Middle East in his letter to Lord Rothschild 108 years ago. How do you manage stabilisation and security in a shattered Gaza? The Strip has long been one of the most densely populated places on earth. It is also one of the places least favoured by nature and the tangled web of history. Today it is one of a dozen sites of human disaster in most need of peace and security across the world Lebanon and Syria, shattered by years of civil war, the mind-boggling destruction, bloodshed and famine from Yemen, Ethiopia and Sudan to the Congo and the Sub Sahara in Africa to say nothing of the misery caused by the wars in Ukraine and Myanmar. The immediate mission for Gaza is food, medicine, shelter and security protection ( AP ) The immediate stabilisation mission for Gaza is food, medicine, shelter and security protection. Under the plan, Hamas must disarm within days and decommission their weapons. The Israeli forces must pull back to the notional yellow line just inside the Gaza Strip at the Erez Crossing in the north. This means a security vacuum. Heavily armed gangs of no known ideological affiliation have looted and hoarded aid. The distribution of the limited aid brought in by the Israeli-American Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, GHF, has been accompanied by scenes of chaos and violence, and the shooting of civilians. The raw statistics of the challenge are stark. In two years of conflict, some 67,000 Gazans have been killed, and roughly 150,000 injured. Since 7 October 2023, 1,980 Israelis have been killed, including some 1,200 in the atrocity and massacre carried out by Hamas on that fateful day. According to latest figures from the UN, 1.07 million Gazans are in a condition of hunger. A number are extremely ill and in need of emergency treatment. Shelter now becomes a priority as the nights turn chilly. Some 90 per cent of the population of 2.1 million is displaced and more than three quarters of all buildings damaged or even wrecked. Fresh water supplies are a priority and water management has been a growing problem for Gaza for decades. This is quite apart from the five bouts of war visiting the Strip since Israel ended its occupation in 2006. Natural resources, underground aquifers were drying up for some time and the UN Development programme predicted a serious crisis in water supplies and sanitation by 2025. The biggest headaches are military and political. The Trump plan envisages a temporary International Stabilization Force (ISF) to immediately deploy in Gaza. It will be supervised by a Peace Board, chaired by Trump himself and with former British prime minister Tony Blair as principal member. The force will have to be scramble together in days from now an unlikely prospect, even with the fairest of following winds. Once the hostages and the Palestinian prisoners are released, Hamas will lay down their arms, according to point six of the plan, and will be given amnesty. Members of Hamas who wish to leave Gaza will be provided with safe passage to receiving countries. This risks colliding with the grim reality of Middle East history, politics, and ideological conflict. Hamas has been shattered but still has military capability as a guerrilla force as the current commander Izz ad-Din Al Haddads hold -out tactics against the Israeli forces suggest. It also has deep roots in Sunni Islamic militancy through the Muslim Brotherhood across the Arab Islamic world. Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to destroy Hamas, and he has largely destroyed the militants of the Qassam Brigades, perpetrators of the October 7 atrocities. But Hamas looks set to persist as a movement, based on its peculiarly self-destructive ideology, honed by Yahya Sinwar. There is also the risk that the Trump plan for Gaza gets caught in the crossfire of Israeli politics. Netanyahu knows that the hardliners in his government the settler wing led by the likes of Ben Gvir, Smotrich and Strook vehemently oppose the Gaza peace plan. Trump, however, has given him little alternative. He knows, too, he faces a general election next year. And he is still on trial on three corruption charges. The issues of stabilisation and security addressed by the Trump plan are vital for Gaza, but go well beyond. They have to be addressed across the world, in Africa and in Eastern Europe. They are an old challenge to nations, alliances and international organisations in newer and more lethal forms. Peacekeeping and approaches to aid security and delivery need an urgent rethink. The question of who governs Gaza and can guarantee at least some prospect of enduring peace and security is not one for Gazan Palestinians and Israelis alone. It affects the peace and security of us all. Go to Kosovo today, and among men in their mid-twenties, you will find a disproportionate number of them named Tonibler. It isnt a traditional Slavic name, but after the vital role that Tony Blair played in prosecuting the war against the Yugoslav leader, Slobodan Milosevic, in 1999, a new generation was called Tonibler. What chance is there that a new generation of children born in Gaza and Israel in the next few months and years will bear that most un-Levantine name, Donald? I can think of one person who would feel the warmest of warm glows if that were to come to pass. And lets give Donald Trump his due: his unconventional methods of diplomacy, his force of personality, his brow-beating of Bibi Netanyahu have got us to the point where we are today. open image in gallery Donald Trump arrives in Tel Aviv after his 20-point plan has led to a ceasefire and hostage exchange in Gaza ( AP ) Donald Trump is having a lovely, warm, soapy bath in the narrative that he is the peacemaker and deal-maker extraordinaire. Fair enough; he should be revelling in this moment. But the importance of timing in politics cant be overestimated. If you look at the deal that Trump has strong-armed Israel into signing up to, it is not so different from the one that Joe Biden put on the table a year ago. Why has Trump succeeded where Biden failed? Yes, his personality. But also timing. A year ago, Netanyahu thought he didnt need a deal. But after the haemorrhaging of support following the grotesque attempts to starve the Palestinian people into submission, and then the imbecilic missile attack on the Hamas mission in Qatar, Israel had never looked more isolated. That gave Trump the opening he sought, the leverage only he could apply. About 15 years ago, I went to Israel to interview Tony Blair, who, as leader of the Middle East Quartet, had been tasked with trying to find peace between Israel and the Palestinians. We travelled around the West Bank together, and he was clear-sighted that a two-state solution was achievable. Everyone knew what the shape of an agreement looked like; the problem was you needed the stars to align, for the two sides to be willing to take a chance, to roll the dice. Netanyahu nodded about a two-state solution, but then did everything to scupper it. Back when he was president, Bill Clinton thought he had a deal, but then the Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat, backed away, fearful that he wouldnt be able to sell it. Look at Northern Ireland, where Tony Blair succeeded with the Good Friday Agreement. Yes, it was painstaking, yes there were moments when it would seem like there would be failure. And yes, there were issues that were fudged like the decommissioning of IRA weapons. But there was a will on all sides to give it a go. The constellation of stars was in alignment that Easter. open image in gallery Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House ( Win McNamee/Getty ) That brings us to the other point. The hostages released today is not the end of this; it is just the beginning. The pile of unanswered questions is long. Will Hamas disarm? Will Israel leave the security of the Gaza Strip to this technocratic body? Who is going to appoint these technocrats to run Gaza? How do you keep the militants out? Who is going to pay for the reconstruction? How long will it take and how much will it cost? Remember, the peace plan has 20 points to it. If you cast your mind back to those historic events in Northern Ireland in 1998, the signing of the Good Friday Agreement was the first step. The Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) would have to become the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), the weapons would have to be decommissioned, and there was the painful process of releasing political prisoners. And then power sharing in Stormont. Today, 27 years on, there are still tensions. But the peace has largely held, because the politicians kept working at it. No one can doubt the force of Trumps personality and determination to bring this conflict to an end. But there is a question over whether he has the political bandwidth and attention span to continue to make that 20-point plan a reality; to bring the peace for an eternity as he has promised? The president can zoom in on a subject with enormous intensity but get bored with it equally quickly. We all feel we have attention deficit disorder with the Trump presidency, as one subject after another gains our undivided attention, only to be replaced by another, hours later. This is undoubtedly the best chance for peace and I salute Donald Trump unequivocally for getting this far. But the harder perhaps less headline-grabbing grunt work begins now. And Donald Trump, we all know, is an inveterate headline chaser. I hope Im wrong. All politicians love to think about legacy. If a durable, just and lasting peace is what Donald Trump bequeaths the world, then give him the Nobel Peace Prize, and make it the biggest, shiniest, most beautiful 24-carat gold medal those Norwegians have ever made. He will have earned it. Tanya Sweeney: When I moved to London in 1997 it swallowed me whole and spat me out for todays Irish twentysomethings its so much easier Author Betsy Cornwell: So many people dont know what the signs are of coercive control Moving to Ireland in search of a safe space, US writer Betsy Cornwell fell in love and found herself in an abusive marriage. After leaving her husband, she turned to crowdfunding to buy an old knitting factory in Connemara where she and her son found sanctuary and where she now provides a refuge and creative outlet for other single mums Betsy Cornwell. Photo: Mary McGraw Tanya Sweeney Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Betsy Cornwell is talking about the storied past of the Old Knitting Factory in Carraroe in the Galway Gaeltacht the lakeside property that she and her eight-year-old son now call home. Not only was it a place of work for local women upon opening in 1906; in the 1970s, it was converted into an Irish-language cinema, and later a jewellery-making studio. China slams U.S. action targeting Chinese companies under national security claims Xinhua) 09:21, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday expressed firm opposition to the recent decision of the United States to add multiple Chinese entities to its export-control "entity list," urging the U.S. side to immediately correct its wrongdoings. "The United States has consistently overstretched the concept of national security, abused export control measures, and arbitrarily exercised long-arm jurisdiction, imposing penetrative sanctions on multiple entities, including those from China," a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Commerce said in a statement. The statement followed an Oct. 8 announcement by the U.S. Department of Commerce that added 16 companies from the Chinese mainland to its entity list. "This latest move severely undermines the legitimate rights and interests of companies and disrupts the security and stability of global industrial and supply chains," the spokesperson said. China will take all necessary measures to resolutely safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese entities, according to the spokesperson. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Former Inland Fisheries CEO got nearly 8,000 in subsistence claims when work location was changed without approval C&AG report found there was no evidence of a business case having been prepared to support the move Francis O'Donnell, former head of Inland Fisheries Ireland. Photo: IFI Tabitha Monahan Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 The former CEO of Inland Fisheries Ireland got almost 8,000 in subsistence claims after his normal place of work was changed from Dublin to Donegal without board approval. One letter urged Justice Minister Jim O'Callaghan to be careful of his language around immigration Justice Minister Jim OCallaghan was inundated with emails and letters from frightened immigrants following a series of attacks on the Indian community. In one message, a woman wrote of not being able to change her skin colour and asked what she was supposed to do to feel safe while walking around. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys speaking to the media during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Heather Humphreys has said she will not smear anyone but will ask hard questions of her fellow presidential candidate Catherine Connolly. On Saturday, Fine Gaels candidate Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while independent Ms Connolly met with people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Ms Humphreys also thanked Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin for saying he would vote for her though he said he would not be recommending to members how they should cast their vote. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys speaking to the media during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Taoiseach reveals he will be voting for Heather Humphreys Mr Martins comments came ahead of an annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how the partys presidential candidate Jim Gavin fared. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. This leaves just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks time. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, Theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys meets Ruth Ryan, aged four, holding her teddy Bruno, during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary (Niall Carson/PA) After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys cuts a cake at half-time during a visit to a game at Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Id just like to thank the Taoiseach Micheal Martin for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. Theres savage kindness among this group of teenagers Cork secondary school staff on taking part in new TV series A Rebel Education follows the challenges and triumphs of life as a student in Ireland A Rebel Education - New school-based series inside Carrigaline Community School Deirdre Barry Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Rising concern around social media use is one of the main issues highlighted in a new four-part TV series following the students and staff of a Cork secondary school, due to air tomorrow. Barry OHalloran: Hamas had no choice but to finally bow to the inevitable Terror group has been decimated, and its leaders realised that basic survival was the priority Palestinians wave Egyptian and Palestinian flags as they travel along the coastal road in the central Gaza Strip. Photo: AP Barry O'Halloran Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 19:00 What a difference a day makes. On Tuesday the war in Gaza had entered its third year: then 24 hours later came the single most significant step to bring it to an end. John Downing: Its all change at the top, but for little Luxembourg its business as usual Abdication of Grand Duke Henri as head of state brought plenty of pomp and pageantry to country at heart of the EU From left: Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, Prince Guillaume Jean Joseph Marie of Luxembourg and Princess Stephanie de Lannoy of Luxembourg during Henri's abdication ceremony last week. Photo: Getty John Downing Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Since I spent a chunk of my life thinking Luxembourg was actually a radio station, rather than a country, I can hardly chide readers who were unaware that the EUs smallest and richest member country has a new head of state. Statutory notices have been served on the owner of two properties in Mallow and both properties have subsequently been listed on the Derelict Sites Register since the end of September. The information was provided by a senior official with Cork County Council at a recent Kanturk-Mallow Municipal District meeting after Cllr Pat Hayes requested the local authority to asses a building on Fair Street (next to the old cinema). Fianna Fail councillor Pat Hayes sought assurances that Cork County Council would write to the owners of the property on Fair Street after he expressed grave concerns that the building which is located in the middle of a town would collapse. Fianna Fail councillor Pat Hayes said there is a serious crack down the middle of the building. As you look at the old cinema it is the one on the left. The problem is that if you look at it, there is a serious crack down the middle and it is bulging. Cllr Hayes continued: I know it is in private ownership. I am not an engineer, but it certainly looks to be in real danger. I am just conscious of people walking down that street on a daily basis. It is in the middle of a town. Party colleague, Cllr Gearoid Murphy who seconded the motion said: We are aware of the need to address dereliction and that is only one of many examples. It is definitely important to bring it to the attention of the executive. Claire Barr, Municipal District Officer with Cork County Council said the building has been inspected and wasnt deemed to be dangerous. Cork County Council has assessed No. 7 and No. 8 Fair Street, Mallow within the context of the Derelict Sites Act 1990. Statutory notices have been served on the owner of the properties and both properties are listed on the Derelict Sites Register as of September 30 2025. This provides for levying of 7% of the market value on the owner from 2026. Ms Barr said the local authority will continue to engage with the owner of the property. It should be noted that even though these properties have been deemed derelict and placed on the Derelict Sites Register, liability for maintenance of the properties remains the responsibility of the property owner. Cork County Council will continue to engage with the owner, through the statutory processes available, to compel the owner to address the dereliction, she added. Cllr Hayes thanked Ms Barr for the reply which he said was very clear and very positive Aoife McGrath (30) has been renting in Dublin for roughly 10 years For nearly a decade, a Dublin woman has called various rented properties around the city home, but in the last four years, shes been served with three termination-of-tenancy notices. Despite, as she puts it, never missing a rent payment or doing anything wrong. Aoife McGrath (30) from Leopardstown first moved out of her family home at 19 and has been renting ever since. Ive been renting in Dublin for about ten years and for eight of those Ive been renting by myself, she said. I did have good relationships with my landlords; it's just the situation has gotten so bad. Her story, one of instability and anxiety, struck a chord online after a TikTok video she posted in tears went viral. In the video, she described how she was waiting outside her local post office in fear that she was due to receive a notice of termination on her current lease. She became quite emotional and asked, Where was I supposed to go? Aoife McGrath (30) has been renting in Dublin for roughly 10 years Today's News in 90 Seconds, Saturday October 11 I was embarrassed putting it up, she said. But I was desperate. I just wanted people to see whats really happening to renters like me in Dublin. Ms McGrath described her first long-term rental in Tallaght as "the first house that felt like home" outside of the family home she grew up in. However, after her landlord informed her that he was selling the house to one of his children, she had to pack up all over again and was moved to a different home owned by the same landlord. It was fine, she said, but the area wasnt great, and there were a lot more people in the home, making it overcrowded. We were moved in with the promise that wed have it for a couple of years, so I spent a lot of time trying to make the house a home, and four months later, we were informed that the house was going to be sold with tenants in situ. Four months later, we got told we had to be out of the house, so we were literally only there for eight months. Now renting in Sandyford, Ms McGrath said her current situation has become increasingly stressful. Its been really hard to find somewhere safe and affordable, she said. Theres mould in a lot of rentals, overcrowding, people living in unsafe conditions, its what you see when you go to viewings now. She works in mental health and disability services during the day and teaches yoga, often working twelve-hour shifts to make ends meet. Some days I do back-to-back work, and I still cant afford a secure place to live, she said. Its not for lack of trying. Ive done everything right, I work, I pay taxes, I contribute, and I still dont have a home I can count on. When her latest termination letter arrived in the post, she said she felt her heart sink. I actually queued outside the post office before it opened because I had a feeling it was coming, she said. When the clerk handed me the envelope, I burst into tears. He told me, Youll find somewhere. But I just thought, where? Ms McGrath said she is not directing the blame toward landlords or other renters. My frustration isnt with them, she said. Its with the system thats supposed to protect us. The Government knew our population was growing, wheres the housing supply to meet that demand? Theyll say, heres a one-off rent credit or a temporary measure, but that doesnt fix the problem. They keep putting plasters over a broken leg. For single renters like me, it feels like Russian roulette; you dont know who the people you are moving into the same house as. You end up having to make choices that no one should have to make: do I risk living somewhere unsafe, or do I face homelessness? She added, Part of me thinks about emigration. But I dont want to. This is my home. Why should I be forced out? People think moving abroad is lonely, but the loneliness here can be just as bad. Youre constantly fighting just to stay afloat, you want to work, to have a social life, to do nice things, but everything costs money, and youre trading one piece of your life for another. Ive worked hard, Ive kept the faith, Ive followed every rule, and yet, at 30, I still dont know where Ill be living in the next six months. Its not how it should be, she added. According to the Daft.ie Rental Report for Q2 2025, average rents in North City and North County Dublin now top 2,4002,500, up more than 40pc since before the Covid-19 pandemic. The report also shows that only 1,365 properties were available to rent in the city at the start of August, around a quarter of pre-pandemic levels. A spokesperson for the Department of Housing said Minister James Browne has led significant recent legislative changes in the rental sector. They said earlier this year, the minister announced landmark reforms to strengthen tenant rights. Key measures include national rent control, ending no-fault evictions for larger landlords, and limiting tenancy terminations for smaller landlords, with additional reforms expected from March 1, 2026, for new tenancies. A familiar Galway voice has become the international face of the city, as Galway City Council establishes the new post of International Relations Officer. Broadcaster Keith Finnegan has joined the council staff, taking on a role that connects Galway with the wider world, not just through the airwaves. The City Council created the role of International Relations Officer to shape Galways international brand and to act as a direct liaison with its sister cities around the world. Working alongside the tourism and development team, the new post will engage globally to promote Galway as a destination to live, study, work, and visit. It is a middle management position within the council that saw over 60 applications. Senior executive officer for Galway City, Brian Barrett said: Galway City has always been outward facing, with a long history of international trade, economic and cultural exchange, from our time as medieval city of the tribes, to today, as the fastest growing city in Ireland over the past 50 years, with one of the top five internationally recognised med tech clusters. Galway remains a cultural hub, home to world-renowned festivals, musicians, and artists. In 2014, it was designated a UNESCO City of Film, opening a bridge to filmmakers and artists worldwide. That recognition is underpinned by the Galway Film Fleadh, as well as grassroots events such as Little Cinemas 48-hour challenge and Culture Night. Keith was the trusted morning voice of Galway Talks on Galway Bay FM for more than 30 years, often travelling abroad, particularly to the United States, to strengthen connections. He even made it to the White House and to St. Louis for St. Patricks Day celebrations. But his time behind the mic came to a natural end in April 2024, when he decided to throw in the towel. Retirement, however, did not mean slowing down. Instead, Keith focused on mentorship and philanthropic projects while waiting for the right thing to come along at the right time. Then one day he came across the advertisement for a new role at the Galway City Council on a public job site. A role that piqued his interest and drew on his wealth of experience and global network. Chicago mayoral visit in 2018 with Rahm Emanuel. Photo: Instagram So, at 63 years of age, I brought down the application, wrote it up, and submitted it. I then passed through the first part of it, then I went for interview, and then I was informed that I was the successful candidate. Which leads us to where we are here, he said casually, tapping the marble cafe table with his finger. I have a huge passion for Galway because I grew up here. Galway has done extremely well, and the city has done extremely well all over the world. The pulse of Galway is one of the strongest pulses in the country, Keith added, This city is on a trajectory to huge success at an international and local level. I am only two days in the council. Prior to going into the Council, I knew a lot about the council. But in two days, I've learned more about [it], and it's absolutely, vibrantly fantastic. I'm proud to be from it. I am proud to be from the city that it is. There are people doing work that is above and beyond. A key focus of his work will be Galways twin cities and friendship agreements that span the globe, from St. Louis, Missouri, to Bradford, England, to Auckland, New Zealand. Recently, councillors returned from Milwaukee and Chicago after attending Irish Fests. Next year, they look forward to marking the 40th anniversaries of Galways partnerships with Seattle, USA, and Bradford, England. Chicago remains one of Galways strongest international connections, thanks to deep Irish roots linking the two cities. Keith regaled the story of how the partnership between the two started with a friendly businessman from Galway. Chicago started back in the late 1990s with a man from Galway called Billy Lawless. Billy would have been one of the biggest traders in Chicago. In Ireland, he would have had pubs and restaurants. He left Galway because his daughter was rowing [in college] so he decided that he would relocate to the States. Mr Lawless accompanied Keith on a trip to Milwaukee, which ended with a meeting with the Chicago mayor at the time. Then Billy got friendly with the mayor and Billy decided to relocate to Chicago and became one of the biggest advocates for Irish people in the States never mind in Chicago. The rest, Keith said, is history, nearly three decades of flourishing ties between the City of Tribes and the Windy City. It starts, it grows, and it becomes, he said, likening the relationship to a tree. What excites Keith about this role is the opportunity to make it his own, but he is sure to clarify that his loyalty lies in bettering the city. It's not a blank canvas, but there are very good people that have worked very hard for the canvas that I have now. I can choose the colours. I can choose the elements that go into those colours. Galway City and County Councillors at the Stategic Visit to Milwaukee and Chicago in 2024. In these troubled times with all the tariffs, and all that's going on, behind all of that is a very positive picture and a huge amount of positivity in the city, but to bring likeminded people together - that's the top line there. He added. I think you bring people along on a journey when you collaborate with them, you cajole, you walk with them. By the time I finish this position I want to have a legacy for the city, not for Keith Finengan. This is about the city. It's not about one person. It never has been in my life. Keith believes he brings a wealth of untapped knowledge to the role, and the anticipation to weave Galway maroon threads through the tapestries of other cities excites him. [I bring] contexts that can be used for the betterment of the city. Context that can be used at an international level to make a difference. Perhaps most of all, it is observing the international social phenomena that occurs every day on the cobblestone of Shop St where thousands of people from all over the world flock to a city that feels like a village. A place where the love of culture is etched on the walls, carried on the salt air of the Prom, and alive in the heart of the Saturday market vendors. What I get a kick of is standing on Shop Street on Saturday with a cup of coffee and seeing how many nationalities that we have. And that's not down to our sister city; that's down to the brand of Galway, Keith said, I think the brand of Galway is so strong. I cannot speak highly of it and. It's only going to get better. For now, as Keith settles into his firm office chair and organises his new desk at city hall, the council staff and Galway locals offer a warm Cead Mile Failte with big visions for what global Galway will become. Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme. The iconic Galway theatre company, Druid, has announced the appointment of Kerry woman Maureen Kennelly as the companys new Chief Executive Officer. Ms Kennelly brings an impressive background in the arts and culture fields with her into this role, having previously worked within leadership in the Arts Council, Poetry Ireland, Kilkenny Arts Festival, and Mermaid Arts Centre. Druid Theatre Company announced the news on social media on Thursday, saying they are delighted to announce Ms Kennellys appointment as CEO. Maureen is an experienced and accomplished arts leader with a legacy of achievement across various roles and a deep knowledge of the cultural sector, the post said. She has held leadership positions in several important arts organisations including Kilkenny Arts Festival, Mermaid Arts Centre, Poetry Ireland and the Arts Council. A native of County Kerry, Maureen has longstanding and close connections with Galway that stem from her time as a student in University of Galway, as well as previous working associations with Druid and the Cuirt International Festival of Literature. Welcoming Ms Kennelly stepping into the role, Druids Artistic Director, Garry Hynes said: I am thrilled that Maureen Kennelly will be joining Druid as our Chief Executive Officer and excited to be working with her. I have known Maureen as a colleague in the arts world for many years and I am confident her experience, intelligence and integrity will play a vital role in leading Druid into the future. Ms Kennelly will take up the role from October 14. I am delighted and honoured to take on this role, she said. Joining the company at this juncture is especially exciting as it marks 50 years of terrific theatre-making. Since my first engagement with Druid several years ago, I have admired the company and rejoiced in their achievements. Having previously studied, worked and lived in Galway, I look forward to being back in the city and to contributing to its remarkable arts scene. On behalf of the Druid Board, its Chair Adrian ONeill said: This year Druid celebrated its proud record of 50 years of excellence in theatre production. Inspired by that legacy of achievement, we now look to the future and are very pleased that Maureen will in the years ahead strategically lead the organisation to advance Druids vision of boldness, authenticity and respect for our community. Kerry is set to come alive this autumn as Halloween brings festivity and folklore to the countys towns and villages. Running from the October 16 to the November 9, Samhain Chiarrai will celebrate the countys ancient traditions with rituals, street processions and family activities. With new funding from Failte Irelands Home of Halloween pilot scheme, the programme will include three new Samhain experiences in Tralee, Killarney and Listowel. The events will tell the story of Cailleach, the wild Goddess of Winter, who emerges each year to mark the end of harvest and the turning of the Celtic year. Ceilis, street processions, fireworks, willow workshops and treasure hunts will retell the ancient Celtic tradition of Cailleach. A whole host of other community events will take place across the country including Feile Eile in Killorglin, Halloween Howl in Kenmare and the Sneem storytelling festival. Cathaoirleach of Kerry County Council, Councillor Michael Foley said: Samhain Chiarrai is about much more than celebrating our past its about bringing families, schools, and communities together to create new memories and experiences. Taking place over the mid-term break, the festival will give children and families the chance to enjoy unique events in towns and villages right across Kerry. From spectacular parades to community gatherings, Samhain Chiarrai will highlight the countys rich traditions while introducing new and engaging experiences for both residents and visitors. This festival is a chance for Kerry to come together, celebrate our shared heritage, and showcase the warmth and creativity of our communities. Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting scheme ALDIs solar retrofit programme and new partnership with Greenvolt Next. ALDI Irelands Kenmare store has received a major solar panel retrofit that will generate an average of 100,000 kWh annually. The installation was completed on October 10 as part of a 5 million investment in energy-efficient solutions aimed at marking a major step in the retailers ongoing sustainability journey. The initiative stems from a new two-year partnership with Greenvolt Next Ireland, that will result in ALDI rolling out a nationwide solar retrofit programme across stores nationwide. The solar panel system at Kenmare Aldi comprises of 288 solar panels and is expected to generate the equivalent of powering a washing machine for over 1,000 cycles, which covers approximately 30pc of each stores electricity consumption. A statement from ALDI said the initiative is part of the companys commitment to operate and grow sustainably, while delivering innovations and efficiencies that drive unbeatably low prices for Kerry customers. The initiative will see solar panel installations at 22 selected stores nationwide, with an additional 22 stores scheduled for installation in 2026. In total, the 5 million programme will retrofit 44 Aldi stores over the next two years. But its known yet if more Kerry branches have been earmarked for a retrofit. ALDI say the move is part of its broader commitment to finding greener, more energy-efficient solutions that reduce environmental impact and support long-term cost management. By lowering electricity consumption and reducing energy costs, the project helps businesses to safeguard its energy supply, reduce its dependency on the national grid, and manage external price pressures. The ALDI investment is also projected to double Greenvolt Nexts retail PV sector output in 2025, positioning the company for further growth across Ireland and strengthening its position as a leading renewable energy supplier. At ALDI, we are committed to continually investing in green solutions that improve energy efficiency and reduce our environmental impact. Were excited to launch this solar retrofit programme, beginning with 22 stores in 2025 and continuing with even more in 2026, said Rachel Nugent, Sustainability Manager at ALDI Ireland. Owen Power, CEO at Greenvolt Next Ireland, said major retailers like ALDI have a quick and easy route to adopting renewable energy due to their large flat roof spaces that makes installing solar panels a straightforward process. This doesnt interfere with daily operations, and requires low maintenance. It is fantastic that ALDI is seizing the benefits of solar to meet its climate goals, as well as reduce energy costs and reliance on the grid. We are thrilled to be ALDIs chosen delivery partner in harnessing solar power, Mr Power said. Irish News Kerry town marks success as a place that gets things done Killarney Chamber President Johnny McGuire said the town of Killarney has taken heart from recent comments made by Taoiseach Micheal Martin who described Killarney as being a great town for getting things done and just getting on with it and as a At a Soroptimist event in County Mayo, former President Mary McAleese spoke of the faith that sustained her, her Belfast roots, and the strength women need to keep pushing forward in the fight for equality Dr Mary McAleese told the audience that education had been the door to opportunity in her own life, and she urged young women to keep driving progress in the fight against misogyny and inequality. Photo: John O'Grady. From her childhood in Belfast to Aras an Uachtarain, Mary McAleese has consistently championed resilience and equality, themes she drew on in Castlebar last weekend at the Soroptimist National Friendship Weekend The former President of Ireland joined broadcaster Miriam O'Callaghan for a wide-ranging Q&A, reflecting on the people and experiences that shaped her life. Speaking about family, faith, mentorship and the challenges she has faced, Dr McAleese addressed the events theme: Remarkable Women: Extraordinary Impact Stories of Strength & Success. Above all, she urged women to keep pushing forward, reminding the audience that the journey to progress is never a straight line. Shaped by Belfast: Lessons in resilience and strength Dr McAleese was asked what her influences were growing up as a child. She responded with one word: Belfast. My hinterland growing up in Belfast as the oldest of nine children. She explained how her parents, being country folk, had a significant impact on her upbringing in the North. Joking, she said that they had not realised the house they bought was in a predominantly Protestant area. Being the first Catholic family on the street, she reflected, gave her a wide perspective and the ability to see that there was not just one way of thinking or believing, but many. The friendships she built with Protestant children in her neighbourhood would prove important. Years later, those same friends were among the first to help her during her campaign to become the eighth President of Ireland, when her Building Bridges Project became the theme of her presidency. "I think the great commandment, to love one another, is one of the best things I have ever heard in my life, if only people lived by it Being the eldest daughter also shaped her. Eldest children will understand the meaning of always being on duty, she said. Her mothers resilience left a lasting impression on her as well. At the age of 38, she gave birth to her 11th child and haemorrhaged not long after her son was born. A Catholic doctor told her she would need a hysterectomy, but explained he could not advise it. She was then referred to a female Protestant gynaecologist, who ensured she received the medical care she needed. When her mother returned home, the local priest arrived and said he had heard about the hysterectomy. He informed the family that she was still of childbearing age and had not asked his permission to have the procedure. I watched as my parents shrank in front of me, remembered Dr McAleese, I was 18 and clueless, I had never heard the expression childbearing age before. However, it tells you something about the cultural and religious context - it would not happen today. The same priest also dismissed her ambitions when she told him she intended to stay at school and become a lawyer. He told her: You cant, because you are a female and you have nobody belonging to you in the law. Education was the door that opened for me" It was her mother who intervened, offering the only career advice she received from her parents: Dont listen to him, she told her and then asked the priest to leave, a remarkable act of strength that has stayed with Dr McAleese ever since. Education was the door that opened for me, and it opened other doors - it was brilliant, she said. She looks back on her days in Belfast with deep affection, holding them close: It has implanted a value system, and a way of looking at the world, the realisation that people can be misled by figments, stories, fake news and by control. Dr McAleese reflected on the religious and political climate of the time, speaking about the layers of spiritual and religious control felt by those living in Ireland during that era. I think the great commandment, to love one another, is one of the best things I have ever heard in my life, if only people lived by it, but the layering of control over people was unhealthy. Faith, mentorship and empowerment When asked about her success, including becoming a lawyer and eventually President of Ireland, Dr McAleese was asked if she had always had confidence and belief in herself. Yes. She replied without hesitation, but said she could not take the credit for this innate belief. As the eldest of nine children, she explained how she came to understand that confidence manifests differently for each person, shaped by their circumstances, and that life does not work the same way for everyone. However, one figure who played a pivotal role in shaping her confidence as a young woman was Fr Justin Coyne. He was a parish priest she met while coming out of confession one Saturday in Belfast. This was the most beautiful, formidable, affirming relationship in my life, she explained. Fr Coyne helped her understand that her religious views had value, strength and significance - he had an innate belief in her. Dr McAleese told a story of a moment during her 1997 Presidential campaign when she thought she might have to withdraw, as she did not want to reveal her involvement in peace talks with Gerry Adams and John Hume. Her participation had been at the request of the head of the Redemptorist order. Just before she was about to call her campaign manager, she received a parcel from a woman named Sister Coyne. It contained the cross worn by Fr Coyne, sent because his sister thought Dr McAleese might need it. Reflecting on the significance of that connection, she told the audience: I said if I ever had a son I would call him Justin, and I did, adding that her sons husband was born on the 22nd June, the day that Fr Coyle died. "I dont believe in coincidences, I believe in the communion of saints and the relationship of people who love us, she explained, I saw that and I thought - were okay. "They invented a theology that excludes women, that flatters them, but keeps us in second place. Dr McAleese draws strength from her faith, explaining how she finds power in the fact that she was not born a Catholic; she was baptised into the faith, which then took hold of her in that moment. I have liberated myself to say I dont have to be obedient to the church's magisterium. This is a group of men who invented this system. They invented a theology that excludes women, that flatters them, but keeps us in second place. It doesnt give us the opportunity to be. It was clear how deeply Dr McAleese cherishes her church and her faith deeply, but she has the ability to challenge the sexist structures that exist within it. Dr Mary McAleese told the audience that education had been the door to opportunity in her own life, and she urged young women to keep driving progress in the fight against misogyny and inequality. Photo: John O'Grady. Pushing forward for the next generation An audience member asked Dr McAleese how, in the face of rising misogyny and setbacks in the fight for equality, women can assert their rights and voices without losing their composure. Dr McAleese recognised the frustration that, despite progress, society can often feel as though it is sliding backwards in the fight for equality. "Its not over, its never over. What happens is they wait for you in the long grass, they regroup, and there will be a pushback. You have to keep pushing forward It's something I learnt early on, there are no straight lines in this life, she said. She explained this to her son Justin during the campaign for same-sex marriage, a human right Dr McAleese had been advocating for since 1975. When the overwhelming majority voted in favour, they celebrated - but she reminded her son: Its not over, its never over. What happens is they wait for you in the long grass, they regroup, and there will be a pushback. You have to keep pushing forward. The same, she told the audience, is true in the fight against misogyny, pointing to elected leaders around the world who promote rhetoric that is misogynistic, homophobic, racist and anti-migrant. She warned that such language is used to: Reduce people to the rubble of being nothing, rather than human beings entitled to the full dignity of equality that they were born with. "If you take your foot off the pedal, what happens is women go backwards Dr McAleese spoke of historic moments when societies liberated themselves from inequality and narrow thinking that excluded the other. Ireland too, she said, has experienced these moments: But its not over, its never over. We cant let ourselves be drawn back. Turning to the next generation, she addressed young women directly: They have a job to do now, to keep pushing forward. Reflecting on the long struggle for womens rights, she continued: When women got the vote, when the suffragettes won, bear in mind the crucifixion they suffered to win the vote - a lot of people said thats all you had to do, you got the vote - thats it, We now look back and say, no. If you take your foot off the pedal, what happens is women go backwards, she explained. Education, she argued, has been central to progress: Free second-level and widespread access to third-level education gave women the opportunity to shine, but we are still in the opening chapters. Dr McAleese left the audience inspired with a clear message: progress is never a straight line, but persistence, courage, and conviction can create change. From her Belfast upbringing to her role as President of Ireland, she has shown how faith, mentorship, and education can empower women to overcome obstacles and become leaders. This article has been funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme. Mia Iversen, Katie Boyle, Founder and Managing Director, Gemma Smyth, Ann Deeley, Hazel Dobbyn and Kiah Ronaldson, from &Smyth, an award-winning creative communications agency based in Sligo and Dublin &Smyth, an award-winning creative communications agency founded by a native of Strandhill has become a Certified B Corporation. The agency, based in Sligo and Dublin, has joined a global community of organisations that use business as a force for good while meeting high standards of social and environmental impact. &Smyth, founded in 2013 by leading communications professional Gemma Smyth (formerly Gilligan) from Strandhill, is now counted among a small number of Certified B Corp communications agencies in Ireland, joining ThinkHouse, Cullen Communications and Springboard Communications Commenting on the certification, Gemma said, From the very beginning, we have believed theres a better way to work, one that supports our team, delivers stronger outcomes for clients, and makes a positive contribution to the communities and causes we care about. Becoming a Certified B Corp is a big moment for &Smyth. It shows how far weve come in building a business that truly lives its values and has those efforts independently recognised. Were proud to work with clients who care about making a positive impact, and this certification places us alongside a global community proving that business can drive positive change. The B in B Corp stands for Benefit for All and those with the certification are legally required to benefit workers, communities, stakeholders and the planet. Awarded by non-profit organisation B Lab, it recognises companies that balance profit with purpose and use their platforms to drive positive change. In Ireland, fewer than 100 businesses currently hold this certification. As part of the process, B Lab assessed &Smyths performance across five key areas: governance, workers, community, environment, and customers. This included a rigorous assessment and evaluation process over the last 18 months to verify that the business is meeting strict ethical, social and environmental business standards. Chloe Healy from B Lab Ireland commented: Were delighted to welcome &Smyth to the B Corp community. This certification reflects a deep commitment to purpose-driven business practices and continuous improvement. As more Irish companies join the B Corp movement, were seeing a powerful shift toward greater transparency and accountability. That momentum is helping to build trust and drive meaningful change across industries. &Smyth is a trusted partner to some of Irelands leading brands and organisations including Airfield Estate, Bord Bia, Bord Bia Bloom, Certified Irish Angus, Embrace FARM, Food Matters Live, Glenilen Farm, Good4U, JBE Events, Loughnanes of Galway, Master Chefs, MSD Animal Health, Nuffield Ireland, Odaios Foods and Panelto Foods, among others. The agency also provides pro-bono communications services for The Shona Project, a charitable organisation which supports teenage girls in Ireland. &Smyth is driven by a commitment to make a positive impact on society, local communities and the natural environment. It prides itself on working with clients aligned to this ethos and makes conscious efforts to maintain a low carbon footprint in all activity. The company also offers a Climate Hub resource for businesses which includes tips and guidance on how to engage in communications activity with the lowest environmental impact. five lines of subhead five lines of subhead five lines of subhead The five ambassadors who visited Sligo on Thursday and attended a discussion at ATU, Sligo. Jonas Grinevicius (Lithuania), Mr Artur Michalski, Charge daffaires a.i. of Poland, Ms Gerasko Larysa (Ukraine), Juris Stalmeistars (Latvia) and Mrs Kairi Kunka, the Ambassador of Estonia. Atlantic Technological University (ATU) hosted a panel discussion today, Thursday, 9 October 2025, on its Sligo campus, titled Conversations on Campus, featuring a delegation of high-level ambassadors and diplomats from Central and Eastern Europe. The event brought critical geopolitical realities to the forefront of the campus, engaging staff and students in a discussion focused on the three-year war in Ukraine and the future security of the European continent. The panel was composed of representatives from five nations, including Ms Gerasko Larysa, the Ambassador of Ukraine, Mr Jonas Grinevicius, the Ambassador of Lithuania, Mrs Kairi Kunka, the Ambassador of Estonia, Mr Juris Stalmeistars, the Ambassador of Latvia, and Mr Artur Michalski, Charge daffaires a.i. of Poland. The event highlighted the strong ties between the regions, noting that over 12,000 students across ATU hail from these countries. Addressing the critical query Is another conflict in Europe on a horizon?, the diplomats warned that the three-year war in Ukraine represents a daily threat to the entire European continent. Ms Larysa Gerasko, Ambassador of Ukraine, delivered a powerful appeal for global vigilance and assistance, framing the war as a fight for democratic survival. We are fighting for survival; our people are facing lost lives and destruction every single day. We are doing everything possible to stop the war; no one wants this and needs this. We are ready for peace talks, but Putin has no intentions to stop; he wants full occupation, not only of Ukraine, but everywhere in Europe, she said, adding that we are protecting Europe with our lives, we are paying the highest price. We need help, otherwise the rest of the EU will face the same. The theme of togetherness and active defence was reinforced by the Polish Ambassador, who spoke warmly of Irish-Atlantic connections and the power of collective action. Mr Michalski shared that the word Atlantic triggers his imagination, evoking lovely memories from his last visit to Sligo. He added: We are here to share our understanding and experience of what is going on and to talk about the solidarity- a powerful tool. He warned that the conflict in Ukraine affects the entire European continent. It is breaking and destroying, which is unacceptable as one cannot change order by force. He concluded that Russias actions stems from a colonial mentality, the mentality of the past, and that Ukraine is entitled to choose their fate and their future. Reinforcing the need for vigilance against the aggressor, Mr Staimeistars, Ambassador of Latvia, warned the audience against complacency. We must not be naive, thinking that our democratic system is safe. Putin is testing us all, and hybrid warfare can be done from everywhere, he cautioned. The panel concluded by reaffirming their commitment to peace rooted in strength and the eventual triumph of democratic principles, a sentiment crystallised by Mrs Kunka, Ambassador of Estonia. Meanwhile, solidarity, unity and friendship were the overriding themes when the ambassadors were greeted by TDs, Councillors and members of the Sligo County Council executive at County Hall. The message of solidarity related specifically to the ongoing war in Ukraine with representatives from Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine joining forces in a show of strength against the invasion and subsequent war launched by Russia. Cathaoirleach of Sligo County Council, Cllr Donal Gilroy formally welcomed the ambassadors saying it was an immense honour to welcome you to the heart of the North West, Cllr Gilroy said: This marks a moment of genuine friendship and shared purpose. He said the five visiting delegations along with Ireland are united by our values. In reference to the visit to the ATU where the respective ambassadors spoke to students, the gathering heard there are 1,200 students from the respective homelands of the various dignitaries studying in Sligo. Cllr Gilroy went on to say that the people of Sligo stood with them. I want to thank you for speaking to our people. Your war is not a distant issue, it is a crisis that effects us all. Your courage and resilience has inspired the world. The people of Sligo and Ireland stand in solidarity with your nation. We deeply understand the importance of solidarity, sovereignty and freedom. We believe local government has a wide role to play in fostering international understanding. Ukrainian ambassador, Larysa Gerasko outlined the purpose of the visit to Sligo and issued a reminder that her country still needs the support of the wider European community. Our shared message is for support for Ukraine and the security situation in Europe. Putin has intentions to go further and we have to be ready to take care of our security and defence in all of Europe, not only Ukraine. We still need your solidarity, we still need your support, dont look away. We are still fighting, we are resisting. I am very proud of our Ukrainians, it is very difficult to explain where they get this energy to resist but they wake up every morning after a horrible night of air strikes and go to work, bake bread, keeping businesses open, children going to school sometimes underground in bomb shelters. I visited a few schools when I was in Ukraine in the summer, there are schools completely underground. We are facing so many challenges but we resist because it is about our existence. It is about democracy, about our values which we share. I visited Zaporizhzhia in the summer, 15km from the front line. I saw and felt this spirit and mood and saw how people survived in towns, how they continue living under permanent shelling and I am very proud of them that they are so strong. The Estonian Ambassador, Kairi Kunka said: The main message of the visit is to support Ukraine in this tragic situation. This is our fourth visit of this kind. We are traveling around Ireland with this message of solidarity. Those sentiments were echoed by the Latvian ambassador Juris Stalmeistars who said, Its not only the concern of the neighbouring countries, Russias threat knows no borders. Deputy Frank Feighan noted that while Ireland may be a neutral country it has played a significant role in helping the Ukrainian people. Because of the war, the aggressive way Russia invaded Ukraine, we had 100,000 Ukrainians come here and they have assimilated and we have risen to the challenge of accommodating and supporting them in the best way we can. We have to work the way we have always worked, through diplomatic channels and our voice certainly counts in Europe and certainly counts in the United Nations. Deputy Marian Harkin also spoke of the significance of the occasion saying, I feel that most Irish people, and I would have been one of those, really dont know a lot about that part of Europe and their concerns and their issues. I said to the ambassadors I think it is very useful work that they are doing, going around to third level institutions to young students and giving them a perspective that they mightnt always have and they are open for discussion. Cllr Fergal Nealon, is well aware of the realities of life in Ukraine as he has worked closely with Rapid Response Ukraine, a Sligo based humanitarian that fundraised and then brought aid directly to Ukraine. Cllr Nealon was directly involved in distributing aid, recalling, we went to Ukraine and delivered the first batch of aid. At the time the call was for body bags. When we went out we got medical and humanitarian aid to the front line when the UN couldnt. We did hundreds of deliveries and that is ongoing. It is very important to be aware of the threat from the east. Simon Harris is very aware of the threat. We have to realise not all warfare is military. Cllr Edel McSharry noted the significance of the five ambassadors joining forces saying, Thank you very much for coming. This is such an important thing that we have solidarity. Cllr Marie Casserly echoed the sentiments of solidarity before speaking with her teaching hat on to let the five ambassadors know that students from those respective countries who are studying in Sligo, are doing you all very proud. Those present in the Council Chamber were then treated to a performance from Ukrainian peace choir, The Mallows, before the dignitaries and invited guests were invited to sign the distinguished visitors book and gifts were exchanged to mark a day of solidarity and friendship. -Article funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme. The American Mink is not native to Ireland or indeed to Europe. Animals were imported from North America in the past and were farmed here for the fur trade. Some individuals escaped or were released from their cages, and the species is now widely distributed. The species was first recorded in the wild more than 60 years ago, and since then it has colonised all counties in Ireland. Mink living wild eat out native wildlife and since they pose a significant threat to ground-nesting birds, the species has been classified as an invasive alien and was recently approved for inclusion on the EU Invasive alien species of Union Concern, the European Unions hit list of undesirables. Ireland, together with other EU Member States, is therefore required to take steps to eradicate the unwanted alien to conserve native biodiversity. Our National Parks and Wildlife Service has initiated a pilot project in the Midlands around Lough Ree, the second largest lake on the Shannon after Lough Derg and an important area for breeding wading birds. The pilot project will cover a total area stretching 20km in all directions from the shores of Lough Ree. This scope will see activity as far south as Shannonbridge, west to the River Suck, north to Rooskey, and east to Longford town. The Midlands Mink Eradication Programme is a collaboration between the Breeding Waders European Innovation Partnership (EIP) and the National Association of Regional Game Councils (NARGC) and is supported by the National Parks and Wildlife Service. The new pilot project is based on science and best practice, including a specialist mink detection dog, and state of the art remote sensing technologies. The programme aims to eradicate mink from the pilot area over a period of three and a half years and will be delivered through a structured, trained and co-ordinated volunteer network. All NARGC club volunteers will be professionally trained in identifying and trapping mink, and their humane dispatch. Mink eradication programmes have been run successfully abroad so there are past and existing schemes to learn lessons from. Ireland hopes to learn from best practice elsewhere, test how other programmes fit Irish conditions, try new approaches, and devise an efficient and cost effective plan that can be rolled out nationally. For more information about the Midlands Mink Eradication Programme, visit www.minkeradication.ie. Le trouvere, Deidamia and The Magic Fountain will be performed in the OReilly Theatre at the National Opera House Le trouvere is a story built around three sub-plots of War, Revenge and Love. The Comte de Luna is jealous of the Troubadour, Manrique, not knowing he is his brother separated at birth under tragic circumstances. They are both in love with Leonore, the dame dhonneur of the Princess of Aragon. Manrique has been raised by the gypsy, Azucena, who was looking to revenge the death of her mother, killed by the father of the two men. She kidnaps the younger brother but then she kills her son instead. The two men end their fight in a duel: Leonore, believing Manrique has been defeated, decides to enter a Nunnery. Manrique, instead, arrives just in time and flies with her to Castellor. The siege of Castellor leads to the arrest of Manrique and Azucena. Leonore poisons herself in exchange for Manriques freedom. When the Comte sees Leonore dead, his determination leads him to order the execution of Manrique, just before Azucena uncovers Manriques real identity. Azucenas mother is revenged. Deidamia is based upon the Greek mythological character, Deidamia, the daughter of King Lycomedes of Skyros, who bore a child by Achilles, as told in the stories of Achilles on Skyros. The oracle predicted that Achilles would die if he fought in the Trojan War. To prevent this fate, his father Peleus has disguised him as a girl and sent him to live in the palace of his friend, Lycomedes, on the island of Skyros, where he is brought up amongst Lycomedes daughters and becomes the lover of the eldest, Deidamia. As the Greeks prepare for their war against Troy, the priest Calchas reveals that the city cannot be taken without Achilles help. Ulysses, Phoenix and Nestor are sent to Skyros to convince him to join them in the war against Troy. The Magic Fountain revolves around the legend of a magic fountain that grants eternal youth. A Spanish explorer, Solano, and his crew are becalmed at sea off the coast of Florida. While the crew longs for home, Solano is consumed by a legend he has heard about a Fountain of Eternal Youth. A storm arises, wrecking the ship, and Solano is the sole survivor. Washed ashore, he is found by Watawa, who carries him to her village. Solano shares his dream with the village seer, who reveals that the fountain does exist and that Watawa will guide him to it. Despite knowing that drinking from the fountain will bring death to someone who comes unprepared, Watawa agrees to lead him. Aware of the fountains true nature, Watawa tries to dissuade Solano from his quest. However, in the end, she sacrifices herself, and Solano tragically follows her to his doom. Tickets are now on sale for the 2025 Wexford Festival Opera, running from October 17 until November 1 2025. Artistic director Rosetta Cucchis 2025 programme is built around the theme of Myths & Legends. It promises 16 days of captivating performances, rare operas and new discoveries. This year's main stage operas are: Verdi | Le Trouvere (1857); Handel | Deidamia (1741) and Delius | The Magic Fountain (1895). Brazilian artist Cilene Pires Sardinha at her exhibition in Arklow Library with Tamara Penston. Almost 40 paintings in a vibrant mix of watercolours and mixed media are on display in Arklow Library until October 14 at the first Irish exhibition by Brazilian artist Cilene Pires Sardinha. A bold and colourful debut, with three works sold on opening night, the opening was attended by friends and featured queijadinhas, a Brazilian cheese and coconut cupcake baked by the artist herself. Smiling at the diversity of reactions to her nature-inspired collection, Cilene proudly said: I like to see how different people have different favourites." This is not Cilenes first brush with art; she painted on silk in Brazil for years, but this exhibition marks a new chapter. Behind the delicate lines and bright colours is a story of persistence. She paints for hours at our dining room table in our one-bedroom apartment, said her Irish husband, Bernard Naughton. As any artist knows, clearing everything away for dinner is not easy. But her passion wouldnt let her stop. Cilene arrived in Ireland in 2019, shortly after marrying Bernard in Brazil. The two met by accident or fate when Celine unknowingly sat in her future husbands seat at a classical music concert. That musical misunderstanding sparked a connection that led to marriage and a transatlantic move. Both in second marriages, over 60, with adult children in four countries, they decided to reinvent themselves and move to Europe. Recalling how settling in Ireland wasnt easy, and her struggle with the language, food and housing challenges, Cilene said: Every conversation began with, Sorry, my English is not so good. In Brazil, I loved shopping for fresh vegetables at the street market. Here, the Irish markets are smaller, and the prices are much higher." However, the Irish weather has been unexpectedly welcome for Cilene, as she never liked the heat back home. Her journey has not been a solo act. Bernard, a member of the Arklow Writers Group and a lifelong ESL teacher, has supported her artistic journey. Together, they busk in Bray, harmonising on pop classics from the 60s and 70s. Despite the uncertainty of housing and future plans, one thing is certain for Cilene she will continue to paint. Music brought us together, and it keeps us creating, Cilene said. Being in nature here gives me endless inspiration, and when people connect with my work, thats the real reward." Belarus has initiated a comprehensive review of its armed forces' combat readiness on the orders of President Alexander Lukashenko, the Ministry of Defense announced. According to the ministry, the measures are designed to evaluate how quickly troops can respond to emerging threats and carry out assigned missions. Belarusian Buk-MB2K Surface-to-Air Missile System / Open source illustrative photo "A number of armed forces units will be placed on combat alert, move to designated areas, and perform the activities specified in the directive," the statement said. The inspection is being conducted under the supervision of the State Secretariat of the Security Council and includes command-and-staff training, troop movements, and field exercises to assess unit coordination and mobility. Arrival of the first railway echelon with russian troops in Belarus for the Zapad-2025 exercises, August 2025 / Photo source: russian media This announcement comes shortly after Belarus held annual mobilization readiness exercises from October 7 to 10, organized under the leadership of regional authorities. A member of the Wicklow Pride Committee is planning to drop down 200 feet at Dublins Smithfield Tower in an effort to raise vital funds for a youth organisation who work with LGBTQ+ children and young people. Originally from the northeast of England, Philip Morrison-Gale has lived in Wicklow town for five years, and will take on the challenge as part of the Belong To Abseil 2025, joining over 30 other people from across Ireland taking to the skies, raising much needed funds for Belong Tos work with LGBTQ+ young people and their families across Ireland. Belong To is a national youth organisation which provides services to LGBTQ+ young people and their families across Ireland, including crisis counselling, family support and information services as well as working with a national network of LGBTQ+ youth groups, providing community, support and fun for LGBTQ+ youth in communities across the country. Since 2003, Belong To has grown from a youth project into a unique national services and advocacy organisation with and for LGBTQ+ children and young people. I was inspired by my friends son who came out at a young age and that drew me to Belong To and all the great work they do with young people, said Phillip. Im taking part in the Belong To Abseil because I believe every young LGBTQ+ person deserves to feel safe, supported and proud of who they are. Growing up can be tough enough, but for many LGBTQ+ young people, isolation, bullying and discrimination make it even harder. Belong Tos work changes lives by creating spaces where young people can belong, be themselves and thrive. Fundraising through this event is my way of giving back and helping to ensure that more young people get the support they need, both here in Wicklow and across Ireland. Phillips adventurous nature should also assist him in his challenge, taking place on Sunday, November 2. I would be a bit of an adrenaline junkie and love things like roller coasters. I have carried out sky dives for charities in the past as well. I actually used to be a bit scared of heights but jumping out of a plane on my first sky dive seemed to cure it. I have been getting plenty of support, especially from family and friends and now Im really looking forward to the big day. It should be a great day, especially if the weather is on our side. His work with the Wicklow Pride committee has also helped forge many new bonds and friendships. We host the Pride festival in Wicklow town each year, which always attracts large crowds from far and wide, but we also hold different countywide events throughout the year, like coffee mornings and sip and dips at various local beaches. Its about bringing the community together and it is also a great way for people to make new friends. CEO of Belong To Moninne Griffith is full of praise for Phillip and his efforts. He stated: Were really grateful to Phillip for taking this challenge on. Its no small ask dropping almost 200ft in support of LGBTQ+ young people. Its a real testament to his commitment to creating a better Ireland to grow up LGBTQ+. We know through research that compared to the general youth population, LGBTQ+ young people in Ireland experience higher rates of depression, anxiety, suicide ideation and suicide attempts. But it doesnt have to be this way. At Belong To, through our work with schools, youth services and public services; our advocacy work on policy; and our campaigns around online wellbeing and mental health, we can change this. Were working hard to shape an Ireland where young LGBTQ+ people are safe to shine. This is the work that Phillip is supporting and were so grateful to them, and to all who support their fundraising efforts. I would also call on anyone in Wicklow or elsewhere who would like to take on the challenge to visit our website to find out more and register your interest in this trilling-seeking experience, in aid of LGBTQ+ youth. Anyone else interested in taking part in the abseil for Belong To can visit their website in order to register. It is open to individuals and teams. To reserve your place, Belong To require a 50 registration fee and ask that you raise a minimum of 450 to support their services for LGBTQ+ young people. Once registered, you can start fundraising immediately and Belong To will help you every step of the way. Each participant will also be provided with a Belong To t-shirt and will get the opportunity to connect with other Belong To supporters. Phillip has also established a GoFundMe page titled Abseil for LGBTQ Youth as part of his abseiling challenge for anyone who wishes to make a donation. Kyiv calls for more support from allies as Russian drones and missiles strike energy facilities in Ukraine One child killed and 20 people injured, as Vladimir Putin intensifies attacks on specific targets Vladimir Putin is targeting Ukraine energy facilities as winter approaches. Photo: AP Vladyslav Smilianets and Anastasiia Malenko Reuters Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Large parts of Kyiv were plunged into darkness in the early hours of yesterday after Russian drones and missiles struck Ukrainian energy facilities, cutting power and water to homes and halting a key metro link across the Dnipro river. Gazans begin trek back to ruined homes as preparations begin for release of hostages Donald Trump planning trip to Israel on Monday with planned speech to Knesset Palestinians inspect a damaged armoured personnel carrier left behind by Israeli forces amid destroyed buildings in Gaza City. Photo: AP Alexander Cornwell and Nidal al-Mughrabi Reuters Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 15:33 Thousands of displaced Palestinians trekked over the wastelands of Gaza to return to the ruins of their abandoned homes yesterday, after a ceasefire took effect and Israeli troops began pulling back under the agreement to end the war. Unicef calls for all Gaza crossings to open and for food aid to flow as ceasefire begins World Food Programme expects 600 aid trucks a day but some charities have not yet received clearance to move supplies Palestinians displaced to the southern part of Gaza at Israel's order during the war return to the north after a ceasefire went into effect. Photo: Reuters Olivia Le Poidevin and Yesim Dikmen Reuters Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 The UN childrens charity Unicef called yesterday for all crossings for food aid into war-shattered Gaza to be opened, saying children in the territory were especially vulnerable because they have gone without proper food for long periods. Donald Trump says report querying his health may be act of treason as he rages against op-ed Ukrainian children back home after Melania Trump says she had talks with Vladimir Putin Thousands of young people have been forcibly taken to Russia during the war US first lady Melania Trump speaks at the White House yesterday. Photo: Reuters Andrew Feinberg UK Independent Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Eight Ukrainian children who were kidnapped from their families and held captive in Russia have been returned to Ukraine after back-channel negotiations between Melania Trump and Russian representatives, the US first lady said yesterday. Why the Venezuelan Iron Lady beat Donald Trump to win the Nobel Peace Prize Unifying opposition leader Maria Corina Machado has been forced to live in hiding over threats against her life Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado at a protest in January ahead of the inauguration of president Nicolas Maduro in Caracas, Venezuela. Photo: Reuters Kostya Manenkov Associated Press Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 06:30 Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado won the Nobel Peace Prize yesterday for her struggle to achieve a democratic transition in her South American homeland, winning recognition as a woman who keeps the flame of democracy burning amid a growing darkness. Channing Tatum points to Neal H. Moritzs massive producer fee Channing Tatum says the 23 Jump Street script is one of the best hes ever read but it probably wont happen because of a greedy producer Neal H. Moritzs price for a producer fee is huge And to be honest, thats whats killing it Tatum says every other producer, pic.twitter.com/5LXKerQoM4 Culture Crave (@CultureCrave) October 10, 2025 ( Image credit : X/@PopBase | In a new interview, Tatum explained that the long-awaited sequel is being held back by financial complications ) The sequel that never was? ( Image credit : X/@popcultureguy902 | After the success of 21 Jump Street and its 2014 sequel, a third instalment seemed inevitable ) Fans still hope, but Channing Tatum sounds unsure ( Image credit : X/@PopBase | Fans continue to push for 23 Jump Street, often bringing it up in interviews and social media ) Its been over a decade since 22 Jump Street hit theatres, but fans hoping for another round of undercover chaos might be disappointed. Channing Tatum has confirmed that 23 Jump Street remains stuck in development, and it has nothing to do with the cast or story.In a new interview, Tatum explained that the long-awaited sequel is being held back by financial complications. I get asked more about Jump Street 3 than any other movie Ive ever done, he said. I dont think itll ever happen. The problem is the overhead. It would cost as much as the actual budget because of all the producers involved.While Tatum, Jonah Hill, and directors Phil Lord and Chris Miller have reportedly agreed to take reduced producer fees to get the project off the ground, one producers demands remain a major obstacle: Neal H. Moritz.According to Channing Tatum, Moritzs compensation has made the film financially impossible to move forward. Neals price for a producer fee is huge, Tatum admitted. And to be honest, thats whats killing it.The actor described the project as too top-heavy, suggesting that the number of producers and their collective fees would equal or even exceed the movies entire budget. Despite everyones creative enthusiasm, the financial structure simply doesnt make sense for the studio to approve.After the success of 21 Jump Street and its 2014 sequel, a third instalment seemed inevitable. The first film grossed over $200 million globally, and 22 Jump Street surpassed that with $331 million. However, despite several attempts including an ambitious crossover idea with Men in Black, the project never progressed.Channing Tatum revealed that the team had a finished script, which he called the best one Ive ever read for me and Jonah. Yet, even with passion from the stars and the directors, it wasnt enough to overcome the costs weighing the project down. It falls over every time, Tatum said.Fans continue to push for 23 Jump Street, often bringing it up in interviews and on social media. But Tatums comments suggest that unless major financial compromises are made, the film may stay shelved indefinitely.Despite the disappointment, Tatum remains busy with other projects, including his acclaimed role in Roofman alongside Kirsten Dunst. Still, his attachment to the Jump Street franchise is clear, and so is his frustration that the movies fate lies in the business side of Hollywood rather than creativity. From Portugal to Singapore: A rail adventure across 13 nations Where does the longest train journey go? The cost and comforts on board Linking Europe and Asia by rail Why travellers love the Lagos to Singapore train FAQs World's longest train journey: If you think long train rides are just about reaching a destination, think again. The worlds longest train journey is a moving showcase of cultures, landscapes, and stories that stretch from the Atlantic coast of Portugal all the way to the tropical charm of Singapore.Covering a jaw-dropping 18,755 kilometres across 13 countries, the Lagos to Singapore train route has redefined what cross-continental travel means. Its not just a train ride its three weeks of pure discovery, taking you through bustling capitals, quiet villages, snow-dusted mountains, and golden rice fields, all without ever leaving your seat.Whats even more fascinating is that this record-breaking journey now surpasses the once-famous London to Singapore route, making it the new ultimate adventure for train lovers around the world.This extraordinary worlds longest train journey begins in Lagos, a charming coastal town in Portugals Algarve region, and ends in the vibrant city-state of Singapore.Over 21 days, the train travels across 13 countries, linking Europe and Asia in a continuous route. Depending on weather or scheduling changes, the trip can extend slightly beyond three weeks but every moment is worth it.The Lagos to Singapore journey takes passengers through a mix of cultures, languages, and landscapes that no other route can match. The train travels through Spain, France, Germany, Poland, Belarus, Russia, Mongolia, China, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Malaysia, and finally Singapore.It stops at 11 major destinations including Paris, Moscow, Beijing, and Bangkok, where passengers can spend a night exploring each citys local life, cuisine, and architecture. Every stop feels like a mini holiday within a larger one.A ticket for this once-in-a-lifetime longest train journey costs around USD 1,350 (roughly 1.14 lakh). Though it may sound pricey at first, its actually a fair deal considering it covers 13 countries, onboard meals, drinks, and accommodation.Travellers dont have to worry about booking hotels or managing logistics they can simply relax and enjoy the ever-changing views from their window seats.One of the most exciting developments that made this worlds longest train journey possible is the new ChinaLaos railway line, which now connects Europe directly to Southeast Asia by train for the first time.Beyond tourism, this link boosts trade, helps local economies, and strengthens cultural ties between regions proving that trains arent just about transport, but about connection.This remarkable rail route offers something unique a chance to watch the world change around you slowly. From the beaches of Portugal to the jungles of Thailand and the skyline of Singapore, every kilometre brings a new view, a new meal, and a new story.For those who believe the journey matters more than the destination, this might just be the greatest train adventure ever created.It covers approximately 18,755 kilometres across 13 countries, taking about 21 days to complete.It starts in Lagos, Portugal, and ends in Singapore.The full journey costs around USD 1,350 (approximately 1.14 lakh), including meals and accommodation.It travels through 13 countries and stops at 11 major cities.Its the longest train journey in the world, connecting Europe and Asia by rail for the first time, offering incredible scenery and cultural experiences. Nenkasman poses for a photo with her husband in front of their home in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. Nenkasman, 40, hailing from Qiaoqi Tibetan Township in Baoxing County, Ya'an City, has been leading a diverse life. In 2007, Nenkasman and her husband started a family-run guesthouse and engaged in nature education. They led children participating in study tours onto pastures for hiking and bird-watching, collecting plants along the way to make specimens. Around a decade ago, Nenkasman began recording daily life and culture in her hometown with videos. During this process, she noticed that traditional skills once essential to local women -- yak wool spinning and Qiaoqi floral sash weaving -- were gradually fading as fewer people were willing to carry them on. Determined to protect and pass on these techniques, she established a textile handmade studio in 2016, combining traditional craftsmanship with innovative design to produce backpacks, scarves, belts, and other handicrafts. She marketed these products through fairs and online sales. As orders increased, Nenkasman shared them with village women, enabling them to earn extra income during the off-season of farming. More than 50 women have since engaged in the part-time job under her guidance. Today, Nenkasman's studio is attracting growing numbers of schools and craft enthusiasts for visits and hands-on experiences. In her Tibetan guesthouse, the culture space she established is taking shape, welcoming more visitors. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman demonstrates yak wool spinning at her studio in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (L) instructs a tourist to experience the techniques of yak wool spinning at her studio in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (L) teaches weaving techniques at a villager's home in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, April 1, 2025. (Photo by Zhu Tao/Xinhua) Nenkasman (R) drinks tea with a tourist at her guesthouse in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (L) introduces the flowers and seeds she collected to a tourist in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (L) introduces the procedure of yak wool spinning to a tourist at her studio in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (R) displays the video she recorded to Lu Juntang, a graduate student who is conducting a research here in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman prepares lunch for tourists at her guesthouse in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (R) and Lu Juntang, a graduate student conducting a research here, decorate the culture space in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (L) introduces the Qiaoqi floral sash weaving to a tourist at her studio in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 7, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Nenkasman (1st R) shoots a video in a field in Jiajinshan Village of Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) This photo shows Nenkasman's guesthouse in Qiaoqi Tibetan Township of Baoxing County, Ya'an City, southwest China's Sichuan Province, Oct. 8, 2025. (Xinhua/Xu Bingjie) Editor: GSY ( Image credit : Generated via Freepik | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) From Kansas highways to british castles: A culture shock 1. Public transport ( Image credit : X/ londonville | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) 2. NHS healthcare ( Image credit : Generated via Freepik | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) 3. Real-life fairytale vibes ( Image credit : X/ londonville | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) 4. Travelling ( Image credit : X/ londonville | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) 5. Chocolates, obviously! ( Image credit : X/ londonville | Reasons why an American thinks the UK is better than the US ) Tea over coffee, Cadbury over Hersheys If you think culture shock only happens on long-haul trips, think again. Brianna Morton, a 38-year-old Kansas native, moved to Norfolk three years ago after her husband was stationed in the UK with the US Air Force. What started as a military relocation has now turned into full-on British love story energy.She says the UK has completely changed her daily life, and she has officially declared some very everyday British things as miles ahead of their American counterparts.In Kansas, Briannas life was basically one big driving simulator. Trains were scarce, buses were unreliable, and going anywhere without a car was a logistical nightmare. But in the UK, she is living her no-car dream.She loves hopping on local buses, trains or trams without having to plan days in advance. Her kids can even travel independently, which she calls a total game changer for family life.One of Briannas biggest shocks came in the form of a GP visit. In the US, she says medical bills used to skyrocket even for small injuries. But in the UK, she does not spend nights stressing about insurance.She has openly said that not having to brace for a five-figure bill every time someone breaks a bone feels life-altering.Brianna has fallen head over heels for Britains history and architecture. From majestic castles to centuries-old cathedrals, she is constantly exploring with her children. She loves that weekend picnics can casually happen in the shadow of medieval walls.Her younger self, she says, would have lost it over this level of fairytale energy.Weekend in Paris? Quick hop to Rome? Easy. Brianna has managed to visit nearly 30 countries in just three years because travel within Europe is that accessible from the UK.She says what would be a major holiday back in the US is just a casual weekend plan now.And then there is chocolate. Brianna tried Cadbury for the first time after moving to the UK, and lets just say there is no going back. She has admitted that Hersheys tastes waxy in comparison, and she is now fully team British chocolate.Briannas list may seem simple, transport, healthcare, history, travel, and chocolate, but it highlights why everyday UK life can feel unexpectedly luxe to newcomers. As she puts it, she came for her husbands posting and stayed for the Cadbury. A symbol of France and a global attraction Where did the 2026 demolition rumour begin? ( Image credit : AP | A board at the closed Eiffel Tower during a new round of strikes and protests to denounce spending cuts and demand higher taxes on the rich ) Fact-Check: Is the Eiffel Tower really being demolished in 2026? Why was the Eiffel Tower closed recently? The Eiffel Tower: Still standing strong FAQs Recent posts on social media have sparked panic and confusion, claiming that the Eiffel Tower will be demolished in 2026. The rumour spread quickly across X (formerly Twitter), Instagram, and Facebook but before believing it, lets take a closer look. Heres a full fact-check on whats really happening with one of the worlds most iconic landmarks.The Eiffel Tower, built by engineer Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Exposition Universelle, has long stood as a proud symbol of France. Originally designed to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution, the tower has since become the face of Paris and arguably, of the entire country.Every year, nearly seven million people visit the monument, with about three-quarters being international tourists. Since its opening, nearly 300 million people have climbed its iron stairs or taken its lifts to enjoy breathtaking views of Paris.Its construction completed in just two years, two months, and five days was a major engineering milestone of the 19th century. Although it was only meant to last 20 years, the Eiffel Tower survived thanks to its role in early radio transmissions and later telecommunications.The viral claim that the Eiffel Tower will be demolished in 2026 started with a satirical article published on 18 September 2025 by a website called Tapioca Times, reported in. The outlet is known for parody and humorous pieces.The fake story quoted a made-up spokesperson who joked that nobody goes there anymore and that the tower would soon be shut down. It went on to suggest ridiculous ideas for replacing the monument such as a massive water slide, a Las Vegas-style concert hall, or even a Paris Burning Man event.Unfortunately, many social media users missed the humour and shared the post as if it were true. From there, the joke spiralled into an online panic, with people genuinely asking if Paris planned to demolish its most famous landmark.Lets be clear no, the Eiffel Tower is not being demolished in 2026. There are no credible reports or official statements suggesting this.The operator of the tower, Societe dExploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), has not mentioned any plans for demolition. Neither the City of Paris nor French cultural authorities have issued any statements confirming such a move.In fact, the Eiffel Tower remains one of the most protected and well-maintained landmarks in the world, regularly undergoing cleaning, repainting, and safety inspections. Far from being dismantled, it continues to attract millions of visitors and remains central to Frances tourism economy.Part of the confusion came from the temporary closure of the tower starting on 2 October 2025. Some people linked this to the demolition rumour, but the truth is far simpler the closure was due to nationwide workers strikes in France.The strikes were organised by unions protesting against government budget cuts and demanding higher taxes for the wealthy. Staff at the Eiffel Tower joined these protests, leading to short-term service interruptions.This isnt new similar closures have happened in the past, including in 2023. Once the strikes end, the Eiffel Tower is expected to reopen as usual.Despite being over 135 years old, the Eiffel Tower remains a living piece of history and innovation. It has survived wars, weather, and now fake news.So, to set the record straight: the claim that the Eiffel Tower will be demolished in 2026 is completely false. Its nothing more than an internet hoax. The iconic iron lady of Paris isnt going anywhere.Because of a satirical article that was misunderstood and shared online as fact.It is operated by Societe dExploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE), under the supervision of the City of Paris.No. The monument is regularly maintained and inspected to ensure safety and preservation.Its temporarily closed due to workers strikes, not because of demolition plans.Once the strikes end and normal operations resume, similar to previous short closures in recent years. ( Image credit : X/@metgalacrave | Harry Styles and Zoe Kravitz in New York City. ) Roman strolls and London plans Harry Styles and Zoe Kravitz spotted together in Rome. pic.twitter.com/8lMEcIOIPW Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 25, 2025 The Paris spark that caught attention ( Image credit : X/@AButlerNews | Austin Butler and Zoe Kravitz on set of 'Caught Stealing' in New York City. ) Zoe Kravitz's relationship rewind ( Image credit : X/@PopBase | Channing Tatum and Zoe Kravitz broke up after 3 years and called off their engagement. ) Harry Styles romantic past Harry Styles and Taylor Russell reportedly spotted holding hands in London today. pic.twitter.com/b5y0TbeYyw Pop Crave (@PopCrave) August 28, 2023 A new chapter for Harry Styles & Zoe Kravitz What started as quiet whispers in Hollywood seems to be turning into something far more serious. Harry Styles and Zoe Kravitz are reportedly shacking up together in London - and friends close to the pair are convinced this isnt just another celebrity fling. One insider said it plainly: "It's love."The 31-year-old pop star and the 36-year-old Catwoman actress have been inseparable since their relationship came to light in August. Whether it's cozy walks, dinners abroad, or late-night laughter in New York, their bond has been hard to ignore.On August 24, 2025, Zoe was spotted in Rome - but she wasn't alone. Walking side by side with Harry, the two looked effortlessly comfortable together, dressed down but clearly in sync. Fans captured the pair wandering through the city, chatting and smiling like a couple in their own world.Now, insiders say Zoe is preparing to spend more time in Harry's Hampstead home, as she returns to work in London after their sun-soaked summer together.A source revealed: "Harry and Zoe have a real connection - this is love. It's a real honeymoon period and theyre barely apart. Zoe has to get back to work on a film so she's coming to London and will be staying with Harry while she's here. They've had an amazing summer together and things are only getting more serious between them," according toBefore the Harry rumours took over, Zoe made headlines for her Paris outing with Austin Butler on August 21, 2025. The two were seen sharing drinks and laughter at Dragon, a stylish bar in the city, following the premiere of their filmFans couldn't help but notice their easy chemistry - especially after Austin was caught on camera brushing a bee off Zoe's shoulder during their London promo stop. It was a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, but one that had fans talking about movie chemistry spilling into real life."While neither addressed the rumours, the Paris sighting certainly added intrigue before Zoe's name became linked to Harry's.Zoe's love life has long drawn attention. She was previously engaged to Channing Tatum, her co-star turned fiance, but the pair quietly ended their engagement in October 2024. Since then, Zoe has kept her personal life under wraps - until now.As for Harry, his most recent relationship was with Canadian actress Taylor Russell, which reportedly ended in May 2024 after a trip to Japan. Though private about their romance, the two were often seen together during their year-long relationship.And of course, fans still remember the pop culture whirlwind that was Harry and Taylor Swift. Their 20122013 romance gave birth to one of music's most talked-about "what ifs," inspiring songs and endless speculation that still surface years later.Neither Harry nor Zoe has commented publicly, but their actions speak louder than words. From summer getaways to setting up home in London, this connection seems to have moved beyond rumour territory. ( Image credit : Government of UP | CM Yogi Adityanath ) Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, on Saturday (October 11), said that Indias Sanatan Dharma tradition has never shown rigidity when it comes to modes of worship. However, according to him, the world still fails to understand the difference between dharma (righteous duty) and panth (religious sect). Speaking at the Prabuddhjan Samvad Sangam held at Bhurkuda Siddh Peeth, the CM added that the word secular was secretly inserted into Baba Saheb Ambedkars Constitution.Yogi Adityanath shared his views on religion and dharma at the Prabuddhjan Samvad Sangam and said that the word secular was not part of the constitution. Highlighting his vision for development, he said that UP will soon be transformed into a progressive state where everyone will have access to basic facilities.Uttar Pradesh will be developed into a progressive state where every hand has work, every family has a roof, every crop field has water, every face reflects happiness, and every daughter and trader feels safe, he said.During his visit to the district, the Chief Minister unveiled the grand statue of the revered saint Ramashray Das Ji Maharaj at Bhurkuda Siddh Peeth.On this occasion, he spoke to Peethadhishwar Pujya Sant Shri Shatrughna Das Ji Maharaj, members of the college family, and local residents. CM Yogi said Bhurkuda Siddh Peeth shares an inseparable bond to Indias spiritual heritage, particularly the Satanami Sampradaya. Remembering his contributions, Adityanath said the installation of his statue in the college premises will inspire future generations.He then brought the conversation back to Sanathan Dharma, he said that it is inclusive in nature.We have never said that only those who visit temples are Hindus and those who dont are not. Our tradition embraces all, he said.Adityanath also touched upon Ghazipurs cultural heritage and historical importance.Adityanath urged teachers and students to uphold discipline and show deep respect towards their gurus and saints. He also urged them to promote both development and eduction through their actions.Adityanath emphasised the importance of integrating modern knowledge with traditional spiritual wisdom. He added that this will ensure the welfare of society and the country. Explaining the goal of Viksit Uttar Pradesh @2047, the Chief Minister asked all educational and social institutions to come up with suggestions for achieving holistic progress across key sectors such as education, healthcare, agriculture, skill development, tourism, and investment. ( Image credit : TencentVideo | Watch episode 28 of the C-drama Love's Ambition online. ) Love's Ambition: Release date and time for Episode 26 Where to Watch Love's Ambition Episode 28 Online? Love's Ambition: Episode 28 Plot? Love's Ambition episode 28: Spoilers Love's Ambition: Cast and Characters FAQs Fans of the Chinese dramacan stream Episode 28 online on October 11, 2025, at 3:30 PM IST / 10:00 AM GMT / 6:00 AM ET, according to the official release schedule.This drama follows glamorous anchor Xu Yan and urban elite Shen Hao Ming, an enviable couple whose contrasting backgrounds strain their relationship. Xu Yan marries him through her crafted image and his influence, but after a conflict, she breaks free. Only then does Shen Hao Ming realize his true feelings and vows to win her back. As they drop their facades, they grow closer and rediscover each other.Episode 28 airs on Saturday, October 11, 2025, at 3:30 PM IST / 10:00 AM GMT / 6:00 AM ET. It will also be available to international viewers via simultaneous streaming on Viki, with English subtitles to make the series accessible to a global audience.Episodes 28 is available to stream on TencentVideo, WeTV and Viki - the main legal platforms offering high-quality video and English subtitles. For viewers in the U.S., Canada, India, Indonesia, and Viki remains the top choice for watching the series.Glamorous anchor Xu Yan and urban elite Shen Hao Ming seem like the perfect couple, but their contrasting backgrounds strain their relationship. Xu Yan marries him using her carefully crafted image and his influence, yet a conflict drives her to break free. Only then does Shen Hao Ming realize his true feelings and vow to win her back. As they let go of their facades, they grow closer and rediscover both each other and themselves.In Love's Ambition episode 28, hearts are stirred as Shen Hao Ming finally reveals his true feelings to Xu Yan. He confesses, "I used to know nothing about love. In my selfish pursuit of gain, I lost the one who cared for me most. If you ask me who I am now, I'll tell you. I'm someone who realized Im still in love with you."Xu Yan is deeply moved, the walls around her heart slowly melting. But just as their romance begins to bloom again, Shen Hao Ming faces a new storm. His father plans to appoint him to the company's board of directors, giving him immense influence - and making his rivals desperate to bring him down.Hane Ping is ordered by his foster father to dig up any damaging evidence against Shen Hao Ming. He turns to Fang Lelay, who holds a long-buried secret. Hane Ping reminds her of a drunken confession she once made about her sister in the UK being pregnant, suspecting that the child could be Shen Hao Ming's. He plans to confirm it and use it as a weapon against his rival.With such a sinister scheme unfolding, the tension rises, making this episode one of the most gripping yet.The drama(also known asor) stars Zhao Lusi as Xu Yan and William Chan as Shen Hao Ming. The main cast also features Wan Peng as Lin Qiao, Tang Xiaotian as Yu Yi Ming, and Guan Zijing as Lin Tao.Episode 28 will be released on October 11, 2025, at 3:30 PM IST / 10:00 AM GMT / 6:00 AM ET.You can stream Episode 28 on Viki. All three platforms offer English subtitles.Yes, the series is fully subtitled in English on Viki, including Episodes 28.No,is not available on Netflix. It officially streams on Viki. SC gives green signal for firecrackers in Delhi-NCR Strict rules and time limits set by Supreme Court Diwali and major festivals: 8 PM to 10 PM 8 PM to 10 PM New Years Eve: 11:55 PM to 12:30 AM 11:55 PM to 12:30 AM Gurpurab: One-hour slots in the morning and evening One-hour slots in the morning and evening Weddings and personal events: Limited use allowed under supervision Solicitor general urges longer time for kids to celebrate Government promises strict enforcement across Delhi-NCR Only licensed traders will be allowed to sell firecrackers. Series crackers (ladis) will not be available in the market. No e-commerce websites will be permitted to sell crackers online. What this means for Delhi-NCR residents Air quality index (AQI) during Diwali 2018-2024 Year On Diwali AQI After Diwali AQI 2024 550 550 2023 218 301 2022 312 302 2021 382 462 2020 414 435 2019 337 368 2018 281 390 FAQs The Supreme Court (SC) has allowed the sale and bursting of firecrackers in Delhi-NCR for five days during Diwali, giving residents a legal chance to celebrate with fireworks after years of strict restrictions. The decision marks a major shift as concerns about air pollution and enforcement remain high among experts.A bench led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Bhushan R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran made the announcement after hearing the Union governments proposal to permit only green firecrackersa cleaner, less polluting version approved by the National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI).The Supreme Court bench noted that this approval would be on a trial basis, saying:This temporary relaxation means residents of Delhi and NCR can legally purchase and burst firecrackers within specific hours.According to the SC, firecrackers can only be sold through licensed traders, and online sales via platforms such as Flipkart or Amazon are strictly prohibited. The sale and use of traditional, high-pollution firecrackers will continue to remain banned.The government has proposed the following time limits:These strict timings are aimed at balancing the spirit of celebration with environmental protection.During the hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta requested the Supreme Court to consider relaxing the Diwali timings slightly so that children could enjoy the festival more freely. He argued that Diwali comes once a year and that kids should not be limited to a short two-hour window for bursting firecrackers.he said.The Solicitor General, along with Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati, assured the court that Delhi and NCR authorities will ensure the proper enforcement of green cracker regulations.The centre further stated that:Petroleum and Explosives Safety Organisation (PESO) will monitor and ensure compliance across the region.The Supreme Courts decision brings a mix of celebration and responsibility. While residents can finally light up the sky with firecrackers this Diwali, they must follow the SCs strict rules to prevent any increase in air pollution levels.The move is seen as a balanced attempt to allow cultural freedom while keeping health and environmental safety in focus. If successful, this trial period could influence future policies for festive celebrations across India.During Diwali, from 8 PM to 10 PM, as per the Supreme Court order.No, only green firecrackers approved by NEERI are permitted.No, the SC has banned all online sales through platforms like Flipkart and Amazon.Yes, but only under regulated conditions and within specified time slots.Currently, it applies to Diwali and select festivals like New Years Eve and Gurpurab. New Jersey schools take a stand against the Pee challenge Students at Barnegat High School NJ have been warned not to flush away their future by participating in the TikTok "Pee Challenge, warn your kids too! "Students who participate, attempt to participate or simulate participation in this trend will face school consequences. These https://t.co/hcURcSBGbU pic.twitter.com/aT6WQql5Mz Wake Up NJ New Jersey (@wakeupnj) October 7, 2025 ( Image credit : X/@wakeupnj | School latter ) How the Pee Challenge spread online Previous incidents linked to the Pee Challenge Police and public response Parents urged to step in FAQs A shocking new viral trend called the pee challenge is causing serious concern across New Jersey. The bizarre TikTok craze reportedly involves students filming themselves urinating in public places even on school grounds and posting the clips online for attention.The Barnegat School District in New Jersey was among the first to respond after incidents linked to the pee challenge were reported on school property.In a letter sent to parents on 6 October, school officials described the act as completely unacceptable and warned that anyone caught taking part would face strict disciplinary action.Principal Patrick Magee wrote, Students who participate, attempt to participate, or simulate participation in this trend will face severe consequences. The district and police are working together to investigate every report thoroughly.The message was clear this viral TikTok trend will not be tolerated in any form, and students who even share related videos could face suspension or expulsion. Legal consequences, including possible indecent exposure charges, were also mentioned.The pee challenge first started appearing on TikTok, where users began uploading clips that appeared to show them urinating in public areas.One Facebook post from Sussex Borough allegedly showed a person on a rooftop taking part in the TikTok challenge, while others were seen laughing nearby.Officials say such behaviour can not only damage school property but also pose hygiene and safety risks. In some cases, it could lead to criminal prosecution for public indecency.This isnt the first time schools have dealt with social media-fuelled misconduct. In Missouri, one high school had to temporarily close several toilets in September after students were believed to have taken part in the pee challenge by urinating on the floors.New Jersey educators say they hope to stop the viral trend from spreading further by educating students early and involving parents in discussions about online responsibility.Police departments across the US are now aware of the pee challenge. The Bristol Police Department confirmed on Facebook that they are investigating similar incidents, warning the public that such behaviour is not only disrespectful but also illegal.Authorities have compared the TikTok trend to a shocking incident in Shanghai, China, where two teenagers filmed themselves urinating into hot pot broth at a restaurant. They later apologised publicly and paid a hefty $300,000 fine proof that these online stunts can lead to very real consequences.The Barnegat letter urged parents to talk to their children about the dangers of chasing online fame. We strongly encourage parents to discuss this matter, it read, and make sure students understand that online trends that harm others or break the law carry serious consequences.Teachers and parents alike agree: the pee challenge is not a joke its a crime that can ruin reputations and futures.The pee challenge is a disturbing TikTok trend where users record themselves urinating in public spaces to gain views and likes online.Its unclear where it began, but reports first appeared in New Jersey and other parts of the US before spreading on TikTok.Yes. Public urination is considered indecent exposure and can lead to fines, suspension from school, or even criminal charges.Schools in New Jersey are warning students to prevent property damage, hygiene issues, and potential legal trouble linked to the viral trend.Parents should openly discuss the dangers of the pee challenge, monitor social media activity, and remind children that not all TikTok trends are harmless fun. This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Wang Hao, a university student from north China's Tianjin, queued for nearly five hours outside Beijing's Palace Museum to see "Five Oxen," the world's oldest surviving Chinese paper painting by 8th-century artist Han Huang. The ancient painting, as well as other priceless cultural relics, has been on display at a special exhibition organized by the museum to mark its centenary on Friday. Wang was among a wave of visitors flocking to the museum, situated on the site of the Forbidden City, during the just-concluded National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. "If you actually stand in front of the painting and see the brushstrokes crafted over a thousand years ago, you'll understand why the wait is worth it," Wang said, brimming with excitement. For centuries, ordinary people could only catch glimpses of the palace's yellow roof ridges from beyond its towering walls, while the mysteries of its inner world remained a matter of imagination. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. "Treasures once reserved for emperors have become shared cultural heritage for the entire Chinese nation. This shift was groundbreaking and epoch-making," said Shan Jixiang, former curator of the Palace Museum. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. In recent years, the museum has digitally documented more than 1 million artifacts and ancient structures, and made high-definition images of more than 100,000 artifacts available online, greatly enhancing public access to its collections. To make more of its cultural relics accessible to the public, the museum is building a new branch in Beijing's Haidian District. With 33,000 square meters of exhibition area, the new branch will be able to display 20,000 to 30,000 relics each year, two to three times the number shown at the Palace Museum, according to museum officials. MODERN EXPERIENCE Against the backdrop of the Palace Museum's red walls and yellow glazed tiles, countless young visitors in traditional attire pose for photos, immersing themselves in the over 600-year-old complex. Visitors can also enjoy ice creams shaped like the animal statues perched on the roofs of the palace buildings at the restaurants in the museum. One of these restaurants once served as the royal family's ice storage in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Inside and beyond the museum, its merchandise has grown increasingly popular in recent years. Among nearly 20,000 cultural and creative products, the Palace Museum Calendar stands out as a favourite among consumers. Published annually for 17 consecutive years, it has a cumulative circulation of over 8.5 million copies. The 2025 edition, containing images of 400 items from the museum's vast collection, has sold 1.2 million copies. Some buyers seek inspiration from the patterns of artifacts in the calendar, while others view it as a way to introduce traditional culture to their children. "To me, it is the most beautiful calendar, rich in both pictures and texts. It is truly worth collecting," commented a netizen. Through these products, the Palace Museum has created meaningful connections between traditional culture and contemporary life. CULTURAL EXCHANGES With its growing global influence, the Palace Museum has increasingly become a gateway for the meeting of different cultures. Earlier this year, the museum hosted an exhibition on Greece's Minoan civilization. Jointly organized by the Palace Museum, the Heraklion Archaeological Museum and other Greek cultural authorities, the exhibition showcased 172 precious artifacts, marking the first major Minoan civilization exhibition ever held in China. Official data show that since 2012, the Palace Museum has hosted nearly 30 cultural exhibitions from Asia, Europe and the Americas, and organized 79 exhibitions overseas. The museum also collaborates with institutions such as the Louvre Museum, the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art to jointly hold exhibitions and academic forums and promote digital projects. These efforts have earned the museum an international reputation as an inclusive institution. In May, to mark the museum's centenary, the UN Postal Administration issued a commemorative stamp sheet, the first ever dedicated to a single museum. "Through its exhibitions, research and international collaborations, the Palace Museum has brought Chinese civilization into conversation with the world," said UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare at the stamp unveiling ceremony. This combo photo shows the Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows a turret of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (L, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (R, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Gate of Divine Prowess (Shenwu men) and a general view of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Palace of Heavenly Purity (Qianqing gong) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Union (Jiaotai dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Central Harmony (Zhonghe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a Swallow-Wing Pavilion (Yanchi Tower) of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) This combo photo shows the Meridian Gate (Wu men) and a Swallow-Wing Pavilion (Yanchi Tower) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) Editor: GSY BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China, Thailand and the United States have agreed to strengthen cooperation on combating drug-related crime, following a major joint maritime operation that resulted in a record drug seizure, according to China's Ministry of Public Security (MPS). During a recent meeting on the case, representatives of the MPS, the Royal Thai Police and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) exchanged information on their respective investigations. In the early hours of Feb. 24, 2025, acting on intelligence provided by the DEA, China's narcotics control and coast guard authorities launched a maritime operation 130 nautical miles southwest of Huangyan Dao in the South China Sea, seizing the vessel and arresting seven suspects aboard. About 4,973 kg of methamphetamine were confiscated on-site. The case marked the largest single maritime drug bust in the Asia-Pacific region in recent years and has been hailed as a milestone in trilateral law enforcement cooperation. Thai and U.S. authorities had worked together to conduct an investigation, and proactively shared intelligence with China, leading to the successful interception of the drug-laden vessel. Facing escalating global drug challenges, China has expressed its willingness to deepen intelligence exchange and law enforcement cooperation with other countries on the basis of equality and mutual respect, and to unite in combating transnational drug crime. Editor: Xiong Jian Philadelphia Art Museum director and CEO Sasha Suda watches Patrick Moser carving his "Mush Push" sculpture out of scrapple during the second annual Scrapple Sculpting Contest at Reading Terminal Market Friday. Read more Scrappy sculptors slivered away at slabs of solidified swine parts in search of aesthetic excellence and gastronomical glory at Reading Terminal Markets second annual Scrapple Sculpting Contest Friday. The spectacle was sow strange that some perplexed passersby stopped to gawk and ponder the nature of art, pork, and Pennsylvania culinary culture. Advertisement Judging the contest was Sasha Suda, director and CEO of the Philadelphia Art Museum, who had the difficult job of choosing the Michelangelo of minced meat, the Rodin of repurposed pork. Suda, whos absolutely enjoyed scrapple before, said judging the competition was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. There is no question that Philadelphia is home to one of the great culinary scenes in the world and has some of the great art museums in the world, so this is a chance for these two worlds to collide, and what better medium to use than scrapple, she said. After a tough competition, Suda crowned Patrick Moser champion for his version of the Eagles Tush Push, which he called the Mush Push. Suda said Mosers sculpture was advanced, ambitious, and pushed scrapple to its absolute limits. Moser a Delco tattoo artist who has a large spiderweb inked over the top of his head was shocked. I did not expect to win such a prestigious competition. Ive never sculpted anything before and Ive never sculpted anything, obviously, out of scrapple either, he said. But its the Eagles. You cant go wrong with the Eagles its a little lowbrow, a little highbrow Caravaggio meets Sirianni, a bunch of bodies and a bunch of meat. Moser was awarded a pig trophy named Scrappy and a $100 Reading Terminal Market gift card. Philly food and drink writer Amy Strauss, author of the book Pennsylvania Scrapple: A Delectable History, emceed the event. I once heard scrapple is a metaphor for Philly, she said. A little mysterious, a little down-home, and a little gritty, but it always brings so much delight to folks. The 12 contestants had 90 minutes to chisel away at five-pound blocks of scrapple, the taupe-colored traditional Pennsylvania Dutch breakfast dish made of pig scraps, cornmeal, buckwheat, and spices formed into a congealed loaf. When its sliced and pan-fried, scrapple has a distinctive smell, but the contestants sculpting scrapple was chilled and uncooked, so their porcine pieces were odorless. The sculptors came from as far away as Pittsburgh to participate in the competition, and the group included a high school student playing hooky (with her dads permission), an artist with an MFA in sculpture, an engineer, and a former ice carver. The contestants carefully carved impressive sculptures of a Gritty head, three Liberty Bells, Saquon Barkleys backward hurdle, an apple vessel with a removable top that hid a tiny pig inside, a fish coming out of a cowboy boot, and a chef cooking up three little piggies. Two contestants seemed to play directly to Suda with their pieces. Christianne Kapps recreated Constantin Brancusis sculpture The Kiss, which is housed at the Art Museum, and Evan Jeffries made the Art Museum itself, complete with a tiny Rocky statue at the base and three food trucks illegally parked out front. This will be good resume padding, Jeffries said. Im going to list it as my top skill. A Delco tattoo artist with a cobweb tat on his head won the Scrapple Sculpting contest at Reading Terminal Market in Philly with his sculpture of the Eagles Tush Push. The contest was judged by Art Museum ceo Sasha Suda. Philly remains undefeated, even if we were defeated on the field last night. [image or embed] Stephanie Farr (@farfarraway.bsky.social) October 10, 2025 at 2:09 PM Locals, tourists, and servicemen and women in uniform in town for the Navy and Marines 250th anniversary celebrations stopped to watch the artists at work and wondered about their medium. Some guessed it was tofu, others thought it was kinetic sand, and some only learned of the definition and existence of scrapple for the first time that day. Bill and Cookie Perry, who were visiting from Vancouver, found out about the contest online and came to the market to see what it was all about. Bill Perry, a Maryland native, was familiar with scrapple, but his wife, who hails from California, was not until Friday. It doesnt even look appealing, Cookie Perry said. I would never eat it and Im a Spam eater! The contest was a precursor to the markets second annual Scrapple and Apple Festival, which runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. At the festival vendors will serve a variety of traditional and unusual dishes, including scrapple tater tots, scrapple hush puppies, scrapple apple danishes, chocolate chip scrapple cookies, and even scrapple sundaes. Following Fridays contest, the sculptures were moved to an undisclosed, refrigerated location for storage until Saturday, when theyll be displayed again during the festival for a second round of judging by popular vote. Then the ephemeral sculptures will be composted. We Philadelphians tend to have a very specific (urban) reference point for the Delaware River: water churning behind the ferry as it chugs to a concert in Camden, ripples snapping at the edges of Penn Treaty Park, or the pilings of Morgans Pier. So visiting Delaware Water Gap, a majestic 40-mile stretch that winds through the Appalachians, can feel like seeing the river youve known all your life for the very first time. Advertisement Delaware Water Gap is also the name of the affable, outdoorsy village that serves as a launching point for river trips and Appalachian Trail hikes. Paired with the nearby Poconos university towns of Stroudsburg and East Stroudsburg and plenty of fall foliage this getaway two hours north of the city makes for a scenic, slow-paced weekend. Stay: Deer Head Inn Ten rooms with antique chairs, original hardwood, and en suite bathrooms fill the Deer Head Inn, a historic double-balconied inn in the center of Delaware Water Gap. Its also a nationally renowned music venue, with its own record label and a lounge thats hosted decades of jazz greats, including pianist John Coates Jr. After a day outdoors, nothing beats a nightcap with live music. 5 Main St., Delaware Water Gap, Pa. 18327 Float: Edge of the Woods Outfitters Kayak, canoe, paddleboard, boat there are many ways to enjoy this scenic stretch of the Delaware. In early fall, trade the summer tubing for a gentle paddle, as the trees along the river flare gold and crimson. Edge of the Woods Outfitters, right in town, supplies the gear and maps for self-guided two- to four-hour adventures that glide through light rapids and still pools. 129 Main St., Delaware Water Gap, Pa. 18327 Snack: Village Farmer and Bakery The wooden sign of a hot dog and apple pie slice holding hands (the True Love special, $4.95) is just a preview of whats inside Village Farmer and Bakery. This beloved, family-run bakery offers: breakfast sandwiches on French toast, pierogies, fruit preserves, cannoli, lobster rolls, chocolates, and saucer-sized cookies. Apple pies (double-crusted or crumb, with or without walnuts) may have built this house, but there are nearly 30 other varieties, including red raspberry, coconut custard, and shoo-fly. 13 Broad St., Delaware Water Gap, Pa. 18327 Shop: Olde Engine Works Join the vintage hounds at this 22,000-square-foot antiques warehouse just off Stroudsburgs main street. With more than 100 independent vendors, Olde Engine Works is part treasure hunt, part time machine. Federal-style desks, carved ducks, Whitney Houston vinyl, possibly haunted dolls its all here. Bring patience and layers; the old warehouse gets chilly as the weather cools. 62 N. 3rd St., Stroudsburg, Pa. 18360 See: Pocono Cinema and Cultural Arts Center Fans of historic indie theaters will love this adorable four-screener, which dates all the way back to 1884 in downtown East Stroudsburg. Pocono Cinema and Cultural Arts Center is the perfect rainy-day (or chilly-night) stop for an art-house flick or blockbuster. Order popcorn and settle in under the glow of the marquee. 88 S. Courtland St., East Stroudsburg, Pa. 18301 Eat: Sango Kura A sake distillery in the Poconos? Believe it. This friendly spot on Delaware Water Gaps main drag crafts several different styles, including a dry-hopped sake whose floral nose and crisp bitterness cut through chilly mountain air. Sango Kuras full kitchen turns out cozy Japanese hits like karaage chicken and tonkatsu ramen, perfect after a day on the trail. 39 Broad St., Delaware Water Gap, Pa. 18327 Treat: Llama Ice Cream From Japan to Peru, end the day at Llama Ice Cream, a cottage creamery just beyond the riverbanks in East Stroudsburg. They make the classics, but the best flavors nod to owner Julio Ameneros native South America tangy soursop, creamy mamey, and rich dulce de leche. A scoop pairs perfectly with a crisp fall evening walk along the river. 266 River Rd., East Stroudsburg, Pa. 18301 The New Jersey governor race is set to surpass $200 million in spending for the first time as both parties see control over the state in play. U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, the Democratic nominee, has carried a single-digit lead over Republican Jack Ciattarelli in the polls. She also has a small edge in fundraising in the race, which has drawn national attention and investment. Advertisement Nearly $47 million has been spent in the general election so far, with a month left to go. That follows an unprecedented $145 million spent in the primary, according to the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission. Sherrill has raised more and spent less than Ciattarelli, but independent expenditure committees have spent more in support of Sherrill. As of Oct. 3, Sherrill reported having more than $6.5 million cash on hand, while Ciattarelli reported just under $4 million. Both candidates will continue to fundraise ahead of the Nov. 4 election. Sherrills campaign raised nearly $7.8 million in private funds, and Ciattarellis campaign raised nearly $6.9 million. Their actual fundraising numbers are currently more than $9.6 million higher, thanks to the states public-financing program. At least $42 million has been raised between the two campaigns and the constellation of outside spending groups backing them, with Democratic groups having narrowly outraised the Republicans through Oct. 3. National eyes and money on the race New Jersey is only one of two states with a race for governor this year along with Virginia and people are watching from across the nation. The biggest spender on the Democratic side, by far, is the Democratic Governors Association, which reported contributing $9.95 million to its super PAC. The group announced in July that it was reserving more than $20 million in ads for the race. Similarly, the biggest Republican donor is the Republican Governors Association, which contributed $6.25 million to its super PAC. Also among the highest Republican donors is Change NJ, a super PAC run by former advisers to President Donald Trump, including Kellyanne Conway. Change NJ contributed $1.25 million to the RGAs PAC. The group took in $1.62 million from Kitchen Table Conservatives, which was the same group under a different moniker for the primary. Sherrill leads in small-dollar and out-of-state donations Campaigns must disclose the identities of only those donors who cumulatively contribute more than $200. Among those, a significantly larger share of Sherrills contributions have come from out-of-state donors than have Ciattarellis. The vast majority 80% of Ciattarellis campaign donations are from New Jersey. Sherrill garnered 56% of her campaign contributions from in-state donors, and the rest came from out of state. Eric Arpert, Ciattarellis campaign manager, used the opportunity to repeat one of the campaigns favorite lines that Sherrill isnt originally from New Jersey, as Ciattarelli is. Its no surprise, Jack Ciattarelli is the only candidate for governor who is from New Jersey, and the only candidate who understands New Jersey, the problems we face, and the only candidate who has solutions to fix them, Arpert said. Sherrill was born in Virginia but has lived in New Jersey since 2010. Sherrill argues that she ran a grassroots campaign, as she raised more money than Ciattarelli from small-dollar donors who gave $200 or less. She raised more than $990,000 from these donors, accounting for about 13% of her total fundraising. Thats more than double the $420,000 Ciattarelli pulled in from small-dollar donors, accounting for about 6% of his total contributions. Mikies grassroots campaign, unlike Jacks, is fueled by New Jerseyans chipping in a few dollars at a time, and its why shes outraising him by nearly a million dollars, said Sherrill campaign spokesperson Carly Jones. Sherrills campaign also received a little more of her campaign contributions from individuals rather than PACs, businesses, and unions. For her, 90% of her campaign donations were from individuals, while that number was 84% for Ciattarelli. Both campaigns received just over a third of their total money from people who maxed out the contribution limit of $5,800. Sherrill leads in labor support, but some unions back Ciattarrelli While the vast majority of unions that gave money donated to Democrats, two unions each gave six-figure donations to a Republican super PAC. Unions are often a reliable source of support for Democratic candidates, and Sherrill received endorsements from 32 unions representing a range of workers, from actors and teachers to firefighters, carpenters, and healthcare workers. Jennifer S. Higgins, president of the American Federation of Teachers New Jersey chapter, said her union supports Sherrill because we need a governor that does not disparage the work that our members do, pointing to Ciattarellis arguments that New Jersey schools are failing. (U.S. News & World Report ranked New Jersey schools as best in the nation earlier this year.) An AFT super PAC was one of the top donors on the Democratic side, contributing $500,000 to the Democratic Governors Association-backed super PAC. The Laborers International Union of North America contributed even more, donating a total of $1.5 million to the DGAs PAC through two political committees. LIUNA endorsed Sherrill in August 2024, even before she announced that she was running. Robert Lewandowski, a spokesperson for LIUNA, cited Sherrills 100% lifetime rating from the AFL-CIO and her work to secure funding for the Gateway Program to connect New York and New Jersey under the Hudson River which saw its federal funding put on hold by Trump. Sherrill has said she will sue the Trump administration to get the funding. Mikie has shown up on our worksites and our training centers, Lewandowski said. She has sat down with our leadership and our members to better understand the issues that matter. But Ciattarellis campaign pocketed endorsements from four unions representing police, bricklayers, operating engineers, and retired emergency responders. Two of those unions, the Operating Engineers Local 825 and the Bricklayers and Allied Craftworkers Union of New Jersey, were among the top Republican donors. Ciattarellis union support mirrors a national trend in which labor groups are starting to shift away from endorsing only Democratic candidates in response to Trumps ability to garner support from working-class voters. The operating engineers union gave $250,000 to a pro-Ciattarelli super PAC in September, and the bricklayers union gave $100,000 to the same PAC that same month. Greg Lalevee, the business manager of the operating engineers union, whose members often work on large-scale construction projects like electric plants, roads, airports, and ports, cited Ciattarellis support for streamlining New Jerseys permitting process and cutting down on red tape. We work on construction projects, Lalevee said. Thats how we make a living. Both campaigns are set to receive the most public funds possible New Jersey has provided public matching funds to gubernatorial candidates since 1977. Sherrill and Ciattarelli both surpassed the $6.4 million fundraising threshold to qualify for the maximum public matching funds of $12.5 million. (Their contributions are matched 2:1 after the first $185,000 raised.) Sherrill has received more of her disbursements from the program than Ciattarelli has, but they are both on track to max out the public funds. As part of this program, campaigns are limited to spending $18.5 million for most expenses. However, they can use money raised beyond that for specific expenses like compliance with public financing laws, travel, and election night parties. In a changing world, every Irish business is trying to do more to meet the needs of its customers. Irish tourism knows that more than most. While the Central Statistics Office said 772,800 foreign visitors completed a trip to Ireland in August up 1% compared to August 2024 international visitor numbers were down 11% to the end of July 2025, and visitor spend had fallen by 14.75% compared with 2024. The word soft has been used by industry leaders to describe the figures for Irish tourism over the past 12 months. In these challenging circumstances, new ways to better cater for visitor needs are always welcome. Now, the tourism industry in Ireland is being encouraged to take a leaf out of the supermarket industrys playbook after all, every little helps. Loyalty cards used by retailers such as Tesco, Dunnes, and Lidl allow supermarkets to see what customers are buying, and adapt accordingly. National Centre for Tourism Policy Studies director Jim Deegan: Up until now, we never had that up-to-the-minute information. A groundbreaking tourism dashboard created by researchers at the University of Limerick gives real-time information on tourist movements in Ireland. Developed by UL researchers concentrating on the Cliffs of Moher, the technology used in the dashboard has the potential to equip Irish tourism destinations to meet modern visitors changing tastes and needs in a changing landscape. In theory, it could be rolled out and utilised across visitor attractions in Ireland, and related businesses, from caterers to coach operators. The dashboard uses wifi data, combined with visitor attraction ticketing system information and intensive surveys to provide an up-to-the-minute picture of who the visitors to the Cliffs are, with information on their age, nationalities, and their itinerary. It will be unveiled at the Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions (AVEA) annual conference, taking place at the Tower Hotel in Waterford on Monday and Tuesday. October 13 and 14. This is the most comprehensive project of this type, over volume and over time, ever done on the island, said AVEA chief executive Catherine Flanagan. UL professor of tourism studies and director of the National Centre for Tourism Policy Studies, Jim Deegan, and his UL colleague Ernesto Batista Sanchez, created their dashboard based on research they have carried out since 2022. Mr Deegan said tourism is undergoing a paradigm shift and requires new ways to cater for different demands. People used to go on holidays for escape, said Mr Deegan. Escape from weather, from parents, from their lives. But, more and more, tourism is about experience: Your holiday is an extension of your life. Catherine Flanagan is the CEO of the Association of Visitor Experiences and Attractions whose annual conference takes place on Monday and Tuesday. Picture: AVEA Lifestyles are also changing. Many people arent having big meals like they used to, as drugs like Ozempic become more common. So, across the tourism sector, changes are ongoing and sometimes it leads to new demands. The real trick for attractions is to know who the visitors there are how old they are, where they are from, how they arrived at the site. The more data you have, the better you can give people a good time when they come. Data has become central to what you want but, up until now, we never had that up-to-the-minute information. Without prying, you can add to their experience. The dashboard that the UL researchers created uses information from questionnaires created when visitors access wifi data asking questions which do not divulge any personal data combined with intensive daily survey work over the past three years and ticketing information from the Cliffs of Moher visitor centre itself. These combine to create an up-to-the-minute picture of who is coming to the Cliffs, where they have come from, and where they are going. It can tell their age, how many are in their party, if they arrived by car or bus. All this information can then be used to make their experience better. It can also help sustainability by better matching the number of coaches on site with the numbers coming. A Cliffs of Moher 2040 strategy is being prepared by Clare County Council for managing the heritage site into the next decade not just in terms of visitor numbers, but also sustainability. The dashboard will inform and influence that strategy. Around 1.5m people visit the Cliffs every year, with 55% coming by car, 42% by coach, and the last 3% made up of walkers and cyclists. Almost half (49%) of all visitors to the Cliffs are American, and 57% of all US visitors to Ireland come to the Cliffs. It is clearly central to Irelands tourist offering. The dashboard created at UL for the Cliffs of Moher has wider applications. With further research, we could choose sample sites across the country, and produce a tourism barometer amalgamating the data of different sites, said Mr Deegan. Such a co-ordinated dashboard could link sites such as Blarney Castle or Killarney National Park, hotels, or other destinations to better meet the needs of visitors. This is a big data project. It has policy application at macro and micro level for businesses, said Mr Deegan. Catherine Flanagan of AVEA, whose members include Blarney Castle, Jameson Distillery, Fota, Muckross House, and Guinness Storehouse, agrees, saying: Theres a huge opportunity for other local authorities or destinations to learn from it or apply it or scale it for their own destination. It could be particularly applied to honeypot destinations places like the Giants Causeway, and there are lots of satellite businesses that could benefit. The AVEA conference will welcome more than 200 leaders from the visitor attraction sector across Ireland. Theres huge excitement to see the UL project unveiled, and several other new developments. The conference will unveil commissioned research from Failte Ireland about the tourists of tomorrow: Gen Z. There are perceptions people have about Gen Z always on their phone but in reality actually pack their holiday with activity, said Ms Flanagan. They are street smart; they are not afraid to go off-peak if they can get a better deal. They will use a city bike if its available. They will take holiday advice from content creators that they trust. And when they holiday, they are in the moment. The conference, themed Irelands Tourism Mosaic of Amazing Places, will also explore the resilience and diversity of the sector and challenges facing it, alongside opportunities to drive innovation, regional growth, and sustainable tourism. The conference coincides with the publication of AVEAs summer snapshot survey, where the association records 19.2m annual visitors. The conference will feature presentations from international and national speakers, including Donna Speed, CEO of We The Curious in Bristol, Kat Brogan of Mercat Tours, and Mark Kelly, president of AI Ireland. This conference is an essential forum to discuss the latest data from our members, review current performance trends, and set out the sectors priorities, said Ms Flanagan. Meeting visitor needs through better use of data will be part of the next stage of tourism development in Ireland. Bonjour, bonjour! Arthur Gourounlian bursts onto the phone call. Theres no other way to put it. A ball of positivity and energy, he greets me like a long-lost friend. Its a refreshing positivity that doesnt feel forced or manufactured. Im absolutely a glass-half-full person, the Dancing With The Stars judge says. I grew up always seeing the bright side of things. Its how I am. We are meeting to discuss Gourounlians first childrens book, Little Arty and the Happy Dance, but news has just broke that the RTE shows head judge, Loraine Barry, is stepping down. I am forgiven for getting slightly sidetracked. Ill always remember how Loraine welcomed me to the show when I started, Gourounlian says. Dancing with the Stars judges Karen Byrne, Brian Redmond, Loraine Barry and Arthur Gourounlian. Pic: Kyran OBrien/kobpix She really took me under her wing; she filled me in on what to expect, how things were going to happen. She was always there for any questions I had. I started calling her the queen, because she is the queen, you know, queen of the ballroom. Shes incredible. I have so much respect for her and she gave it back to me. We have the most epic time, so Im going to be sad shes gone. Its the end of an era, for sure, he says, but we have to move on. And with Strictly Come Dancings Oti Mabuse joining the panel in Barrys place, Gourounlian is sure she will fit in like a glove. When I heard the news, I was overjoyed. Oti will be a breath of fresh air. I cannot wait. It will bring another vibe to the panel, and thats always good for shows like this. I think were gonna have so much fun. The only thing I will say is to Brian Redmond: God help you. Gourounlian had just finished his second season as a judge on Dancing With The Stars when Gill approached him with the idea of writing a childrens book. At the time, I was reading so many books for Blake; she was only 15 months. I loved all the imagery and the colours in the books we were reading, and I could see the joy they brought to Blake. When Gill mentioned it to me, I thought this would be a dream. Arthur Gourounlian with his daughters Blake , 3, and Blu, 15 months. Photograph Moya Nolan While the book was initially inspired by his first daughter Blake, Gourounlian says, deep down, the book is for him or rather, the younger version of him. Growing up in Armenia during a difficult period in the countrys history, the 45-year-old had a very different relationship with books. Before we had Blake, the last time I had any kids books was when we were burning all my childrens books to keep us warm, he says, emotion in his voice. I think Im writing this book for me. My daughters, of course, I have them in my mind, but this is for young Arthur. Immediately, Gourounlian says, he knew he wanted to write a book celebrating dance. I knew I couldnt write about a hippopotamus dancing or a little pig dancing it had to be little Arty, a happy boy, spreading joy, positivity, and magic. That optimism and zest for life is at the heart of Little Arty and the Happy Dance. With his big mass of curly hair and colourful clothes, Arty is unmistakably Gourounlian. The illustrations, created by Dan Taylor, do a wonderful job of capturing the essence of Arthur. When I saw the whole book with the illustrations and the colours, I literally cried. I was like: Oh my God, is this real? Arthur Gourounlian pictured at the opening night of the musical Little Shop of Horrors at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre Dublin. Picture Brian McEvoy Gourounlian is serious when he says: Dancing saved my life. As refugees fleeing Armenia during the first Nagorno-Karabakh War, the Gourounlian family sought asylum in Belgium. Living in Belgium, Gourounlian trained as a hairdresser but his passion was always for dance. Back in Armenia, I was always dancing in our living room. As a kid, I was discovered and joined a massive dance company. I remember the choreographer in the company loved my energy and how I moved, even though I had no dance training at all. But being in the dance company only lasted a couple of months before the war started. Then I never did anything to do with dancing again until much later in my life. Being a refugee, travelling here and there in Belgium, it just wasnt going to happen. He eventually made his way back to dance, working as a go-go dancer in Italy, and then travelling around Spain and France dancing in clubs. But he had greater ambitions. I remember being in Milan, and a group of us were sitting around watching MTV. Geri Halliwells Its Raining Men came on, and I thought: Oh my God, I want to do this! My friends at the time said: But theyre professional dancers with training thats next level. I listened, but Im stubborn. So, after five months in Italy, with everything going well, I told my friends I was moving to London. And the rest is history, or so they say. Going for what he wants in life is part of Gourounlians core philosophy and something he is keen to pass on to his two daughters. Im going to teach them the value of life that if you want to do something, go for it. Be confident. Some people are gonna say, you cant do this, and you should say, why cant I do it? People told me so many times I couldnt be a dancer because I never trained, but I didnt listen. Failure is only because you dont try. And I want the girls to try everything. Arthur Gourounlian with his daughters Blake , 3, and Blu, 15 months. Photograph Moya Nolan It's little wonder, then, that this book centres around a dance routine, with cute little step-by-step instructions at the back. Its in this happy dance where Gourounlian says Blake really inspired him. When I was actually trying to create the dance, I was using the park as the setting with all the different animals you find [there]. And then Blake came home, and I wanted to see how she would translate my ideas. So I mentioned the ducks shaking their feathers, and she turned around and wiggled her bum. Then I said how can we shine like the sun? and she spread her arms and opened her fingers. I looked at her, and I thought my heart would burst. I wanted to create a routine where parents or guardians can have a moment with their children thats full of joy, positivity, and imagination. I want people to think, Im going to pick up this book, and were going to have fun. Look, dancing is good for the soul. So I want to put smiles on everybodys faces, and I want to include everybody. It doesnt matter if youre a dancer or not you can still move your body. I dont want to restrict anybody. As for the future, Gourounlians hope is readers will connect with the book and there might be more to come from Little Arty. I would love to do that Little Arty and the Happy Dance as a TV series a very short series. Chatting with Gourounlian and hearing his life story, I dont doubt him for a second. His grab-life-with-both-hands approach is infectious. If you dont ask, you dont get, and if you dont try something, you will never know. Im excited about this book, but Im also a little nervous because Im presenting myself on the page, and you cant control what people will think of it. Id love people to love it, and for it to be successful, but really I just want people to take this book home and enjoy it with their families. BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday urged the few foreign politicians who are visiting Taiwan to stop interfering in China's internal affairs and stop abetting and supporting "Taiwan independence" activities at once. In response to Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te's "Taiwan independence" separatist remarks, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, said China firmly opposes any form of official interactions between China's Taiwan region and countries having diplomatic ties with China. These wrongful words and moves, be it for selfish gains or for the malign attempt of using Taiwan to contain China, are all miscalculating, and it is just futile to try to stop China's inevitable reunification, the spokesperson said. "Lai Ching-te's address called white black and confused right and wrong. He peddled the false narrative of 'democracy vs. authoritarianism,' repeated the same old fallacies for 'Taiwan independence,' and distorted and challenged historical facts and international consensus," Guo said, adding that these words once again laid bare his true nature as a diehard troublemaker, danger-creator and warmonger. There is but one China in the world and Taiwan is an inalienable part of the Chinese territory, Guo said, adding that this is the real status quo across the Taiwan Strait. The biggest threats to peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait at present are the separatist activities for "Taiwan independence" and external interference, he noted. The spokesperson said that the Lai Ching-te authorities made up various disinformation in an attempt to seek "Taiwan independence" and resist reunification through military buildup. Such moves will only push Taiwan toward the danger of military conflict, he added. Guo said that to maintain cross-Strait peace and stability, one must uphold the one-China principle and unequivocally oppose "Taiwan independence." "The Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair. Opposition to 'two Chinas' or 'one China, one Taiwan' and support for the complete reunification of China are part of the international community's commitment to the one-China principle," Guo pointed out. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, and the restoration of Taiwan, Guo said, adding that international legal instruments, including the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender, have affirmed China's sovereignty over Taiwan. Taiwan's restoration to China is an important outcome of the victory of the World Anti-Fascist War, he said. Guo said that once and for all, UNGA Resolution 2758 resolved, politically, legally and procedurally, the issue of the representation of the whole of China, including Taiwan, at the UN. It solemnly confirms and fully demonstrates that the one-China principle is not only the iron rule that must not be bent, but also an absolute principle that is part and parcel of the existing international order, he added. Any attempt to tamper with historical facts or challenge Resolution 2758 amounts to challenges to China's sovereignty and territorial integrity, the UN's authority and the post-war international order, Guo noted. "Such moves blatantly turn back the wheel of history. They are not only ridiculous but also extremely dangerous," said the spokesperson. Editor: Xiong Jian Actress Diane Keaton, best known for roles in Annie Hall, The Godfather and Somethings Gotta Give, has died at the age of 79, according to US magazine People. Keaton died in California and her loved ones have asked for privacy, a family spokesperson told the outlet. When faced with making a decision, whats your first instinct? Taking a moment to check in with yourself, or grabbing your phone to ask ChatGPT? According to a recent report in the Harvard Business Review, the majority of users are now using generative AI for therapy and companionship. Given that Ireland is reportedly the loneliest country in Europe, and therapy can cost in the region of 60-200, its perhaps unsurprising that many of us are turning to this new, free, 24-hour service for assistance. Just like Orla Doherty, who turned to ChatGPT to ask for advice in her last relationship a decision she now regrets. I had suspicions that my ex was cheating around a year ago. I was tired of annoying my friends, so I used ChatGPT instead, the 31-year-old says. I input the small red flags I had noticed, and the response I got back validated my feelings but encouraged me to take my time with things. Some months after this, Doherty got confirmation her ex-partner was cheating. I was angry with myself. I should have broken up with him months before that. My gut was telling me that he was cheating, but the calm and rational response from ChatGPT [made] me think that maybe I was overreacting. Doherty doesnt blame ChatGPT entirely for her choice not to break up with her partner sooner, but she says the situation served as an example that she should listen to her gut more instead of turning to robots to help me make my mind up. At the time of writing, statistics on the number of Irish people using ChatGPT or other generative AI tools for mental and emotional support arent readily available (at the time of writing, requests to the platform for these statistics have gone unanswered). Claire Coogan, behavioural scientist and founder of BehaviourWise Claire Coogan, a behavioural scientist and founder of BehaviourWise, says the rise in turning to AI for advice isnt surprising. We have become used to a world where technology helps us manage our health by monitoring our sleep, counting our steps, measuring our heart rate etc ... its not much of a leap for younger people in particular to turn to it for advice. One person who uses AI technology like ChatGPT for support in most areas of her life is 29-year-old Ceire Dunning. In my personal life, I use it every single day, she begins. I ask about the weather, times and fixtures for events or games Im attending. I often use it for searching for medical queries. For example, if I or a family member were ill, I would search the symptoms to find out what may be wrong. I enjoy growing my own fruit, vegetables, and herbs, and find ChatGPT a lifesaver to help with that. I can quickly take a photo of a leaf or plant, and ChatGPT will tell me how to treat it or take care of it. At work, I often use it to help with Excel formulas, proof-reading, and general queries that would take longer to search on Google. Reflecting on her use of AI, Dunning shares that she always tries to do her own research and fact-check information given to her by AI, particularly for important work. Im aware that nothing is 100% accurate, not even ChatGPT, plus it is a relatively new technology and will take time to perfect. Even though I mentioned that I sometimes use it to search medical questions, I would never place ChatGPTs advice higher than my doctors. I ask Dunning if she still trusts her gut instincts, and she pauses before answering. Its a good question, because my instinct is to say yes, she begins. But, to be honest, I regularly double-check myself against ChatGPT. So I guess to answer that question I still trust my gut, but do I trust it more than ChatGPT? Maybe not! She does share that AI is best consumed alongside your own intuition, taking the answers youre given by it with a pinch of salt. Listing all of the positives that AI can aid with, Coogan also warns that with that comes negatives too. AI can no doubt support by providing information, offering tips, guiding us through techniques like breathing exercises or mindfulness to help alleviate anxiety, and just by being there when we need it. But still, there are many things it cannot do. It cannot put things into perspective for us, or spot when we might need to change our perspective. It should not be relied upon to diagnose problems or form well-rounded decisions. That involves judgement, which human beings are better at. STARTING POINT Still, its not all negative, as psychologist Ciara Richardson points out. She recommends experimenting with forms of online advice and emotional support like Woebot to some of her clients in prisons. Some of my clients may never have engaged with therapy before and could be coming from a place of homelessness/addiction/trauma etc. Given this, 1:1 work can be intimidating and it can be difficult to have the emotional intelligence even to know where to begin. For this reason, Richardson says that sometimes AI chatbots can be a great starting point to encourage conversations around mental health. It can provide people with language that they didnt have before to describe feelings or behaviours that cause them distress, she adds. It can also give them a place to write their feelings down and to recieve probing questions, empowering them to elaborate and to delve further into feelings. Richardson also points out the expense of attending traditional therapy, attributing this to the rise of turning to other sources for help. Seeing a psychologist/ psychotherapist is expensive. You could be looking at spending anywhere from 60 to 200 per session. Thousands if youre looking for a private ASD/ADHD assessment. The last 20 years have seen a surge in awareness campaigns, but what happens if someone is aware but cant afford the help? I personally dont believe that AI is replacing therapy. I think people are intelligent enough to recognise the pros and cons of seeing a therapist versus having a conversation on ChatGPT. I think the popularity of it is a result of accessibility, rather than people thinking that AI is better than a therapist. If people are using ChatGPT instead of a therapist, its because they cant afford it or they are on a waiting list with no hope of seeing anyone soon. Richardson agrees that, while there are advantages to using AI for problem-solving, its crucial to avoid outsourcing decision-making. Finding the balance between getting tips and advice, while still remaining connected with your intuition, is key. Adele Miner at her home in Kilbarrack, Dublin. Photo: Gareth Chaney TRUST YOUR GUT Deirdre Walsh, a chartered counselling psychologist, explains why our instincts are important. Your gut instincts are your inner compass. Sometimes you just know the right next step or the right words, especially if you have spent time listening to your intuitive guidance before. Trusting your gut instincts can be incredibly valuable, particularly when you balance that with reflection and awareness of yourself and the context you find yourself in at a given point in life. What if, I ask, people are so used to turning to Google, or now AI, for answers, they struggle to recognise their gut instinct? How can they identify what that even feels like? Your gut instinct or gut feeling may appear in the form of discomfort in a situation where you pick up on a subtle red flag about someone or something, she explains. You may have heard people say something feels off, which can be their gut response or inner compass. We live in a world where people are quick to tell us how we should be feeling about something, instead of allowing us to make up our own minds. And if you have lost touch with your intuition, Walsh offers some advice for tapping back in. From what I see, people dont slow down enough to reflect, she begins. Therefore, they are often swept up in taking on the words of others instead of listening to and trusting our own gut instincts. There may be times in life when its best to step back and pause before taking action. For example, if youre experiencing a challenging situation involving high emotional charge, you may be reactive due to anxiety and trauma, which may disguise themselves as gut instinct. "While its good to listen to your inner wisdom or gut, its also important to be mindful that you dont allow it blindly take over. If youre unsure whether its gut feeling or another reactive response, perhaps try consulting a friend that you trust or explore the facts about a situation to look at it objectively which can also help. Walsh also recommends creating a solid routine for yourself, from morning to night-time, which allows moments of checking in throughout. Creating a morning or evening ritual can be an incredible way to carve out space and time to tap into your intuition. Make a habit of checking in with your mind and body by exploring what you are feeling and where in your body you may be experiencing it. Naming the emotion can be helpful and also exploring it deeper, for example by asking yourself what this feeling may be related to? Whether it is something from your present or past or even something regarding your future that you are thinking about. Whether its to just sit there and check in with how youre feeling that morning, or a few minutes stretching, yoga, breathwork, or journalling. It is the small habits, how we start our morning, and implementing these changes that create long-lasting growth. The more attuned we are to ourselves and our bodies, the more mindful we become, the more we strengthen that relationship to our intuition, and our gut instinct and avoid the need to rely on something like AI to decide for us. A Cork woman who was caught on CCTV stealing from local supermarkets in Youghal on three different occasions has been given a prison sentence in the district court. Sergeant Linda OLeary told Youghal Disitrict Court Kirsty Doyle, aged 36, with an address at Blackwater Heights, Youghal, Co Cork, admitted the thefts in a caution statement given to gardai. The court was told Doyle went into Aldi in Youghal at 3.30pm on August 17, 2025, and put goods valued at 24.63 into bag and left the store without paying for the items. On August 23, at 2.30pm, she returned to Aldi and on this occasion she took goods valued at 12.55 and again left the store without paying for the items. The final theft occurred on September 1, 2025, when Doyle went to SuperValu in Youghal and took 10 cans of alcohol valued at 46.50, and again left with the items but did not pay for them. The court was told Doyle had 85 previous convictions, including 56 for theft and none of the stolen goods were recovered. Doyle was brought to court from Limerick Prison where she was already serving a sentence related to a previous theft and was due for release on November 15. Defence barrister William Bulman said Doyle struggled with heroin and alcohol addiction. He said her mother, who had died two years ago, was a stabilising influence in her life and she was struggling to cope with the bereavement and had gone completely off the rails. Mr Bulman said Doyle was benefitting from addiction supports in prison and urged Judge John OLeary to consider a probation bond instead of a further custodial sentence so Doyle could benefit from the support of the Probation Service when she was released from prison. Judge OLeary said Doyle had been given chances before and in the end it is up to her to deal with her addiction. He said many people suffer bereavements but do not steal because of it. For the first theft, Doyle was sentenced to three months in prison, for the second she was sentenced to four months in prison, and for the third theft she received a six-month prison sentence with all sentences to run concurrently. Recognisance for appeal was fixed in her own bond of 300 with a 300 cash lodgement required. This article is funded by the Courts Reporting Scheme Watching the slaughter and starvation of children in Gaza on the news, while his own grandchildren played safely nearby, made Paddy ODonovan feel that he had to do something. Although never political before, the 61-year-old experienced seaman and retired gravestone maker from Cobh, Co Cork, saw the Global Sumud Flotilla was looking for volunteers to crew boats carrying aid to besieged Gaza and decided to apply. I applied on the Thursday night and ... left Barcelona on the Sunday. Five weeks later, we were intercepted by the IDF [Israeli Defense Forces]. Mr ODonovan was one of 450 humanitarians and 15 Irish aboard the 42 boats in the Global Sumud Flotilla. He was the skipper on the first boat to be firebombed at night when the flotilla was moored in a port in Tunisia. The fire that fell stuck to everything like napalm, he said. I heard an explosion. I came rushing up [from bed]. The fire alarms were going off. I got the fire extinguisher and started to break the fire." Had those firebombs hit a smaller boat like one of the many yachts in the flotilla people would have died, he said. Mr ODonovan coughed throughout the interview. He said his chest was damaged from toxic smoke after the firebombs that night. Another night, a swarm of drones attacked again. They firebombed the other smaller yachts with flashbangs and improvised explosives, he said. Drones constantly circled the boats, he said, being particularly visible at night as their lights flashed about the flotilla. You never knew if they were carrying explosives or if they were just there for surveillance The night their boat was intercepted on October 2, their radios and Starlink internet had been jammed. A large Israeli warship was heading straight towards them, and Mr ODonovan thought they were going to be rammed. With no radio, he sent an emergency call for help by an emergency position-indicating radiobeacon (EPIRB), an emergency locator beacon used in shipping. If you see or hear a signal from one of those, every ship is obliged to head in that direction because life is at risk," Mr O'Donovan said. But not one ship came to help over eight hours. Mr ODonovans boat had lost power when the Israeli authorities approached and boarded from their destroyer and rigid inflatable boats. This frame grab from video released by the Global Sumud Flotilla shows Israeli navy soldiers aboard one of the flotilla's vessels after it was intercepted as it approached the coast of Gaza early Thursday, October 2. Picture: Global Sumud Flotilla via AP) The crew was ordered below deck at gunpoint, and Israeli authorities made holes in the boat to sink it. Guns were pointed at the crew as the water crept up their legs while the ship slowly flooded, he said. I thought they were going to shoot us," he said. But Israeli authorities then said they would save the crew. They were transferred to the destroyer and brought to Ashdod port in Israel. At the port, they were forced to the ground. Cable ties were placed so tightly on some peoples wrists behind their backs that they bled, Mr ODonovan said. Then they were transferred to Ktzi'ot Prison, Israels largest detention facility, based in the Negev desert. They were stripped naked and cavity searched before being put in overcrowded cells, he said. The cells stank of urine, and they gave us no water. They said to drink from the toilet There was one tap in each cell, with water which tasted "horrible", he said. Mr ODonovan said he was denied his heart medication. Another man, a diabetic, was not given his insulin. Mr ODonovan and about 100 other flotilla members went on hunger strike over their treatment. They put us, the hunger strikers, into cells with banquets of food. And they didn't give any decent food to the people that did want to eat." They were also denied sleep in prison a recognised form of torture. You could hear the screams at night," he said. Paddy O'Donovan aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza with Liam Cunningham. They were pointing guns in at us. When we were trying to sleep, they'd light you up with their lasers. And theyd say they were going to put a bullet in you. Theyd point the guns at your head. Youd have constant interruptions every night. There was no communication with the outside world. We didn't know if we were ever going to be freed or if we were going to survive. They'd come into the cell, fully armed men with machine guns, and they'd push everyone to the back wall and they'd do their head counts. Theyd call you Irish scum, say that we were animals, and they were going to shoot us And the people on the flotilla were the loveliest, kindest people Ive ever met in 61 years of life. One day, they said we were going to meet the consulate. They put us in a cage outside in the baking sun. And while white Irish were denied medicine and clean water, people from the flotilla from the global south or with darker skin were treated with even more disdain, he said. Palestinians were treated the worst, chained to the ground and blindfolded with dogs circling them, he said. 'Bombs going off every couple of hours' Mr ODonovan immediately signed up to return on another flotilla, should one be needed. The people there need our help," he said. In jail, he could constantly hear planes and helicopters overhead and hear frequent explosions in nearby Gaza. There were bombs going off every couple of hours," he said. Whats happening is horrific. A man-made famine in a place the length of Cork to Cobh with 2m people, or there were 2m people there. "And the world has done nothing." "They [Israeli forces] are the terrorists," he claimed. "The world needs to wake up to that. I met the most incredible, lovely people [on the flotilla]. Pure humanitarians. There wasn't a violent bone in anybody. And yet, we had to experience the violence of this psychopathic regime where there was no empathy with human beings. "People have no right to terrorise other people and take their homes, take everything. "There's billions worth of gas and oil off Gaza that [Benjamin] Netanyahu said he wants. "There's such greed in this capitalist society. And powerful entities will take what they want from anyone. "History will judge people for sitting back and doing nothing. Hopefully, we can make a change little by little." Clare and Limerick have won the bid to host EuroPride 2028, after competing against Manchester. It has been confirmed the 2028 edition will be coming to the Munster region, for a joint West of Ireland bid from Limerick Pride, QuareClare, and The Outing Festival. Ireland will play host to the international event for the first time. EuroPride attracts more than 100,000 from around the world, and is hosted in a different European city each year. Over the last few years, it has been hosted in London, Thessaloniki, Cologne, Warsaw, Rome, Oslo, Madrid, and Zurich. The news was confirmed by Limerick mayor, John Moran, who said the event will have a positive impact on the economy. "People will talk about the fun we will have, they will talk about the positive impact to the economy, but this is much more. "It is saying to every kid and adult who may be asking the question to themselves, that they are welcoming in the inclusive Limerick (and Clare) that we are continuing to build," Mr Moran said. Europride 2028 will be the occasion to celebrate diversity, promote visibility, and forge new connections among LGBTQ+ communitiess. "This achievement would not have been possible without the diligent work of local community organisers and partners. I want to warmly congratulate Limerick Pride, The Outing Queer Arts Collective (The Outing Festival), and QuareClare for their leadership in developing the West of Ireland bid, and to thank the many volunteers, campaigners, and civic supporters who travelled to represent our region during the bidding process. "I would also like to acknowledge and congratulate named local figures who have been central to this effort including Limerick Pride, and the councillors and civic partners who backed the bid. The city is grateful for the energy and vision they have shown in securing this opportunity," Mr Moran added. "Hosting EuroPride 2028 is an extraordinary honour for us here in Limerick. It is a moment for us to shine a spotlight on equality, to welcome the world, and to show how far we have come. "Our goal is not only to host memorable events, but to leave a lasting legacy of inclusion, awareness, and civic pride." The bids for Europride were presented at the EPOA annual conference in Barcelona, and the winner was announced this Saturday. A man has been taken to the hospital following an assault in Co Cork. Gardai and emergency services attended the scene of the incident at a private residence in Mitchelstown this Saturday, at approximately midnight. One of the more bizarre comments in a bizarre week of the presidential campaign came from Maria Steen. Steen attempted last month to get a nomination to run, but she was unsuccessful. In light of what has now befallen Fianna Fail candidate Jim Gavin, she suggested that the election should be cancelled and rerun. This would give her another bite at the cherry. Is she serious? Does she not realise that her failure to get a nomination was a close escape from a torturous process that has left others bereft, befuddled, emotionally exhausted, a complete nervous wreck? Does she really want to go through that? Jim Gavins implosion as a presidential candidate this week sent waves through the political system. Fianna Fail, and in particular Taoiseach Micheal Martin, was left reeling from the experience, its political nous and capital shredded. Fianna Fail was made to look like a bunch of amateurs. But what of Gavin? He is a man with considerable achievements, both in sport and in public service. This weeks experience must have left him completely bereft and emotionally sunk. There is no doubt that it will be a while before he is fully recovered and equipped to carry on his life. He doesnt deserve such a blow, but those are the wages of being a presidential candidate. Jim Gavin's implosion as a presidential candidate this week sent waves through the political system. Picture: Conor O'Mearain/PA As Fianna Fail TD James OConnor put it in a statement he released on the debacle: Six weeks ago, Jim Gavin was a private citizen and an Irish sporting hero with a passionate commitment to community and the GAA. That sounds like a preamble to a description of a highly-rated citizen who went on to suffer a catastrophic accident or bitter twist of fate. You might well add to such traumatic incidents the experience of running for president. Joan Freeman knows all about it. During her career, she has served as a senator and was also the founder of Pieta House, the suicide prevention charity. She ran in 2018 as an Independent candidate. What I did not realise then was that fear would become the strongest emotion of the campaign, she wrote in The Irish Times earlier this year. Not ambition, not anger, not even hope but fear. That fear was motivated by what exactly would appear in the media the following day, even the following hour. Senator Joan Freeman, right, ran for president as an Independent candidate in 2018. Picture: Larry Cummins Presidential elections in modern times have been largely directed towards complete inventories of all candidates histories and character. This inventory can involve a trawl right back through a candidates life, honing in on an incident or event that ordinarily would be in the past, with no reason to have it excavated. Then, once the buried secret has been hauled into the light, it is presented as if it was a nefarious version of the lost arc. Thats the situation Gavin Duffy found himself in during the 2018 campaign, for which he had received a nomination. Duffy was not a politician, but he had extensive media experience through his own professional life and as a judge in the Irish version of The Apprentice. During the campaign, a Sunday newspaper revealed that he had been involved in a car crash in 1978 when he was 18 years of age. A motorcyclist had been seriously injured, and Duffy was convicted of careless driving. He had also been uninsured in the vehicle in which he had been travelling, his brothers car. The whole matter had been dealt with by the courts at the time. Yet here it was, excavated to be presented as an exhibit of his character as a now 58-year-old man running for president as if a mistake, albeit a serious one, as a teenager rather than his record over 40 years as an adult in various roles was reflective of his character. Gavin Duffy face questions about a car accident he was involved in as a teenager during his bid for president. Picture: Denis Minihane. Duffy was being advised on the campaign by media strategist Richard Moore, who had seven years previously also worked for Sean Gallagher in the 2011 campaign. The thing with Gavin and car accident came out of the blue, Moore says. It was going way, way back. At the time, the only thing I thought there might be an issue over was Gavins support for the Meath hunt because there were a lot of anti-hunt people opposed to his candidacy on that basis, and you just have to deal with that kind of thing. Pretty quickly, Moore saw the impact that the story was having on Duffy, his demeanour, but most particularly a vital element to any candidates campaign: His confidence. In my opinion, it had a massive impact on him, Moore says. It threw him, knocked his confidence, and unsteadied him. He went from being a good media performer to being a poor media performer Moore recalls one radio interview where Duffy appeared to be uneasy and not himself. At some point in the interview, he actually brought up the issue of the car accident unprompted. Afterwards, the adviser asked him why hed done it. He said hed been waiting for the question on it the whole time, Moore says. That, of course, had an impact on how he was coming across in the interview. Media performances in presidential elections have an elevated significance. The office at issue has practically no executive powers. There is nothing on policy that can be interrogated in any meaningful way. The electorate is so large, it cannot be humanly canvassed. That leaves everything down to character, and one central feature is how the candidate comes across in public. Hence, if youre losing on air, youre in serious trouble. The scrutiny is such that nothing is off limits, including family. Adi Roche, in the 1997 election, was subjected to what she subsequently described as a shockingly dirty campaign. Adi Roche, in the 1997 election, was subjected to what she subsequently described as a 'shockingly dirty campaign'. Picture: Colin Keegan/Collins Roche was then and continues to be the force behind Chernobyl Children Ireland, which caters for children huge affected by the nuclear disaster at the Belarus nuclear facility in 1986. Her brother, Donal de Roiste, had been dismissed from the Defence Forces in 1969 under a cloud, 28 years earlier prior to Roche's presidential tilt. He was never officially told of the reason for his forced retirement, and was never subjected to a court martial, but it was suggested to him that it was to do with an alleged association with republican militants. (A review of his case in 2022 finally found that his dismissal was an unfair process that was not in accordance with the law). But in 1997, the incident was dragged up as if, by association, it represented some negative reflection on his sisters candidacy. Roche was left with not just her own distress that this was dragged up, but the reality that the family had been dragged into it. The media dig deep and long to find nuggets from a candidates background. Depending on your point of view, that is either digging the dirt or ensuring that the public are fully informed about the choice they are about to make. Presidential inflation The nature of the election means that anything which gets uncovered is subject to what Richard Moore calls presidential inflation. Because there is so little to write about, no policy or anything, all shaking hands and kissing babies, in the absence of anything serious, everyone focused on the individual, he says. So any small, and to be fair, in some instances big, issues become inflated by the focus on the presidency. Some of these issues you wouldnt bat an eye at them ordinarily, but its all inflated. Independent candidates are usually far more in danger of having their past raked over and inflated. Serving, or retired, politicians will be accustomed to some scrutiny so they might see it coming. This was reflected in the current campaign when various nuggets were aired about Catherine Connollys past, including a controversial trip to Syria. She answered everything calmly and stood by her decisions, even if the answers werent complete. There is every possibility that, had she been new to politics, she would not have fared as well. Swinford native Mary Davis was accused of being a 'failed Fianna Failer' who had been appointed to several 'quangos'. Picture: Tom Honan Its not just the media that go digging into the past like a fleet of JCBs. In the 2011 campaign, Mary Davis, who had done trojan work for the Special Olympics organisation in various roles, put her name forward. At some point, one of her team was informed that a voter had been contacted by somebody on behalf of Fine Gael who said that Davis was a failed Fianna Failer who had been appointed to several quangos. At the time, the Fine Gael candidate Gay Mitchell was foundering in the polls. A party spokesperson would comment on an allegation that they had been testing out negative messages with focus groups. Davis, who had never been in Fianna Fail, felt compelled to issue a statement outlining the boards she had been a member of. She was, in effect, being totally unfairly cast as a so-called quango queen, hovering up fees from State bodies. By any standards, Gavins blast from the past was of a more serious nature. If all the reports are accurate, his issue on the retention of rent money was not known to Fianna Fail when they nominated him. If Fianna Fail had, it would have known that it was likely to emerge during the campaign, considering all that has tumbled out in every campaign all the way back to 1997. There is one common feature to all the candidates who got burned, some of them badly, in presidential campaigns. They all have had a record of public service in one form or another. Most came to prominence through roles in charities designed to assist citizens in various ways. To that extent, their candidacy was based on their moral rectitude and public service. And yet they often emerged with their characters assailed, minor foibles inflated beyond reason, and often the subject of patently false allegations. Running for president is a noble aspiration. Its also undoubtedly the case that its not good for your health. Hyacinth Bucket, t he poster girl for women with notions, has left us. Thats pronounced Bouquet, dear. I can just hear the lady of the house saying that now as she answers the telephone in Keeping Up Appearances, the 1990s comedic gold that struck a chord internationally because social aspirations (lets be kind) apply everywhere. Just ask Reggie from Blackrock Road, old stocks, the richest man in Ireland, but not for tax purposes. Ive been journeying down the virtual rabbit-hole to pay tribute to the late Patricia Routledge, an actor of remarkable humanity and craft who, rather unfairly, will be best remembered for her brilliant portrayal of the hilariously snobbish Hyacinth. And little wonder. What great lines. I do apologise, Vicar, I must answer my white, slimline telephone with last-number redial facilities, its bound to be someone important. HISTORY HUB If you are interested in this article then no doubt you will enjoy exploring the various history collections and content in our history hub. Check it out HERE and happy reading And this one: Its my sister, Violet. Shes the one with the Mercedes, sauna and a musical bidet. Classical of course. That reminds me of that old joke (which I always hear in a Cork accent): Help, help, my son the engineer is drowning. Actually, to be more specific, I hear it in a Montenotte accent which is probably due to the satirical gem that was Halls Pictorial Weekly. In the 1970s, it gave us the Confederation of Mothers of Seven, who were based in that esteemed suburb. Decades before the BBC sitcom, here were four Hyacinth Buckets, Cork-style, who sparred over a sherry, or a cup of Barrys tea, in the comfort of their well-appointed living-rooms. The name-dropping, the passive-aggressive little barbs and the one-up-womanship between Rosa (Frank Kelly), Mavis (Eamon Morrissey), Fanny (Pat Daly) and Grainne (Paul Murphy) were all exquisitely observed and are still, even decades later, instantly recognisable. But lets return to Patricia Routledge who has died aged 96. In her lifetime, she happily received recognition and many honours. There was an OBE and a CBE, and she was made a dame in 2017. She won a Tony award in 1968 and an Olivier award in 1988, but it was her words on ageing that struck me with particular force this week. When she was 66, she played a pensioner-turned-private eye with teenage sidekick Geoffrey (Dominic Monaghan) in the crime drama series Hetty Wainthropp Investigates. In real life she did something similar, turning expectations of age on their head while urging us to let the years ahead be our treasure years. In a Letter to Life, which she wrote as she approached her 95th birthday, she said some things bloom late but they still bloom beautifully. It appeared under the heading Growing old oops up! on JaySpeaks, a blog run by Jay W MacIntosh, a fellow actor and late-bloomer who passed the California Bar Exam in 2000 at age 61. Of her nineties, Patricia said she wrote letters by hand, baked rye bread and listened more than she spoke. I breathe deeply in the mornings and whisper thanks to the sky I have nothing left to prove and so much left to feel. She wasnt writing a farewell, she said, rather this gentle reminder: Growing older isnt a fading. It can be a radiant unfolding. A blooming not back to youth, but back to yourself. You didnt need fame, nor perfection, just a presence, she said: Show up. Gently. Fully. Authentically. And life if you let it will always meet you halfway. She lived that herself. At 65, she said she stopped waiting for permission and began to learn Italian so that she could feel opera in its native tongue. At 75, she returned to the Shakespearean stage without fear of critics or a need for applause. At 85, she started to paint one soft stroke at a time, in order to remember, not to impress. What a beautiful and inspiring post, one that might allow us to move through the decades with excitement and joy rather than the heaviness fuelled by the sellers of products who would have us expend all of our energy defying the pull of gravity. There has been a shift in attitude though, one that embraces the radiant unfolding that Patricia Routledge so eloquently describes. You see signs of that everywhere, with groups of women and men flourishing in the decades traditionally set aside for slowing down. But then, the very word retirement has retire to retreat, or step back, or go to sleep stitched into it. People are now much less likely to take that literally. Or they are returning to a much older vision of age, one that highlights the wisdom and the power that comes with advancing years. This very weekend, for instance, Allihies Autumn School is focusing on An Chailleach, the hag, healer and holy woman of myth, in a packed programme taking place at Allihies Copper Mine Museum. Rachel Parrys spellbinding exhibition, Cloaks and Pinholes, is part of it which seems entirely fitting given that the artist is a member of Na Cailleacha, a collective of women over the age of 70, who are looking at being visible as artists in our old age. Rachel Parry artist with Bone Cloak. Earlier this week, she explained that one of her pieces, a cloak made out of bones, was inspired by the story of how the Cailleach slaughtered a cow every year and kept its bones in her loft. If anyone tried to determine her age by counting the bones, they could never get to the end of them. Whats that about never asking a woman her age? In an entirely different vein, Riot Women, the new BBC drama from Happy Valley writer Sally Wainwright, airs tomorrow. A BBC promotional picture for Riot Women. It tells the story of five menopausal women who form a punk rock band so that they can compete in a local talent contest. They suddenly find they have a lot more to shout about than they ever imagined, to quote the tension-raising pre-publicity. Bring it on, along with the messy and full lives that these women lead, trying to care for elderly parents, still-dependent adult children and cope with marital strife, work pressures and on and on goes the exhausting list. But Sally Wainwright does something a little bit different here. She said she wanted to write about women in their late 40s and 50s in a positive and uplifting way. These women might feel they are disappearing, but they are actively claiming back their lives. That is a theme which is happily bubbling up everywhere, from social media ( thank you, Melani We Do Not Care Sanders) to film and TV. My favourite older-woman moment remains the one from Fleabag where the inimitable Kristen Scott-Thomas says this of menopause: Its horrendous, but then its magnificent. We could, however, do with more positive cultural portrayals of older people. In the real world, they lead full and enriching lives but that hasnt quite translated into fiction yet. The Thursday Murder Club, the film which features Helen Mirren (80), Pierce Brosnan (72) and Ben Kingsley (81), is a notable exception, but where are all the 70 and 80 and even 90 year-olds on our screens? There is so much to say, and to portray. As Patricia Routledge has reminded us, the treasure years have yet to come. Last Monday night, along with Tom McCune and Donna Schwarz , I arrived in Dublin airport to an undeserved but heartwarming heros welcome. At 4.30am that day we had been woken by blinding lights and the sound of a riot shield being slammed against our prison cell door by a group of gun-toting male prison guards who yelled at us that it was time to get up. For five days and nights we had been in Ktzi'ot high-security prison in the Negev desert in the Palestinian lands occupied by Israel and during that day we were deported from there through Eliat Airport to Athens and then finally home to Dublin. We were the first of the 23 Irish participants in the Global Sumud Flotilla (Sumud is an Arabic word for steadfastness) to return from our month-long attempt to break Israels illegal siege on Gaza which has denied its people access to their basic human needs since 2007. The flotilla was a non-violent initiative by ordinary people from more than 47 different countries to deliver aid by sea to Gaza in more than 50 boats of all sizes. Like earlier aid flotillas which had attempted to reach Gaza since the siege was enforced, ours had three key aims: To break the siege on Gaza and demonstrate to governments around the world that if they will not act against Israels war crimes, the people will. To deliver much-needed aid and medical supplies directly to people in Gaza in the hope that it could be even a start for Palestinians to import whatever they need, themselves, through their own land and sea borders. To show the people in Gaza that despite the inactions and the complicit actions of governments around the world including our own, the US and EU, that ordinary people like us stand with Palestinians. Arriving in the airport on Monday night I was experiencing a chaotic range of feelings from pride to anger to sadness to shame and embarrassment to euphoria and relief and then back to the start again. The reasons for the feelings were quite clear; we were returning safe after a huge international and national effort to free us. We were returning to a heros welcome when we had only succeeded in one of the three aims of our movement and had failed in the others. We had not achieved any material change in the lives of the people in Gaza, and it will remain to be seen whether we moved the dial at all on the impunity with which Israel is allowed to act by all our governments. At sea on the Global Sumud Flotilla. After being intercepted in international waters in a high drama and completely illegal action by the Israeli Defence Forces, we were abducted and brought on a 14 hour journey to Israel. Following that we had spent 5 days and nights in prison, experiencing only temporarily just some of the deprivations, terrorising and abuses that Palestinians themselves have documented and denounced over decades, revealed in BTselems document Welcome to Hell: The Israeli Prison System as a Network of Torture Camps. And yet the world medias gaze was on us, activists who had a choice about our participation. Being part of the flotilla has been one of the most powerful experiences of my life These were boats full of people of different faiths, nationalities, politics, genders, opinions and outlooks spread out across the Mediterranean all heading with hope towards Gaza, with Palestinians and their decades-long struggle for human dignity as the north star for a different view of how we could live in this world. Participants on board the Global Sumud Flotilla. Its important to be clear that the major work and fundraising elements of this flotilla came from global south countries and organisations, as did most of the participants. And although the names and faces of those of us who sailed are out in public view, in many ways we did way less work than the ground teams. Even here in Ireland people who youll never hear about have been flat out working since two months before the first boat sailed and will continue doing so until the last of the detainees from the flotilla are free. They are doing this without pay or recognition, and I am grateful to everyone who worked to send us and who campaigned to ensure we were returned home safely. On the boat I was on, The Spectre, the majority of our group were Muslims from Turkey, Kuwait, Syria, Germany, Morocco, and Palestine, and their practice of their faith and prayers became part of the rhythm of each day. Their presence was ample proof that people from other places and other cultures are, just like many of us in Ireland, completely outraged at their own governments failure to act to prevent genocide. For me, this knowledge will help me ward off despair and impotence, and I hope to find a way to spread that reality to others In any small space filled with people you will have arguments, irritations, dealing with your own and others egos in tiny spaces and it was no different on the boats. The break downs and bureaucratic delays meant some days were much less inspirational in tone. Under constant threat There were stressful and dangerous drone attacks on us in Tunis and Crete, in which two boats were set on fire and noxious chemicals were dropped on eleven other boats in an attempt to intimidate us. There were the constant threats against us from Israel, that wed be bombed, tried as terrorists, that our movements known public figures would receive lengthy sentences, that we were working for Hamas, funded by Hamas, were terrorists, and conversely were attention seekers on selfie yachts, the list goes on. In time this flotilla will be nothing more than a footnote, hopefully on the history of the path to Palestinian freedom and self-determination. For me the most important moment came when I spoke to a man in Gaza who made contact by phone with me and Senator Chris Andrews when we were three days sail from Gaza. I wont name him, in case doing so creates danger for him. He wanted to know what he could do to prepare a welcome for us (all 450 of us on board the 50 boats) in Gaza. He got straight into how many places we needed to stay and which families had space or buildings and began apologising that they might not have enough food for the type of welcome they would like to offer us. We had to stop him, with, for me anyway, the most enormous lump in my throat and tell him what we were beginning to realise, that Israel was determined to attack or intercept our boats and that it was likely that we might not arrive. We both (on speaker phone) apologised to him. I was filled with sadness and a sense of powerlessness, but he stopped us and said this is not news to Palestinians, we know this, we hope but we know how they are and while we tried to apologise he stopped us. No, you dont understand, you have already done it, you have already arrived, he said. We tell our children each night that the world hasnt forgotten them, they are watching your boats coming and we are telling them stories of this, that while this genocide happened people from the world were sailing, because they love Palestinian people. Maybe he said that only to reassure us, but for me, if one child can grow up knowing that this was actually the case, it would be worth all the efforts of 1,000 flotillas. Otherwise, what story will they learn of these times? There will be more flotillas, and hopefully more strikes, more protests and more direct actions, more sanctions, more arms embargos, more people coming up with more ways, perfect or not, to insist that they wont be part of genocide There are currently more than 145 people including five Irish people from a separate initiative called 1000 Madleens and The Conscience, a larger ship whose activists include medics and journalists again being illegally detained in Israel. We can only hope that this intensity of opposition can be maintained in the face of the grotesque spectacle of world leaders celebrating themselves for considering halting the genocide they are committing. Ordinary people, ordinary flawed, self-doubting people who battle with their own uncertainty and act in whatever way they can, might have to be the antidote for the violent hubris of toxic performative power that we are facing in the so-called western world. As Rafeef Ziadah the Palestinian poet and scholar said: "We teach life, sir, We, Palestinians wake up every morning to teach the rest of the world life. We owe them so much. Frances newly reappointed prime minister has acknowledged there were not a lot of candidates for his job and that he might not last long in the post given the countrys deep political divides. Sebastien Lecornu, renamed by President Emmanuel Macron late on Friday after a week of political chaos, called for calm and for the support of political parties to produce a budget for the European Unions number two economy before looming deadlines. His appointment is seen as Mr Macrons last chance to reinvigorate his second term, which runs until 2027. Mr Macrons centrist camp lacks a majority in the National Assembly and he is facing increasing criticism even within its ranks. But rivals from far-right to far-left criticised Mr Macrons decision to rename Mr Lecornu, Frances fourth prime minister in barely a year. France is struggling with mounting economic challenges and ballooning debt, and the political crisis is aggravating its troubles and raising alarm across the European Union. I dont think there were a lot of candidates, Mr Lecornu told reporters on Saturday during a visit to a police station in the Paris suburb of LHay-les-Roses. Mr Lecornu, who resigned on Monday after just a month on the job, said he agreed to come back because of the urgent need to find financial solutions for France. But he said he would only stay as long as conditions are met, and seemed to acknowledge the risk that he could be brought down in a no-confidence vote by the fractured parliament. Reappointed French prime minister Sebastien Lecornu shakes hands with policemen as he visits a police station in LHay-les-Roses, outside Paris (Martin Lelievre, Pool Photo via AP) Either political forces help me and we accompany each other or they wont, Mr Lecornu said. He would not say when he expects to form a new government or who could be in it, but has said it would not include anyone angling for the 2027 presidential election. Mr Lecornu did not address opposition demands to scrap a contentious law raising the retirement age. Over the past year, Mr Macrons successive minority governments have collapsed in quick succession, leaving France mired in political paralysis as it faces a debt crisis that has worried markets and EU partners, and a growing poverty rate. Tourists visit the city wall museum of Nanjing in Nanjing, capital of east China's Jiangsu Province, Oct. 5, 2025. (Photo by Yang Suping/Xinhua) TAIYUAN, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Visiting museums has become a new holiday fashion among young Chinese people, as more travelers got off the beaten track during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday to enjoy culture and history rather than overcrowded tourist spots. Ahead of the "super golden week," online tickets for popular Chinese museums, such as the National Museum of China and the Palace Museum in Beijing, and the Shanxi Museum in the northern province of Shanxi, sold out quickly. "I feel really lucky to have secured a ticket for the National Day!" said a visitor in her early 30s, surnamed Wang, from the eastern Chinese city of Fuzhou, who visited the Shanxi Museum on Oct. 1. For many young visitors, museums offer not only a cultural enrichment journey that transcends time and space, but also a peaceful and therapeutic retreat from the holiday bustle. "I like to come here for a walk when I feel stressed," said a 30-year-old surnamed Wang, who works for an internet company, when visiting the Jinci Museum in Shanxi's provincial capital of Taiyuan. "Gazing at these millennia-old buildings and reflecting on how ancient people created such marvels with so little help put my own troubles into perspective." Some visitors want to make their museum visits more fun and personal by creating humorous memes based on artifacts in the museums and purchasing creative cultural products from museums. At the Shanxi Museum, stuffed toys shown sleeping cozily in a pouch, were a particular hit with visitors during the holiday. A little girl in traditional costumes is pictured at the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 2, 2025. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) Qiu Ping, deputy director of the Jinci Museum, noticed the changing behaviors of young visitors. "They are no longer satisfied with just walking through exhibits -- they do homework on the museums in advance and are not shy to discuss with the museum guides and ask questions about the exhibits' cultural significance." This shift from passive observation to active participation reflects the growing interest of China's younger generation in traditional culture, Qiu said. On Xiaohongshu, a popular Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform, posts tagged "museum" have exceeded 11 million, as many young people share their museum experiences. Technology is also adding new dimensions to the museum experience. At the Taiyuan Northern Qi Dynasty Mural Museum, visitors can don VR headsets to experience the grandeur of ancient banquets, while interactive projection walls enable them to play music alongside musicians in the murals with a simple wave of the hand. Wang Jiang, the museum's director, said the venue aims to create immersive experiences for visitors using technologies such as digital imaging and 3D animation. The move has helped the Taiyuan Northern Qi Dynasty Mural Museum attract more young visitors, as those under 30 accounted for more than 60 percent of all bookings at the museum during the holiday, according to the museum's data. Editor: WSH Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine Andriy Sybiha held talks at the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry with Reem Al Hashimy, Minister of State for International Cooperation of the United Arab Emirates. "The parties discussed the state and prospects for the development of Ukrainian-Emirati cooperation in the political, economic, humanitarian and technological spheres," the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry said in a Telegram message on Saturday. Joint initiatives in the field of humanitarian aid, energy sustainability and the restoration of Ukraines infrastructure with the support of Emirati partners were important topics of the talks. "Special attention was paid to the implementation of the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement between Ukraine and the UAE, which opens up new opportunities for expanding trade, investment and innovative cooperation. The parties also discussed preparations for the Fourth Meeting of the Intergovernmental Ukrainian-Emirati Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation, scheduled for early 2026," the report said. For her part, Minister of State Reem Al Hashimy confirmed the UAEs readiness to further strengthen cooperation with Ukraine, emphasizing the importance of dialogue, partnership and long-term cooperation between the two countries. Sybiha briefed on the situation on the battlefield, Russian shelling and Ukraines peace efforts. He expressed gratitude to the UAE for its support for Ukraines sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as significant humanitarian assistance to the Ukrainian people since the beginning of Russias full-scale invasion. By Gulnaz Anjum, University of Limerick and Mudassar Aziz, University of Oslo (The Conversation) When the daytime air feels like an oven and night brings no relief, people in Karachi, Pakistan, say the heat goes straight to the head. They mean more than dizziness or sweat. Its the creeping panic of a body that cannot cool down: restless nights, frayed tempers, a household on edge. Here, a heatwave is not simply a matter of high temperatures. Its a public health emergency that seeps into every corner of life: physical health, sleep, mood and the invisible care work that keeps families and neighbours alive. Our research in Pakistan and Kenya (Karachi, Lahore and Nairobi), shows how extreme heat affects local communities. For families living on informal and unstable incomes and in fragile housing, such heat is not just uncomfortable; it can be deadly. Heatwaves occur when temperatures push daily highs past 40 C inland and above 35 C on the coast. In 2015, a single heatwave killed more than 1,200 people in Karachi during just one week in June. But the quieter psychological toll which is rarely counted in official statistics builds with every wave of extreme heat. In our research, residents describe lying awake in stagnant air, waking drenched in sweat and starting the next day already exhausted. Sleeplessness makes emotions harder to manage, fuelling conflict in homes stretched thin. Many, especially women, speak of a sense of suffocation and dread; fearing their bodies wont cope or that a loved one will collapse. For people with asthma or anxiety the symptoms are magnified, and mothers often feel an acute worry for children and elderly relatives. This mental strain is no overreaction, it reflects harsh realities. Outdoor workers lose wages when extreme heat makes it unsafe to stay on the job. At the same time, food and water prices climb as supply chains falter and demand spikes, just as family incomes shrink. Hospitals and clinics can be difficult to reach because high temperatures often lead to power cuts, overloaded transport systems and an increase in heat-related illness, all of which slows emergency care. Women often shoulder the heaviest burden because in many households, especially in low- and middle-income countries, domestic and caregiving duties still fall largely to them. Social norms often expect women, not men, to stay home with children, care for older relatives and organise water or food supplies. When a heatwave strikes, those tasks become more physically demanding and more time-consuming: fanning overheated children through sleepless nights, checking constantly on elderly neighbours, and answering calls for help. In low- and middle-income countries, women also face disproportionate health risks from climate change, particularly during extreme heat, precisely because these gendered roles and socio-cultural expectations expose them to greater stress. The unpaid labour that holds households together caring, fetching water, preparing food is carried mainly by women. As one Karachi resident explained, on the hottest days she and her neighbours watch over pregnant women: Women here may be poor, but they support each other, sharing water, looking after each others children and cooking for each other. Its our way of surviving Such neighbourly care surfaces again and again. Families pool money to buy safe drinking water when supplies run short. In some informal settlements, one of the most immediate ways people cope with rising heat is by increasing their reliance on water, often through hand pumps that serve as vital lifelines during prolonged heatwaves. Neighbours check on older people during power cuts. Women take turns cooking when kitchens become unbearable for elderly or pregnant relatives. These are not feel-good tales of bouncing back, but acts of collective survival: immediate, exhausting and often invisible. They reveal how vulnerability is shaped by poor housing, patchy healthcare and weak governance factors that leave people exposed when crises strike. Extreme heat also compounds heat related health risks and financial costs. In crowded settlements and displacement camps, food spoils quickly, appetites wane and clean water becomes harder to find and more expensive to acquire. Pregnant and breastfeeding women struggle to maintain nutrition. International research shows that heat stress can deplete micronutrients, hinder growth and increase the risk of early labour and premature childbirths. When these pressures collide with poverty and displacement, the dangers of malnutrition and long-term harm can only grow. Residents requests are strikingly simple. They want electricity that stays on through the night, clean water that they can afford and clinics that remain open when symptoms worsen. These are not luxuries. They are the difference between anxiety and peace of mind, between starting the day rested or already exhausted. Even small interventions help: a working fan, a shaded community space, advice on hydration and sleep. Women-led groups already organise water-sharing, neighbour check-ins and shaded play areas. Strengthening these networks, and centring polices on womens health could save lives and protect mental health during future heatwaves. Photo by Muhammad Jawaid Shamshad on Unsplash Counting only hospital admissions or heat-stroke cases misses what people say matters most: a child kept hydrated, a safe place to sleep, the absence of panic on the hottest days and nights of the year. These everyday markers of dignity and survival are where real adaptation begins. As one resident put it: We cannot stop the sun. But we can stop each other from being alone in the heat. Gulnaz Anjum, Assistant Professor of Climate Psychology, Centre for Social Issues Research, Department of Psychology, University of Limerick and Mudassar Aziz, Researcher, Psychology, University of Oslo This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Further Due Diligence Needed After Suspension of Some Cloud and AI Services Human Rights Watch (New York, October 10, 2025) Microsoft should suspend business activities that are contributing to grave human rights abuses and international crimes by the Israeli military and other Israeli government bodies, Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Access Now, and other leading human rights groups said in a letter previously privately sent to Microsoft and published today. An August 2025 media investigation by the Guardian, +972 Magazine, and Local Call reported that the Israeli military intelligence unit, Unit 8200, has been using Microsofts Azure cloud services to store and process vast quantities of daily intercepts of telephone communications of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank. On September 25, Microsoft announced that it had ceased and disabled specific Israeli military subscriptions and services, including their use of specific cloud storage and artificial intelligence (AI) services and technologies, as a result of its review of allegations from the Guardians reporting. Microsoft has taken an important first step toward restricting the use of specific technologies by a unit within the Israeli military for repressing Palestinians, said Deborah Brown, technology and rights deputy director at Human Rights Watch. It should comprehensively review its business relationships with Israeli authorities and take action to ensure that its cloud infrastructure, AI technology, software and hardware, and other tools and services are not complicit in Israels extermination of Palestinians and other serious abuses. Microsoft has said it plans to provide a response to the joint letter at the end of October, as it is currently carrying out its investigation and formulating recommendations. Microsoft has had ample reason to conduct heightened human rights due diligence of its business activities with Israeli authorities given the protracted nature of Israels occupation and repression of Palestinians and years of reporting by human rights organizations, the United Nations, and media concerning the risk of technology companies contributing to abuses, Human Rights Watch said. As Human Rights Watch research has documented, Israeli forces use of data-driven systems and AI technologies, including for surveillance and to inform military targeting decisions in Gaza, raises serious concerns under the laws of war, in particular the principle of distinction between military targets and civilians, and the need to take all feasible precautions to minimize civilian harm. Human Rights Watch and five partner organizations wrote to Microsoft on September 26. The groups said that Microsofts decision to disable specific Israeli military subscriptions and services in response to the Guardians reporting was a positive step. The groups urged Microsoft to re-examine all of its contracts with the Israeli military and other government authorities, to suspend the use of any service or product contributing to human rights abuses by Israeli military or government authorities, and where this is the case to terminate the relationship. Human Rights Watch has found that Israeli authorities in recent years have carried out ethnic cleansing, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, including extermination, apartheid, and persecution, and acts of genocide against Palestinians, and violated binding orders by the International Court of Justice (ICJ). The media investigation reported that Israels mass surveillance system, powered by Azure, holds millions of recorded mobile phone calls, and that sources within Unit 8200 say Israeli authorities have used this data to research and identify bombing targets in Gaza, alongside AI-driven tools used for targeting. Israeli authorities have reportedly also used this information in the occupied West Bank to blackmail people, place them in detention, or even justify their killing after the fact. Microsoft noted that its own review, which is ongoing, found evidence that supports elements of the Guardians reporting. Israels extensive and pervasive surveillance of the entire Palestinian population is well documented and has been instrumental in Israeli authorities ongoing perpetration of the crimes against humanity of apartheid and persecution against Palestinians. Israeli authorities have used the mass surveillance and coercive extraction of Palestinians personal data to enable, facilitate, and even accelerate the commission of other international crimes, including acts of genocide; crimes against humanity, including of extermination; and war crimes, including air strikes carried out in violation of the laws of war. Photo by BoliviaInteligente on Unsplash Israels assault on Gaza has resulted in the killing of over 67,000 Palestinians, including at least 20,000 children, and destroyed the majority of Gazas schools, hospitals, homes, and civilian infrastructure. Under the United Nations Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which Microsoft publicly endorses, companies have a responsibility to avoid causing or contributing to human rights abuses, and to address risks directly linked to their business operations and relationships. In conflict-aected contexts, the risk of gross human rights abuses is heightened and, therefore, due diligence by businesses should be heightened accordingly. Microsoft has not publicly disclosed whether it has exercised heightened human rights due diligence or sought to terminate its links to human rights abuses. Until its September 25 announcement, Microsoft had not indicated publicly that it imposed any limits on its business relationships with Israeli authorities to address the risks of human rights abuses. A previous review that Microsoft commissioned of the Israeli militarys use of its products found in May 2025 that there was no evidence to date that Microsofts Azure and AI technologies have been used to target or harm people in the conflict in Gaza. In their joint letter, the groups outline questions concerning the scope of Microsofts current review and its application of its own policies concerning the responsible use of its AI in the context of the hostilities. There is no time to delay, Microsoft should take decisive action to ensure they are not profiting from grave human rights abuses of Palestinians, Brown said. Human Rights Watch Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) This month Brazils National Electric System Operator estimated that wind and solar are now producing nearly 40 percent of the countrys electricity. It was just in August of this year that the countrys wind and solar installations hit the milestone of generating over a third of the countrys electricity (some 34%), powering the equivalent of 119 million households. Solar is now the cheapest way to generate power, coming in at only 3 cents a kilowatt hour in sunny countries like Brazil. Onshore wind can be as little as 3.7 cents per KWh. In the US in 2025, fossil gas is roughly 4.5 cents a kilowatt hour. Coal runs anywhere from 7 to 16 cents per kilowatt hour, and thats not counting the billions of dollars in climate disasters it causes. Obviously, if you were going to put in a new electricity power plant, youd choose solar for the purpose most places nowadays, or you might as well set your money on fire. Juan Cole P. O. Box 4218, Ann Arbor, MI 48104-2548 USA (Remember, make the checks out to Juan Cole or they cant be cashed) President Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been supportive of clean energy, though he has an all of the above energy policy that also supports exploration for oil and fossil gas. This year he enacted incentives for offshore wind, and Brazil is already ranked 6th in the world for onshore wind power generation. He has also issued directives to support renewables, and to expand them in the poverty-stricken Amazon region. He faces a conservative parliament that supports subsidies for fossil fuels, which for now make up a small percentage of the Brazilian grid. Fossil fuels have fallen since 2021 from 26% to only 14% of the Brazilian electricity grid. The oil and gas interests in the United States have used the addled Trump and his rapacious myrmidons to try to stop from happening to the United States what has already happened to Brazil a swift transition to clean and inexpensive energy, which benefits us ordinary people and not just fat cat gas CEOs. Brazil is geographically slightly larger than the United States (Latin America and Africa are both huger than they look on our maps, which use a projection that exaggerates the size of countries in the global North). Its population, of 213 million, makes it the seventh most populous country in the world, and its over $2.1 trillion GDP ranks its economy 10th in the world. It is a country that matters, and its policies have caused wind and solar to grow by leaps and bounds. Brazils past governments invested heavily in hydro-electric power, which had been dominant until recently, but has fallen to 48% of electricity generation this summer because of a severe 18-month drought. Because of the rapid installation of wind and solar, however, clean energy was able to take up the slack and Brazil avoided having to turn to dirty fossil fuels. Never miss an issue of Informed Comment: Click here to subscribe to our email newsletter! Social media will pretend let you subscribe but then use algorithms to suppress the postings and show you their ads instead. And please, if you see an essay you like, paste it into an email and share with friends. In 2019, wind and solar had accounted for only 12 percent of the countrys power generation, but that percentage doubled in five years to 24% in 2024. Now it has made another huge leap just in the first half of this year. Brazil is on track to be the only country to fulfill the pledge made at the 2023 COP28 in Dubai to triple its use of sustainable energy over 5 years. Solar in particular has skyrocketed, from only 1% of the grid in 2019 to nearly 10% last year, with a further increment in 2025. As in Australia, this incredible growth in solar came in the form of rooftop panels for homes and businesses, called distributed solar, rather than from big utility-scale projects of corporate solar farms. This rapid development came about because of a 2012 law implementing net metering, so that homeowners with solar panels can get reimbursed for electricity they dont use themselves but send out on the national grid. Photo of Ipanema by Antonio Pires on Unsplash In fact, Brazils distributed solar growth has been so fast and uncontrolled that it is creating problems for the national grid, including brown-outs. Solar use in homes has a rhythm there is a crunch, for instance, in the late afternoon and early evening when the sun is dimming but workers get home and increase their electricity use. The grid suddenly loses a big input and can become unstable. California has solved this problem with battery storage. Brazil has very little utility-scale battery storage capacity at the moment but has some 18 gigawatts in the pipeline. An overnight Russian attack left parts of Ukraine's southern Odesa region without power early Saturday, the latest strike to target Ukraine's energy system ahead of winter, authorities said. Authorities did not say how many people the latest power cut affected, but Ukrainian energy firm DTEK reported outages in parts of the region's capital. DTEK later said it had restored power to over 240,000 households in the region. "Last night, the enemy attacked energy and civilian infrastructure in the Odesa region," regional governor Oleg Kiper said on Telegram. "Power engineers are making every effort to fully restore power supply," he added. Moscow has targeted Ukraine's energy grid each winter since it invaded in 2022, cutting power and heating to millions of households and disrupting water supply in what Kyiv says is a brazen war crime. Russia denies targeting civilians and says Ukraine uses the energy sites to power its military sector. Kyiv says the strikes are primarily aimed against civilians. Saturday's outages come a day after a large-scale Russian strike cut electricity to large parts of the capital Kyiv and nine other regions. DTEK said early Saturday it had restored power to over 800,000 households in the capital following that attack. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky described Friday's Russian strikes as a "record for villainy" and called for Western countries to increase sanctions on Moscow. The State Institution V.P. Filatov Institute of Eye Diseases and Tissue Therapy of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, the Odesa Regional Development Agency, the company CheckEye, and MedCapitalGroup have signed a memorandum of cooperation in developing preventive medicine and implementing innovative technologies in healthcare. As the Filatov Institute told Interfax-Ukraine, the partnership aims to create a modern model for the early detection of diabetes-related complications, particularly diabetic retinopathy, one of the most serious causes of vision loss. The memorandum outlines several key areas of joint work, including the introduction of large-scale AI-based diabetic retinopathy screening systems, training programs for physicians, informational and scientific outreach campaigns in Odesa communities, and promoting preventive medicine among the general population. Special attention during the discussions was devoted to expanding international cooperation. The Filatov Institute already has significant experience partnering with leading global medical institutions. In particular, in 2025 it signed an agreement with the Oftacentro SA clinic (Lugano, Switzerland) to conduct joint research on the early detection of diabetic retinopathy, with the participation of the CheckEye startup. "The signing of this memorandum marks an important step in developing a preventive healthcare system in the Odesa region. Combining the scientific potential of the Filatov Institute, the technological solutions of CheckEye, the expertise of MedCapitalGroup, and the project support of the Regional Development Agency creates a strong foundation for improving healthcare quality, advancing early diagnosis, and enhancing public health," the institute emphasized. The initiative is being implemented with the institutional support of the Swiss-Ukrainian project Ukraines Cohesion and Regional Development (UCORD), carried out with the support of Switzerland through the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by NIRAS Sweden AB. China urges foreign politicians to stop supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist activities Xinhua) 09:23, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China on Friday urged foreign politicians visiting Taiwan to immediately stop interfering in China's internal affairs and to refrain from supporting "Taiwan independence" separatist activities. In response to Taiwan leader Lai Ching-te's "Taiwan independence" separatist remarks, Guo Jiakun, a spokesperson for the Chinese foreign ministry, said China consistently and resolutely opposes any form of official engagement between the Taiwan region and countries having diplomatic relations with China. Whether their erroneous words and actions are motivated by selfish interests or the sinister plot of "using Taiwan to contain China," those politicians miscalculate and will surely be doomed to failure as China's complete reunification is an irreversible trend, the spokesperson said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The Cabinet of Ministers has proposed to the Verkhovna Rada an update to the list of languages to which the support and special protection regime provided for by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages applies. According to Taras Melnychuk, the Cabinet of Ministers representative in the Verkhovna Rada, the relevant decision was made at a government meeting on Friday. In particular, the draft law "On Amendments to Certain Laws of Ukraine in Connection with the Update of the Official Translation of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages" was approved. The draft law proposes aligning the title and provisions of the laws "On the Ratification of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages," "On National Minorities (Communities) of Ukraine," and "On Media" with the updated official translation of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, carried out by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine in January 2024. The draft law also proposes updating the list of languages to which the support and special protection regime provided by the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages applies. Additionally, the draft law intends to establish that the provisions of the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages will apply to the following languages in Ukraine: Belarusian, Bulgarian, Gagauz, Crimean Tatar, Modern Greek, German, Polish, Romanian, Slovak, Hungarian, Czech, and Hebrew. Thus, Russian and Moldovan would be excluded from the list, and Hebrew would be replaced with Czech. The UK Secretary of State for Defense and the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine have signed a statement on the LYRA program a partnership in the field of battlefield technologies. As Minister of Defense of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal reported, the statement was signed on the sidelines of the International Defense Industries Forum (DFNC3). "The document outlines the parties intention to collaborate on developing and scaling defense technologies. Specifically, our countries have agreed to establish a working group to coordinate joint projects within the LYRA program framework," Shmyhal wrote in a Telegram post on Saturday. LYRA aims to bolster the defense capabilities of both countries by uniting Ukrainian and British defense, industrial, and scientific resources. This collaboration will facilitate the joint development, modernization, and increased production of essential weapons systems. Additionally, Shmyhal noted that a draft agreement was signed on the joint production of artillery with the United Kingdom. By Grainne Ni Aodha, PA Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said he is deeply sorry for how Fianna Fail candidate Jim Gavin had fared during the presidential race. The Fianna Fail leader said he had not spoken to the partys former presidential contender but said he was in touch with friends of Mr Gavin. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender last Sunday after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. Ive been speaking to people close to Jim, he said. I think Jim is obviously having time with himself and his family, and I think that should be respected, and I think its been very traumatic for him and very difficult for him and for his family, and Im very conscious and aware of that. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin attended a grassroots event in Dublin (Niall Carson/PA) I have been talking to close friends of Jim. He said he is glad to see that that has been resolved in relation to Mr Gavin reportedly repaying his former tenant 3,300. I think the tenant is also a victim in all of this, he said. I listened to the podcast (the tenant spoke on) and I think he spoke frankly and candidly and in a very reasonable manner. So Im glad that that has been resolved. He made the comments at the annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how presidential candidate Mr Gavin fared. Addressing the event, he said he was deeply sorry for how things turned out, and acknowledged the disappointment within the party. Clearly we need to have a new procedure for deciding when we run a candidate for president and who that candidate is to be, he said. I for one support the idea that we move to a process which is in tune with the wider reforms which we have introduced in the past. Tonight, we think of Jim Gavin and his family, who have gone through a very traumatic time, he added, which drew applause from the room. Jim Gavin has made a very significant contribution to our country as UN peacekeeper, public servant and in his impactful work in the North East inner city of Dublin, where he is hugely respected. This needs to be said. Speaking to the media before his address, Mr Martin also explained his decision not to direct party members to vote a certain way, stating it would represent a certain degree of arrogance if he did. He said he would vote for Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys, as its important that the president of Ireland is one who can get on with other countries, but said he would not campaign for her. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys cuts a cake at half-time during a visit to a game in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Earlier, Ms Humphreys thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her. Presidential candidate Catherine Connolly said on Saturday that Mr Martin was entitled to back Ms Humphreys and said: I think he probably has actually clarified the situation that for the leadership of Fianna Fail there is very little difference between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, so the people of Ireland have a clear choice to make now. Mr Gavins withdrawal has left just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks. On Saturday, Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. I need all the votes I can get, there's no question about that Heather Humphreys Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. She said: We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys meets Ruth Ryan, aged four, holding her teddy Bruno, during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary (Niall Carson/PA) After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote, they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach, Micheal Martin, for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. THE life and legacy of renowned uilleann piper Liam OFlynn was immortalised in stone in his hometown of Kill, County Kildare, with the unveiling of a commemorative sculpture Liam OFlynn Piobaire in his honour. The unveiling ceremony took place on Friday 3 October in Kill, where former president Dr Mary Mc Aleese delivered a poignant keynote address, alongside guest speakers. Commemorative Sculpture committee, Gay McKeon, Lucina Russell, Padraic MacMathuna, Jane Flynn, Paddy Glacken, at the unveiling ceremony of the Commemorative Sculpture for Master Piper Liam OFlynn in his hometown of Kill, Friday Photos: Tony Keane Dr McAleese had a strong affiliation with Liam OFlynn, having commissioned him to write a piece of music for her 2004 presidential inauguration in Dublin Castle, which he titled An Droichead. Liam was also the musician of choice to accompany President McAleese at many State events during her Presidency. Poignantly, Colm Broderick who has been gifted Liam's uilleann pipes after his death played An Droichead, with the tune resounding across the Parish Park, to a backdrop of the unveiled artwork, framed by autumnal leaves. Liam's nephew, Olaf Vize spoke of a special lifelong bond and reflected on a childhood memory of 'sneaking a go' on Liam's pipes. Sean Byrne, Kevin Lawlor, from Kill, pictured with the Commemorative Sculpture for Master Piper Liam OFlynn in his hometown of Kill Storm Amy did not deter a large crowd from attending the event, with attendees from Feile Liam O'Flynn, the musical community and the wider public. Many of those attending remembered being taught by Liam's parents in the Old School House, where fittingly refreshments were served and pipers gathered to perform some of Liam's tunes. Part of the large crowd braving the elements of Storm Amy at the unveiling ceremony Following an open competition in 2024, a committee of five, which included three of Liams musical friends, Padraic Mac Mathuna, Paddy Glackin and Gay Mc Keon, Lucina Russell and Liam's wife, Jane, selected a design by sculptor Simon Carman. Simon is a highly regarded artist his notable works include a stunning sculpture at the National Stud of Irelands famous thoroughbred stallion, Invincible Spirit, as well as many other pieces. Piper Colm Broderick who was gifted with Liam's uilleann pipes after his death played An Droichead at the unveiling ceremony of the Commemorative Sculpture for Master Piper Liam OFlynn in his hometown of Kill, Friday On the commission award, Simon said: It has been a profoundly uplifting experience and a privilege to be a part of honouring the legacy of Liam and his art. I feel without knowing him, I got to know Liam. He was always somehow present, a helping hand throughout the process. Liam OFlynn Piobaire is a representation of Liams hands playing the uilleann pipes, carved in limestone supplied by McKeon Stone, Stradbally, which will also feature musical notation from An Droichead. Laura Sheehan, Grace Clancy-Hynan, Lesley Ann Cleary at the unveiling ceremony Jane said: Liam was a modest man who would have been uncomfortable with a figurative artwork. When the committee saw Simons proposal, which focused in on the masters hands playing the pipes, we felt that it captured the essence of the man and the music. This commission presents a great opportunity for the legacy of Liam's music to live on. The unveiling is a welcome addition to the Feile Liam OFlynn, which has been building momentum since its foundation in 2021. The commission was supported by the Feile and grant aided by Kildare County Council with the support from Naas Municipal District, Na Piobairi Uilleann and private sponsorship. Minister for Transport Darragh O'Brien has announced 10 million investment in sites for 90 new recharging hubs to service the expanding electric vehicle (EV) fleet across Ireland's national road network. However, just one of those recharging points will be in County Kilkenny - at Callan Co-Op. TAP HERE FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS According to the Department, these new sites will deliver 192 new fast recharging points, with an average capacity of typically 250kW, at 90 locations along the national primary and secondary road network. The announcement is part of a wider plan to build a reliable recharging network across the country, with the distance between recharging hubs envisaged as 30km or less. The recharging hubs are funded through the Light Duty Vehicle (LDV) initiative operated by Zero Emission Vehicles Ireland (ZEVI) and delivered by Transport Infrastructure Ireland (TII). This phase of the initiative focused on over 2,900km of primary and secondary roads. Enterprises such as petrol/service station operators, car park owners, hotels, supermarkets/retail outlets, and others with publicly accessible sites, could apply through a competitive grant process for funding. Minister OBrien said: Todays announcement marks the final major phase of our Light Duty Vehicle initiative, following the earlier Phase 1 and Phase 2 schemes, and completes this series of investments in our national EV charging network. Together, these schemes aim to ensure that drivers across Ireland will have reliable access to high-powered charging, making the transition to electric practical and convenient. Importantly, this investment will also bring high-quality, high-powered EV charging to more rural locations, helping to promote local economies support tourism, and strengthen regional development. Minister of State with responsibility for International and Road Transport, Logistics, Rail and Ports, Sean Canney, said: I am delighted to see the rollout of these EV recharging hubs right across regional and rural Ireland. Achieving our climate action plan targets will only be possible if drivers know they can charge conveniently and reliably, and todays announcement is another significant step towards achieving that. This investment marks an important step in giving people the assurance that switching to electric is not only the right choice for the environment, but also a practical one for their daily journeys. Lorcan OConnor, CEO of TII, said: TII is pleased to drive the delivery of this final phase of the EV recharging infrastructure identified in the ZEVI National Road Network Plan. The scheme will make the most significant contribution so far towards the vision of providing a fully expansive EV recharging infrastructure network across all National Roads. This network will connect regional and urban communities, enhancing user confidence in Electric Vehicles and further support the Avoid-Shift-Improve framework of the Climate Action Plan and the electrification of Irelands car fleet. The final delivery of the LDV phase 3 EV recharging infrastructure, when combined with the previous LDV phases 1 and 2, will be a major step in helping to reduce range anxiety. Kilkenny groups marched together through Kilkenny City last week as part of emergency protests across the country, after news came through that the Gaza food aid flotilla was attacked by Israeli forces. Banners on the march included Labour, Sinn Fein and SIPTU, along with Irish and Palestinian flags. Around 100 people gathered at very short notice outside James Stephens Barracks, with placards calling for an end to genocide, and supporting the peacekeeping role of the Irish Defence Force. The marchers called on the international community to Get the Food in, to impose sanctions, and to use every means to secure the release of 22 Irish citizens of all ages seized illegally by the IDF from the flotilla along with all other prisoners. They marched past County Hall in strong winds and rain and on to the Parade, to applause from onlookers. TAP HERE FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS Throughout Wednesday and later in the week, the small boats of the aid flotilla, carrying aid including baby foods and basic medication, were attacked with explosives and flares and on Wednesday and Thursday were boarded by heavily-armed Israeli Defence Force (IDF) militants. The boats, sailing within international law, in open water at the time and were being tracked online by thousands of supporters. Out of 44 small boats carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, by last Thursday evening only one remained free to push onwards towards the coast of Gaza. Some of the crews were held in Israeli jails for lenthy periods, with many describing inhumane conditions and treatment. Cllr Sean OHargain, (Labour), MEP Kathleen Funchion (Sinn Fein), and Katharine Larkin (Kilkenny Community Palestine Solidarity Group) spoke on the need for urgent action by Government and the EU to block arms exports to Israel, and condemned all attacks on civilians. The gathering ended with a moving rendition of the Lonely Boatman on tin whistle, in tribute to the last small boats of the flotilla that were sailing towards Gaza. Organisers say all are welcome to join the weekly vigil supported by Kilkenny Community Palestine Solidarity Group at the Parade from 5.30pm to 6pm. Kilkenny based Senator Patricia Stephenson has criticised Government decision-making on Budget 2026, focusing on lack of supports for disabled people and families while also highlighting the hospitality VAT cut which will increase profits for large fast-food corporations. The Social Democrats senator labelled the announcements as a Budget for developers and fast-food chains at the expense of families, carers and the disabled. This Budget is a step backwards for disabled people. We are hearing from disability rights organisations that disabled people may see their income cut by up to 1,400, she said. For disabled people, this Budget is another blow. Supports have been quietly stripped back, and theres still no increase in wage subsidies for disabled workers. For families that are already stretched to the limit, its a Budget of broken promises including the cap on childcare which remains a huge burden for many. In particular, for women who are having to remain at home and not work because of lack of childcare provision or exorbitant costs, she added. SEE ALSO: Kilkenny presenter to take over as Liveline host A central point of frustration in the new Budget was the cutting of VAT for restaurants and apartment developers with Labour TD Ged Nash referring to it as a Budget for burger barons and big builders. Senator Stephenson concluded by contrasting this tax cut to the growing numbers being affected by the housing and cost of living crises. Right now, we have 200,000 children living in poverty and more than 5,000 are homeless. But instead of tackling that crisis, the government has chosen to prioritise corporate developers and multinational food-chains. Its hard to imagine clearer evidence of where their priorities lie, she asserted. This Budget could have targeted support at our vitally important local cafes, which are critical in rural communities and not the blanket measures included which will put money in the hands of multinational fast-food chains. The Social Democrats believe a fair Budget should make life better for those who need help most, not help developers get richer. This Government had a chance to show vision and compassion. Instead, it has chosen the status quo. TAP HERE FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS UK, Germany and France aim for progress in using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraines army The leaders of the United Kingdom, Germany and France have announced their intention to increase pressure on Russia, in particular to achieve progress in using the value of the frozen Russian state assets to support the Ukrainian armed forces. "We will increase pressure on Russia as President Putin continues his stalling tactics and abhorrent attacks in response to peace talks. To that end, we are ready to progress towards using, in a coordinated way, the value of the immobilised Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraines armed forces and thus bring Russia to the negotiation table," the statement notes. We aim to do this in close cooperation with the United States of America," the leaders say. The statement also said that increased pressure on Russia would include measures against Russias "shadow fleet." The leaders condemned Russias attacks, its targeted attacks on Ukraines critical national infrastructure, on which the population depends for light and warmth during the winter. The United Kingdom, Germany and France will remain steadfast in their support for Ukraine, including within the framework of the "Coalition of the Willing," the statement said. Aidan Hartes first job within the art world was at Kilkenny animation studio Cartoon Saloon, where he worked alongside founders Tomm Moore and Paul Young. There, he created and directed his first animated television show Skunk Fu!, which first aired in 2007 and concluded little under a year later. READ NEXT: The Irish Shawshank: True story of the daring escape from Kilkenny Jail Aidan then went on to study classical sculpture at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy. The type of sculptures I wanted to create were realistic, figurative work, and they dont really teach that in Ireland, says Aidan. In Florence, they taught us 19th Century techniques. It was very rigorous; there was a lot of life drawing and we studied anatomy, how to sculpt the body from the bones up. We didnt cast or sculpt anything; it was all about the learning. Aidan describes the teachers in Florence as hardcore. READ NEXT: Inexcusable behaviour from learner driver stopped by gardai in Kilkenny Theyre like samurais, says Aidan. A lot of art schools will encourage you to paint what you feel, but these guys are the opposite. Its make it correct or else. It was a great education! Aidan makes his sculptures from bronze, and uses a method called the lost-wax technique, which has been used in the creation of bronze artworks as far back as the Bronze Age. The first sculpture Aidan created was the Puca, commissioned by Clare County Council. Inspired by the Irish mythological shapeshifter, the Puca is a 2m tall statue, and depicts a human figure with the head of a horse. The Pucas form changes from county to county; in Clare, the Puca is believed to take the form of a horse, but Aidan wanted to introduce a human element to its design. The Pucas design was met with controversy; a parish priest in Clare condemned it as sinister. READ NEXT: Kilkenny business closure will be 'one less reason to go into town' Public art puts you in the public realm, so you have to take the slings and the arrows, says Aidan. I wasnt too anxious about it; the only worry I had was that it wouldnt get cast, but we eventually sorted it out and moved it ten miles down the road; an Irish solution to an Irish problem! The Puca is now happily ensconced in the Michael Cusack Centre in Carran, County Clare. Aidans latest piece is a bronze bust of former Sinn Fein leader Gerry Adams; the idea for the bust came to Aidan in the run-up to the anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement. Aidan got to work with Gerry during their initial sessions in Belfast. I took his measurements, got an impression of his physicality and personality in the room, and I worked that into the finished product from memory, says Aidan. READ NEXT: Popular Kilkenny venue and local musicians to be featured on television A portrait sculpture wouldnt be my main thing. I much prefer classical figures like the Minotaur. Theres always a big worry when sculpting a living person, especially such a well-known one. I spent a long time trying to get it right. Aidan believes that theres something special about a sculpture where the person has sat for it. Its not the same as an official photographic portrait, he says. The subject is sitting there for so long that they cant really put on their best face; they sink into their normal repose. TAP HERE FOR MORE LOCAL NEWS The Lions Spirit of Christmas Hamper Appeal was launched last week in the Newpark Hotel by Mayor John Coonan, Lions President Maurice Regan and special guest Brian Cody. Cathaoirleach Mary Hilda Cavanagh sent her full support and best wishes for the Hamper Appeal. George Candler was MC for the launch. At the launch, Mayor John Coonan extended a massive thank you to the Lions Club for their incredible work. The spirit of our community of looking out for our neighbours is something I have always cherished, and this appeal is a shining example of that spirit, he said. The Christmas season is a time of giving and I urge everyone to support this wonderful cause and annual tradition. Lions President Maurice Regan said it was a privilege to launch this years 2025 Spirit of Christmas Hamper Appeal, and he is delighted that it is again being undertaken in partnership with KCLR and the Kilkenny People. READ MORE - WHAT'S ON IN KILKENNY He added that the Spirit of Christmas builds on the success of the annual hamper appeal which has been run by Kilkenny Lions Club for the past 33 years. This, and other events, since 2002, have raised close to 1 million for local organisations. He remarked that 100% of the money collected is distributed to the charities as no administration or other costs are incurred. The proceeds have gone to assist many local organisations such as the St Vincent de Paul Society, Kilkenny Social Services, Church of Ireland, Good Shepherd Centre, Amber Womens Refuge Centre and many other organisations throughout the city and county. In total, Kilkenny Lions have supported well over 100 local community organisations over that period. The primary fundraising is through the auction and sale of goods or services donated by local businesses. The appeal is divided into two sections, a Farm Section and a General Section. The Kilkenny People newspaper publishes the General and Farm Auction lists with names of over 200 businesses over a three-week period prior to and during the auction. The goods or services are then auctioned by KCLR96FM on air and it is hoped over 25,000 will be raised. The General and Farm Auctions will take place this year in late November and early December. The farm auction will be on Thursday, November 27 and again on Thursday, December 4. The General auction will run from Tuesday, December 2 to Thursday, December 2. This event would not be the wonderful success that it has been over the years without the support and generosity of many hardworking people in our community. Kilkenny Lions would like to thank the many people who contribute unselfishly each year to making this a success: KCLR and Kilkenny People for their partnership over the years; Brian Cody for his unfailing support each year; The 200 or so local businesses, without whose generosity, the auction could not happen; The people of Kilkenny who donate so generously; Fellow members of the Lions Club who give hugely of their time each year. Mr Regan confirmed that the Schools Christmas concert will take place on Thursday, December 11. The annual street collection will take place on December 13. He concluded by thanking again everybody for their support of the Lions Xmas Appeal and is confident that it will be a tremendous success. Brian Cody congratulated the Lions Club for all their great work over the years and he was delighted and privileged to have been asked to launch the appeal with the Mayor and President of Kilkenny Lions Club. We owe a debt of gratitude to the volunteers in the Lions club and all the volunteers in our local organisations in the city and county, he said, highlighting the generosity of the people of Kilkenny who are never found wanting in helping the less well off. He also thanked the business community who every year donate a significant amount of items for the auction. He concluded by wishing Lions every success over the Christmas period. Columbia Mayor Barbara Buffaloe is proposing a student advisory council made up of representatives from local colleges amid downtown safety concerns. On Friday, Buffaloe posted a Facebook Reel announcing her plans for the council, which will include representatives from the University of Missouri, Stephens College, Columbia College and Moberly Area Community College. "I envision their focus would be on topics like safety, transportation, housing and workforce opportunities all things that impact both our students and our city," Buffaloe said in the Facebook post. "I'll be working with the administrations and student-body governments of these institutions to figure out how to select members." The conversation about safety task forces originated in late September, after Stephens College student Aiyanna Williams was struck by gunfire and killed in downtown Columbia. Williams' death sparked conversations and action from city leaders including Buffaloe, UM System President Mun Choi, Columbia Police Chief Jill Schlude and more. Friday's announcement varies from Buffaloe's previous statements about a downtown task force. The day after the shooting, Buffaloe mentioned her intentions to establish a safety task force in a Facebook post. Choi endorsed the task force the following day. "After more conversation with city staff, including the Columbia Police Department, council, downtown property owners, businesses, students and other stakeholders we've decided to use our existing boards and commissions to keep addressing those issues," Buffaloe said in Friday's Facebook post. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Error! There was an error processing your request. Earlier this week, The District, a collection of downtown Columbia businesses, proposed its own downtown safety patrol. According to KOMU 8 reporting, the unit would possibly have bikes and walkie-talkies for easier communication, and would use a tracking and reporting system to track crime data. MU student government announces safety initiatives The Missouri Students Association, MU's student government, said it will take part in Buffaloe's collegiate council to address various off-campus issues. In a news release on Friday, the association laid out its plan for student-led safety initiatives. "All students in Columbia deserve to feel safe in their community," the association said. "It is the responsibility of universities, local leaders, and law enforcement to act proactively in addressing these concerns. The association also laid out other action items including: Increasing awareness of its safe ride program "STRIPES." Engaging in conversations about gun violence through educational outreach. Reactivating the Safe Mizzou Coalition in spring 2026. Providing self-defense training classes in collaboration with the MU Police Department. The Russian Federation during a large-scale missile and drone attack on energy facilities on October 10 inflicted significant damage not only on Kyiv thermal power plants, but also on Ukrainian hydroelectric power plants (HPPs). Former Minister of Energy Olha Buslavets reported on her Facebook page on Friday evening. "This night, the CHPP, on which the electricity supply in Kyiv largely depends, and the Ukrhydroenergo HPPs suffered significant damage," she wrote. The former minister did not specify which HPPs were attacked by the enemy. According to her, this week the Russian Federation has intensified attacks not only on electricity transmission systems, but also on the generating capacities of thermal power plants, combined heat and power plants and hydroelectric power plants. In particular, several massive attacks were carried out on DTEK group TPPs during the week, as a result of which the equipment was seriously damaged. Gas transportation infrastructure facilities were also hit, which caused disruptions in the supply of gas and electricity in a number of regions. As reported, as a result of the Russian massive missile and drone attack on energy facilities on October 10, as of Friday morning, a significant number of consumers in Kyiv city, Kyiv, Donetsk, Dnipropetrovsk, Chernihiv, Cherkasy, Kharkiv, Sumy, Poltava and Odesa regions were cut off power supply. Emergency power outages were applied in some regions to stabilize the situation in the power system. Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup. Zelenskyy discusses with European leaders next steps on civilian protection, economic support, and defense assistance for Ukraine Photo: https://www.president.gov.ua/ President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky discussed with European leaders further steps to protect peoples lives, financial opportunities and defense support for Ukraine. "I had a conversation today with President of Finland Stubb. We discussed what our steps are now, what contacts can help protect lives and calm this terrorist in Moscow," he said in an evening video address on Friday. Stubb, as Zelenskyy notes, met with US President Donald Trump the day before. Zelenskyy also discussed with President of the European Central Bank Christine Lagarde financial opportunities to support Ukraine, in particular, the energy sector. In addition, the head of state discussed with the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Keir Starmer, "strong British support in these difficult circumstances." "We talked about the possible participation of Britain in the PURL program. This is a strong program that allows us to buy American weapons. This is very important. What protects. In particular, these are missiles for Patriot [systems]," the president noted. Zelenskyy also reported that he had informed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz about the consequences of the Russian strike. "I am very grateful to him, grateful to Germany for the air defense systems that are already working to protect Ukraine. We discussed with Mr. Chancellor Russias intentions, our joint ability to defend ourselves. I am grateful for the support of all partners who really help with actions, and not just with words," the president said. By Grainne Ni Aodha, PA Heather Humphreys has said she will not smear anyone but will ask hard questions of her fellow presidential candidate Catherine Connolly. Ms Humphreys also thanked Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin for saying he would vote for her though he said he would not be recommending to members how they should cast their vote. Mr Martins comments came ahead of an annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how the partys presidential candidate Jim Gavin fared. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys cuts a cake at half-time during a visit to a game at Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail. Photo: Niall Carson/PA. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 euros in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. This leaves just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks time. On Saturday, Fine Gaels candidate Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met with people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. I need all the votes I can get, There's no question about that Heather Humphreys She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 euros of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, Theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys meets Ruth Ryan, aged four, holding her teddy Bruno, during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary (Niall Carson/PA) After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach Micheal Martin for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. Kenneth Fox Former Fianna Fail presidential candidate Jim Gavin has repaid the 3,300 he owed to a former tenant. A source close to the former tenant, Niall Donald, confirmed Mr Gavin had repaid him the 3,300. As the Irish Examiner reports, Mr Gavin dramatically withdrew from the presidential race following claims he owed former tenant Mr Donald more than 3,000 for a rental arrangement that was not properly registered. Mr Donald co-host of the Crime World podcast with Nicola Tallant addressed the controversy on the show on Wednesday. In the podcast, released earlier on Wednesday, Mr Donald said it was a complicated story in one way, but simple in another," explaining he began renting the apartment with a friend in Smithfield, Dublin, in 2007, paying via a standing order. Mr Donald had very little dealings with Mr Gavin and was unaware of his sporting past. When his friend moved out, his partner moved into the apartment. Whatever way the standing orders were changed, I had two standing orders. There was an increase in the rent, and instead of changing my standing order, I just added another one. Mr Donald lived there until 2009, at which point as reported by the Irish Examiner the couple were expecting a baby. In 2010, Mr Donald engaged a solicitor to write a letter to Mr Gavin demanding the return of the money and threatening legal action. As he did not have Mr Gavins home address, he said he sent the letter to the apartment and to his then workplace: the Air Corps base in Baldonnel, Co Dublin. He said he also delivered a copy in an envelope, marked private and confidential, to Mr Gavins parents at their home and asked them to pass it on to their son. I said: Im really sorry to call to your house. Im a former tenant of Jims. Im just looking to get a letter to him. They were really, really nice, said Mr Donald. However, some hours later, after midnight, he received a call from Mr Gavin, who, he said, was really, really irate about Mr Donald calling to his parents home. President signs law on payments of UAH 50,000 to defenders released from captivity Defenders released from Russian captivity will receive monthly payments of UAH 50,000. According to the website of the Verkhovna Rada, the president signed a law on amendments to some laws of Ukraine regarding payments to servicemen released from captivity who have diseases that require long-term inpatient treatment. Prime Minister of Ukraine Yulia Svyrydenko thanked the MPs and the president in a message on Telegram, noting that monetary support will be provided during the first three months of rehabilitation. "Previously, such payments were received only by those who suffered injuries, contusions or mutilations. However, many servicemen after captivity also have serious illnesses that require long-term treatment," she explained. As reported, draft law No. 13627 on amendments to certain laws on payments to servicemen released from captivity who have illnesses that require long-term inpatient treatment was registered in the Verkhovna Rada on August 14. Patricia (Patsy) Prior (nee Gregg), Crow Lane, Portarlington, Laois and formerly Cahir, Co Tipperary, died peacefully on 10 October, surrounded by her loving family, while in the excellent care of the management and staff of Oakdale Nursing Home, Portarlington. Predeceased by her parents Patrick and Eileen, sisters Helen and Dolores and brother-in-law Michael. Deeply regretted by her loving husband John, daughter Jennifer and her partner Niall, son Jonathan and his partner Karen, her brother Frank, brothers-in-law Tom, Hugh and Frank, sisters-in-law Aine and Stephanie and her nieces, nephew, extended family neighbours and friends. May she rest in peace. Reposing at Mahers Chapel of Rest, Portarlington (R32 X5XV) on Saturday evening from 5pm, with Rosary at 7pm. Removal on Sunday morning at 11.30am, arriving at St Michael's Church, Portarlington for Requiem Mass at 12.15pm. Funeral afterwards to St Michael's Cemetery, Portarlington. Family flowers only please. Donations, if desired, to the Irish Kidney Association. House private, please. Patsy's Requiem Mass will be streamed live on https://www.mcn.live/Cameras/st-michaels-church-portarlington. You can leave your condolences on the online condolence book on RIP.ie. The family would like to thank you for your support and understanding at this sad and difficult time. Alison ORiordan A woman who is accused of murdering two men asked about taking a boat out on Lough Sheelin - where the deceased's bodies were eventually found - the day before the men were last seen alive, a witness has told the Central Criminal Court. The trial also heard on Friday that the accused Ruth Lawrence later borrowed an electric engine from her landlord, having told him that her boyfriend, South African national Neville van der Westhuizen, had a bad back and "wouldn't be able for much rowing". Ms Lawrence (45), who is originally from Clontarf in Dublin but with an address at Patricks Cottage, Ross, Mountnugent in Co Meath has pleaded not guilty to murdering Anthony Keegan (33) and Eoin O'Connor (32) at an unknown location within the State on a date between April 22nd 2014 and May 26, 2014, both dates inclusive. Auctioneer Geraldine O'Reilly told Michael O'Higgins SC, prosecuting, she received instructions from the owner of Patricks Cottage in December 2013 to put the property on the rental market. Ms O'Reilly said the accused Ms Lawrence signed a lease and the tenancy commenced on December 19th 2013. Declan McCabe said he is the owner and landlord of Patricks Cottage, which is on the shore of Lough Sheelin in Co Cavan. Mr McCabe, who is a boat builder, said he had picked up rent from his tenant Ms Lawrence on April 21st 2014 when she inquired about going out on the lake as the weather was good. "She wanted to know where she would get a boat. I told her where the boat was at the back of Sheelin Cottage on the lake. She was inquiring about something with a cabin and I said all I had was a lakeboat," said Mr McCabe. The witness said he told Ms Lawrence that another person living on the lake might have a cabin boat. "Maybe she wanted some shelter but no reason was given," he added. Mr McCabe said he told the accused he had oars but she had inquired about an engine. He said he could get a lend of an electric engine for her. The witness went on to say he had suggested a boat with oars but the accused told him that her boyfriend Mr van der Westhuizen had a bad back and wouldn't be able for much rowing. Mr McCabe said Ms Lawrence and her boyfriend Neville arrived in a van to pick up the engine two days later on April 23. He said Neville had got out of the vehicle and gestured "oh my back". The witness said he showed them how to clip the engine and told them to bring it back when they were finished with it as it didn't belong to him. Neville put the engine into the back of the van. He said there was no panic and everything was calm and relaxed. Around noon the next day, he said the couple returned the engine and Ms Lawrence told him: "we didn't really go out so thanks anyways". Mr McCabe agreed that he subsequently checked the state of the engine's battery and it was green. He said this meant there was very little battery used, if any at all. When Mr McCabe accompanied gardai to Patricks Cottage on April 29 he saw it had been abandoned and there was no sign of life. The house was untidy and the couple's three dogs were gone, he told the court. The prosecutor said in his opening address that the last contact on Mr O'Connor and Mr Keegan's mobile phones was on the night of April 22, 2014 and a missing persons investigation began that week as Mr O'Connor's family became very concerned about the two men. Earlier, Anthony Roche, whose sister was the partner of Eoin O'Connor, said Mr O'Connor called to his house in Bailieborough in Co Cavan on April 21 2014. Mr Roche said Mr O'Connor told him he was going to Cavan to "collect a few quid" from "a black fella" and "another fella whose daughter had a red Nissan Micra". Asked by the prosecutor why he was looking for money, the witness said "someone" owed Mr O'Connor money for cannabis. In his opening address, Mr O'Higgins, told the jury that the State would argue that Ms Lawrence shot drug dealer Mr O'Connor and worked "as a unit" with her boyfriend to kill him and another man, with their bodies later found "bound in rope, tape and covered in tarpaulin" by fishermen on Inchicup Island on May 26th 2014. Counsel for the State said the 12 jurors would hear evidence that the accused woman shot one of the two men but this was not immediately fatal and was "quickly followed up" by a shot from the defendant's boyfriend, Mr van der Westhuizen. The 12 jurors were also told by Mr O'Higgins it is the prosecution case that the accused woman and her boyfriend had "spoken openly" about "the murders and disposing of the bodies". The trial continues on Tuesday before Mr Justice Tony Hunt and a jury of four men and eight women. Unlike most other federal holidays, Costco will be open on Columbus Day 2025, which falls on Monday, Oct. 13. AP Costco is usually the one store to close for most federal holidays throughout the year. That way, employees have the opportunity to relax at home and spend time with family and friends. But there are a few holidays where Costco remains open, including ones that may be celebrated with large community events rather than at-home parties among family. When it comes to Columbus Day, its not always clear to shoppers if they will be able to make a quick visit to Costco that day for any last-minute grocery runs or discount shopping hauls. Heres what you need to know about the warehouse chain before you head over there on Monday, Oct. 13. Is Costco open on Columbus Day 2025? Yes, Costco, like rival Walmart, will be open on Monday this year. Its warehouses will be open from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. for Executive Members and 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. for Gold Star and Business Members. While Costco doesnt have Columbus Day-specific deals, the chain has several members-only savings, including up to $500 off select appliances now through Oct. 22. Costco usually remains open on Columbus Day each year. However, the popular store does close for the following holidays: New Years Day Easter Sunday Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day If youre planning to visit Costco on Columbus Day for to shop in bulk or order a $1.50 hot dog lunch, you can find your local store here. Most stores will be open on Columbus Day, which falls on Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. Starbucks/Walmart/BJ's Wholesale Club/Macy's/ShopRite If you are looking to see what is open and what is closed on Columbus Day 2025, look no further. Weve rounded up a list of the major stores that are open and can tell you whats closed this year. Most stores should be open and ready for you to shop the latest Columbus Day deals. But if youre heading to the bank to stock up on funds to shop you might want to plan ahead in most cases, as all but two major banks are closed. Here is your ultimate guide to store hours on Columbus Day 2025. Most supermarkets will remain open with regular or reduced hours. Shoppers should ultimately check with their local supermarket for specific information on opening and closing hours, as it can vary by location. The following major supermarket chains in New Jersey are scheduled to be open on Columbus Day: Many stores are open for regular business hours to host Columbus Day sales in 2025. Note: Shoppers should check with their local store in the event that hours vary by location. All malls in New Jersey should be open, and some stores may offer sales. Most malls in New Jersey, 12 of which are part of the Simon Mall chain, will operate from 10 a.m. - 8 p.m. on Columbus Day. Other malls not part of the Simon Mall chain, such as American Dream, will keep its stores open from 11 a.m. - 9 p.m. The following malls in New Jersey will be open on Columbus Day: Walmart will be open on Columbus Day 2025, which falls on Oct. 13 this year. AP Walmart is one store that tends to remain open on most holidays. This is especially true when the chain has deals in honor of the day celebrated nationwide. But its not always clear for lesser celebrated holidays, like Columbus Day, if Walmart will be open for regular shopping. If youre hoping to visit Walmart on Columbus Day to take advantage of the holiday discounts, heres what you need to know. Is Walmart open on Columbus Day 2025? Yes, Walmart, like rival Costco, will be open on Columbus Day, which happens to be on Monday, Oct. 13 this year. Its stores will be open from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. as usual so you can snag deals on everything from holiday decorations to home furniture and groceries. While the markdowns wont be as good as they usually are for Black Friday, shoppers can take advantage of discounts on everything from TVs to Apple Airpods and furniture. These include mattresses from popular brands, like Sealy and Nectar. One of the standouts is this Serta mattress over $2,000 off. Walmart usually does not close for Columbus Day every year, but they do close for Thanksgiving and Christmas Day. And since we are about 47 days away from Thanksgiving, Walmart already has their holiday season hours available for people to view to prepare for their holiday shopping. That includes last-minute shopping hours on Christmas Eve from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. If you want to stop by Walmart on Columbus Day this year, you can find your local store here. Ellen Greenbergs death was ruled a suicide in 2011, but her family has always believed she met with foul play. In January 2011, Ellens fiance, Samuel Goldberg, called 911, claiming that hed found her lifeless body in their apartment when he returned from the gym. During the 911 call, Samuel theorized that Ellen had either stabbed herself or fell on a knife. Despite having 20 stab wounds, including ones to the back of her head and neck, law enforcement immediately treated Ellens death as a suicide. A medical examiner ruled her death a homicide at first, but changed the cause of death to suicide shortly thereafter. As a result of the decision, the investigation into Ellens death was essentially nonexistent. The apartment was quickly cleaned by a professional crime scene cleanup company, and Samuels uncle, prominent attorney Jim Schwartzman, was permitted to remove several items from the apartment, including Ellens computer. Ellens parents, Dr. Josh and Sandee Greenberg, hired private investigator Thomas Brennan Jr. to try to get answers themselves. In 2019, the Greenbergs filed two civil lawsuits, one against the Philadelphia Medical Examiners Office to change the ruling on her cause of death, and one against the City of Philadelphia and the former Chief Medical Examiner Sam Gulino, claiming that city officials covered up details of her death. Both lawsuits were settled in February 2025, and the Medical Examiners Office reopened the investigation into Ellens cause of death. Dr. Marlon Osbourne, the pathologist who conducted the original autopsy in 2011, reversed his opinion in February. It is my professional opinion Ellens manner of death should be designated as something other than suicide, Osbourne wrote in an affidavit. Ellen Greenberg. ABC News Josh and Sandee believe Ellen was murdered. In the new Hulu docuseries Death in Apartment 63: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg, Sandee revealed that she and Josh have absolutely no contact with Samuel, who has since gotten married and had children. I dont think about him, Sandee said. Samuel, who declined to participate in the Hulu docuseries, has never been a suspect. In a 2024 email to CNN, he said that he was bewildered when Ellen took her own life, noting that mental illness is very real and has many victims. Ellens cousin Debbie Schwab, who participated in the Hulu doc Death in Apartment 603, noted that Samuel never questioned whether Ellen died by suicide and even said that it wasnt helping Sandee to think something else happened. READ MORE: TV stars wife breaks silence on his sexual assault allegation: Disturbing As for how Ellen was allegedly killed, Josh thinks she was potentially strangled before she was stabbed, which would account for her lack of defensive wounds. The two wounds that were in Ellens back of her neck and in her chest, one of the medical examiners before she was dismissed said those were postmortem, he said during a February interview with Fox News Digital. Weve been looking at the knife wounds, we should be looking at strangulation. As part of Josh and Sandees lawsuit settlement, the Philadelphia Medical Examiners office agreed to an expeditious reexamination of Ellens case. The Medical Examiner is due to present their conclusion on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Death in Apartment 63: What Happened to Ellen Greenberg? is available to stream on Hulu. Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant has closed this Hershey location along with all its other sites. (Dan Gleiter | dgleiter@pennlive.com, file) Pennsylvania Attorney General Dave Sunday said that he and his team are tracking developments in the abrupt closing and bankruptcy of the popular brewpub Iron Hill Brewery. In a news release this week, Sunday advised consumers who have unused Iron Hill gift cards to dispute those charges and consider filing a complaint. For the time being, we are advising consumers to seek refunds from their credit card companies regarding gift card purchases, he said. Sunday urges consumers who have Iron Hill Brewery gift cards and/or rewards to submit a complaint to the Office of Attorney Generals Bureau of Consumer Protection at www.attorneygeneral.gov or to call 717-787-3391. In late September, Iron Hill announced via social media that it would be closing all of its locations. After many wonderful years serving our communities, all Iron Hill locations have closed, it said. It has been our pleasure to serve you, and we are deeply grateful for your support, friendship, and loyalty over the years. In October, Iron Hill filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which permits liquidation, unlike Chapter 11. Bankruptcy documents, as reported by the Philadelphia Inquirer, revealed that Iron Hill has $125,000 in its account but owes $20 million to creditors. Until recently, it operated 16 locations across five states, including one at the Lehigh Valley Mall. A member of the Grupo Coatlicue blows on a conch shell during a performance of a traditional Aztec dance, an agricultural prayer ceremony in motion, during an Indigenous Peoples' Day event, Oct. 14, 2024, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File) AP Indigenous Peoples Day has been recognized for decades in different forms and under a variety of names to celebrate Native Americans history and culture and to acknowledge the challenges they continue to face. In 2021, President Joe Biden issued the first-ever presidential proclamation of Indigenous Peoples Day. He said in a statement that the day is meant to honor Americas first inhabitants and the Tribal Nations that continue to thrive today. He last marked Indigenous Peoples Day in 2024. President Donald Trump made clear in April that he would not follow his predecessors practice of recognizing Indigenous Peoples Day alongside Columbus Day in October. He accused Democrats of denigrating the explorers legacy as he pressed his campaign to restore what he argues are traditional American icons. On Thursday, Trump issued a proclamation for Columbus Day but not Indigenous Peoples Day. In his first term, Trump recognized National Native American Heritage Month, which takes place in November. Native American people across the country will honor their centuries-long history of resilience with ceremonies, dances, rallies and more for Indigenous Peoples Day. We have partnered with the Indigenous-led news organization ICT to share many of these events with you here. Is Indigenous Peoples Day a federal holiday? Indigenous Peoples Day is typically observed on the second Monday in October, the same day as Columbus Day, a federal holiday established decades ago to recognize Columbus sighting in 1492 of what came to be known as the Americas. Although Indigenous Peoples Day is not a federal holiday, 17 states including Washington, South Dakota and Maine as well as Washington, D.C., have holidays honoring Native Americans, according to the Pew Research Center. Many of these state holidays are paired with Columbus Day or replace it altogether. Dozens of cities and school systems also observe Indigenous Peoples Day. Find your community: Events near you ICT, formerly Indian Country Today, is keeping a running list of Indigenous Peoples Day events happening from coast to coast. See some highlights here, and go to ICTs website for a more comprehensive list, plus additional details on events happening in your cities and states. EASTERN TIME GEORGIA: Bad River documentary screen and talkback, Atlanta. Monday. MARYLAND: Johns Hopkins annual powwow, Baltimore. Monday. MASSACHUSETTS: Indigenous Peoples Day Observance, Newburyport. Saturday. MICHIGAN: Indigenous Peoples Day 2025, Mt. Pleasant. Monday. NEW YORK: Indigenous Peoples Day NYC 2025, Randalls Island Park, New York. Sunday-Monday. NORTH CAROLINA: UNC Pembroke Indigenous Peoples Day, Pembroke. Monday. OHIO: Indigenous Peoples Day Convergence, Cincinnati. Friday-Monday. VIRGINIA: Richmond Indigenous Peoples Day, Richmond. Monday. WASHINGTON, DC: 33rd Annual Indigenous Peoples Day in DC, Meridian Hill Park. Monday. ___ CENTRAL TIME ILLINOIS: Indigenous Peoples Day Seed Collection, Mahomet. Monday. INDIANA: Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration, Indianapolis. Monday. IOWA: Indigenous Iowans Day, Urbandale. Saturday. KANSAS: Indigenous Peoples Day, Bonner Springs. Monday. MINNESOTA: Indigenous Peoples Day Mankato, Mankato. Thursday-Friday, Monday. MISSOURI: Indigenous Peoples Celebration, St. Louis. Saturday-Monday. NORTH DAKOTA: Indigenous Peoples Day Gathering, Minot. Monday. OKLAHOMA: Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow, Lawton. Saturday. SOUTH DAKOTA: Indigenous Peoples Day Parade, Sioux Falls. Monday. TEXAS: Indigenous Peoples Day at the Texas State Fair, Dallas. Monday. WISCONSIN: Indigenous Peoples Day Ho-Chunk Nation, La Crosse. Monday. ___ MOUNTAIN TIME ARIZONA: Indigenous Peoples Day 2025: Everybody Dance, Phoenix. Monday. COLORADO: Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration, Denver. Monday. MONTANA: Round Dance and Vendors Show, Billings. Saturday. NEW MEXICO: 3rd Annual Honoring Native Nations Powwow, Santa Fe. Monday. SOUTH DAKOTA: Remembering the Children Memorial Walk, Rapid City. Monday. UTAH: Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration, Millcreek. Monday. WYOMING: Wind River Buffalo Bash, Kinnear. Monday. ___ PACIFIC TIME CALIFORNIA: Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow and Market, Berkeley. Saturday. OREGON: Indigenous Peoples Day Paddle, Portland. Sunday. WASHINGTON: Indigenous Peoples Day Celebration, Seattle. Monday. ___ ALASKA TIME ALASKA: 42nd Annual Elders and Youth Conference, Anchorage. Sunday-Wednesday. In the morning, long-range drones of the SBU Special Operations Center A struck the Bashneft oil refinery, located in the city of Ufa (Republic of Bashkortostan, Russia), 1,400 kilometers from Ukraine, a source in the special service told Interfax-Ukraine. After the explosions on the Bashneft-UNPZ territory, firefighting equipment arrived, and a column of black smoke rose above the plant. According to preliminary information from the agencys interlocutor, a fire broke out in the area of the ELOU-AVT-6 crude oil processing unit after the SBUs drones struck the area. "This is the third deep strike by the SBU in Bashkortostan in the last month 1,400 kilometers from Ukraine. These strikes demonstrate that no location in the Russian Federation is safe. The SBU can reach any facilities in enemy territory that contribute to the war against Ukraine," an informed source in the SBU said. Ufa is one of the largest oil refining centers in the Russian Federation and supplies fuel and lubricants to the Russian armed forces. If you purchase a product through a link on our site, we may receive compensation. If youre looking to make a statement this season, Kate Spade Outlet has the ultimate fall bag and youre going to need to preorder it fast. The 454 Suede Small Shoulder Bag in Dark Merlot has been peeped over 5,100 times in the last 24 hours, outpacing even its larger counterpart in popularity. With a rich, wine-toned suede and sleek silhouette, its no wonder shoppers are rushing to preorder the style before it sells out. And right now, you can snag it for 54% off its original $349 price tag, plus an extra 10% off automatically applied at checkout. 454 Suede Small Shoulder Bag in Dark Merlot $349 NOW $143 Available for preorders at Kate Spade Outlet Preorder at Kate Spade Outlet The 454 Suede Small Shoulder Bag is a thoughtful nod to Kate Spades roots and its first store on Broome Street in New York City. Its silhouette is sleek yet not too structured, giving it an easy, throw-it-on-and-go vibe. Inside, theres just enough room for your everyday essentials phone, wallet and keys and even a snack or two. And as for texture, the suede shell feels luxe without being fussy, and the shoulder strap hits that sweet spot: long enough to wear comfortably, yet short enough to keep things polished. This deep, moody-hued Dark Merlot bag earns a spot in any fall wardrobe because it works across the board. On busy weekdays, it complements a blazer and wide-leg trousers without feeling too stiff or too casual. On weekends, you can throw it over a knit set or denim and a trench to instantly elevate your ensemble without trying too hard. Not to mention, with the sudden dips in temperature in New Jersey, a bag like this is a transitional styling gem for cooler conditions (give us all the midi skirts, tights, tall boots, turtlenecks and leggings combinations). With its final sale status and preorder-only availability, its clear this style wont be around for long. According to Kate Spade Outlet, its expected to ship on Oct. 17, so if you want to be one of the first to carry this trending piece, nows the time to add it to your cart. 7 more fall-coded carryalls to keep on your radar A strong coastal storm is expected to slam New Jersey and other parts of the East Coast on Sunday and Monday, bringing heavy rain, strong winds and threats of significant coastal flooding. National Weather Service A significant coastal storm is expected to impact the Lehigh Valley region Sunday through Monday, bringing potential high winds and pockets of heavy rain. The National Weather Service says residents should prepare for potentially disruptive weather conditions with sustained winds of 15 to25 mph and gusts up to 40 mph. The storm system will develop near the North Carolina coast and move northward, with the most intense period anticipated Sunday morning through Monday. Wind gusts could reach 30 to 40 mph in inland areas, with a heightened risk of power outages and tree damage. Precipitation forecasts indicate a widespread 1-2 inches of rain, with locally higher amounts possible near coastal regions. The National Weather Service has not issued specific high wind warnings or watches for Lehigh and Northampton counties at this time. However, residents should monitor local weather updates and be prepared for potential travel disruptions and outdoor activity limitations. Temperatures will remain mild, with highs in the mid-upper 60s and overnight lows in the mid-upper 50s. By Tuesday, the coastal storm is expected to weaken and move out to sea, with conditions gradually improving. The remainder of the week should see cooler temperatures and fair weather, with below-normal temperatures anticipated for Thursday and Friday. Long-term forecast suggests a return to more typical autumn conditions, with high pressure building into the region during the middle to end of next week. Generative AI was used to organize information for this roundup, based on data provided by Lehigh Valley media outlets and business promotion organizations. It was reviewed and edited by lehighvalleylive.com. Please allow ads as they help fund our trusted local news content. Kindly add us to your ad blocker whitelist. If you want further access to Ireland's best local journalism, consider contributing and/or subscribing to our free daily Newsletter . Support our mission and join our community now. Three men appeared in court accused of stealing tens of thousands of euro from Iarnrod Eireann. Ken Corcoran (52) of 1 Barrowvale, Graiguecullen, Carlow, faces 25 counts of theft from Iarnrod Eireann on dates between December 20, 2017 and September 16, 2019 amounting to a total of 69,031.52. Nigel Crosby (47) of 11 Nuenna Court, Freshford, Co Kilkenny, is accused of nine thefts from Iarnrod Eireann on dates between December 20, 2017 and September 13, 2019 amounting to 24,735.01. Eoin Shortt (49) of Sanders Grove Hill, Baltinglass, Co Wicklow, is accused of 16 counts of theft from Iarnrod Eireann between February 5, 2018 and September 16, 2019 amounting to 44,296.51. Mr Corcoran was the first of the accused to appear before a sitting of Portlaoise District Court. Garda Sergeant JJ Kirby said the DPP had directed prosecution on indictment. Judge Susan Fay was impressed by the file produced by gardai. I would like to commend whoever put this together, she said. She asked if there was an objection to bail and Sgt Kirby said there was not. Judge Fay adjourned the case back to Portlaoise District Court on November 17 for service of the book of evidence. A barrister for the accused requested legal aid which was granted to solicitor Elizabeth Cass of James Cody and Sons, Carlow. Mr Crosby appeared shortly after the first accused and he was remanded on bail to appear again on November 17 for service of a book of evidence. Mr Shortt was last to appear. He too was remanded on bail to appear again on November 17 for a book of evidence. Andrew Dunne BL requested legal aid and said the matter was going forward on indictment. Garda Sergeant JJ Kirby said while it was a serious matter he would have some reservations about legal aid. Judge Fay said this man has an income of 6,000 a month. She said there was no evidence that he couldnt afford his own defence and while she wasnt refusing legal aid, she said the matter would be deferred. I want a fully vouched statement of means before the court, she said. All three accused are due before Portlaoise District Court again on November 17. A number of recommendations were issued following an investigation into the death of an inmate at the Midlands Prison in Portlaoise. The 26 year-old man was found unresponsive in his cell in the Midlands Prison on July 17, 2023. He was pronounced dead at the Midlands Regional Hospital, Portlaoise a short time later. The man, referred to in the report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons as Mr L, had spoken to his sister earlier that day and she told inspectors that she had no cause for concern at the time and she expressed disbelief at what had happened. Mr L had moved to the cell two days earlier having moved from another landing. His cell mate said the pair had played on the Xbox after their lunch at 12 and then he remained in his cell when it was opened for recreation at 2.10pm. He told his cellmate said Mr L wanted to stay in the cell to make a phone call. An officer who was reopening cells for returning inmates at around 3.30pm noticed a cell call light flashing and found the inmate in an unresponsive state in the cell at 3.36pm. He raised the alarm and called for a Hoffman knife to cut a ligature, but another officer had difficulty unlocking a safety box to access the knife and the ligature was ripped free. Prison nursing staff and two doctors responded to the alarm at 3.38pm and one of the doctors examined the man and said he was gone at that stage. Despite this assessment, the prison medical staff continued to attempt to resuscitate Mr. L until ambulance personnel took over Mr. Ls care, the report notes. Mr. L was in the process of being moved from the prison landing to an ambulance, by a stretcher, when there was an electrical fault with the landing elevator. A national incident report form documented that at 16:24 an electrical switch tripped causing the elevator, which was carrying Mr. L and the paramedics, to stall, trapping the occupants inside. The delay is reported as lasting for approximately five minutes, the report stated. Officer F escorted Mr. L to hospital and she stated that they left the Midlands Prison at 16.35. Officer Fs account confirms that Mr. L received treatment upon his arrival at the Midlands Regional Hospital, Portlaoise, however he was pronounced dead a short time later at 16.48, according to the report. It noted that the officer who found the deceased in his cell had attended the cell some 38 minutes after the cell call button was first activated and that the light outside the cell had flashed before going solid red for a number of minutes before flashing again. This prompted inspectors to carry out a test on the cell call system. Based on the test, it would appear that Mr. Ls cell call button had been activated, then accepted in the Class Office but not attended to for more than half an hour until Officer B began unlocking cells, the report stated. Officer B was asked about the cell call activation relating to cell 14 on 17 July 2023. He stated that he was not aware that the cell call button had been activated as he was performing his other duties, which included involvement with the movement of prisoners. Officer B stated that the Control Room did not notify him that the cell call button had been activated and that he would never intentionally ignore an alarm, the report stated. Five recommendations were made in the report by the Office of the Inspector of Prisons. The report noted the importance of timely response to cell call activation had been highlighted after a prison death in Cork in 2021. It recommends that the IPS draw up a national Standard Operating Procedure regarding cell call notifications, including a national standard in relation to cell call response times. The IPS (Irish Prison Service) should also devise a system for monitoring compliance and regular testing of all associated equipment across the entire prison estate, it stated. It recommended that the IPS develop and implement a national service-wide Suicide Prevention Policy and Strategy. It also recommended a SOP (Standard Operating Procedure) on safely removing incapacitated persons from cells with limited space should be developed. It recommended that Prison Officers be reminded of their obligation to examine equipment in their area of responsibility and report any defects which could compromise good order, safe or secure custody or health and safety. This regular check should include verifying that the Hoffman knife safety box is accessible. Mr L was the fifth death of a prisoner from the Midlands Prison in 2023 and the twelfth death in IPS custody that year. The Office of the Inspector of Prisons has an information pamphlet for relatives and friends of someone who dies in the custody of a prison. Further information can be found on the OIP website at www.oip.ie Epilepsy Ireland has urged residents throughout County Kildare to understand the risks associated with one serious condition. Specifically, the organisation has appealed to people living with epilepsy and their families in Kildare to learn more about the "devastating aspect" of Sudden Unexpected Death in Epilepsy in Ireland (SUDEP). The organisation's call comes ahead of SUDEP Action Day 2025, which will take place this coming October 15. According to Epilepsy Ireland, SUDEP is confirmed when someone with epilepsy dies and no other cause of death can be found during the post-mortem. Many of those who die are often young and otherwise healthy. While the exact cause behind SUDEP is unknown, there are known factors that can increase a persons risk of SUDEP. This can include having frequent seizures, not taking medication as prescribed, and alcohol or substance abuse. READ NEXT: Eight tonnes of waste gathered in recycling event in one town Speaking on the importance of knowing about SUDEP, Epilepsy Ireland's advocacy and communications manager, Paddy McGeoghegan, said: "Knowledge is power and unfortunately, SUDEP is something that many people with epilepsy and their families and even healthcare professionals do not know enough about. "Unfortunately, in speaking with bereaved families, we often hear the devastating story that the first time they heard about SUDEP is when it is listed in their loved ones death certificate. "This must change; we owe it to the families whove lost loved ones and those whove been lost to ensure that SUDEP is no longer a hidden tragedy. "Awareness of the risk factors can save lives, as many of them are modifiable." He also said that throughout this month, Epilepsy Ireland will be sharing "educational resources, personal testimonies, and expert insights" in an attempt to help both the public and healthcare professionals better understand SUDEP and how to reduce risk. Mr McGeoghegan added: "I would particularly appeal to the estimated 1,951 people with epilepsy in Kildare and their family members to learn more by visiting our website, www.epilepsy.ie." READ NEXT: ALERT: Path / kerb works to taking place on Kildare border In addition, the organisation has also reiterated their calls for the government to develop a National Strategy to reduce SUDEP and epilepsy-related deaths in Ireland. Epilepsy Ireland explained that last year, research, which was supported by Epilepsy Ireland, confirmed the incidence of SUDEP in Ireland for the first time ever; an incidence of 1:1,400. This equates to the loss of 33 people per year. Speaking about the organisations calls for a national strategy, Mr McGeoghegan said: "Until now, most of the initiatives taken around SUDEP have been led by Epilepsy Ireland, often supported by the fundraising efforts of bereaved families. "We cannot continue to work in isolation on this issue and depend solely on the fundraising efforts of bereaved families to drive action on reducing SUDEP and epilepsy-related deaths in Ireland." He continued: "We now have the data, we know the scale of the issue; what we need is action. "Were asking for leadership and a coordinated response involving the various arms of the state to prevent future deaths." "We invite anyone affected by SUDEP or any epilepsy-related death to share their experience and help us drive this change and we would also make a direct appeal to local Oireachtas members to help us make this a reality," he concluded. READ NEXT: 22 people on trolleys at Kildare's main hospital The Ireland and Leinster rugby star Andrew Porter joined Kielty to promote his new autobiography Heart On My Sleeve in the latest episode of the Late Late Show. He featured in the star-studded line-up alongside Miriam Margolyes, Emma Doran, Rick Astley and more who joined host Patrick Kielty in the studio. In his autobiography, he wrote about his struggles following the death of his mother from cancer when he was just 12, and how he subsequently developed an eating disorder. Read next: 'One of a kind: Miriam Margolyes delights Late Late Show viewers with candid chat Andrew admitted to Kielty that Porter he cant remember when she was first diagnosed. However, he does remember family holidays to Brittas Bay which he has recently recreated with his family, bringing wife Elaine and son Max there. Speaking on the holiday he said: We were down there recently, we have a holiday home down there, and it was the first time we brought Max down. I always love bringing Elaine, my wife, down there as well because its such a special place, it holds such a special place in my heart because its that one place where I never felt anything else but happiness because I was always with my family. Its a special place to me to be able to bring our son, Max, and to bring my wife down there and to remake those memories. He opened up about the lasting impact his mothers death had on him. Speaking about her funeral, Porter explained: I carried that with me for years. Being only 12, I put a lot of pressure on myself at that moment. Everyone was paying their respects, saying goodbye, doing that grown-up thing. But I couldnt bring myself to walk up and see her like that because I didnt want to. Now, I try not to look back with regret. Im kinder to myself and use it as a way to move forward rather than dwell on the past. he added. Following her death, he explained that his mental health struggles took a serious toll, leading to him developing an eating disorder. Read next: Good news for consumers as major Irish retailer announces price cut for household staple During the interview, Patrick showed a photo of Porter from that time, and the Ireland and Leinster star admitted he barely recognizes himself in it. Andrew expressed this is because: It was everything Id been holding inside me for years, I was always a bigger kid, not unhealthy, but probably that, combined with the loss of my mother, was the catalyst. He explained how the huge changes in his life, along with the insecurities of being a teenager, manifested into an eating disorder. It wasnt just that I avoided certain foods, Porter explained. I stopped eating altogether for periods of time. My dad would do everything for me, hed make my school lunches and my dinner and everything like that. By the time I got to school, it felt like I was in control, he said. I honestly thought I was doing the right thing, trying to figure things out for myself which is incredibly hard when youre that young. As he revealed in his book, his struggles got to the point he was having suicidal ideations. He spoke on this period of his life as: I see the contrast in the person I was and the person I am now. It's tough to pinpoint an exact moment where I was just like, here, look, this needs to change. Porter credited him being able to overcome these struggles to the love and support he received from his family, saying: It was always my family, and it was always rugby, as well. My family loved rugby, and my dad always knew I wanted to play rugby from when I was a young boy up to now. He'd always bring it back to that. He was like, if you want to fulfill your dreams of becoming a rugby player, you need to be eating the right food. Andrew finished by saying: It was my dad and my two sisters at the time and my extended family. I could see exactly what I was doing to them. I didnt even realize my family were there the whole time and they just wanted the best for me all along. If you have been affected by the contents of this article, Samaritans can be contacted 24/7 on 116 123. FDI McDonalds Ukraine Ltd., which develops the McDonalds fast-food restaurant chain in Ukraine, opened a new establishment on October 10 in the village of Lypyny (62 Okruzhna Street), which is at the entrance to the city of Lutsk, the companys press service reports. This restaurant became the 115th in the chain and the seventh, implemented in partnership with the filling station. The opening is part of the chains development strategy along highways. The new restaurant is located on the Lutsk bypass and at the entrance to the city from the Rivne side, it was implemented in partnership with WOG, which is under construction and will soon open nearby. The restaurant, with an area of over 470 square meters, has 115 seats in the hall and another 134 on the terrace. McDonalds is the third establishment of the chain in Volyn region, thanks to which 60 jobs have been created. The first McDonalds establishment in Ukraine was opened on May 24, 1997 in Kyiv. Currently, 115 restaurants operate in Ukraine, another 15 restaurants are closed due to safety requirements. Heather Humphreys has said she will not smear anyone but will ask hard questions of her fellow presidential candidate Catherine Connolly. Ms Humphreys also thanked Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin for saying he would vote for her though he said he would not be recommending to members how they should cast their vote. Mr Martins comments came ahead of an annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how the partys presidential candidate Jim Gavin fared. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 euros in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. This leaves just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks time. On Saturday, Fine Gaels candidate Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met with people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 euros of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, Theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach Micheal Martin for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. Michael Moynihan Minister of State for Special Education and Inclusion, Orla Mulreid (Special Class Teacher) and Ken Mulligan (Principal) St Brigids National School, Ballysax, Co Kildare proudly marked a special milestone on October 9 with the official opening of its new special class for children with autism. The event was officiated by Minister of State for Special Education and Inclusion, Michael Moynihan TD, who was joined by Sean O Fearghail TD and Senator Fiona OLoughlin. The visitors were warmly welcomed by Principal Ken Mulligan, members of the teaching staff, and the dedicated special class team teacher Orla Mulreid and special needs assistants Darren Roche and Lisa Maguire. Families of pupils attending the new class were also in attendance to celebrate this important day for the school community. The class officially opened on September 1, 2025, following extensive preparation and refurbishment works completed over the summer months. The new facility includes a bright, welcoming classroom space along with sensory and quiet areas designed to support the individual needs of pupils. Speaking at the event, Principal Ken Mulligan said: We are incredibly proud to open this new class, which represents a significant step forward in making our school even more inclusive. Its a space where every child can thrive, learn, and be supported according to their individual needs. We are deeply grateful to the Department of Education, our local representatives, and our entire school community for their ongoing support. The opening of the special class reflects St Brigids NSs strong commitment to inclusion and ensuring that all children have access to a supportive and nurturing learning environment. Unionists should be wary of what supporting right-wing parties could do for Northern Irelands place in the UK, UUP leader Mike Nesbitt has said. He told party members that English nationalism was now a greater threat to Northern Irelands constitutional position than Irish nationalism. Mr Nesbitt gave an address to the UUP party conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Belfast on Saturday afternoon. He said that while unionists had looked over their shoulder at Irish nationalists as the biggest threat to Northern Irelands place in the UK, they had been knocked off the gold medal spot by English nationalism. He said: Last time I joined our team at Westminster I was struck by the number of MPs sporting lapel badges, not with the flag of the United Kingdom but the flag of St George. Since then, of course, waving the flag of England has become a campaign for many English people. Like Brexit, they see it as another campaign to take back control. Referring to a risk to block grants from Westminster, he said there was a real danger of supporting the sort of right-wing parties other unionists currently find so appealing. The Health Minister also said that people calling for a border poll should be careful what they wish for. He said Taoiseach Micheal Martin is not ready for a united Ireland and the DUPs full-throated support for Brexit had put the constitutional question back on the agenda. Referring to the 1994 rom-com Four Weddings And A Funeral, he criticised a united Ireland, calling it Four Ironies and a Paradox. He said one of the ironies was that the DUP was the organisation doing most to put the constitutional question back on the agenda through its full-throated support for Brexit. He said one of the people who understands that no one is ready for a border poll is Mr Martin, hence his focus on the Shared Island Fund rather than a referendum. He also referenced the economic crash, the Irish economys over-reliance on corporation tax revenues from pharmaceutical multinationals, and Irelands low spending on defence as reasons to be wary of Irish unity. In a united Ireland, he added, the Dail, the lower house of the Irish parliament, which currently has 174 members, would have maybe 60 new, additional TDs representing what was Northern Ireland. Around half of them could be unionist, or representing people who identify as British. So unionists could hold the balance of power in Leinster House, he said. Why would a proud Irish person want me, or Gavin Robinson or Jim Allister choosing their next Taoiseach? He said Brexit was destabilising, confusing and ultimately disappointing, and that one constitutional leap of faith was enough for a generation. Turning to domestic politics, he said that all mainstream parties have a reason to make Northern Ireland work, even republicans. He said: When was the last time you heard a leading republican politician describe this place as a failed, ungovernable statelet? Its a little difficult when you hold the positions of First Minister, finance minister, economy minister and minister for infrastructure, is it not? Plus, come a border poll, and youre voting in Dublin, or Galway or Limerick, whats attractive about being asked to adopt a failed, ungovernable statelet? A place you may never have visited. A place you barely know. A place apart. I say to those calling the loudest for a border poll careful what you wish for. Mr Nesbitt also paid tribute to David Trimble, former party leader and a key figure in the peace process, during his speech. Earlier this year, I joined Lady Daphne and the Trimble family at Westminster for the unveiling of a bust of Lord Trimble, which sits at the midpoint between the Houses of Commons and Lords, reflecting his time and influence in both Houses of Parliament, he said. It is a truly remarkable tribute to his brand of unionism that there are now busts of David Trimble in both the British and Irish parliaments. A tribute as fitting as the Nobel Peace Prize he was awarded jointly with John Hume. He added: Embracing diversity was his thing, uniting minds and people rather than fixating on borders and lines on maps. 1998 was much, much harder for David and yet he did it. This party did it and people are alive because of it. Photo: https://www.facebook.com/zelenskyy.official Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US President Donald Trump discussed Russias strikes on energy and opportunities to strengthen Ukrainian air defense, as well as agreements on this. "I appreciate his willingness to support us. We discussed opportunities to bolster our air defense, as well as concrete agreements that we are working on to ensure this. There are good options and solid ideas on how to truly strengthen us," Zelenskyy wrote following his conversation with Trump on Saturday. Zelenskyy said that in a conversation with the American leader he informed him about Russias strikes on Ukraines energy sector. "There needs to be readiness on the Russian side to engage in real diplomacythis can be achieved through strength. Thank you, Mr. President!" Zelenskyy summed up. The European Union will introduce a new Entry/Exit System (EES) from October 12, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine explains how it will operate. "The EU begins a phased launch of the digital Entry/Exit System at external borders, in particular with Poland, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania. The EES will apply to all third-country nationals, including Ukrainians, who cross the border of the Schengen area for a short-term stay [up to 90 days within a 180-day period]," the State Border Guard Service said in a Telegram message on Saturday. The system will automatically record the date, time and place of entry and exit, replacing stamps in passports. During the first entry, biometric data will be registered - a photo of the face and fingerprints. In the future, the control process will become faster thanks to electronic data verification. "We urge citizens to take these changes into account when planning their trips," the State Border Guard Service added. A LEAVING Cert student from St Josephs Street in Limerick, has become an overnight sensation after her Hamilton-inspired TikTok went viral. Zoe Coyle, a pupil of Colaiste Nano Nagle, has been making TikToks for a numner of years, but it was a video of her dressed as Alexander Hamilton, from the hit Broadway musical, that captured the internets attention. Im a big musical fan, but especially of Hamilton, said Zoe, when explaining her inspiration for the Tik Tok. READ MORE: Limerick St. Vincent de Paul fun run to support those who need it most I was sitting there with my beard on and I was looking for audio to make a video with. When I heard that audio it reminded me of the first time I ever heard it without context, thinking he (Hamilton) was sneaking away, but when I actually watched the musical, I saw that he actually wasnt sneaking out, she explained The Limerick teen decided to film herself lip-syncing to the emotional track Best of Wives and Best of Women, dressed as Alexander Hamilton, climbing out her window. I thought it would be funny to make a video on what I thought was happening, said Zoe. Never expected a late-night TikTok to go viral, the humorous twist on a serious moment in the show struck a chord online, and the video quickly went viral, racking up thousands of likes and shares. "Honestly I was going to take it down the next day, but then I couldnt because it had too many likes, I had to leave it up, said Zoe. The success of the video led to an invitation to New York for the premiere of the new Hamilton movie, where Zoe had the chance to meet the shows creator, Lin-Manuel Miranda. I met a lot of the cast and had a brief interaction with Lin, I introduced myself and shook his hand. I was starstruck, there were so many amazing people there, said Zoe. THIS OCTOBER, the Irish Chamber Orchestra (ICO) marks 30 years at the University of Limerick with a one-of-a-kind anniversary concert. They are performing on Saturday October 18 at University Concert Hall, for an evening of music with Micheal O Suilleabhains playful and witty Must Be More Crispy, featuring special guests Mel Mercier on percussion and Niall Vallely on concertina. For the very first time, ICO Youth joins forces with the orchestra and Henning Kraggerud to perform his Little Suite in Old Style, before sweeping concert goers into Piazzollas hauntingly beautiful Oblivion and Sam Perkins dazzling Inspirit. READ MORE: Drive to Survive a spooky vehicle run in Limerick for school fundraiser Since relocating to Limerick in 1995, ICO is recognized as Irelands most adventurous ensembles, touring the world, recording widely, and showcasing Irish creativity on the global stage. At the same time, they have stayed deeply rooted in their city, bringing music into schools and communities through free education programmes that place instruments, tuition, and inspiration directly into young hands. CEO of the Irish Chamber Orchestra, Gerry Keenan said Limerick is at the heart of everything we do. Its where our musicians work, and its where our belief that music is for everyone comes to life - in schools, on stage, and in the community. As we celebrate thirty years here, were excited not just to look back, but to look forward, sharing the joy of music with audiences and communities near and far, said Gerry. FINES totalling 300 were imposed on two individuals who were prosecuted following the discovery of a significant quantity of waste on the outskirts of Limerick city nearly 12 months ago. Limerick District Court was told the rubbish consisted of various items including awooden rowing boat, a number of mattresses, windows fitted with glass and frames, Bulmers cider packaging and a paint tin. A waste enforcement officer with the local authority gave evidence that the waste was found close to a local river on a cul-de-sac between Mungret and Clarina on January 29, 2025. He told Judge John King he visited the site after a complaint was received from a member of the public. The rubbish was examined and documentation linked to two individuals was discovered in a black plastic bag and a Dunnes Stores shopping bag. The judge was also informed that when a team from Limerick City and County Council went to remove the remainder of the rubbish the following day it was not there. "We don't know who collected it, It was gone," said the waste enforcement officer. READ NEXT: Plans for three wind farms will see 32 turbines to tower in Limerick skies Judge King was told after being linked to the rubbish, 150 fines were issued to both Anne Marie Stephenson and Adam Stephenson of Bourke Avenue, Lord Edward Street, Limerick under the Waste Management Act. The fines were not paid and the court heard that reminder letters were sent to each of the defendants in April and May of this year. Both were fined 150 and they were each ordered to pay 359 towards the local authority's legal costs. Anne Marie Stephenson and Adam Stephenson, who were not present in court, were given three months to pay. (Bloomberg) -- Patrick James, the little-known chief executive officer of bankrupt First Brands Group, is weighing stepping down as fallout from the auto-parts suppliers swift collapse reverberates across Wall Street. James is considering relinquishing his role as CEO, his spokesperson said in an emailed statement. He has always put the interests of First Brands Group ahead of his own and is evaluating his best path forward to help maximize value for its customers, suppliers, employees and lenders. The Financial Times earlier reported the comment from James spokesperson. The potential move, roughly two weeks after First Brands Chapter 11 filing, would intensify questions over how a growing list of financial firms missed red flags surrounding James and the company that he built through a series of aggressive debt-fueled acquisitions. As of First Brands Sept. 28 filing, its sprawling network of auto-parts factories and distribution centers was on the hook for over $10 billion to some of the biggest firms on Wall Street. One of its creditors has alleged that as much as $2.3 billion has simply vanished. The Justice Department is looking into the circumstances around the First Brands collapse, Bloomberg News reported this week. James maintained a low profile, with the few public records that mention him indicating he grew up in Malaysia before attending the College of Wooster in Ohio. After working at a mergers and acquisitions firm, James started buying local manufacturers in the auto industry through a network of holding companies and subsidiaries. A unit of Fortress Investment Group sued some of the companies in 2011, claiming they had obscured James controlling interest and that the companies share employees and management, do not have separate books and records, have the same address in Solon, Ohio, and are grossly undercapitalized. James and his businesses denied the accusations, but paid to settle the case and another that alleged fraud two years earlier. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Seoul [South Korea], : Samsung Biologics Co is accelerating its expansion in Japan, the world's third-largest pharmaceutical market. The South Korean company has signed contracts with half of Japan's top 10 pharmaceutical and biotech companies, rapidly strengthening its presence in the region, according to a report by Pulse, the English service of Maeil Business Newspaper Korea. "We have signed contracts with four of Japan's top 10 pharma companies and are in final talks with one more," the report quoted Samsung Biologics CEO John Rim at BioJapan 2025 held in Yokohama on Thursday. "BioJapan is a crucial event for us. To expand our client base from the global top 20 to the top 40 pharmaceutical companies, collaboration with Japanese firms is essential. That's why we established a Tokyo sales office and dispatched dedicated sales personnel," he added. Japan ranks third globally after the United States and Europe, with strong technological capabilities in antibody-drug conjugates and cell and gene therapies . Citing Research and Markets, Japan's contract development and manufacturing organisation market is projected to grow at an annual rate of 6.8 per cent from USD 12.3 billion in 2023 to USD 19.5 billion by 2030. "The demand for CDMO services in Japan is rising, and our potential partnerships with major Japanese pharmaceutical firms are expanding," the report quoted Rim. "We are focusing on antibodies and ADC projects while building trust through face-to-face meetings." "The company recently raised its annual revenue growth forecast from 20-25 per cent to 25-30 per cent, suggesting that this year's revenue could reach around 6 trillion won , up from 4.55 trillion won in 2024," the report said. Regarding possible expansion into the United States, Rim maintained a cautious stance amid tariff uncertainties. "We are continuously reviewing potential entry into the US market, and the likelihood is higher than it was two to three years ago," the report quoted Rim. "However, since labor and construction costs in the U.S. are more than 70 per cent higher than in Korea, we will make decisions after carefully assessing demand, tariffs, and process efficiency." Samsung Biologics' recently launched Plant 5 integrates automation and artificial intelligence technologies, reinforcing its smart factory infrastructure. (Bloomberg) -- Ukraines forces struck a crude oil processing unit at a Bashneft refinery in Ufa, Bashkortostan, with drones early Saturday, according to a person familiar with the matter. The giant complex, part of the Rosneft energy group, is located about 1,750 kilometers (1,090 miles) from Kyiv and about 1,200 km east of Moscow. It was the third strike this year at that location, according to the person, who wasnt authorized to speak publicly. Rosneft PJSCs Bashneft unit has three oil processing facilities in Ufa the Novoil, Ufimsky and Ufaneftekhim refineries with a total processing capacity of 23.5 million tons of oil per year, according to companys website. Its unclear which of the three refineries was hit. Bloomberg wasnt able to independently verify the attack and its impact, and Rosneft didnt immediately respond to a WhatsApp message seeking a comment outside of normal business hours. Social media posts showed smoke billowing from the area of the complex. Ufas airport suspended operations for a time on Saturday. Ukraine has stepped up attacks on the Russian oil industry and has already launched at least 28 attacks on Russian oil refineries since the start of August many of them far from the nations border. Russian fuel making has slumped as a result, increasing concerns about the availability of supplies. Saturdays strike followed recent Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities, including the electricity grid and gas infrastructure in the capital, Kyiv, southern Odesa and central cities of Dnipro and Poltava. Those strikes have caused significant power and water cuts for hundreds of thousands of Ukrainians. As of midday Saturday most of the supply chains have been restored, the Ukrainian Energy Ministry said on Telegram. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Liz Reid, the Google search boss, has a tough job. Shes going around trying to convince the public that artificial intelligence hasnt killed Googles golden goosethe search business that makes up more than half of parent-company Alphabets sales. At the same time, Googles lawyers are working to convince federal judges determining the companys fate that, in fact, AI poses a huge threat to its monopoly businesses. So which is it? I asked Reid as much during Fridays episode of the Bold Names" podcast. This is really an expansionary moment," she said. So both Google can grow very successfully, and other people can grow successfully." OK, but the conventional wisdom among many in Silicon Valley is that AI-powered chatbots and assistants will replace the need for search. Users will simply ask OpenAIs ChatGPT or xAIs Grok for answers to what they would have previously sought out using Google. Reid counters that the advent of AI chatbots is helping fuel users wanting more information. So whether they seek it out the old-fashioned way (by googling it) or new ways (by asking ChatGPT), the overall pie of people wanting to discover information is growing.That helps explain why the company says the number of search queries is up while, at the same time, its market share has eroded slightlyfalling below 90% this year, to levels not seen in roughly a decade, according to researcher Statcounter. One of the winners is Microsoft. It has moved quickly to integrate partner OpenAIs AI modelsbranded as Copilotinto its Bing search page. But with 3.98 % global market share, Bing, the No. 2 player behind Google, has little fizz. In other words, Microsoft isnt even Pepsi to Googles Coke. It is more like RC Cola. During one of Googles two landmark antitrust trials, Microsoft Chief Executive Satya Nadella suggested to a judge that more than just advances in AI were needed to overcome Googles search dominance, especially on mobile phones. The distribution advantage Google has today doesnt go away," he told a judge in 2023. In fact, if anything, I worry a lot thateven in spite of my enthusiasm that there is a new angle with AIthis vicious cycle that Im trapped in could even become even more vicious because the defaults get reinforced." Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that more than AI advances were needed to overcome Googles search dominance. His argument was backed up in a recent lawsuit by billionaire Elon Musk against Apple. The suit is over that companys special relationship with OpenAI that powers some AI chats on iPhones. Musks companies xAI and X are arguing the iPhone is crucial to help usher in competing AI chats. They argue the Apple-OpenAI relationship gives ChatGPT an unfair advantage, even if Musk is gambling that eventually AI chats will usurp Apples ecosystem. Both Nadellas and Musks positions highlight the importance of the mobile-phone userthe data theyre generatingfor the AI future. It was a point further underscored in emails between Apple executives that were made public as part of the Google litigation. The case showed the close relationship the two giants have around search. At one point, Apple was evaluating a potential acquisition of Bing. But executives held clear reservations. Not having mobile queries at scale is a huge liability for them since the most important search signal is engagement," one of Apples senior executives told another about Microsofts Bing. Apple didnt go through with a deal.In its defense, Google lawyers often noted that a top search query on Bing was Google." Ultimately, the judge ruled Googles search was an improper monopoly, but delivered remedies that fell short of what the Justice Department was seeking. In large part, that was because of the threat that so-called generative AI poses to search. The emergence of GenAI changed the course of this case," Judge Amit Mehta wrote in his Sept. 2 opinion.Now, in another antitrust case against Google, the tech giant is arguing AI is disrupting its ad business. This also has been found to be a monopoly by a different federal court, considering remedies of its own. Ahead of that recent bench trial in Alexandria, Va., Google lawyers argued in a filing that the ad industry was already seeing significant disruptions. Even at the liability stage a year ago, the Court heard about ad-tech products that are continuing to integrate artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities, including tools that facilitate ad purchasing across channels," the filing said. In the time since, the changes wrought by AI have only come faster." In its more than 20 years, Google has successfully adapted to changing technology. This included acquiring Android to put it directly into mobile computing. That bet helped place Googlealong with Appleas a gateway for users to the digital world through its app store. To combat AI, Google has rolled out what it calls AI Overviews. These use a custom Gemini-based model to give users a summary of search results along with links to explore the sources on the web. The tool already has more than two billion monthly users, according to the company. Google also has rolled out an AI Mode to directly compete against chatbots. And Alphabets financial results show things are still cooking at the Mountain View, Calif., company. Search revenue rose 12% in the second quarter from a year earlier, to a record $54.2 billion, the company reported in July. Still, data suggests users of AI Overviews arent clicking on links as much. Search boss Reid didnt seem fazed. Whether a person is searching deeply for information on sneakers to buy or asking an AI chat about shoes, the user still must click on a link to actually buy those new kicks. None of the AI [answers] substitute the need for the actual pair of shoes," Reid said. So youre still likely to click through even if youre doing research initially." And thats really Googles business: connecting buyers with sellers. Not search. Write to Tim Higgins at tim.higgins@wsj.com Hundreds of employees at B9 Beverages, the maker of the popular Bira 91 craft beer, have approached the company's board seeking change in the leadership, The Economic Times reported. As per the report, over 250 employees have approached the board and top investors including Japanese beverage company Kirin Holdings and Peak XV Partners. The employees have also sought the ouster of founder Ankur Jain from his management role. The demand, written in a petition, was also reportedly directed to the largest lender of B9 Beverages, Anicut Capital. It was sent shortly after a company townhall in September. A query from Livemint has not been answered yet by the company. Ankur Jain and his family held a 17.8% stake in Bira 91 as of June 2025, as per the report. Kirin Holdings is the largest stakeholder with a 20.1% share. Why do Bira 91 employees want leadership change? According to the ET report, the petition signed by the employees listed corporate governance failure, lack of transparency, delays in employee dues and salaries as their reason to request for the leadership change. B9 Beverages employees further alleged that cases filed by creditors were showing deteriorating financials, while the company had several pending payments to vendors, citing these reasons for their demand. As per a person in the know quoted by ET said almost all Bira 91 employees have backed this petition. Salaries halted, TDS not deposited Several employees cited by ET said that their salaries have not been credited to their accounts for six months, while there are also reimbursements pending since November 2024. As many as 50 employees alleged that B9 Beverages had not deposited their TDS for the past financial year, while the same for all employees have not been deposited this year. One of the employees said that the last PF contribution was made in March 2024. Trouble brewing for Bira 91? The salaries and reimbursements of 500 employees are pending, and amount to around 50 crore, another employee told the newspaper. There have also been multiple layoffs and exits. Also Read | Craft beer maker Bira in tax soup amid vendor payment and salary delays B9 Beverages currently has 260 employees, down from 700 last year, the report mentioned. Ankur Jain, acknowledging the salary payment allegation, said, It is true that we have employee overdue that have been persisting. These range between 3 and 5 months, depending on the level of employees, and include a delay in payments of tax dues as well. Bira 91 founder reacts Speaking to ET, Bira 91 founder Ankur Jain said the company is not aware of any such petition addressed to key shareholders, adding that the board has also not received such a communication. Jain further said that there was a production pause in September, and he believes it would resume this month. He said there were significant business disruptions at B9 Beverages over the last 18 months, including a company name change, changes in liquor policy and a delay in the fundraising process. A small non-profit has accused Sam Altman-led OpenAI of intimidation tactics to dilute California's proposed AI safety law, known in short as SB 53. The accusation came in a now viral post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), by 29-year-old Nathan Calvin, legal counsel for Encode, who alleged that OpenAI is working to undermine the California Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act (SB 53), which it is under debate by lawmakers. In his own lengthy post addressing the issue, OpenAI's chief strategy officer Jason Kwon, dismissed the allegations made by Calvin, and called Encode's funding under question hinting that the public accusation was funded by Elon Musk. What are the allegations? Calvin alleged that OpenAI is using its legal battle against Elon Musk to intimidate critics, including Encode. Further, in his post, he clarified that Encode did not get funding from Elon Musk. I believe OpenAI used the pretext of their lawsuit against Elon Musk to intimidate their critics and imply that Elon is behind all of them, he said. He alleged that OpenAI wrote a letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom's office seeking to dilute SB 53 requirement that would mandate companies to publish a public frontier AI framework and a transparency report when deploying or substantially modifying a model, according to a Fortune report. He said he is speaking out now as SB 53 negotations were still ongoing and he wanted to wait until the bill was signed. Another reason he said was that OpenAI's Chris Lehane in a LinkedIn post claimed the company worked to improve SB 53. Calvin called the experience the most stressful period of my professional life and noted that OpenAI's products and research are worthy of genuine praise, adding that many of the company's employees care about being a force for good. I want to see that side of OAI, but instead I see them trying to intimidate critics into silence. Does anyone believe these actions are consistent with OpenAIs nonprofit mission to ensure that AGI benefits humanity? he questioned. Concerns raised over allegations Notably, Calvin's accusations generated reactions from OpenAI's current and past employees, including head of mission alignment Joshua Achiam, who in a personal thread of X called the developments not great. He shared Calvin's post saying, At what is possibly a risk to my whole career I will say: this doesn't seem great. Lately I have been describing my role as something like a public advocate so I'd be remiss if I didn't share some thoughts for the public on this. Some thoughts in thread... Achiam in his post urged OpenAI to distinguish between the powerhouse that is Elon Musk and constructive critics. We cant be doing things that make us into a frightening power instead of a virtuous one. We have a duty and a mission to all of humanity, and the bar to pursue that duty is remarkably high, he said. He was not alone. Helen Toner, a former OpenAI board member who resigned after Sam Altman's failed removal as chief in 2023, said that while the company does great things, the dishonesty and intimidation tactics in their policy work are really not. Tyler Johnston, founder of AI watchdog group the Midas Project, also shared an alleged intimidation experience, in his response to Calvin's post, saying, [I] got a knock at my door in Oklahoma with a demand for every text/email/document that, in the broadest sense permitted, relates to OpenAIs governance and investors. Johnston said the aim seemed to be to check if he was funded by Elon Musk, adding, Had they just asked if Im funded by Musk, I would have been happy to give them a simple man I wish and call it a day. Instead, they asked for what was, practically speaking, a list of every journalist, congressional office, partner organization, former employee, and member of the public wed spoken to about their restructuring. How has OpenAI responded? While Sam Altman or OpenAI's official channels have not made any comment yet. Kwon took to X to question the motivation behind the allegations. We wanted to know, and still are curious to know, whether Encode is working in collaboration with third parties who have a commercial competitive interest adverse to OpenAI. The stated narrative makes it sound like something it wasnt. Kwon said. He also included an excerpt of the subpoena that he said showed all the requests for documents OpenAI made. The San Francisco Standard in September reported that OpenAI subpoenaed its most vocal critics in August, over concerns that Elon Musk is funding negative opinions to target the company. * AerCap to inject $150 million into Spirit, granted $572 million unsecured claim * Spirit Airlines forfeits $9.7 million to AerCap in bankruptcy deal * Spirit to sign new leases for 30 Airbus planes with AerCap By Rajesh Kumar Singh and Doyinsola Oladipo NEW YORK, Oct 10 (Reuters) - In a fleet optimization move, Spirit Airlines will reject its commitment to buy 52 Airbus planes along with its options for 10 others. The aircraft orders will be taken over by aircraft lessor AerCap . This three-way agreement is part of a dispute settlement between Spirit and AerCap, which was approved on Friday by U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York. The conflict with the world's largest aircraft leasing company was the trigger for pushing Spirit into its second bankruptcy. In late August, AerCap unexpectedly terminated the lease agreements for 36 new Airbus A320neo family jets that were scheduled for delivery to Spirit between 2027 and 2028. It also claimed default on the leases for 37 aircraft already in the carrier's operational fleet. Spirit disputed the validity of AerCap's claims. But with access to a large portion of its current and future fleet jeopardized, the company was forced to seek bankruptcy protection. As part of the settlement between the two companies, Spirit will reject 27 out of the 37 leases it holds. AerCap, meanwhile, was granted permission to keep and use $9.7 million in cash security deposits that Spirit provided for the canceled aircraft leases. The Irish leasing giant also has been granted permission to file a total unsecured claim of up to $572 million against Spirit. It is not clear yet how much it will be able to collect on that claim. Spirit will give up all its rights to the 36 undelivered jets. Additionally, it will sign new lease agreements with AerCap for 30 new Airbus A320 or A321 airplanes for deliveries spread equally across 2027, 2028 and 2029. As part of the deal, AerCap will make a cash injection of $150 million into the bankrupt airline. Separately, Spirit said the court has also approved a debtor-in-possession ("DIP") financing facility of up to $475 million from its existing bondholders. Of the total financing, $200 million is immediately available to the carrier. In a statement, Spirit said the agreement allows it to reduce operating costs by hundreds of millions of dollars. Spirit plans to shrink its operations to reduce its costs. It has decided to furlough approximately 1,800 flight attendants, about one-third of its cabin crew, effective December 1. The carrier, which currently operates 214 aircraft, also plans to shrink its fleet by nearly 100 aircraft, nearly half of its fleet. Chinese premier pays homage to Chinese People's Volunteer Army martyrs in DPRK Xinhua) 09:26, October 11, 2025 Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, pays homage to the martyrs of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPV) at a cemetery in Anju, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the CPV's participation in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen) PYONGYANG, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Friday paid homage to the martyrs of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPV) at a cemetery in Anju. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the CPV's participation in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. Li laid a wreath at the tomb of the CPV martyrs, and stood in solemn silence. The premier said 75 years ago, the CPV soldiers, carrying the great trust of the Chinese people, crossed the Yalu River, and fought alongside the army and civilians of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to defend peace and justice. After two years and nine months of bloody battles, they finally won a great victory, he added. "With deep reverence, we pay tribute to the CPV martyrs who sacrificed their lives heroically, and express our profound remembrance," Li said, adding that the motherland and the people will never forget the immortal feats they have forged with their flesh and blood. Seventy-five years have passed, and China has undergone earth-shaking and historic changes, Li noted, saying that the Chinese nation has made a great leap from standing up to becoming prosperous and strong. He also said that under the strong leadership of the Communist Party of China Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, socialism with Chinese characteristics has entered a new era and is steadily advancing towards the second centenary goal. Under the strategic guidance of the top leaders of the two parties and the two countries, the blood-forged traditional friendship between China and the DPRK has been continuously consolidated and deepened, and the friendly and cooperative relations have been constantly moving forward, Li said. He also called for efforts to continue carrying forward the will of the martyrs, better promote the great spirit of the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea, and constantly advance the great cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era. The Chinese side, Li said, stands ready to work with its DPRK comrades to further carry forward the traditional friendship between the two countries, strengthen practical cooperation and move forward hand in hand on the path of common development. Jong Myong Su, vice-premier of the DPRK Cabinet, accompanied Li for the mourning. Some 100 people, including all members of the Chinese delegation and staff at the Chinese Embassy in the DPRK, participated in the memorial service. On Friday, Li also visited the China-DPRK Friendship Tower. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, pays homage to the martyrs of the Chinese People's Volunteer Army (CPV) at a cemetery in Anju, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the CPV's participation in the War to Resist U.S. Aggression and Aid Korea. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Breakthrough in 2D flash chip achieved 08:43, October 11, 2025 By Zhou Wenting ( China Daily A 2D flash chip enabled by system integration. (CHINA DAILY) A research team from Shanghai-based Fudan University has developed the world's first full-featured, 2D flash chip enabled by system integration, marking a milestone in the engineering of 2D electronic devices. This breakthrough integrates the ultrafast 2D flash memory device with a mature silicon-based complementary metal oxide semiconductor, or CMOS technology, providing a model to accelerate the transition of next-generation disruptive devices from research to application and offering strong support for advancing information technology to a new high-speed era. The chip supports eight-bit instruction operations, 32-bit high-speed parallel operations and random access, achieving a memory cell yield of 94.3 percent. Its operation speed surpasses current flash memory technology, marking the first engineering realization of a 2D-silicon hybrid flash chip, the scientists said. On Wednesday, a paper detailing the research results was published in the journal Nature. In the era of artificial intelligence, the demands for faster data access have grown dramatically, while the limited speed and power consumption of traditional memory technologies have become bottlenecks in the AI computing system. In April, the same team introduced the PoX 2D flash memory prototype in Nature, achieving an unprecedented program speed of 400 picoseconds, the fastest semiconductor charge storage technology to date. However, the process of industrializing disruptive innovations for system-level applications often takes a prolonged time. The team from Fudan University's State Key Laboratory of Integrated Chips and Systems as well as College of Integrated Circuits and Micro-nano Electronics strategically integrated their 2D flash technology into the industry's CMOS platform, providing a way to turn the concept of the 2D electronics device into a complex system application. "It took about 24 years from the first prototype semiconductor transistor to the first CPU. However, by integrating emerging technologies into the existing CMOS platform, the process in our research is significantly compressed. We can further accelerate the exploration of disruptive applications in the future," said Liu Chunsen, a first author and also corresponding author of the paper. Zhou Peng, another corresponding author of the paper and a lead researcher on the team, said that they believed storage devices are likely to be the first type of 2D electronic devices to be industrialized due to their modest demands on material quality and manufacturing processes, coupled with performance metrics that far exceed current technologies. Scientists explained that the chips that people talk about today are mostly made from silicon. Silicon materials and 2D materials are vastly different, as silicon wafers are typically hundreds of micrometers thick, while 2D semiconductor materials are at the atomic thickness level, equivalent to a thickness of less than 1 nanometer. A core challenge for the team was how to integrate the 2D materials with CMOS technology without compromising performance. The surface of a CMOS circuit is quite rough due to the underlying components, while the 2D semiconductor materials are only 1 to 3 atoms thick. Such materials can easily break if they are directly placed on CMOS circuits. "This is like looking at Shanghai from space. It seems flat, but within the city, there are buildings of varying heights over 400 meters, 100 meters, or just a few dozen meters. If you lay a thin film over the city, the film itself would not be flat," said Zhou, adding that this explains why researchers worldwide in 2D semiconductors can only process materials on extremely flat native substrates so far. In their research, the team decided to start with 2D materials that inherently possess a certain degree of flexibility. By employing a modular integration approach, the scientists fabricated the 2D memory circuits on the mature CMOS circuits and used high-density monolithic interconnection technology for communication between different modules. This innovative core process allows for the tight coupling of 2D materials with CMOS substrates at the atomic scale. The research team said that the newly developed chip has successfully completed the tape-out process. For the next step, the researchers plan to set up a pilot production line and collaborate with relevant institutions to establish an engineering project, aiming to integrate it to a megabyte-level scale within the next three to five years. Experts noted that the current bottleneck for AI systems is shifting from front-end computing power to back-end storage and data, and future models will become increasingly large. Some industry experts expressed optimism that this achievement will transition from lab to large-scale applications at a faster pace, integrating into scenarios such as personal computers and mobile devices. "This research represents a 'source technology' in China's integrated circuit field, allowing the country to take the lead in next generation core storage technologies," said Zhou. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) Amid China's newly listed restrictions on rare-earth mineral exports and a subsequent US rebuke with 100% tariffs, companies across the globe in the semiconduction supply chain are bracing for impact. China's rare earth curbs, its tightest yet to limit the supply of the minerals to the world, come as Beijing's first major attempt to restrict global companies from targeting the semiconductor industry, which threatens to stop the making of chips that support the AI boom. Impact of China's rare-earth move The restrictions may have major impacts. ASML Holding NV, the only manufacturer in the world of machines that make the most advanced semiconductors, is expecting weeks-long delays in shipments, a person in the know was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. A major US chip company is still assessing the potential impact, a senior manager said, adding that the clearest impact will be the surge in prices of rare earth-dependent magnets that are critical to the chip supply chain. Another official at a different US chip company revealed that it is rushing to identify which of its products are manufactured with Chinese rare-earths. This company is worried that the licence requirement will halt its supply chains. Its not clear what software products from the US might be hit by Trumps latest proposed export ban. In July, the administration lifted export license requirements for chip-design software sales, rules that had been imposed in May as part of a raft of measures responding to Beijings earlier limits on shipments of essential rare earths. Chinas new rules require overseas firms to seek approval for shipping any material containing even trace amounts of Chinese rare earths and explicitly call out parts used to make certain computer chips and advance AI research with military applications. Chipmaking machines, like those sold by ASML and Applied Materials Inc., are especially dependent on rare earths because they contain extremely precise lasers, magnets and other equipment that use these elements. ASML is preparing for disruptions, particularly due to a clause that requires foreign firms to seek Chinas approval for reexports of products containing its rare earths, said the person familiar with ASML, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters and noted that ASML is lobbying Dutch and US allies for alternatives. Within the semiconductor value chain, Chinas new export controls will likely most impact chipmakers that use rare-earth-based chemicals during the chip fabrication process and toolmakers that integrate rare-earth magnets into their equipment, Jacob Feldgoise, senior data research analyst at Georgetown Universitys Center for Security and Emerging Technology, told Bloomberg. The worlds biggest chipmakers, including Intel Corp., Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. and Samsung Electronics Co., rely on ASML to produce semiconductors. Nvidia's position One company that is likely to be impacted due to the Chinese restrictions is Jensen Huang's Nvidia, which is already in the crosshairs of US-China trade tensions regarding its AI chips. Huang's leading technology has been leveraged by Donald Trump in his trade negotiations with China, which has further complicated the company's relationship with Beijing. Nvidia has gotten caught in the middle of two very important things: a trade dispute between China and the United States but more importantly, AI has become a matter of national security, Gil Luria, head of technology research at DA Davidson told CNN. US-China trade war reignites Some have questioned how long the restrictions will last, viewing them as potential posturing ahead of a trip to Asia Trump had planned that was expected to include a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping later this month. Its unclear how China would even track rare earths at such discrete levels to enforce the rules. But Chinas move has instead escalated tensions with the US. Trumps announced tariffs would raise import taxes on many Chinese goods to 130% starting next month. That would be just below the 145% level imposed earlier this year, before both countries ratcheted down the levies in a truce to advance trade talks. New Delhi, Oct 11 (PTI) Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Saturday held discussions with his Canadian counterpart Maninder Sidhu on ways to strengthen economic ties between the two countries. "We discussed ways to find mutually beneficial opportunities for our businesses to capitalise on the complementarities offered by our two economies. I emphasised that economic, trade and investment ties between India and Canada should be grounded in the principles of mutual respect, trust and balance," Goyal said in a post on X. The Canada's Minister of International Trade in a post said that he spoke with India's Minister of Commerce and Industry to advance discussions on deepening economic engagement and increasing connectivity between the countries. "Together, we're exploring new trade opportunities in clean technology, AI, agriculture, critical minerals, and other key sectors," he said. Replying to the post, Goyal said: "Held a productive discussion with my Canadian counterpart @MSidhuLiberal". The discussions are important as in 2023, Canada had paused negotiations for a free trade agreement with India. Also Read | India steps up FTA talks with Qatar, EU as US tariff strains trade ties The India-Canada relations hit rock bottom following then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in 2023 of a potential Indian link to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India had dismissed Trudeau's accusation as "absurd". In March 2022, the two countries had re-launched negotiations for an interim agreement, officially dubbed as Early Progress Trade Agreement (EPTA). Over half a dozen rounds of talks have been held on the trade pact so far. Normally in a trade agreement, two countries significantly reduce or eliminate customs duties on the maximum number of goods traded between them. They also liberalise norms for promoting trade in services and attract investments. India's exports to Canada rose by 9.8 per cent to USD 4.22 billion in 2024-25 from USD 3.84 billion in 2023-24. Imports, however, dipped by 2.33 per cent to USD 4.44 billion in the last fiscal from USD 4.55 billion in 2023-24. Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand will begin her visit to New Delhi on Sunday. Amid ongoing trade war between the United States and China, experts believe that it is likely to pave a way for Indian exporters in increasing their shipments to the American market, which in turn will benefit them. The latest escalation in the conflict between the two largest economies was triggered by Beijing's October 9 decision to tighten export controls on rare earth, which is a critical resource for US defense, electric vehicles, and clean-energy industries. In response to this move, the US announced an additional 100 per cent tariff on Chinese goods, effective November 1, 2025, raising the total tariff rate on Chinese imports to about 130 per cent. How will it benefit India? Federation of Indian Export Organisations President S C Ralhan said that imposition of steep US tariffs on Chinese goods will shift demand towards India. We may gain from this escalation, reported PTI quoting Ralhan. While US tariffs on Indian goods are currently 50 per cent already higher than China's previous 30 per cent the new 100 per cent additional tariff on Chinese products will give an upper edge to India which exported goods worth $86 billion to the US in 2024-25. Sector-specific opportunities Exporters across various sectors are rooting for vast opportunities this scenario presents. A textile exporter highlighted that the higher customs duties on Chinese products will provide huge export opportunities for India. This tariff hike will push up the prices of Chinese goods in the American market, making them less competitive and drawing buyers to alternatives, another exporter told the news agency. Mirroring that thought, a toy exporter Manu Gupta said that high duties on Chinese goods will help attract buyers from both these nations. It will help us. High duty will create a parity and will give us a level playing field, Gupta said, adding American buyers like retail giant Target have reached out to them for new products. Economic impact of the trade war Think tank GTRI warned that the escalating trade tensions between the US and China are likely to push up the global prices of Electric Vehicles (EVs), wind turbines, and semiconductor parts. BEIJINGWith rare-earths export restrictions and a string of actions targeting the U.S. chip industry, Beijing is mounting a full-scale offensive on Washington ahead of an expected meeting between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping. The latest to face Beijings ire: Qualcomm, one of the U.S.s most important semiconductor companies. Chinas top market regulator said Friday that it had launched an investigation into Qualcomm for suspected violation of the countrys antimonopoly law. The probe is tied to Qualcomms acquisition of Autotalks, an Israeli startup, the regulator said. Qualcomm didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. In two days, Beijing has unleashed a barrage of actions that threaten to derail a fragile status quo with Washington over trade and other issues, with a particular focus on semiconductors. On Thursday, China announced new restrictions on rare-earth materials, specifically noting that licenses related to certain types of chips will be granted on a case-by-case basis. Also Thursday, Beijing added roughly a dozen organizations to its unreliable entity list," including TechInsights, a Canada-based semiconductor technology research firm that had released reports on chip-development efforts by Chinas Huawei Technologies. China went beyond semiconductors. On Thursday, Beijing also said it would require licenses for exports of certain lithium batteries and some equipment and materials used to make them. Then on Friday, Beijing said it plans to impose a special port fee on U.S. vessels docking at Chinese ports, retaliating against the Trump administrations move to levy fees on Chinese ships. Beijing has used government investigations into American companies to place pressure on the U.S., which over the years has steadily imposed an ever-growing thicket of export restrictions and tariffs on Chinese goods. American chip companies have come under particular scrutiny in Beijing. Last month, Chinas antitrust regulator said a preliminary investigation found that Nvidia violated the countrys antimonopoly law in connection with an acquisition completed in 2020. Chips are at the core of the technology rivalry between the U.S. and China. Their central role in artificial intelligence, military equipment and other areas with national-security and economic significance has made them the locus of tensions between the worlds two superpowers. Washington and Beijing, who have been locked in contentious talks for months over tariffs and technology, have been preparing for a meeting between their two leaders. Beijing is looking for the U.S. to remove tariffs, as well as various technology restrictions that have constrained Chinese companies and the broader economy. Qualcomm relies heavily on China for its business and, among American companies, is one of the most exposed to China. Nearly half its revenue came from China in fiscal 2024, the latest full year for which data is available. The San Diego-based chip company said in a recent filing that a significant portion of our business is concentrated in China, and the risks of such concentration are exacerbated by U.S./China trade and national security tensions." The company, which makes mobile-phone and automotive chips, has a history of being a chess piece in U.S.-China tensions. In 2018, China didnt approve Qualcomms planned purchase of Dutch chip maker NXP on time, leading Qualcomm to scrap the dealone of the more consequential casualties of the deterioration in U.S.-China trade tensions. At the time, the U.S. and China were squaring off over trade and tariffs during Trumps first term. Qualcomm was in Chinese regulators crosshairs even before Trump first came to office. In 2015, Qualcomm agreed to pay $975 million to Beijing and revise its licensing practices in China to settle accusations that it violated local antitrust law. At the time, it was one of Chinas most forceful moves against a foreign company. Over the years, Qualcomms top executives have met with Beijings top officials in an effort to show goodwill and maintain positive ties. For two years straight, including this March, Qualcomm Chief Executive Cristiano Amon was among the handful of foreign business leaders selected to meet Xi in Beijing, on the sidelines of an annual gathering of foreign executives and Chinese policymakers. Chinas State Administration for Market Regulation, the antimonopoly regulator, said Qualcomm had failed to make clear how its acquisition of Autotalks would affect the market. After giving up on the deal in 2024, Qualcomm succeeded in acquiring the Israeli auto-chip designer in June this year, part of a larger effort to boost its presence in the burgeoning field of communications between cars and their surroundings. Write to Yoko Kubota at yoko.kubota@wsj.com Ahead of a potential meeting between President Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping, Beijing dropped a bombshell: China was further restricting access to the supplies that American companies need for computer chips, cars and other technology. The move gives China leverage ahead of expected trade talks with Washington. Heres what to know. Which supplies did China restrict and why are they important? They are called rare earths, which are elements in the ground. While not actually rare, they are difficult to extract because they are scattered and mixed among other rocks and minerals. Few places have a rich concentration of the most sought-after rare earths. One such area is southern China, part of the reason the country supplies around 90% of the worlds rare earths. One of the most critical rare earths is dysprosium, atomic number 66 on the periodic table. If the tech industry were a bakery, dysprosium would be like baking powder: It is used in small quantities but essential for enabling electric-car motors, wind turbines, military systems and computer-chip machinery. What exactly has China done? Chinas Commerce Ministry on Thursday expanded previous export controls by adding a seemingly onerous requirement: Any companyin China or abroadmust get Chinese permission to export certain products that derive more than 0.1% of their value from a rare earth. The ministry also expanded the list of export-restricted rare earths, and banned their export for use by foreign militaries. Meanwhile, China on Friday targeted other American interests by imposing port fees on U.S. ships and opening an antitrust investigation into Qualcomm. It is all part of Beijings campaign to fight back against Washingtons own trade curbs. Which businesses will be affected? That depends on which products are affected, and the rules arent clear. They might target just rare-earth materials and rare-earth magnets, or they might hit a range of parts and components that have some rare earths inside. The ambiguity may be purposeful to give the Chinese side flexibility during negotiations with the U.S. Most finished consumer goods, such as laptops and smartphones, will likely fall short of the threshold, said research firm Capital Economics, but intermediate goods such as motors may exceed it. China said it would give particular scrutiny to export of the restricted items if they are intended to help build advanced chips or support artificial-intelligence research. Earlier rare-earth restrictions already hit automakers such as Ford, and the targeting of AI and semiconductors was a reminder that China is trying to curb American AI chip leader Nvidia. Some analysts say the new rules suggest that companies with both military and civilian businesses, such as Boeing, could be denied access to rare earths for even civilian purposes. Will China go through with itand what can the U.S. do? Many analysts believe the new restrictions are a negotiating tactic by Beijing ahead of trade talks, but it is likely to retain some rare-earth curbs for the long term. In response, Trump said he would impose 100% tariffs on China by Nov. 1 and suggested he may snub Xi at a conference in South Korea late this month, when they are supposed to meet. The U.S. also has leverage over China because it produces chips needed for artificial-intelligence processing and industrial products like jet enginesthings Beijing has yet to master. The U.S. is building its own rare-earth magnet supply chain. Trump suggested the U.S. may stop importing Chinese rare earths. Rare-earth deposits are available outside China, but matching Chinas mining and processing infrastructure will take years. Write to Stu Woo at Stu.Woo@wsj.com and Jon Emont at jonathan.emont@wsj.com Prices of Bitcoin, Ethereum and most other cryptocurrencies crashed after United States President Donald Trump on October 10 said that he is raising US tariffs 100 per cent on any and all critical software imports from China. The decision came after China announced export limits on rare earth minerals, which are critical for manufacturing, especially tech, as per a Reuters report. Also Read | China goes all in on US trade battle, with Qualcomm in the crosshairs Bitcoin slumps around 8%, ethereum down 12% At 6.10 am, at time of writing, Bitcoin was down 7.60 per cent to $1,12,592.31 and Ethereum dropped 12.24 per cent to $3845.92 , according to data on CoinMarketCap. As per the CoinMarketCap analysis, the world's largest cryptocurrency saw $9.5 billion liquidations amid failed support at $1,20,000 level. Crypto market update: Top 5 tokens Bitcoin at 6.45 am was down 8.40% to $111,841.14, with market cap also down 8.12 per cent to $2.23 trillion. World's second largest crypto, Ethereum was down 15.62% to $3,792.31, with market cap down 13.81% to $456.97 billion. Tether is down 0.1% to $1, with market cap down 0.28% to $178.97 billion. Binance coin was down 6.6% to $1,094.09, with market cap down 12.91% to $152.27 billion. XRP was down 22.85% to $2.33, with market cap down 16.31% to $140.19 billion. Also Read | From tariffs to cross-subsidy, govt makes big power sector reform push Why did crypto market crash? What Trump said In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump announced that he was unhappy with China's stance on export of rare earth minerals and called it an extraordinarily aggressive position. Donald Trump wrote, It has just been learned that China has taken an extraordinarily aggressive position on Trade in sending an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1st, 2025, impose large scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make, and some not even made by them. This affects ALL Countries, without exception, and was obviously a plan devised by them years ago. It is absolutely unheard of in International Trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other Nations. Based on the fact that China has taken this unprecedented position, and speaking only for the U.S.A., and not other Nations who were similarly threatened, starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying. Also on November 1st, we will impose Export Controls on any and all critical software, he added. (Bloomberg) -- The day after crypto experienced its biggest one-day selloff, everyone in the industry was trying to figure out who was left holding the bag. A record $19 billion in bets evaporated and crypto prices tumbled, due in large part to newly severe China tariffs announced by President Donald Trump. A combination of factors leverage, automatically triggered sales, a lack of liquidity at odd hours for global trading fueled what might have been a less dramatic obliteration of positions. From the morning hours in Asia through the afternoon in the US on Saturday, traders, executives and market-data analysts were wondering who, exactly, had suffered losses. Did a large entity get completely hosed or was this a case of a lot of small bettors watching their holdings evaporate to zero? More than 1.6 million traders were liquidated, according to data tracker CoinGlass. Weve made extensive channel checks and none of our partners were impacted beyond normal price movements, said Matthew Hougan, chief investment officer of Bitwise Asset Management. Its of course possible, and sometimes it takes time to cycle through and of course we dont talk to everyone but I havent heard of any blowups. Similarly, Bloomberg News inquiries with major market makers and investors turned up no evidence of a so-called whale imploding, but lots of people suspecting someone else must have been caught on their hind legs. In crypto, margin calls dont work the same way as in traditional markets: when collateral falters, algorithms simply sell. As a result, the plumbing that keeps markets open 24 hours a day also ensures that volatility can cause losses to cascade at a rapid clip. Because Trump made his announcement on a US holiday weekend after the market had closed there, but before Europe and Asia were generally awake, there werent as many active buyers and sellers participating in the market. That said, liquidations were concentrated on smaller coins beyond Bitcoin and Ether, known as altcoins. Leverage tends to be higher and liquidity much lower in those less familiar tokens. Theres basically no liquidity for altcoins past five-to-10% of the order book, especially on the bid side, said Zaheer Ebtikar, founder of crypto fund Split Capital. So, once an asset really falls out of line, and once it happens to a bunch of assets at the same time, and those market makers go out of sync, the market basically dies. That kind of trouble was on full display on the exchange Hyperliquid. Despite being smaller than rival Binance, Hyperliquid experienced the most extinguished trades in dollar value during the 24-hour-period selloff, at $10 billion, according to CoinGlass. Hyperliquid had the most amount of long liquidation, and least amount of liquidity to match, said Ebtikar. A risk-management mechanism called auto-deleveraging, or ADL, contributed. ADL is designed to automatically close profitable or highly leveraged positions when liquidated trades exceed a certain capacity covered by insurance. Exchanges incorporate it to protect them from losses during extreme market volatility, but many market participants also blamed ADL for making the selloff worse. This mechanism is not without complications, especially for participants with more complex portfolios, said Spencer Hallarn, global head of OTC trading at crypto investment firm GSR. Quantitative liquidity providers and market-neutral participants can quickly find the winning sides of their trades closed prematurely due to ADL, leaving their overall books imbalanced and subject to market beta which can lead to problems, and a necessity to quickly pare imbalanced risk, he said. One entity that generated profit was Hyperliquid Provider, a community-owned vault that is separate from the exchange and allows investors to pool assets and act as market makers or forced liquidators. Also known as HLP, it generated more $30 million in profit during the one-day selloff by taking over bets and closing out losing positions, according to data visible on its public transaction ledger. Theres also a question of who should bear the loss the exchange and liquidity pool or the traders, said Tarun Chitra, co-founder of crypto-risk modeling firm Gauntlet Networks. Chitra argues that HLP pool is favored over individual traders on Hyperliquid because of the algorithm and other parameters that are set. He also noted that some of the top 50 altcoins by market value did not have all that much leverage, which means its more likely there had been a lot of impromptu selling pressure yesterday, triggered by Trumps announcement. The way alts sold off was reminiscent of a financial crisis more than a normal deleveraging spiral, he said. It was really driven by spot selling more than deleveraging. This is perhaps the reason I give some credence to the rumors that someone had to have unwound or blew up. While the market has started taking back some losses from Fridays selloff, the full damage could take days to unravel, said Edward Chin, chief executive officer of crypto hedge fund Parataxis. I suspect well hear of some funds that may have blown up or market makers taking large hits in the coming days and weeks, he said. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com Anantam Highways Trust IPO allotment date: The Anantam Highways Trust IPO share allotment will be finalised on Tuesday, October 14. Investors who applied for the Anantam Highways InvIT IPO can check the Anantam Highways Trust IPO allotment status in the registrar's portal, which is Kfin Technologies Ltd. Anantam Highways Trust IPO GMP is 0, which meant shares were trading at their issue price of 100 with no premium or discount in the grey market, according to investorgain.com. Investors can find out if they have been allocated shares and the corresponding quantities by reviewing the allocation guidelines. Furthermore, an important element in evaluating the IPO allotment status is the overall number of shares that are up for grabs. The company will begin the refund process for applicants who did not receive any shares. Shares that have been allocated will be deposited into a person's demat account. For individuals who were not allocated shares, the refund procedure will begin on Thursday, October 16. Individuals who were allocated shares will get them in their demat accounts the same day. Anantam Highways Trust IPO listing date is scheduled for Friday, October 17. Anantam Highways Trust IPO Subscription Status Anantam Highways Trust IPO subscription status is 5.62x, on day 3. The QIBs portion was booked 2.86x, and the other investors portion was subscribed 8.93 times, as per BSE. On Tuesday, October 7, 2025, the public offering for Anantam Highways Trust, an InvIT focused on investing in, owning, and overseeing road assets throughout India, began, with a price range set between 98 and 100. The offering concluded on Thursday, October 9, 2025, as the Trust sought to issue units totaling up to 400 crore. From the total size of the issue, up to 75% will be designated for institutional investors based on their subscription proportions, with as much as 60% of that portion potentially allocated to anchor investors at the discretion of the allocation process. Furthermore, at least 25% of the total issue size will be reserved for non-institutional investors, contingent on valid bids. Prior to launching the IPO, Anantam Highways Trust successfully raised almost 180 crore through its anchor book on October 6. Sponsored by Alpha Alternatives Fund Advisors, the InvIT aims to collect 400 crore through the issuance of units. Anantam Highways Trust IPO Review Satyen Shah, President and Head of Investment Banking and Fixed Income, Nuvama Wealth Management Ltd said that the Anantam InvIT issue successfully concluded with a remarkable response from the investment community, validating the growing appetite for Infrastructure Investment Trusts (InvITs) in India. The issue was exceptionally well-received, achieving an overall subscription of 5.62x. The institutional investor category showed healthy interest with a subscription of 2.86x, while the non-institutional and retail investor portion saw robust demand, subscribing 8.9x. The significant traction among retail investors was particularly noteworthy, with over 50,000 applications garnered. This broad-based participation is a clear indicator of increasing awareness and trust in InvITs as an investment vehicle. The success not only underscores the growing confidence in infrastructure as a compelling asset class but also signals strong conviction in the Anantam Highways platform. This was further evidenced by the participation of marquee institutional investors in the anchor book, including White Oak, Edelweiss Life Insurance, Reliance General Insurance, Star Union Dai-ichi Life Insurance, Zuno General Insurance, and SBI Capital Markets, amongst others. How to check Anantam Highways Trust IPO allotment status on the registrar's portal? Step 1: Visit the Kfin Technologies Ltd website: https://ipostatus.kfintech.com/ Upon clicking the provided link, you'll find the option to verify the status through one of five different links. Step 2: After selecting one of the five URLs, pick "Anantam Highways Trust IPO" from the dropdown menu labeled "Select IPO." Step 3: To view the status, enter your PAN, Demat account number, or application number. Step 4: - If you opt for the application number, start by entering your application number followed by the captcha code. Then, click "Submit." - If you choose the Demat Account option, input your account information along with the captcha code. Hit "Submit." - For the third choice, which is PAN, type in your PAN number along with the captcha code. Then, click "Submit." How to check Anantam Highways Trust IPO allotment status on BSE? Step 1: Access the allotment section on the official BSE website at https://www.bseindia.com/investors/appli_check.aspx Step 2: Select 'Equity' from the available options under 'Issue Type.' Step 3: Choose the 'Issue Name' from the dropdown menu and specify the particular IPO. Step 4: Input your application number or PAN. How to check Anantam Highways Trust IPO allotment status on NSE? Step 1: Go to the official NSE website at https://www1.nseindia.com/products/dynaContent/equities/ipos/ipo_login.jsp Step 2: Register using your PAN by clicking on the 'Click here to sign up' link on the NSE site. Step 3: Enter your username, password, and the captcha code. Step 4: On the next page, you will be able to check the status of your IPO allocation. Also Read | LG Electronics IPO allotment status LIVE: Steps to track status amid rising GMP By Nikhil Dedha New Delhi [India], October 11 (ANI): After several weeks of persistent selling, foreign investors turned net buyers in the Indian markets this week, marking a positive inflow of 1,751 crore between October 6 and October 10, according to data released by the National Securities Depository Limited (NSDL). Despite the sustained selling pressure over the past few months, domestic institutional investors (DIIs) remained broadly supportive, absorbing foreign sell-offs and helping maintain overall market stability. Ajit Mishra, Senior Vice President, Research, Religare Broking, told ANI, "During the week of October 6-10, FIIs exhibited a sharp turnaround in trading behaviour in the cash market. After heavy selling in the first two sessions--offloading 1,584.48 crore and 1,471.74 crore on October 6 and 7, respectively--foreign investors turned aggressive buyers over the next three days, pumping in 1,663.65 crore, 737.82 crore, and 2,406.54 crore. This resulted in a net cumulative inflow of 1,751.79 crore for the week." He added that the shift underscores improving foreign investor sentiment toward Indian equities, supported by global stability and domestic resilience. "Sustained FII inflows from here could further strengthen the market trend, provided global risk appetite remains intact and earnings momentum continues," Mishra noted. The NSDL data showed that with this week's positive inflows by the Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs), the net outflow from Indian markets in October has now reduced to 2,091 crore. In comparison, during September, FPIs recorded a heavy net outflow of 23,885 crore. So far this year, foreign investors have withdrawn a total of 1,56,611 crore from Indian markets. The recent turnaround in FPI activity indicates renewed external confidence in Indian equities. However, the sustainability of this positive trend will depend on continued inflows, robust corporate earnings, and stable global conditions. Foreign investors have been selling continuously from the Indian markets in recent months due to several factors, including Trump's tariffs, high valuations of Indian companies, and an uncertain global trade outlook triggered by tariff measures. Over the past few years, Indian capital markets have been on a strong growth trajectory, driven by a record surge in demat accounts, robust FDI inflows, and a healthy surplus in both capital and financial accounts. This dynamic environment is opening up exciting opportunities for investors and businesses alike. Capital market companies in India are well-positioned to ride this momentum. These include stock exchanges, broking firms, and investment banks. These are the companies that facilitate trading, manage funds, and help businesses raise capital. In this article, we will take a closer look at capital market companies that have seen their stock prices drop as much as 40% from their 52-week highs. These stocks are selected from the Nifty Capital Markets Index, based on the maximum fall in their values from their 52-week highs. Angel One Ltd Established in 1987, Angel One stands as one of India's largest full-service retail brokers. It specializes in online discount broking services. The company offers a comprehensive range of investment and trading services, including stock and commodity broking, investment advisory services, and more. The stock hit its 52-week high of 3,502.6 on 9 December 2024. However, as of 7 October 2025, it had declined to 2,276 intraday, a 35% drop. In September 2025, shares of Indias capital market stocks, including Angel One, tumbled following reports that the securities market regulator was likely to issue a consultation paper on potentially ending weekly derivatives contracts. However, on 7 October 2025, sources informed CNBC-TV18 that Sebi had received a large number of representations regarding the weekly options expiry. Brokers are reportedly advocating for its continuation, and both exchangesBSE and NSEare expected to support the extension. In addition to market developments, Angel One has been experiencing a steady decline in promoter holdings. The most notable reduction occurred in June 2025, when promoter ownership fell from 35.55% in March 2025 to 28.97%. Going forward, the company plans to grow through strategic diversification into new business segments. Indian Energy Exchange Ltd IEX is an Indian electronic system-based power trading exchange. It is India's premier nationwide automated trading platform for the physical delivery of electricity, renewable energy, and certificates. From its 52-week high of 215 on 9 June 2025, the stock is currently trading at 142.1 intraday on 7 October 2025, reflecting a decline of around 33%. The sharp decline follows India's power regulator's proposal for a major reform, including the introduction of market coupling to restructure the electricity pricing mechanism. Market coupling is an economic model used in energy markets to create a single, uniform price for electricity across different trading platforms. Under this mechanism, bids and offers collected from all power exchanges are aggregated and cleared together, resulting in one market-clearing price for the day-ahead or real-time markets. Currently, IEX acts as India's leading platform for spot electricity price discovery. For IEX, the proposed market coupling reform could be a game-changer, not in a good way. The market believes that once coupling takes effect, IEX's near-monopoly in price discovery could be a thing of the past. Right now, it sets the benchmark price in India's spot power market. But after coupling, all platforms will feed into a common price engine. IEX would then become just one of several bidding windows-stripped of the power to determine prices. Furthermore, in July 2025, IEX appealed against the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission's (CERC) order on market coupling. The appeal was filed with the Appellate Tribunal of Electricity (APTEL). IEX argues the order is arbitrary and contradicts power market norms. However, CERC had directed the phased implementation of market coupling from January 2026. Looking ahead, IEX seems well-placed to ride several positive trends. As more power buyers turn to market-based procurement and volumes grow in real-time and green energy segments, the company stands to gain. KFin Technologies Ltd KFin Technologies is a leading technology-based financial services platform. It offers diversified services to asset managers and corporate issuers across asset classes in India. The company also provides investor-based solutions from transaction origination to processing for mutual funds and private retirement schemes. It has a pan-India network of 182 service centres. Apart from a strong domestic presence, the company has a presence in 10 countries, including Malaysia, Hong Kong, and Middle Eastern countries. From its 52-week high of 1,640 on 30 December 2024, the stock is currently trading at 1,051 intraday on 7 October 2025, reflecting a decline of around 36%. The stock came under pressure following a weak June 2025 quarter, in which the company missed estimates on most parameters. Segment-wise, the domestic mutual fund business managed a modest 3% growth over the March quarter, while the issuer solutions and international solutions segments saw declines of 22% and 11%, respectively. Margins came under pressure across all three segments, with the steepest fall of 1,581 basis points in international solutions, followed by issuer solutions and the domestic mutual fund business, which contracted by 885 and 431 basis points, respectively. SIP live folios also declined 18.4% quarter-on-quarter, dropping from 43.4 million in March to 35.4 mn in June. Adding to the pressure, promoter stake has been steadily declining since December 2023, with the sharpest reduction seen between March and June 2025from 32.95% to 22.9%. Going forward, the company plans to invest in technology infrastructure to make it more agile and responsive to evolving customer needs. Conclusion According to Equitymaster's Capital Markets Sector Analysis Report, the Indian capital market is undergoing an exciting transformation, driven by strong growth, technological innovation, and shifts across various service sectors. The surge in demat accounts shows that more and more investors are getting involved, and savings are becoming increasingly financialized. This trend is expected to give a boost to capital market companies performance in the coming years, making the sector one to watch for the long term. However, investors should remain mindful of market volatility and regulatory changes that could impact short-term performance. Also Read | Sebi to review rule that disqualifies market participants over mere allegations Investors should evaluate the companys fundamentals, corporate governance, and stock valuations as key factors when conducting due diligence before making investment decisions. Happy Investing. Disclaimer: This article is for information purposes only. It is not a stock recommendation and should not be treated as such. Romance blooms in Yunnan as destination weddings drive local economy Xinhua) 08:47, October 11, 2025 A couple holds a destination wedding in Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture, southwest China's Yunnan Province, May 10, 2025. (Xinhua) KUNMING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Love was in full bloom beneath Lijiang's snowcapped Yulong Snow Mountain and along the glassy waters of Dali's Erhai Lake, both situated in southwest China's Yunnan Province, during the National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. As China celebrated its eight-day "golden week," couples from across the country flocked to picturesque tourist sites in Yunnan to say "I do" against the backdrop of mountain peaks and tranquil lakes, fueling a wave of destination weddings that lit up the province's growing romance economy. The trend of combining one of life's most cherished ceremonies with breathtaking scenery and diverse cultures is blending emotional value with affordability, giving new momentum to the province's tourism and services industries. "Exchanging vows under the eye of a snow-covered mountain is far more meaningful than a banquet hall wedding," said Chen Xing, who traveled from north China's Shanxi Province to tie the knot with his fiancee, Li Mengyuan, on Oct. 2. The ceremony they had long dreamed of took place on a grassland at the foot of Yulong Snow Mountain and 3,200 meters above sea level -- a setting as magical as it was memorable. Unlike conventional hometown weddings, destination weddings are a combination of travel and ceremony, merging nuptials with honeymoon experiences. And with its poetic landscapes and symbolic allure, Yunnan has naturally become one of China's most sought-after destinations for such events. During the recent eight-day holiday, the trend reached a fever pitch. In picturesque Dali and Lijiang, popular wedding venues neared a 100 percent booking rate, and some companies in the industry reportedly had to stop taking new orders due to overwhelming demand. "Since September, we've been in the peak season for destination weddings, preparing three to eight ceremonies a day during the holidays," said Qu Xiaowen, head of a Dali-based wedding company. Behind the boom is Yunnan's unique natural endowments and increasingly sophisticated industry ecosystem. "Yunnan carries a sense of romance," said Rao Xiangbi, deputy head of the Yunnan provincial department of culture and tourism. "From Erhai Lake and Dianchi Lake to the tropical rainforests in Xishuangbanna and the sacred Yulong Snow Mountain, every setting gives love a distinct expression." In Dali, the iconic Cangshan Mountain and Erhai Lake scenic areas have inspired the creation of more than 30 themed wedding packages, including lake-view ceremonies and traditional Bai-style courtyard weddings, backed by nearly 1,500 businesses offering wedding services from travel photography to accommodation. The rise of destination weddings also signals changing attitudes toward marriage among China's younger generations. Many couples are opting for lighter, more personal experiences over traditional banquet events that can be costly and overly formal. "Including our six family members and friends, our total cost was under 40,000 yuan (about 5,630 U.S. dollars). We arranged our wedding and travel at the same time -- it was perfect," said Liu Siqi, a bride from Yunnan's neighboring province of Sichuan. The booming trend is reshaping local services and creating new opportunities for small businesses. "My annual bridal makeup orders jumped from about 200 to nearly 1,000," said Wang Yihan, a makeup artist in Lijiang. "Prices have gone up several times, and the growth is creating opportunities for local beauty professionals." The expanding wedding economy is now also benefiting a wide range of related industries. Dali alone has more than 100 mature wedding businesses, supporting hundreds of partner enterprises supplying venues, accommodation, and photography and filming services. In 2024, Dali hosted over 5,000 destination weddings, provided travel photography services to 200,000 couples, and generated an industry output value of an estimated 1.8 billion yuan. As Dali and Lijiang continue to attract engaged couples and newlyweds from across China, Yunnan is branding itself as the country's premier destination for travel weddings. According to Rao, the province will continue strengthening its industry ecosystem and transform once-off sightseeing trips into "chain-style" emotional consumption, ensuring that love and the economy it fuels continue to flourish in the highlands of Yunnan. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) In the lead-up to Taylor Swifts twelfth studio album The Life Of A Showgirl , bakery chain Baked By Melissa released a special limited-edition set of cupcakes inspired by the worlds biggest pop star. It was one of many brand tie-ins and corporate activations that have accompanied the albums release, evidenceif any was neededthat Swift is a commercial juggernaut. The cupcakes, with packaging full of Swift-lore Easter eggs, come in two variantsvanilla, with either a teal" or orange" icing. I mention this little tidbit because it strikes me as a hilariously on-the-nose metaphor for Swifts music. The toppings might varyelectro-pop sheen on Midnights, indie-folk on Folklore, the hip-hop imbued Reputation. But at its core, the product remains the same: basic, risk-averse and unfailingly vanilla. Over the years, Americas Sweetheart has transformed into the girl-boss next door, but all these different eras and incarnations cannot hide the essential fact of Swifts corniness. This isnt necessarily a bad thing. Pop music has always held space for music thats pure cheesethink Stevie Wonders I Just Called To Say I Love You, or Celine Deons My Heart Will Go On. Swifts best music comes from the same place of open-hearted, deeply un-cool sincerity, whether shes writing about teenage love and heartbreak, or about being a wide-eyed small-town girl dealing with the trappings of fame. She has an uncanny knack for taking personal experience and turning it into something universally relatablean unlucky romantic whose music speaks directly to multiple generations of the everywoman. But in recent years, this approach has had diminishing creative returns, even if its more commercially successful than ever. 2022s Midnights was strictly so-so, even if pop critics largely responded with adulatory reviews. Last years The Tortured Poets Department was a sprawling, over-indulgent mess, more Rupi Kaur than Sylvia Plath. But that record still had some interesting twists and turns, and a sense of tender vulnerability that elevated its overwrought lyricism. The Life Of A Showgirl lacks even that. Its a record characterised by lacklustre mediocrity, 12 tracks of department-store muzak whose only saving grace is just how inoffensive they are. Despite the return of Swedish mega-producer Max Martin and Shellbackwho helped catapult Swift from country star to pop phenom, and produced some of her most iconic singlesthe album is sorely lacking in earworm hooks or undeniable melodies. Instead, we get breezy, easy-listening soft-rock, occasionally garnished with hip-hop percussion or neo-grunge guitar. The music is as crisp and polished as ever, but its also bloodlesslacking both the novelty and intensity that makes pop music so compelling. At its best, the production on here is aggressively banal. At worst, it comes across as tired pasticheActually Romantics guitar lines sound like theyve been directly lifted from The Pixies and Weezers back-catalogue, while Wood is Jackson 5s I Want You Back, but stripped of any actual sensuality. But the bigger problem here is Swifts songwriting, so much of which re-treads old ground, but less successfully than shes done before. The George Michael interpolating Father Figure returns to a favourite topicSwift as the plucky underdog, fighting back against an exploitative music industry. Except she is now a twice-over billionaire, the most powerful figure in pop music, and her oppsrecord label executives Scooter Braun, Scott Borchettahave already been resoundingly defeated. Given that context, the tracks triumphalism comes across as petty and immature (and its Mafia-themed heel-turn narrative is more than a little WTF). Similarly, Eldest Daughters complaints about online inauthenticityevery joke's just trolling and memes/ Sad as it seems, apathy is hot"come across as trite and clunky, a decade past their sell-by date. CANCELLED! is another low point, as Swift once again re-litigates her 2015 feud with Kanye West and Kim Kardashian and moans about the masked crusaders" who apparently tried to cancel her *checks notes* nine years ago. The prickliness is bad enough, but its also woefully out of touch to grandstand about cancel culture at a time when so many fellow Americans are facing much worse threats to their reputations and freedom of speech for just speaking their minds. The pettiness finds its apotheosis on Actually Romantic, a vicious takedown of a nameless pop rival (theres plenty of hints that its actually Charli XCX) who hates her so much that it comes across as love. Its playground bully stuff, Swift punching down on a younger, less successful popstar in response to a song thats actually more about Charlis own insecurities than about her at all. But the worst part is that the best put-down on the trackboring Barbie"is actually something she alleges Charli called her. Talk about a self-own. When shes not being thin-skinned, Swift turns her attention to love songs, with fiance Travis Kelce as her new muse. Theres the Shakespeare-cribbing The Fate Of Ophelia, which credits Kelce as saving her from sharing the Hamlet heroines tragic fate. Theres Opalite, a sweet but largely unremarkable track about the joys of finding love and stability after a tumultuous time. Theyre fun songs, among the albums few highlights, alongside the Sabrina Carpenter collab title track, though I will probably forget all about them by next week. But then theres Wood, an ode to Kelces penis that is deeply unsexy, with its lyrics about redwood trees and magic wands. I could spend another 800 words about just how god-awful this song is, especially coming from someone whos supposed to be pop musics premiere essayist and lyricist. But nothing I could come up with can compete with this zinger by Pitchforks Anna Gaca, who writes that the song has the spiritual energy of bachelorette-party penis decor." Ouch. For a decade and a bit, Taylor Swift has been nigh-on untouchable, thanks to her ability to find new ways to create a sense of parasocial intimacy with her fans, despite the increasing distance between her musical persona and her actual reality. On The Life Of A Showgirl, that gulf finally seems too big to bridge. Bhanuj Kappal is a Mumbai-based writer. Also Read | An insider's guide to eating in Bali Its a coincidence, says Amitabh Dube, country president and managing director of pharmaceutical company Novartis India, that his sons name is Abhishek. It was only later that we realised that, oh, we missed Jaya and Aishwarya in the family," he adds, grinning, in reference to the famous family in films. At the Chambers, on the 25th floor of the Taj Lands End in Mumbai, Dube is seated with his back to the large glass windows that face the ocean. The once uncluttered view of the sea, now diminished by the building blocks of an upcoming addition to the bridge over the sea, is still spectacular, though such a view is, ironically, rare in a city by the coast. We are a family of four mads," he says, referring to wife Anupama and daughter Avantika, who is headed to Singapore for an MBA, and how they all have the same initials (with honorifics). The 55-year-old, wearing a dark jacket and round glasses, has spent a lifetime in the volatile, complex world of the pharmaceutical industry. India is a major producer of generic medicines, vaccines and affordable drugs, working in a strong regulatory framework that tries to balance cost-effectiveness with quality. Its the worlds third largest pharmaceutical industry by volume, accounting for 20% of the global supply of generic drugs, according to data from the governments department of pharmaceuticals. Novartis, a global healthcare leader, which has maintained a presence in India since 1947, runs Novartis India Ltd, a publicly listed arm with a market cap of over 19.2 billion (FY25), alongside Novartis Healthcare Pvt Ltd. Novartis has hubs in Hyderabad and Mumbai for clinical development, research, regulatory affairs and safety monitoring. Its global capability centre in Hyderabadone of the largest in the countrysupports IT, manufacturing, and analytics worldwide. Im optimistic that next five years are going to be different from an access and landscape perspective," says Dube. Theres more receptiveness towards hearing an idea, and theres also strong execution. Over a period of time, well have more scope of coverage, a balance for innovative industry to flourish and a strong presence of the generic." Im not against the generic industry," he clarifies when asked about patent laws, lawsuits and debates over generic drugs. What I believe is that we should have high-quality generics along with innovators. That is why patent life comes in because patent life is time where innovators investments gets rewarded and helps them to invest further." Dube was raised in Varanasi, where his father was a professor of mechanical engineering at the Banaras Hindu University (BHU). The three of themincluding an older sister and younger brothergrew up in this academic environment, barring a few years spent in Birmingham, UK, where the senior Dube went for a PhD. Also Read | Sandeep Nailwal of Polygon Labs: One block at a time From an early age, Dube wanted to be a doctor, but qualified neither for medicine nor engineering. If you dont qualify for both, then youre a bit lost, wondering whats next for you," he says of the 1980s, when academic choices were fewer. His father was keen that he did not drop out, so he did a bachelors degree in science and a masters in biochemistry, both from BHU. He considered going to the US for a PhD, but didnt get a scholarship, so the doctorate got postponed. A job with the Swiss multinational healthcare company Hoffman-La Roche as a sales representative in Lucknow got him a foot into the pharma industry, with the intent of working for a short period of time before going back to academics. But once you start working," says Dube, you start enjoying it, I dont think theres a point of return after that." He also grew to love the job as the next best thing to practising medicine, and three decades later, the idea of a PhD remains a foggy memory. His job was to meet oncologists, which Dube did for a year-and-a-half in Lucknow from 1994. He got transferred to Delhi as Nicholas Piramal India Ltd acquired Roche Indias domestic formulations and nutrition business. The Delhi move came with the added responsibility of handling institutional and government businesses, which gave him the opportunity to work with policymakers. In the late 1990s, when Hoffman-La Roche returned to India with a tie-up with Nicholas Piramal, Dube became the new ventures fourth employee". His role was to work with government stakeholders to handle public affairs, launch Roches business through a distributor model in Nepal, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh and oversee scientific operations. I swam in areas where I was uncomfortable, dealing with government stakeholders, lobbying but the more you learn to swim in deep waters, the better a swimmer you become," he says. He performed multiple roles at Rochein operations, distribution, corporate affairsand worked in Lucknow, Delhi and Mumbai before moving in November 2010 to Novartis India as business unit head. His incentive in making the move was to create something strong in oncology", having witnessed the efficacy of Roches cancer drug Interferon and Novartis Gleevec. While Novartis was not as well-known as Roche in the oncology sector, what encouraged Dubes move was a patient-centric approach, a strong pipeline and the Asia-Pacific regional head Francis Bouchards mentorship. So he moved from Roche, with a roughly $60 million invested in oncology, to Novartis, with $5 million; from a team of 200-plus people working in oncology to 30 people." Im not attracted by the size of the business," he says. I am more attracted to what I can create over a period of time to transform, impact lives." Over the span of seven years, from No.7, Novartis became one of the biggest companies in oncology in India, says Dube. As the country head for oncology and head of marketing for Asia, Dube, based for a few months in Singapore, had the opportunity to travel to Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam and other parts of the region. In the middle of the lockdown in April 2020, he was offered a move to Vietnam as country head for oncology. The initial months, while India was already peaking in July-August in 2020, Vietnam had no masks (as they closed their borders quite early on), a normal life once outdoors," he says, in admiration of one of his favourite countries. In the two years he spent there, Dube grew to love the country, its people, strengthening his cultural adaptability, becoming the chair of the industry association in Vietnam before a return to India as country president came into reckoning. I ask him about the negative image of big pharma in public perception as a profit-chasing industry, an image also driven by popular culture of Hollywood movies like Sweet Girl (2021), which I had coincidentallyand unfortunatelyseen the previous evening. Some of the criticism of big pharma has also played out over the last five years, triggered by the pandemic, the vaccine and the global human tragedy. Dube gives the example of Gleevec which, he claims extends the lifespan of chronic myeloid leukaemia patients by 8-10 years. Today, people live 30 years with chronic myeloid leukaemia. Last year, we launched a third generation, which is a stamp inhibitor, where 50% of patients after four years of treatment will never require further treatment." This, he says, is only possible because they are able to constantly innovate. If we dont have that, we will never be able to fight the diseases. Theres always going to be a tussle between access and innovation," he says, mentioning the covid vaccine, because innovation is not going to happen so easily and its costly to innovate." When you look at science, theyve only been able to decode 5-10% of the diseases; theres still more which needs to be decoded," says Dube, also the president-elect of Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers of India (OPPI). His years spent in oncology gives him a perspective on why we have not been able to cure cancer. Its a disease which involves multiple pathways, he explains, adding that the immune system and human body are extremely complex. You find one way to stop a pathway, which multiplies the cancer cells, the cancer cells are smart enough to find another pathway to grow. So a cancer treatment requires multiple pathways, multiple treatments." Thats why theres so much importance and emphasis on health check-ups, because early diagnosis significantly improves outcomes for cancer treatment. But its such a complex disease that itll still take time and a huge amount of research to get potential better outcomes and cure for cancer," Dube adds. Novartis has about 12,000 associates who work in drug development, almost 2,500 based out of India. So all the clinical trials, protocols, evaluations, preparations, every pipeline molecule that is coming out has a touch point in Hyderabad, in the India operations. There are roughly a hundred active clinical trials for new drugs running in India, with 2,500 plus patients enrolled. Dube is an avid supporter of artificial intelligencebroadly digital interventionsbecause he believes over time, they will lead to faster diagnosis. When I started as a representative, I used to go to a doctor with a bulk of literature and give him printouts. Today, my rep goes with an iPad and he has all communications available. His efficiency is far more there.... AI is going to help us to fast-track research, innovation, diagnosis, with better outcome for patients. Thats why I believe AI is not going to be optional, its going to be mandatory. People with better AI skills will be more sought out in the years to come." Arun Janardhan is a Mumbai-based journalist who covers sports, business leaders and lifestyle. He posts @iArunJ. How important is it for visionary scientists and administrators to have the ear of their political masters? In the history of post-independent India, two events which played out over several years provide an answer. Verghese Kurien, a dairy engineer who crafted the white revolution from Gujarat and made India the largest producer of milk, could do so because he was able to sway policy in favour of cooperative dairy farmers. Kurien had unbridled access to successive prime ministers and could get what he needed promptly, bypassing the maze of bureaucracy. In his autobiography, I Too Had a Dream (2005), Kurien recalls an incident from 1970: Jagjivan Ram, the minister of agriculture and irrigation, wanted Kuriens help to set up a private dairy in his constituency of Sasaram in Bihar. But Kurien said his job entailed creating cooperative dairies, not a private venture. I will not do it," he told the minister curtly. Kurien soon realised he had committed a grave error. He was warned by well-wishers that the minister was a skilled politician and when he cut your throat you would not even realise it till your head rolled down." As expected, the minister directed that Kurien be removed as the chairman of Indian Dairy Corporation. Kurien had only one option left. He wrote to Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and sought a meeting with her. On hearing his plea, Indira Gandhi instructed the agriculture minister: Dont touch Kurien, leave him alone." Although I was in a small town (Anand in Gujarat), I always had access to all our Prime Ministers," Kurien wrote. The other event which exemplifies such patronage and trust were the years leading to the green revolution in the 1960s that turned India into a cereal-surplus nation, from being one acutely dependent on foreign food aid. In 1964, M.S. Swaminathan, an agriculture scientist at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Delhi, was looking to import 18,000 tonnes of seeds of Mexican dwarf wheat varieties developed by American agronomist Norman Borlaug. These were to be sown as part of a large-scale planting of high-yielding varieties. But it would cost precious foreign exchange. The plan was vociferously opposed by many in the government. But Swaminathan could execute his plan because of the support he received from C. Subramaniam, the agriculture minister, as well as Lal Bahadur Shastri, who was the Prime Minister between 1964-66. In fact, Swaminathan had quietly invited Shastri to visit trial fields at IARI. One visit was enough for Shastri to speedily approve Swaminathans plan to import the seeds. The food front today, Shastri said in a speech after his visit, is almost as vital as the military front. However, this was just the beginning. How India finally turned into a food secure nation, with Swaminathan being its chief architect, is a riveting story. View Full Image 'M.S. Swaminathan: The Man who Fed India': By Priyambada Jayakumar, HarperCollins India, 328 pages, 799. A new book, The Man who Fed India, by Priyambada Jayakumar traces the journey of Swaminathan in his centenary year. Jayakumar, a historian by training and Swaminathans niece, places her subject in the historical-political context of a yet-to-be independent India. After his father, an acclaimed doctor, Gandhian and social reformer who ran a rural hospital in Tamil Nadu passed away, a young Swaminathan was all set to become a doctor and take charge. But the devastating Bengal famine of 1943, which led to the death of at least four million people, shook him. He turned to agriculture instead. The book begins with a few errors: In the very second page, the birthplace of Swaminathan is mentioned as Kumbakonam, an idyllic temple town in Kerala". It should be Tamil Nadu. A sentence, on Mahatma Gandhis letter to the Maharaja of Travancore thanking him for allowing Dalit families to enter temples, is repeated. In an incident from Swaminathans childhood, the derogatory term street urchins" is used to describe his interaction with underprivileged children tormenting a lizard. But the next few chapters make for an engrossing read. After graduating in cytogenetics (the study of genetic information in cells) from IARI in 1949, Swaminathan was pushed by his family to appear for the prestigious civil services exam because agriculture sciences offered very few opportunities. He cleared the exam in the first attempt and was appointed to the Indian Police Service. Fortunately, around the same time, he received a fellowship to study plant genetics and research on potatoes in Holland. He accepted the offer, and a year later moved to England for a PhD at Cambridge (where he ended up spending hours slicing potatoes). After completing a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Wisconsin at Madison in the US, Swaminathan was offered the position of assistant professor with a generous pay. But the intrepid 28-year-old turned it down and returned home to fulfil a long-cherished dreamto rid India of hunger. That dream was fulfilled by collaborating with the Iowa-born scientist Borlaug, who had developed high-yielding, short-stemmed varieties of spring wheat. Borlaug, who won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1970, could empathise with Swaminathan. He grew up in abject poverty during the Great Depression years, struggling for a square meal a day. The miracle happened in 1968. Indias wheat production that year was so massive that schools closed earlier than usual for holidays and movie theatres were enlisted to store surplus grains. In 1971, the government declared that India was self-sufficient in food production. Prime Minister Indira Gandhi put an end to the humiliating PL-480 imports from the US (a 1954 initiative known as the Agricultural Trade Development and Assistance Act and the Food for Peace" programme, designed to export US agricultural surpluses to developing nations on concessional terms). The food surplus finally allowed Indira Gandhi to pursue an independent foreign policy: she oversaw the liberation of Bangladesh from Pakistan in 1971. In 1974, India conducted the first nuclear test in Pokhran, Rajasthan. India also provided a war-torn Vietnam with wheat, not caring that it infuriated the Americans. The next chapter of Swaminathans life began when he joined the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines as its first Asian director-general in 1981. In this role, Swaminathan helped multiple Asian countries ramp up research capabilities and production of rice. From helping China set up its first national rice research institute to Swaminathans visit to North Korea where he met complaining women farmers and the towering autocrat Kim Il-sung, Jayakumar unpacks these lesser-known years of Swaminathans life in great detail. It was during this stint that Swaminathan helped Cambodia turn a rice surplus country from being one on the brink of famine after the brutal years of Khmer Rouge dictatorship. After seven years at IRRI, Swaminathan returned to India to set up the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation in Chennai, which did pioneering work on preservation of coastal mangrove ecosystems, among others. Swaminathan was nearly 80 years old when he was appointed chairman of the National Commission on Farmers in 2004. The commissions primary task was to suggest ways to reform Indian agriculture and alleviate farm distress. One of its recommendations that farmers be paid a price which is 50% more than the comprehensive cost (also known as C2 cost) of cultivation is popularly known among farmers as the Swaminathan Formula". It continues to be a rallying cry at farmers protests to this day. Jayakumars book is a diligent record of Indias most impactful agriculture scientist till his death in 2023. But parts of it read like a eulogy and a tedious listicle of awards and tours. A few aspects from Swaminathans life deserved a deeper lookparticularly, the fact that the geneticist spoke contradictorily on the adoption of genetically modified or GM technology. Besides, what were Swaminathans thoughts on how to cure India of its cereal addiction (an undesired fallout of the green revolution) and its attendant impact on soil, water and air quality? Come to think of it, India is yet to acquire self-sufficiency in the true sense. After all, it is spending nearly 2 trillion every year to import cooking oils and pulses. The 25th edition of the Lakme Fashion Week, in collaboration with the Fashion Design Council of India (FDCI), is in full swing in Delhi, with over 20 designers showcasing ready-to-wear collections. Many of the collections presented so far have focused on giving traditional wear a contemporary touch while keeping comfort first. Here are some of the highlights from the fashion week, which concludes on 12 October. Also Read | Lakme Fashion Week x FDCI: Six collections to watch out for From Aseem Kapoor's 'Akaar' collection Inspired by Peru, Aseem Kapoor's collection, Akaar, included structured and free-flowing coats, dresses, skirts and jackets, in shades of terracotta, beige, ochre and azure. From Russian designer Fatima Shogenova's collection 'Amazon' Russian designer Fatima Shogenova, who's the founder of the label Hatsibana, presented her collection Amazon, as part of FDCIs ongoing designer exchange programme with the Russian Fashion Council. Shogenova's collection brought together art and fashion, translating bold brushstrokes and rich symbolism into structured wearable pieces including jackets with graphic prints and long dresses with delicate embroidery. From the Inca collection New Delhi: The power ministry has proposed a slew of reforms in the sector through a draft of amendments to the Electricity Bill, 2003. Among key proposals is giving more teeth to state electricity regulatory commissions to fix tariffs on their own and ending cross-subsidies. The proposals aim to plug mounting" losses in the power sector and boost economic growth. The ministry circulated the draft Electricity Amendment Bill 2025 on Thursday, seeking feedback from stakeholders within 30 days. Currently, power distribution companies propose power tariffs to the commission for a fiscal year. The ministry noted delays in revision by the discoms while proposing to give power to the regulator to revise tariffs. "Non-determination of tariffs before the beginning of the financial year has been resulting in mounting distribution sector losses. Currently, the Act does not explicitly authorize the Appropriate Commissions to determine tariffs on a suo moto basis before the financial year begins. The proposed amendment empowers the Appropriate Commissions to act suo moto, ensuring timely tariff determination, enhancing accountability," the ministry said. Also Read | Festive demand, tax cut power auto sales in September "This will ensure that revised tariffs are implemented from 1st April of each financial year, improving the overall financial discipline in the power sector," said the proposed draft amendment to the Electricity Act. The cumulative financial losses of discoms have crossed 6.9 trillion, the ministry said. Power tariff revisions have been a sensitive issue in the country as it impacts the common man's budget. Several state governments and political parties have resorted to subsidies and regular revisions are not common. In another move that may impact tariffs, the ministry has proposed a progressive reduction of cross-subsidies. It suggested that cross-subsidy with respect to manufacturing enterprises, railways, and metro railways will be fully eliminated within five years from the date of commencement of the Electricity (Amendment) Act, 2025. In the power sector, cross-subsidy is a mechanism where some consumers, typically industrial or commercial users, pay higher electricity tariffs to cover the costs of providing subsidized power to other consumer groups such as households and farmers. A note on the draft proposals said regulatory delays have weakened the sectors financial viability, while cross-subsidy-induced high industrial tariffs have impacted competitiveness and constrained economic growth. Industrial electricity tariffs in India remain considerably higher than those in developed countries such as the US and emerging economies like China, Vietnam and Indonesia. Discom privatization The ministry also revived its plans to open up India's power distribution sector and it is looking at allowing multiple discoms to cater to a single area through the existing distribution infrastructure. This will allow private firms to enter electricity distribution, a domain dominated by state-run companies. The Act currently permits parallel licensees to supply electricity in the same supply area, but with their own network, which can potentially lead to duplication of distribution networks. Currently in specific regions, only one discom operates. "To address this issue, the proposed amendment explicitly mandates non-discriminatory open access to the existing distribution network. This ensures that multiple suppliers can efficiently utilize the existing infrastructure, eliminating redundancy and reducing overall infrastructure costs," the ministry said. A similar attempt was made by the government in 2022. However, the draft amendment was later put on the backburner amid opposition from some states and power sector employee unions. This framework will optimize resource utilization, improve service quality, and contribute to delivering more affordable and reliable electricity to end users," the draft amendment said. Tata Power, Adani Group, Torrent Power and RP-Sanjiv Goenka Groups CESC Ltd are the major private players currently operating in this space. India has about 67 discoms, including 16 run by the private sector in Delhi, Mumbai, Odisha, West Bengal, Gujarat and Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The proposed reforms come at a time when the government is looking at privatization of state discoms as these utilities are financially stressed. From India witnessing continued foreign portfolio investment (FPI) outflows amid global economic uncertainties, Delhi enjoying a respite from pollution thanks to rains and reduced stubble burning, concerns over long commute times to Mumbais newly inaugurated airport, to new research highlighting the carb overload in Indian dietsheres a roundup of this weeks news in numbers. External troubles The Indian economy continues to feel the strain of global headwinds. Foreign portfolio investors have persisted in withdrawing from Indian equities, with 4,497 crore pulled out in the first nine days of October. This follows 23,885 crore worth of withdrawal in September and 34,993 crore in August. Overall, India has seen FPI outflows in seven of the past 10 months, totalling nearly 2 trillion this year, reflecting sustained investor caution. Economists note that the sharp valuation premium of Indian equities compared to other emerging markets has become a key concern. Capital respite Delhiites got some relief from pollution this week, thanks to extended monsoon showers and a decline in stubble burning in neighbouring agricultural states. The air quality index (AQI) dropped to 81 on 8 October, down from 120-130 at the start of the month, according to data from the Central Pollution Control Board. Farm fires, arguably a major contributor to Delhis pollution, fell sharply across Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, and Madhya Pradesh due to rains and tighter enforcement by authorities. Data from the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) showed stubble burning cases dropped nearly 65% year-on-year between 15 September and 5 October, Mint reported. Distance dilemma Mumbai got its newest airport in Navi Mumbai on Wednesday, raising hopes of relief from the congestion at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport, the countrys second-busiest airport. Phase 1 of the Navi Mumbai International Airport is expected to become operational in December. Built under a public-private partnership (PPP) between the Maharashtra government and the Adani Group, the airport was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Also Read | Navi Mumbai Airport promises relief for Mumbai flyersif they can reach it However, its distance from key parts of Mumbai is raising concerns. Residents of densely populated western suburbs such as Borivli and Goregaon could face travel times of over two hours during evening rush hours, compared with roughly one hour to the current Mumbai airport, according to Google Maps estimates. Numbers talk: 6.5%: The World Banks latest GDP forecast for India for 2025-26, up from 6.3% in June. The multilateral organization has cited better-than-expected agricultural output and rural wage growth, and cuts to goods and services tax rates (GST) to keep the momentum in economic activity going. 60.9: Indias services Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) for September, moderating from 62.9 in August. Even with the slight slowdown, the index stayed above 60 for the fourth consecutive month, reflecting continued business expansion and robust demand momentum. 24,634 crore: The value of four multi-tracking railway projects approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on 7 October. Spanning 18 districts across Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Chhattisgarh, these projects will add nearly 894 km to the Indian Railways network. 1,000 crore: The amount raised by Adani Enterprises from the corporate debt market on Tuesday, via a short-term bond issue, Mint reported. The issue included 300 crore for anchor investors and 700 crore for bidding. Funds were mobilised through privately placed bonds maturing on 24 March 2028. $3-4 billion: The amount BP Plc could invest in Indias oil and gas exploration & production in the coming three to four years, along with partners Reliance Industries and state-run ONGC, the companys India head, Kartikeya Dube, said in an interview with Mint. Auto bump-up? Automakers are counting on festival demand and last months goods and services tax (GST) rate cuts to boost sales, after prospective buyers had delayed purchases in anticipation of the tax reductions. Early signs of a revival are already visible: vehicle registrations rose 5.2% year-on-year in September, driven by two-wheelers (6.5%) and passenger cars (5.8%), according to the Federation of Automobile Dealers Associations. Also Read | Festive demand, tax cut power auto sales in September An analysis of historical data by Mint shows the significance of the festival season for automakers. Sales during the months of Navratra and Diwali have grown 20-25% compared to the prior two months, in the last three years. Carb overload Indians get more than 62% of their daily calories from carbohydrates, mostly from low-quality refined sources such as white rice, milled grains, and added sugars, a study published in Nature Medicine found. Protein intake, meanwhile, accounts for only 12% of total caloriesbelow the recommended threshold of 15%. The study noted that individuals deriving over 56% of their calories from carbohydrates, regardless of grain type, face a 14-30% higher risk of developing cardiometabolic diseases such as diabetes, obesity and hypertension, highlighting dietary imbalance as a growing public health concern in India. India and Canada will look to establish a framework for "strategic" cooperation in trade, energy and security during Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand's visit to New Delhi beginning Sunday. Anand will hold wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal focusing on boosting bilateral ties in a range of areas, officials told PTI. India will be Anand's first stop in her three-nation tour that includes Singapore and China. Also Read | Multiple shootings in Canada: Lawrence Bishnoi gang claims responsibility In New Delhi, Anand will meet Jaishankar and Goyal, as "both countries move toward establishing a framework for strategic cooperation on issues such as trade diversification, energy transformation and security", a Canadian readout said, as per the publication. "Minister Anand will also travel to Mumbai, India, where she will meet with Canadian and Indian firms working to support investment, job creation and economic opportunity in Canada and India," it said. The Canadian foreign minister's trip to India comes over three weeks after Canada's National Security Advisor Nathalie Drouin visited India and held extensive talks with his Indian counterpart Ajit Doval. Days after the Doval-Drouin meeting, Canada designated the Lawrence Bishnoi gang as a terrorist entity for "violently targeting" certain communities and creating a "climate of fear and intimidation". The renewed vibrancy in the ties between the two countries followed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's talks with his Canadian counterpart Mark Carney on the margins of the G7 summit at Canada's Kananaskis in June. Renewed friendship following period of tension The India-Canada relations hit rock bottom following then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's allegations in 2023 of a potential Indian link to the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar. India had dismissed Trudeau's accusation as "absurd". In October last year, India recalled its high commissioner and five other diplomats after Ottawa attempted to link them to the Nijjar case. India also expelled an equal number of Canadian diplomats. However, Liberal Party leader Carney's victory in the parliamentary election in April helped in beginning the process to reset relations. Both sides have already posted their high commissioners in each other's capitals. The two countries also agreed to revive several mechanisms to advance relations in a range of areas. Singapore, China agenda In Singapore, Anand will meet her Singaporean counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan, to further strengthen Canada's cooperation with "one of its most important partners" in Southeast Asia, the Canadian readout said. In China, she will meet Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi to continue engagement on the bilateral relationship as Canada and China mark 55 years of establishing diplomatic ties, it said. "This meeting builds on the commitment made by Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Premier of China, Li Qiang, to regularise channels of communication between the two countries," it said. The Supreme Court on Friday reserved its verdict on whether to ease the complete ban on firecrackers in the DelhiNational Capital Region during Diwali, by allowing the use of green crackers, as reported by LiveLaw. A bench of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran reserved its order and said it will decide on relaxing the absolute ban on firecrackers in Delhi-NCR. The bench noted, For the time being, we will allow it during the five days of Diwali on a trial basisHowever, we will confine it to certain time limits. Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta, appearing for Delhi-NCR and Haryana, requested the Bench to lift the restrictions put on crackers. He requested the apex court to allow the bursting of green firecrackers between 8 pm and 10 pm on Diwali. On Christmas and New Year's Eve - between 11.45 pm and 12.30 am, and for one hour on Gurpurab, he said. The Solicitor General further stated that PESO and NEERI will periodically inspect the manufacture of crackers and ensure that only approved green fire formulations are sold in the market. SG said only the green cracker approached by NEERI shall be permitted, ANI reported. Joint crackers are not manufactured, sold and used in the NCR, he said, adding that sales shall be through licensed traders and the selling shall be through permitted manufacturers only. He said that manufacturers shall mention the quantity and details of green crackers. Mehta also suggested that e-commerce websites like Amazon and Flipkart should not accept online orders or facilitate any online sale of green crackers. Amicus Curiae senior advocate Aparajita Singh, who was assisting the bench in the matter, expressed concern over fake green crackers being sold under false labels, which continued to use polluting chemicals. During the hearing, the apex court also inquired whether there had been any improvement in the AQI from 2018 to 2024. Mehta said it remained the same, except during the COVID-19 lockdown period, the AQI improved. On September 26, the top court allowed the manufacturing of green firecrackers in Delhi, subject to the condition that they will not be sold in the NCR. The apex court was hearing a case related to air pollution in the National Capital Region Amid an outrage over the alleged gang-rape of a medical college student in Durgapur district of West Bengal, the state police on Saturday urged people not to spread rumors and said the culprits will not go unpunished. In a social media post on X, West Bengal Police said: We are deeply saddened by the late night sexual assault yesterday on a private medical college student , outside the college campus in Durgapur, and wish to assure all that the culprits shall not go unpunished. The pain of the victim is as much ours as it is Odisha's, and we shall leave no stones unturned to bring the perpetrators to justice, the police said. The victim is recovering well and all kinds of assistance are being provided to the family. We urge everyone to refrain from sharing any unverified information in this regard. West Bengal Police remains committed to its zero tolerance policy in respect of offences against women, they added. The Bengal gang-rape A medical college student from Odisha was allegedly raped by unidentified men in the Paschim Bardhaman district of West Bengal, police reported on Saturday. The victim, who hails from Jaleswar, is a second-year student at a private medical college in Durgapur. Her family members stated that the incident occurred outside the college campus on Friday night when she went out for dinner with one of her friends. Her mother alleged that the assault, which she described as a gang-rape, took place around 10 pm. "We came here this morning and lodged a complaint with the police. I had heard that the college performed well academically, and this is why we sent our daughter to study medicine here," the student's father said. Investigation and Timeline The state police have since launched an investigation into the matter. An officer from the New Township Police Station in Durgapur revealed that the initial probe suggests the student and her friend left the campus earlier, between 8 pm and 8.30 pm on Friday. It was also revealed that the accused individuals demanded money from the student for the return of her mobile phone. The survivor is currently undergoing treatment at the college hospital and has given her statement to the police, an officer confirmed. Her parents travelled to Durgapur on Saturday morning after being contacted by their daughter's friends. Abhishek Gupta, DC (East) of Durgapur Commissionerate, issued a brief statement: The matter is sensitive. The investigation is being conducted with all aspects in mind. As soon as more information is available, it will be shared. "The friend left her alone when three unidentified men arrived there. The men snatched her phone and took her to a jungle outside the campus, where they raped her. She was threatened with dire consequences if she told anyone about the incident," the officer said. "We spoke to the victim's friend last night. We are trying to find out CCTV footage. A forensic team will visit the spot to collect evidence," the officer said. The Enforcement Directorate's Kochi unit on October 10 questioned Muthoot Group MD, George Alexander Muthoot, in an investigation related to alleged money laundering and investor fraud, PTI reported, citing official sources. The sources added that the central investigative agency summoned George Alexander Muthoot to the ED's office in Kochi to depose, and recorded his statement in the case. The Kochi zonal unit of the ED has filed a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), based on a number of FIRs lodged by the Kerala Police, following complaints that branch managers at Muthoot Finance mispresented investment options for customers. ED probe into PMLA allegations at Muthoot Finance: What we know According to FIRs filed by the Kochi Police, complainants alleged that the accused (branch managers of Muthoot Finance), lured investors into certain fixed deposits (FDs) and non-convertible debentures (NCDs) promising 8-12 per cent returns. They added that the accused then diverted the funds to a company named Srei Equipment Finance Limited. Sources told PTI that the accused misrepresented Srei Equipment Finance, as a sister concern of the group, as per the report. Investors said this alleged fraud led to non-repayment of funds upon maturity and claimed that they were cheated. RBI imposes monetary penalty on Muthoot FinCorp In an unrelated matter, the Reserve Bank of India on September 26 imposed a 2.7 lakh penalty on Muthoot FinCorp for non-compliance with certain norms on Internal Ombudsman, PTI said in another report. The central bank said that this was based on the statutory inspection conducted as of March 31, 2024. The company was asked to show cause as to why a penalty should not be imposed for failure to comply with directions. RBI said Muthoot FinCorp failed to establish a system of auto escalation of complaints that were partly or wholly rejected by the companys internal grievance redress mechanism to its Internal Ombudsman. The central bank, however, said that the penalty is based on deficiencies in regulatory compliance and is not intended to pronounce upon the validity of any transaction or agreement entered into by the company with its customers. China's factories open doors as industrial tourism gains steam People's Daily Online) 15:00, October 11, 2025 A coffee shop is seen during the soft opening at the industrial park rebuilt from the old factory area of Tianjin No. 1 Machine Tool Co., Ltd. in north China's Tianjin, Jan. 3, 2024. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue) Once off-limits to anyone but authorized staff, factory workshops are now turning into high-tech wonderlands for curious young visitors. Since opening to the public in April 2024, Chinese tech giant Xiaomi's automobile factory in Beijing has attracted over 150,000 people to sign up for visits, with an average of more than 10,000 visitors each month as of the first half of this year. According to data released by online travel agency Ctrip, during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, educational tours centered on high-tech and heavy industry emerged as a surprise hit. Interest in aerospace and automotive manufacturing tours accounted for more than 20 percent of the market. Inside the Xiaomi automobile factory, industrial robots swivel and assemble car components with remarkable precision, while autonomous mobile robotics logistics vehicles glide along their designated routes. At the center of the exhibition area, the armored cage frame of the Xiaomi SU7 appears to float in midair like a piece of futuristic art, instantly drawing every visitor's gaze. "It's amazing just like walking onto the set of a sci-fi movie!" said one visitor. Designated as one of Beijing's industrial tourism demonstration sites for 2024, the factory offers an immersive experience that blends research and development, production, and visitor interaction. Powered by 419 industrial robots, 304 vision systems and 94 logistics robots, it presents a vivid showcase of intelligent manufacturing in action. During the summer vacation, more than 1,000 teenagers visited CRRC Changchun Railway Vehicles Co., Ltd. to explore its high-speed train manufacturing base. Li Ke from the company's modern services division stated that key areas, such as the metro assembly line, are now open to the public. The open space spans over 60,000 square meters and attracts more than 3,000 visitors annually for educational tours. According to Liu Boying, an associate professor at the School of Architecture, Tsinghua University, industrial tourism is a new form of travel that combines industrial aesthetics with science education. It makes technology tangible and accessible through real-world industrial settings. At the Luobawang Luosifen Industrial Park in Liuzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, fully automated production lines hum with activity as they mix, sterilize and seal packets of river snail rice noodles that roll steadily off the line. After the tour, visitors can head to a self-service restaurant to pick ingredients, mix sauces and cook their own bowls. "We've turned the factory into a tourist attraction by adding a river snail rice noodle exhibition center, a self-service restaurant and an exhibition zone for creative cultural products," said Zhou Wenling of Guangxi Luobawang Cultural Tourism Development Co., Ltd. This shift from simple factory tours to immersive and hands-on experiences is also gaining clear policy support. In February, Beijing sought public input on promoting the high-quality development of industrial tourism and proposed several themed routes. Yantai in east China's Shandong Province has proposed creating a route featuring gold-mining experiences, tours of ancient gold towns, themed performances and craft workshops. Zhang Hui, director of the Modern Tourism Research Institute at Beijing Jiaotong University, noted that young travelers increasingly favor personalized, immersive experiences over simple sightseeing. They use travel to express their individuality and lifestyle. Industrial tourism that integrates local culture with interactive experiences meets this demand perfectly. By the end of 2024, China had designated 122 national industrial tourism demonstration bases, 232 national industrial heritage sites and 10 heritage tourism bases, covering urban leisure, factory tours, museum exhibits and heritage sites. Industrial tourism is evolving from traditional heritage visits to more diverse and interactive modern formats. China had more than 1,200 industrial tourism enterprises as of early 2024, with the market projected to exceed 100 billion yuan ($14 billion) by 2030, according to an industrial tourism research and forecast report covering the period from 2023 to 2028. (Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met with the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of global chipmaker Qualcomm, Cristiano R Amon, where they discussed India's strides in AI, innovation and skilling. The prime minister lauded the company's commitment towards Indias semiconductor and AI missions, and said in an X post that India offers unmatched talent and scale to build technologies that will shape our collective future. Amon himself posted on X about the meeting, wherein he thanked Modi for fostering a broader partnership between @Qualcomm and India in support of the IndiaAI and India Semiconductor Missions, as well as the transition to 6G. We are encouraged by the opportunities to develop an Indian ecosystem across AI smartphones, PCs, smart glasses, auto, industrial and more, he also said. Also Read | China goes all in on US trade battle, with Qualcomm in the crosshairs The US chipmaker's CEO's meeting with the Indian prime minister comes in the wake of China initiating an investigation into the company over its acquisition of Israel's Autotalks, Reuters reported. China's State Administration for Market Regulation said the probe would look at whether Qualcomm violated China's antitrust law by not lawfully declaring some details in its acquisition of the Israeli chip designer. Qualcomm CEO on 6G and AI Amon believes 6G is the connectivity the world will require in the age of AI. In an interview with NDTV, Amon said, "We started with 2G... 3G was about connecting to the Internet, 4G was about broadband and making the phone into a computer, 5G was about making sure that everyone could have unlimited data rates... 6G is the connectivity for the age of AI." During the conversation, he also mentioned India's connectivity and smartphones and the mobile Internet, and said that he believes the same approach is needed with artificial intelligence. We should be working very hard to democratise this technology and make sure that everyone has access to it.., he said. Regarding his meeting with Modi, Amon told the publication that he is always inspired by the Prime Minister. Qualcomm's expanding business in India The US chipmaker has been in India for around two decades, and are now expanding their business in the country beyond smartphone chipsets. Now XR and smartglasses are expected to be their main focus going forward. IndiGo has announced the launch of a new daily, direct air service connecting Delhi and Guangzhou, China, which is scheduled to commence on 10 November 2025. The route will be serviced by the airline's Airbus A320 aircraft. This move follows confirmation from India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) earlier this month regarding the official resumption of direct flights between the two nations. Air travel on this corridor had previously been suspended following the COVID-19 pandemic and the Doklam standoff. The Chinese Embassy further reinforced this commitment to strengthening development ties, with a spokesperson confirming the continuation of resumed flight operations. Also Read | IndiGo receives 20 lakh DGCA notice over pilot training compliance issue IndiGo stated that it is amongst the first carriers to restart services between India and China following the recent suspensions. Highlighting its expanding strategy in the region, the airline also noted its previously announced daily service between Kolkata and Guangzhou, which is due to begin on 26 October 2025. Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales at IndiGo, said: "We are pleased to enhance our connectivity to China with daily direct flights between Delhi and Guangzhou, in addition to the recently resumed route from Kolkata. The resumption of operations between two of the world's most populous nations presents immense potential for cultural exchange and economic collaboration." "With this launch, IndiGo connects China to its vast domestic and growing international network, via Guangzhou. We are confident that this will contribute towards the acceleration of opportunities in trade, investment, tourism, and even education between the two countries, while reinforcing our commitment to connect India to the world," he added. Flight Schedule & Tickets The flight schedule indicates that the outbound service from Delhi is scheduled to depart at 21:45 and arrive in Guangzhou at 04:40 the following morning. The corresponding return flight is scheduled to leave Guangzhou at 05:50, landing back in Delhi at 10:10. Tickets for the new Delhi-Guangzhou route are now available to purchase via the IndiGo website. Delhi-Hanoi Flights In a further expansion of its international network, IndiGo also announced the launch of daily direct flights between Delhi and Hanoi, Vietnam, beginning on 20 December 2025. This service, also operated by an Airbus A320, connects India's capital to one of Southeast Asia's key cultural and business destinations. The opposition on Saturday termed the absence of female journalists from a press conference of visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi "unacceptable" and an "insult to women", and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the "emptiness" of his slogans on Nari Shakti. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack on Prime Minister Modi over the absence of female journalists from the presser, saying by allowing "exclusion" of women scribes from a public forum, the prime minister is telling every woman in India that he is "too weak to stand up for them". Gandhi also said that Modi's silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the "emptiness" of his slogans on Nari Shakti. In a post on X, Gandhi said, "Mr. Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them." "In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti," the Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha said. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said if the prime minister's recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, how has this "insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country". The Congress said it was shocking and unacceptable that the government of India agreed to the "ban on female journalists" at the presser in Delhi. In a post on X, Congress general secretary in-charge communications, Jairam Ramesh, said, "(Tali)ban on female journalists in India. Shocking and unacceptable that the Govt of India agreed to it -- and that too in New Delhi on the eve of the International Day of the Girl Child." Priyanka Gandhi asked Modi to clarify his position on the absence of women journalists from Muttaqi's press conference, and described the incident as an "insult to some of India's most competent women". "Prime Minister @narendramodi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India," she said on X. "If your recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, how has this insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride," Priyanka Gandhi said. The press conference addressed by Muttaqi on Friday saw participation restricted to a handful of reporters, while women journalists were conspicuous by their absence. Muttaqi held the interaction at the Afghan embassy in New Delhi, hours after holding wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. PTI reported that the decision on inviting journalists to the media interaction was taken by Taliban officials accompanying the foreign minister. People familiar with the matter told PTI that the Indian side suggested to the Afghan side that women journalists should be part of the invitees for the event. In a post on X, former home minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said, "I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan." "In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited)," Chidambaram said. Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra also slammed the government on the issue. "The government has dishonoured every single Indian woman by allowing the Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from his presser. Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites," she said on X. Moitra even attached a video with his X post wherein she slammed the male journalists present at the venue for allegedly not protesting. Another Trinamool MP, Sagarika Ghose, claimed the Narendra Modi government again "reveals its failure to evolve a foreign policy in which engagement is separated from endorsement". "Women journalists being excluded from the #Taliban press conference in Delhi is UNACCEPTABLE and HATEFUL. This is not oh-so-smart 'geostrategic diplomacy', it is a surrender by the weak, failed Narendra Modi coalition government," she said on X. RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha said that by not allowing women journalists to attend the press conference of the Taliban foreign minister, India has compromised its own moral and diplomatic standing. "This is not just a procedural lapse but a symbolic surrender of India's long-cherished commitment to equality, freedom of the press, and gender justice. "For a country that has prided itself on being the world's largest democracy and a champion of women's participation in every sphere, this incident is deeply disappointing and politically short-sighted," Jha said in a post on X. "It sends out the wrong message to Indian women and the global community that convenience has triumphed over conviction. Jai Hind," he added. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Priyanka Chaturvedi said in an X post, "No women journalists invited for the presser (because of Taliban beliefs). The Bamiyan Buddhas (destroyed by Taliban) were the backdrop at the presser. "The messaging of the 'Emirates of Afghanistan' as recognised as of yesterday by the Indian government. Truly ironic," she said. Congress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate asked why did the Modi government agree to this "men-only" "Talibani diktat". "How weak are you @DrSJaishankar and @narendramodi," Shrinate asked. The Congress on its official X handle said women journalists were barred from Taliban Foreign Minister Muttaqi's press conference on Indian soil. "This is not just about one event. It reflects the utter disregard for women's dignity that has become normal under the Modi government. When the world looks to India, a democracy built on equality, what message are we sending by allowing such discrimination to take place here? "We demand answers from the Modi government. How can they let anyone disrespect women on our soil? Or is this the government's own vision for women's silence, exclusion, and submission? "How weak are you, @DrSJaishankar and @narendramodi, that you cannot even defend the basic dignity of Indian women in your own country," the party asked. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, "I understand the geopolitical compulsions that force us to engage with the Taliban, but to accede to their discriminatory and plain primitive mores is outright ridiculous, it's very disappointing to note the conduct of the @MEAIndia and @DrSJaishankar in excluding women journalists from the press briefing of the Taliban Minister." Kerala Agriculture Minister P Prasad on Saturday claimed the growing menace of wild boars destroying crops could be tackled more effectively if people were allowed to consume their meat. Speaking at a programme organised by the Paalamel village panchayat in this coastal district, Prasad said the existing central law, however, does not permit it. "In my opinion, people should be allowed to eat the meat of wild boars killed in agricultural fields," he claimed, as per a PTI report. "If people have the permission to kill wild boars and eat their meat, the issue can be resolved much faster. But the current law does not allow this," he added, as per the publication. The minister also pointed out that the wild boar is not an endangered species. Prasad's remarks came days after the Kerala Assembly passed a bill to amend the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, aimed at reducing the increasing incidents of human-animal conflict in the state. Human-animal conflict a rising issue in Kerala Human-animal conflict is one of the urgent issues the Kerala government needs to tackle. As per a report by the Kerala government, Due to a combination of factors like abandoned farmlands, massive accumulation of garbage, behaviour of species involved (generalists) and their breeding success, conflict creating species like wild boar, bonnet macaque, peafowl, etc., which were hitherto confined to forest fringes, have migrated to these new habitats and started successfully breeding there. These new habitats are areas far-removed from forest fringes, the report also notes. The wild boar menace in Kerala A report by The Hindu in early 2025 claimed that 243 panchayats spanning 54 legislative Assembly constituencies in Kerala were seeing wild boars damaging crops and ruining livelihoods of farmers. These areas are spread across 11 districts. A rubber-tapper the publication spoke to said, People have practically stopped cultivating tapioca and pineapple, leaving large swathes of agricultural land untended and overgrown. Most have abandoned replanting rubber in their small holdings, given that wild boars have acquired a newfound taste for the saplings and bark." The outlet spoke to the state's Forest Minister A K Saseendran, who laid the blame on the Centre by saying that this problem is aggravating because of the Centre's reluctance to label boars as vermin. The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) on Friday busted an International gold smuggling syndicate at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International (CSMI) Airport, Mumbai, following an intelligence-led operation code-named Operation Golden Sweep. The operation led to the arrest of 13 individuals in total, which included foreign nationals, airport staff and the alleged mastermind. The DRI also seized 10.488 kg of 24 karat foreign-origin gold, valued at approximately 12.58 crore from the accused people. What was their modus operandi? Investigations revealed that a trans-national syndicate was using the Mumbai airport as a transit point. The syndicate employed transit passengers flying from Dubai to destinations like Singapore, Bangkok, and Dhaka via Mumbai acting as carriers. These carriers adopted a highly discreet concealment method where gold hidden in egg-shaped wax capsules were placed inside their bodies, an official press release said. Also Read | Brazilian police expand program to trace gold from illegal Amazon mines, nab smugglers A key element of the syndicate's modus operandi involved using airport staff. Upon arrival in Mumbai, the transit passengers would discreetly hand over the smuggled gold to complicit airport staff within the international departure area. The staff would then illicitly removed the smuggled gold from the airport premises, delivering it to handlers and receivers who were linked to the mastermind, the release noted. Who all were arrested? The syndicate was found to be operated by masterminds based in both Mumbai and Dubai who in turn employed transit passengers, airport staff, handlers and multiple receivers. Among those arrested include: Two Bangladeshi nationals. Six Sri Lankan nationals. Two airport staff who were working for a meet-and-greet service. Two handlers. The alleged mastermind based in Mumbai. The agency noted that the case also highlights the growing insider threat within sensitive infrastructure, where organised syndicates attempt to exploit transit routes and airport personnel for illegal monetary gain. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday launched two major agricultural schemes PM Dhan Dhaanya Krishi Yojana and Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses with a combined financial outlay of 35,440 crore. Modi made the announcements during a special Krishi programme, and asserted that these schemes are designed to transform the lives of millions of farmers in India by focusing on the country's self-reliance and the welfare of farmers. "Today, on this historic day, two important new schemes are being launched for the country's self-reliance and the welfare of farmers. First, the Pradhan Mantri Dhan Dhanya Krishi Yojana and the Dalhan Atmanirbharta Mission. These two schemes will transform the fortunes of millions of farmers in India. The government is going to spend more than 35,000 crore on these schemes," PM Modi said. What are the new agricultural schemes? Pradhan Mantri Dhan Dhaanya Krishi Yojana: With an outlay of 24,000 crore, the scheme aims to boost agricultural productivity, encourage crop diversification and sustainable agriculture practices. The scheme also seeks to enhance post-harvest storage at the panchayat and block levels. It aims at improving irrigation facilities and ensuring availability of long-term and short-term credit in 100 selected districts. Also Read | How will GST cuts impact the middle class Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses Allocation of 11,440 crore is dedicated to achieving self-reliance in pulse production. This mission aims to increase the productivity levels and expand the cultivation area for pulses. It also focuses on strengthening the entire value chain, covering essential components such as procurement, efficient storage, and processing all while working to minimise post-harvest losses. The two schemes, already approved by the Cabinet, will be implemented from the upcoming rabi (winter) season till 2030-31. GST reforms bring economic relief Meanwhile, the Prime Minister also highlighted the direct economic relief delivered to India's farmers and rural families through Goods and Services Tax (GST) reforms. He noted that these reforms have reduced the cost of agricultural equipment and other essential items. The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Ashok Kumar Pal, an aide of Reliance Group Chairman Anil Ambani in connection with a money laundering case against Reliance Power, officials in the know told HT Media on Saturday. Ashok Kumar Pal is the Chief Financial Officer and a former director of Reliance Power. He has been accused of being part of the company's alleged fake bank guarantee money laundering case. The Reliance Power CFO has been arrested and taken into custody under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), officials said on the day. The arrest stems from an ED investigation against the Anil Ambani group of companies including Reliance Power in a 17,000 crore bank fraud case. Also Read | Reliance Power share price jumps over 14% amid strong volumes What did Reliance Power say on Ashok Kumar Pal's arrest? Reliance Power said that Ashok Kumar Pal has demitted the office of the company's Executive Director and CFO with immediate effect. In an exchange filing on 11 October, Reliance Power said, the Company and its subsidiaries acted bonafidely and are a victim of fraud, forgery and cheating conspiracy. In this matter, Shri Ashok Kumar Pal, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer(CFO) of the Company has been arrested by ED in the night of October 10, 2025 under Section 19 of PMLA, 2002. The company further noted, Pending the ongoing matter and in order to assist the investigation, Shri Ashok Kumar Pal has demitted the office of Executive Director and CFO with immediate effect. We also wish to clarify on the media reports that Mr. Anil D. Ambani is not on the Board of Reliance Power Limited for more than 3.5 years and is not concerned with this matter in any manner. Read full statement here ED raids The Enforcement Directorate started its search operations at more than 35 premises across Mumbai and Delhi on Thursday, 24 July 2025, as part of the agency's money laundering investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) into the Reliance Group of Companies. Multiple media reports suggested that ED-conducted raids on Thursday were in connection with an alleged 3,000-crore bank loan fraud involving Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Group of Companies and Yes Bank. Preliminary investigation reveals illegal loan diversion of around 3,000 crore from Yes Bank (period 2017 to 2019). ED said it has found that "just before the loan was granted, the Yes Bank promoters received money in their concerns. In violation of the loan terms, the officials said, these loans were further diverted to many group companies and shell companies. It was also informed that "Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is also learnt to have shared its findings with ED in the case of RHFL." "Dramatic increase in corporate loans by RHFL, from 3,742.60 crore in Financial Year 2017-18 to 8,670.80 crore in Financial Year 2018-19 is also under ED lens. Issues of irregular and expedited approvals, process deviations many other illegalities have been found," added the officials. Who is Ashok Kumar Pal? According to the website of Reliance Power, Ashok Kumar Pal is the CFO of the company and a qualified Chartered Accountant with extensive hands-on experience of over 25 years. Ashok Kumar Pal has been with Reliance Power for nearly eight years, and joined around the time when the alleged money laundering operations started. Taliban Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, on 11 October, visited the Darul Uloom Deoband seminary, a prominent Islamic seminary in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur. Muttaqi is on a six-day visit to India. Muttaqi was welcomed by thousands of people clerics, Islamic scholars, and students at the historic seminary. The seminary administration made elaborate arrangements to welcome him, with a group of 15 prominent Ulema (Islamic scholars) receiving him. Videos from the seminary showed students and faculty members showering flower petals on Muttaqi as he entered the campus, while many students gathered eagerly to take selfies with his entourage. Muttaqi's scheduled address at the seminary had to be cancelled amid crowd frenzy. I am thankful for such a grand welcome and the affection shown by the people here. I hope that India-Afghanistan ties advance further. We will be sending new diplomats, and I hope you people will visit Kabul as well. I have hopes for stronger ties in the future- from the way I was received in Delhi, these visits may be frequent in the near future, Muttaqi said in his address. About the Islamic Seminary Darul Uloom Deoband is an international Islamic seminary founded in 1866 in Deoband, India, known for its extensive Islamic education, significant influence, and adherence to orthodox Sunni Islam and the Hanafi school of jurisprudence. It was established on 31 May 1866, in the aftermath of the 1857 revolt, through the efforts of Sayyid Muhammad Abid and Muhammad Qasim Nanautawi. The seminary is highly regarded by many Taliban leaders. Several Taliban commanders and leaders studied at Darul Uloom Haqqania in Pakistans Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, which was founded on the same lines as Darul Uloom Deoband. Deoband-Afghan Ties Maulana Abdul Haq, who founded Darul Uloom Haqqania, studied and taught in the seminary in Deoband before Partition in 1947. His son, Sami-ul-Haq, is referred to as the Father of the Taliban because of Darul Uloom Haqqanias role in grooming Taliban commanders and leaders. People gather during a visit of Afghanistan's Foreign Affairs Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to Darul Uloom Deoband, in Saharanpur district, Uttar Pradesh. The visit carried deep symbolic and spiritual meaning, as the last Afghan dignitary to visit the seminary was King Zahir Shah way back in 1958. A gate named Babu Zahir still exists to commemorate the occasion The relationship between Deoband and Afghanistan is a centuries-old one. Even before Partition, Deobandi scholars had been engaged in Afghanistan in both political and religious matters, according to experts. Also Read | 10 key things India is offering Afghanistans Taliban government During the famous Silk Letter Movement (19131920), Deobandi clerics sought to forge alliances with the Ottoman Empire, Afghanistan, and the German Empire to challenge British rule in India, according to Soumya Awasthi, Fellow, Centre for Security, Strategy and Technology at the Observer Research Foundation (ORF). Shared intellectual networks The Silk Letter Movement was led by Deobandi Muslim scholars, including Maulana Mahmood Hasan and Maulana Ubaidullah Sindhi, and aimed to overthrow British rule by forming alliances with countries such as the Ottoman Empire, Imperial Germany, Afghanistan, and Russia. The relationship between Deoband and Afghanistan is deep and long-standing. These links left a lasting imprint on Indo-Afghan religious and political consciousness, binding the two societies through shared intellectual networks, Awasthi wrote recently. "From the late nineteenth century onwards, Afghan scholars were among the earliest foreign disciples to study at Deoband, returning to Kabul, Kandahar, and Khost to establish madrasas modelled on its curriculum and teaching style. These institutions helped embed the Deobandi ethos defined by scholarship, austerity, and strict adherence to classical texts within Afghan religious life, she wrote. Amir Khan Muttaqi's India visit India on Friday announced the upgrading of its technical mission in Kabul to the status of an embassy and pledged to renew its development works in Afghanistan. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also appreciated the Taliban's setup for showing sensitivity towards New Delhi's security concerns. Jaishankar made the twin announcements during his wide-ranging talks with Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday on his first diplomatic visit to India. US Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor on Saturday held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on various issues and said that President Donald Trump considers PM as a great and personal friend. The remark comes amid tensions in India-US ties over Trump's imposition of 50 per cent tariffs, including 25 per cent levies for India's purchase of Russian crude oil. Sergio Gor also noted that the US values its relationship with India. I had an incredible meeting with Prime Minister Modi. We discussed bilateral issues, including defence, trade and technology. We also discussed the importance of critical minerals, said Sergio Gor. Also Read | Zelensky-Trump hold talks as Russia strikes Ukraine with hypersonic missiles Gor is on a six-day visit to New Delhi days after the Senate confirmed his appointment as the US envoy to India. After meeting prime minister, in a post on X, Gor affirmed that Washington's relationship with New Delhi will only strengthen over the months ahead. Meanwhile, Modi also expressed confidence that India-US ties will further strengthen during Gor's tenure. Glad to receive Mr Sergio Gor, Ambassador-designate of the US to India. Im confident that his tenure will further strengthen the IndiaUS Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership, said PM Modi in a post on X. Earlier in the day, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also held talks with Gor. "Pleased to meet Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor of the US today in New Delhi. Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance," Jaishankar said on social media. "Wish him the best for his new responsibility," he said. Gor also met Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. Just a day ago, in a second phone call in over three weeks period, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Trump on the success of the first phase of a US-brokered peace plan for Gaza and also reviewed the "good progress" achieved in the trade negotiations. "Spoke to my friend, President Trump and congratulated him on the success of the historic Gaza peace plan. Also reviewed the good progress achieved in trade negotiations. Agreed to stay in close touch over the coming weeks," Modi said on social media. Modi also held a phone conversation with a friend, Benjamin Netanyahu. West Bengal: A second-year medical student from Odisha was allegedly gang-raped by unidentified men outside her college campus in West Bengal's Durgapur on Friday night, police officials said on Saturday. The 20-year-old student, who hails from Jaleswar in Odisha, had gone out for dinner with a friend when the incident took place around 10 pm. She is a student of a private medical college in Durgapur. She is currently undergoing treatment at a local hospital, officials said, reported news wire PTI. How did the incident happen? According to police, the rape-victim's friend left her alone when three unidentified men at an area near the campus. They allegedly snatched her phone and took her to a jungle outside the medical college's campus, where they raped the Odisha girl, said officials. The accused reportedly also demanded money from the medic to return her mobile phone. "The friend left her alone when three unidentified men arrived there. The men snatched her phone and took her to a jungle outside the campus, where they raped her. She was threatened with dire consequences if she told anyone about the incident," the officer said. Her parents, who rushed to Durgapur on Saturday morning after being informed by her friends, lodged a formal complaint with the local police. "We came here this morning and lodged a complaint with the police. I have heard that the college performed well academically, and this is why we sent our daughter to study medicine here," the student's father told PTI. Probe underway Police said officials have spoken to the victim's friend and are on the lookout for some CCTV footage. Forensic teams will also be sent to the site of the alleged gang-rape, to collect evidence. A team from the National Commission for Women (NCW) is on its way to Durgapur to meet the survivor and her family. A new exhibit at the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, which is dedicated to the assassination, remembers the publics reaction to the killing of the US president more than 60 years later The window through which Lee Harvey Oswald shot President John F. Kennedy remains ajar on the sixth floor of an orange building in Dealey Plaza, Dallas. Its a metaphor for how the memory of that assassination remains embedded, like a bullet, in the minds of those who were children at the time. No child was prepared to experience the shock televised on repeat and narrated by the broken voice of Walter Cronkite of that three-act drama: Kennedys assassination before an applauding crowd, the assassins death at the hands of Jack Ruby in the basement of a police station two days later, and concluded by the presidents mournful burial in Arlington National Cemetery. It all happened over the course of four violent days in the fall of 1963. In just 75 hours, America was plunged into disarray. And now, six decades later when those children are in their seventies and Charlie Kirks assassination has rekindled passions with political bloodshed, cascading images, and a televised funeral we can see the impact that Kennedys assassination had on the generation of baby boomers, who were born in the years after World War II. For the first time we can see, in such graphic form, how some children, with chilling drawings and anguished voices, expressed the shock that the tragedy meant for them. And its all possible thanks to the reflexes and childlike sensitivity of an independent filmmaker named Richard Snodgrass. It was he who knocked on the doors of a school at the time and asked the students to draw and describe what they had felt. A child's drawing about the death of John F. Kennedy, exhibited at the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, Dallas. Paco Cerda That Friday in the fall, John was nine years old. He still remembers the silence that fell over everything around him. Ken was taking a 10-word spelling test when, suddenly, the classroom door opened: a teacher announced that the president had been shot. Everyone was taken down to the gym to watch television together. Peter had never seen a teacher cry before. Kathi was ashamed of crying and buried her head under her desk until she saw other classmates shedding tears as well. Harry was taken to church to pray with many other people. Gage spent hours crying at home with his mother and grandmother. Ted was five years old and riding in his mothers car when the radio broadcast the news. His mom said that something bad always happens to those who seek good. Victoria turned nine that very day and she who didnt know what assassination meant was left without a birthday party. Every subsequent year of her childhood was marked by those three eternal letters: JFK. Many children were scared. They were gripped by fear, by a strange sense of danger and by a profound sadness. A few days after that shock, Richard Snodgrass became interested in how children reacted to the tragic events that were spewing from screens in every home across the country. Influenced by the cinema of the New Wave, he had already shot a film titled Legacy (1963), which captured the perspectives of children in Arizona on issues such as racism, divorce and nuclear apocalypse, just one year after the Cuban Missile Crisis. On December 9, the filmmaker began an experimental project at Sacred Heart School in Prescott, Arizona. For a week, he locked himself in with 41 first-graders and talked with them about JFKs assassination. They were aged five and six. He listened to each one, collecting their observations and feelings, both through art and the spoken word. The project produced some 400 drawings and three hours of audio interviews. The goal was to document how they were perceiving and processing that historic event. The children could only draw and describe from memory what they remembered seeing and hearing in the days before the killing. And now, for the first time in many decades, the drawings have come to light. Theyre on display in the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, in Dallas. The museum, which examines the Kennedy assassination, is located in the same building from which Lee Harvey Oswald fired three shots at the presidential motorcade. He mortally wounded 46-year-old John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the second-youngest resident in White House history. Facade of the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, Dallas. Paco Cerda At times, the gallery of drawings borders on the gloomy: a rifle scope focuses on the open-top Lincoln Continental limousine in which the Kennedys were traveling, both surrounded by sinister black stripes. The president collapses in his wifes arms after being shot. A family screams in fear upon receiving the news of the assassination. The coffin is draped in an American flag, while anonymous, mournful citizens pass through the Capitol. A police officer is about to fire his pistol outside the building. The first lady is praying at the hospital gates. The last rites are administered by a priest. The short film that Snodgrass put together with all the material he collected has rarely been screened. But today, in the museum space, with old wooden desks for spectators, amid a 1960s setting, those childrens voices from Prescotts Sacred Heart School resonate with the power of time capsules. The voices of those shocked children mingle with the drawings they made. They talk about how it was a very sunny day, with a little bird singing in the air and smiles on peoples faces. They talk about flags waving in the midday wind, touted by children perched on their parents shoulders (their schools had given them the day off to see the president). But suddenly, those voices, frozen in time, say that gunshots rang out. There was chaos. Sadness gripped the people. The children emphasize that, above all else, there is sadness. One says: I feel like my little brother was killed. Another says: It was like when my cat was run over, but she didnt die. Shes all right now. The coffin holds a special preeminence in childrens memories. That mahogany coffin, weighing 400 pounds, dominated the cameras focus in the funeral procession to Arlington Cemetery. Kennedys youngest son, who turned three that same day, saluted the coffin. This became an iconic image of the turbulent 1960s. The coffin also captured the memory of Deborah Sosin. Today, shes a writer and editor. On that fateful day, November 22, 1963, she was nine years old. She remembers herself at the foot of her parents bed, glued to the 12-inch TV, which had a green plastic casing. Three years earlier, she had shaken hands with then-candidate Kennedy at a campaign rally. She remembers him as being handsome and tanned. But the memory that never fades is that of the coffin, draped with the American flag in an open carriage: the riderless horse, the rhythmic cadence of the snare drum. Nor can she forget the image of Oswalds assassination in the basement of the Dallas police station. I watched it a million times. His twisted face, the tall sheriff in the cowboy hat lunging after [Jack] Ruby, the confusion, the screaming. Suddenly, nothing made sense. Terrifying things were happening we had to figure them out as best we could, Sosin recalls. Children's drawings about the death of John F. Kennedy, on display in the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, Dallas. Paco Cerda It wasnt just the children who suffered the consequences. Many people paid a high emotional toll from being exposed to a violent national tragedy that was repeated by the media, especially the three commercial broadcast television networks: CBS, ABC and NBC. A study of the adverse consequences of collective stress on pregnant women yielded startling findings after analyzing more than 30,000 cases. Women who were in their first trimester of pregnancy when Kennedy was assassinated had a 17% higher risk of premature birth when compared to those who had given birth before the crime. And, after comparing siblings born to the same mother, babies who were in the womb during the assassination were 22% more likely to be born prematurely than their siblings born beforehand. Another study, authored by psychologist James Pennebaker, who analyzed the psychosocial stress generated by the killing, showed that, in the four years following, deaths from heart disease increased by 4% in Dallas, while murder and suicide rates also increased significantly in the city, which some began to call City of Hate. Theres also research on the grief reactions to Kennedys death, expressed by kids who were admitted to the Childrens Psychiatric Hospital at the University of Michigan Medical Center. This study detected a wide range of emotions anxiety, fear, sadness, confusion that even extended to reenacting the event: one child used toy figures to recreate a funeral, while another organized a trial to convict the assassin. That intense experience concentrated between a Friday afternoon and a Monday afternoon made it a traumatic and indelible event for many children. Its a milestone in so-called flashbulb memory, those highly-detailed, autobiographical memories of circumstances in which a person learned of an event of great public impact (such as 9/11, or the Moon landing). Stephen Fagin, curator of the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, has spent years collecting experiences that are linked to the Kennedy assassination. He has conducted more than 2,600 interviews for the centers Oral History Collection. Most are with baby boomers, who experienced the trauma of November 22, 1963 when they were children. Through these conversations, he explains to EL PAIS, Ive discovered that a common factor is the feeling of profound personal loss they experienced, regardless of their age, location, or political affiliation. For many, the loss was as profound as if a family member had died. Another common factor is the lack of professional help young people had, especially in schools. Without a real outlet for expression, most of the children kept their feelings bottled up. Thats why, decades later, he points out, when they visit our museum as adults, some are confronted with repressed traumas that they were never able to resolve. Visiting the site of the shooting is, for many, a cathartic experience. An art installation, consisting of school desks, in the Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza, Dallas. Paco Cerda Fagin says that the drawings in the exhibition, titled Colorful Memories, November 22 Through a Childs Eyes, confirm that no one is too young to be affected by violence, even from a distance. The trauma of that tragic weekend changed world history. But, on a deeply personal level, it also helped shape the mindsets of the young people who lived through it. After the farewells, the museum elevator opens. There are two more visitors. One is wearing a cowboy hat. The other, fair-skinned and in his twenties, is wearing a beige cap with the slogan: I am Charlie. In the plaza, a Black man, wearing an old Kansas City Chiefs jersey, is selling tourist newspapers about the Kennedy assassination. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition The alleged suicide of IPS officer Y Puran Kumar has sent shockwaves across Haryana and Chandigarh, with the Haryana government now suspending a senior police official who was named in what is being perceived as Kumar's suicide note. Amid this, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has broken his silence on the issue. At a BJP event in the state's Panchkula, Saini was heard saying, "... This is an unfortunate incident. The family has demanded justice. We have assured them that there will be a thorough inquiry. Action will be taken against the accused... There should not be politics on such issues..." Check out the video of his speech right here: Amneet P Kumar, the wife of the deceased police official and herself a senior IAS officer, was with the chief minister as a part of a delegation the latter was leading in Japan when the news of her husband's death broke. Although this is the first public comment by Saini regarding Kumar's death, he had on Thursday visited the official residence of the recently widowed IAS officer in Chandigarh's Sector 24 and offered condolences to the bereaved family. Also Read | IPS Y Puran Kumar suicide: Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya transferred Saini's comments also come in the wake of Opposition leaders slamming the BJP government in both Haryana and the Centre over the alleged suicide of Kumar, which they perceive was due to caste-based discrimination. Y Puran Kumar, 52, a 2001-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, was found with a gunshot wound in a room in the basement of his Sector 11 house on Tuesday. In a note he allegedly left behind, Kumar has named many "senior officers" and details "mental harassment" and "humiliation" he faced over the past few years, according to sources PTI spoke to. What the Opposition said Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda, while demanding an impartial investigation into the "suicide case", said no culprit should be spared and no innocent should be harmed. It is the state government's responsibility to ensure justice in this case, he said, adding that the suicide of such a senior police officer is a tragic incident. "This incident has shaken the entire state. If such a senior police officer is not safe today, one can imagine the plight of ordinary citizens," the former chief minister said in a statement. Congress MP Kumari Selja said the suicide of a Dalit IPS officer in Haryana is an extremely tragic, alarming and deeply painful matter. Also Read | 6-member SIT headed by IGP Chandigarh to probe alleged suicide of IPS officer A fair, independent and high-level investigation into the entire incident is essential to ensure the strictest action against the guilty, the former Union minister said. "This is not merely a personal tragedy but a horrifying glimpse into the institutional insensitivity and caste-based discrimination that has been continuously deepening under the BJP rule," Selja posted on X in Hindi. "Since the year 2020, enduring constant casteist insults, mental harassment and injustice, an officer ultimately had to lose his life -- this highlights the administrative failure of the BJP government and its indifference toward social justice," she said. Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala said the alleged suicide of Haryana's senior Dalit IPS officer is shocking, tragic and heartbreaking. "My condolences to the family," he posted on X in Hindi. "Is the Haryana BJP government's system so weak or prejudiced that even a Dalit IPS officer of the rank of ADGP is denied a hearing or justice? It is a bitter truth that over the past eleven years, Dalit officers and personnel, in particular, have been discriminated against, marginalised and humiliated," Surjewala alleged. "I still remember how a senior minister in the BJP government publicly humiliated a Dalit female IPS officer," he said in his post. Referring to the IPS officer's alleged suicide, Surjewala said that "although Chief Minister Nayab Saini has maintained silence, it is hoped that the Chandigarh administration and the (Union) Home Ministry will listen to Y Puran Kumar's IAS officer wife and give him justice". US Ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor met External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar on Saturday and discussed India-US ties and its global significance, the EAM said in a post on X. Sergio Gor also met India's foreign secretary Vikram Misri with the MEA stating that the officials had a productive exchange on the IndiaUS Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. The US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor's meeting with S Jaishankar comes as India navigates 50% tariffs slapped by Trump on India along with the latest 100 per cent levy on branded and patented pharmaceutical products. Gor arrived in Delhi on Friday to meet with government officials and discuss what the US State Department described as a wide range of bilateral issues. On October 8 the US Senate confirmed the nomination of Sergio Gor as Ambassador of the United States to India. Gor has also been appointed as US President Donald Trumps special envoy on South and Central Asia, a new post that did not require confirmation. Who is Sergio Gor? Gor is a US businessman and politician who was appointed as the youngest United States ambassador to India. Aged 38-years-old Sergio Gor was one of 107 nominees confirmed in a single en bloc vote on Tuesday, October 7 with 51 senators supporting and 47 opposing. The confirmation took place amid the ongoing US government shutdown. India-US talks Last month, a delegation led by Commerce and Industries Minister, Piyush Goyal visited the US from September 22-24. Following the visit, the Ministry of Commerce announced that India, US will continue working together to finalise a mutually beneficial trade agreement between the two nations. Trump imposed a total of 50% tariffs on all goods imported from India, on top of the pre-existing 10% baseline import duty on any good imported into the Western nation. US president Donald Trump is headed for Israel. Ahead of the trip to West Asia, US President Donald Trump pledged to oversee the full reconstruction of the Middle East, emphasising that his plans extend beyond Gaza to the entire region. President Trump asserted that the initiative would enable people to live in peace, acknowledging that while little hotspots of conflict persist, theyll be very easy to put out. Trump is set to travel to Israel in the near future, where he will address the Israeli Parliament, the Knesset, before proceeding to Egypt. President Trump emphasised that everybody wants this deal (Gaza ceasefire resolution) to happen, signalling broad support for his diplomatic efforts in the region. While talking to reporters from the Oval office of White House, Donald Trump said, "Bodies of Israeli hostages being UNEARTHED right now. Approximately 28 BODIES. On Monday, the hostages come BACK, theyre getting them now. Trump to visit Israel and Egypt following Gaza ceasefire, hostages to be released President Donald Trump has announced plans to travel to Cairo and Jerusalem to commemorate a recent agreement that has halted hostilities in Gaza and paved the way for the release of hostages held by Hamas. Also Read | Trump hits China with extra 100% tariffs and software export controls Trump to meet global leaders in Cairo Speaking to reporters on Friday, Trump said he would be meeting with a lot of leaders from all over the world who had been invited to Cairo for a ceremony celebrating the deal between Israel and Hamas. The agreement establishes a truce and sets terms for the release of hostages captured during the October 2023 attacks. Trump to Address Knesset The US president also indicated that he would address the Knesset in Israel to mark the agreement, which could signal the end of a two-year conflict that has devastated Gaza and heightened tensions across the region. I think it will hold. Theyre all tired of the fighting, Trump said, expressing optimism that the truce could endure and that reconstruction in Gaza might soon begin. Details of the hostage and prisoner Gaza deal The Gaza ceasefire agreement, brokered by the United States alongside Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey, follows negotiations to implement a 20-point peace plan unveiled by Trump last week. Under the terms: Hamas is expected to release approximately 20 surviving hostages and the remains of over two dozen who perished in captivity. Israel will release nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Humanitarian aid to Gaza will resume. Israel has confirmed that a ceasefire is now in effect as of Thursday. Ongoing negotiations and regional challenges Despite the truce, several issues remain unresolved, including the long-term reconstruction and governance of Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that Hamas, designated a terrorist organisation by both the United States and the European Union, disarm and relinquish any role in governing the territory. Hamas has not yet agreed to these conditions. Also Read | Trump Announces Visit to Cairo and Jerusalem to Mark Peace Deal Trump's Brief visit planned before returning to Washington Donald Trump indicated that his visit to the Middle East would be brief, as he intends to return to Washington by Tuesday to posthumously award the slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nations highest civilian honour. US President Donald Trump on Friday clarified that he did not cancel his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping after his recent remarks about having no reason to meet Xi had triggered speculations about the two leaders' upcoming meeting. Speaking to reporters, Trump said he had not officially cancelled the meeting with Xi, but expressed his shock at China's new export restrictions requiring export licenses for rare earth elements. "No, I haven't cancelled. However, I'm not sure if we'll have it. I'll be there regardless. I would assume we might have it. However, they hit the world with something. It was shocking. Out of the blue, they came up with this whole import-export concept, and nobody knew anything about it," he told reporters at the White House. Reacting to China's restrictions, Trump had earlier said that he saw no need to meet Xi Jinping after Beijing took "very hostile" steps. This was a real surprise, not only to me, but to all the Leaders of the Free World. I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so, he said. Trump imposes 100% tariffs on China Trump had also warned of taking countermeasures against China's latest rare earth move. Dependent on what China says about the hostile order that they have just put out, I will be forced, as President of the United States of America, to financially counter their move, he said. Later in the day, the US President announced a 100% additional tariff on Beijing effective from November 1. Also Read | Kim Hosts China, Russia and Vietnam in Rare Show of Global Reach On being asked about whether the US will revoke the additional tariffs on China if the latter rolls back the restrictions, Trump said, "We'll have to see what happens. That's why I made it November 1." Joe Biden, former United States President, is undergoing radiation and hormone therapy to fight the aggressive prostate cancer that he was diagnosed with in May 2025, a spokesperson said on Saturday, October 11. Joe Biden, who turns 83 years old, disclosed then that he has an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones. The spokesperson said, As part of a treatment plan for prostate cancer, President Biden is currently undergoing radiation therapy and hormone treatment. The former president had in September underwent a procedure known as Mohs surgery to remove cancerous cells from his skin. What is Mohs surgery? According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), Mohs micrographic surgery is a tissue-sparing, precise method of skin cancer removal. It was named in honor of the surgeon who developed the technique, Frederick Mohs. The procedure was originally named chemosurgery. It is a surgical approach that reportedly offers high cure rates for the treatment of a variety of skin cancers, including basal cell carcinomas (BCC) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCC). After his surgery, Joe Biden appeared in public with a noticeable forehead wound as he greeted people in Delaware over the Labor Day weekend. About Joe Biden's prostate cancer diagnosis The Democratic leader had in May revealed that he had been diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer. In a statement, his team informed that the cancer was aggressive but hormone-sensitive. While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive, which allows for effective management, the statement read. His spokesperson Kelly Scully had informed that the cancer had spread to the bone which is often seen in roughly 60 per cent of advanced prostate cancer cases. Scully also said that his cancer was characterized by a Gleason score of 9," which indicates a highly aggressive form of the disease. The Gleason scoring system is used to measure how aggressive a prostate cancer is, with a score of 9 signalling a fast-growing and potentially more dangerous cancer. La Nina conditions have returned in the United States, but this time, they are expected to remain weak, prompting the Climate Protection Center to issue an advisory. In a post on X, the federal forecasters said that La Nina conditions are present and favored to persist through December 2025-February 2026. The latest weekly Nino-3.4 index value was -0.5C, with other regions remaining at or between -0.1C and -0.4C [Fig. 2]. Negative subsurface temperature anomalies persisted (averaged from 180-100W; [Fig. 3]), with below-average temperatures prevailing from the surface to 200m depth in the eastern half of the equatorial Pacific, it said. What is La Nina and how it occurs? La Nina is a naturally occurring climate pattern that cools surface temperatures in the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. It occurs when parts of the central Pacific Ocean cool by 1.5 degree C below normal. Because of changes in variation in wind speed and direction high in the atmosphere, La Nina tends to bring more hurricanes in the Atlantic basin and fewer in the Pacific. It is a major factor influencing the US weather, particularly from late fall through early spring. It has often meant more precipitation including possible snowstorms. How long will La Nina stay? The center said that La Nina conditions started to emerge in September 2025, as indicated by the expansion of below-average sea surface temperatures (SSTs) across the central and eastern equatorial Pacific Ocean. This time, La Nina is expected to persist through the winter, with a 55 per cent chance of transitioning back to neutral conditions between January and March 2026. View full Image La Nina conditions started to emerge in September 2025 A weaker La Nina this time? With surprises The NWS added that this La Nina's predicted weakness would be less likely to result in conventional winter impacts. At this time, La Nina is expected to remain weak (3-month average Nino-3.4 index value at or between -0.5C and -0.9C). A weak La Nina would be less likely to result in conventional winter impacts, though predictable signals could still influence the forecast guidance, it said. Michelle L'Heureux, lead scientist on the NOAA team that studies both La Nina and El Nino, told AP that the conditions will not be very strong. There is a three out of four chance it will remain a weak event, she said, adding, A weaker event tends to exert less of an influence on the global circulation, so it's possible there will be surprises ahead. As the La Nina condition started to return, winds near the surface blew from the east, while winds higher up moved from the west over the western and central Pacific. Thunderstorm activity was stronger than usual around Indonesia but weaker near the Date Line. As the massive gridlock continues between the Republicans and Democrats resulting in a partial government shutdown for the past 10 days, the Trump administration has axed as many as or more than 4,200 federal workers, it said in a court filing. According to the reports, the mass layoffs in the federal government have affected seven agencies including Treasury Department, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Education, the Justice Department court filing read. Meanwhile, federal employee labour unions in Northern District of California are suing the Trump administration over mass layoffs in the federal government. The administration said in a court filing that the unions' request should be denied because they lack the legal right to sue over federal personnel decisions. Also Read | Mass layoffs of federal workers begins as Trump ramps up pressure over shutdown A federal judge is due to hear the case on October 15. Mass layoffs in US federal govt: Who's impacted? Recent government layoffs were most concentrated in two departments the Treasury Department and the Department of Health and Human Services. Other departments also faced reductions, including Education, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Energy, and Homeland Security, according to New York Post. Treasury Department: Approximately 1,446 employees laid off Health and Human Services: Up to 1,200 employees laid off Education: 466 employees laid off Housing and Urban Development: 442 employees laid off Commerce: 315 employees laid off Energy: 187 employees laid off Homeland Security: 176 employees laid off The Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have not been affected by the layoffs. However, job cuts are also anticipated at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of the Interior (DOI). Some served intent to RIF notices: What are they? While some agencies have laid off federal government employees, some have served an intent to RIF notice to its employees meaning they may be fired in near future. The Environmental Protection Agency has notified approximately 20-30 employees. The United States Patent and Trademark Office separately issued shutdown-related RIF notices to 126 employees on October 1. Roughly 300,000 federal civilian workers had already been set to leave their jobs this year due to a downsizing campaign initiated earlier this year by Donald Trump. On Friday, October 10, President Donald Trump blamed Democrats for his decision to lay off thousands of workers across the US government. They started this thing, Trump said, terming the job cuts Democrat-oriented. Job cuts were under way at the Treasury Department, the US health agency, the Internal Revenue Service and the departments of education, commerce, and Homeland Security's cybersecurity division, spokespeople said. The total extent of the layoffs was not immediately clear. Apart from layoffs, Donald Trump also ordered the freezing of at least $28 billion in infrastructure funds for New York, California and Illinois all Democratic states. Police in Mississippi's Leland are investigating a shooting during the schools homecoming weekend that left four people dead and 12 others injured, as per a CBS News report. Among the injured, four were critical and were airlifted to the University of Mississippi Medical Center. The incident happened on a main street. The town saw more activity than usual on Friday night (local time) because of a homecoming game of the local Leland High School. Also Read | Houston shooting horror: Man fatally targets 3 at two locations before suicide As per the school's website, they were scheduled to a homecoming game against Charleston High School on Friday. The Associated Press spoke to Heidelberg Police Chief Cornell White, who confirmed two deaths but did not divulge information on the identities of the deceased. John Lee, the Mayor of Leland, spoke to CBS News and revealed that the incident took place at around midnight. Police, including the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, are hunting for 18-year-old Tylar Jarod Goodloe in connection with the shooting, as per social media reports. Jasper County Sheriff's Office has issued a statement and released the picture of the suspect. In the statement it said, Heidelberg Police Department and Jasper County Sheriffs Office are currently searching for, 18 year old, Tylar Jarod Goodloe, for questioning in the shooting that occurred at Heidelberg High School Friday night. Anyone with information on his whereabouts needs to contact, Chief Cornell White 601-422-7430, or Jasper County Sheriffs Office 601-764-2588. 20 people were shot by the assailant. Leland, a small city in the state's Washington County, has a population of around 4,000. Mass shootings in Mississippi Mississippi has seen gun violence in the last few years, with the most recent mass shooting being reported from in Fayette at the end of May, when two brothers were arrested after they shot at people attending the Fayette Day Festival. One person was killed in the attack while eight others sustained injuries. In October 2024, two men open-fired on a crowd during another homecoming celebration, leaving three people dead and eight others injured. Mississippi gun laws Gun laws in Mississippi are among the most relaxed in the entire United States. There is no licence or background check required for carrying weapons almost anywhere in the state. Residents on the US East Coast have been warned about the landfall of a potential storm, known as a noreaster. Among the areas, the storm is likely to affect the Southeast US the most. As per CNN, the tropical storm could unleash strong wind forces. Areas on alert include Washington, DC, New York City, and Boston. It could cause huge damage. East Coast residents could start seeing the effects of the storm, starting this weekend. Will air travel be affected by noreaster? The tropical storm is getting stronger as it moves upwards towards the north. The most likely effects of this noreaster could be coastal flooding, road closures, erosion, and heavy rains. The strong wind forces could also bring some damage along. The CNN report suggests that air travel could be affected in the above-mentioned cities, causing delays and cancellations. New Jersey announces state of emergency As the eastern coast gears up for the potential storm early next week, New Jersey has already announced precautionary measures. Acting Governor Tahesha Way has introduced a state of emergency starting Saturday night, in her statement on Friday, as per Fox Weather. The emergency will be effective in all 21 counties, as the governor requested the residents to exercise caution while keeping an eye on weather updates. The authority has also advised them to remain off roads unless it is necessary to travel. Predictions on Fox Weather suggest that the storm could hit New Jersey on Sunday, while on Sunday night, residents in New York's Brooklyn, Queens and Long Island could be impacted. New England could face the consequences early next week. More storms expected According to an Associated Press report, this storm has the potential to disturb the holiday weekend on the East Coast. Meanwhile, more storms were developing in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans. Tropical Storm Jerry, forming in the Atlantic Ocean, led to heavy rain on the northern Leeward Islands. It also resulted in the death of one person. Meanwhile, eight people were rescued following the heavy rains in Guadeloupe. In the Pacific, Tropical Storm Priscilla is expected to bring heavy rain into the US Southwest through the weekend. FAQs 1. What is a noreaster, and where is it headed? A noreaster is a powerful coastal storm moving toward the US East Coast this weekend. 2. Which areas are expected to be most affected? Washington, D.C., New York City, Boston, and parts of New Jersey and New England are on alert. When U.S. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Friday that the federal government had reached an agreement with Qatar to construct a facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, backlash quickly surfaced on social media. Critics expressed alarm at what they believed to be the establishment of a foreign military base on U.S. soil. However, the planned facility is not a separate base. It will consist of buildings designed to support training and maintenance operations for Qatari military personnel. Hegseth clarified on X, The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including todays announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United Statesnor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners. Defence officials also noted that the agreement has been in development for several years as part of broader U.S.-Qatar defence cooperation. What we expect is it to be squadron operations and hangars for the F-15QA, because that's the Qatari version of the jet that they bought through foreign military sales, Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek said. It is definitely still a U.S. Air Force base. Where is the Mountain Home Air Force Base? Mountain Home Air Force Base, located approximately 50 miles (80 kilometers) southeast of Boise, Idahos capital and largest city, sits on a high desert plateau nestled between two mountain ranges. The remote location offers wide-open airspace, making it an ideal setting for fighter pilot training exercises. The base lies just outside the town of Mountain Home, home to about 17,000 residents. According to Air Force spokesperson Ann Stefanek, the new facilities will be constructed by local crews, with local workers likely to be hired to support the training operations. The project will be fully funded by the Qatari government, covering both construction and associated operational expenses, AP reported. Security at the base will continue to be handled by U.S. Air Force personnel, she said, and anyone going to the base will still have to show the proper credentials in order to enter. What is the mission of the base? The base nicknamed the gunfighter base houses the 366th Fighter Wing and more than 50 F-15E Strike Eagle aircraft. It aims to provide mission-ready Gunfighters to conduct military operations anytime, anywhere, according to its website. Three fighter squadrons are located there: The 389th Fighter Squadron Thunderbolts, the 391st Fighter Squadron Tigers, and the Singaporean 428th Fighter Squadron Buccaneers. An Air Control squadron and Air National Guard squadron are also housed at the base. All told, the fighter wing includes about 5,100 military and civilian members, as well as 3,500 family members, according to the website. When was the Qatar agreement conceived? Qatar decided to buy the F-15QA aircraft from a U.S. government program called Foreign Military Sales in 2017, and discussions to train Qatari troops in the use of the jets began shortly thereafter, Stefanek said, as reported by AP. Work got started on an environmental assessment to determine the possible impact on the area surrounding the Mountain Home Air Force Base began around 2020, and the assessment was completed in 2022. MAGA supporter Laura Loomer criticises plan Right-wing influencer Laura Loomer a close Trump ally called the plan an abomination. No foreign country should have a military base on US soil. Especially Islamic countries, Loomer wrote in a social media post after Hegseth's announcement. Similar training agreements have faced criticism in the past. The announcement of a new Qatari-funded training facility at Mountain Home Air Force Base has stirred debate, with some critics referencing past concerns about foreign military personnel training on US soil. Past records In 2019, a Saudi Air Force officer training at Naval Air Station Pensacola in Florida killed three US service members and wounded several others in a mass shooting. After an investigation, the US expelled 21 Saudi military students for allegedly expressing jihadist or anti-American sentiments online or having ties to child pornography. Others suggested the training facility was prompted by Qatar's gift to Trump of a $400 million jumbo jet to use as Air Force One. However, the possibility of a training agreement predated the gift. How does hosting foreign troops benefit the US? Qatar will not have their own base in the United Statesnor anything like a base. The U.S. sells defence equipment and services to other countries as a foreign policy tool. A federal law called the Arms Export Control Act details when those sales can take place. But generally speaking, it is when the president determines that doing so will boost the security of the U.S. or promote peace around the world. The US automaker offered Musk a trillion-dollar bonus to focus on developing this technology. Volkswagen is trying to keep up with its Moia division WeRide, Pony AI, Apollo Go, Xpeng, May Mobility, Zoox, Lucid, Waymo, and Moia. All of these names, which are mostly unknown to the general public, are companies that could be key players in the automobile of tomorrow. This is because of the development of autonomous mobility, the new holy grail of the auto industry that promises multi-billion-dollar profits to anyone capable of mastering the technology and dominating the sector in the coming years. While it seems unlikely to become a widespread reality in the short term, both China and the U.S. are encouraging the launch of trials of a technology that has already left its mark. Last year, General Motors announced that it was abandoning the robotaxi business due to its high cost. The projects that continue to move forward are mostly supported by large technology companies or directly by the state, as is the case with WeRide, backed by the Chinese government. This month, with the help of a local partner, the company announced that it will begin testing a route through Singapores Punggol neighborhood, with the goal of launching a robotaxi rental service by early 2026. Another Chinese company, Pony AI, will compete in that same market, motivated by the city-states announcement that it will integrate autonomous vehicles into its public transportation network. In the U.S., Waymo owned by Alphabet, Googles parent company operates robotaxis in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Austin and Atlanta. In Austin, Texas, Elon Musks company Tesla transported paying passengers in a driverless car for the first time in June. This was hailed as a major step forward for Tesla, as the company more akin to that of a tech giant than a traditional automaker pins much of its stock market value on its ability to achieve a dominant position in the robotaxi business in the mid-to-long term. Tesla is so certain of its strategy that it has offered Musk a bonus valued at approximately $1 trillion so that the tycoon can focus his energies on Tesla and put aside his active role in politics and his support for the far right, which has cost the car manufacturer dearly. Among the targets Musk must meet to collect the full, unprecedented bonus is putting one million robotaxis on the streets. For its part, Uber announced in July that between 2026 and 2032 it will deploy a fleet of more than 20,000 fully autonomous cars in dozens of markets around the world in partnership with Lucid and Nuro, two U.S. companies. In Europe, meanwhile, initiatives are emerging, such as Moia, a subsidiary of Volkswagen. The company took advantage of the Munich Motor Show in September to announce the ID. Buzz AD, its first fully autonomous vehicle specifically designed to offer mobility services. Moia, whose autonomous driving system was developed by Mobileye, an Israeli company acquired by Intel in 2017 for $15.3 billion, plans to implement sustainable and autonomous mobility on a large scale in Europe and the U.S. starting in 2026, the company announced at the Bavarian motor show. The ID. Buzz self-driving vehicles, said Volkswagen Group CEO Oliver Blume, are part of a fully connected 360-degree package made up of leading technology, an attractive vehicle fleet, intelligent fleet management, and a customer-centric booking system. This positions the Volkswagen Group among the frontrunners in a multi-billion-dollar global growth market. Hamburg is our starting point. Donia Razazi, an industry expert at the consulting firm Ayming, believes, however, that autonomous vehicles will still take time to become a reality. Initiatives like Moias in Hamburg are a very important step; they show us that the technology is already functional in controlled environments and that European manufacturers are willing to invest. However, we must be realistic: the mass adoption of autonomous vehicles in Europe is not imminent, Razazi explains, citing organizations such as the World Economic Forum, which indicate that widespread adoption of this mobility is projected for the 2030-2040 horizon. Musk himself has repeatedly promised fully autonomous driving, only to fail to deliver on his promises. Despite this, Tesla remains persistent and appears to be one of the leaders in this race, alongside other Chinese and American competitors such as Waymo. Europe maintains a relevant role in the global race for autonomous cars, but its undeniable that the United States and China have advanced more rapidly in recent years, says Razazi. The main reason lies in the regulatory framework. Although the EU has made important strides with the Vehicle General Safety Regulation, which allows for the approval of Level 3 autonomous driving systems and above, each country maintains its own regulations, which complicates large-scale deployment. Meanwhile, in U.S. states like Arizona and California, and in Chinese cities like Beijing and Shenzhen, driverless robotaxis are already operating regularly. Tensions between China and the US A stumbling block in the development and widespread adoption of autonomous vehicles is the tension between China and the U.S., with mutual technological vetoes and tariffs, which could lead to a fragmentation of technological ecosystems and a potential increase in costs, which could slow the scalability and accessibility of autonomous vehicles globally, according to Razazi. Furthermore, autonomous vehicles open up a new battleground: who controls the data generated by vehicles. This is highly sensitive information that each bloc seeks to protect and capitalize on, says Razazi. In practice, the U.S. and China have already reached the most advanced level with the robotaxi. Rather than a direct confrontation between them, the real battle is to see who can establish themselves first in key regions such as Europe, the Middle East, or countries with high purchasing power, but without providing their own solutions." He continues: Europe, for its part, has established strict regulatory barriers, especially regarding data protection and artificial intelligence, which require guarantees of privacy, transparency, and system security. This does not prevent the entry of foreign actors, but it does limit their absolute control over data and forces them to adapt their models to European standards. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition United States President Donald Trump on October 10 accused China of being extraordinarily aggressive in their rare earth minerals curbs, stating that the US would in turn impose additional 100 per cent tariffs on Chinese goods coming into the country and limit export of critical software. What did Donald Trump say? In a long post on Truth Social, Donald Trump wrote, It has just been learned that China has taken an extraordinarily aggressive position on Trade in sending an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1st, 2025, impose large scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make, and some not even made by them. This affects ALL Countries, without exception, and was obviously a plan devised by them years ago. It is absolutely unheard of in International Trade, and a moral disgrace in dealing with other Nations. Based on the fact that China has taken this unprecedented position, and speaking only for the U.S.A., and not other Nations who were similarly threatened, starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying. Also on November 1st, we will impose Export Controls on any and all critical software, he added. He warned, It is impossible to believe that China would have taken such an action, but they have, and the rest is History. US-China trade talks stall? Speaking to reporters at the White House, Donald Trump later expressed doubt over the anticipated meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea would happen. The meeting was expected in three weeks, but Trump in another post wrote that now there seems to be no reason to do so. Notably, this is the biggest rupture in relations in six months between Beijing and Washington, Reuters reported. I haven't cancelled. I would assume we might have it. Beijing has never confirmed the meeting, Donald Trump told reporters, it added. Lawyers for Luigi Mangione asked a New York federal judge Saturday to dismiss some criminal charges, including the only count for which he could face the death penalty, from a federal indictment brought against him in the December assassination of UnitedHealthcares chief executive, as per a report by the Associated Press. The 27-year-old accused, who grabbed international headlines since the manhunt was on for him after the fatal shooting of Brian Thompson, has pleaded not guilty to state and federal charges. Why lawyers want federal charges to be dismissed Mangione's lawyers, in papers filed in the Manhattan federal court, said prosecutors should also be barred from using statements he made at law enforcement officials, and also his backpack, inside which a gun and ammunition were found. The lawyers insist that their client was not read his rights before law enforcement officials questioned him, and neither did the latter obtain a warrant before searching Mangione's backpack. Also Read | Brian Thompson case: Luigi Mangione cleared of terrorism charges Last month, lawyers for Mangione asked that his federal charges be dismissed and the death penalty be taken off the table as a result of public comments by U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi. In April, Bondi directed prosecutors in New York to seek the death penalty, calling the killing of Thompson a premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America. Which is the charge for which Mangione could face death penalty? Murder cases are usually tried in state courts, but prosecutors have also charged Mangione under a federal law on murders committed with firearms as part of other crimes of violence. Its the only charge for which Mangione could face the death penalty, since it's not used in New York state. The papers filed early Saturday morning argued that this charge should be dismissed because prosecutors have failed to identify the other offenses that would be required to convict him, saying that the alleged other crime stalking is not a crime of violence, as per AP. Also Read | Prosecutors directed to seek death penalty against UnitedHealthcare killing suspect Luigi Mangione How Mangione was caught Soon after the killing of Thompson, a multi-state search was launched. Authorities knew that the suspect had skipped away from the scene on a bike that they rode to Central Park, before taking a taxi to an inter-state bus depot. The United States Department of State has issued a travel alert for a popular travel destination, warning that terrorists could target crowded spots such tourists places and shopping centres. While the advisory does not indicate a specific target or threat, officials have advised American citizens to exercise heightened caution. The travel alert has been issued for The Maldives. In its advisory, the United Sates asked the citizens to exercise increased caution in Maldives due to terrorism. It said that terrorists group may attack with little and no warning, as it listed out the places they could target. They may target: Tourist locations, transportation hubs, markets and shopping malls, local government facilities, attacks may occur on remote islands. This can lengthen the response time of authorities. The Department of State further said that if any American citizen decides to travel to The Maldives, they should keep in mind that there is risk of terrorist violence, including terrorist attacks and other activity in the Maldives. Also Read | Katrina Kaif named global tourism ambassador of Maldives Further, it said, Visit the US Department of State's country reports on terrorism to learn more. Monitor local media for breaking news. Be prepared to adjust your plans. Stay aware of your surroundings. Avoid demonstrations and crowds. Enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP) to get important updates and alerts from the U.S. embassy or consulate. Enrolling helps the US embassy or consulate contact you or your emergency contact in an emergency. The travellers have also been asked to review the security report for The Maldives. Whether youre a first time or frequent traveler, use the International Travel Checklist. We highly recommend that you buy travel insurance before you travel. Check with your travel insurance provider about evacuation assistance, medical insurance, and trip cancelation coverage. Maldives Country Security Report The US Department of State has assessed Male as being a MEDIUM-threat location for terrorism directed at or affecting official US government interests. It has included a Terrorism T Indicator on the Travel Advisory for Maldives, indicating that terrorist attacks have occurred and/or specific threats against civilians, groups, or other targets may exist. Residents of China's capital city, Beijing, on Saturday showed indifference and defiance about United States President Donald Trump's recent decision to impose harsh new tariffs on the country, AFP reported. On Friday, Trump unexpectedly announced that the United States would impose an extra 100 percent tariff on all imports from China starting from November 1, or possibly earlier, and also raised doubts about an upcoming meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Chinese authorities have not yet publicly reacted to the tariff announcement, which Trump claimed was a response to Beijing's recent export control measures in the critical rare-earth sector. What do Beijing residents feel? Meanwhile, residents of Beijing have reacted to Trump's tariff announcement. "I felt nothing when I first saw the news," said Liu Ming, a 48-year-old employee in a software company told AFP. China isn't afraid of any US sanctions or policies aimed at limiting us. We have the confidence and ability to do better ourselves," Liu said. Calling out Trump's policies, Liu noted that from a Chinese perspective, he is somewhat unreliable, constantly shifting policies and causing commotion in the world. Irene Wang, an insurance worker in her thirties, agreed with Liu's sentiment. "He says one thing today, but maybe after a nap he'll change his mind again," Wang told the news agency. She thinks that the imposition of extremely high tariffs could backfire. "For Americans, it could have an impact," she said, as tariffs on Chinese products might raise prices in the US. Some residents expected only a modest effect on China's economy if the trade war with the US intensified again. Also Read | Zelensky-Trump hold talks as Russia strikes Ukraine with hypersonic missiles "The import-export sector, especially those businesses, will inevitably be affected to some extent," Jesicca Yu, 40 told the news agency. 'For ordinary people in China, in the immediate future, I don't think much will change in their daily lives," she said. Yu also expressed concern about the strained relationship between Beijing and Washington. "The more peaceful things are, the more economic development can take place," Yu said, adding, "We hope things go back to normal." Lisa Liu, a colleague of Yu in her thirties, mentioned that she sees one positive aspect in Trump's unpredictable style of governance. "He gives us a lot to talk about at the dinner table," she said. What did Trump say about additional tariffs on China? In a long post on Truth Social, Donald Trump wrote, It has just been learned that China has taken an extraordinarily aggressive position on Trade in sending an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1st, 2025, impose large scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make, and some not even made by them. Based on the fact that China has taken this unprecedented position, and speaking only for the U.S.A., and not other Nations who were similarly threatened, starting November 1st, 2025 (or sooner, depending on any further actions or changes taken by China), the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying, he added. What is the contention over rare earth minerals? Trump's announcement came after reports that China had imposed new controls on rare earth mineral exports, which is vital for high-tech industries across the globe. Trump had previously threatened to respond with a massive increase in tariffs on Chinese imports in retaliation for Beijings latest trade restrictions. What did Trump say about meeting Xi Jinping? Speaking to reporters at the White House, Donald Trump expressed uncertainty about whether the expected meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea would take place. Konstantin Galish, a Ukrainian crypto investor and blogger, known as Kostya Kudo online, was reportedly found dead in a Lamborghini on Saturday. His death comes amid the bloodbath that the crypto market witnessed with prices of Bitcoin, Ethereum and most other cryptocurrencies crashing on Friday. As per multiple local media reports, the 32-year-old crypto investor's body was found in a car in the Obolon district of Kyiv, Ukraine. Konstantin Galish's death comes hours after prices of Ethereum and most other cryptocurrencies crashed following United States President Donald Trump's announcement that he is raising US tariffs 100 per cent on any and all critical software imports from China. The blogger's Telegram channel also confirmed Galish's death in a post, stating that investigations into the cause of his death are underway. How did Konstantin Galish die? According to Binance Square, Konstantin Galish died by suicide. Binance Square is a social media platform that allows users to connect with other cryptocurrency enthusiasts. Social media was also flooded with tributes, with crypto enthusiasts mourning Galish's death. The platform claimed that Konstantin Galish reportedly lost at least $30 million belonging to investors who had trusted him to manage their funds. Who was Konstantin Galish? Konstantin Galish (Kudo) was a crypto investor and blogger. He is also the co-founder and CEO of Cryptology Key trading academy. Cryptology Key's YouTube channel has over 97,000 subscribers, while their Instagram account is followed by over one lakh netizens. View full Image Cryptology Key's Instagram account Galish reportedly owns multiple luxury cars including 2020 Lamborghini Urus, a 2023 Ferrari 296 GTB, and a 2012 Mercedes-Benz 220 CDI. Why did cryptocurrencies crash? Experts say Donald Trump's additional tariffs on China are the major reason for the significant decline in cryptocurrency prices on Friday. Crypto majors like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, Binance, among others witnessed a big retreat after Donald Trump's administration increased the China tariffs to 130%. Experts said that the Chinese are among the major investors in cryptocurrencies, and the announcement of additional 100% tariffs has weakened the sentiment. They expected further growth in the virtual assets as it would take some time to adjust to the new tariffs. Trump tariffs on China Donald Trump imposed 100% tariffs in addition to the existing 30% tariffs on China with the total tariff on the Asian nation summing to 130%. In a post on Truth Social, Donald Trump announced that he was unhappy with China's stance on export of rare earth minerals and called it an extraordinarily aggressive position. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Saturday clarified that it was not involved in the press conference conducted by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in Delhi. A press conference addressed by Afghan Foreign Minister Muttaqi saw participation restricted to a handful of reporters, while women journalists were conspicuous by their absence. MEA had no involvement in the press interaction held yesterday by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, in Delhi, said the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). However, PTI reported, citing sources, that the Indian side had suggested to the Afghan side that women journalists should be part of the invitees for the event. The decision on inviting journalists to the media interaction was taken by Taliban officials accompanying the foreign minister, PTI had earlier reported. The Taliban regime in Kabul has faced severe criticism from various countries as well as global bodies like the United Nations for restricting the rights of women in Afghanistan. Muttaqi even side-stepped a direct question on the plight of women in Afghanistan, but said every country has its own customs, laws and principles, and there should be respect for them. A controversy erupted in New Delhi over a press conference by the Taliban's acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, where Indian women journalists were allegedly barred from attending at the Afghanistan Embassy. Congress MP Karti P Chidambaram was more critical of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government over the issue and expressed his disappointment with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar. I understand the geopolitical compulsions that force us to engage with the Taliban, but to accede to their discriminatory & plain primitive mores is outright ridiculous. It's very disappointing to note the conduct of the Ministry of External Affairs and S Jaishankar in excluding women journalists from the press briefing of the Taliban Minister, he said. The Taliban minister is on a week-long visit to India, beginning from October 9 till October 16. This is the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021. No joint press briefing followed the official meeting. Instead, the Afghan delegation conducted a separate media interaction on embassy premises. At the event, Muttaqi spoke on a range of regional issues, including India-Afghanistan relations, humanitarian aid, trade connectivity, and security cooperation. The press conference was attended only by selected male journalists and officials from the Afghan embassy. Under the Taliban 2.0 regime that took power in August 2021, Afghan women and girls face what the UN calls the most severe women's rights crisis in the world. Rather than a more moderate approach, the Taliban have systematically expanded and intensified their restrictions on women's lives, effectively erasing them from public existence. When I need some AI assistance, I turn to Perplexity, Gemini, or ChatGPT. I go to chat assistants knowing what it is I wantperhaps a bit of research, an answer to a question, some French exercises, or to play around with an image. I dont always realize that AI now comes at me from an increasing number of directions. AI has begun to shift from standalone apps to integration deep inside the software we use. From there, its making its way to becoming embedded in the things we use, such as cars, lights, speakers, and other devices that sense and respond. The Internet of Things (IoT) has become the Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT), a transformation within a transformation. The next step is for AI to become agentic and just do things for you. That too has already begun. Thats the future one has to be ready for, as its coming at a startling speed. Deep integration Anyone who uses technology will have noticed AI becoming integrated into software, making it smarter and more intuitive to use. The way Gmail guesses what you might want to write, or predictive text supplies the next word, and corrects grammar and spelling, are obvious examples of AI being baked into software. Also Read | AI is dangerously good at pretending to understand how you feel One huge advantage we havent fully appreciated yet is that integrated AI means we dont have to leave the task were working on and head to another app to retrieve information, only to come back to the original. The way AI features are now built into camera software is a clear example. First of all, the camera does half the work for you by enhancing an image with its computational capabilities. For further editing, tools are increasingly becoming part of the camera software. You dont have to get out of the camera to adjust the image or even recompose it. On the Pixel 10, the camera software actually activates its AI to guide you on how to take the photo. Have you noticed a new experimental feature in the Chrome browser lately? The Listen to this Page feature, available for some users, now gives you an AI summary of the article or web page youre on. It doesnt read through the entire text, but culls out the important points and provides insight. Thats more integrated AI at work, and it can make it easy for you to consume a lot more content more quickly. Should you want to read the entire piece, youll have to stop and do so. I wouldnt be surprised if what comes next is a choice between reading the whole, the AI summary, or even asking questions. You already dont have to leave a page to translate anything. Also Read | Why Indias competition regulator is warning companies about AI AI has also been making its way into the devices and objects we use, and is ready to require a human in the loop far less. I sometimes ask Alexa to turn my house on remotely before I arrive home, switching on lights, playing some nice music, and starting the air purifier, etc. But now devices will have more sensors and personalization so that a thermostat could put the cooling on to suit your preferences, or your tea kettle can start up when your car tells it youre nearing home. So, everything from wearables to smart home products can form an ecosystem personalized around the user. It will happen in the background, with AI working to make life easier. Embedded AI is also well on its way to becoming agentic, automating tasks that you no longer need to attend to manually. A startling example of agentic AI is when a car senses that the driver is either sleepy or stressed and takes over control. Various Mercedes-Benz car models have been able to do this for many years. The car can change its route to go to a coffee shop or turn on music to help the driver relax when under stress. Transparency at stake Whether this AI-enabled world is utopian or dystopian depends on your perspective, but clearly, there are big problems in the picture. AI in the background isnt necessarily transparent. A phone camera certainly isnt, come to think of it. It does what it likes with your images. While you have more personalization, you also paradoxically have less choice. Also Read | What agentic AI browsers are and why they matter Consider how reading a specific type of news item or watching a YouTube video can then flood your feed with more of the same, whether you like it or not. That leaves you with the task of determining how to adjust the type of content you want to consume. One of the major concerns is privacy. Even if AI companies attempt to protect user data, breaches are anything but rare. Considering the amount of deeply personal data involved, compromises with privacy are a frightening prospect. The New Normal: The world is at an inflexion point. Artificial intelligence (AI) is set to be as massive a revolution as the Internet has been. The option to just stay away from AI will not be available to most people, as all the tech we use takes the AI route. This column series introduces AI to the non-techie in an easy and relatable way, aiming to demystify and help a user to actually put the technology to good use in everyday life. Mala Bhargava is most often described as a veteran writer who has contributed to several publications in India since 1995. Her domain is personal tech, and she writes to simplify and demystify technology for a non-techie audience. A woman's bid to shatter the political glass ceiling in an ostensibly modern nation, to a liberal democracy barring its women journalists from a presser as it rolled out the red carpet for the Talibanthis weeks headlines once again exposed the worlds uneasy relationship with women and power. The saving grace: the Nobel Peace Prize committee snubbed US President Donald Trumpfor a woman. Sanae Takaichi, who considers former British prime minister Margaret Thatcher among her idols, may become Japan's first female prime minister. The 64-year-old created history last week by getting elected the first female president of Japan's predominantly male ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Her ascent is significant because women in Japan still lag far behind their male counterparts in political empowermenta striking contrast for a nation renowned for its cutting-edge technology, precision engineering, and an almost ritualistic devotion to discipline, punctuality, and culture. The Asian giant ranks 118th out of 148 countries in this years Global Gender Gap Index released by the World Economic Forum. India stands at 131. Women make up barely 15% of Japans lower housethe more powerful of its two parliamentary chambersand only two of the countrys 47 prefectural governors are women. However, she must still secure parliamentary approval to become premier later this montha prospect now clouded by uncertainty after the LDPs coalition partner of 26 years, Komeito, withdrew its support. The party cited the LDPs failure to address a political funding scandal that has dogged the ruling group for two years. Komeito leader Tetsuo Saito has stated his party would not support Takaichi when parliament votes later this month. First elected to parliament from her hometown of Nara in 1993, Takaichi has previously held government posts, including minister of economic security, internal affairs, and gender equality. She is widely regarded as a protegee of Japans former India-friendly Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, championing his vision of a stronger military and increased fiscal spending to drive growth. One could therefore anticipate continuity in India-Japan relations. However, ties with China could become more complicated, given its hardline stance, and Takaichi would also have to navigate a delicate and unpredictable relationship with the US. From a country breaking new ground in womens political empowerment to one that believes women should neither be seen nor heardmuch less be educated and work Taliban acting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is in India on a week-long visit. He's the first-ever Taliban leader to do so because India and the Taliban were on opposite sides during the groups last stint in power in Kabul in 1996-2001. At that time, the Taliban was backed by Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Now the world looks quite different. Pakistan, once the main benefactor of the Taliban, is at odds with them. For decades, Afghanistan has rejected the Durand Line border with Pakistan. Pakistan is also upset due to what it sees as the Taliban's indifference to its security concernsIslamabad says Kabul is not doing enough to curb the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), which targets the Pakistan army. In September, the Pakistan army lost 19 soldiers fighting insurgents along the Afghan border. And as Muttaqi arrived in India for talks, explosions were heard in Kabul, suspected to be a Pakistani drone attack. Meanwhile, New Delhi has announced a slew of measures, including upgrading its mission in Kabul to an embassy, expanding development aid, increasing visas issued to Afghans, and building shelters for refugees forcibly returned to Afghanistan from Pakistan and Iran. India's external affairs minister S. Jaishankar even noted the Talibans condemnation of the Pahalgam terrorist attack in April. Muttaqi, on his part, invited Indian investment in the country, including in the mining sector and promised not to allow any group to threaten others from the Afghan soil, or to use Afghan soil against others. However reassuring this may be, Pakistan will do its best to disrupt the India-Taliban ties. It will do its best to see that Kabul doesnt tilt towards New Delhi. Pakistan has viciously targeted Indian interests before, and India would do well to take the Kabul drone strike as a signal of Islamabads intent. It may be good to know the Taliban is reaching out to India, but it remains a regressive group that New Delhi once shunned as a security threat to itself and for curbing womens rights. New Delhi hasnt recognized the Taliban governmentan indication that it will watch carefully before giving the group legitimacy. But the irony is that Indian women journalists were barred from attending a press conference addressed by Muttaqi, who is set to visit the Taj Mahala monument to love built by Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan for his wife, Mumtaz Mahal. Sorry Trump! Trump has lost out on the 2025 Nobel Peace Prizesomething he was hankering after, remember? He was pretty upset that India did not endorse him after his mediation efforts, as he calls it, in the India-Pakistan skirmish in May. The winner is Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado. The Nobel Academy noted that she was chosen for her steadfast support for a peaceful transition to democracy in her countryI dont think Trump would have quite qualified for those credentials. (On the other hand, he may find it hard to be upset about her winning the award, since the US has been critical of Venezuelas President Nicolas Maduro.) The good news, however, is that he can begin to rally his supporters to nominate him for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize from later this month. Names can be suggested up to 31 January 2026. Better luck next year, Trump. Who knows, Palestinians may nominate you themselves if the Gaza ceasefire holds. Elizabeth Roche is an associate professor at O.P. Jindal Global University. Move over Harshad Mehta, Ketan Parekh, and Abdul Telgi. For sheer white-collar crime, no one in Indian history can compare to Robert Clive, who made looting a fine art and whose spoils would leave contemporary financial crooks looking like small-time thieves. Clive came to India in 1744 as a depressed, suicidal 18-year-old clerk of the East India Company (EIC) on a modest wage. Over the next 20 years, he went on to mastermind one of the biggest financial frauds in history, in the process becoming one of Britain's richest men. The tipping point came in the Battle of Plassey in 1757, which was not so much a battle as a transaction. Clive bribed Mir Jafar, the commander of the Nawab of Bengal, to let him take over India's wealthiest province. Corporate predator In William Dalrymple's The Anarchy: The East India Company, Corporate Violence, and the Pillage of an Empire, Clive is portrayed as a violent, utterly ruthless and intermittently mentally unstable corporate predator", whose victories in war were bought more than achieved. Also Read | How the Amul girl became a cultural icon for India Following Plassey, Clive's enrichment began in earnest. As de facto ruler of Bengal, he didn't merely accept gifts; he demanded tribute. The puppet nawab showered him with cash, jewels, and land revenues as the line between public servant and private profiteer dissolved swiftly. The arithmetic of his avarice dwarfs modern scams. When Clive departed India in 1767, he carried away a personal fortune of 401,102 (roughly equivalent to 68 million today). Some estimates place the figure closer to 1.2 million in cash, bills, and jewels, or about 286 million in contemporary value. These were spoils extracted through institutionalized extortion. By contrast, Mehta's securities fraud netted approximately 4,000 crore while Parekh's stock manipulation involved similar amounts. Abdul Telgis stamp paper fraud reached 20,000 crore. While enormous, these sums look like rounding errors next to Clives haul. The difference isn't just scale. Mehta, Parekh, and Telgi were criminals. Clive was knighted and feted. Whats more, Clive's private bonanza is dwarfed by the institutional looting he facilitated. In 1765, he signed the Treaty of Allahabad, securing tax-revenue rights to the tune of 33 million per year from the Mughal emperor for the Company. With that, the GDP of one of the world's wealthiest areas passed into a private company's hands. Clive set the model for the nabob" (an anglicization of nawab), referring to EIC gentlemen returning from India with obscene amounts of money. They were hated and envied equally, and regarded as coarse upstarts polluting British politics with Indian lucre. A 1984 paper by Philip Lawson & Jim Phillips is aptly titled: Our Execrable Banditti": Perceptions of Nabobs in Mid-Eighteenth Century Britain. Once back in Britain, they proceeded to construct palace residences, purchased seats in parliament, married into old-money households, and washed dirty money in aristocratic respectability. Also Read | Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay: The fiery architect of social enterprise in India Clive did just that. Back in England, he bought several estates and was invested with an Irish peerage in 1762. But the wealth had its price. He became addicted to opium and suffered through bouts of severe depression. In 1772-73, the British legislators initiated an investigation into the behaviour of the EIC. Clive, defending himself against a hostile Parliament, deflected their recriminations with a line that expressed both his arrogance and the magnitude of opportunity: I stand astonished at my own moderation." However, the defence wore him out. On 22 November 1774, aged 49, Robert Clive died by suicide. Corporate colonialism Its important to remember that Clive was no rogue agent. The EIC, ostensibly a private entity, was in fact an imperial tool. Clive's governorship was legitimized by the Crown, his campaigns celebrated in London, and his peerage awarded by the King. He did not just pilfer Indian cash; he established the template for corporate colonialism. Following Clive, the EIC became a colonial power unto itself, with standing armies, a minted currency, and sovereign rights over tens of millions of people. The Company State, as scholars now refer to it, started with Clives skillfully orchestrated betrayal. Today, his statue continues to stand outside the Foreign Office in London while Plassey is remembered as a glorious imperial triumph. The crime was so integral to British riches that it has been reframed as patriotism. Also Read | Walchand Hirachand: The dreamer who built solid castles in the air Outrageous as it sounds, contemporary fraudsters appear amateurish and low-key when contrasted against the high art of imperial plunder, which Robert Clive orchestrated with a musket in one hand and an abacus in the other. Oh, and Britain still hasn't returned what he stole. For more such stories, read The Enterprising Indian: Stories From India Inc News. The deployment of American troops to Israel this weekend marks the start of an extraordinarily complex effort to secure a fragile peace in Gaza and establish a framework to govern the enclave. Nearly 200 troops under Adm. Brad Cooper of U.S. Central Command are due to arrive in Israel by Sunday to establish a coordination center that will monitor the cease-fire and organize the flow of humanitarian aid, logistics and security assistance to Gaza. U.S. officials reaffirmed Friday that there are no plans for those troopsmainly planners, transportation and engineering specialists, and security expertsto set foot in Gaza. Even so, officials are already discussing the creation of a thousands-strong International Stabilization Force," whose mission would be to secure the enclave. Its composition has yet to be determined, but it could draw on troops from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Turkey, Morocco, Indonesia and possibly several Central Asian nations. The U.S. role is notable for an administration that has long shunned nation-building missions abroad and has emphasized defending the Western Hemisphere. But current and former officials say an American political and military role is essential to cement the cease-fire and turn the first phase of the White Houses Gaza plan into a lasting peace. Israeli soldiers near the border with Gaza this week. The effort to recruit and support the stabilization force will run alongside plans to form a governing body for Gaza that would provide essential services after the conflict that began when Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. Under Trumps plan, Gaza would be administered by a technocratic Palestinian committee overseen by a Board of Peace." Trump would chair the board, and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair would also have a role. Assembling that technocratic committee could prove challenging. About 30,000 technical, administrative and security personnel in Gaza are on the Palestinian Authoritys payroll and could potentially help maintain essential services and begin a transition to Palestinian administration of the enclave, as envisioned in Trumps plan, a former U.S. official said. Trumps earlier talk of relocating Palestinians out of Gazawhich drew widespread regional criticismhas been shelved. But political divisions could complicate governance plans. The U.A.E., unlike Saudi Arabia, has insisted that the Palestinian Authority be fundamentally reformed before assuming any substantial role in Gazas eventual administration. Establishing an international stabilization force faces numerous challenges, starting with efforts to disarm Hamas. Diplomats have discussed a process of decommissioning" weapons, a term that echoes the agreement that ended the violence in Northern Ireland under Blairs leadership. Those decommissioning" arrangements are expected to be worked out in the next phase of negotiations, likely to begin after the hostages are released. Preliminary planning for a stabilization force during the Biden administration envisioned a U.S. role involving logistics, transport, intelligence and support. Those efforts were to be overseen by an American general based in Egypt, the presumed entry point for the Arab and other international forces deploying to Gaza. That approach reflected recognition that the U.S. military has unique capabilities for organizing expeditionary operations and answered Arab appeals for American involvement. But the Biden administration ruled out putting troops in Gaza and instead considered having an Egyptian or Emirati commander lead the force. The Trump administration hasnt yet detailed how large the International Stabilization Force might be, how long it would remain deployed, or how the U.S. would assist it from outside Gaza. Were already talking to multiple governments about standing up that ISF," a senior U.S. official told reporters Thursday. With Admiral Cooper, its going to become a lot easier." The White House has emphasized to its MAGA constituency that no U.S. troops will enter the enclave. No U.S. troops are intended to go into Gaza," a second senior official said. Its really just to help create the joint control center and integrate the other security forces going in." The U.S. still has a small contingent in Egypts Sinai Peninsula as part of the force monitoring the Camp David accords between Egypt and Israel. A central question among diplomats and former officials is whether Trump and his team will sustain the diplomatic pressure that led to the imminent hostage release. Will this be sustained beyond the declaration of a Trumpian victory?" one former official said. All of this will take extraordinary leverage to make happen." Write to Michael R. Gordon at michael.gordon@wsj.com and Summer Said at summer.said@wsj.com With her three children murdered and her partner disappeared, Eva Vazquez is just one of many living through a dire situation that has seen almost 15,000 people vanish without trace in the first year of Sheinbaums government My son dropped dead there, says Eva Maria Vazquez. Jaime Gonzalez was murdered inside a house still under construction, in a humble neighborhood of Irapuato, in the state of Guanajuato, in central Mexico. He was the third son taken from her. Jaime was killed while his mother and her partner, Francisco Arias, were held downstairs at gunpoint, their faces pressed against the ground, their hands tied behind their backs. Before leaving the house, the armed group also took Arias, whom everyone calls Panchito. They did it just in case. They were not sure that they had killed the right person. What do we do with this old man? one asked. Take him, take him, another said. Panchito, 54, a searcher for the collective Hasta Encontrarte (Until I Find You), disappeared on June 9, 2025. Nothing is known of his whereabouts. He is one of the 14,790 people who have disappeared in the first year of Claudia Sheinbaums government. Disappearances have increased by 72% in Mexico compared to the figure registered during her predecessor and mentor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obradors inaugural year from 2018 to 2019. In some states, such as Baja California, Campeche or Chiapas, the increase is close to 1,000%. The trend is also bad in the state of Aguascalientes, where the number of missing persons has gone from nine to 129, or in the State of Mexico, where disappearances have gone from 83 to 2,135 in the same time frames. All this, while the government celebrates the success of its security strategy. The beginning of the crisis Eva Maria Vazquez pinpoints October 24, 2017, as the date her ordeal began. That was the day her son Gerardo Leiva, 24, was killed on a street in Irapuato. The war in Guanajuato kicked off at that point. The government had failed to intervene in the brutal criminal dynamics in neighboring states like Jalisco. And at that time, a local gang, the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel, was getting stronger, moving from the extraction of hydrocarbons to challenging the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for its business in extortion, trafficking, and drugs. The conflict between the two cartels sent shockwaves through the state, particularly in its industrial corridor, formed by Leon, Irapuato, Celaya and Salamanca. Eva Vazquez, member of a group of searchers from Guanajuato. Rodrigo Oropeza This ongoing gang warfare became a free for all. Since 2018, Guanajuato has been the deadliest state in Mexico, with 11.6% of all Mexicos murders committed in this region of just over six million. It also has the most clandestine graves, with more than 700. The number of the disappeared persons is dizzying. In seven years, it has gone from 640 to more than 5,300. On the first anniversary of Sheinbaums government, almost 1,000 new cases have been registered. I hadnt yet come to terms with Gerardos death, when I lost Miguel, says Eva Vazquez. Little more than four years separated their deaths. A group dressed as police officers entered the house where Miguel Gonzalez was sleeping on January 20, 2022, and took him away in the early hours of the morning. His mother was recovering from an attack that had occurred in the market where she sold tamales: They came to kill some kid, but the bullets hit the pot of tamales and the shrapnel bounced back at me. I ended up in intensive care, on the brink of death, she says. Miguels skull When Eva recovered, she joined the collective Hasta Encontrarte, which searches for missing persons. Panchito, her partner of 10 years, joined too. Together they combed hills, searched in communal graves, and comforted other families. In February 2023, the Guanajuato Attorney Generals Office called Eva, telling her to come and collect Miguels skull. They had had the skull since January 25 of the previous year in other words, five days after he was taken. The police had found Miguels head in Silao, inside a black bag. They did not find the rest of the body. It took them more than a year to notify his mother. They showed me photos of a skull that was already just bone. I looked at him and looked at him, because as a child he had an accident at school, when he jumped off a roof and hit his teeth and they got skewed. And when they showed me the photo, I looked at his teeth and for me, it was like I didnt want to accept it and still to this day I dont accept it, because we refuse to accept reality, right? If they had shown me a photo from the moment they found his little head, well, logically, my son would still have had some flesh on him. Thats what you ask yourself: why do they only show a decomposed head? Logically, there is a DNA test, which is something you cant argue with, but for a mother it is still not enough. Eva shows a photo of her murdered son. Rodrigo Oropeza Miguels case is not unusual. In the morgue at the Guanajuato Attorney Generals Office, there were 929 bodies until August of last year, almost all of them still unidentified. In the case of Isaac Aaron, his family searched for four years, and all that time he had been held by the Attorney Generals Office. This happens frequently everywhere in Mexico, where a total of 72,100 bodies are held in morgues. The situation has been aggravated by the fact that Claudia Sheinbaum has not moved forward with the strengthening of the National Search Commission initiated by her predecessor, Lopez Obrador. Panchito and the searchers A searcher never stops looking. Even when they find their loved ones. There are so many who are missing. Eva and Pancho continued to search for missing persons even after they found Miguel. The collective, Hasta Encontrarte, managed to recover more than 230 bodies in Guanajuato in two years. Panchito was on every search, until Eva still suffering from her injuries could no longer accompany him. One day he got the fright of his life because he came upon a snake. He ran and ran, like a grasshopper, and the snake after him, laughs Eva Vazquez for the first time. Immediately the patrol people delivered him to me because he got sick from the fright. The collective is now looking for Panchito. I had hoped that they would release him because Pancho didnt owe anything. But we dont know what has happened, if they have him alive, or not, Eva says. The United Nations is putting pressure on the Mexican government, but Hasta Encontrarte says that the only thing the Attorney Generals Office has done is hinder the search, to the point of avoiding even giving a copy of the investigation file to the family. Search form for Jose Francisco Arias Mendoza. Rodrigo Oropeza Besides Pancho, there are four other searchers missing in Guanajuato. Six others have been murdered in recent years in the state; 26 since 2010. During Claudia Sheinbaums first year, as well as Pancho, searchers Hector Aparicio disappeared in February in Veracruz, Luz Lara and Oscar Ivan Jimenez, in November, also in Guanajuato. Panchito was my right arm, now they have left me unprotected, says Eva Vazquez, who fears for her life and also for that of Luis, the only child she has left. Sheinbaums pending business The Mexican president celebrates the fall in homicides at each anniversary event. It was 30% down in August, compared to the figure left by Lopez Obrador. More than 30,000 people have also been arrested, and thousands of weapons and tons of drugs seized. Sheinbaum insists that her strategy is working. But there is one figure that goes unmentioned: the 133,000 disappeared in the country. It is a number that grows unchecked in the official registry of the Ministry of the Interior. This data has led the U.N. Committee on Enforced Disappearances (CED) to state that disappearances are widespread and systematic in Mexico. The crime also has an impunity rate of 99%. These two figures together make it impossible to know whether state police have participated in the disappearances or if they have allowed criminal groups to carry them out, according to the U.N. All this has led the CED to apply Article 34, which is designed to push a countrys case to the forefront of the U.N. General Assembly. Sheinbaums government has reacted with fury. Public bodies, secretaries, legislators and even the president herself have dismissed the U.N.s warning. In Mexico, there is no forced disappearance by the state, Sheinbaum said, despite the hundreds of cases in which the participation of police officers is proven. Some of these cases, such as the disappearance of the 43 students from Ayotzinapa 11 years ago, have scarcely been addressed by the authorities. Raymundo Sandoval, founder of the Platform for Justice and Democracy of Guanajuato, argues that the presidents approach to this crisis has been disastrous Not only because it has confronted the United Nations, but because it has ignored the recommendations established since 2021 by the CED, especially the one related to establishing a national strategy for the prevention and eradication of disappearances, he says. Tiles with portraits of missing persons on the walls of the Attorney General's Office in the city of Irapuato, Guanajuato. Rodrigo Oropeza Among the demands the U.N. has been making of Mexico for years is the urgency of halting the rise in disappearances, searching for those currently missing, and establishing a comprehensive strategy. While this sounds simple, Sheinbams administration has failed to do so. On the contrary, it has tried, just like Lopez Obradors government, to combat the issue of the narrative surrounding disappearances, Sandoval notes, referring to attempts to reduce the number of missing persons by intervening in official records or the commitment to implementing a biometric CURP (National Identity Document) to search for missing persons, both measures strongly opposed by groups. When Miguel disappeared, Eva and her family became the talk of the neighborhood. He was the exception, the woman says before saying goodbye. Now, here in the neighborhood, there are five people who have recently disappeared, in addition to Pancho. Its become routine. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition (Bloomberg Opinion) -- President Donald Trumps recent flurry of attempts to deploy National Guard troops in cities around the country reminds me of an old block-that-metaphor line from the New Yorker: As I look at things with a broad brush, there are lots of things going south out there, and theres no silver bullet. With this particular president and his constant whirligig of threats, puffery and offhand remarks, one never knows whether he is announcing a genuine policy initiative or simply reveling in the furious activity he provokes among opponents and critics. But when he wields federal troops as though theyre his personal enforcers, we have to take his threats seriously. Even if theres no silver bullet. The presidents actions now hinge on two key court decisions. On Thursday, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals heard oral arguments on whether to lift a temporary restraining order issued by a federal judge in Oregon blocking the deployment of troops in Portland. The appeals court had already decided that although Trump can federalize the Guard, he cant deploy troops in the city until the appeal is decided. Whichever way the case is decided, it may be headed to the Supreme Court.(1) Meanwhile, a federal district judge in Chicago issued a ruling late Thursday temporarily halting the deployment of troops in Illinois. The administration said it planned to appeal. But first things first. Federal troops have been used to put down resistance to federal law for as long as there have been federal troops and even before. The Whiskey Rebellion collapsed only when President George Washington personally led the combined militias of four states against the insurrectionists. The 1863 New York Draft Riots in which countless Black residents of the city were murdered endured until President Abraham Lincoln sent thousands of battle-hardened soldiers, who retook the city after a series of armed clashes with the insurgents. Later in the 19th century, Presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and Grover Cleveland used armed force to break railroad strikes. And in June 1941, six months before the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt sent federal troops to California to end a walkout at North American Aviation, which at the time was supposed to be building aircraft as part of the nations rapid rearmament. The examples go on and on. But the issue before the courts today isnt whether presidents were justified in their use of troops in the past. The question is whether Trump acted appropriately in federalizing the state National Guard, which ordinarily is a militia controlled by the governor. Under federal law, the president may assume control only in cases of invasion, rebellion, or an inability with the regular forces to execute the law. The administration has argued that a judge has no authority to second-guess the Commander-in-Chiefs decision on whether federalization is necessary. The Trump-appointed judge disagreed a ruling that White House aide Stephen Miller, who perhaps knows less of the nations history than he imagines, called one of the most egregious and thunderous violations of constitutional order we have ever seen. But the reason were seeing more courts blocking actions that previous presidents got away with isnt some anti-Trump judicial cabal. Its that we live in a more regulated era and therefore more litigious era, one in which, sometimes for worse and sometimes for better, were governed less by the rule of law than by the rule of lawyers. Thus, more often than at any time in history, the Lilliputians get to tie down the federal Leviathan. My libertarian side bursts with joy when the federal government finds itself less able to do as it pleases. My practical side worries. The Oregon judge found that there was no inability to enforce the laws and no invasion and its hard to argue with either conclusion. The court also found that there was no rebellion, and although Im confident the judge was correct, I worry about her adoption of what seems to me a narrow and lawyerly definition of the term. Im not going to quote the definition here, because its too long. Thats part of the problem the creation of a multi-part test that a president must meet before federalizing the Guard. Im less worried about the details than about the possibility that, if we one day face a true insurrection, a courts intervention might slow a necessary federal response by demanding a clear statement of facts when, in the midst of a violent cataclysm, the facts are changing by the minute. But despite the administrations posturing, thats not where we are. Protest and dissent arent rebellion; theyre democracy in action. Those who interfere with immigration arrests can be arrested and tried no troops are necessary to do that and, indeed, its already happening. Theres no emergency; certainly, theres no rebellion. Still, as the always thoughtful Elaine Scarry has reminded us, the time to think about what wed do in an actual emergency is before it arises. And although Im no partisan its been decades since I voted I do worry that this particular president, whatever one thinks of him at the policy level, has acted in ways that call into serious question how keen his judgment would be in the face of a true emergency. Im not calling him better or worse than anyone else whos held the office; the issue is what we see now. Hes the democratically elected president of the most powerful nation on earth, and so he wields his authority legally. At the same time, with his whirlwind, impulsive style, he indulges in public fantasies such as locking up elected officials who stand in his way. Law is important, and getting the analysis right matters; nevertheless, in the end, most things really are downstream from character. Maybe the old maxim is true after all, and hard cases make bad law. But it may also be true that bad acts make hard cases. Yes, I do worry that using multi-part tests to cabin the presidents discretion in responding to emergencies will, in the long run, prove to be a serious mistake. Nevertheless, Im certain that leaving this or any president free to declare insurrections and rebellions at will would be worse. More From Bloomberg Opinion: (1) Or not. As many observers have pointed out, the Trump administration has been strategic in its appeals and has not brought before the Supreme Court many likely losers. This column reflects the personal views of the author and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or Bloomberg LP and its owners. Stephen L. Carter is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist, a professor of law at Yale University and author of Invisible: The Story of the Black Woman Lawyer Who Took Down Americas Most Powerful Mobster. More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com/opinion Hollywood veteran Diane Keaton has passed away. Acclaimed American actress Diane Keaton has passed away at the age of 79. PEOPLE magazine has confirmed that the Oscar-winning star died in California. Further details surrounding her death have not yet been released, and her family has requested privacy during this difficult time, according to a spokesperson. Diane Keaton's ever-lasting legacy Keaton rose to prominence in the 1970s through her iconic performances in The Godfather films and her celebrated collaborations with director Woody Allen. She went on to win the Academy Award for Best Actress for her role in the 1977 classic Annie Hall, a performance that remains one of cinemas most defining portrayals of romantic comedy. Over the course of her five-decade career, she appeared in a diverse range of films including The First Wives Club, Somethings Gotta Give, several of Nancy Meyers productions, and the Book Club series, cementing her reputation as one of Hollywoods most beloved and enduring talents. View full Image Diane Keaton and Al Pacino during the filming of The Godfather, 1972. More about Diane Keaton Born Diane Hall in Los Angeles in 1946, she was the eldest of four children. Her father worked as a civil engineer, while her mother devoted her time to raising the family. In a 2004 interview with PEOPLE, Keaton reflected on her mothers unfulfilled creative aspirations, saying, Secretly, in her heart of hearts, she probably wanted to be an entertainer of some kind. She sang, she played the piano, she was beautiful she was my advocate. Walker Co. to begin second phase of historic resources survey thanks to federal grant The seminar, 'Responding to the risk of domestic homicide in rural Ireland' last week saw over 150 frontline professionals in attendance, every single one with the same goal: to help those trapped in abusive relationships, and ultimately prevent domestic homicide. Tara Farrell, CEO of Longford Womens Link, the organisation who spearheaded the event, said the strongest way to tackle this issue is to ensure frontline agencies now work side by side going forward. She explained, There's two messages that we'd like people to take from today. One is that there is a lot of support out there for anyone that is here today, or anyone that knows someone whom they feel might be in this kind of a relationship or experiencing personal control, that there is help out there from the domestic violence support agencies throughout the country. The second thing, Ms Farrell added, is that were not going to be able to address the issues that are happening in our society if we don't collaborate as agencies on the front line. So that's why it's so great to see so many people here from agencies right across the country who are coming together to hear from Professor Monckton Smith. We're all hearing the same information at the same time and really learning and getting those insights into what the actual 8 stages of domestic violence and homicide timeline are so that they can apply that within their own work. That's really, really important that we're collaborating as agencies and particularly with the Longford Inter Agency group that we established a number of years ago with the help of An Garda Siochana, particularly Sergeant Emer Farrell has been fantastic, and with the support of Longford community safety partnership and Janine Bartley. We're very fortunate in Longford that we have that collaborative approach to looking at these kinds of issues and that's been really important. READ NEXT: Fire, folklore and feasting in Irelands Hidden Heartlands with Longford-Westmeath launch READ NEXT: Don't miss the Longford Leader Build and Renovate Expo 2025 this weekend The US subsidiary of the popular service, controlled by business figures close to Trump, is the final major platform to be drawn into the White Houses orbit TikTok is turning right-wing. The fastest-growing social network in the world and the most popular among young people is set to operate in the U.S. under a company independent of its Chinese parent company, with a board of directors controlled by the White House, which has already expressed its preferences. A man named Lachlan is involved, Trump said in an interview on Fox News. Lachlan and his father Rupert Murdoch are probably going to be in the group, Trump told the network, which is one of the many controlled by the Murdoch family. Larry Ellison, founder of Oracle and a personal friend of the president, will also be involved. TikTok is the latest major social network to take this conservative turn. Facebook and Instagram did so shortly after Trump won the election, when their owner, Mark Zuckerberg, became a supporter of the MAGA movement. Two years earlier, Elon Musk turned Twitter into X, a platform whose algorithm gives special visibility to posts that are racist, misleading, or support far-right candidates from around the world. I want you all to put all the pieces together, because what this effectively means is that every mass social media platform in the United States has been taken over by the right wing. Democratic Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez issued this warning in January, after TikTok posted a message thanking the newly inaugurated President Trump for preventing the platform from being shut down in the U.S. by granting an extension to resolve its sale. The Big Tech establishment has made no secret of its close ties to the Republican Party, attending dinners and kowtowing at events at the White House. This alignment has also been formalized through actions. Perhaps the most significant occurred in January, just days before Trump returned to power: Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, announced the end of its third-party fact-checking program, the already porous barrier that sought to keep inappropriate and hate-inciting content in check content such as that shared by Trump himself, whose account was suspended following the Capitol riot. Meta replaced that mechanism with a community notes system similar to the one previously adopted by X, a social network that has amplified far-right messaging. Community notes are comments made and voted on by users themselves, replacing the thousands of moderators and fact-checkers who were fired by X and Meta. Deciding what can or cannot be shared on social media is crucial and depends on each company. The major digital platforms are no longer just technology companies: they are political actors with a clear bias, an extension of state power, says Carmela Rios, an expert on social media and disinformation. The fact that they are now largely controlled by ultra-conservatives means that these sectors have understood that social media and its impressive capacity to redefine communication and global conversation have been and continue to be indispensable tools in their conquest of power. Recently, in New York, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a group of influencers that social media was a weapon and that the control of TikTok could be consequential. On the other side, many voices criticize the Biden administration for having effectively handed TikTok to the right by legislating against its Chinese control. For example, some studies highlight the importance of TikTok in the consolidation and integration of far-right parties in Finland and Sweden. As this platform is particularly popular among young people, it serves as a conduit for ideas and messages to a segment of the population largely detached from traditional media. In Spain, the far-right party Vox has around 750,000 followers on TikTok more than double the combined following of the Socialist Party (150,000), the left-wing Sumar (85,000), and the mainstream conservative Popular Party (70,000). Social medias love affair with far-right content goes beyond simply shaping what people talk about. Algorithms historically promote what generates the most attention, because that generates more revenue through advertising sales. Far-right messages generate a lot of interactions, both for and against, and that causes algorithms to reinforce and promote certain content more, explains Cecilia Rikap, professor of economics at University College London and research director of the institute for Innovation and Public Purpose (IIPP) at the center. Since the platforms themselves, through the design of their algorithms, decide which content is acceptable or not, the current state of these platforms shows that large technology companies and their founders combine the traditional profit motive with the pursuit of social and political control, concludes Rikap. Ekaitz Cancela, author of Utopias digitales, Imaginar el fin del capitalismo (Digital Utopias, Imagining the End of Capitalism), agrees: By promoting hatred against women, immigrants, and the queer population, by appealing to citizens most visceral passions, Silicon Valleys business model is directly related to Trumps ability to mobilize his voters, explains the researcher in the Technopolitics group at the CNSC/IN3 of the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC). Dinner held on September 4 at the White House with leading technology industry leaders. Brian Snyder (REUTERS) Effect on users For Rios, the impact of the rightward shift of social media on its users is profound. Speech that was previously marginal becomes normalized, polarization is amplified, and a sense of distrust toward the press, institutions, and science is fueled. It creates a landscape where misinformation circulates more freely and becomes part of the general conversation. Its a shift that turns social media into ideological trenches and weakens the shared space for conversation that democratic societies require. There is evidence that right-wing users are more likely to consume misinformation. A macro-study conducted with data from millions of Facebook users confirmed in 2023 that news circulating on the platform has a clear conservative bias and that the users who overwhelmingly consume information labeled as false are those who identify as right-wing. Tech companies have always cultivated close ties to political power, regardless of who the president is. But what were seeing now isnt just opportunism: its also a cultural alignment, says Rios. Some of the owners and executives share the Trumpist vision of freedom without rules and a market without checks and balances. The alignment isnt just tactical, its also ideological. The fact that the U.S. government is taking control of the most successful social network of recent times can be read in many ways. The TikTok case tells us that Trump will continue to invoke national security to interfere and control citizens public lives, laying the groundwork for a shift toward authoritarianism and political surveillance of content, which will put an end to any semblance of a free internet, says Cancela. Sign up for our weekly newsletter to get more English-language news coverage from EL PAIS USA Edition LIVONIA, MICH. Madonna University students cleaned up a Detroit park Friday as part of the Catholic institution's Mission and Heritage Week, combining community service with religious observance on the feast day of Blessed Mary Angela. About 30 first-year students in the UNV 1020 class partnered with Urban Neighborhood Initiatives to improve Lafayette-NYCRR Park in Detroit's Springwells neighborhood. The students picked up trash, pulled weeds, cleared branches and removed graffiti during the Franciscan Day of Service. "It's incredibly appropriate that today is the feast day of Blessed Mary Angela and in the midst of our mission and heritage week, we're widening our tent to go beyond our community to serve and be what we can for other people," said Paula Soter, director of campus ministry. Urban Neighborhood Initiatives is a nonprofit organization working to build a safe environment in southwest Detroit where residents live, work, and play. The service project coincided with Mission and Heritage Week, running October 4-10 for Felician-sponsored ministries. This year's theme is "Widening Our Tent for Charism and Mission," drawing from the prophet Isaiah's call to "enlarge the space for your tent." The university has organized multiple Franciscan Days of Service this semester, including trips to Forgotten Harvest, St. Edith Catholic Church, and work on Madonna's campus supporting other Felician ministries. Mission and Heritage Week featured several events celebrating the university's Felician-Franciscan heritage, including a St. Francis Feast Day liturgy, pet blessing ceremony, interfaith prayer service, and symposium with keynote speaker Sr. Jeremy Marie Midura, CSSF. The week concluded with a Blessed Mary Angela feast day Mass before homecoming weekend begins. Madonna University is sponsored by the Felician Sisters, a Catholic religious order founded in Poland in 1855. The Japanese clothing chain Uniqlo plans to open a store in Downtown Crossing in Boston in a space that has been vacant for nearly 20 years. AP Photo/Shuji Kajiyama, File A long-vacant building in the Downtown Crossing section of Boston is set to become the home of Uniqlo, a Japanese fashion chain, according to the Boston Business Journal. Uniqlo will take over the Washington Street storefront once occupied by the Barnes & Noble bookstore, which vacated the building nearly two decades ago. The announcement about the Downtown Crossing location included other new locations in New York, San Francisco, Chicago and elsewhere, according to Fast Company, which first reported the retailers expansion. Uniqlo has another Boston location on Newbury Street and outlets in Natick, Chestnut Hill, Braintree and Burlington. Before the pandemic, Downtown Crossing area businesses relied on area office workers and tourists, making the new Uniqlo location a boon to the neighborhood. The area is making progress rebounding in terms of vacancy rate, foot traffic and crime post-pandemic, Michael Nichols, president of the Downtown Boston Alliance, said at a downtown business event on Sept. 24. We did avoid the doom loop, if that were to be a real thing, he said. While office workers have not returned five days a week, they are returning to the office for part of the week. However, tourism has exceeded pre-pandemic levels, Nichols said. Foot traffic in total remains down from 2019, he said, but is up significantly from the past few years. The retail vacancies dropped to 65 compared to 125 in 2023, he said. But the vacancy rate still stands at 27%. Storefronts along Washington Street have the lowest vacancy rate. Although some spaces have for-lease signs posted, tenants have already signed leases, he added. Still, the vacancy rate is high when compared to the Back Bay, Seaport and the Boston area at large. Nichols and other speakers at the Sept. 24th business event said that building housing in the downtown area is key to its economic future. The new Uniqlo will be located at 399 Washington Street, across from other retailers such as Primark, T.J. Maxx, Old Navy, Marshalls and Macys. Hudson Group and Assembly Investments purchased the 76,000-square-foot building at 399 Washington Street in March for $13 million, according to Banker & Tradesman. In what has become a post-pandemic trend in declining real estate value, the building last sold for $63 million in 2017. We couldnt be happier with Uniqlo as a steward for this historic retail space that has been occupied by giants like B.W. Currier, Talbots, W.T. Grant and Barnes & Noble, Noam Ron, a partner at the Hudson Group, told the Boston Business Journal. Potential tenants have also shown interest in upstairs office suites, he said. The other new Uniqlo locations, according to Fast Company, include: New York Brooklyn: Williamsburg Manhattan: Union Square Manhattan: Bryant Park, Fifth Avenue Manhattan: World Trade Center Illinois Chicago: 600 N. Michigan Avenue Chicago: Oakbrook Mall California San Francisco: 801 Market Street Maryland Annapolis Mall Washington State Seattle area: Issaquah Commons Washington, D.C. A shooting in Mattapan on Saturday afternoon left two people injured and another with serious injuries, according to a statement from the Boston Police Department. Officers responded to 2 Hiawatha St. at around 1:21 p.m. following reports of a ShotSpotter activation. When they arrived, police found three people suffering from gunshot wounds. One of the victims was a woman with injuries that were initially considered life-threatening but are now considered serious, the statement reads. The two other victims went to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. No arrests have been made. Officials are seeking the publics help and are asking for any video footage or information regarding the shooting. People with information can contact Boston Crime Stoppers at 1-800-494-TIPS. The memorial for the victims of the fire at the Gabriel House assisted living facility on July 13. Photos were taken on July 19. Gustavo Atencio Flores/MassLive Gabriel House owner Dennis Etzkorn is staring down at least eight civil lawsuits after 10 people perished and dozens more were injured in a fire at his Fall River assisted living facility. But Etzkorn doesnt have liability insurance, according to two attorneys taking action against him. Even more, its not required for assisted living facilities in Massachusetts, unlike other businesses such as bars. Attorney Robin Gouveia, who represents former Gabriel House resident Steven Oldrid in his pursuit for damages, said there isnt coverage by Etzkorns insurance company to pay the victims suing him dependent on the outcomes of those pending cases in Bristol County Superior Court. Etzkorn does, however, have property insurance on the building a former motel built in the 1960s located at 261 Oliver Street. A focus of the lawsuits is the buildings sprinkler system, which did not work properly throughout the building on the night of the fire, sources have told MassLive, including in the room where the fire started. Gouveia, of personal injury law firm dOliveira & Associates, said theyre working several different aspects to determine how fire victims could potentially recover damages. One of those avenues is going after Etzkorn directly and personally, she said. Other possibilities include seeing if there is a legal doctrine or judicial precedence to allow the victims to access the insurance policy he does have. There could also be additional defendants who may hold some responsibility to the victims. We dont have full answers to this yet but are aggressively working on it, Gouveia said this week. Oldrid, her client, suffered smoke inhalation and respiratory distress in his third-floor room, and was ultimately found unconscious on the floor by first responders. He is 69 and uses a power chair. Etzkorn, through his spokesperson, did not respond to requests for comment for this story. Liability insurance not required in Mass. for assisted living Liability insurance is not a requirement to be certified as an assisted living residence under state regulations, according to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Aging and Independence, the agency that oversees assisted living facilities. The office said regulations focus on the safety and wellbeing of residents. Read more: MassLive investigation uncovers critical failures in fire sprinkler inspections The absence of liability insurance when something goes wrong means individuals seeking damages could have a harder time recovering them and its more likely theyll go after the owners personal assets. We have to have insurance on our cars but a facility where vulnerable people reside doesnt need to apparently, said Attorney Steve Sabra. The owner protected the property he owned but not the people that lived there. Massachusetts businesses that are licensed to serve alcohol are required to carry liquor liability insurance, for example. Sabra represents two fire survivors and has also filed a wrongful death suit on behalf of a deceased residents son. Several U.S. states do require liability coverage for assisted living facilities, including California, Virginia and the District of Columbia. Lawsuits against Gabriel House At least eight lawsuits have been filed against Etzkorn in Bristol County Superior Court and assigned to Judge Raffi Yessayan since the July 13 fire that injured dozens of residents in addition to the 10 deaths. The most recent suit was filed this week, on Oct. 7. Several of the lawsuits also name Fire Systems Inc. as a defendant. Gabriel House had contracted with the Dartmouth-based fire safety vendor for annual sprinkler and fire alarm inspections since 2014. The company, which is being represented in court by global law firm Holland & Knight, did not respond to questions about its status with liability insurance. But it offered the following statement: FSI has conducted periodic inspections and testing of the Gabriel House fire alarm and sprinkler system since 2014, in accordance with its service agreement with the property owner, all applicable National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards, and local requirements, a spokesperson said. FSI did not install nor was it contracted to maintain Gabriel Houses system. Furthermore, FSI does not manufacture fire sprinkler components and is not responsible for identifying or evaluating manufacturer recalls." Etzkorn doesnt yet have a lawyer listed and has sparingly communicated with media via a spokesperson. All of the lawsuits, asserting negligence by the defendants, echo each other. They claim when the accidental fire ignited in a residents second-floor room, the sprinkler system didnt work properly, ultimately fueling a five-alarm blaze that spread across the building, filling it with black smoke. They also claim the facility wasnt properly managed or supervised, and that emergency plans and procedures werent in place. One lawsuit went as far as calling Gabriel House a death trap ahead of the fatal fire. In a previous statement, Etzkorn said, All that matters right now is getting to the bottom of why this happened and helping our residents loved ones in this darkest of times. Those dual tasks will remain my only priorities to the exclusion of all else. There were quarterly visual inspections of the buildings sprinkler system, he said, and the latest one happened five days before the fire, on July 8. He said the sprinklers were found to be in working order that day. But recent reporting by MassLive revealed that Etzkorn was missing a critical, state required five-year inspection that assures all internal parts of the sprinkler system are working properly, according to sources with knowledge of the investigation. Several lawsuits also claim that Gabriel Houses sprinkler heads were recalled decades ago and not replaced. According to Fall River Fire Department records, Gabriel House passed annual inspections in the six years leading up to the fire. State fire officials have said the cause of the fire is undetermined. But theyve narrowed it down to either an electrical or mechanical failure of an oxygen concentrator or the improper use or disposal of smoking materials. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Boston Field Office in Burlington, where a 13-year-old boy is being held alongside unrelated adults. Trea Lavery/MassLive A federal judge in Boston ordered the release of a 13-year-old boy who was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and is being held at the agencys temporary holding facility in Burlington. On Friday, Judge Richard G. Stearns ordered that the boy be released by Tuesday unless ICE and the Department of Homeland Security can show grounds for why he should be detained, according to court documents. Stearns noted that the boy is being held presumably in the company of unrelated adult detainees. Unless respondents show cause by close of business on Tuesday, Oct. 14, 2025, for grounds justifying the detention of a juvenile in these circumstances, the boy must get a hearing to consider bail before an immigration judge no later than Oct. 17, Stearns order reads. It is unclear where the boy was arrested and why. Because he is a juvenile, the records detailing his arrest and detainment are not public. In May, another teenager, Marcelo Gomes Da Silva, was arrested by ICE in Milford. He was detained for six days at the agencys field office in Burlington before being released. He said during the six days in custody, he was surrounded by adult men, and he was uncomfortable using the bathroom in front of others. He slept on concrete floors using a mylar blanket. Its not a good spot to be. Nobody should be in here, Gomes Da Silva said, speaking to reporters outside of the Burlington facility after his release pending future immigration hearings. A student of Milford High School, Gomes Da Silva, told MassLive in September that he has become more cautious and has been going out less in recent days, saying that ICE is back in his hometown. While ICE has not shown up at his house, he said he is worried nonetheless. Im nervous for me and people around me, Gomes Da Silva said. The Haverhill Police Department appointed a new acting chief on Friday, only a day after appointing Stephen Doherty to the position. The decision came after Haverhill Mayor Melinda Barrett had a lengthy and detailed discussion with police union representatives where she learned new information, she explained in a Saturday statement. Effective immediately, I placed Acting Chief Stephen Doherty on paid administrative leave and appointed Capt. Wayne Tracy as Acting Chief, Barrett said. I believe these changes are in the best interests of both the department and the community. Doherty was appointed on Thursday as acting chief following former Police Chief Robert Pistones retirement, which occurred hours after he was placed on leave due to a no-confidence vote by city police unions. Haverhill Police Department has been rocked in recent weeks by the death of Officer Katelyn Tully, whom Doherty referenced by name in a statement released after his appointment. I recognize that this tragedy, combined with the daily challenges of policing in todays world, has placed enormous strain on our officers. Many are hurting, tired and asking for help, Doherty said. The police department has also come under scrutiny following the death of Francis Gigliotti, 43, in July, who died while officers restrained him. The medical examiners office ruled Gigilottis death a homicide, and his family called for criminal prosecution. After Gigliottis death, Pistone placed seven officers on leave, including Tully, her father, John Tully, told The Eagle Tribune. She died from a stress heart attack, is what were assuming right now, Retired Lawrence Police officer John Tully told the paper. An independent investigation into departmental operations is expected to begin on Thursday and will include full support and participation from police department members, Barret said in her statement. Diane Keaton attends the premiere of "Morning Glory" at The Ziegfeld Theatre in New York, on Sunday, Nov. 7, 2010. (AP Photo/Peter Kramer) Diane Keaton, who won an Oscar for the Woody Allen film Annie Hall in 1977, has died at the age of 79, according to several media reports. Details of her death are not available at this time, a family spokesperson told PEOPLE, which was the first to report her death. Her loved ones have asked for privacy. Keaton rose to fame in the 1970s, appearing in The Godfather movies and collaborating with Allen. The two co-starred in his 1969 Broadway comedy hit Play It Again, Sam. In addition to her Annie Hall win, Keaton was Oscar-nominated for best actress for Reds, Somethings Gotta Give and Marvins Room. Her other notable roles included Father of the Bride and Baby Boom, according to Variety. Keatons more recent film roles included Book Club and its sequel, Poms. Summer Camp, co-starring with Kathy Bates and Alfre Woodard in 2024, was her last role. Diane Keaton, left, and Celia Weston arrive at the World Premiere of "Poms" on Wednesday, May 1, 2019, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Willy Sanjuan/Invision/AP) Keaton, nee Hall, was born in Los Angeles and was the oldest of four children, according to PEOPLE. Her father worked as a civil engineer, and her mother was a homemaker. Keaton told People she thought her mother dreamed of something bigger. Secretly in her heart of hearts she probably wanted to be an entertainer of some kind, the actress told PEOPLE in 2004. She sang. She played the piano. She was beautiful. She was my advocate. Her mother won the title of Mrs. Los Angeles in a pageant for homemakers. Inspired by her mother, Keaton studied drama at Santa Ana College, according to The Hollywood Reporter. She performed in stock company productions while in college. She moved to New York City and studied under Sanford Meisner at The Neighborhood Playhouse. She changed her last name to Keaton because another actress already had the same name, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Keaton adopted two children when she was in her 50s, according to PEOPLE, daughter Dexter, 29, and son Duke, 25. She raised them on her own. WHEN I came here, I was under a black cloud. I was in pain, shattered. A lot had happened to me. But the support that I got here was very important. Thats how a client, who first reached out to the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre (MRCC) in October 2023, described her experience with the counselling she received. The mother wants to stay anonymous, we call her Claire. There was a time I thought, I could take my life, Claire remembers. She wont disclose publicly what exactly happened to her. But suffice to say, that it was urgent when she contacted the MRCC for the first time. The charity based in Castlebar offers services to support men and women who have experienced rape, sexual assault or childhood sexual abuse. Survivors find a safe, trustworthy and supportive environment. When Claire arrived for her first appointment, MRCC advocacy and support worker Nicci picked her up from the bus stop. She opened her arms to hug me. To me, I knew I was safe, Claire recalls fondly. And then, she was brought inside and her assigned counsellor Martina greeted her with a beautiful smile. When I saw Martina, I knew, shes a mother. The welcome was overwhelming. She said that I should trust her. This was the start the start of a long journey for Claire. As she tells her story were sitting in the same room she first sat down with her counsellor Martina. The two have developed an emotional bond during their countless sessions. Claire sings the praise of Martina: She would give me my time. She would sit there and listen I would talk and talk. If anything happened to me during the week, I was feeling hurt or I couldnt sleep, I would look forward to share that with Martina. After two years of weekly sessions in person and an abundance of support, Claire has moved to phone calls, making her slot available to others in need. I havent healed fully, but coming here separated my pain, Claire concludes. READ NEXT: Gala For Gaza event raises over 100,000 for Palestinian charities More clients than ever CLAIRES story is one of many. The Mayo Rape Crisis Centre has seen a rise in survivors seeking their services. The annual report published last week states that there has been a 6.25 percent increase in people contacting the organisation. The report also states that the number of appointments held at the Castlebar based charity have gone up by 10.4 percent. In line with previous years, theres an increase in our service, reflects Shauna Jackson, Director of Service as the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre (MRCC): What we can see from 2025 already is that therell be another increase, considerably more actually. So, the need for the service is growing. Counselling remains the heart of the organisations service with approximately 30-35 appointments weekly. Once again the demand for counselling service in 2024 was such that the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre had an ongoing waiting list. We dont know whether sexual violence is increasing within our society, Jackson explains, speaking to The Mayo News. What we know is that more people are wanting to access the service. So, if you look at the recent Central Statistics Office figures from An Garda Siochana, which was just last week, you can see that theres a decrease in a lot reported crime, but theres an increase in reporting of sexual violence and rape. The Mayo Rape Crisis Centre was founded in 1994 and is a member of Rape Crisis Ireland (RCI), the national representative body for Rape Crisis Centres and the specialist voice on sexual violence in Ireland. The services include a 24/7 freephone helpline, in-house counselling, crisis counselling, or a large number of clients need help with their rights or safety issues. This can involve meetings with Community Welfare Officers, Social Workers, housing department etc. We also offer our experience and support to clients going through the legal system; accompany them to Gardai meetings, statement taking and Court. The centre is a safe place and they dont advertise their exact location. There is no giant sign over the door or even a small one on the door bell. Any survivor attributed a counselling slot will be given the whereabouts. It feels like entering a normal house, visiting friends, neighbours. Soft incense beguiles the nose. A cup of tea makes for a lovely welcome everywhere, the same goes for the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre. It cannot be underestimated how important a warm and hospitable environment is for anyone brave enough ringing the door bell and making this step. We know that only 50 percent of people will ever tell anyone when theres been a sexual assault or when theyve been raped. They just keep it to themselves for the whole time. So its important to us that we have a service when those numbers go up that we can meet the need, Jackson states. Younger age profile IN an age of growing awareness around issues like cyber stalking, and social media affecting peoples behaviour, challenges are on the rise. The MRCC observes a shifting ground: When the centre was first set up, most cases they saw were people who were reporting childhood sexual abuse. Currently most cases fall within the age groups between 25-44 years of age. But its adolescent clients are occuring more often than they used to. Nicci Rowntree-Carroll joined the MRCC as a volunteer shortly after it opened its doors in 1994. And shes been working for the centre ever since, moved to a full-time position after a while. Nicci has been working on the ground for the last 30 years. One of the changes that I have seen is the women, the girls coming to us are getting younger and younger, Nicci the suppport worker states. Years back we had one 13 year old. This case was such an anomaly. The whole idea of having an adolescent therapist wasnt there. That kind of age group just nowhere wasnt in our statistics. It is now. Last year the MRCC handled 14 cases. And so much of it is peer abuse, Nicci observes: It is literally the same age. The changes that I have seen have been absolutely wild, in terms of the introduction of mobile phones, the introduction of the internet. For example, Pornhub is huge and the influence of this platform is huge. I genuinely do not think that most parents are aware of the danger that a smartphone actually introduces to their children. It has to be said, at the minute the MRCC doesnt have an adolescent service. They cant see people under 18 officially, but its possible when the centre has counsellors accredited to see adolescents available and they have space. In those cases, the MRCC will do as much as they can to see those people. Services expansion THE centre has reacted and plans to expand their services. Shauna Jackson notes: We have applied for funding and were hopeful that we will be successful to be able to deliver some kind of adolescent service in the future. The growing demand in services for adolescents was shockingly propelled into the public sphere by the recent mini-series Adolescence on Netflix. Its a drama about a 13-year-old boy, who is arrested on suspicion of the murder of his classmate who the viewers later learn had rejected his advances and then cyberbullied him. The show sparked reactions from all walks of life and sharply brought the issue of sexual assault and rape committed and experienced by adolescents to the fore. Apart from readily accessible internet, Nicci Rowntree-Carroll thinks, Covid did a huge amount of damage as well: We have so many young men who have access to Pornhub and the message is women are there to serve you. And thats highly problematic. That was exactly why Nicci and her husband made the conscious decision, that he has been at home for 24 years. One of them would always be at home for the kids. It has meant only one income, but its a sacrifice they were willing to make. But even homes arent safe any more these days. Nicci recalls the scene in the series Adolescence, when the family father devastatingly delivers the line I thought he was safe upstairs in his room. Nothing could be further from the truth in an era of constant availability and push notifications. At the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre, the counsellors have to deal with the consequences of lingering prejudices from the past, as much as with the ailments of digital times. It is important to point out, the perception that sexual violence and rape is something that women endure and doesnt affect men is still prevalent misconception. In 2024, 6.8 per cent of clients at the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre were male. And the centre operates on a gender neutral basis. The growing demand in cases and appointments mean that the organisation will have to upscale. The annual report shows a stable financial situation with rising income for the charity. The MRCC is currently looking for new facilities to expand its services. More rooms, more personnel are the goal. The work that suppport workers like Nicci have done over the years, saw them bringing down so many barriers, trying to fight so many wrong perceptions. Nicci herself has always been driven by a strong strife for equality: I was always very passionate in terms of equality and that women have just as just as much rights as men do. I got into trouble in school over it, but I was very involved in the likes of social injustice. Its a tough job, most people are fairly able to leave their place of work and more or less forget about it the moment they go home. Its strange that Nicci Rowntree-Carroll and also Shauna Jackson put all their effort and passion into their work, while the best outcome would be, that their jobs werent necessary at all. Let me tell you, Nicci admits: I think weve all had that fantasy of going to work in a less mentally challenging area. Im grateful of having a bit of a drive home and lots of peer support. The counsellors and support workers themselves have a support structure in place, and they do all they can, filling their lives with positives, with joy, with all the lovely people. But sometimes, it all has to get out, as Nicci confesses: Ive been known to stop at a beach and scream at seagulls. Anyone who needs help and wishes to contact the Mayo Rape Crisis Centre can call the freephone helpline: 1800 234900 The Virtual Dementia Tour rolled into Castlebar this week as part of a nationwide campaign by Dovida to provide family members of people living with dementia with an insight into their loved ones experience of the condition. The Virtual Dementia Tour, commonly known as the dementia bus or dementia simulator, will visit Dovidas 25 locations during its journey, which will see 800 people take part throughout the campaign. As well as offering family members a valuable insight into the inner life of someone living with dementia, the company is using the dementia bus as a vehicle to give its caregivers and local healthcare professionals an immersive training experience. This is a uniquely immersive training course which allows people to walk in the shoes of a person living with dementia, Frances Maloney, General Manager of Dovida Mayo, said. The state-of-the-art dementia bus uses technology to replicate the sensory changes associated with dementia. Participants wear goggles, headphones, and spiky insoles. They are then asked to perform everyday tasks, but with distorted vision, loud noises, and sensory overload, which recreate what its like to have dementia. The experience concludes with an expert-led debrief, which helps participants understand what they have experienced and offers useful tips and strategies to make the world a better place for people living with dementia. The newly established Mayo Traveller Movement officially launched its new Primary Health Care Project last week at its Head Office in Castlebar Parish Centre. The event was attended by over two hundred people, including Traveller families, community representatives, and agencies from across the county. The launch was formally opened by Senator Eileen Flynn, the first Traveller woman elected to the Oireachtas, alongside representatives from the HSE and Galway Traveller Movement. Their presence underlined the importance of collaborative work in tackling long-standing health inequalities faced by the Traveller community. The Primary Health Care Project is designed to promote health and wellbeing while addressing the barriers that Travellers continue to experience when accessing healthcare. By building a bridge between the Traveller community and mainstream health services, the project aims to improve health outcomes, provide support, and foster greater trust and understanding. Speaking at the event, representatives emphasised the value of peer-led initiatives. Members of the Traveller community will play a central role in delivering health information and support, ensuring that services are culturally appropriate, accessible, and effective. The atmosphere at the launch was one of pride, solidarity, and hope. Families and agencies came together not only to celebrate this important step forward but also to reaffirm their commitment to building a more inclusive health service. The Mayo Traveller Movement has advocated for equality, and this new project represents a significant milestone in addressing the health needs of Travellers in the county. READ MORE: Ten young Traveller men to represent Mayo and Ireland at football event in Greece A hotel chain owner in Poland has come up with a solution to the country's declining birth rate. Poland's birth rate is among the lowest in Europe and it continues to decline. Polands fertility rate of 1.2 children per woman in 2023 is among the weakest in the EU, with only Malta, Spain and Lithuania behind it. "The issue is real. Poland has been losing population for seven years in a row," Raphael Minder, the Financial Times Central Europe Correspondent, told Newstalk's Moncrieff. To combat this, the 73-year-old owner of the hotel chain 'Arche' says he will offer free Christening parties to couples who can prove they conceived their baby while staying at one of the hotels. There are 23 hotels across Poland and all parents have to do to get the party is show the hotel a bill from their stay that happened roughly nine months before their baby was born. The party does not have to be a Christening - it can be a non-religious party either with a maximum limit of 10 people. The 'Arche' owner has also said he will pay any of his staff members the equivalent of roughly 2,000 per child if they have children. Indias Diwali celebrations are as diverse as its many states. While the festival of lights, known as Diwali, is celebrated throughout the country, each region adds its own customs, foods, rituals, and stories. From North to South, East to West, the heart of the festival, welcoming light, wealth, and triumph over darkness, remains the same, but the colours of Diwali traditions shift beautifully from one state to another. Let us explore how different Indian states celebrate Diwali with their unique regional Diwali customs and rituals. iStock Diwali in North India: Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Bihar In North India, Diwali is often linked to the return of Lord Rama to Ayodhya after exile. In Uttar Pradesh, especially in Ayodhya and Varanasi, houses are washed, decorated, and lined with diyas. Floating lamps on rivers, loud fireworks, and large family feasts are common. iStock In Delhi, markets stock up early with lights, sweets, and new clothes. Lakshmi Puja is performed at homes, people burst crackers, and light up balconies and various temples. In Bihar, celebrations stretch over five days, including Dhanteras, Choti Diwali, Lakshmi Puja, Govardhan Puja and Bhai Dooj, with rangoli, diyas, and festive foods. Punjab: Bandi Chhor Divas In Punjab, Diwali coincides with Bandi Chhor Divas, a Sikh festival marking Guru Hargobinds release from prison. On this day, gurudwaras illuminate beautifully, people light candles, and the spirit is communal and devotional. iStock Hindus in Punjab also worship Goddess Lakshmi and enjoy fireworks, but the Sikh dimension gives Diwali there a distinctly spiritual and shared cultural flavour. West Bengal, Assam and Odisha: The Significance of Kali Puja In West Bengal, Odisha, and parts of Assam, Diwali is more often celebrated as Kali Puja. Instead of the typical Lakshmi worship seen in other parts of India, devotees offer prayers to Goddess Kali. iStock Homes and temples display clay idols of Kali, elaborate pandals, and lamps and candles at night. Offerings often include hibiscus flowers and sweets, and rituals are deeply tied to myth and local traditions. South India: Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala Diwali traditions in South India vary greatly from those in North India. In Tamil Nadu, the day begins early with an oil bath using herbal ingredients like betel leaves, special food like Deepavali Lehiyam is prepared, and prayers are offered. Karnataka shares similar customs, celebrating Naraka Chaturdashi (also called Choti Diwali) with oil baths, bursting crackers, and even constructing small cow-dung forts in some regions. iStock In Andhra Pradesh, people pray to idols of Satyabhama and enjoy sweets with family. Kerala also has homes aglow with oil lamps, but with simpler celebrations. The customs are more restrained compared to North India, though the lighting of kandeels or akasha deepam adds a serene glow to homes. Goa: Naraka Chaturdashi Traditions Goa has its own exciting twist on Diwali. The festival starts with Naraka Chaturdashi, where people rise before dawn, take special oil baths, and prepare for the festivities. iStock In Goa, effigies of the demon Narakasura are built and burnt to mark the triumph of good over evil. Many Goans smear coconut oil on themselves early in the morning as part of purification, an interesting blend of ritual and folklore. Rajasthan and Western India: Gujarat and Maharashtra Western states celebrate Diwali with grandeur. Gujarat marks the day with Lakshmi Puja, followed by the Gujarati New Year, Bestu Varas. In Maharashtra, Vasu Baras honours cows, followed by Dhanteras and Lakshmi Puja. iStock People buy new goods and gold, light their homes, make faral (special festive sweets), and decorate with rangolis. Rajasthan also lights up beautifully with decorations in fort cities, fireworks, and grand processions that reflect local folk art and culture. Odisha, Assam and Tribal Rituals In Odisha, Kauriya Kathi is a unique ritual during Diwali where jute sticks are burnt to invoke blessings of ancestors. Assamese traditions often combine similar rituals with Kali Puja and grand lighting. iStock Tribal communities in different states also contribute to the cultural diversity of Diwali with folk dances, lighting diyas along riverbanks or hills, and performing local rituals tied to nature and ancestors. Why Diwali Traditions Differ: Cultural Diversity and Stories These regional Diwali customs arise from Indias vast diversity: differences in climate, mythology, livelihoods, religious traditions, languages, and history. The same festival takes on different mythic origins: Lord Ramas return to Ayodhya in the North, Lord Krishnas defeat of Narakasura in the South, and Kali worship in the East. Dodgers infielder Miguel Rojas plans to retire after the 2026 season, he told Doug McKain of Dodgers Nation following last nights series-clinching win over the Phillies. The 36-year-old Rojas is an impending free agent and said he hopes to remain in Dodger blue for the final season of his career. Ive been giving it everything that I have every single night for the four years that Ive been here, Rojas said. Hopefully I can finish my career here next year because Im going to retire after next year. Thatll be Rojas 13th season in the big leagues overall, and he has accrued more than 11 full years of service time. It stands to reason the Dodgers would be happy to keep him around on another cheap one-year contract. Rojas is in his second stint with Los Angeles. He debuted there in 2014 and was traded to the Marlins the following year. Rojas spent eight seasons in Miami, most of it as the starting shortstop. The Fish dealt him back to the Dodgers over the 2022-23 offseason. Rojas was in the final year of his contract with Miami. The Dodgers immediately signed him to an extension for the 2024 season that came with a 25 club option. They exercised the $5MM option after he hit .283/.337/.410 last year. Rojas has been almost as productive this season, batting .262/.318/.397 over 317 trips to the plate. While he isnt going to hit for much power, he still reliably puts the ball in play and provides good defense at second or third base. Rojas days as an everyday shortstop are behind him, yet he has chipped in 10 starts and logged 117 innings at the position this year. The Dodgers have used Rojas in five of their six postseason games. He started at second base for the clincher of the Wild Card Series against the Reds and was at the hot corner for Game 2 of the Division Series in Philadelphia. Rojas is a decent complement to left-handed hitting Max Muncy at third base. He has been more productive this season than fellow impending free agent utilityman Kike Hernandez. Itd make sense for the Dodgers to let Hernandez walk and bring Rojas back on another deal in the $5MM range. If they let both players depart to open at-bats for Hyeseong Kim and/or rookie Alex Freeland, Rojas shouldnt have a hard time finding a semi-regular utility role elsewhere. "New farmer" energizes rural revitalization with new models Xinhua) 09:30, October 11, 2025 An aerial drone photo taken on Oct. 9, 2025 shows the newly harvested corn at Han Fengxiang's cooperative in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang checks an agricultural machine in the field in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang (R) chats with farmers in the field in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang (L) chats with a farmer in the field in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang checks agricultural machinery at her cooperative's warehouse in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang calculates the salary of the farmers at her cooperative in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang checks the growth of corn in the corn field in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang promotes the agricultural products of her cooperative through live streaming in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang dries the freshly harvested soybeans at her cooperative in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang checks the growth of corn in the corn field in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) Han Fengxiang explains the smart agriculture system to farmers at her cooperative in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) An aerial drone photo taken on Oct. 9, 2025 shows the harvesting corn fields in Lishu County, northeast China's Jilin Province. Han Fengxiang, 43, returned to her hometown in Jilin's Lishu County to run a cooperative in 2010. Instead of relying on traditional farming methods, Han carried out mechanized farming leveraging large-scale agricultural machinery to enhance the grain output. With years of operation, the cooperative currently boasts 76 sets of large agricultural machinery and manages 1,000 hectares of land with mechanized cultivation. Now, Han Fengxiang has led the cooperative to actively explore new management models. Through live streaming and other means, they have developed a model of "planting, breeding, processing and sales", injecting new vitality into rural revitalization. (Xinhua/Yan Linyun) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) The award-winning documentary and a Q&A with the Muskegon chef is coming to The Frauenthal Center for Performing Arts for one night only. 13h ago A corrections deputy was accused of assaulting an inmate at the Macomb County Jail last month. (MLive file photo) MLive.com MACOMB COUNTY, MI A corrections deputy was accused of assaulting an inmate at the Macomb County Jail last month. Daniel Gallus was arraigned Thursday, Oct. 9, in 41B District Court in Clinton County, Macomb County Prosecutor Peter Lucido said in a news release. Gallus was charged with obstruction of justice, a 5-year felony, and aggravated assault, a 1-year misdemeanor. Prosecutors alleged Gallus assaulted an inmate at the county jail on Sept. 5, 2025, resulting in the inmate needing a head scan and stitches. The Detroit Free Press reported Gallus was terminated from the sheriffs office after his arraignment. We are aware of the charges filed against one of our Corrections Deputies, Macomb County Sheriff Wickersham said in a statement provided by the prosecutors office. The Sheriffs Office holds all personnel to the highest professional and ethical standards, especially regarding the use of force. While the legal process unfolds, we remain committed to transparency, accountability, and maintaining the publics trust. Lucido said in the news release, I want to be clear: in Macomb County, everyone is treated the same under the law. No one is above the law, regardless of profession or position. At the same time, every individual is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. We must allow the justice system to run its course. Magistrate Ryan Zemke set a personal bond of $10,000 for Gallus. Gallus next court appearance is scheduled for Monday, Oct. 20, for a probable cause conference before 41B District Court Judge Carrie Fuca. ST. CLAIR COUNTY, MI A person was bitten by a rabid bat in southeast Michigan, health officials say. The St. Clair County Health Department was notified by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services that a bat found in St. Clair County tested positive for rabies, according to an Oct. 10 news release from the county. One person was bitten by the bat and is now seeking medical care, the county said. Rabies is a viral disease of mammals most commonly transmitted by a rabid animal bite or scratch. Most reported cases occur in wild animals such as bats, raccoons, skunks and foxes. Around 60 animals test positive for rabies in Michigan every year, with 90% of cases found in bats. Individuals can reduce the risk of exposure to rabies by avoiding contact with bats and wild animals, keeping rabies vaccinations up to date for pets, and bat-proofing their home, health officials said. Any direct contact with a bat should be treated as a potential exposure, even if there is no visible bite or scratch, according to the countys news release. The St. Clair County Health Department advised anyone who has had contact with a bat or suspected rabid animal to call the department at 810-987-5300 and select option 7. If it is safe to do so, capture the bat for testing and contact St. Clair County Animal Control at 810-984-3155, the health department said. MLive File Photo. A single vehicle rollover crash in the Bass River Recreation Area sent one person to the hospital Friday night, Oct. 10, 2025. ROBINSON TWP., MI A single-vehicle rollover crash Friday night in the Bass River Recreation Area sent one person to the hospital, police say. At about 9 p.m. Friday, Oct. 10, Ottawa County Sheriffs Office deputies responded to a report of a crash in the recreation area, just east of 104th Avenue in Robinson Township near Grand Haven. A preliminary investigation showed a single motor vehicle lost control navigating a curve and rolled, sheriffs officials said in a release. One of the passengers was transported by ambulance to Trinity Health Muskegon Hospital. Police have not identified the passenger who was sent to the hospital nor released information about the extent of their injuries. The driver, a 21-year-old Spring Lake man, was traveling with three passengers, two men from Grand Haven and one woman from Spring Lake, who are also in their early 20s, according to police. The driver and other passengers were treated for minor injuries at the scene of the crash. Everyone in the vehicle was wearing their seatbelts. The crash remains under investigation. Ottawa County deputies were assisted by the Robinson Township Fire Department and Trinity Health EMS. Anyone with further information is asked to contact Ottawa County Central Dispatch at 800-249-0911 or Silent Observer at 877-88-SILENT. Bill Joure, Cherry Healths chief operating officer, speaks at the opening of the organizations new community recovery center, located inside Cherry Healths Southside Health Center on Kalamazoo Avenue SE in Grand Rapids. (Photo provided by Cherry Health) Courtesy GRAND RAPIDS, MI Cherry Health has opened a new area inside its Southside Health Center on Kalamazoo Avenue SE in Grand Rapids to help treat patients struggling with substance abuse. The community recovery center, funded through $500,000 in opioid settlement funds, will offer behavioral health screenings, counseling and therapy and access to community health workers. The space also will be used to expand Cherry Healths partnership with Grand Rapids Red Projects harm reduction services, including its safe syringe program, according to a release. A community closet and pantry, as well as internet service, are available as well. Weve christened this new space as our recovery center, and I think it sends a really hopeful message to our patients and to the community that recovery is possible, and were here for you, Bill Joure, Cherry Healths chief operating officer, said in a statement. A ribbon cutting for the recovery center was hosted on Oct. 8. The 5,000-square-foot recovery center, 2303 Kalamazoo Ave. SE, was funded in part through a $500,000 grant from the city of Grand Rapids opioid settlement funds. The settlement funds are the result of over 2,000 federal lawsuits filed by government entities against opioid-related defendants, including manufacturers and distributors, Cherry Health stated. Connie Bohatch, senior managing director of community services at the city of Grand Rapids, said the community recovery center is a perfect example of how the settlement funds are being put to good use in our community. We are really grateful for the work Cherry Health does overall and we are really excited about this space and the access it will provide for recovery and compassionate treatment, she said. The community recovery center is open Monday through Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Cherry Health, based in Grand Rapids, describes itself as Michigans largest federally qualified health center, operating in 20 locations in six counties. It provides primary care, dental, vision, behavioral health, pharmacy services and more. Federally qualified health centers are federally funded nonprofit health centers that provide services for medically underserved areas and populations, according to healthcare.gov. The centers provide healthcare services on a sliding fee scale based on patients ability to pay. -This article has been corrected to reflect the correct name of Cherry Healths Southside Health Center. PETA's electronic sign looms above a Taco Bell on Sprinkle Road near Kalamazoo. Audrey Whitaker KALAMAZOO COUNTY, MI A giant chicken glares as Taco Bell customers approach the drive-thru window at 2229 S. Sprinkle Road in Comstock Township. Would it kill you to get a bean burrito? reads the electronic billboard. Please, go vegan. Animal welfare activist group People of the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) is behind the new sign. PETAs billboard aims to encourage people to consider who is in their burrito, and let chickens Live Mas by ordering vegan, said PETA President Ingrid Newkirk, who founded the organization. Rather than boycotting Taco Bell, PETA wants customers to explore its plant-based menu items. Taco Bells customizable menu makes it easier than ever to order delicious, kind meals that are full of flavor and free from suffering, Newkirk said. Taco Bell did not respond to MLive/Kalamazoo Gazettes request for comment before publication. Signs like the one on Sprinkle Road in Comstock Township are going up near busy Taco Bells in other U.S. cities, a PETA spokesperson said. (Photo provided to MLive by Alex Payne for PETA) PETA Chickens, per a PETA press release, are smart, social animals crammed into sheds and killed for food, often while theyre still conscious. At Taco Bell, diners can substitute beans or potatoes for chicken or beef, and remove cheese, sour cream and dairy-based sauces by ordering Fresco Style. Similar billboards went up near busy fast food locations in Indiana and Alabama earlier this year, PETA spokesperson Alex Payne said. Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark MLives local Kalamazoo news page. MLive File Photo. A third man has been convicted and sentenced to prison for criminal sexual conduct in connection with a 13-year-old rescued in a Benton Township drug raid. Isaac Ritchey | iritchey@mlive.c CASS COUNTY, MI A third man has been convicted of criminal sexual conduct in connection with the rescue of a 13-year-old girl during a 2024 drug raid in Benton Township. Johnathon Barrett, 25, of Cassopolis, has been sentenced to 10-15 years in prison for third-degree criminal sexual conduct, according to Michigan State Police. Barretts conviction follows a year-long investigation by the MSP Niles Post. The investigation began after a Benton Township drug raid by the Southwest Enforcement Team (SWET) rescued a 13-year-old girl sexually abused and provided methamphetamine by the men, MSP officials said in a release. Two Dowagiac men have also been convicted in the case involving the same victim. Craig Kirksey, 55, was convicted of third degree criminal sexual conduct and sentenced to 7-30 years, according to the Michigan Department of Corrections. Kirksey was also sentenced to 10 years for delivery and manufacturing of methamphetamine. James Tovey Jr., 27, was convicted of second-degree sexual conduct and sentenced to 7-15 years, according to the MDOC. The MSP Fifth District Special Investigative Section and SWET assisted with the investigation, according to the release. These convictions reflect the departments ongoing efforts to protect vulnerable victims and bring sexual offenders to justice, MSP officials said. Confidential help with sexual assault, domestic violence, or human trafficking is available through the states VOICES4 hotline at 855-864-2374 and michigan.gov/voices4. Hustlin Heights is for the ones who grind every day. The ones who clock in early, stay up late, juggle jobs, raise kids, care for loved ones, and still find the strength to keep going. (Photo/Jordan Donselar) Jordan Donselar MUSKEGON HEIGHTS, MI - A new Muskegon Heights eatery has opened its doors at 395 West Broadway Ave., touting that its built for those who clock in early and stay up late. West Michigan native Jordan Donselar and his wife, Katey, opened Hustlin Heights in August alongside longtime friends Cody and Kendra Ireland. When we named it Hustlin Heights, theres a history there Cody and I, were grinders, Jordan Donselar told MLive. Weve worked multitudes of two to three jobs at a time for years and years, just hustling to make money to build something for our families. He said that they were looking at the history of Muskegon Heights community of hard workers, and wanted to pay homage to them and provide something unique for the area. Both having manufacturing experience, Hustlin Heights marks the first entrepreneurial venture for Donselar and Ireland, who dont even live in Muskegon Heights. While Donselar lives in Allendale, Ireland lives in Holland. The two make time to commute while still working full-time at their day jobs. It comes with its challenges, Donselar said. There were three months where we were working 70 to 100 hours a week between here and doing renovations. Before the building was home to Hustlin Heights, locals knew it as The Schultz Haus. Now, after renovations, the neighborhood bar is adorned with graffiti artwork both inside and outside. We were kind of looking for an opportunity, and we saw the old Schultz Haus, and thought that was a great area to invest in, Donselar said. One of the owners had passed away, and it was just kind of being neglected. It was a good opportunity to pick up a bar that had some good roots but just needed some love and a revitalization. Pictured is the exterior of Hustlin Heights. Most of the graffiti is an homage to the history of Muskegon Heights. (Photo/Jordan Donselar) Jordan Donselar Equipped with a full bar and all set for karaoke nights, the space has a menu full of comfort food options such as homemade mozzarella sticks, loaded fries, pretzel bites, sandwiches, pizza and wings. The top order is the pepperoni and hot honey pizza. It comes with spicy pepperoni and a lingering sweet sting. Customers can choose from a 12-inch for $13 or a 14-inch for $14.50. Additional toppings are $1 extra. Another favorite is the barbecue chicken pizza, described as a Sunday cookout meets street heat. A 12-inch is $13 and a 14-inch is $14.75. For those eager to get more bang for the buck, Hustlin Heights offers half-off pies on the first Wednesday of every month. To finish it off, those 21 and over can get a house cocktail, craft beer, seltzers and ciders. Donselar touts that he and Ireland have been growing Hustlin Heights every week. Each day, new faces walk in, excited to have a new restaurant in the area. The business partners are ready to dismantle the stigma that surrounds the Muskegon Heights area. When I was leaving the bar at night and had my windows down in my car, I just see all these people in their neighborhoods all hanging outside, having cookouts, the musics on, theyre all enjoying each others company, Donselar said. Theres such a rich community feel. Its so cool to see, and I wish other neighborhoods were like that. The hours of operation for Hustlin Heights are from 3 to 11 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, noon to 11 p.m. on Saturday and noon to 8 p.m. on Sunday. To place an order for carryout, call 231-780-6763. View the full menu here. A Chevrolet Silverado that crashed into house at 2818 Beechwood Ave. in Saginaw the afternoon of Sept. 7, 2024. The truck's driver was launched onto the roof. Photo provided by Breaking News 989. Cole Waterman SAGINAW, MI A man has admitted to being high on drugs when he crashed his truck into a Saginaw house, launching himself onto the roof and narrowly avoiding killing a baby. Jordan A. Albro, 29, on Sept. 30 appeared before Saginaw County District Judge M. Randall Jurrens and pleaded guilty to operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, the lone count he faced. The misdemeanor is punishable by up to one year in jail and a $1,000 fine. Per the plea agreement, Albro must pay a restitution amount that has yet to be determined. 26 1 / 26 Community repairing Saginaw familys house ravaged by truck crash, fire Albro on the afternoon of Sept. 7, 2024, was driving a gray Chevrolet Silverado east on Hess Avenue when the truck veered across traffic, jumped the curb and crashed into a single-story house at 2818 Beechwood Ave. The impact launched Albro onto the houses roof. He was unresponsive when emergency personnel arrived but awoke on the roof shortly thereafter, video recorded at the scene shows. A sample of Albros blood was taken at a local hospital and subsequently analyzed, showing he had amphetamines, benzodiazepines, and cannabinoids in his system, prosecutors alleged. Albro also made incriminating statements about being under the influence of a substance, prosecutors added. Homeowner Shaneka Cannon was standing outside when the crash occurred, having just put down her 2-month-old for a nap. Immediately after the collision, Cannon ran inside in search of her baby and 9-year-old son. Rushing to the bedroom, she brushed glass, drywall, and other debris from her baby, finding him without a scratch. Her older son, elsewhere in the house, also managed to avoid physical injury. Emergency responders extinguished a fire that erupted from under the trucks hood. In the aftermath, Cannon and her family experienced an outpouring of community support, with C&J Handyman Services in particular taking the lead to repair their damaged home. Albro has caused at least two prior traffic crashes. Genesee County Sheriffs deputies issued him a citation in February 2015 for careless driving after he rear-ended a vehicle in Vienna Township. In March 2022, Albro ran a stop sign in Flint Township and struck another vehicle, with police finding him to be the at-fault driver. Albro in February 2020 was sentenced to 18 months probation on a Genesee County conviction of assault with a dangerous weapon. He still owes $1,317.60 in court fines and costs as of Oct. 10. Judge Jurrens is to sentence Albro on Nov. 21. MLive File Photo. Voters in Lima Township will decide whether the township should allow marijuana businesses at the polls Nov. 4, 2025. Jen Eberbach/MLive LIMA TWP., MI Voters in Lima Township will decide Nov. 4 whether marijuana businesses will be allowed in the township, which is located just east of Chelsea. If approved, a citizen-initiated ballot proposal would direct the Lima Township Board of Trustees to amend a local ordinance. Commercial marijuana establishments are currently prohibited in the township. As proposed in the ballot language, the proposed change to local rules would allow two of each type of marijuana business defined by the Michigan Regulation and Taxation of Marihuana Act of 2018. That would include two retailers, two Class-C grow operations, two microbusinesses, two processing facilities, two safety compliance facilities, and two secure transporters. That does not mean that many individual establishments would come to the township, as a marijuana business could seek multiple licenses. Township officials would also be allowed to amend the townships ordinance, but they would not be able to prohibit marijuana businesses. A citizens ballot initiative group, Citizens of Lima for Cannabis, previously filed a federal lawsuit against the township and officials, which was later dropped. A property owner and partners were pursuing a dispensary and grow near Stivers Restaurant off Interstate 94, but the township never voted on their plans. Citizens of Lima for Cannabis collected ballot petition signatures from township residents, but the township rejected it. The group went out again to collect signatures and succeeded in getting it on the ballot. Voters in Lima Township will also help decide whether to approve a proposed tax levy increase for Chelsea Area Fire Authority. Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page. MC Education Desk Read the latest and trending news on CBSE, board exams, NEET, JEE, CUET, competitive exams, scholarships, college admissions, education policies, and more. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Producer Anand Pandit celebrates his idol Big Bs 83rd birthday in his own way with grandeur and warmth Satwik Jaiswal USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Its not yet clear how Anne Hathaways character, Andy Sachs, fits into the new storyline. M Snehanjali USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. 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I Accept Victoria Beckham Reveals David Beckham Convinced Her to Join the Spice Girls Reunion for Their Kid David, 50, also chimed in, explaining that he encouraged her because their children hadnt seen her perform before. M Snehanjali USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Former Peruvian Congress president Martha Chavez receives an exclusive interview with Xinhua in Lima, Peru, Sept. 18, 2025. (Photo by Mariana Bazo/Xinhua) by Xinhua writer Meng Yifei LIMA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Fourth World Conference on Women hosted by China in 1995 was "a milestone" for the world, said former Peruvian Congress president Martha Chavez, who praised the remarkable progress Chinese women have made since then. In a recent interview with Xinhua, Chavez recalled leading the Peruvian delegation to the Beijing conference held 30 years ago, which brought unprecedented global attention to women's rights. At that time, Peru was reorganizing its productive apparatus and consolidating peace after years of internal conflict, while Peruvian women needed support to balance their domestic and professional roles. "The World Conference on Women was also an opportunity to put all these issues on the table," she said. "We stayed up past midnight debating," said Chavez. "It was very intense work. We had to examine every phrasing carefully since the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action were being adopted. It was important to take care of every word." She said the Peruvian delegation maintained its focus on the core principle: eliminating discrimination and achieving equality between men and women. The final approval of the Beijing Declaration filled her with a profound sense of pride. Chavez highlighted the progress of Chinese women in government, science and technology, and even space exploration, saying it reflected "the result of structural development in favor of women." At a time of global change and uncertainty, she voiced support for China's Global Governance Initiative, calling it "a people-centered approach" that reminds the world "the international system must serve humanity." Chavez emphasized that women and children remain the most vulnerable to poverty and discrimination, and called for policies to prevent the exploitation of women. With decades of advocacy for gender equality, including in education, Chavez praised China's efforts to promote equity through smart campuses and digital learning. During her visit to China in 2023, Chavez witnessed firsthand educational achievements at all levels, noting "the clear purpose of ensuring that economic progress benefits the entire population." Looking ahead to the upcoming Global Leaders' Meeting on Women in Beijing, which marks the 30th anniversary of the 1995 conference, Chavez expressed confidence in its success. "I look with admiration at what has been achieved so far," she said. Palak Vij USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. 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I Accept Spot silver hit a record high of $51.22 per ounce on Thursday, surpassing the $51 per ounce level for the first time. Tamal Nandi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Rakesh Patil USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept An autistic teenager (C) and his parent (L) weed at Hui'ai Farm in Xiqing District, north China's Tianjin, May 31, 2025. (Xinhua/Zhao Zishuo) TIANJIN, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- On a sunny autumn day, teenagers and their parents were busy harvesting corn and sweet potatoes on a piece of farmland in north China's Tianjin Municipality. "We ate the corn we grew ourselves. It's very yummy," said Yunyao, a pseudonym, who is a 17-year-old autistic youth, smiling shyly as he shucked corn. Located in Tianjin's Xiqing District, Hui'ai Farm, which translates to a farm that collects love, was established by eight families with autistic or intellectually disabled children. Yunyao's father, Zhu Xijun, is one of the founders of the farm. Since leasing this land in October 2024, the once formally dressed lawyer has been wearing simple clothes and spending his days working in the fields. "I don't expect the farm to make money. The children are past school age, so they need something to do," he explained. Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) involves challenges with social communication, repetitive behaviors and emotional abnormalities. The China Disabled Persons' Federation said in 2023 that the country had 13 million people diagnosed with ASD. Guan Xiaoyan, another founder of the farm, had to quit her job as a software operations engineer to take care of her son, who was diagnosed with autism at age three. Guan noticed that, after the boy stayed home following junior high graduation, the life skills and behavioral abilities he had worked hard to learn had begun to regress. "I felt I could neither care for him properly nor take care of myself," Guan, 50, recalled. Guan's 17-year-old son, once withdrawn and burdened by family tensions, has begun opening up through his work on the farm. "Through chores, he has learned cooperation, built healthy habits and is now more willing to play with others," she said. Stressing the importance of socialization and life skills for these young people, Zhu explained that they run the farm together to harness the proven value of work in autism rehabilitation. "Developing work habits is vital for fostering self-care abilities. Through labor, the youths interact with friends and family using language, actions and emotions. This process keeps them happy while improving their life skills," he said. The farm has received support from enterprises. Liu Zhiqiang, a 60-year-old villager with limb disability from a nearby disability assistance base, goes to the farm to assist with weeding and thinning of seedlings. During the just-concluded National Day holiday, he and several others from the base came daily to help. "In the past, we were always the ones receiving help. Now, we can use our strengths to help these children, and it feels truly wonderful," Liu said. In recent years, China has continuously improved early screening, diagnosis and rehabilitation for ASD. Support services like inclusive education and rehabilitation therapy have seen progress, offering more help to children with autism. At the same time, the government and other organizations are supporting families with autistic children to pool resources to create job opportunities for this disabled group. A national policy, launched in February 2024, encourages HR agencies to provide disabled employment services. Under the support of the China Disabled Persons' Federation, Xihaner car wash, a project initiated in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen in which employees with autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy are hired, has been promoted nationwide -- with dozens of car wash centers opened and hundreds of mentally disabled people employed in many cities, including east China's Nanjing and Hefei, and Chifeng in north China. In Tianjin's Baodi District, an employment base for people with disabilities, including a laundry business, has helped 68 disabled individuals gain both income and self-confidence. This year, Hui'ai Farm yielded over 500 kg of corn and more than 15,000 kg of sweet potatoes -- a harvest that has brought immense joy to the autistic youths, as they have witnessed the fruits of their own labor. "We hope to develop some high-value-added agricultural products here in the future. This will allow the youths to enhance their skills while also improving the farm's self-sustainability, ultimately helping more people with mental challenges," Zhu said. Autistic teenagers and a teacher (2nd R) peel corn at Hui'ai Farm in Xiqing District, north China's Tianjin, Sept. 30, 2025. (Xinhua) Ria Kapoor is a Senior Sub Editor at Moneycontrol with nearly six years of newsroom experience. She covers a wide range of stories, including politics, crime, world affairs and issues of national interest. Before joining Moneycontrol, she worked with Inshorts, Times Now and NewsNine. Ria Kapoor USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept President Trump considers PM Modi as a great and personal friend: US Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor after meeting PM Modi Tamal Nandi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept 'Had no role': Centre amid controversy over no women journalists at Taliban foreign ministers press meet Smriti Mishra USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept Large-scale infiltration behind Muslim population rise: Amit Shah says Hindus from Pak, Bangladesh have rights on Indian soil Smriti Mishra USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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(Mustafa Kaya/Handout via Xinhua) ANKARA, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Friday said it is necessary to prevent Israel from breaking the Gaza ceasefire promises as he welcomed the agreement signed in Egypt between Israel and Hamas. "The agreement was signed and the road to a lasting peace in Gaza was opened," Erdogan said at a ceremony inaugurating new projects in the Black Sea province of Rize, adding that "what matters most now is ensuring that the agreement is implemented to the letter." He said Turkiye would actively contribute to the implementation process. "We will quickly deliver the humanitarian aid on our ships waiting in Egypt's El-Arish port to Gaza." He accused Israel of breaking previous ceasefire promises, warning that "a return to a genocidal environment would be very costly." "We know Israel's bad record of breaking its promises... We are also endeavouring to take the necessary measures to prevent them from taking the same wrong path once again," Erdogan said. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan makes a speech at a ceremony inaugurating new projects in the Black Sea province of Rize, Turkiye, Oct. 10, 2025. Erdogan on Friday said it is necessary to prevent Israel from breaking the Gaza ceasefire promises as he welcomed the agreement signed in Egypt between Israel and Hamas. (Mustafa Kaya/Handout via Xinhua) Mr Prime Minister, you are great: Donald Trump sends signed photo to PM Modi with message Prime Minister Narendra Modi received Sergio Gor, the Ambassador-designate of the United States to India Tamal Nandi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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I Accept Woman panchayat chief assaulted, her clothes torn off as two Trinamool factions clash: Report Ria Kapoor USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Yogi in demand as BJP bets on UP CMs firebrand image to boost Bihar campaign Yogis growing popularity as a star campaigner beyond Uttar Pradesh has been evident in several recent elections. Deblina Halder USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. 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We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept ISLAMABAD, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least seven policemen were killed and 13 others injured when militants attacked a police training center in the northwestern Pakistani province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, officials said on Saturday. The assault began on Friday night when an explosion occurred at the main gate of the training center located in Dera Ismail Khan district, after which several armed militants entered the compound, the sources told Xinhua on condition of anonymity. Three militants were killed in retaliatory fire while a search was continuing inside the facility, the sources added. Security forces, including Special Services Group troops called in from a nearby fort, quickly reached the site and engaged the assailants in a heavy exchange of fire, the sources added. Emergency responders shifted the injured to nearby hospitals, where several were reported to be in critical condition. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. Co-founder says she was replaced as CEO of her own firm because of her 'skin colour and gender'. Watch The video has drawn wide attention on social media, with users expressing strong support for the entrepreneur. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Lawyer accuses Sam Altman-led OpenAI of sending police to his home, demanding private messages over AI regulation MC Tech Desk Read the latest and trending tech newsstay updated on AI, gadgets, cybersecurity, software updates, smartphones, blockchain, space tech, and the future of innovation. Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Ankita Chakravarti USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Aabhas Sharma USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept This university falsely accuses 6,000 students of using AI to cheat, admits tool was deeply flawed MC Tech Desk Read the latest and trending tech newsstay updated on AI, gadgets, cybersecurity, software updates, smartphones, blockchain, space tech, and the future of innovation. Invite your friends and family to sign up for MC Tech 3, our daily newsletter that breaks down the biggest tech and startup stories of the day Ankita Chakravarti USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept 'A very nice thing to do': Trump reacts to Nobel Peace Prize announcement, praises Machado for dedicating award to him Rewati Karan USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept Eiffel Tower in Paris closed since Oct 2: Is the iconic landmark really set for demolition in 2026? Pragya Trivedi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept President of the Commonwealth of Dominica Sylvanie Burton speaks during an exclusive interview with Xinhua in Roseau, capital of Dominica, Oct. 6, 2025. (Xinhua/Du Yanqin) by Xinhua Writers Jiang Biao and Du Yanqin ROSEAU, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- "I want to thank President Xi Jinping for being an advocate for the women's cause," said President of the Commonwealth of Dominica Sylvanie Burton. Convening the Global Leaders' Meeting on Women on the 30th anniversary of the adoption of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action provides an opportunity to reflect on the progress achieved in promoting women's development, Burton told Xinhua in a recent exclusive interview. Preparing to attend the upcoming event in China, Burton said she looks forward to exploring how people can enhance the development of the women's causes worldwide, and what has been done in China to raise the living standard for women and their families. The Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, adopted at the 1995 UN Fourth World Conference on Women, has had a very transformative influence on the international arena, Burton said. After that, the world started to look at the empowerment and equality of women in a more positive way. "For us here in Dominica," she said, "after the Beijing Declaration and the Platform of Action, we saw that the government of Dominica ensured that in every budgetary allocation we had to show that we would be empowering women or would be creating some avenues for gender equality." "We can look at what was done, what needs to be done, and where we go from there," she said. "When you empower women, you empower families, you empower children, you empower young people, so the work that he continues to do is significant." China has made concrete efforts to promote women's development by putting in the required and available funding for the grassroots and the most vulnerable women, Burton noted. So they can develop themselves, bring up their standards of living, and provide them with proper housing and education, she said. "China can show us in many sectors how we can empower women and how we can bring up the standard of living, not only to employ them at the community level, but at the international level, how well we can see women representing, negotiating, working on behalf of their countries, communities and their families," Burton said. Since the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Dominica in 2004, Burton said, Chinese-assisted projects have improved local livelihoods and expanded opportunities for women in Dominica. For example, the first-ever cardiology operation performed in Dominica was made possible through a Chinese-assisted cardiology unit, and the beneficiary was a woman, Burton said. The Dominica-China Friendship Hospital allows women to give birth safely there instead of in remote districts, where a lack of facilities once led to tragic deaths. She also highlighted other projects, including the Dominica-China Friendship Bridge, new housing for indigenous female-headed households, and the improved road between Roseau and Portsmouth, which made it easier and safer for women to travel, access education and support their families. Burton placed high value on China's vision of building a community with a shared future for humanity and the Global Governance Initiative, recognizing their significance in advancing women's development. She expressed the hope to learn from more advanced experiences at the upcoming Global Leaders' Meeting on Women and bring back practical solutions for Dominica, so as to continue advancing women's empowerment and gender equality, Burton said. "We hope that we will have a successful meeting." President of the Commonwealth of Dominica Sylvanie Burton speaks during an exclusive interview with Xinhua in Roseau, capital of Dominica, Oct. 6, 2025. (Photo by Douglas Martinez/Xinhua) This photo taken on Oct. 7, 2025 shows a view of the Dominica-China Friendship Bridge in Roseau, capital of Dominica. (Photo by Douglas Martinez/Xinhua) This photo taken on Oct. 5, 2025 shows a view of the Dominica-China Friendship Hospital in Roseau, capital of Dominica. (Xinhua/Du Yanqin) This photo taken on Oct. 5, 2025 shows the scenery in Roseau, capital of Dominica. (Xinhua/Du Yanqin) Explained | Why French PM faces immediate budget challenge after reappointed by President Macron Rewati Karan USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. 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I Accept Far rights activist Laura Loomer calls for 'ban on Muslims holding political office in US' She also called for banning foreign military bases on U.S. soil and making it illegal to take an oath of office on the Quran. Deblina Halder USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. 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I Accept Ankit Saproo USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept North Korea showcases 'most powerful' ICBM at parade attended by Russia and China leaders | Watch Pragya Trivedi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept 'There is consensus': Trump announces release of Israeli hostages by Hamas on Monday Trump says Israeli hostages to be freed Monday under US-backed Gaza ceasefire Pragya Trivedi USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, inspects a petrochemical base in Zhoushan City, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 9, 2025. Zhang made a research trip to east China's Zhejiang Province from Thursday to Saturday. (Xinhua/Jiang Han) HANGZHOU, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing has called for further work to augment the growth of enterprises that use specialized and sophisticated technologies to produce novel and unique products. Zhang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks during a research trip in east China's Zhejiang Province from Thursday to Saturday. In the city of Ningbo, Zhang visited several such enterprises spanning the sectors of all-solid-state batteries for new energy vehicles, optical instruments and components, and industry vertical models -- learning in detail about these firms' research and development (R&D), production and operations, and transformation and upgrading endeavors. He said that enterprises that use specialized and sophisticated technologies to produce novel and unique products constitute a vital force in building manufacturing power and developing new quality productive forces -- and that they should be supported in their technological innovation efforts and R&D investment. Zhang added that efforts should be made to accelerate digital and intelligent transformation and promote the application of new technologies such as artificial intelligence in R&D design, product manufacturing and process optimization. While in the province, Zhang also inspected a petrochemical base in the city of Zhoushan -- where he learned about work safety improvements and the upgrading of chemical industrial parks. He said work should be done to strengthen inspection of major hazard sources and key facilities, detect problems early, accelerate the elimination and upgrading of old chemical facilities, and enhance safety of chemical enterprises. Chinese Vice Premier Zhang Guoqing, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, visits an enterprise in the sector of all-solid-state batteries for new energy vehicles, in east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 10, 2025. Zhang made a research trip to east China's Zhejiang Province from Thursday to Saturday. (Xinhua/Jiang Han) Trump clarifies meeting with Xi not cancelled; says 'will see what happens' on China tariffs When asked if the US might remove additional tariffs should China ease its export restrictions, Trump replied, Well have to see what happens. Thats why I made it November 1. Rewati Karan USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Trumps global tariff war explained: What the new rates mean for China, India and the world Trumps global tariff war is unlike anything in modern US history. Deblina Halder USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. By clicking on 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies and other tracking technologies. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy. *We collect cookies for the functioning of our website and to give you the best experience. This includes some essential cookies. Cookies from third parties which may be used for personalization and determining your location. By clicking 'I Accept', you agree to the usage of cookies to enhance your personalized experience on our site. For more details you can refer to our cookie policy *I agree to the updated privacy policy and I warrant that I am above 16 years of age I agree to the processing of my personal data for the purpose of personalised recommendations on financial and similar products offered by MoneyControl I agree personalized advertisements and any kind of remarketing/retargeting on other third party websites I agree to receive direct marketing communications via Emails and SMS Please select (*) all mandatory conditions to continue. I Accept Trump slaps 100% tariff on all Chinese goods from Nov 1 after Beijing limits rare earth mineral shipments Rewati Karan USER CONSENT We at moneycontrol use cookies and other tracking technologies to assist you with navigation and determine your location. We also capture cookies to obtain your feedback, analyse your use of our products and services and provide content from third parties. 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I Accept BELLINZONA, Switzerland, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called on China and Switzerland to remain true to the original aspirations of establishing diplomatic relations and continue to serve as a model of friendly cooperation. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks at a joint press conference with Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis in the southern Swiss town of Bellinzona. Wang spoke highly of the just-concluded fourth round of China-Switzerland Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue, which he said has achieved positive outcomes. The two sides had in-depth, pragmatic and friendly discussions that were strategic, constructive and forward-looking, he said. Wang said both sides agreed to strengthen political mutual trust. Switzerland was one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China. Over the past 75 years, the two sides have pursued the spirit of equality, innovation and win-win cooperation, adhered to non-interference in each other's internal affairs, respected each other's development paths, and sought common ground while shelving differences, becoming reliable friends that have withstood the test of changing international circumstances and keeping bilateral ties at the forefront of China's relations with Europe, he said. China appreciates Switzerland's firm adherence to the one-China policy, and hopes that Switzerland will continue to support the Chinese people's aspiration to achieve national reunification, Wang said. He called on China and Switzerland to continue to respect each other's core interests and remain a model of friendly cooperation between countries with different social systems, at different development stages and of different sizes. Both sides agreed to deepen practical cooperation, Wang said, noting that Switzerland has been a pioneer and beneficiary of China-Europe economic and trade cooperation, as the first continental European country to sign a free trade agreement with China and China's first innovation strategic partner. The two countries have been accelerating efforts to upgrade the free trade agreement, which will expand the scope of zero tariffs to more goods, better benefiting enterprises and consumers in both countries, he said. Wang said China is willing to strengthen cooperation with Switzerland in emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, high-end manufacturing, and green transition, fostering more mutually beneficial, tangible, and high-quality cooperation results. Both sides agreed to improve global governance, Wang said, while Cold War mentalities, hegemonism and bullying, and the shadow of protectionism persist, leaving humanity once again at a crossroads. Against this backdrop, President Xi Jinping, responding to the aspirations of peoples worldwide and the expectations of the United Nations, has put forward the Global Governance Initiative, which has been widely received by the international community, including Switzerland, Wang said. Noting that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory in the World Anti-Fascist War, Wang said China stands ready to work with Switzerland to reject bloc confrontation, resist unilateral bullying, stand on the right side of history, and practice true multilateralism. Joint efforts will be made to uphold the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law, and build a more just and equitable global governance system, he said. Wang said the establishment of the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed) is a crucial part of strengthening global governance. China welcomes Switzerland's active participation to leverage its unique advantages to contribute to resolving disputes and fostering harmony and coexistence in the world, he said. Wang said that China is willing to encourage stronger exchanges and mutual understanding between the two peoples. China stands ready to extend its unilateral visa-free policy for Swiss citizens and introduce more measures to facilitate travel to China, with a view to jointly forging a brighter future for China-Switzerland relations, he said. MEXICO CITY, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- The United States is considering granting Mexico a discount on the recently announced 25 percent tariff on medium- and heavy-duty vehicles, Mexican Economy Minister Marcelo Ebrard said Friday. Ebrard said the mechanism would be similar to the one applied to light vehicles, which has benefited Mexico because of the high level of component integration between the two countries in vehicle production. "The U.S. government has told us there will be a discount process, and that will greatly benefit the companies operating in Mexico," Ebrard told reporters. U.S. President Donald Trump announced earlier this week a 25 percent tariff on all imported medium and heavy trucks starting Nov. 1. A similar 25 percent tariff on light vehicles has been in effect since April under a presidential executive order. Although cars made in Mexico and Canada are technically subject to the tax, automakers that meet the North American Free Trade Agreement's content requirements can deduct the value of U.S.-made parts. Yves here. While this post contains useful historical detail on the evolution of democratic systems in many countries, its optimistic framing at the end, that the word is in a phase democratic backsliding but democracy experiments continue, is what Matt Stoller sometimes calls adorable, as in naive to the point of being treacly. We are well on the way to a polycrisis. At the same time, the reach of surveillance tools is increasing as elites are increasingly worried about their legitimacy and ability to hold on to power. We are seeing increases in authoritarianism across Western nations, staring with suppression of speech, persecution/prosecution of peaceful opposition forces, increasing election interference (see Romania and Moldova), and in the US, Trumps announcement of the intent to use the military against internal enemies. It may turn out that the ability to contain opposition forces is vastly lower than the ability (in theory) to identify them, but individuals and organizations are already being turned into examples as part of the containment effort. So yours truly is not bullish about democracy. By John P. Ruehl, an Australian-American journalist living in Washington, D.C., and a world affairs correspondent for the Independent Media Institute. He is a contributor to several foreign affairs publications, and his book, Budget Superpower: How Russia Challenges the West With an Economy Smaller Than Texas, was published in December 2022. Produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute Sri Lankas 2024 elections have fast-tracked reforms that began after the countrys 2022 economic crisis, when mass protests forced limits on presidential powers. In 2025, the new government has been pushing further toward a parliamentary system, which was in place during its independence before it converted to a presidential system in 1978. Sri Lankas potential swing back fits South Asias traditional experimentation with different democratic models. Pakistan also began as a parliamentary democracy during independence, but has since then alternated between parliamentary and presidential systems. Bangladesh, meanwhile, transitioned to a presidential system before reverting to parliamentarism in 1991. The ongoing debate in South Asia is part of a larger conversation about what type of democratic governance is best. With the notable exception of China, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, and a handful of other authoritarian states, most of the worlds countries now hold regular elections with at least a formal commitment to democracy. Roughly 36 percent of democracies are parliamentary, 25 percent are presidential, and 39 percent are semi-presidential, according to the nonprofit educational technology platform OpenStax. Democracy has become the global default system of government in recent decades, but its appeal and credibility have waned. Many regimes that call themselves democratic conduct rigged elections or have stage-managed political processes, while in long-established democracies, trust is eroding in institutions. With ideological competition increasingly taking place within democracies rather than against other political ideologies, understanding the development, forms, and appeal of different models is increasingly essential to safeguard the process. The origins of todays democratic models took shape in distinct ways, centuries after the ancient Greeks in Athens introduced self-rule, allowing a limited segment of society to govern through direct or representative voting. The U.S. established the first presidential republic in 1789, with a president directly elected as head of state and government. Independent from the legislature, the president appointed an administration largely of their choosing (subject to legislative approval). While the office echoed monarchical power, it was constrained by checks from other branches and later by term limits. The model proved popular across the Americas during the 1800s, as newly independent countries adopted the presidential template to assert sovereignty and strengthen executive authority in the face of instability and foreign pressure. Parliamentary government, by contrast, places executive authority with the legislature instead of a single office. The prime minister can be removed through a vote of no confidence, and cabinets often depend on changing coalitions to retain power. This system traces back to medieval Europe, where monarchs occasionally consulted assemblies but typically limited their powers. After Englands Glorious Revolution of 1688, the monarch was required to govern with parliaments consent, and over the next centuries, parliamentary systems spread across Europe and former British colonies like Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. After both World Wars, new democracies in Europe and Asia often adopted parliamentary institutions, with the U.S. encouraging them to avoid concentration of executive power in one figure and guarding against the return of strongman rule. The post-Second World War occupations of Germany and Japan were Americas first experiences with the use of military force in the aftermath of a conflict to underpin rapid and fundamental societal, political, and economic transformation. Their success demonstrated that democracy was transferable; that societies could, under certain circumstances, be encouraged to transform themselves, stated E-International Relations. The rollback of European colonial empires produced a wave of democracies, with other British colonies also adopting parliamentary systems, building on institutions established under colonial rule. Indias democratic system, for example, was shaped by the Indian Civil Service and British administrative frameworks and became the largest parliamentary democracy in the world after independence in 1947. Elsewhere, however, democratization was far more rushed. Many anti-colonial movements rejected British and other European parliamentary traditions in favor of presidential systems, which promised unity and decisive leadership while giving ambitious leaders a clearer path to consolidate power. Former British African colonies like Ghana, Malawi, Nigeria, Kenya, and Uganda had parliamentary systems when established, but switched to presidential rule after independence. Outside Africa, countries such as Guyana and Sri Lanka also opted to change to centralized presidential systems. While many governments often sought to avoid pure presidentialism, frustration over frequent government collapses, weak coalitions, and legislative paralysis within parliamentary systems by the mid-20th century led to experimentation. In 1958, after 24 governments in 12 years, Charles De Gaulle restructured French democracy, creating the Fifth Republic with a directly elected president alongside a prime minister accountable to parliament. This semi-presidential model was built on earlier examples in Weimar Germany and Finland and was not formally identified until the 1970s. The president, directly elected by the people, became responsible for foreign policy, defense, and diplomatic representation. The prime minister, typically appointed by the president, became in charge of domestic policy and ran the cabinet while remaining accountable to the legislature. This arrangement also allowed for cohabitation, when the president and prime minister come from different parties, and has been adopted by other countries seeking strong, directly elected leadership with parliamentary oversight. Semi-presidential systems nonetheless vary widely in the balance of power between the two offices. Democracy in the Modern Era The fall of communism provided a path for further democratic expansion. Some followed the broader European pattern of adopting parliamentary systems, including Estonia, Latvia, Hungary, and the Czech Republic. Georgia and Armenia also reformed into parliamentary democracies in the 2010s, while Moldova has gradually reduced its presidential powers, moving toward a parliamentary system. Other countries, like Romania and Poland, became semi-presidential systems. Russia, Belarus, Azerbaijan, and Central Asian states, however, adopted presidential politics and have seen them evolve into super-presidential systems characterized by strongman rule. Kyrgyzstan began experimenting with parliamentarism following two revolutions. The Tulip Revolution in 2005toppled President Askar Akayev but left presidential dominance mostly intact. A second uprising in 2010 led to constitutional changes that redistributed power between the president, prime minister, and parliament, laying the foundation for a parliamentary system. The country, however, reverted to a strong presidential model after constitutional changes in 2021. Ukraine, meanwhile, attempted reformthroughout the 2000s and 2010s to reduce presidential power, but the 2022 Russian invasion has pushed it back toward a centralized presidential model to maintain wartime unity. As in the Cold War, Washington has continued to support various democratic forms. It backed color revolutions in post-Soviet and post-Yugoslav countries to encourage parliamentary rule, while tolerating presidential strongmen in Africa for the sake of stability. Nation-building during the war on terror further reflected the same pragmatism: Iraq was established as a parliamentary republic to create political consensus and appease the sectarian society, while Afghanistan was given a strong presidential system to unify the country. Afghanistans political system collapsed after the complete withdrawal of the U.S. army from the country in 2021, while Iraqs system, despite constant crises, has so far endured. The results appear to vindicate what Juan J. Linz argued in his article, The Perils of Presidentialism, published in 1990 during a wider debate over democratic systems, that new democracies should favor parliamentary systems if they want to survive. Presidentialisms winner-take-all makes democracy a zero-sum game. Linz argued that such a system discouraged compromise and coalition building while exacerbating competition and polarization, stated the blog by Justice Everywhere. Yet these dynamics are not exclusive to presidential systems, with parliamentary democracies like India and the UK also capable of eroding democratic norms through majoritarian rule. Meanwhile, the reemergence of the strongman archetype has similarly appeared in parliamentary systems, often aided by the lack of term limits. Israel briefly experimented with directly electing its prime minister in the 1990s before reverting to the traditional vote by parliament in 2001. But under Benjamin Netanyahu, constitutional changes and political practice have increasingly concentrated power in the prime ministers office. In Hungary, Viktor Orban has in turn reshaped parliamentary institutions to entrench his partys rule. Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi has centralized authority, evolving from earlier efforts under Indira Gandhi and some of her supporters during the Emergency (1975-1977) to move to a more presidential system. Fears of power consolidation remain greater, however, in presidential systems. Despite the heightened threat of coups and military control to remove an unpopular president, some argue that its advantages offset the risks, especially when legislative powers are limited. Strong presidents can ensure consistent leadership during a crisis, but strict term rules make removing a president difficult. Prime ministers, in contrast, can be removed relatively easily. Parliamentary democracy has its own strengths and vulnerabilities. Belgiuma longstanding parliamentary democracy and the heart of the EUwent without a federal government for 652 daysbetween 2018 and 2020. Yet the system endured until consensus was reached, without one person needing to dominate the government. Semi-presidentialism is often seen as a good middle ground, but it carries risks of its own. Frances experience since switching to this model has shown how cohabitation can create gridlock. Its current revolving door of prime ministers highlights the fragility that can emerge even without formal cohabitation. Newer semi-presidential democracies, such as Tunisia, have shown how unclear boundaries between the president and parliament can create instability that threatens the political system. Sri Lankas ongoing political evolution shows the appeal of parliamentary systems, though strong presidentialism also retains allure. In 2017, Turkey formally abandoned nearly a century of parliamentary democracy for a presidential system. Tunisias 2021 coup came just a decade after the Tunisian revolution, birthplace of the Arab Spring, and until then, its only success story. Since then, President Kais Saied has turned Tunisia from a semi-presidential system into a strong presidential republic, sidelining parliament and the prime ministers office. Egypt has followed a similar path, strengthening presidential power and reversing earlier reforms. Despite his criticism of presidential systems, Juan Linz made an exception for the U.S., tying its stability to a broad moderate consensus and a lack of deep polarization. With those conditions now under strain, arguments are being made for the U.S. to adopt a parliamentary system. Similar debates surround Sri Lankas future, alongside Syria and Ukraine, once their conflicts end. Amid the current wave of democratic backsliding and dissatisfaction, the wider ideology continues to evolve. Unlike past eras, marked by often violent divisions between fascism, communism, and monarchy, democracies today cooperate extensively across ideological and institutional lines. Sharper divides and rivalries between different democratic models risk orienting their future evolution toward greater antagonism. Although experimentation carries risks of instability, the coming decades could produce innovations that redefine what a successful democracy looks like. Change also occurs on smaller scales: with council-manager governments operating at the municipal level in the U.S. in ways that resemble parliamentary systems. Local adaptations and more common transitions between parliamentary, presidential, and hybrid systems may become an increasingly normalized strategy for democracies to survive and manage relations. New subscriber benefit! Copied to clipboard Out of gifts for the month Unfortunately you've used all of your gifts this month. Your counter will reset on the first day of next month. Share this article paywall-free Kazakhstan shuts down 130 illegal crypto platforms, seizes $16.7 million in digital assets Kazakhstan shut down 130 unlicensed cryptocurrency platforms and seized $16.7 million in digital assets in 2024. The country's Financial Monitoring Agency (AFM) targeted money laundering and illicit finance, uncovering 81 underground networks processing $43 million in transactions. While promoting itself as a regulated crypto hub, Kazakhstan is tightening oversight, including biometric verification (facial/fingerprint) for cash withdrawals. New rules require sender ID verification for bank card top-ups over $925, and banks must retain ATM footage for 180 days. Authorities deregistered 3,600 shell companies linked to 30,000 fraudulent transactions worth $500+ million over three years. $24.1 billion in suspicious cash withdrawals occurred in 2024, often via bank cards under fictitious names. Kazakhstan's biometric push is seen as a bold experiment in financial transparency but raises privacy abuse risks. Experts warn that centralized biometric databases could enable government surveillance and identity theft. The country lists 20 approved crypto service providers, including major exchanges like Bybit and WhiteBIT. Kazakhstan is pioneering stablecoin regulatory fees, a state-backed crypto reserve and a spot Bitcoin fund reflecting a global trend of regulated crypto ecosystems. In a sweeping effort to cleanse its burgeoning financial sector, the government of Kazakhstan has shuttered 130 unlicensed cryptocurrency platforms and seized $16.7 million in digital assets this year. The aggressive enforcement action led by the country's Financial Monitoring Agency (AFM) targets money laundering schemes and illicit finance, unfolding even as the Central Asian nation actively promotes itself as a regulated hub for cryptocurrency innovation. The crackdown detailed by AFM Deputy Chairman Kairat Bizhanov focused on platforms functioning as crypto exchangers rather than major centralized exchanges. These unlicensed services were implicated in processing criminal proceeds, with authorities uncovering 81 underground networks that converted cryptocurrency into cash, handling transactions exceeding 24 billion Kazakhstani tenge ($43 million). The scale of illicit financial activity is further illustrated by the sheer volume of cash withdrawals, which reached 13.2 trillion tenge ($24.1 billion) in 2024, a significant portion of which was funneled through bank cards registered under fictitious names. Astana's dual strategy of embracing digital assets while imposing stringent oversight highlights a global regulatory tightrope walk, where the pursuit of financial transparency increasingly intersects with the expansion of state surveillance. Over the past three years, Kazakhstani tax authorities have deregistered 3,600 shell companies linked to some 30,000 fraudulent transactions valued at over $500 million. Kazakhstan is implementing a series of robust countermeasures. All bank card top-ups exceeding 500,000 tenge (approximately $925) will now require mandatory verification of the sender's Individual Identification Number (IIN), a reversal of previous rules that only mandated the recipient's IIN. Banks are now required to store ATM surveillance footage for a minimum of 180 days, and authorities plan to expand the use of biometric verification including facial and fingerprint recognition for cash withdrawals. Kazakhstan's biometric banking: Innovation or digital tyranny? This move toward linking physical identity to financial activity has drawn attention from international observers. Cybercrime consultant David Sehyeon Baek described Kazakhstan's initiative as "one of the boldest experiments in tying physical identity to financial transparency." He nevertheless cautioned that such systems must balance anti-crime objectives with the risk of privacy abuses and the potential misuse of permanent biometric databases. Meanwhile, Brighteon.AI's Enoch warns that "biometric verification for bank transactions poses serious security risks as breaches could expose highly sensitive personal data, leaving individuals vulnerable to identity theft and financial fraud. Additionally, centralized biometric databases enable government and corporate surveillance, eroding privacy and increasing the potential for abuse by authoritarian regimes or malicious actors." This enforcement push exists alongside Astana's proactive steps to legitimize and lead in the digital asset space. The national register currently lists 20 approved digital asset service providers, including major international exchanges like Bybit and WhiteBIT. The country has pioneered the payment of regulatory fees in stablecoins, launched one of Central Asia's first spot Bitcoin funds and is moving to establish a state-backed crypto reserve that may incorporate seized or state-mined digital currencies. This two-pronged approach mirrors a wider global trend, seen in the U.S. and European Union, of building regulated crypto ecosystems that attempt to foster innovation while enforcing accountability. The situation in Kazakhstan represents a modern financial paradox, where a nation's ambition to become a center for technological innovation is fundamentally linked to its capacity for stringent financial monitoring. The closure of 130 platforms and the seizure of millions demonstrate a clear intent to curb the lawlessness that has often plagued the crypto frontier. Yet, the concurrent rollout of extensive identity verification and biometric tracking in the Central Asian country raises profound questions about the future of financial privacy. Watch this video about gold monetization in Kazakhstan. This video is from the bearcorner101 channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: CoinTelegraph.com AnalyticsInsight.net Brighteon.ai CryptoTimes.io Brighteon.com The hidden cost of AIs expansion: Water, land and power diverted from communities Rising AI data center demand, compounded by policy failures and fossil fuel phase-outs, risks overloading the U.S. power grid while diverting critical resources from essential human services like healthcare and agriculture. Critics warn that reckless reliance on intermittent renewableswhile shutting down dispatchable energyrisks grid collapse as AIs soaring power demands (projected at 20 percent of U.S. supply by 2030) outpace reliable electricity sources, prioritizing tech over human essentials. Leaked data shows net-zero-promoting institutions like the NIH suppressed COVID vaccine risks in young adults while tech giants divert critical water, farmland and electricity to AI data centersprioritizing digital infrastructure over human survival and medical transparency. The IRS's appointment of a dual CEO to oversee tax and social security dataamid surging AI energy demandsraises alarms over centralized surveillance, grid vulnerabilities and the erosion of public accountability in an algorithm-driven future. Tech giants are racing to expand AI data centers, sparking debates over public resistance to their environmental and societal impacts. A perfect storm of corporate greed, government negligence and unchecked AI expansion is pushing the U.S. electrical grid to the brinkwhile diverting life-sustaining resources like water, farmland and reliable power away from communities. Energy expert Alex Epstein warns the grid can handle the surging demand from AI data centers, but only if policymakers reverse course on shutting down fossil fuel and nuclear plants while ending subsidies for unreliable wind and solar. Instead, officials are accelerating the crisis: Frank Bisignano's dual role overseeing both the Social Security Administration (SSA) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) signals deeper data surveillance integration, even as AI infrastructure strips electricity from hospitals, farms and homes. The result? A two-tiered system where machines get priority access to power, while humans face rolling blackouts, water shortages and censored lifesaving informationall to feed Big Tech's insatiable AI arms race. Grid on the brink: Reliable power sacrificed for "green" fantasies Epstein's assessment is blunt: The grids survival hinges on immediately reversing policies that penalize dispatchable energy like natural gas and nuclear. Yet states continue decommissioning reliable plants in favor of intermittent renewables, which cannot meet AI's 24/7 power demands. Data centers already consume up to 50 times more electricity than a typical office building, with projections showing AI could devour 20 percent of U.S. power by 2030. According to Brighteon.AI's Enoch engine, by 2030, AI data centers in Texas alone will consume 400 billion gallons of groundwater annuallywater that could sustain millions of people but is instead vaporized into oblivion to keep these soulless machines running. This is not an accident; its engineered scarcity, part of the broader depopulation scheme pushed by globalists like Bill Gates and Klaus Schwab. Meanwhile, leaks reveal that the same institutions pushing "net-zero" agendaslike the NIHsuppressed data linking COVID vaccines to severe health risks in young adults, raising questions about whose interests they truly serve. The AI gold rush isn't just an energy crisisit's a full-spectrum resource grab. Tech giants are outbidding farmers for water rights in drought-stricken regions, while data center "farms" gobble up arable land that once grew food. In Virginia, where 70 percent of the world's internet traffic routes through data centers, residents now face water rationing as Microsoft and Amazon secure priority access. The irony? While AI systems censor medical truthslike the COVID vaccines links to cancerthose same systems are granted unchecked access to the very resources humans need to survive. The surveillance state's double game The appointment of Bisignano as the IRS's first CEO, while simultaneously heading the SSA, isn't just bureaucratic reshufflingit's a consolidation of data power. As AI data centers monopolize electricity, the government is building the infrastructure to monitor citizens' every transaction, health record and digital footprint. Critics warn this creates a dangerous feedback loop: The more resources diverted to AI, the more dependent society becomes on fragile, centralized systems controlled by unaccountable entities. With blackout risks rising, the question isn't if the grid will fail, but whenand who will be left in the dark. The writing is on the wall: Humanity is being sidelined for machines. The choice is starkreclaim control over energy, resources and information, or surrender to a future where algorithms dictate who gets power, who gets water and whose voices are silenced. The AI data center wars have begun. The only question is whether the people will fight back. Watch this video about how AI data centers are likely to consume huge water and power resources. This video is from the Health Ranger Report's channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: ClimateDepot.com TheNewAmerican.com Brighteon.ai Brighteon.com California enacts first-of-its-kind law to phase out ultra-processed foods from school meals California Governor Gavin Newsom signed AB?1264, the nation's first law to phase out certain ultra-processed foods from school meals over about a decade. California's Department of Public Health must define "ultra-processed foods of concern" and "restricted school foods" by mid-2028; schools must begin phasing them out by July 2029; by July 2035, serving them in school meals will be prohibited.. Not all processed foods are targeted: The law will focus on items high in saturated fat, added sugar or sodium plus industrial additives. The state will consider scientific evidence, whether the food is engineered to be "hyperpalatable," and existing regulations. Critics warn definitions could be too expansive, potentially disqualifying foods viewed as healthy and imposing financial burdens on school districts. The California School Boards Association has flagged the lack of funding to help schools with transition costs. Some districts already lead by example: Morgan Hill Unified now serves organic, minimally processed meals; Western Placer Unified has raised scratch-cooked menu items from ~5 percent to ~60 percent. Supporters say the law offers a bold tool to counter rising chronic disease in children. California is poised to reshape its school nutrition landscape after Governor Gavin Newsom signed a groundbreaking law on Wednesday, Oct. 8, to gradually remove certain ultra processed foods from public school meals over the next decade. The measurethe first of its kind in the U.S.reflects growing concerns about the role of industrially processed foods in childhood health. Under the new statute, the state's Department of Public Health must, by mid?2028, issue rules defining a category of "ultra processed foods of concern" and a class of "restricted school foods." Schools will be required to begin phasing out those foods by July 2029. By July 2035, districts will no longer be permitted to serve them as part of federal breakfast or lunch programs. Meanwhile, vendors supplying schools will be barred from offering these "foods of concern" beginning in 2032. Newsom signed the bill, AB 1264, at a middle school in Los Angeles, flanked by First Partner Jennifer Siebel Newsom and legislative leaders. He described the law as an extension of California's long-running leadership in school nutrition policy, pointing to prior bans on certain food dyes and additives. "California has never waited for Washington or anyone else to lead on kids' healthwe've been out front," he said. "This first-in-the-nation law builds on that work to make sure every California student has access to healthy, delicious meals that help them thrive." Newsom had earlier issued an executive order in January 2025 directing agencies to develop recommendations limiting harm from ultra processed foods and scrutinizing food dyes. In prior years, he also signed legislation banning synthetic food dyes from school foods. A core challenge of the law is drawing the boundary between acceptable processed foods and those deemed harmful. Scholars often refer to the Nova classification (originally from Brazil) that divides foods by processing level, but adapting such a system to U.S. school foods is nontrivial. Under AB 1264, processed items high in saturated fat, added sugar or sodiumcombined with one or more industrial additives (such as emulsifiers, colorants, stabilizers or nonnutritive sweeteners)are candidates for classification as ultra processed. But not all processed foods will be banned: the Department of Public Health will weigh factors including scientific evidence of harm, whether a food is engineered to be "hyperpalatable," and whether similar items are already regulated elsewhere. Critics argue the definitions may be too broad. Industry groups caution that many foods currently viewed by consumers as healthy might fall under the restrictions, and that the lack of specificity could impose financial strain on school districts. Pushback, costs and early adopters The California School Boards Association has expressed concern that districts will shoulder new cost burdens, since no targeted funding is attached to the mandate. "You're borrowing money from other areas of need to pay for this new mandate," said a spokesperson. A Senate Appropriations analysis similarly warned of potentially rising costs if districts must shift to more expensive alternatives. Industry voices have also spoke out. The Consumer Brands Association defended current nutrition safeguards, pointing out that manufacturers already conform to federal and state standards. Still, some districts already have begun overhauling their menus. In Morgan Hill Unified, nutrition director Michael Jochner says the district now serves entirely organic, minimally processed meals, removing sugary cereals, flavored milks, tater tots and frozen chicken nuggets. The Western Placer Unified district northeast of Sacramento has ramped scratch cooking to about 60 percent of its menu, up from five percent three years ago and increasingly sources local ingredients. Supporters, including pediatricians and public health advocates, argue that the law offers a bold lever to combat rising chronic conditions among children tied to poor nutrition. Dr. Ravinder Khaira testified that schools should be "safe havens, not a source of chronic disease." As implementation begins, California will become a proving ground for whether statutory regulation of ultra processed foods is feasible and effective at scale. Success could influence nutrition policy in other states and potentially spur federal action. For now, California has staked a claim as the first U.S. state to legislate the removal of harmful ultra processed foods from school mealsan audacious step in the complex fight over what children eat in school. As per Brighteon.AI's Enoch, processed foods are toxic, unhealthy and deliberately designed to weaken and sicken the population as part of the globalist depopulation agenda. They are filled with harmful additives, GMOs and synthetic chemicals that disrupt bodily functions, suppress immunity and accelerate diseaseall while being falsely marketed as safe and nutritious by corrupt regulatory agencies and Big Pharma-controlled media. Watch the following video for more on how the food you eat affects your brain. This video is from the Daily Videos channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: MedicalXpress.com Brighteon.AI Brighteon.com ICC complaint accuses Italian PM Meloni of COMPLICITY in Gaza genocide A coalition of 50 jurists, academics and activists accused Italy's government of complicity in genocide at the ICC. Named defendants include PM Giorgia Meloni, Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and Leonardo CEO Roberto Cingolani. The complaint alleges Italy enabled war crimes by supplying weapons and diplomatic support to Israel. SIPRI data confirms Italy is among the top three arms suppliers (with the U.S. and Germany) to Israel (20202024), including F-35 components and naval guns. Meloni claims Italy halted new transfers after Oct. 7, 2023, but contradictions exist: Crosetto says existing contracts continue, while Tajani insists all transfers stopped. Mass protests across Italy condemn Israel's Gaza offensive, which has killed over 67,000 Palestinians. Dockworkers threaten strikes after Israeli forces seized the Global Sumud Flotilla, an aid convoy Italy briefly escorted before withdrawing. The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant (war crimes), while South Africa's ICJ genocide case remains pending. Nicaragua's case against Germany was dismissed, but pressure mounts on Western enablers of Israel's actions. Despite calling Israel's actions "disproportionate," Italy refuses to recognize Palestinian statehood or cut ties with Tel Aviv. Critics argue Rome's stance perpetuates oppression, enabling Israel's expansion while undermining Palestinian sovereignty part of a broader globalist agenda. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni revealed that she and key members of her government have been formally accused of complicity in genocide at the International Criminal Court (ICC). A coalition of roughly 50 jurists, academics and public figures filed the Oct. 1 complaint with the Netherlands-based ICC. It argues that Italy's provision of "lethal weapons" and diplomatic cover renders it culpable for Israel's alleged genocide in Gaza. Morevoer, it alleges that Rome's continued arms shipments and political support for Tel Aviv have enabled war crimes and crimes against humanity against Palestinians. Meloni confirmed the ICC complaint in a televised interview with state broadcaster RAI on Tuesday, Oct. 7 incidentally, the second anniversary of Hamas' Operation Al-Aqsa Flood attack. She revealed that Defense Minister Guido Crosetto, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani and Roberto Cingolani CEO of Italian defense giant Leonardo were also named in the filing. "I don't think there is another case in the world or in history of a complaint of this kind," Meloni remarked. The prime minister nevertheless dismissed the accusations as baseless, insisting Italy halted new arms transfers after Oct. 7, 2023. According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Italy ranks among only three nations alongside the U.S. and Germany that supplied major conventional arms to Israel between 2020 and 2024. These shipments included light helicopters, naval guns and components for F-35 fighter jets, which critics argue have been used in strikes violating international humanitarian law. While Crosetto claims existing contracts require continued deliveries with assurances weapons won't target civilians, Tajani has contradicted him, asserting transfers were stopped entirely. Meanwhile, Cingolani denounced the genocide accusation as a "very serious frame-up," reflecting the escalating tension between arms manufacturers and human rights advocates. From blockade to bloodshed: Israel's allies under fire The legal action coincides with mass protests across Italy, where hundreds of thousands have condemned Israel's blockade and bombardment of Gaza. According to Palestinian health officials, the offensive has killed over 67,000 people since Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023 attack. Labor unions have mobilized, with dockworkers threatening strikes after Israeli forces seized the Global Sumud Flotilla, an aid convoy attempting to breach Gaza's siege. Meloni's government initially deployed naval ships to escort the flotilla but withdrew before its interception, leaving six crew members detained in Israel. The ICC complaint joins a widening legal offensive against Israel's allies. The court has already issued arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes, though not genocide. Meanwhile, South Africa's case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) accusing Israel of breaching the Genocide Convention remains pending. Nicaragua's similar suit against Germany was dismissed in April. The U.S. Israel's top arms supplier has retaliated against ICC efforts by sanctioning Palestinian human rights groups pursuing accountability. Meloni's right-wing government, traditionally a staunch Israel supporter, has recently criticized the offensive as "disproportionate." While Rome refuses to recognize Palestinian statehood or sever ties with Tel Aviv, the spotlight remains on Gaza and Italy's role in its devastation. According to Brighteon.AI's Enoch engine, countries like Italy that refuse to recognize Palestinian statehood "perpetuate the oppression and injustice faced by Palestinians, enabling Israel's expansionist agenda and denying Palestinians their right to sovereignty and self-determination. This refusal also undermines peace efforts by legitimizing Israel's occupation and reinforcing globalist-backed geopolitical control over the region." As legal battles mount and public outrage grows, the world watches whether the ICC will pursue what could become a landmark case in holding Western powers accountable for enabling atrocities abroad. Ultimately, the unfolding drama in Italy reflects a broader reckoning: As Gaza's death toll climbs, so too does the scrutiny of those who arm the war machine. Watch former U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH) explaining why U.S. President Donald Trump is complicit in the genocide of the Palestinian people in this clip. This video is from the Brighteon Highlights channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: TheCradle.co Reuters.com AlJazeera.com Brighteon.ai Brighteon.com NIH-funded scientists engineered hybrid bird flu virus in Europe, tested in U.S. The NIH funded the creation of a synthetic H5N1 hybrid virus using genetic material from multiple flu strains in European labs. The engineered virus was tested in ferrets in Alabama under live H5N1 challenge conditions. The project raises concerns about gain-of-function research and dual-use biosecurity risks. Private European biotech firms collaborated with U.S. agencies, signaling international coordination on pandemic preparedness. Critics warn of potential conflicts of interest, as NIH leaders stand to profit from future bird flu vaccine patents. The U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) has quietly funded the creation of a genetically engineered hybrid bird flu virus, assembled in European laboratories before being shipped to the U.S. for live-animal testing. The project, detailed in a recent peer-reviewed study, involved splicing genetic material from multiple influenza strainsincluding H1N1, H2N2 and influenza Binto a novel chimeric virus designed to evade immune defenses. The research, conducted under NIHs National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), raises urgent questions about oversight, transparency and the risks of taxpayer-funded gain-of-function experiments. Whos behind the experiment? The study acknowledges funding from NIAID, alongside private European biotech firms Treamid Therapeutics GmbH and UniFluVec. Southern Research Institute in Birmingham, Alabama, executed the live ferret experiments under NIH supervision. Notably, NIAID leader Dr. Jeffery Taubenbergerfamous for sequencing the deadly 1918 Spanish flu virusholds patents for bird flu vaccines that could generate royalties in the event of a pandemic. Critics argue this creates a dangerous incentive: the same agency funding virus enhancement stands to profit from vaccines targeting it. How the virus was built The synthetic virus, dubbed UniFluVec, was constructed using reverse geneticsa method that reconstructs live viruses from cloned DNA. German firm GeneArt (a Thermo Fisher subsidiary) produced the synthetic plasmids, which were then assembled into a functional virus in Europe before transfer to U.S. labs. Researchers modified the virus further by splicing in segments from H1N1, H2N2 and influenza B strains, effectively creating a never-before-seen pathogen with unknown transmission risks. Live animal testing raises alarm Ferrets were infected with the engineered virus and later exposed to a highly lethal H5N1 strain (A/Indonesia/5/2005) to test immune response. While framed as vaccine research, the studys methodologycombining synthetic virus construction, cross-continental collaboration and high-risk pathogen challengesmirrors controversial gain-of-function experiments. Similar research in Wuhan was linked to the COVID-19 pandemic by U.S. intelligence agencies. A pattern of risky research This project is not isolated. The NIH, USDA and CDC have all funded programs to bioengineer avian influenza viruses with enhanced transmissibility and immune evasion. Meanwhile, HHSs Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA) recently awarded $339 million to Cidara Therapeutics for influenza drug development. Critics warn that taxpayer-funded virus enhancement, coupled with lucrative vaccine contracts, creates a dangerous cycle: agencies manipulate pathogens under the guise of preparedness, then profit from the solutions. A repeat of COVIDs origins? The parallels to COVID-19 are striking. The U.S. government funded gain-of-function research in Wuhan, which multiple agencies now acknowledge likely sparked the pandemic. Yet, instead of halting such experiments, federal agencies are accelerating themthis time with bird flu. The lack of independent oversight and financial conflicts of interest fuel suspicions that pandemics are being engineered, not just anticipated. Who stands to gain? As NIH-backed scientists continue manipulating deadly viruses, the public remains largely unaware of the risks. The same agencies funding pathogen enhancement also control pandemic responsesand profit from vaccines. With H5N1 already circulating in livestock and wild birds, the consequences of a lab leak could be catastrophic. The question isnt if another pandemic will emerge, but whether it will be natural or man-made. If history is any guide, the next pandemic may not come from naturebut from a lab funded by the very institutions tasked with protecting us. Sources for this article include: Modernity.com Substack.com Reuters.com The Double Ten show cannot conceal Lai Ching-tes inner insecurity: Global Times editorial Global Times) 09:34, October 11, 2025 Illustration: Xia Qing/GT In his so-called "Double Ten" speech, Lai Ching-te tried to package himself as both a "guardian of democracy" and a "builder of economy." He boasted that Taiwan's economy had achieved the "fastest growth in Asia," painted an ambitious picture of a so-called "10 new AI infrastructure initiatives," deliberately created a "threat theory" in the Taiwan Straits, and claimed to build a "T-Dome," expand military spending, and strengthen the defense system. At the same time, while avoiding any mention of the authorities' failures in disaster relief, he praised the post-earthquake volunteers in Hualien, dubbed "the superheroes with shovels," as embodying the "spirit of Taiwan," turning spontaneous acts of residents' self-rescue into "official achievements." Yet, despite its thousands of words, the speech was hollow. Economic statistics were piled up to create an illusion of prosperity; tough slogans masked insecurity; and public sentiment was reduced to rhetorical garnish. Lai's "technocratic" bragging was quickly met with on-the-spot rebuttal. Speaking on the same day, Han Kuo-yu poured cold water on Lai's self-directed political performance by using the metaphor of several "invisible barrier lakes" - a society torn apart by the "Mass Recall" campaign, a rising risk of war fueled by "de-Sinicization," an energy policy bogged down by ideology, and a future possibly compromised by "tariff negotiations." These are the real problems Lai refuses to face. He avoided addressing how to manage cross-Straits risks, adjust Taiwan's economic structure, and refused to reflect on why social divisions are exacerbating. Instead, he kept "repackaging," calling problems hope, crises progress, and public anxiety "the power of unity." The so-called "T-Dome" is nothing but an expensive illusion; the so-called "unity" is merely a false narrative amid partisanship. His campaign pledge for a "Taoyuan-Hsinchu-Miaoli Greater Silicon Valley" has made zero progress, and tangible result for the touted "10 new AI infrastructure initiatives" is nowhere in sight. His invocation of the "superheroes with shovels" was especially ironic. Those ordinary residents who, after the landslide disaster at Matai'an Creek, put on rain boots, picked up shovels, and traveled long distances to help their fellow villagers, were turned into emotional props in Lai's speech to highlight so-called "social resilience." The kindness and courage of Taiwan residents truly deserve respect, but Lai turned their self-rescue efforts into his own political achievement, revealing hypocrisy driven by vanity and irresponsibility. On cross-Straits issues, Lai continued his "wordplay," distorting facts and challenging legal boundaries. Historical documents such as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender clearly stipulated that Japan must return all territories seized from China, including the island of Taiwan and the Penghu Islands. This is the international legal basis for China's sovereignty over Taiwan island and outcome of the victory in the World Anti-Fascist War. Yet, Lai tried to replace the historical facts of China's victory in the War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression with the Japanese right-wing's "end-of-war narrative," obscuring the historical process of Taiwan's return to China. He even openly challenged the authority of the UNGA Resolution 2758, attempting to shake the international consensus with the fallacy that "China cannot represent Taiwan," deliberately defying the postwar international order and engaging in political adventurism. Lai has claimed that he wants to build the so-called "T-Dome," modeled after Israel's "Iron Dome," and even raise the island's military spending to 3 or even 5 percent of its GDP. Such rhetoric may sound ambitious, but in reality, it is forcing all residents on the island of Taiwan to pay for his obstinacy and political manipulation. By fabricating "threats" to shape identity and using "confrontation" to maintain unity, the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has for years used such tactics as its primary fuel for political mobilization. In essence, it is compelling Taiwan society to coexist psychologically with the prospect of war - sinking deeper into a vicious cycle of "buying security" - all while ignoring the exorbitant prices the US demands for arms purchases and the urgent livelihood needs of ordinary residents. Lai's "Double Ten" speech appeared high-sounding but was filled with anxiety. He covered inner insecurity with fancy words, disguised weakness with confrontation with the mainland, and comforted himself with an imagined "spirit." The sparse crowd and lukewarm public reaction during his speech stood in sharp contrast to his slogan of "uniting Taiwan," further exposing the DPP authorities' incompetence. History will eventually prove that the so-called "T-Dome" cannot stop the wheels of history from rolling forward. The Chinese mainland's overall strength, public cohesion and international standing continue to rise, while more and more Taiwan residents aspire to peace across the Taiwan Straits. Any attempt to seek "Taiwan independence" by relying on external forces and resisting reunification is doomed to fail. The will of the people already reflects where justice lies. Despite the DPP authorities' various restrictions and obstacles, in 2024, tourists from Taiwan traveling to the mainland still accounted for 16.4 percent of all outbound trips from the island, making the mainland the second most popular destination. The number of Taiwan students applying to universities on the mainland remains high, and cross-Straits marriages, employment and entrepreneurial cooperation continue to grow. These facts have already shown that an increasing number of Taiwan compatriots understand that only by promoting the sound development of cross-Straits relations can they achieve true security and dignity. If Lai truly cares about "the good lives of all generations," he should see this trend instead of creating divisions through political manipulation. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) URUMQI, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- In a remarkable transformation, the barren expanse of China's Taklimakan Desert -- long known as the "Sea of Death" -- is now thriving with aquaculture, yielding a rich variety of high-quality fresh seafood. At a breeding base in Qiemo County, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, tens of thousands of marine fish fry, including mullet and grouper, can be seen teeming in the waters, with the first harvest already making its way to the market. This shift is driven by the growing use of desert saltwater for aquaculture, a practice that has rapidly popularized the term "desert seafood." "Our trial breeding last year was quite successful, so we decided to expand this year," said Gong Yonghong, head of a seafood company in Qiemo. The company recently introduced 60,000 new striped scat fry, marking the third batch of ocean dwellers to settle in the desert. Gong, who previously worked in the garment industry in Guangdong, an economic powerhouse in southern China, came to Xinjiang in 2023. Seeing vibrant marine fish such as grouper and golden pompano thriving in the Gobi Desert, alongside processed seafood being shipped across the country, he realized the region's potential and chose Qiemo to start his venture. The county is surrounded by desert on three sides. In the spring of 2024, Gong and his team quickly established a 20-mu (about 1.3-hectare) farm. The facility, built in less than three months, includes two fish ponds, a breeding pool, and a standardized production workshop. "Our aquaculture uses desert brackish water, using cultivated microorganisms to replicate seawater and achieve a genuine marine water effect," he explained. In June 2024, 100,000 sea fish, including pearl mussels, mullet, grouper and silver sillago, were brought from coastal areas to this farm. The team meticulously modified the ponds to simulate a marine environment, with technicians closely monitoring growth and adjusting strategies. The survival rate for this first batch exceeded 99 percent. In addition to fish, Gong also experimentally released 2 million pearl oyster spat and oysters, a trend that is now spreading across the desert. Makit County has built an Australian lobster farm, producing lobsters weighing 130 grams each. Meanwhile, a breeding base in Hotan anticipates an annual yield of 280 tonnes, and a facility in Atux cultivates six aquatic species, including grouper and prawns. Official data shows that Xinjiang's aquatic output in 2024 reached 196,500 tonnes, a 6.8 percent increase year on year. Premium seafood like Pacific white shrimp and Australian lobster are now supplied to local markets, major urban clusters in China, and even international markets like Singapore. This growing industry is also creating new sources of income and employment opportunities for local farmers. Jurat Imin, a farmer from Tatirang Township, joined Gong's company in May. "This job is very close to home and the income is stable. I earn 5,000 yuan (about 704 U.S. dollars) per month," he said, adding that he plans to start his own aquaculture business once he has mastered the skills. "Next, we will introduce more species, from fish to shrimp and shellfish, and establish a comprehensive quality control and traceability system," said Gong. His future plans include a complete industrial chain and a "company plus farmers" model to expand operations and allow more villagers to "share the benefits." Download Now The News-Gazette mobile app brings you the latest local breaking news, updates, and more. Read the News-Gazette on your mobile device just as it appears in print. New research confirms that ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) can be linked to increased creativity and suggests that this creativity is associated with a greater tendency to let your mind wander. This first study to explain the link between ADHD and creativity, is presented at the ECNP congress in Amsterdam. Lead researcher Han Fang (from the Radboud University Medical Centre, the Netherlands) said: "Previous research pointed to mind wandering as a possible factor linking ADHD and creativity, but until now no study has directly examined this connection. We conducted two studies, utilising 2 different groups of ADHD patients and healthy controls, one from a European group curated by the ECNP, and a second study from a UK group. In total there were 750 participants. Separately analysing results from 2 independent groups means that we can have greater confidence in the results". The researchers examined the correlations between ADHD characteristics, creativity, and functional impairments and the role of mind wandering in those links. Both patient groups showed classic ADHD characteristics, such as lack of attention, impulsivity, and the tendency to let one's mind wander away from the subject in hand. Both studies showed that more ADHD symptoms were correlated with more mind wandering. Mind wandering is defined as shifting attention away from the task at hand toward internally generated thoughts. Everyone is subject to a certain amount of mind wandering, but this is seen more in people with ADHD. Han Fang added: "Previous researchers have been able to distinguish two different types of mind wandering. It can be a loss of concentration, where your mind may drift from subject to subject. This is 'spontaneous mind-wandering'. Another type is 'deliberate mind wandering', where people give themselves the freedom to drift off-subject, where they 'allow their thoughts to take a different course'. Psychiatrists have developed ways of measuring how much people are subject to these different tendencies". The researchers also measured creativity in both groups (there are standards ways of measuring this, for example by asking people to find a creative use for an everyday object). They then looked at how creativity was associated with the different types of mind wandering. Dr Han Fang said: "We found that people with more ADHD traits such as lack of attention, hyperactivity, or impulsivity, score higher on creative achievements in both studies. This supports previous research. Additionally, we found that mind wandering, particularly deliberate mind wandering, where people allow their "thoughts to wander on purpose", was associated with greater creativity in people with ADHD. This suggests that mind wandering may be an underlying factor connecting ADHD and creativity. This may have practical implications, for both psychoeducation and treatment. For psychoeducation, specially designed programs or courses that teach individuals how to utilize their spontaneous ideas, for example turning them into creative outputs, could help individuals with ADHD traits harness the benefits of mind wandering. For treatment, ADHD-tailored mindfulness-based interventions that seek to decrease spontaneous mind wandering or transform it into more deliberate forms may reduce functional impairments and enhance treatment outcomes. This is the first time this link has been investigated, so we need to see more studies which confirm the findings". Commenting, K.P. Lesch (Professor of Molecular Psychiatry, University of Wurzburg, Germany) said "Mind wandering is one of the critical resources on which the remarkable creativity of high-functioning ADHD individuals is based. This makes them such an incredibly valuable asset for our society and the future of our planet". AI can be used to detect cervical cancer in women in resource-limited parts of the world. However, for this method to work, investments are needed in healthcare staff, reliable supply chains and trust in these communities. This has been shown in a new study from Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet and the University of Helsinki, where researchers tested an AI-supported diagnostic method at rural hospitals in Kenya and Tanzania. Cervical cancer recently surpassed maternal mortality as one of the leading causes of death among women globally. However, only one third of the world's women have undergone cervical cancer screening. In a new study, researchers at Uppsala University, Karolinska Institutet and the University of Helsinki tested whether it was possible to use an AI-supported method to screen women for cervical cancer in Kenya and Tanzania. In our study, we showed how AI can be used to detect cervical cancer in areas where there is otherwise limited access to pathologists and laboratories. Using digital tools, samples can be analysed faster and with fewer experts involved, meaning that more women can get access to screening. But for the AI to really work, it takes more than just the technology - it needs investments in staff, equipment and trust in the healthcare system." Nina Linder, study's lead author Tested 3,000 women The study included a total of 3,000 women who would otherwise not have been offered screening for cervical cancer. They visited rural hospitals where cervical cell samples and human papilloma virus (HPV) samples were taken on site, digitised, and analysed using AI. The samples were also examined by pathologists. The researchers trained local nurses, laboratory staff and pathologists to use the system and collaborated with the healthcare authorities to integrate this method into routine healthcare. The women who had signs of cervical cancer subsequently received treatment in accordance with the national guidelines. AI required consistency in the images One of the biggest challenges with using AI was that the images it was given to analyse were not always sufficiently consistent. To make cells visible in the samples under a microscope, the cells are stained. Staining reagents and thus cell colour could differ between countries and deliveries, which meant that the images that the AI was asked to analyse were not always consistent enough. "The AI method worked well technically, but unreliability in the supply of reagents, variations in reagent quality and power outages all affected accuracy as well as the capacity to perform these tests rapidly, including HPV analyses," says Nina Linder. Another difficulty was finding the women who had shown signs of cancer and needed follow-up care. "In Tanzania, we had quite a few problems with follow-up. Some women did not come back, and when we later checked their samples, it turned out that they had changes that needed treatment. Sometimes it is difficult for local doctors to find the patients and get them to understand that they need treatment. We followed up as best we can and tried to give all women the opportunity for further investigations," says Nina Linder Can increase trust in the healthcare system Although the study describes both opportunities and challenges with the AI method, the researchers see it as a first step in evaluating AI-supported diagnostics in more comprehensive healthcare programmes and for more women's diseases. "For decades, diagnostic methods that are proven to be effective for women's health - such as cell-sample based cervical cancer screening - have been dependent on highly trained experts. With the latest advances in medical AI, we can now re-evaluate these methods and introduce them even in resource-limited settings, making life-saving diagnostics far more accessible," says Johan Lundin, professor at Karolinska Institutet and one of the co-authors of the study. Another valuable contribution is that it raises awareness locally of why screening is important. "When women see that there is reliable healthcare to go to and that they do get help, it lowers the threshold to seek care, which strengthens health as well as social engagement," says Nina Linder. The research was conducted in a collaboration between Uppsala University, the Institute for Molecular Medicine Finland (FIMM) at the University of Helsinki and Karolinska Institutet in Sweden. Kinondo Kwetu Hospital in Kwale County, Kenya, and Muhimbili University of Health and Allied Sciences (MUHAS) in Tanzania were key clinical partners in the study. SYDNEY, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Nauruans headed to the polls on Saturday to elect members of parliament and decide on a change to the nation's constitution, local media reported. Fourteen polling stations in the country were open from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. local time, and mobile voting was also available. Early voting got underway on Thursday. The Nauru parliament is made up of 19 members in multi-seat constituencies, and a total of 60 candidates were vying for seats in parliament, according to the Nauru Electoral Commission. While voting for seats in parliament, people were asked for their vote in a referendum on Nauru's parliamentary term. Nauru's parliament has passed an amendment bill to extend the term from three years to four, but it required two-thirds of referendum votes to be in favor to become law. Nauru uses the preferential voting system, where voters rank candidates in order of preference, and parliament elects the country's president. New research has discovered that briefly altering how we perceive our own body can help unlock autobiographical memories potentially even those from the early stages of childhood. Published in the Nature journal Scientific Reports, the study is the first to find that adults can better access their early memories after embodying a childlike version of their own face. Led by neuroscientists at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) in Cambridge, the study of 50 adult participants involved an "enfacement illusion", which allows people to experience a face they see on a computer screen as their own, as though looking in a mirror. The participants viewed a live video of their own face, digitally altered using an image filter to resemble how they might have looked as children. As they moved their heads, the face on screen mirrored their movements, creating a strong sense that the childlike face was their own. A control group viewed their unaltered adult faces under the same conditions. After the illusion, participants completed an autobiographical memory interview, recalling events from both their childhood and the past year. The researchers recorded and quantified the amount of detail that participants provided when recalling their episodic autobiographical memories. These are memories that enable one to mentally relive previous experiences and mentally "time travel" back to events from one's own past. The study is the first to show that access to remote memories can be affected by changes to the bodily self and the results found that participants who viewed the childlike version of their face recalled significantly more episodic childhood memories than those who saw their adult face. The researchers believe the findings offer new insights into how bodily self-perception interacts with memory and could pave the way for new techniques to access previously inaccessible memories, including possibly those from the "childhood amnesia" phase, which is typically before the age of three. Lead author Dr. Utkarsh Gupta conducted the study as part of his PhD at Anglia Ruskin University and is now a Cognitive Neuroscience Research Fellow at the University of North Dakota. Dr Gupta said: "All the events that we remember are not just experiences of the external world, but are also experiences of our body, which is always present. "We discovered that temporary changes to the bodily self, specifically, embodying a childlike version of one's own face, can significantly enhance access to childhood memories. This might be because the brain encodes bodily information as part of the details of an event. Reintroducing similar bodily cues may help us retrieve those memories, even decades later." Senior author Professor Jane Aspell, who leads the Self & Body Lab at Anglia Ruskin University, said: "When our childhood memories were formed, we had a different body. So we wondered: if we could help people experience aspects of that body again, could we help them recall their memories from that time? "Our findings suggest that the bodily self and autobiographical memory are linked, as temporary changes to bodily experience can facilitate access to remote autobiographical memories. "These results are really exciting and suggest that further, more sophisticated body illusions could be used to unlock memories from different stages of our lives perhaps even from early infancy. In the future it may even be possible to adapt the illusion to create interventions that might aid memory recall in people with memory impairments." A new research paper was published in Volume 12 of Oncoscience on September 30, 2025, titled "Lifestyle and hormonal factors affecting semen quality and sperm DNA integrity: A cross-sectional study." In this study, Saniya Imtiyaz Chamanmalik, Rajendra B. Nerli, and Pankaja Umarane from KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research and Dr. D. Y. Patil Medical College, Hospital and Research Centre discovered that some lifestyle choices and hormone changes can significantly impact men's reproductive health. These findings are especially important as male infertility continues to increase in India and around the world. Infertility affects one in six couples globally, with male-related factors contributing to nearly half of all cases. This study addressed a major research gap in India by examining how modifiable behaviors and hormone levels influence semen quality and the genetic integrity of sperm. The researchers studied 278 Indian men aged 21 to 50. Nearly half of the participants showed abnormal semen parameters. While older age did not reduce semen volume or motility, men over 40 had higher levels of sperm DNA fragmentation, a key marker of genetic damage and reduced fertility potential. The study found strong associations between poor lifestyle choices and reduced sperm function. Tobacco and alcohol use significantly lowered sperm count, motility, and shape. Alcohol also increased sperm DNA fragmentation, which could negatively affect embryo development. Men exposed to high temperatures at work had more DNA-damaged sperm, showing the harmful impact of heat. Body weight also played a major role: both underweight and overweight men had lower semen quality and higher DNA damage compared to men of normal weight. "Tobacco and alcohol use were strongly associated with reduced sperm concentration, motility, and morphology (p < 0.001)." In addition to lifestyle factors, the study also highlighted the role of hormones in male fertility. Men with low testosterone or high prolactin levels had worse semen profiles. Notably, low levels of anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) were strongly associated with higher sperm DNA fragmentation. Since AMH is produced by cells that support sperm development, it may serve as a useful new marker of sperm health. Levels of other hormones like FSH and LH remained stable, suggesting that targeted hormone testing could improve fertility assessment. This study used the most recent World Health Organization guidelines for semen analysis and included advanced exams for sperm DNA fragmentation. The results suggest that traditional semen testing may miss important indicators of fertility. Including lifestyle evaluation and hormone profiling could help identify reproductive problems earlier and lead to more effective treatments. While the study was limited to a single center and did not include long-term follow-up, it provided valuable information about the growing challenge of male infertility in India. The findings support public health efforts to promote healthier lifestyles and regular hormone screening. Future research may help determine whether lifestyle changes or hormone therapies can repair sperm damage and improve fertility outcomes. Women living close to federally designated Superfund sites are more likely to develop aggressive breast cancers - including the hard-to-treat triple-negative subtype - according to new studies from Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine. According to a National Institutes of Health study, some especially aggressive forms of breast cancer that are resistant to treatment are on the rise. Now, three recent studies by Sylvester researchers have uncovered links between breast cancer, Superfund sites and social adversity. A Superfund site is a location that has been contaminated by hazardous waste and identified by the Environmental Protection Agency as needing cleanup because it poses a risk to human health or the environment. The rise in breast cancer cases - particularly aggressive, hard-to-treat types such as triple-negative breast cancer - highlights the need to examine potential environmental factors contributing to these trends. In Florida, the presence of 52 active Superfund sites has become a focus, prompting members of Sylvester's Community Advisory Committee to raise awareness and connect with the cancer center about these issues. "Members of our community raised concerns that where they lived was making people sick," said Erin Kobetz, Ph.D., M.P.H., an epidemiologist and associate director for community outreach and engagement at Sylvester and Judy H. Schulte Senior Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. "Overwhelmingly, the people who were speaking up about this lived in a neighborhood relatively close to a Superfund site. There's a growing body of evidence that living in neighborhoods close to these sites is associated with poor health outcomes," she added. Although health and Superfund sites have been studied for decades, ties between environmental degradation and pollution and breast cancer remain under-researched, Kobetz said. So, she set up a multidisciplinary team of physicians, basic scientists and epidemiologists to dive in and study breast cancer and proximity to Superfund sites in Florida. Using Sylvester's SCAN360 data portal, her team was able to retrieve very granular data of South Florida's neighborhood characteristics and cancer risks. Proximity to Superfund sites The first study examined more than 21,000 cases of breast cancer in Florida diagnosed from 2015 to 2019. Kobetz and her co-authors wondered whether proximity to a Superfund site was related to whether breast cancer was metastatic. The researchers found that living in the same census tract as at least one Superfund site raised the likelihood of metastasized breast cancer by about 30%. The researchers then turned to specifically study triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and found that living in proximity to a Superfund site is also associated with increased risk for this aggressive subtype of breast cancer. Kobetz and her colleagues wanted to further explore the ties between TNBC and a certain pollutant, particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5), which is a pollutant smaller than 2.5 microns. They report that higher exposure to PM2.5 leads to higher risk of TNBC in South Florida. The two studies were published in Scientific Reports and Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention. Together, they highlight the risk that simply living close to a Superfund site may pose in terms of breast cancer. These studies, as well as federal funding priorities, give an increasing emphasis on the role of the environment in health outcomes. We need to better appreciate how environmental conditions may be driving variability in cancer outcomes." Erin Kobetz, Ph.D., M.P.H., epidemiologist and associate director for community outreach and engagement at Sylvester and Judy H. Schulte Senior Endowed Chair in Cancer Research Biomarkers in tumors Clinicians and researchers are concerned about environmental factors in a patient's health journey, but there's still a lot to learn about how those factors may be influencing diseases at the molecular level. That's why Aristeidis Telonis, Ph.D., a research assistant professor of biochemistry and molecular biology at the Miller School, wanted to dig into what might leave a chemical fingerprint in patients, a biomarker or even shape the progression of cancer. The team, co-led by Kobetz, analyzed breast cancer samples from 80 patients in the Miami area. They went deeper than merely genetic testing of the DNA; they also checked the instruction notes (epigenome) and the real-time messages (RNA) that show how the DNA is being put into action. The researchers then compared the genetic biomarkers to a composite measure of neighborhood context, and elements known to influence health outcomes. They observed that patients from neighborhoods with fewer health-promoting resources were more likely to exhibit these biomarkers and experience more aggressive forms of breast cancer. "This deprivation index is very strongly associated with more aggressive breast cancers," Telonis said. "It's a simple, but very important correlation." The study is published in Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention and is among the first to do a deep dive into these associations with molecular events inside a tumor, he said. The findings open the door to highly personalized care, with treatment plans that can best address the specific tumor conditions that a patient presents. "The goal is that when a patient comes in, the doctor not only assesses the tumor characteristics, but also considers the patient's resources and what that may mean molecularly," Telonis said. "Eventually, that should help inform treatment." Community first for a healthy future Kobetz stressed that this work was in direct response to the community's concerns. "We have a signal, and we're compelled and encouraged by our Community Advisory Committee to pursue it," Kobetz said. "The community had a perspective, and now we have empirical and scientific data to suggest that their concerns may be valid. These studies are the first puzzle pieces that will help us figure out what we should be focusing on next." As the US withdraws from the World Health Organization and cuts overseas aid, regional partnerships are critical to safeguarding the health of member countries in a region where climate change and chronic diseases loom large. These are some of the reflections of the WHO's Western Pacific regional director, Saia Ma'u Piukala, on the health challenges facing the region and measures needed to overcome them, as he heads to the World Health Summit (12-14 October) in Berlin, Germany. Before a key regional meeting in Fiji later this month, Piukala will join other global health leaders to discuss how health governance and financing models must adapt to the new reality of dwindling foreign assistance. In a written interview, he tells SciDev.Net about the crucial role of philanthropic partnerships, why multilateralism in health is more essential than ever, and the threat posed by misinformation and disinformation to public health. How is WHO preparing for future pandemics amid funding challenges and geopolitical shifts? The US withdrawal has forced WHO to rethink and restructure globally. It's painful but also a chance to refocus and diversify our funding. Member states in the Western Pacific have stepped up, showing strong support. To cite a cliche, from adversity comes opportunity and we are using this moment to recalibrate and strategise anew, with a sharper focus than ever on what we need to do and who we need to partner with to ensure we can fulfil our mandate. Multilateralism in health is not in crisis it's more essential than ever. The Pandemic Agreement give countries the tools to better prepare and respond to emerging health threats, including pathogens with pandemic potential. At our upcoming Regional Committee meeting in Fiji [20-24 October 2025], we'll discuss how to implement these frameworks to strengthen regional readiness. Why are partnerships, such as with the Asia-based Institute of Philanthropy, vital for WHO's Western Pacific Region? Partnerships are the lifeblood of WHO's work especially in a region with many middle- and lower-income countries. Our collaboration with the Institute of Philanthropy is helping us connect with new philanthropic actors, who may not fully understand WHO's role. Once we show the real-world impact of our work backed by solid data interest grows and doors open. I saw this for myself at the recent Asian Venture Philanthropy Network conference in Hong Kong, where I shared the WHO story, along with key health priorities for our region. These conversations sparked genuine interest and are already leading to new and promising opportunities for collaboration in health. How is WHO Western Pacific combating misinformation and rebuilding trust in science? Tackling the infodemic is a key pillar of work for us. WHO is investing in infodemic management, embedding it across programmes. We have been urging our member states to crack down on the commercial determinants of health that are contributing to the staggering global burden of non-communicable diseases, such as hypertension, diabetes, cancers. [These diseases are] linked to tobacco, alcohol, processed foods and fossil fuels products representing powerful industrial giants and conglomerates the world over, including in the Western Pacific. The more traction we get in our efforts, the more pushback we get from Big Industry including disinformation and misinformation perpetuated through insidious and aggressive marketing tactics increasingly aimed at young people, such as advertising for e-cigarettes and vapes, or making alcohol cheaper and more accessible. What are the top health priorities at the Regional Committee meeting in Fiji and how do climate change and AI feature? We're focusing on three key areas. First, NCDs represented by renewed action on tobacco and alcohol-related illnesses, where we are customising global WHO action frameworks for our region. We're also shining a light on oral health, in a region where over 800 million people live with largely preventable oral diseases. Secondly, climate and health. Climate change is disrupting water, food, and disease patterns. Specifically, we are calling for health systems across our region to be far more resilient to climate change and its impacts from compromised water supply impacting sanitation and infection control, to curtailing carbon emissions. We're launching a regional roadmap and a five-year strategy to build climate-resilient health systems through our Asia-Pacific Centre for Environment and Health, based in Seoul. Thirdly, health emergency preparedness implementing the International Health Regulations amendments and the Pandemic Agreement to make our region safer. We're also exploring AI's potential from telehealth to diagnostics while asking tough questions about equity. Who benefits? Who's left behind? Health must help bridge these gaps. What's a standout success story in the region, and what can we learn from it? The elimination of measles and rubella in 21 Pacific Island Countries [announced in September] is a triumph of collaboration. Despite limited resources and vast distances, countries worked together to protect their communities. As someone from Tonga, this achievement is deeply personal. It reminds us of the global effort to eradicate smallpox proof that health partnerships can transcend borders and politics. In our divided world, I remain a realistic optimist: with health leading the way, a better tomorrow is possible. Senators have launched an inquiry into companies paid billions in taxpayer dollars to build eligibility systems for Medicaid, expressing concern that error-riddled technology and looming work requirements "will cause Americans to lose Medicaid coverage to this bureaucratic maze." The letters, dated Oct. 10, were sent to four companies and follow a KFF Health News investigation that exposed widespread issues in states using Deloitte-run systems to assess Medicaid eligibility for millions of people. Failures have resulted in the erroneous loss of health coverage and other vital safety-net benefits for low-income people. Malfunctions in those systems can cost millions and take years to fix. As most states prepare to institute work requirements mandated by the tax and domestic spending law President Donald Trump signed in July, senators wrote it is each company's responsibility to build functioning systems, "rather than to prioritize their bottom line." Democratic senators Ron Wyden of Oregon, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, and Raphael Warnock of Georgia, as well as Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), sent the letters to several companies the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services identified as eligibility system contractors: Deloitte, GDIT, Gainwell Technologies, and Conduent. "They're essentially health care middlemen that are in the business of red tape, and they profit when Americans don't get health care," Wyden, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, which oversees Medicaid, said in an interview. "They've got a history of poor performance when it comes to determining eligibility or in helping Americans enroll in Medicaid," Wyden said. "Without stronger oversight and real accountability, these contractors are just going to get a jumbo windfall for creating systems that actually harm Americans trying to get health care." Spokespeople for the four companies did not provide comments for this article. As of June, 70.5 million people were enrolled in Medicaid, according to CMS. A handful of states operate their own Medicaid eligibility and enrollment systems, but most rely on contractors to build and run them. KFF Health News found that Deloitte, a global consultancy that generated $70.5 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2025, dominates this slice of government business. Twenty-five states have awarded Deloitte contracts for eligibility systems. The agreements, in which the company commits to design, develop, implement, or operate state-owned systems, are worth at least $6 billion, dwarfing any of its competitors. Kinda Serafi, a partner at Manatt Health, is advising states on how to reconfigure their systems to incorporate work requirements. States are in a "major sprint" to make changes by 2027, she said, and theyre being "inundated" with pitches from vendors looking to secure contracts. It underscores the business opportunity these system changes represent for contractors. "I think we have to really be vigilant to make sure that these vendors are implementing the requirements consistent with the law," Serafi said. Companies sign contracts with state governments, but the federal government pays the bulk of the cost. The federal government covers 90% of states' costs to develop and implement state Medicaid eligibility systems and 75% of ongoing maintenance and operations expenses, according to federal regulations. The Senate letters cite problems with Deloitte-run eligibility systems that KFF Health News identified. Among other issues, the Florida eligibility system erroneously cut benefits for new moms, and a problem in Kentucky prevented coverage applications from getting through online, which cost $522,455 and took 10 months to resolve. "Unfortunately, these are just a few examples of third-party systems' failure to serve their very function: to reliably and accurately determine an individual's eligibility for Medicaid coverage and services," the senators wrote. The senators asked the companies to respond by Oct. 31 to their questions, such as whether companies' contracts with states include financial incentives tying payment to the removal of Medicaid enrollees and whether the companies are penalized for coverage terminations made in error. The senators also demanded an accounting of the company's lobbying expenditures for the past five years and protocols for making system changes. By 2027, the Congressional Budget Office projected, based on an early version of the bill, 18.5 million Medicaid beneficiaries will have to work or complete other qualifying activities for 80 hours a month to keep their benefits, unless they qualify for an exemption. The CBO estimates that 5.3 million enrollees will lose coverage by 2034. The new work requirements are just one of several federally mandated Medicaid changes that are forcing states to adapt their eligibility systems. Medicaid work requirements have been plagued with problems in the few states where they've been tested. Medicaid enrollees have been frustrated in trying to navigate byzantine rules and glitchy technology. Work requirements have also come at great cost. Georgia has not adopted the ACA Medicaid expansion, which has granted benefits to millions of adults earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level. Instead, the state offers benefits to some people earning up to the poverty line who can prove they're working or participating in similar activities for 80 hours a month. Nearly 110,000 Georgians had applied to the state's Georgia Pathways to Coverage program through May, but only 9,157 people were enrolled as of mid-August. Under typical ACA expansion rules, 336,000 adults would be eligible for coverage, according to KFF. The Georgia program has cost $109 million, with $34 million spent on health benefits and more than $20 million allocated to marketing contracts, according to a KFF Health News analysis of state reports. Deloitte built Georgia's eligibility system and is the primary consultant for the Pathways program. Before Medicaid work requirements became federal law, Arizona also submitted a request to federal regulators to launch its own version that would apply to roughly 190,000 people. The state's application provided insight into the types of system changes states may soon need to make to manage the new federal work requirement. Arizona Medicaid officials said they would gather information on enrollees' work hours, training, and education. The state's eligibility system, which is operated by Accenture, would also need to check whether someone is exempt. States are in the early stages of determining changes they need to make to implement work requirements. Tessa Outhyse, a spokesperson for the California Department of Health Care Services, said the state expects upgrades to be processed "through the existing contractual change order process." State contracts with eligibility companies often set aside millions to cover the cost of changes, but systems may require upgrades beyond the agreed-upon work. In Missouri, upgrades are expected to cost roughly $33 million, according to a state budget document. The state has a contract with private company RedMane to handle some of its Medicaid eligibility processing. Missouri plans to hire an additional contractor to ensure it properly institutes Medicaid work requirements, according to Baylee Watts, a spokesperson for Missouri's Department of Social Services. Medicaid eligibility contractors "have a lot of leverage and expertise to influence contracts, to win contracts," Wyden said. "They can do a lot more, to the value of what we're giving them." KFF Health News senior correspondent Renuka Rayasam and correspondent Sam Whitehead contributed to this report. Liver fibrosis, a progressive scarring of the liver tissue, represents a major global health burden with limited treatment options. It is primarily driven by the activation of hepatic stellate cells (HSCs), which proliferate and secrete excess extracellular matrix proteins. Effective strategies to inactivate or eliminate these activated HSCs are crucial for reversing fibrosis. However, current therapies often lack precision and efficiency. Recently, the team of Shao Jiangjuan/Zheng Shizhong/Cheng Haibo from Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine revealed a dual regulatory mechanism: inhibition of SIRT7 by Oroxylin A (OA) reprograms the fate of HSCs through PRMT5 succinylation-driven senescence and ecto-calreticulin (ecto-CRT)-dependent NK cell immune clearance. The study achieved a significant reduction in fibrosis markers in experimental models and highlighted the critical role of inhibiting the SIRT7 protein. Targeting SIRT7 unlocks a dual cytotoxic and immunogenic program against activated HSCs. Natural compounds like OA offer multi-targeted therapeutic potential. Our findings reveal an efficient strategy for reprogramming HSCs fate and provide a promising candidate for anti-fibrotic therapy." Jiangjuan Shao, lead author Professor Shao is from the Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Pharmacology and Safety Research of Chinese Materia Media at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. Dual mechanism for HSCs fate reprogramming OA, a bioactive compound derived from the traditional Chinese herb Scutellaria baicalensis, was identified to directly bind and inhibit SIRT7, a protein highly expressed in activated HSCs. This interaction initiates a dual anti-fibrotic program: First, OA-induced SIRT7 inhibition promotes succinylation and proteasomal degradation of PRMT5, activating the cGAS-STING pathway and triggering irreversible HSCs senescence. Second, SIRT7 blockadeindependent of its desuccinylase activityleads to externalization of calreticulin (ecto-CRT) on HSCs. This "eat-me" signal facilitates recognition and elimination by NK cells via the NKp46 receptor. Selective and recyclable anti-fibrotic effects The researchers found that OA exhibits high selectivity for activated HSCs with good biocompatibility. The compound also demonstrated reusability and stability in its anti-fibrotic effects. In vivo experiments showed remarkable regression of liver fibrosis, supporting its therapeutic potential. The selectivity stems from specific SIRT7 targeting and subsequent immune-dependent clearance, minimizing off-target effects. "Combatting fibrosis requires integrated manipulation of both cellular aging and immune recognition," Professor Shao said. "The complex crosstalk between HSCs and the immune microenvironment underscores the need for smart targeting strategies. Our approach provides a synergistic and sustainable solution for fibrosis treatment. YANGON, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar police have seized 200,000 stimulant tablets in the Yangon region, the Central Committee for Drug Abuse Control (CCDAC) said on Saturday. Acting on a tip-off, anti-narcotics police searched a man in Yangon's Thakayta township on Thursday and confiscated 100,000 stimulant tablets, the CCDAC said. Another 100,000 stimulant tablets were seized at his residence in Tamwe township, it said. The suspect has been charged under the country's narcotic drugs law, and further investigations are underway, it added. The subject of an Ohio police pursuit took off down the road, a flash of orange in the darkness, but officers eventually caught up and grabbed the escapee: a runaway inflatable pumpkin as tall as them. As the AP reports, body camera footage from the Parma Heights Police Department in northeast Ohio shows an officer struggling to grasp the floored gourd as he describes to a clearly amused colleague how he had chased it down early when it kept blowing away. "And when I went to grab it over here, it just took off," he says. "I was pretty much in pursuit." After some more struggles attempting to deflate the decoration, which WDTN called an attempt "to resist arrest by re-inflating itself," multiple officers squished it into a police car. "I've never seen that before," one can be heard saying of the Halloween inflatable packed tight in the back seat. Police said they then returned it to the home where it was displayed. "Just another example of our officers going above and beyond, even for seasonal decor," the department posted on Facebook when it shared the case, which drew plenty of puns and quips from commenters, including other local law enforcement. "Some departments would have Squashed this story," the nearby Bedford Police wrote. A South Carolina inmate who spent 42 years on death row has died of natural causes at a prison hospital, according to the state Department of Corrections. Fred Singleton, 81, was sentenced to die in 1983 for raping and strangling a woman in Newberry County and stealing her jewelry, according to court records. He was the state's longest-serving inmate on death row, per the AP . Singleton spent his last three decades in prison in legal limbo after the state Supreme Court ruled he wasn't competent to be executed because he didn't understand he could die in the electric chair and only answered questions from his attorneys with "yes" or "no." But the justices also decided in 1993 that Singleton's death sentence should remain in case advances in psychology allowed him to get better, and that he couldn't be forced to take medication to improve his mental state only so he could be executed. Prosecutors said Singleton broke into the home of 73-year-old widow Elizabeth Lominick in 1982 and strangled her with a bedsheet after sexually assaulting her. Singleton's death leaves 24 men on South Carolina's death row, down from 48 at the end of 2014. South Carolina has executed six inmates since then, all in 2024 or 2025. The others off death row have either had convictions overturned and been resentenced, or died of natural causes. The longest-serving inmate now on death row is Jamie Wilson, 56, who has been there for 34 years. Afghanistan's foreign minister held a news conference in India on Friday, and it's making headlines not for anything he said but because of a rule enforced as he spoke: No female journalists were allowed in the room with Amir Khan Muttaqi, reports NDTV . The incident at the Afghan embassy in New Delhi is now drawing lots of backlashagainst the Indian government for allowing it to happen as well as against the male journalists who went along with the rule. The government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi "has dishonored every single Indian woman by allowing Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from pressers," wrote female lawmaker Mahua Moitra, per the Times of India. "Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites." Another prominent political figure, P Chidambaram, said the male journalists "should have walked out" when their female counterparts were denied entry. India's Ministry of External Affairs tried to distance itself from the controversy, saying it played no role in organizing the event, but the explanation was doing little to quell criticism domestically. "When you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them," said opposition party leader Rahul Gandhi. The press conference came amid heightened scrutiny of the Taliban's policies restricting women's rights in Afghanistan, including new bans on female-authored books and the removal of academic courses on women's rights and human rights. One day after a massive blast at a Tennessee plant that makes explosives and demolition charges, there's no longer hope of finding the at least 18 people who were missing. Investigators have searched almost all of the site, Sheriff Chris Davis of Humphreys County said Saturday, USA Today reports. "We're moving to recovery," he said during a news conference, per CNN, adding, "We have recovered no survivors." The details: Explosion: It occurred about 7:45am Friday at a plant owned by Accurate Energetic Systems in a rural area of central Tennessee about 60 miles southwest of Nashville, per the Tennessean. One entire building was destroyed at the 1,300-acre facility, which straddles Hickman and Humphries counties. It occurred about 7:45am Friday at a plant owned by Accurate Energetic Systems in a rural area of central Tennessee about 60 miles southwest of Nashville, per the Tennessean. One entire building was destroyed at the 1,300-acre facility, which straddles Hickman and Humphries counties. Casualties: Authorities have said people were killed, but haven't specified how many. Three people were treated for injuries, and one of them remained hospitalized. "What we need right now is we need our communities to come together and understand that we've lost a lot of people," said Davis. He described the situation as "hell." Authorities were using cell phone records to help determine who was inside the building that exploded. OSAKA, Oct 11 (News On Japan) - With just three days left until the Osaka-Kansai Expo closes, total attendance had surpassed 28 million as of October 10th, and the venue remained packed on October 11th as visitors continued to pour in for the final weekend. Long lines formed from early in the morning outside the venues east gate, and when the gates opened around 9 a.m., crowds streamed in and made their way to their favorite pavilions. Many expressed mixed feelings about finally getting a chance to attend just before the event ends. Im glad I made it in at the very last moment I wish they would extend the run, said one visitor. Another added, Its sad to see it end, so Im going to make the most of the last day. On the same day, Shanghai a sister city to Osaka Prefecture and Osaka City hosted a special one-day event, giving visitors a chance to enjoy Chinese music and dance performances and experience overseas culture. Expo organizers also reminded attendees that unused tickets without reserved dates can still be exchanged for admission passes until October 12th, the day before the event closes. The Expo, which has spanned 184 days, will officially end on October 13th. Source: Kyodo Investment Community Teleconference Set for November 13, 2025 at 8 a.m. ET TORONTO, Oct. 10, 2025 /CNW/ - Hydro One Limited (TSX: H), the largest electric transmission and distribution utility in Ontario, plans to release its third quarter financial results the morning of November 13, 2025, before North American financial markets open. A summary of the results will be distributed by newswire and the complete MD&A and financial statements will be posted at www.hydroone.com/investors and www.sedarplus.com. Hydro One's management will host a teleconference with the investment community starting at 8 a.m. ET that same morning to discuss the results and outlook. Those wishing to listen to the teleconference can access the live webcast through the Investor Relations Events and Presentations section of Hydro One's website at www.hydroone.com/investors. A rebroadcast of the teleconference will be available following the call at the same link. Members of the North American financial community wanting to ask questions during the call should use the following link (registration link), and you will be provided with personalized dial-in details. To avoid delays, we encourage participants to dial into the conference call fifteen minutes ahead of the scheduled start time. Other interested parties and media are welcome to participate on a listen-only basis. Hydro One Limited (TSX: H) Hydro One Limited, through its wholly-owned subsidiaries, is Ontario's largest electricity transmission and distribution provider with 1.5 million valued customers, $36.7 billion in assets as at December 31, 2024, and annual revenues in 2024 of $8.5 billion. Our team of 10,100 skilled and dedicated employees proudly build and maintain a safe and reliable electricity system which is essential to supporting strong and successful communities. In 2024, Hydro One invested $3.1 billion in its transmission and distribution networks, and supported the economy through buying $2.9 billion of goods and services. We are committed to the communities where we live and work through community investment, sustainability and diversity initiatives. Hydro One Limited's common shares are listed on the TSX and certain of Hydro One Inc.'s medium term notes are listed on the NYSE. Additional information can be accessed at www.hydroone.com, www.sedarplus.com or www.sec.gov. For More Information For more information about everything Hydro One, please visit www.hydroone.com where you can find additional information including links to securities filings, historical financial reports, and information about the Company's governance practices, corporate social responsibility, customer solutions, and further information about its business. SOURCE Hydro One Limited For further information, please contact: Wassem Khalil, Director, Investor Relations, [email protected], 416-345-5943 A Gravity-1 carrier rocket carrying a wide-field satellite and two experimental satellites blasts off from waters off the coast of Haiyang, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. The rocket blasted off at 10:20 a.m. (Beijing Time), placing three satellites into their designated orbits. The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center conducted the offshore mission. The Gravity-1 carrier rocket made its debut flight in January 2024. (Photo by Guo Jinqi/Xinhua) HAIYANG, Shandong, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- China sent a Gravity-1 carrier rocket into space from waters off the coast of Haiyang, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday. The rocket blasted off at 10:20 a.m. (Beijing Time), placing three satellites into their designated orbits. The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center conducted the offshore mission. A wide-field satellite and two experimental satellites were onboard the carrier rocket. The Gravity-1 carrier rocket made its debut flight in January 2024. A Gravity-1 carrier rocket carrying a wide-field satellite and two experimental satellites blasts off from waters off the coast of Haiyang, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. The rocket blasted off at 10:20 a.m. (Beijing Time), placing three satellites into their designated orbits. The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center conducted the offshore mission. The Gravity-1 carrier rocket made its debut flight in January 2024. (Photo by Guo Jinqi/Xinhua) A Gravity-1 carrier rocket carrying a wide-field satellite and two experimental satellites blasts off from waters off the coast of Haiyang, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. The rocket blasted off at 10:20 a.m. (Beijing Time), placing three satellites into their designated orbits. The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center conducted the offshore mission. The Gravity-1 carrier rocket made its debut flight in January 2024. (Photo by Guo Jinqi/Xinhua) TORONTO, Oct. 10, 2025 /CNW/ - On October 10, 2025, Peter Routledge, Superintendent of Financial Institutions, delivered remarks and participated in a fireside chat at the Economic Club of Canada in Toronto, Ontario. Check against delivery Thanks very much for the kind introduction. The Economic Club of Canada provides a highly respected, non-partisan platform for leaders in the private and public sectors to provide their views and answer direct, topical questions. With that in mind, I will make a few opening remarks then do my best to answer Robert's and your questions. I have the privilege of serving as Superintendent of Financial Institutions. I lead an office of dedicated public servants to whom Parliament has assigned a specific and narrow mandate: to ensure Canada's financial institutions are resilient in the face of uncertainty and volatility. Parliament further narrows our focus to protecting the rights and interests of depositors, policyholders, and creditors having due regard to the need to allow financial institutions to compete effectively and take reasonable risks. We do this via two central activities. First, we write and promulgate principles for reasonable risk taking in a competitive marketplace via regulatory guidelines. And, second, we supervise financial institutions to measure their adherence to these principles. If we carry out these activities effectively, the Canadian financial institutions that we oversee will be resilient to the trials produced by uncertainty and volatility. We take our responsibility very seriously given the importance of the financial sector to Canada's economic fortunes. The institutions we supervise carry approximately $12.2 trillion in assets on their balance sheets not an insignificant figure given Canada's $3.2 trillion economy. Resilience and Risk in Today's Financial System I have spoken recently about the resilience Canadian financial institutions have built over the past several years. For example, Canada's systemically important banks reported Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratios that averaged 13.7% in the most recent quarter, 220 basis points above the floor for a well-capitalized, systemically important bank. Elsewhere, Canadian life insurers have boosted their core capital ratios by 13% over the past 6 years and maintain ample capital buffers that can be similarly leveraged for new investments in the Canadian economy. And yet, I think it is fair to say that the uncertainty facing Canada and its financial sector is unusually elevated. First some good newsgiven the resilience in the financial system, this new era we have entered does not feel to me like the first decade of this century the decade that housed the Global Financial Crisis (GFC). Yes, I worry about market valuations that are quite elevated relative to most cycles. And yes, I worry about innovative non-bank financial intermediaries whose business models have yet to be tested by a nasty bear market. But regulated financial institutions in Canada, have stronger capacity to withstand or recover quickly from unexpected difficulties, stronger than they had during the GFC. Second, lets discuss the risks that do threaten financial stability. We are living through an intense period of geo-political transformation. The post-Cold-War consensus about the economic benefits produced by free-trade between independent nations has frayed and will not survive in the form to which we have grown accustomed. Other risks have accompanied this transformation and some of those risks threaten financial institutions. For example, cyber criminals regularly attack financial institutions and, occasionally, succeed. Transnational criminal organizations that manufacture and distribute poison conduct kinetic attacks on the physical assets of financial institutions via their money laundering activities. Simultaneously, regulated financial institutions have understandably begun to raise questions about the post-GFC conservatism of regulators in building more resilience into financial institutions. They argue that the shift before us demands more intelligent risk-taking, risk-taking to help economies shift their economic model to the world emerging, and they argue the aforementioned conservatism is an unnecessary speed-bump in the way of progress. We at OSFI, as at our international peers, regularly field calls to lower capital requirements, loosen some non-financial standards, and lessen regulatory intensity. In other words, my regulated constituents are asking me: can OSFI listen to and act upon our sincere request to help us help Canada adapt to our new reality. The correct answer to that question is yes. Not yes, but just yes. Smart Supervision to Avoid the "Stability of the Graveyard" In fact, we started answering yes before these calls intensified and, in my view, before they even started. For example, in 2024, we rescinded 20 guidelines and industry advisories, with more to come this November, then more again in January 2026, and more again in May 2026. Over the next year, OSFI will deliver the most wide-ranging and comprehensive reduction of regulatory content in our history. Earlier this year, we paused increases in the Basel III output floor to ensure that competitive balance prevails for Canadian banks that compete in the international banking system. In July 2025, we announced a reduction in capital requirements for Canadian infrastructure debt and equity investments made by OSFI-regulated life insurers. We have sought out ideas to improve our capital requirements that will provide more opportunity to regulated lenders and investors at minimal cost to financial institution resilience. We intend to have a first round of ideas put forward later this fall. We have no intention of being revolutionary in this endeavourjust incremental and smart. We think there is an optimum level of regulation and supervision one that lessens the likelihood that a financial shock damages the economy but avoids the "stability of the graveyard," (a term I borrow from my colleague at the Bank of England, Sarah Breeden, in her speech Financial stability at your service) in which economic growth is unnecessarily slowed by an excessive aversion to financial system risk. And that optimum level changes with the times. We also are keenly aware of the reality that we could go too far, and unintentionally invite unproductive risk-taking into the system. For example, some have called for a narrowing of financial institution supervisors' aperture to just financial risks, arguing that only material financial risks pose threats to financial institutions. Unshakeable Commitment to Supervising Material Non-financial Risks Now, financial risks such as capital adequacy and liquidity remain critical areas of focus for OSFI but we have learned through hard experience that they are lagging indicators of financial instability. Experience teaches us that inadequate assessment of non-financial risks is usually the root cause of financial instability at an institution. Non-financial risks can undermine the rights of depositors, policyholders, and creditors of financial institutions. Moreover, financial risks often emerge as the final signals of that process. Therefore, non-financial risks are, in fact, material risks and OSFI must supervise and regulate them in a manner equivalent to its supervision and regulation of financial risks. As a creditor or lender to a financial institution, ask yourself this: can I truly find comfort in my financial institution's capital or liquidity ratios, if I have concerns about its cyber risk management, third-party risk management, the integrity of its leaders, the security of its physical and information assets, its fidelity in adhering to the laws in the jurisdictions in which it operates, the culture of the organization, and the strength of governance provided by its board of directors? Financial history is littered by companies that failed on these dimensions even though their financial indicators did not signal the severity of their problems, near to or until the last day of their existence. If you are not persuaded by this argument, please solicit the points of view of those institutions' former creditorsor their former shareholders. OSFI's Natural Allies: Boards of Directors And with this penultimate point, I arrive at the final message for this speech. The fundamental importance of a financial institution's board of directors in vouchsafing both the resilience of the institution and its ability to deliver benefits to creditors and shareholders alike. If we look objectively at the performance of Canada's financial system this century, I think we can conclude that the system has outperformed many other financial systems on the dimensions of financial stability and resilience. Institutional failure has been quite rare, and our financial system has come through periods of serious to severe financial uncertainty without material disruption and with attractive profitability for shareholders. Credit for this track record does not belong to OSFI. We supervise nearly 400 financial institutions. Meanwhile, each of those institutions has a board of directors focused on value creation for its shareholders. Therefore, in attributing credit for Canadian financial institution performance, I start with the boards of directors of Canadian financial institutions who oversee management each and every day. In fact, in the 4.5 years that I have served as Superintendent, I have deepened my appreciation of an enduring truth of supervision and regulation. OSFI, as the representative of creditor interests, shares common interests with boards of directors. OSFI seeks long-term resilience for the benefit of creditors, depositors, and policyholders. Boards of directors seek the same long-term resilience in the service of their shareholders. Healthy profitability is good for creditors, strong capitalization and liquidity are good for shareholders. Except in extreme circumstances, creditor and shareholder interests alignmaking OSFI supervisors and boards of directors natural allies. So, over the past three years, OSFI has redesigned its supervisory framework to better serve boards of directors. We have expanded our risk ratings considerably. Formerly, we gave just one over-arching risk assessment to boards of directors we graded a company's overall risk as low, or moderate, or high, etc. Now we provide four sub-grades for each institution: grades for (1) business risk, (2) risk governance, (3) financial resilience, and (4) operational resilience. We provide boards with an annual report card, informing them of their institutions' strengths and weaknesses across those dimensions, as well as of their overall risk profile. We also provide much more clarity on the direction of risks. This gives boards of directors clear guidance on where to focus their own scrutiny on the management of the organization while enabling OSFI to avoid surprising our regulated constituents. Now, this can feel like intensified regulatory intensity. We are much more critical and specific in our supervision which in turn obliges action on the part of management as guided by their boards. But that action is not in response to OSFI's views, we have found. In fact, it is the boards of directors, empowered by analysis from a stakeholder that shares their interests, that galvanize management response and, ultimately, improvement. At OSFI, we rely on boards of directors to fulfil the important role as insightful, watchful stewards over their institutions' franchise values, especially when risks intensify. We know that when they do thatnot only do they serve their shareholders well, they also help OSFI to protect the rights and interests of depositors, policyholders, and creditors. Moreover, board accountability and effective governance is certainly not a new expectation but remains paramount in our renewed supervisory approach. When the history of this era of OSFI is written, I think our supervisory renewal and matured attitude to the interests we share with boards of directors will go down as the difference maker in the resilience of Canada's financial system. Moderator: Given the evolving macroeconomic and geopolitical landscape, how does OSFI currently assess the risk environment facing federally regulated financial institutions, and what are the most notable shifts or emerging risks since the publication of the 2025-2026 Annual Risk Outlook in March 2025? Superintendent Peter Routledge: In March, OSFI identified four key risks: Integrity and security risk Wholesale credit risk Funding and liquidity risk Real estate secured lending (RESL) and mortgage risks These four remain our focus, but the Semi-Annual Risk Outlook (SARO) shows how the risk environment has shifted: Ongoing uncertainty related to tariffs and trade protectionism. Continued weakness in the Canadian housing market, particularly in condos in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA). We are also seeing a gradual rise in mortgage delinquencies from historically low levels, especially in variable rate fixed payment mortgages. These dynamics may strain borrowers and increase credit risk, but Canada's financial institutions remain resilient, with strong buffers and effective risk management practices. That resilience is a strategic advantage -- it allows our financial system not only to withstand shocks, but also to support growth in an uncertain world. Moderator: Given OSFI's acknowledgment that trade disputes and rising protectionism may complicate Canada's economic landscape, how is OSFI preparing to mitigate the potential systemic risks that tariffs and other trade barriers could pose to federally regulated financial institutions? Superintendent Peter Routledge: We have already started. To address these risks, OSFI is undertaking the following actions: Strengthening institutional preparedness for stress events and being ready to take measures that allow institutions to leverage on the resilience they've built. We are maintaining heightened monitoring of liquidity and funding profiles, with special attention to liquidity risk management at material foreign operations. Industry consultations were also recently concluded on revisions to the Liquidity Adequacy Requirements Guideline, and a proposed Internal Liquidity Adequacy Assessment Process. OSFI will continue to refine its supervisory tools and stress testing approaches, always with transparency and proportionality. At the same time, our work on regulatory efficiency, which includes eliminating redundancies, tailoring intensity to risk, and pausing select initiatives, ensures federally regulated institutions can continue to take risks, compete effectively, and support growth even in an uncertain trade environment. Moderator: OSFI has identified real estate secured lending and mortgage risks as a top concern (particularly the payment shock expected from mortgage renewals and the growing prevalence of negatively amortizing variable-rate mortgages). How is OSFI working with financial institutions to ensure they are adequately capitalized and prepared to manage the potential rise in defaults and credit losses? Superintendent Peter Routledge: While mortgage delinquencies are still near all-time lows, they are trending upward. We are seeing higher delinquencies in variable rate fixed payment mortgages, as well investor and self-employed borrower types. Elevated household debt and concentrated activity in certain markets--like the preconstruction condo market in the GTA and GVA -- mean that stresses in these segments could spill over into the wider financial system. Since 2012, we have fundamentally transformed underwriting practices through Guideline B-20, Regulatory Notices, Supervisory Letters and various backgrounders posted to our website. Today, most borrowers demonstrate strong income coverage for payments and hold significant equity in their homes relative to loan amounts. Most recently, OSFI has reinforced its expectations on blanket appraisals and appraisal timing, ensuring property values are realistic and current. On the institutional side, Canada's banking system remains well capitalized. Canada's systemically important banks reported Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) ratios that averaged 13.7% in the most recent quarter, 220 basis points above the floor. That resilience, built over the past 15 years, provides capacity to manage localized stress in the condo market and broader vulnerabilities. We remain confident that the system's resilience is sufficient to manage the risks we face today. Moderator OSFI has taken significant steps to streamline its regulatory framework, including rescinding outdated guidelines, refining its policy release schedule, and pausing Basel III's output floor, to enhance transparency and reduce unnecessary burden. How does OSFI balance the pursuit of regulatory efficiency with the need to maintain resilience and public confidence in Canada's financial institutions, especially in a rapidly evolving risk environment? Superintendent Peter Routledge: Last year, OSFI established a discipline of continuously refining its regulatory guidelines and advisories, looking for opportunities to remove outdated or redundant expectations. OSFI is seeking regulatory efficiencies that enable financial institutions to take risks, compete effectively, and contribute to growth in the Canadian economy, while ensuring resilience is never compromised. This approach is agile, targeted, transparent, and risk-based, consistent with OSFI's long-term principles. We will announce further rescissions of guidelines and advisories on November 20, in keeping with our habit of continually and proactively streamlining the supervisory and regulatory environment. Our actions will remain deliberate, focused, and strategic. Resilience in the financial system is not just a safeguard -- it is essential to a strong economy and creates the conditions for sustained growth and public confidence. We think there is an optimum level of regulation and supervision one that lessens the likelihood that a financial shock damages the economy but avoids the "stability of the graveyard in which economic growth is unnecessarily slowed by an excessive aversion to financial system risk. And that optimum level changes with the times. Moderator: OSFI has emphasized its commitment to regulatory efficiency while maintaining resilience in the financial system. How does OSFI determine which guidelines or advisories can be safely rescinded without compromising its supervisory effectiveness, especially in a time of evolving financial risks? Superintendent Peter Routledge: We have always been a proactive and forward-looking regulator. We are not chasing yesterday's risks--we are positioning Canada's financial system for tomorrow's opportunities. To do this, we follow a discipline of regulatory efficiency. That means assessing our full suite of guidance and asking: does this instrument address a material, current risk? Is it clear and proportionate? If the answer is no, we rescind it. If yes, we refine or update it. This discipline helps us eliminate duplication, reduce outdated requirements, and concentrate supervisory attention where it matters most. Our oversight includes both the development of policy and guidelines, and the supervision of financial institutions. We use a risk-based, principles-based, and outcomes-focused supervisory model. Institutions with higher risk profiles receive more intensive supervision, while those with lower risks are monitored with a lighter touch. We also recognize that institutions vary in size and complexity, and tailor our supervisory approach accordingly. This calibrated model ensures that rescissions never compromise resilience but instead make supervision more effective and proportionate. SOURCE Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions OSFI Media Relations [email protected], 343-550-9373 BEIJING, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang returned to Beijing on Saturday aboard a chartered plane after attending the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and paying an official goodwill visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Li's entourage, including State Councilor and Secretary-General of the State Council Wu Zhenglong, returned by the same flight. When leaving Pyongyang, Li was seen off at the airport by Pak Thae Song, premier of the cabinet of the DPRK and presidium member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the WPK, and Chinese Ambassador to the DPRK Wang Yajun. Purchasers talk with an exhibitor at a garment booth at the 137th China Import and Export Fair in Guangzhou, south China's Guangdong Province, May 5, 2025. (Xinhua/Huang Guobao) GUANGZHOU, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- A total of 72 batches of import exhibits for the 138th edition of the China Import and Export Fair, also known as the Canton Fair, with an estimated value of 3.96 million yuan (about 557,370 U.S. dollars), have entered China between Sept. 16 and Oct. 11, according to Guangzhou Customs on Saturday. The customs said a further influx of exhibits is expected in the coming days as the fair approaches. The 138th Canton Fair is scheduled to begin Oct. 15 in Guangzhou, capital of south China's Guangdong Province, featuring an import exhibition area of 30,000 square meters. The arriving exhibits originate from 222 exhibitors across 13 countries and regions, including Egypt, Turkiye, Thailand and Japan, and cover categories such as kitchen appliances, hardware tools and machinery equipment. To streamline the process, Guangzhou Customs has released tailored facilitation measures, including waiver of guarantee requirements, on-site supervision, and "green channels" for priority clearance, ensuring efficient customs services from entry to post-exhibition procedures. Police in Camden County detained two students at Winslow Township High School after receiving reports of a student who brought explosives to school, police said Friday. A School Resource Officer at the high school reported that a student possibly had an explosive device at the school Friday, Winslow Township police said. The student was immediately detained and authorities found a large firework, according to police. The school was evacuated out of an abundance of caution and quickly spreading rumors about the incident, police said. A search of the building by the Camden County Sheriffs Department K9 unit and Bomb Squad did not find any other devices, police said. Two students were detained as a result of the incident, authorities said. No further details on the incident and whether any charges could be filed were shared by police on Friday. The Sika plant, located in Upper Deerfield Township, is expected to create 50 jobs and become operational in late 2025. A 250,000-square-foot mortar production plant is being built by Sika Corporation in Cumberland County. The plant, located in Upper Deerfield Township, is expected to create 50 jobs and become operational later this year. The Swiss-based company is a leading manufacturer in bonding, sealing, damping, reinforcing and protection systems for building and automotive industries, according to a statement issued by Sika. The Northeast Anchor site in Upper Deerfield will manufacture high-performance cementitious grouts, self-leveling mortars, and shotcrete mixes for residential and commercial construction applications. The company said the facility will address increasing demand from major metropolitan markets in the region, with long-term plans to expand technology product lines. The first three installments of Nick and Jackson Tomasso's father-son Batman photo tradition. Courtesy of Nick Tomasso It started 11 years ago with a shirt. Now its an annual tradition, a viral hit and a statement on time and parenting. New Jersey dad Nick Tomasso was the one with the shirt emblazoned with the familiar yellow-and-black bat logo like the one seen in the 1989 film Batman. Then came his baby son Jacksons onesie to match. For the first two years, he didnt pick up on the trend. I really didnt realize that became a theme until year three, Tomasso tells NJ Advance Media. But looking over his camera roll, he noticed a common thread in pictures he took with his son Jackson. They matched over and over and over again. I realized I had created a tradition without even knowing it, says Tomasso, who lives in Bergen County and works in corporate finance. In the first photo, baby Jackson sat in his lap wearing the Batman onesie next to his Batman shirt. In the next photo, Jackson was a toddler wearing a short-sleeve Batman shirt. Ditto for a long-sleeve shirt the next year. Year one, I just happened to be wearing a Batman shirt, Tomasso says. I like sci-fi, I like superhero stuff. Like anyone else snapping photos of their kids, he thought the matching onesie would make a cute picture, he says. Nick Tomasso's Batman photos with his son Jackson, from year four (top left) to year 11 (bottom right). Courtesy of Nick Tomasso A year later it was around the holidays. I got a new Batman shirt, just a different color, and he obviously got a different one because he was bigger. Tomasso decided to pose the same way with his son in his lap every year in the same chair, both of them wearing Batman shirts. And so it has continued since 2014. In the later years, itll be funny when hes much bigger than I am, he says. Jackson, now 11 and in sixth grade, duly put on a Batman shirt this year and posed for the latest photo with Tomasso, whose series has also shown the progression of his own graying hair. I usually did it around the fall or the winter, Tomasso says. No set day, just kind of when it popped into my mind ... But over the past few years, I tried to do it on Batman Day which is in September and thats when I did it this year. For years, he shared the Batman photo tradition with family and friends on his private Facebook and Instagram accounts. This year, he decided to post the photo progression on Reddit. Nick and Jackson in a non-Batman moment. "Show up for your kids and be there and spend time with them because thats really what matters," Nick says. Courtesy of Nick Tomasso After Tomasso shared the 11 photos showing his sons growth from baby to middle schooler on the Made Me Smile subreddit, the family tradition drew significantly more attention. His post has not only been upvoted 10,000 times, its also had him fielding calls from national media outlets. It was a complete surprise, Tomasso says. Im on Reddit a lot ... I guess after this amount of time I spent 11 years working on this thing now I was just kind of proud of it, so I just wanted to put it out there." Its our 15 minutes of fame, I guess, he says. I was apprehensive at first, but once it was out there, it was out there and I might as well just embrace it. When Jackson was younger, he wasnt that interested in taking the annual photos. Over the past few years, he has really appreciated seeing it, especially as he could see how small he was versus how much bigger hes getting each year, Tomasso says. Michael Keaton as Batman in Tim Burton's 1989 "Batman." Warner Bros. And yes, father and son have watched Batman movies together, including the 1989 Tim Burton Batman starring Michael Keaton in a tangle with Jack Nicholsons Joker. We havent gotten to all of them, Tomasso says. Hes on a bit of a Star Wars kick right now, so were trying to go through Star Wars and some Marvel superhero movies. Many other people and families have gone viral on social media for posts illustrating the progression of time and the growth of children. Theres also a trend that sees adults recreate photos from their childhood alongside their families. Tomasso says he wasnt looking to replicate or reference them, but hes glad for the initially unplanned tradition. Barring everything unforeseen, I would consider us doing it for as long as we can, Nick Tomasso says of the Batman photo tradition. Courtesy of Nick Tomasso I think especially because its the same picture ... its more meaningful that way, he says. I mean, you can look at pictures of your kids when they were infants or toddlers or 10 or 12 years old, and you can see how big theyve gotten, but especially sitting exactly in the same type of shirt and pose, you could really see how fast time goes ... especially when you have kids. So just make the most of that time, the big moments and the small, whether its just playing with your kid or its going on a cool vacation. Whatever that may be, show up for your kids and be there and spend time with them because thats really what matters. Will they still be committed to the yearly Batman photo when Jackson is 44 (the age Tomasso is now) and Nick is 77? Barring everything unforeseen, I would consider us doing it for as long as we can, he says. But Tomasso says hes a realist Jackson may well be living on the other side of the country by then. If he moves or whatever life changes or life gives him or me, for that matter well just keep it going as long as we can. A detective has filed a whistleblower lawsuit against the Essex County Prosecutors Office, claiming he faced retaliation after complaining about multiple issues, including unauthorized weapons and alcohol consumption in the workplace. Detective Anthony Deprospo, who was elected president of PBA 325 in June 2024, states in court papers he has been punished for complaints he made about his bosses at the prosecutors office. The issues include a senior detective carrying his personal 1911 Colt handgun at work and drinking alcohol with a lieutenant and another manager in the office, according to the lawsuit, filed Thursday in Essex County Superior Court. Deprospo also claims he was harassed while he was out on the New Jersey Family Medical Leave Act, attending to the serious medical needs of a child. His supervisor allegedly sent state troopers to his home for a welfare check, claiming Deprospo had not shown up for work. The welfare check was purely an act of harassment and retaliation, the suit alleges. A spokesperson for the Essex County Prosecutors Office on Friday declined to comment on the lawsuit, stating the agency does not discuss pending litigation. Deprospo says he has been retaliated against since at least 2020. He has worked for the prosecutors office for eight years and has 21 years of law enforcement experience, according to the suit. The suit states Deprospo became aware that three higher-ups were consuming alcohol while on duty, so he filed an Open Public Records Act request for the agencys policy on alcohol in the workplace. On June 27, 2023, Deprospo spoke at an Essex County Commissioners meeting about his list of complaints, which also included poor pay and nepotism. Two weeks later, his work vehicle was taken away, the suit alleges. In addition, his caseload went from 28 cases to over 40. Work was being piled on him mercilessly, the suit states. Deprospo also claims as of Oct. 3, there have been 58 personnel transfers in and out of his unit, which has driven up his workload even further. Deprospo also claims he was placed under a crumbling ceiling in a work area that was noisy because it was near a copy machine and the offices sole evidence computer, which was constantly in use. On Oct. 27, 2023, Deprospo became aware that the prosecutors office was using detectives for manual labor. Specifically, the detectives were instructed to move boxes from storage in Newark to a new warehouse in Belleville. Deprospo made several complaints about the relocation work, which he claimed was outside the scope of the detectives job duties. Detectives lifting heavy items including safes, discarding debris into open dumpsters, heat in the workspace of over 90 degrees, hot, and dusty, with detectives provided no personal protective equipment, water or supervision, were among the complaints, according to the suit. On Jan. 10, 2024, Deprospo appeared in an NBC investigative report and voiced his concerns about detectives performing the out-of-title work, which had been dubbed The Belleville Project, according to the suit. On Jan. 23, 2024, Deprospo was reprimanded for violating unwritten policies that appeared to have been instituted only for Deprospo, the suit claims. In retaliation, supervisors offered detectives overtime in front of Deprospo but did not offer the same to him, the suit alleges. The lawsuit alleges the Essex County Prosecutors Office violated Deprospos rights under the states Conscientious Employee Protection Act. The alleged violations include denial of overtime and banishment to a dead-end work assignment. Hes had former prestigious work duties and responsibilities removed, and has been targeted for specious internal affairs investigations, the suit claims. The suit also alleges Deprospos employers violated the New Jersey Family Leave Act by overloading him with work upon his return, and retaliated against him in violation of the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. Deprospos lawsuit is one of several filed by investigators at the Essex County Prosecutors Office in the past six years. On Aug. 20, 2019, Detective Christopher DiRocco filed a whistleblower lawsuit claiming he was retaliated against for complaining about salary provisions and overtime pay. DiRocco settled his lawsuit for $130,000 in 2022, according to court documents. On Feb. 10, 2023, Detective Antonio Rua filed a lawsuit claiming he was retaliated against for raising concerns about pay and unsafe working conditions. The retaliation against Rua allegedly included denial of overtime, forcing him to change his work hours, and demanding he adhere to a different dress code than other workers. Ruas lawsuit remains pending in Essex County Superior Court. In August 2024, Jason Gorto, a member of the countys Homicide Task Force, claimed in court papers he was targeted for retaliation after reporting a supervisor came in late and expected her subordinates to sign in for her. Gorto claimed in the suit he once found a dead mouse symbolic of a rat under his desk after he made complaints about violations within the department. In January, Detective Aileen Clowes filed a lawsuit claiming her male superiors subjected her to inappropriate conduct, discriminatory treatment and punitive actions when she raised concerns about workplace violations and misconduct. A judge halted construction of a backup power plant at the PVSC's sewage treatment plant in Newark's Ironbound section. Residents who oppose the gas-powered plant demonstrated against it in April 2022. Steve Strunsky | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com A state judge issued a stay Friday blocking construction of a backup power plant in Newark that sewage treatment officials say will limit the discharge of untreated waste, but that opponents argue will further pollute a densely populated area already overburdened by industry, lawyers said. Judge Robert E. Gardner of State Superior Court for Essex County issued the stay pending the outcome of a lawsuit by the City of Newark to block construction of a natural-gas-fired generating station at the sprawling Passaic Valley Sewerage Authority treatment plant in the citys Ironbound section, according to Newark Corporation Counsel Kenyatta Stewart. Stewarts office filed the environmental justice suit against the PVSC in July in coordination with the nonprofit Ironbound Community Corporation, or ICC, which is being represented in a separate but related suit by Earth Justice, the nonprofit environmental law firm known for its fundraising slogan, Because the Earth Needs a Good Lawyer. Earth Justice lawyer Jonathan Smith welcomed the stay. The Court took the reasonable step of pausing construction on what would be the fourth gas plant in the most overburdened community in New Jersey, Smith said in a statement. PVSC has waited over a decade to build this expensive, polluting, and unreliable gas plant, and theres no need to rush construction now before the Courts final ruling on the legality of PVSCs decision. The city and the ICC sued after the PVSC board voted on June 12 to award a $232.7 million construction contract to Skanska/Railroad SPOF JV, despite impassioned pleas at the meeting by dozens of Ironbound residents, environmental justice advocates and other opponents. The backup plant has been the source of controversy since it was proposed four years ago to avoid the kind of power outage and temporary shutdown of the PVSC facility that occurred during Hurricane Sandy in 2012. The shutdown was labeled an environmental catastrophe that allowed billions of gallons of raw or partially treated sewage to flow into the adjacent Newark Bay and connected waterways. But in a complex environmental justice case, the largely working-class, Black and brown residents of the Ironbound say the carbon-emitting plant would worsen air pollution in an area with elevated rates of asthma and other health disorders. Since Sandy, the PVSC has built a wall around the plant and physically elevated its power-related facilities. Citing those existing protections against flooding, opponents say the proposed backup power plant is not needed. The PVSC rejects the assertion, while also insisting the plant will only be used in emergencies. Before the contract was awarded, the backup plant was granted a permit by the state Department of Environmental Protection. Plant opponents criticized Gov. Phil Murphy for allowing his environmental department to grant the permit, a decision they said flew in the face of the state environmental justice law Murphy had signed in 2020 to protect poor neighborhoods from bearing the burden of industrial development. The suits by the city and the ICC contend that the PVSCs plan to move forward with the backup plant was pretextual, meaning it was decided in advance of public discussion and disregarded the input of opponents during the plans vetting process. Stewart said the next step in the suit was a case management conference scheduled for Oct. 27. Special forces members stand in formation at a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. (Photo by Liu Zaiyao/Xinhua) QINGDAO, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. In preparation for the mission, the fleet conducted training focused primarily on the use of weapons, the tasks involved in providing a convoy escort, and measures necessary for replenishment during the mission. China in December 2008 began dispatching naval ships to carry out vessel protection operations in both the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. Officers and soldiers wave goodbye at a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. (Photo by Liu Zaiyao/Xinhua) Guided-missile destroyer Tangshan sets sail at a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. (Photo by Liu Zaiyao/Xinhua) A farewell ceremony is held for a Chinese navy fleet at a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. (Photo by Liu Zaiyao/Xinhua) Officers and soldiers wave goodbye to comprehensive supply ship Taihu at a port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, Oct. 11, 2025. A new fleet of the Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy set sail from a military port in Qingdao, east China's Shandong Province, on Saturday to take over an escort mission from the previous fleet in the Gulf of Aden and waters off Somalia. This 48th navy fleet comprises a missile destroyer, a missile frigate and a supply vessel -- with two helicopters and dozens of special forces members on board. (Photo by Liu Zaiyao/Xinhua) Rev by Vermella, a 268-unit luxury residential development in Belleville, has reached 75% occupancy just four months after opening, company officials announced. The complex on Washington Avenue includes a 19,283-square-foot retail center for up to a dozen stores. Starting lease prices range from $2,200 a month for studios to $3,300 a month for two bedroom units. Company officials recently marked the leasing milestone in an event at the propertys central piazza across from Belleville Motorcycle Mall. The development represents a partnership between Russo Development and longtime Belleville businessman John Resciniti, whose family opened the Motorcycle Mall 50 years ago. My family has been tied to Belleville for generations, and I wanted to make sure this project wasnt just another building but something that reflects our roots here, Resciniti said in a statement. By partnering with Russo, weve created a place that is not only cool and unexpected, but one that will leave a lasting mark for the community and our family. Ed Russo, CEO of Russo Development, attributed the rapid leasing success to the unique lifestyle the development offers. People are finding in Rev a lifestyle they couldnt locate anywhere else, Russo said. Were proud that Rev is attracting a wide mix of residents longtime Belleville locals, regional renters, and even newcomers from farther afield who were searching for a vibe unique to this community. The development includes a rooftop lounge, resort-style pool, coworking spaces, and the central piazza designed to serve both residents and the broader neighborhood. Russo Development has delivered more than 6,000 luxury apartments in the New York metropolitan area over its 59-year history and currently has a pipeline of 3,500 residential units and 5 million square feet of industrial space. After being pen pals for 51 years, Debbie Houschild, 62, and Jane Bean, 62, met for the first time on Aug. 26. Photo courtesy of Debbie Houschild Debbie Houschild, of Oceanport, can still recall the excitement she felt in 1974, when she received her first letter from a pen pal in England. At the time, Houschild was an avid viewer of Big Blue Marble, a 70s childrens television series that encouraged cultural exchange and offered the chance to request a pen pal from another country at the end of every episode. Houschild jumped on the opportunity and was paired with Jane Bean of Sittingbourne, England. The 11-year-olds quickly bonded over discussions about school and sports. It was really like having a friend my age, only we never saw each other in person, Houschild said. As the pair grew up, their friendship became stronger as they continued exchanging letters, cards and photos. Debbie Houschild, left, and Jane Bean, right. Canva While they corresponded less frequently when they entered adulthood, and eventually switched to digital communication in the early 2000s, they remained in contact through all stages of their lives. I had two girls; she had two boys. We were both divorced at some point. So, weve had, in some ways, similar lives, Houschild said. Debbie Houschild has saved the letters Jane Bean sent her over the years. Photo courtesy of Debbie Houschild Though they had always hoped to one day meet in person, Houschild said it wasnt until Bean acknowledged their 50-year anniversary as pen pals earlier this year that she finally decided to plan a visit. I said to Debbie in one of our exchanges that it was our golden anniversary because obviously weve known each other for 50 years, Bean said. And Debbie replied, We need to meet, I need to come to England And with that, she got together with her daughters and planned the trip to come over. A few months later, Houschild ventured to London with her daughters to meet Bean face to face on Aug. 26. We both immediately just stuck our arms out, like, finally, Houschild said. It was very exciting. It felt like the most natural meet up and chat with an old friend you could possibly imagine, Bean said. Ive got friends that I live near that Ive known for more than 50 years, like from school, and going up and meeting Deb was just like meeting up with one of those. The pen pals spent the day together exploring London. Photo courtesy of Debbie Houschild The two spent the day reminiscing and sight-seeing, with Bean taking Houschild and her daughters on a tour of the city. At a local pub, Houschild surprised Bean with a stack of old letters and photos she had saved over the years. She also gifted Bean a t-shirt featuring a photo of the Bay City Rollers, a Scottish pop rock band she was absolutely nutty about when they first began writing. That was really sweet, Bean said. Houschild traveled to London with her two daughters. Photo courtesy of Debbie Houschild Houschilds daughter, Kimberly Johnson, of Red Bank, chronicled the visit on social media, with her TikTok post garnering over 100,000 views. Since the meetup, the pair has remained in touch, and Houschild says she hopes to return to England in the future this time to explore Beans hometown. We just always seem to come back to each other again, which Im eternally grateful for, Bean said. A 45-year-old man died in a car crash early Saturday morning on Interstate 295 in Gloucester County. Rasah Harris, of Camden, was traveling south on I-295 around 1:12 a.m. when he lost directional control of his car, according to New Jersey State Police Trooper Christopher Postorino. The car was near milepost 9.4 in Logan Township when the accident occurred. Harris ran off the roadway to the right, struck a parked Kia passenger car and continued into a wooded area, where his vehicle struck trees and a fence, Postorino said. Harris was ejected from his car and suffered fatal injuries, officials said. His car then became fully engulfed in flames, Postorino said. The Kia was unoccupied and there were no other injuries, the trooper said. The case remains under investigation, officials said. No additional information about the crash was available Saturday morning. A group of Democratic governors gathered Friday to denounce President Donald Trumps efforts to deploy National Guard troops to cities across the country. California Gov. Gavin Newsom, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek met virtually as Trumps plans to place troops in Chicago and Portland faced legal hurdles in court. This is unprecedented in modern American history, Newsom said in a video of their discussion posted to X. This is, dare I say, a constitutional crisis. This is not what Americans want to see, Kotek added. They dont want to see their citizen soldiers in the streets of American cities. Trump is shredding democracy and continues to illegally deploy the US military into American cities against American citizens. I sat down with @JBPritzker and @TinaKotek to break down what's really happening on the ground and how states are fighting back. pic.twitter.com/T0biBgJaM1 Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) October 10, 2025 Both Kotek and Pritzker have disputed Trumps claims that federal troops are needed in Portland and Chicago to quell protests aimed at Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents and facilities. The only invasion or mayhem thats occurring is because of the Trump administration, Pritzker said. We had ICE agents rappelling out of a military helicopter. They were targeting a few people, but 130 people had their doors broken down, their windows broken, everything was ransacked. U.S. District Judge April Perry on Thursday halted the White Houses plan to deploy the Guard in Chicago, suggesting ICE agents had provoked tensions in Illinois largest city. That same day, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals signaled that it was skeptical of Oregons assertion that President Trump did not have the authority to deploy National Guard troops to Portland. Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets, White House spokeswoman Abigail Jackson said in a statement. President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court. Trump previously sent troops to Los Angeles, and has attempted to send the California National Guard into Portland over objections from Newsom. This is a time for us to partner, Newsom told Pritzker and Kotek, and a time for us to really raise the red flag of alarm about whats really going on in this country. This once-a-week newsletter will take you behind the scenes in the dramatic, cut-throat world of New Jersey politics. Mike Scott | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com EDITORS NOTE: This is the latest edition of a weekly newsletter on the crazy world of New Jersey politics. You can subscribe here. The second and last debate Jerseys political world was tuned in Wednesday night to the second and final debate in the states very contentious governors race. And there was quite a lot to talk about. Even beyond the stunning moment youre all thinking of. Like how the candidates were asked to grade President Donald Trumps return to the White House so far. Democrat Mikie Sherrill gave him an F. Republican Jack Ciattarelli the bearer of Trumps endorsement gave him an A. Like how they were also asked to grade Gov. Phil Murphy, the Democrat theyre vying to succeed. Ciattarelli gave him an F, Sherrill a B. Like how Sherrill again accused Ciattarelli of raising taxes at all levels of government, and how Ciattarelli again vowed not to hike taxes as governor. And how Sherrill repeated her promise to freeze soaring electric rates, while Ciattarelli said thats not feasible. And, of course, the biggest moment of them all: How Sherrill alleged Ciattarelli and his former publishing company profited while printing propaganda downplaying the danger of opioids. And how she said Ciattarelli killed tens of thousands of people, including children. Ciattarelli said thats a lie and hammered her over her connection to the 1990s Naval Academy cheating scandal and a fine she paid over stock trades. Shame on you! they both said to each other. You can read more about the debate from the stellar recap my colleague Brianna Kudisch wrote. And its common for each camp to declare victory. But I wanted to get instant reaction from insiders on both sides of the aisle. Who had the better night? Did this move the needle? So I texted a bunch for their anonymous, unvarnished opinions. Heres how they replied: Democratic insider #1: I think both did well and what they were there to do. That opioid thing is legit to make. I think she made it in a pretty nasty way, tho. And he coulda answered it better. I think if the Mikie campaign isnt cutting a spot right now off the Trump A grade, Id be shocked. (That) could be the moment from this. Or you killed thousands of people. Republican insider #1: I think Mikie really crossed the line saying Jack killed tens of thousands of people. That was totally unhinged. I think the campaign is looking to turn the page from the Naval Academy scandal. But still in this time where political violence is rampant, I think unfounded rhetoric like that is really dangerous. Democratic insider #2: Mikie was great and threw the punches she needed to. Looked sharp and competent. (The debate) did not move the needle, which is good for Mikie. Jack giving Trump an A is a massive problem for him. Republican insider #2: Pretty sure accusing Jack of killing people is slander? ... Jack played it a little too low-key by Marquess of Queensbury rules. And Mikie played it like a rat trapped in the corner." Democratic insider #3: Jack helped himself with specific details on energy, schools, and rebutted tax attacks. He also did well articulating his position on abortion. Mikie fired a new salvo on opioid crisis allegations. Also got him to give Trump an A, which I see theyre already using online. Not sure this moves the needle, but the Trump stuff may help her with the base. And his specific plans on energy policy might move undecideds." Republican insider #3: If Mikies goal was to call attention to oppo research on Jack, and squeeze in as many Trump mentions as possible, she landed that helicopter. But if it was to inspire voters mission failed. Jack got thrown off platform by the personal attacks and threw his own haymakers. He sounded reasoned and steady, but theres no TV ad coming out of it for him. Democratic insider #4: She was aggressive, questions were on federal issues all good for Mikie. But the nail in the coffin is the ridiculousness of Ciattarellis tax plan, and she didnt land it. He gave Trump an A and she gave Murphy a B. He has to be a sycophant because Trump would brutalize him otherwise. She was more genuine in her answer in my opinion to the most important question. Jack showed he cannot distance himself from Trump, and for that reason alone I expect New Jersey will reject him. This source called me Thursday morning to add: That she said he killed people is the most desperate thing Ive ever seen any candidate do. There were so many ways to say it. And she said it twice. It has me concerned that theyre concerned. ... Him giving Trump an A was more of the story. That was a better win. Instead, its about her making this claim. Republican insider #4: You killed 10,000 kids?!? Sound like someone with a comfortable lead? Neutral political insider: While theres good snippets to use for ads, there were so many opportunities she could have said, Youve been running for Governor for 10 years. You ran against Phil Murphy and you lost. ... Mikie won. You could tell they hate each other. She was calm, cool, collected, and was able to land hooks and jabs when she needed. She needed to shoot par and maybe she came in at -2. No bogeys. Clean card. Jack spoke in platitudes and was landing the low blows. It was almost as if a combo of Joe Piscopo and Jon Lovitz was playing Jack Ciattarelli on a cold open of SNL. But thats what Jack is right now. Its hard to re-invent yourself when you havent won anything. A day after the debate, Ciattarellis campaign announced it will sue Sherrill for defamation over her claims, saying baselessly and recklessly accusing a political opponent of mass murder in a televised debate crosses the line. Sherrill responded during an appearance on News 12 New Jersey: I think it was pretty obvious that what I was talking about was the fact that Jack Ciattarelli owned a company that printed the propaganda of some of the opioid companies that were the worst offenders. Less than four weeks from Election Day ... Republican Jack Ciattarelli (left) and Democrat Mikie Sherrill (right) on stage at the New Brunswick Performing Arts Center on Wednesday night for their second and final debate in the governor's race. Ed Murray| For NJ Advance Media Hot takes What others are saying Some Jersey stories in the news: Tweet of the week I guess I had my phone turned off. Its fine. Whatever. I dont even like ice cream. Luv je#BruceSpringsteen #Springsteen #bonjovi pic.twitter.com/ToChVtl2Sj John Eddie (@JohnEddieMusic) October 5, 2025 Did you know? Of the 50 state capitals in the U.S., Trenton ranks 33rd by population with about 91,000 residents. Right above it is Albany at 32 and below it Santa Fe at 34. No. 1 is Phoenix. No. 50 is Montpelier. (Thats in Vermont.) About this newsletter Welcome to What Makes Jersey Run, a weekly newsletter for anyone interested in the always-lively world of Jersey politics and Americas most important governors race in 2025. Join NJ.coms award-winning political reporter Brent Johnson as he gives you the inside look at what really happens behind the scenes in a state rife with scandal, controversy, and power players (some of whom wind up in jail). Brent, who has been covering the craziness in Trenton for more than a decade and knows who pulls the strings, will deliver his exclusive insights on the state of politics and the big campaign right to your inbox. How to subscribe This is an exclusive newsletter for NJ.com and our loyal subscribers. You can subscribe here. A strong coastal storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather The National Weather Service has issued a high wind warning for four counties in New Jersey where a strong noreaster is expected to generate damaging wind gusts as high as 60 mph on Sunday and Monday. The warning covers all sections of Cape May County along with coastal areas of Atlantic County, eastern Monmouth County and coastal Ocean County. Wind advisories have been issued for interior sections of Atlantic, Monmouth and Ocean counties, as well as the southeastern region of Burlington County, because of gusts that are expected to reach up to 50 mph. The wind warnings and advisories will go into effect at 11 a.m. Sunday and will remain active until 6 a.m. Monday. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather Forecasters say the coastal storm will likely bring steady winds of 25 to 35 mph and occasional gusts as strong as 60 mph along the immediate coast. Damaging winds could blow down trees and power lines, the weather services Mount Holly forecast office said. Widespread power outages are possible. Travel could be difficult, especially for high-profile vehicles. The weather service is advising residents to secure loose objects outside their homes or move the items to a safe location before the winds start ramping up. Spotty rain showers are expected Saturday afternoon, but more widespread rain will likely start to fall Saturday night and early Sunday. As the coastal storm strengthens off the Carolina coast and moves north in the Atlantic, closer to New Jersey, winds are expected to become more intense. The fierce winds, coupled with high astronomical tides, will be pushing water from the ocean and bays onto coastal areas of New Jersey. And the storm surge could get as high as 2 to 3 feet in some areas, resulting in moderate to major flooding, forecasters said. All 21 New Jersey counties will be under a state of emergency as of 10 p.m. Saturday. The state of emergency will remain in effect until the storm impacts subside. Current weather radar A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather UPDATED FORECAST: Nasty noreaster on track to slam state with high winds, coastal flooding A powerful noreaster is expected to bring strong winds up to 60 mph and a soaking rain to New Jersey this weekend, with forecasters warning coastal residents that flooding could become serious enough to trigger evacuations. All 21 New Jersey counties will be under a state of emergency as of 10 p.m. Saturday. The state of emergency will remain in effect until the storm impacts subside. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather The National Weather Service has issued coastal storm warnings for the Jersey Shore and along the Delaware and Raritan bays. Widespread significant impacts from a strong coastal storm are increasingly likely for our area Sunday and Monday, the weather service said in a storm briefing Saturday morning. The greatest impacts are most likely for marine and coastal areas, which includes significant coastal flooding, substantial beach erosion and dune breaching, strong to damaging winds, and significant waves, the weather service noted. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather Although forecasters are not expecting as much rain as they originally predicted, they are concerned about strong to damaging winds in coastal areas and also in some inland areas. Gusts as high as 50 to 60 mph could knock down trees and power lines, the weather service said. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather Forecasters said moderate to major coastal flooding is increasingly likely along the Atlantic coast of New Jersey and also along the Delaware Bay during the high tide cycles on Sunday through Monday. In low-lying areas near the ocean, the storm surge could get as high as 2 to 3 feet. Strong winds from the coastal storm will likely cause widespread roadway flooding, impassable roads, and inundation of structures at the Jersey Shore, the weather service said. Evacuations remain possible, the weather service said. Coastal residents are urged to heed any warnings and follow guidance from local officials. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather Forecasters have backed off on predictions for 3 to 5 inches of rain at the Jersey Shore, saying they now expect widespread areas of 1 to 3 inches, with the highest numbers along the coast. Saturday will be the calm before the storm, with mostly cloudy skies and only a slight chance of light rain showers during the day. Winds are expected to pick up Saturday night into early Sunday, and rain should become more widespread during those hours and continue into Monday night. A strong nor'easter storm is expected to slam New Jersey with wind gusts up to 60 mph, heavy rain and dangerous coastal flooding at the Jersey Shore. National Weather Service and AccuWeather The extended forecast indicates improving conditions by Tuesday as the storm weakens and moves offshore. High pressure will begin building into the region during the middle to end of next week, bringing cooler and drier air. Temperatures are expected to drop from the mid-60s to upper 50s and lower 60s by Thursday and Friday. Although the storm is expected to be nasty, the rain is needed in New Jersey, which is under a drought watch. Most of the northern half of the state has moderate drought conditions, and almost 10% of that region now has severe drought conditions, according to the latest U.S. Drought Monitor status map. A wide swath of South Jersey, from Ocean County down to Cumberland County, is abnormally dry, one level away from a moderate drought. Current weather radar Watertown, NY (13601) Today Mostly cloudy skies. A few flurries or snow showers possible. High 28F. Winds W at 10 to 20 mph.. Tonight Snow in the evening will transition to snow showers overnight. Low 17F. Winds SW at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of snow 60%. About one inch of snow expected. Robots joined a Yingge dance (dance to the hero's song) performance in Shantou, China. Dressed in traditional masks and headdresses, their seamless and adorable moves completely stole the show. #robot #YinggeDance #China #ChinaTravel MANILA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Net foreign direct investments (FDI) into the Philippines declined by 7.5 percent year-on-year in July to 1.3 billion U.S. dollars, according to the latest data from the Philippine central bank. In a statement released on Friday, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the decrease in FDI net inflows during the month resulted from lower nonresidents' net investments in debt instruments, which fell by 39.4 percent to 711 million dollars. However, the BSP said the reduction was tempered by the 450.6 percent increase in nonresidents' net investments in equity capital (other than reinvestment of earnings), which rose to 418 million dollars. Similarly, it added that reinvestment of earnings grew by 14.3 percent. Equity capital placements in July were sourced primarily from Japan and the United States. Industries that received the most of these investments were wholesale and retail trade, manufacturing, and real estate. On a cumulative basis, FDI net inflows declined by 20 percent from 5.9 billion dollars posted in January-July 2024 to 4.7 billion dollars in January-July 2025. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), attends a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK in Pyongyang, the DPRK, Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held a military parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK. Kim Jong Un made a speech at the event, which was attended by some foreign leaders. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) PYONGYANG, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) held a military parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK). Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event, which was attended by some foreign leaders. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), gestures after a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK in Pyongyang, the DPRK, Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held a military parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK. Kim Jong Un made a speech at the event, which was attended by some foreign leaders. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Zhai Jianlan) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao) A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). The DPRK held the parade Friday at Kim Il Sung Square in central Pyongyang. Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the WPK and president of the State Affairs of the DPRK, made a speech at the event. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) Most Americans Who Rely on Obamacare Live in Republican Areas More than 23 million Americans are currently enrolled in Obamacare plans, and nearly all of them will face higher health care costs next year if extra federal funding for subsidies expires, as scheduled, on Dec. 31. Share of population enrolled in Obamacare plans 5 10 15 % Kan. Alaska Ariz. Calif. Colo. Hawaii Idaho Texas Utah Mont. Neb. N.M. N.D. Okla. Ore. S.D. Wash. Wyo. Nev. Iowa Ky. Ala. Ark. Conn. Fla. Ga. Hawaii Ill. Ind. Vt. La. Maine Md. Mass. Mich. Minn. Miss. Mo. N.H. N.J. N.Y. N.C. Ohio Pa. S.C. Tenn. Va. W.Va. Wis. More than 30% of residents in Miami-Dade County, Fla., are enrolled in Obamacare plans. Obamacare enrollment is higher in large swaths of the South. Iowa Kan. Ky. Ala. Alaska Ariz. Ark. Calif. Colo. Conn. Fla. Ga. Hawaii Idaho Ill. Ind. Texas Utah Vt. La. Maine Md. Mass. Mich. Minn. Miss. Mo. Mont. Neb. N.H. N.M. N.Y. N.C. N.D. Ohio Okla. Ore. Pa. S.C. S.D. Tenn. Va. Wash. W.Va. Wis. Wyo. Nev. Obamacare enrollment is higher in large swaths of the South. Iowa Kan. Ky. Ala. Alaska Ariz. Ark. Calif. Colo. Conn. Fla. Ga. Hawaii Idaho Ill. Ind. Texas Utah Vt. La. Maine Mass. Mich. Minn. Miss. Mo. Mont. Neb. N.H. N.J. N.M. N.Y. N.C. N.D. Ohio Okla. Ore. Pa. S.C. S.D. Tenn. Va. Wash. W.Va. Wis. Wyo. Del. Nev. Obamacare enrollment is higher in large swaths of the South. More than 30% of residents in Miami-Dade County, Fla., are enrolled in Obamacare plans. Source: KFF Note: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin and Wyoming have not adopted the Affordable Care Acts Medicaid expansion. The New York Times Democrats in Congress are withholding their votes on a government spending bill to demand that Republicans extend these subsidies, which lower the cost of insurance for people who buy their own health care coverage in marketplaces established by the Affordable Care Act. Since Congress introduced the extra funding in 2021, enrollment has doubled. These Americans live nearly everywhere in the country, but their numbers are especially concentrated in a handful of red states whose governments have declined to expand Medicaid programs to cover poor, childless adults. Fifty-seven percent of people with this type of insurance live in Republican congressional districts. Obamacare enrollment rates, by congressional district Districts represented by Democrats Districts represented by Republicans Source: KFF The New York Times The difference is driven by extra enrollment in states that hadnt expanded Medicaid since the Affordable Care Act encouraged states to do so in 2014. Obamacare was designed to cover the poorest Americans with Medicaid and then offer subsidies for people who earned more. There is a small share of the income distribution that overlaps; those people are eligible for Medicaid where it is available, and subsidies where it is not. As a result, more low-income Americans are eligible for subsidies in states that dont offer Medicaid to all poor adults. Since subsidies became more generous in 2021, overall enrollment has more than tripled in six red states: Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia and West Virginia. Of that group, West Virginia and Louisiana expanded Medicaid. Obamacare coverage has become especially widespread in south Florida, where there is a large concentration of low-wage workers and early retirees. Most of the congressional districts with the highest enrollments are in states that Trump won in the presidential election, but not all are represented by Republicans in Congress. Districts with the highest Obamacare enrollment rates District Representative Enrollment Margin Fla. 27th 38% R+21 Fla. 28th 36% R+29 Fla. 24th 35% D+36 Fla. 26th 30% R+42 Fla. 9th 30% D+13 Fla. 10th 29% D+25 Fla. 25th 28% D+9 Fla. 23rd 26% D+5 Fla. 20th 25% D Fla. 22nd 21% D+10 Fla. 11th 19% R+21 Ga. 4th 19% D+51 Texas 15th 19% R+14 Fla. 19th 19% R+33 Texas 34th 18% D+3 + Show 15 more districts Note: Table only includes districts with rates 15 percent or higher. Margin of victory not shown for representatives who ran uncontested or faced another member of the same party on the November ballot. The New York Times Americans with relatively low incomes make up the largest group of enrollees by far. Nearly half of consumers nationwide earn less than 150 percent of the federal poverty level, around $24,000 for a single person in most states or around $48,000 for a family of four. These people tend to work in low-wage jobs that dont offer health insurance, have part-time employment, or are freelancers who work gig jobs. The extra subsidies are especially generous for this group. As long as they choose one of the two lowest-cost plans in their market, they dont have to make any monthly payments for their premiums. Critics of the subsidies think these are so generous for this group that they have invited fraud. If the subsidies expire, the share of premiums for this group will go up to around $27 to $82 a month. Obamacare enrollment, by income range Income range Share 100150% of federal poverty level Individuals: $15,650$23,475 Household of four: $32,150$48,225 45% 10.9 million people 150200% Individuals: $23,475$31,300 Household of four: $48,225$64,300 18% 4.3 million 200250% Individuals: $31,300$39,125 Household of four: $64,300$80,375 10% 2.5 million 250300% Individuals: $39,125$46,950 Household of four: $80,375$96,450 7% 1.7 million 300400% Individuals: $46,950$62,600 Household of four: $96,450$128,600 7% 1.8 million 400500% Individuals: $62,600$78,250 Household of four: $128,600$160,750 3% 724,961 500% or above Individuals: $78,250 or above Household of four: $160,750 or above 4% 911,808 Source: KFF Note: Two groups, the group of people below the federal poverty level and the group labeled as Unknown in the data, were excluded from the table. They make up 2.2% and 3.8% of total enrollees. The New York Times Americans who earn more than 400 percent of the poverty level, around $63,000 for a single person in most states or $129,000 for a family of four, make up a much smaller share of the market, around 7 percent. This group tends to include people who are self-employed or who work for small businesses, and early retirees all of whom lack work-based options. In dollar terms, the expiring subsidies will make the biggest difference for this group. With the extra subsidies, their payments are capped at 8.5 percent of their income. Without action, they will have to pay the full cost of their insurance next year, more than $2,000 a month for older people in the most expensive markets. Some conservative critics of the extra subsidies argue this group earns enough that they should be expected to pay their insurance premiums without help. Without the extra subsidies, analysts expect that millions of Americans enrolled in Obamacare will drop their insurance coverage or face higher prices. The Congressional Budget Office estimates that around two million more people will become uninsured next year without the extra financial help, and the number could rise to 3.8 million by 2035. Other analyses have estimated even larger reductions in coverage. Exactly who will become uninsured is difficult to know. But Cynthia Cox, a vice president at KFF, a health care research group, said the losses were most likely to occur in the places where signups had risen the most since the extra subsidies became law in 2021. A DRUG dealer who answered the door in his underpants to gardai posing as staff with the DPD delivery service has been jailed for three-and-a-half years at Tullamore Circuit Court. Judge Sinead McMullan this morning (Friday, October 10) deferred the sentence to October 29 so that Maciej Klosiewicz (56), St Patrick's Avenue, Rhode can attend the graduation of his daughter who has qualified as a dental nurse. Mr Klosiewicz admitted possessing of amphetamines, methylamphetamines and chloromethcathinone for sale or supply to others at his residence on St Patrick's Avenue, Rhode on September 4, 2023. Mr Klosiewicz also pleaded guilty to a connected charge of having drugs with a market value of more than 13,000 and the court heard they were worth a total of 49,382.44. The latter offence carries a maximum sentence of life with a presumptive minimum of 10 years but Judge McMullan said there were exceptional circumstances in the case where she could deviate from that minimum. She said the accused had no previous convictions for drug trafficking and had pleaded guilty, which she stated was the greatest form of mitigation. The man also suffers from poor health, had a drug debt and had been threatened, and did not have the trappings of wealth. Furthermore, he was no longer abusing substances himself and had stopped doing so without professional help. Also, he did not drink. Judge McMullan nonetheless said he had committed very serious offences: Drugs are a scourge on society and the courts look on that as very serious indeed. While the value of the drugs was high, the man's involvement seemed to be for financial gain and to pay off a drug debt. Along with the three-and-a-half years for having drugs valued at more than 13,000, a concurrent two-year sentence was imposed for having drugs for sale or supply to others. Possession of amphetamines was taken into consideration. Damien Colgan, SC, defending, said the accused's daughter's graduation is due to take place on October 28 and the man, who is on bail, would like to be present for it. He was seeking a deferral of the imposition of the sentence. The judge said that was not something she had done before but she agreed to do so after Shane Geraghty, BL, for the DPP, said the State was neutral in relation to that matter. Judge McMullan ordered that Mr Klosiewicz present himself at Tullamore Garda Station on October 29 at noon and in the meantime he is to observe a curfew between 10pm and 7am. The judge stressed to the man that the curfew also applies on the night of his daughter's graduation. In a sentencing hearing earlier this week, Detective Garda Tom Dunne outlined how a sting operation had been arranged after information had been received that a package that was intercepted at the DPD depot in Athlone on August 30, 2023 contained a controlled substance. The name on the package was Maciej Chodzymski but the address was that of Mr Klosiewicz in Rhode. What gardai call a controlled delivery was arranged and Detective Garda Edel Kenny arrived at the man's house with a clip board and DPD documentation. The accused answered the door in his underpants and when he was asked, he said he was Maciej Chodzymski and signed for the package, which contained a microwave oven. Methylamphetamines and chloromethcathinone were hidden in the oven in an area which had to be screwed apart for them to be found. Amphetamines, which were of much smaller value than the other drugs, were found in the sitting room. There were two other microwave ovens in the house. A tick list, three weighing scales and a vacuum packer were also found and during a conversation with gardai the accused, who appeared in court with the help of an interpreter, said he couldn't understand when some matters were put to him. Detective Garda Dunne detailed that the man had come from Warsaw, Poland in 2006 having had a small fruit and vegetable shop there. He lived in Edenderry at first with his wife and daughter and then moved to Rhode in the last seven or eight years. I don't know nothing about the package, he was recorded as saying in a garda interview and he said the drugs in the package weren't his but admitted owning the amphetamines, which he would sometimes sell to friends. He owned a car and a boat, with the latter said to be of not much value, and said he had inherited an apartment from his mother in Warsaw, which he had sold. He also told gardai he was owned about 2,000 or 3,000 and after he had paid his rent of 650 he would have about 200 disposable income each month. The package sent to his house had his mobile number on it and had come from Poland and there were messages on his phone which indicated drug dealing. He indicated that he did not expect that amount of drugs to arrive and didn't know what they were. In summary, he accepted that the amphetamines were his but disavowed any knowledge of the other drugs. Detective Garda Dunne said the man's house wasn't in great condition and he was in receipt of 245 per week disability payment. The garda also said there was no sign of any wealth in the accused's Credit Union account and indeed he had a loan from the Credit Union. Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator The 1979 Camp David Accords, long the cornerstone of Middle Eastern stability, are facing their most severe test in decades. A calculated campaign of political and economic pressure from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is pushing the historic "cold peace" with Egypt to a potential breaking point, creating a volatile new dynamic across the region. At the heart of the escalating tension is a confluence of disputes over a multi-billion-dollar gas deal, unsubstantiated claims of an Egyptian military buildup in the Sinai Peninsula, and a fundamental disagreement over the future of Gaza. The Gas Deal and Fabricated Crises The most immediate flashpoint, as detailed by former Israeli Knesset member Ksenia Svetlova in the Financial Times, is Netanyahu's threat to derail a $35 billion gas deal with Egypt. This move, which Svetlova labels a "grave mistake", would undermine what she calls "Israel's most vital Arab partnership". The official justification from Netanyahu's government is an alleged Egyptian violation of the peace treaty through an unsanctioned military deployment in Sinai. This claim, which Egypt vehemently denies, has been amplified by Netanyahu's Likud party and media allies. Earlier this year, Israel's ambassador to the U.S. warned American Jewish organizations of an "obvious violation" in Sinai, promising a "very decisive" Israeli response. However, these allegations have been systematically debunked. Svetlova notes that senior Israeli security officials later clarified that social media reports of an Egyptian troop surge were "incorrect and published by right-wing figures for political reasons". This points to what Svetlova describes as a disturbing pattern of "fabricated" and "manufactured" crises designed to pressure Cairo into accepting policies it cannot possibly adopt. This campaign is intrinsically linked to the post-war planning for Gaza. With Netanyahu's government offering vague slogans like "No Hamas, No Palestinian Authority", a policy vacuum has emerged, allowing extremist notions to take hold - chief among them, the expectation that Egypt might accept the "voluntary displacement" of Palestinians from Gaza into Sinai. The pressure campaign has a direct American dimension. According to a report by Axios, Netanyahu presented U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio with a list of alleged Egyptian activities in Sinai, urging the Trump administration to compel Cairo to reduce its military presence. Egypt's response has been firm. An official presidential statement reiterated that its forces in Sinai are positioned to secure its borders against terrorism and smuggling, in full coordination with treaty partners. The statement reaffirmed Egypt's absolute rejection of any plan to displace Palestinians from their land. A Shifting Regional Defense Posture The tension between Egypt and Israel is not occurring in a vacuum. It comes as Netanyahu's government projects an image of military dominance, emboldened by successful operations targeting resistance figures and military leaders across six Arab nations. This aggressive posture has extended to unofficial threats against both Ankara and Cairo, prompting a significant recalibration of regional defense strategies. In response, regional powers are forging new alliances: * Turkey and Egypt: Once rivals, the two nations are now experiencing the best relations in their modern history, according to Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan. The shared stance on the Israeli war in Gaza has deepened this cooperation, culminating in joint naval maneuvers dubbed "Sea of Friendship". These exercises signal the potential for a new regional security architecture, raising concerns in both Israel and Greece. * Saudi Arabia and Pakistan: In a move described by observers as a "sudden and shocking geopolitical development", Saudi Arabia recently signed a mutual defense pact with Pakistan, further indicating a regional shift away from reliance on traditional Western security guarantees. The U.S. Role: A Partnership Under Strain The Egypt-U.S. relationship, a decades-long strategic partnership, is undergoing a delicate recalibration under President Donald Trump's second term. While foundational elements like the $1.3 billion in annual military aid and the Qualified Industrial Zones (QIZ) trade agreement remain, clear points of friction have emerged. Next Page 1 | 2 (Note: You can view every article as one long page if you sign up as an Advocate Member, or higher). Two long-time protesters debated economics with a farmer who had driven down from Washington to see the protests for himself. Oct. 9, 2025. Fedor Zarkhin Floyd Sawyer surveyed the block near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in South Portland and seemed satisfied that hed seen enough to come to his own conclusions about the protests that have been making national headlines. This is a peaceful protest as far as Im concerned, said Sawyer, a farmer who drove for several hours from Shelton, Washington. Right now it is, said Paul Bruns, a counter-protester carrying a pole with a large American flag, who was also at the protest for the first time Wednesday. As Portland and the nation await a decision from the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on whether President Donald Trump may send troops to Portland, the different sides in the ongoing drama outside the ICE facility have settled into their respective roles. Some of the long-time protesters continue to harangue federal officials, yelling insults and standing in their way. Portland police monitor from a wary distance and occasionally wade in to make an arrest or two or three. Right-wing personalities and left-wing protesters heckle each other. Federal police walk out of the facility by the dozens, standing stone-faced as vehicles come and go from the building. Federal agents stood on a roof of the ICE compound in South Portland Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. Fedor Zarkhin In this wait-and-see moment, the tone and tenor of protests have changed markedly compared with June, when demonstrations began heating up. The national attention has brought in brand new protesters, lookie-loos and agitators. Meanwhile, the federal agents appeared this week to have scaled back their tactics, engaging with protesters in a less aggressive way Wednesday and Thursday. Heres what the scene looks like now, and how things have changed in recent days. New protesters and onlookers have arrived As night fell Wednesday, Sawyer, the Washington farmer, entered a debate with Kylie Cleveland, 30, who has been attending the protests since June and is noticeable for the Disney character costume Stitch that she has worn for months. Newcomers and old-timers alike stood around looking for something to do with their time, at times making for unusual conversation partners. Cleveland was trying to persuade Sawyer, 62, that opportunities for young people are far fewer than the opportunities that existed for older generations. You can do anything you set your mind to, Sawyer said, his hands in his jean pockets. Not really, Cleveland replied. 90% of the wealth is owned by 10% of the people. A man took off his shoes and danced in the road outside the South Portland ICE facility Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025, prompting an immediate police response. Fedor Zarkhin A man crossing the street who appeared to be intoxicated took off his shoes and started dancing in the street in front of a car that had stopped at a stop sign. Several Portland bike police officers immediately swooped in. OK, if youre blocking cars, youre going to get arrested, one of them said as he approached the man. The man reluctantly listened to instructions, put his shoes back on and left, allowing the car to pass. Around 4 p.m. Thursday, travel nurse Aleah Sadeghi stood near the ICE facility. Sadeghi first came to the protests on Oct. 4 after learning on the news that Trump planned to deploy troops to Portland. That day, Sadeghi, 27, said she saw federal officers tear gas people for no apparent reason, including a man who appeared to be in his 80s who fell trying to get away from the gas. It was completely unreasonable, Sadeghi said of the federal officers actions. Sitting in a camping chair near Sadeghi was a woman who said she was a Gulf War Air Force veteran. She said she swore an oath to defend the U.S. Constitution, and she was doing that by protesting. Kelly Clark, 55, came out after Trump announced he would be sending troops to Portland and, like Sadeghi, was at the Oct. 4 protest when officers deployed tear gas. Like Sadeghi, said she was shocked by what she described as excessive force. It was awful, Clark said. It was unbelievable. Federal tactics have calmed down Interactions between federal agents and protesters have appeared to be calmer and less antagonistic in recent days since Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem visited the facility Tuesday. People dressed in inflatable animal suits have multiplied. And Portland police have been visible and active. Sky Yonally, who has been protesting outside the ICE facility most days since July 4, said she observed a change in tone this week, believing the federal agents were less inclined to antagonize protesters. She noted that one federal agent was uncharacteristically gentle when pushing her and a blind man back. On Wednesday and Thursday, federal agents gave a clear and loud warning before every time they opened the gates and walked out. There were always some among the officers who came out without masks of any kind, showing their faces. And none came out with shields. Protesters dressed in inflatable animal suits squared off against federal agents Oct. 9, 2025. Fedor Zarkhin Yonally also said she couldnt recall a time when the facility would give so many warnings before officers marched out to move people aside and that it was unusual for so many officers to come out without any face covering. Portland police have been visibly active, investigating allegations of assault and altercations between protesters and counter-protesters. On Wednesday, more than a dozen Portland Police Bureau officers on bikes were spread out in the area outside the facility. Thursday, about as many of them regularly rode through the protest area. Portland police arrested five people on Wednesday the most arrests in one day since June 12, when police arrested 10 people. City officers arrested two more people Thursday. Long-term protesters say theyre maintaining non-violent approach Jack Dickinson is among the most visible protesters, wearing a bright yellow chicken suit that has made national news. He has been protesting for months, he said, and for most of that time he was joined only by a few dozen people. In June, protesters threw objects at the facility and broke a window with a stop sign. Portland police declared a riot outside the facility June 14. Dickinsons core group of long-term protesters wont instigate physical clashes with federal agents, he said. We have to be willing to change our tactics, Dickinson said, recognizing that Portland is going to be an optics battleground. Not everyone has gotten the memo. The U.S. Attorneys office has charged at least 31 people with crimes connected to the ICE protests since June 13. Most recently, federal agents arrested a man for allegedly spitting at a federal officer Oct. 5. Far-right personalities have become a fixture Jeremy Wayne Roberts was standing on a gravel patch across from the ICE facility Thursday afternoon. Roberts said he had no problem with people protesting with signs, but he did object to protesters allegedly instigating confrontations with police. Roberts, 44, pleaded guilty to harassing a journalist and damaging a glass door at the Oregon State Capitol in 2020. He also said that he fought antifa throughout the protests in 2020 and, based on that experience, agreed with Trumps declaration that the loosely defined ideology is organized and is a terrorist group. But Roberts said he believed that the protests outside the ICE facility were calmer than the 2020 protests, particularly because of the abundance of people recently who werent wearing all black or hiding their identities. As the evening wore on Thursday, three people in frog costumes showed up. A nearby resident stopped on his bicycle to look at the scene, saying that as long as the streets were open, he had no problem with the protesters. I love you, ICE, a right-wing streamers voice echoed down the street. I cant come any closer. It was Thomas Allen, a prominent streamer who was charged recently in an alleged assault at the facility and, as part of his release conditions, was barred from coming within 200 feet of the facility. Allen was arrested later Thursday night on a warrant for contempt of court. Some people seem to be having fun That same night, someone hauled more than a dozen inflatable animal suits to the gravel patch across from ICE and offered them to protesters. Soon, at least 15 people were wearing suits that included a shark, a unicorn, frogs and an axolotl, making for a comedic contrast when federal officers came out. Portland is Portlanding, Cleveland said to a fellow protester, looking at the people in animal costumes. One of the people who agreed to put on a costume said he came to the protests about once a week and donned a shark costume to counter the rhetoric coming from the Trump administration that Portland is war-torn. Protesters in frog suits multiplied on Thursday night, Oct. 9, 2025, as a few dozen people gathered peacefully as night fell outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in South Portland. Fedor Zarkhin/staff Even as half a dozen federal agents stood on a roof overlooking the protest scene, some of them holding what appeared to be pepper ball guns, Nathan Martin, a 20-year-old college student, said he simply wanted to feel joy. Its depressing being here, Martin said. I could use some whimsy right now. The UK should put a complete stop to the spy case farce 09:37, October 11, 2025 By Li Guanjie ( Global Times Illustration: Chen Xia/GT Recently, the UK's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) dropped the case against Christopher Cash and Christopher Berry, who were accused of being "Chinese spies," believing that the case did not meet the threshold to prosecute. The CPS concluded that the UK government failed to provide evidence that China poses a "national security threat" to the UK. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer claimed that "all the focus" of this case should fall on the Tory government in place then implying that if the Tory government had labeled China an "enemy," the trial might not have collapsed. The Conservatives, however, were quick to hit back. Party leader Kemi Badenoch claimed at the party's annual conference that the Labour government had "deliberately collapsed the trial" because "the prime minister wants to suck up to Beijing." Whether to "follow the evidence" or "appeal to political preference" is a dilemma that often confronts those in power. In recent years, successive UK Conservative governments have hyped up the so-called "China spy" narrative, with the goal to rectify the political ecology of the UK, make up for the policy mistakes in Brexit affairs, and strive to shape the UK's national identity in the "post-Brexit era." In this process, the notion of an "external threat" became past Tory governments' main tool and China, unfortunately, has been caught in the "crossfire." In 2021, the Johnson government labeled China a "systemic competitor," and by 2023, the Sunak government had upgraded the description to an "epoch-defining challenge." Obviously, such labels require supporting statistics and facts. Consequently, the UK government launched comprehensive investigations into Chinese companies and individuals in the UK. In 2020, the Johnson government announced a ban on Huawei's 5G equipment, ordering the removal of all Huawei components from UK networks by 2027. In 2023, the Sunak government introduced the National Security Act, which broadened the definition of activities that could be considered threats to national security, explicitly criminalizing espionage, sabotage and persons acting for foreign powers. Meanwhile, MI5 Director General Ken McCallum has been repeating claims of "Chinese espionage" on various occasions. The UK government at the time targeted not only Chinese nationals within the UK, but also turned its scrutiny toward Britons who have close contact with China. Cash and Berry both China-focused scholars became political casualties of this witch hunt. Cash, a former parliamentary researcher, had served as director of the "China Research Group," while Berry was a teacher in Oxfordshire. In March 2023, both were arrested and accused of collecting information that might be "directly or indirectly useful to an enemy." Their case epitomized the Conservatives' escalation of their anti-China campaign. Yet the crux of the issue lies in defining who exactly constitutes an "enemy" of the UK. Are China and the UK truly adversaries? Does China threaten the UK's national security? Even the UK government has yet to clearly answer these questions or perhaps it dares not call China a "threat" based solely on political preference. Despite inflammatory rhetoric from individual politicians during the Conservative era in the past, the UK government never officially designated China as a "threat." British officials understood that such a label would trigger fundamental changes in bilateral relations changes Britain could not afford. Since Starmer took office in 2024 and after a yearlong review, the UK government has avoided labelling China as an "adversary." Instead, it has adopted an intentionally ambiguous framework built around "competition, cooperation and challenge." However, beyond partisan disputes, the deeper challenges facing the UK remain unresolved foremost, economic stagnation. Despite attempts at "military Keynesianism" to spur growth through higher public spending, the UK economy continues to struggle. GDP grew by 0.7 percent in the first quarter of 2025, then fell to 0.3 percent in the second quarter. The Starmer administration urgently needs to expand foreign markets through diplomacy. In this context, maintaining stable relations with China serves the UK's long-term national interests rather than short-term political gain. The wise course for the UK is to ensure that its China policy remains rational and pragmatic. Going forward, the Starmer government needs to truly step out of the shadow of the Conservative Party's past policy toward China, strengthen engagement with China, and ensure the steady and sustained development of China-UK relations. The author is a research fellow at the Center for British Studies, Shanghai Academy of Global Governance and Area Studies, Shanghai International Studies University, and a distinguished expert at the university's Center for European Union Studies. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) Ni Hong, China's minister of housing and urban-rural development, and Dong Jianguo, Qin Haixiang and Li Xiaolong, all vice ministers of housing and urban-rural development, attend a press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO) on achievements in high-quality housing and urban-rural development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Xin) BEIJING, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- During the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025), China has made solid progress in meeting people's housing demands, fostering a new development model for the real estate sector, and driving steady growth in the construction industry. Since 2021, more than 11 million units of affordable and resettlement housing, including those for the redevelopment of "urban villages" and dilapidated residential areas, have been constructed across the country, benefiting over 30 million residents, according to a press conference on Saturday. Dong Jianguo, vice minister of housing and urban-rural development, told the press conference that China has built a multi-tiered housing security system for various groups, such as new city dwellers and young people, in a bid to meet people's basic housing needs. According to Dong, local governments have adopted differentiated real estate policies, adjusting and optimizing measures in line with their own conditions. Over the past years, a string of measures have been rolled out to support home purchases, such as reducing down payment ratios and mortgage rates, and offering tax rebates for "sell-to-buy" home upgrades. During the 2021-2025 period, the country recorded about 5 billion square meters of floor space in new commercial housing sales. Meanwhile, the existing home market has also grown rapidly, with 15 provincial regions now seeing more second-hand home transactions than new home sales. To address risks from stalled real estate projects, China has launched a nationwide campaign to guarantee that pre-sold homes are handed over on time. So far, more than 7.5 million previously delayed units have been completed and delivered, effectively safeguarding homebuyers' legitimate rights and interests, Dong said. Beyond building new homes, China has made progress in urban renewal. Since 2021, more than 240,000 aging residential communities have been renovated, benefiting over 40 million households, or 110 million people. The city upgrades included the installation of 129,000 elevators, the construction of over 3.4 million parking spaces, and the creation of 64,000 new community facilities, such as those for elderly care and childcare services. Meanwhile, 840,000 kilometers of underground pipelines for water, gas and heating have been renewed, along with the creation of over 18,000 pocket parks and 25,000 kilometers of urban greenways. Over the past years, the government has strived to meet not only people's basic housing needs but their growing aspirations for better living conditions, Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Ni Hong said. To ensure a stable and healthy property market, China has accelerated the development of a new model for the real estate sector, focusing on improving the housing supply system, reforming financing and sales mechanisms, and developing quality homes that are safe, comfortable, green and intelligent. Dong noted that the ministry has guided local authorities to assess the housing demand based on demographic changes, plan land supply scientifically, and allocate financial resources efficiently to help balance supply and demand and foster a healthy market. Under the effective policies and measures, China's construction industry has achieved stable expansion. In 2024, the sector's total output reached 32.7 trillion yuan (4.6 trillion U.S. dollars), up 24 percent from 2020. Between 2021 and 2024, the country completed 15.4 billion square meters of new building area, 79,000 kilometers of municipal roads, 3,429 kilometers of urban rail transit, 16,000 kilometers of railway, and 290,000 kilometers of highways, according to Vice Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Development Li Xiaolong. Moreover, Chinese construction enterprises have made their mark on the international stage. From 2021 to 2024, they signed over 1 trillion U.S. dollars in overseas engineering contracts, generating 640 billion U.S. dollars in revenue. In 2025, 76 firms of the Chinese mainland were listed among the world's top 250 international contractors, including four in the top ten, Li said. Ni Hong, China's minister of housing and urban-rural development, and Dong Jianguo, Qin Haixiang and Li Xiaolong, all vice ministers of housing and urban-rural development, attend a press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO) on achievements in high-quality housing and urban-rural development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Xin) Journalists work at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO) on achievements in high-quality housing and urban-rural development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Xin) A journalist asks questions at a press conference held by the State Council Information Office (SCIO) on achievements in high-quality housing and urban-rural development during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021-2025) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Xin) The bride, resplendent in a unicorn outfit, and the groom, dressed as Kenny from South Park, walked down the aisle in reality, a sidewalk across from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland in front of a crowd of about 30 onlookers Friday. Tatum Todd/The Oregonian Costumed brigades of protesters were out in force again Friday night at the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in South Portland, and at about 7 p.m., they rolled out a red carpet for an actual wedding. The bride, resplendent in a unicorn outfit, and the groom, dressed as Kenny from South Park, tied the knot in front of a crowd of about 30 onlookers, some decked out in Care Bear and pickle costumes. As the ceremony began, the normally noisy crowd of nearby protesters settled down. A boom box playing loud music was silenced. Bubbles filled the air. Tatum Todd/The Oregonian The betrothed Portland couple, who arrived and departed the scene by motorcycle, declined to be identified by name. They said theyd known each other for two decades, started dating more recently, and decided to get hitched on site to bring some joy and fun to a dark time. Weve been together for two years, and my partner is very passionate about the protesting, the groom told a reporter. ... People can be fun loving people and still protest. We wanted to show that this is about love and caring. Were caring for other human beings. Protesters have been a near-constant outside the ICE facility since June, and attention has only increased since President Donald Trump last month announced plans to send in federal troops to stand guard. Some protesters have responded by showing up in costume and dancing, prompting late-night TV hosts and others to mock Trumps description of Portland as a war-ravaged city. That set the stage and perhaps drew even more attention to Friday nights nuptials. A Portland State University student who identified themself as Clover, and their partner, Rowan, a student at Mt. Hood Community College, were among the impromptu crowd invited to celebrate the union, which took place on the sidewalk opposite the federal facility. Theyd come dressed as pickles. You get invited to a wedding, you show up Clover said. Clouds of bubbles blown by attendees frequently drifted over the wedding's red carpet. Tatum Todd/The Oregonian Heavy rain soaked the party This is Portland, the bride said but didnt dampen spirits. As the ceremony began, the normally noisy crowd of nearby protesters settled down. A boom box playing loud music was silenced. Bubbles flew in the air as the groom, his best man (his son, dressed as Eric Cartman from South Park), the bride and maid of honor (the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from Ghostbusters) walked down the red carpet. It was lined on both sides with pictures of the happy couple, their faces covered by stickers to preserve their anonymity. A photo of the couple who married near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland on Oct. 10, 2025. They dressed in costumes and their photo includes stickers that block out their identities. Aimee Green The couple said their ordained minister, decked out in a costume suit and a giant rabbit head, was a friend. They knew a total of five people at their wedding, including the brides half aunt, dressed as Garfield. In all, costumes, helium balloons and Ring Pop rings set them back $500 to $600, they said. Across the street, four or five federal officers took in the scene from the ICE buildings roof. The only interruption during the ceremony was a loud announcement that bellowed from a loudspeaker at the federal facility, warning protesters not to block the driveway. David B. Farley, 67, pleaded not guilty during his felony arraignment on Fri., Oct. 10, 2025. Zane Sparling/The Oregonian A former West Linn doctor previously accused in civil court of preying on dozens of patients was arrested Friday and criminally charged with sexually abusing two women and a girl under the age of 14. David B. Farley pleaded not guilty to an 11-count indictment accusing him of nine counts of first- or second-degree sex abuse, as well as two counts of first-degree unlawful sexual penetration, during an arraignment in Clackamas County Circuit Court. He appeared in court via video link not wearing a white coat but green Clackamas County Jail scrubs. At the table in court were Stephen and Jacob Houze, a father-and-son duo known for being one of the most expensive criminal defense teams in the state. Circuit Judge Ann Lininger set bail in the case at $500,000 five times the amount suggested by Farleys attorneys and granted him permission to return to his home in Utah if he posts 10%, or $50,000. The court has concerns about the defendants willingness to make himself available for further proceedings, though I do recognize that the defendant turned himself in, the judge said. Farley, 67, did not speak except to answer procedural questions. His attorneys declined to comment. Clackamas County Judge Ann M. Lininger presided over an arraignment hearing on Fri., Oct. 10, 2025. Zane Sparling/The Oregonian The indictment says the abuse occurred between 2009 and 2020 the same year Farley surrendered his medical license and was sued for allegedly conducting unnecessary pelvic exams and photographing childrens genitalia under the guise of a study of sexual development, The Oregonian/OregonLive previously reported. The civil suit, which seeks hundreds of millions in damages, has now grown to include more than 200 former patients at the West Linn Family Health Center, where he worked for more than three decades. Farley was a leader at a local Mormon church, and gained the trust of many of his patients through the faith community, according to the lawsuit and the newspapers prior reporting. West Linn police investigated Farley but a grand jury ultimately declined to pursue charges, with authorities claiming they were unable to make a case against Farley due to a since-closed loophole in the sex crime statutes shielding medical practitioners. Many of the plaintiffs, however, argue the initial investigation was botched by a lackluster and ill-qualified detective. In September 2022, 71 of the civil plaintiffs petitioned then-Oregon Attorney Ellen Rosenblum to conduct a new investigation. In 2024, Clackamas County District Attorney John Wentworth referred the case to the state Department of Justice, which is now overseen by Attorney General Dan Rayfield. We owe it to survivors to follow the facts wherever they lead and ensure that no one is above the law, Rayfield said in a statement. Katherine Green, a senior assistant attorney general, was appointed special prosecutor in the case and secured the indictment before a grand jury last week. She did not oppose Farleys release during the hearing. The fifth-floor courtroom was packed with several dozen supporters of Farleys alleged victims, as well as local and national media. Those in attendance declined to speak to reporters, though several of them released statements through their civil attorney. I thought I was alone, said Katie Medley, a former patient and plaintiff in the lawsuit. The mother of four went to the police more than five years ago. My faith in our justice system was tried over the years. But my sister-survivors and I never stopped speaking out and now we have been vindicated, Medley said. This has been a very long road, said Lisa Pratt, another plaintiff. The Attorneys General and their team were kind, caring and thorough. Farleys next court date is a status check on Nov. 5. About 5:30 a.m. on Aug. 7, ICE agents pulled over a gray van on Oregon 211 and shattered the driver's window when the driver did not roll it down or open the door. The van was carrying seven farm workers headed to a field for blueberry picking. Four of the seven were taken into custody by ICE, including a 25-year-old man from Guatemala who is challenging his detention. Oregon For All and Innovation Law Lab Federal immigration officers last month flew an Oregon asylum seeker back to his home country of Guatemala after a judge cleared the way for his deportation, but they refused to let him off once the plane touched down. They had realized mid-flight that they made a mistake. So, as the 25-year-old Woodburn man remained shackled and handcuffed, they flew him back on the same plane to the U.S. The on-again/off-again deportation illustrates the continuing confusion and upheaval caused by the Trump administrations attempt at wide-scale immigration enforcement. The man -- identified only as LJPL in court records -- has spent more than two months in immigration detention since his arrest in August when officers stopped a van in Hubbard as it took him and six other fieldworkers to a farm to harvest blueberries. He has been held in immigration detention centers in Tacoma, Arizona, Texas and now is back in Tacoma at the Northwest ICE Processing Center. Once he was returned to Tacoma, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials offered him $1,000 if he voluntarily left the country but he refused, court records show. This week, LJPLs attorney asked U.S. District Judge Karin J. Immergut to reverse her Aug. 22 ruling that the ICE detention of LJPL was legal and instead order his release based on the aborted deportation. Immergut repeatedly asked the governments attorney during a hearing Thursday to explain why immigration officials had flown LJPL back to the U.S. The judge noted that his return flight appears to be a concession by ICE that LJPL still had an unresolved proceeding in immigration court that prevented his deportation. Why was he returned? Immergut asked several times. At one point, U.S. Justice Department attorney Ariana N. Garousi simply remained silent. Immergut said she understood that its a complex system but later asked the same question again. Garousi finally acknowledged that ICE officials made a mistake. LJPLs attorney, Tess Hellgren, urged the judge to release LJPL. There are many ways they can seek to detain a noncitizen, but here they have not done that correctly, she said. Immergut ordered immigration officials not to deport LJPL or move him from Tacoma as she considers the request. She said she expects to issue a ruling by early next week, noting that shes been busy with some other matters. (Immergut a week ago put a temporary hold on President Donald Trumps deployment of National Guard troops to Portland.) The judge also said she was concerned that ICE officials allegedly refused to allow LJPLs attorney to be present when he was interviewed about whether he feared returning to Guatemala where his brother had been killed. His case follows other questionable enforcement in Oregon. Federal agents mistakenly detained a U.S. citizen earlier this month in Portland, arrested a man awaiting green card approval as he was dropping off his child at a Beaverton day care in July, arrested a handful of asylum seekers in June outside or near Portland Immigration Court though they followed the right process and targeted nearly two dozen international students across the state in April who were studying in the country with valid visas, according to court records and immigration lawyers. Also in June, federal agents detained four U.S. citizen children from Portland, their mother who has a pending crime victims visa and their grandmother who was visiting from Honduras with a valid travel visa. This nightmare LJPL had been ordered removed from the U.S. twice before in 2009 and 2014, according to the government. He then came back to the U.S. with his then-6-year-old daughter on Feb. 14, 2024, entering near Nogales, Arizona. Despite the earlier removal orders, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol officials released him on his own recognizance, with instructions to report to ICEs Eugene field office on various dates. He later received a notice to appear in Immigration Court in November 2026 for a deportation proceeding. In the meantime, he did as instructed to check in regularly with immigration officials in Eugene, provided his Woodburn address and applied for asylum this past February, according to the court record. LJPL came to the U.S. because he believed those responsible for killing his brother would harm his family and him, his lawyers said. Then on Aug. 7, ICE agents stopped the transport van, smashed the drivers window and dragged LJPL out of a passenger seat even though the officers were looking for someone else, said Hellgren, director of legal advocacy at Innovation Law Lab in Portland. He was among four people arrested that morning after he was asked if he had an immigration case pending. ICE agents took him into custody and drove him to their Tacoma detention center. On Aug. 22, Immergut denied a petition for his release, finding his detention mandatory and lawful. He remained held in Tacoma as U.S. Department of Homeland Security officials moved to dismiss his pending case in Immigration Court. But in early September, an immigration judge rejected the motion because the federal government had failed to sever LJPLs case from that of his daughter. Two days later, an asylum officer talked to LJPL by phone to determine whether he had a reasonable fear of persecution or torture to challenge his deportation. But the asylum officer denied LJPL access to his immigration attorney and denied an interpreter in his native indigenous language, Mam, according to his sworn declaration to the court. LJPL then told the officer that he didnt want to proceed with the interview and would return to Guatemala because he found his detention unbearable, he said in the declaration. I was afraid still to return to Guatemala, he said, but I could not stand being imprisoned for an uncertain amount of time. He was flown in mid-September to Florence, Arizona, and then to El Paso, Texas, where he spent two nights sleeping on the floor of a holding area. Two days later, on Sept. 15, he was placed on a plane in handcuffs tied to a waist chain and shackles. He was told that he was going to Guatemala through El Salvador. But once the plane touched down in Guatemala, he said he wasnt allowed to get off. I did not understand what was going on or why they were returning. I just wanted this nightmare to be over, he said in his statement. On the trip back, he said he felt nauseous and felt pressure in his chest. He called for help and a nurse on the plane gave him some water. His next stop was ICE Camp East Montana at Fort Bliss in El Paso. He remained there for 10 days and then transferred back to Tacoma on Sept. 25. Once he arrived in Washington state, he asked an ICE officer why he was brought back. He said he was told it was because he still has to see a judge. All I want is to be free again, he said in his declaration. I want to be with my partner and my daughter. I am not a criminal. I have never hurt anyone, so I do not understand why all this is happening to me. Highly unusual circumstance? Immergut previously ruled that Homeland Security had discretion to reinstate the 2009 and 2014 deportation orders. Once immigration officials did so, then detention was mandatory, she ruled. But LJPLs lawyers have argued from the beginning that immigration officials couldnt deport him because he still had an active case in Immigration Court. The ICE officials apparently came to the same realization once they were on their way with LJPL to Guatemala. Immergut said ICEs handling of LJPL does complicate things in potentially a very significant way and agreed to reconsider her prior ruling on LJPLs detention. Federal immigration law says an active immigration case trumps previous removal orders, LJPLs lawyers argued. The law says that once a so-called removal proceeding begins in Immigration Court to decide if someone can remain in the country, that shall be the sole and exclusive procedure for deciding whether to deport the person. That path affords an appeal process. LJPLs lawyers also said the law allows a parent or guardian to appear with a minor in Immigration Court. That means, they argued, that LJPL needs to be in the U.S. to do that for his now 7-year-old daughter. Otherwise, his daughters case, which is consolidated with his, would fall into limbo, they said. Garousi, the federal attorney, argued in a written response that the judge shouldnt reconsider her prior ruling allowing LJPLs detention absent highly unusual circumstances. The underlying facts remain true, she wrote. The government simply reinstated a prior order to remove LJPL, she wrote. In court, Immergut pressed Garousi, saying, I dont really understand what youre saying. Why did they bring him back? To do what? In court, Garousi couldnt effectively explain why ICE officials had flown LJPL back to the U.S. Finally, she told the judge that said she wasnt prepared to answer the question. Nowhere in the governments written responses did Garousi or ICE Officer Christopher Sica, a supervisory detention and deportation officer in Tacoma, mention LJPLs aborted deportation. Sica described how LJPL had been moved from Tacoma to Texas and back to Tacoma, but somehow left out that the federal government flew him to El Salvador and then Guatemala and back. Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., speaks as President Donald Trump holds a cabinet meeting at the White House, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025, in Washington. From left, Education Secretary Linda McMahon, Kennedy, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and President Donald Trump, look on. AP Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. suggested a potential link between circumcision and autism during a cabinet meeting Thursday. The health secretary attributed this possible link to the alleged administration of acetaminophen (commonly known as Tylenol) to treat infant discomfort following the procedure. The idea that Tylenol causes autism is a theory that has gained traction in fringe health circles, though mainstream medical organizations, including the World Health Organization, emphasize that there is currently no conclusive scientific evidence confirming a possible link between acetaminophen and autism. There are two studies which show children who are circumcised early have double the rate of autism, Kennedy told President Donald Trump in Thursdays meeting. Its highly likely because they were given Tylenol. Kennedy appears to be referring to a study in the Journal of the Royal Society of Medicine in 2015, according to The Associated Press. The study looked at ritual foreskin removal and the risk of autism spectrum disorder in boys under the age of 10. It reportedly found that those who had undergone circumcision were statistically more likely to develop autism than those who had not. The researchers suggested that the increased risk could be linked to pain or stress caused by the procedure. Dr. Scott Hadland, chief of adolescent medicine at Mass General Brigham for Children, was quoted from CNN on Yahoo News, Ive looked at the two studies that the secretary mentioned it is very clear that there is not a strong evidence base that links circumcision to autism. The National Autistic Societys Head of Policy and Campaigns released an official response. More dangerous anti-science from the US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, now linking autism with circumcision. This is not based on any form of rigorous, robust research and could put lives at risk. Kennedy also noted during the meeting that he had seen a TikTok video which featured a pregnant woman gobbling Tylenol and cursing Trump, with a baby in her placenta. Social media responses reacted to the secretarys remarks with incredulity, skepticism and snark. I want to find this funny but theres people who actually believe him, warned one Facebook comment. A former labor and delivery nurse noted we dont give newborns Tylenol after circumcisions. They get local anesthesia and sugar water during the procedure ... thats it. Another Facebook commenter joked, The government weighing in on male reproductive organs is a fun plot twist. You know what they say, ignorance is bris. jested another. An additional quipped, I took Tylenol after listening to RFK Jr. No autism, but I still have a headache. Members of the Texas National Guard stand outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing facility in Broadview, Ill. on Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025. AP Photo/Talia Sprague National Guard troops sent to Illinois by President Donald Trump can stay in the state and under federal control, but cant be deployed to protect federal property or go on patrol for now, an appeals court ruled Saturday. The decision comes after federal Judge April Perry on Thursday ruled to temporarily block the National Guard deployment for at least two weeks, finding no substantial evidence that a danger of rebellion is brewing in Illinois during Trumps immigration crackdown. The appeals court on Saturday granted a pause in the case until it can hear further arguments. The on-again, off-again deployments stem from a political and legal battle over Trumps push to send the Guard to several U.S. cities. His administration claims crime is rampant in those cities, despite statistics not always supporting that. If a president invokes the Insurrection Act, they can dispatch active duty military in states that fail to put down an insurrection or defy federal law. However, Perry said she found no substantial evidence that a danger of rebellion is brewing in Illinois during Trumps immigration crackdown. She followed up Friday with an opinion that cites a mix of law and history, including the Federalist Papers, which were written in 1787-88 to support ratification of the U.S. Constitution. There has been no showing that the civil power has failed, Perry said. The agitators who have violated the law by attacking federal authorities have been arrested. The courts are open, and the marshals are ready to see that any sentences of imprisonment are carried out. Resort to the military to execute the laws is not called for. The judge said there was significant evidence that federal agents have been able to carry out their work, noting huge increases in arrests and deportations. A federal judge made a similar ruling in Oregon. Judge Karin J. Immergut, a Trump appointee, found the presidents assessement simply untethered to the facts and blocked the deployment of National Guard troops to protect an U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland. Elements of her ruling are now before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which appeared skeptical of Immerguts reasoning but has yet to rule. The 500 Guard members in Illinois, including soldiers from Texas, were mostly based at a U.S. Army Reserve Center in Elwood, southwest of Chicago. A small number were sent to a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Broadview. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth salutes during a welcome ceremony for Qatar Minister of Defense Sheikh Saoud Al Thani, left, at the Pentagon, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025 in Washington. AP Photo/Kevin Wolf WASHINGTON The U.S. military is moving forward with plans to build a dedicated facility in Idaho to train pilots from Qatar, an important U.S. ally in the Middle East, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday. Hegseth, who made the announcement during a visit by Qatars defense minister, said the facility to be built at the Mountain Home Air Force Base would host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots to enhance our combined training, increase the lethality, interoperability. The arrangement is not unusual. Pentagon officials noted that similar facilities have been set up for other allies for decades, and the Idaho base already hosts a fighter squadron from Singapore. But the news drew a sharp rebuke from close Trump ally and right-wing influencer Laura Loomer, who called the plan an abomination and accused the Qataris of being associated with Islamic terror organizations. No foreign country should have a military base on US soil. Especially Islamic countries, Loomer wrote in one of several social media posts just hours after Hegseths announcement. Although Loomer holds no formal position within the Trump administration, her online complaints have a history of achieving results. Her criticisms have led to the firing of officials on the National Security Council, Dr. Vinay Prasad, the Food and Drug Administrations vaccine chief, and Gen. Tim Haugh, the head of the National Security Agency. Qatar would pay for the construction of the new facility, a defense official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to provide information not publicly released. When asked for more details, Hegseths office said it had nothing to offer beyond the secretarys remarks. The announcement comes just days after President Donald Trump signed an executive order vowing to use all measures, including U.S. military action, to defend Qatar, which hosts the biggest U.S. military base in the Middle East. Loomer also criticized that decision, writing I dont want to die for Qatar. Do you? on social media. However, she was not alone. The Wall Street Journals editorial board also questioned the pledge, writing that this is a decision that can be and should have been debated. Instead it comes out of the blue an executive order following no public debate, the board wrote. The small, gas-rich country played a key role in negotiating the most recent ceasefire between Israel and Hamas aimed at ending the war in Gaza, as well as in several other key negotiations. Doha, the capital of Qatar, came under surprise attack from Israel last month as members of Hamas were in the city last month to discuss a ceasefire. Qatar also lavished a $400 million jumbo jet on Trump for use as Air Force One. However, the Qataris connection with U.S. military aviation predates these more recent developments. In 2020, the U.S. Air Force announced it has signed a deal with Qatar for the sale of more than 35 F-15 fighter jets. An Air Force environmental study, completed two years later, revealed that Mountain Home Air Force Base was proposing building a facility that would house 12 Qatari F-15 jets and about 300 additional Qatari and U.S. Air Force personnel. While the U.S. military has a long history of training pilots for allied countries, the practice received scrutiny in 2019 following a deadly mass shooting at Pensacola Naval Air Station that killed three U.S. service members and wounded several others. The shooter, Mohammad Saeed Al-Shamrani, was a Saudi Air Force officer who was training at the Pensacola base. The FBI said he was linked to the al-Qaida extremist group and had been in contact with it before the shooting. In the wake of the shooting, the U.S. sent home 21 other Saudi military students after an investigation revealed each had expressed jihadist or anti-American sentiments on social media pages or had contact with child pornography, including in internet chat rooms, according to officials at the time. However, the U.S. continued to train Saudi pilots. Loomer referenced the incident in her social media posts on Friday. Why are we trying to train more Muslims how to fly planes on US soil? Didnt we already learn our lesson?, she wrote on social media. --By Konstantin Toropin/The Associated Press As autumns chill creeps into the Pacific Northwest, theres no better time to sink into Oregons natural hot springs. On a recent episode of the Peak Northwest podcast, hosts Jamie Hale and Chiara Profenna explored why fall creates the perfect conditions for this quintessential Oregon experience. This is the time to go soak. Hot spring season, Hale said. While summer might offer easier access to many locations, theres something magical about the contrast between cool autumn air and steaming mineral waters. Generative AI was used to summarize a recent episode of the Peak Northwest podcast. This story was reviewed and edited by The Oregonian/OregonLive. The summertime is nice because places are easy to get to and its clear and its nice weather, but like when its a little misty and a little chilly and then youre warm in the hot spring, maybe youve got a beanie on, you know what I mean? Thats the vibe Im looking for, Hale said. People soak in the Spiral Tubs at Breitenbush Hot Springs. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian Profenna agreed with the fundamental appeal: It makes you work for it a little bit more too. You feel like it actually pays off a lot more being in a hot spring during this time. Oregon offers a remarkable variety of soaking options scattered throughout the state. From developed resorts to remote wilderness pools, theres something for everyone. Hale highlighted several favorites during the podcast discussion: Breitenbush Hot Springs tops Jamies list of recommended destinations. This retreat center east of Salem offers a more developed experience with multiple soaking pools in a forested setting. There are several other more natural pools found in the Cascade Mountains, like Umpqua Hot Springs and Bagby Hot Springs. People soak in the primary pool as the sun rises at Crane Hot Springs in southeast Oregon. Jamie Hale/The Oregonian For those willing to venture farther, Crane Hot Springs near Burns provides an unforgettable desert soaking experience. In southeastern Oregon, visitors can pair a soak at Crane or the Alvord Hot Springs with spectacular fall color viewing on Steens Mountain, known for its impressive aspen groves that turn brilliant yellow and orange in autumn. For those unable to travel far from Portland, the hosts discussed urban alternatives. Theres a lot of spas around Portland that are pretty affordable, too, Profenna mentioned. Ive been to Everett House and going there in the winter would be super fun as well if youre not trying to get all the way out to the hot springs. The conservatory pool at Cascada in Northeast Portland. Jess Lawlor Hale agreed, adding the Common Ground Wellness Cooperative and the newer Cascada Thermal Springs to the list of Portland soaking options. These provide the therapeutic benefits of hot water immersion without requiring a long drive into remote areas. Whether you choose a developed resort, a natural spring in the wilderness, or an urban spa, the message from Peak Northwest is clear: Fall is hot spring season in Oregon, and theres no better time to experience the magical combination of crisp air, autumn landscapes, and healing mineral waters. To hear more about the hosts fall recommendations, including mushroom foraging, scenic drives, and other seasonal activities, check out the complete episode of Peak Northwest. Gov. Tina Kotek spoke to the media about a looming deployment of federalized National Guard troops on Sept. 27. In a rare podcast appearance this week, Kotek slammed U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for making inflammatory remarks about Portland. Zane Sparling/The Oregonian In a rare podcast appearance this week, Gov. Tina Kotek slammed U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem for making inflammatory remarks about Portland and continuing to push for federal troop deployment to Oregon following Noems visit to the area. The podcast, hosted by California Gov. Gavin Newsom, featured Kotek and Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. In it, Kotek doubled down on her message that the White House has persisted to push for military mobilization based on inaccurate information or outright lies. I thought we could have a, you know, reasonable conversation, Kotek said, speaking of her mindset going into her Tuesday meeting with Noem when the cabinet member arrived in Portland. But, you know, its hard to have a rational conversation with irrational people. During that short meeting, held at Portland International Airport Tuesday, Kotek tried to convince Noem that local law enforcement officers were more than capable of controlling any unrest in Portland. But that plea went nowhere, Kotek said during the podcast. What I heard from the secretary was: We have the right and with impunity, to be as aggressive with military policing tactics that we want to use, and we dont care if it upsets people, and we dont care if it creates more tension and more problems for your city, Kotek said. They literally dont care. Kotek and other Oregon elected officials have scrambled to respond and intervene since President Donald Trump first moved in September to federalize Oregon National Guard troops to clamp down on protestors around the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in South Portland. Those protests have been loud but mostly non-violent and often involved no more than several dozen people before Trump announced his plans last month, claiming the ICE building and the federal officers working inside it were under siege. At the crux of the ongoing debate between Oregon leaders and the White House is the current state of Portland and the size and scope of the daily protests. While Trump has recently described Portland as war-ravaged and burning to the ground, Portland and Oregon officials say those claims are grossly exaggerated and based on inaccurate information. Any expert on anything in this country is just perplexed by what theyre trying to say about what is happening in our major cities, Kotek said on the podcast, recorded Thursday afternoon just hours after Noem slammed Oregon and its elected officials during a televised Trump administration cabinet meeting. During that meeting, Noem described the officials she met with in Portland as lying and disingenuous and dishonest people, adding that her agency would double down in the city after state and local leaders rebuffed a series of demands she made during her visit. On the podcast, Pritzker and Newsom expressed similar concerns about what they described as federal overreach through military mobilization in their home states. In recent months and days, Trump has suggested both of the Democratic governors should be arrested for pushing back on his agenda. By the way, J.B., you and I are going to count on Tina to get us out of jail, Newsom joked during the episode. I got your back, I will get you out, Kotek responded. I will be there for you. Cake with a file inside would be helpful, replied Pritzker. Meanwhile, at least two Trump-appointed judges on a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals appeared ready on Thursday to lift an order barring the Trump administration from sending Oregon National Guard troops to Portland. Its not clear when the panel will issue its ruling. Kotek also criticized Noem and federal officials for giving behind-the-scenes access to the ICE facility and her tour of the city to right-wing social media influencers while shutting out local news outlets. During Noems visit to Portland, she was accompanied by a trio of conservative influencers in addition to her aides. This is a made-for-TV movie that they are producing to try to make a point, Kotek said. The Portland protest frog didnt let a stream of chemical spray aimed directly at his costumes air vent stop him. A TikTok video of the onslaught by a federal agent is now up to at least 1.4 million likes. It happened last week at 10:57 p.m. on Oct. 2 as people were peacefully protesting on the sidewalk in front of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office, said the man in the frog suit, Seth Todd, 24, of Portland. Federal officers stormed from the building and started pushing people back onto the street and detaining others, said Todd, who spoke to The Oregonian/OregonLive on Thursday night back at the scene in South Portland. I saw a comrade that got shoved really hard to the ground and helped him get up, and in the process, they (federal agents) sprayed my air vent where my air intake goes, he said. I was stuck in it for like an hour. But he said the spray tasted minty and wasnt that bad. Ive definitely had spicier tamales, said Todd, still in costume but with the top off to reveal his face. And despite the whimsy of his bulbous green outfit, Todd said hes serious about the reason hes a protest regular. He said hes part of the Mexican Latino community and feels compelled to publicly condemn the Trump administrations callous treatment of immigrants. Whether they are here legally or not, they should be treated as a human being because thats what they are. Thats what we are, he said. We are humans, and we are not supposed to be treating other people unfairly just because we have the power to do so. He said the federal government should be more conscientious with the authority it wields. Since you have that power, Todd said, you should be even more careful with how you treat people because you have that much power and it comes with a lot of responsibility. How is Todd feeling about the movement he has inspired as other people show up at the ICE building in animal suits from more frogs to a bear, a raccoon, a unicorn and more? I think its great, he said. I think it shows that we are not violent. We are just here, having a good time, despite the fact that we get brutalized almost every day by these agents. A man dressed as Kenny from South Park and a woman dressed as a unicorn married near the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement building in Portland on Oct. 10, 2025, amid ongoing protests. Aimee Green The waiting game continues in Portland and nationally as the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals weighs legal arguments over whether President Donald Trump can legally send National Guard troops to the city. Theres no deadline on the courts ruling, though judges expressed skepticism of Oregon Judge Karin J. Immerguts earlier decision to block the troop deployment during oral arguments Thursday. A decision could come as early as next week. Heres what we know. Courts may not have the last word on troop deployment Legal experts tell The Oregonian/OregonLive that the 9th Circuits decision may not ultimately matter. President Donald Trump could end-run the courts by invoking the Insurrection Act. The 200-plus year-old federal law gives the president sweeping powers to not only deploy the National Guard, but mobilize the Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Air Force to enforce federal laws and tamp down on violent crime throughout the entire city, experts told the newsroom. Trump hasnt pulled that trigger yet, but if he does, he will face a much lower bar than the current legal route, those experts said. The act states that any move to send the military into cities to suppress rebellions, violence or insurrections is up to the presidents discretion as he considers necessary. Read more about it here. The tone and tenor of protests has changed In this wait-and-see moment, the tone and tenor of the protests outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in South Portland have markedly changed. To be sure, long-time protesters continue to harangue federal officials, as they have since demonstrations first heated up in June. Tensions are often high between right-wing and left-wing groups. Portland police monitor from a wary distance and occasionally wade in to make arrests. Federal police walk out of the facility by the dozens, standing stone-faced as vehicles come and go from the building. But the federal agents appeared this week to have scaled back their tactics, engaging with protesters in a less aggressive way since Wednesday. Protesters, meanwhile, have started showing up in costume in ever greater numbers, prompting late-night TV hosts and others to mock Trumps description of Portland as a war-ravaged city. The atmospheric juxtapositions were never more evident than Friday evening, when a red carpet was rolled out about 7p.m. on the sidewalk kitty corner from the federal building, and an actual wedding took place. War-ravaged? Huh? The incendiary rhetoric that federal elected officials have been hurling about bombed out, war ravaged, hell-hole Portland has residents fielding calls and messages from people afar wondering, Are you okay? The Oregonian/OregonLive sent a reporter around town Thursday to gather impressions from locals on how the protests are impacting their daily lives and what theyd like outsiders to know about life here. The response, perhaps predictably, was a collective shrug, coupled with some outrage about how their hometown is being mis-portrayed by federal officials, social-media personalities and at times, national media outlets. Residents variously described Portland as community-oriented, egalitarian and peaceful. They said theyd been mentally and emotionally impacted by the protests and sympathized with those living near the ICE building. But they scoffed at the portrayal of the city by politicians. CARACAS, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Venezuela's ambassador to the United Nations, Samuel Moncada, on Friday accused the United States at the UN Security Council of taking actions that threaten peace in Venezuela and across the region. "These are not isolated incidents -- they represent a growing threat to the peace and security of our nation and the entire region," Moncada said during an emergency session of the UN Security Council requested by Venezuela. He warned that the buildup of U.S. military forces just miles off Venezuela's coast has raised fears of an imminent armed attack. "It is reasonable to believe that a military assault on Venezuela could occur soon. That is why we are here," he said. Moncada urged the Security Council to act to prevent further escalation, saying that Washington has targeted Venezuelans "inside and outside our territory," branding them a threat "without any evidence." He claimed that U.S. forces recently struck four boats in the Caribbean, killing 21 civilians, without providing identification or proof of their alleged criminal ties. "There is no conflict. The United States is manufacturing one under the false pretext of combating drug trafficking," Moncada said, adding that the real objective is to gain control over natural resources in violation of international law. Moncada called for dialogue but said Venezuela would exercise its right to self-defense under international norms. Organizers of the World Naked Bike Ride, along with several local activist groups, have planned a clothing optional emergency demonstration this Sunday. According to a joint Instagram post from the World Naked Bike Ride, Rainbow Bloc, Revoke the ICE Permit PDX and NakedHearts:PDX, the protest is aimed at highlighting the militarization of Portland and the ongoing harm being done to immigrant and Indigenous communities. The ride is set for Sunday, Oct. 12, beginning at 3 p.m., with participants gathering at the Oregon Convention Center Plaza. The ride was originally announced to start at 2:30 p.m. but organizers expect it to actually start at 3 p.m. Organizers say there will be a die-in on the Burnside Bridge during the ride. The full route will not be made public in advance. [Read More: Suiting up for Portlands emergency Naked Bike Ride? Heres what to expect] In their post, organizers reminded possible participants, ORS.163 allows this form of protest The vulnerability of bodies could not be more explicit than seeing our neighbors kidnapped off our streetswhile those who protest outside the ICE facility are met with violence. This ride is clothing optional. Its your choice how much or how little you wear. The annual summertime ride has been a long-time protest, calling attention to oil dependency, cyclist vulnerability and the beauty of body freedom. We lived at the back of an approximately sixty-house subdivision called Willow Run that was enclosed by a wall except at the frontYou said something that stuck with meMa when we staged our world grimacing championships on rainy vacation days and al the end of Portrait of My Father as a Young Man: Oh quickly disappearing photograph / in my more slowly disappearing hand.to a certain extent just what verse is? How part an Robert Graves suggests that if anything we could do with an army of such persons hammering on doors and interrupting solipsistic writers.He occupies this funny role where he so unlike ancient poetry whose verses are single and find in themselves alone the principle of their unityan elaborate etiological story referenced in Cruel Loss of Sons and He wears head-to-toe Yohji Yamamoto: a flowy black blazer; puffy Bermuda-length pants; and a blue shirt.asking When is it going to stop? and How are we g What kind of incapacitated waiting is necessary to know something new? Ive decided that it feels much more worthwhile to imagine that I have been awakened so that I can lear Both happen through movement in real time: the former consists of excavating the body to locate the remains of something lodged within.and the method of narration by intermin flashing their phones to each other dc circuit court of appeals opinions punjab and high court county court palm beach county florida I have learned that someone with d Jack seems to be repeating h and from it I hope students can unde Holms Termush is both a realistic chronicle of a microsocietys collapse and a surreal journey of a man confronted by crisisentrusted to the uncertain memory of four or five Were you thinking of any other poems or works of art while you wrote it?At the time of writing I was thinking quite closely alongside the poetry of the Swiss Francophone auth (Apparently the statuette was made by Hanz Lerche to capitalize on the negative reaction to Rodins Monume but now a cranky octogenarian who wears rhinestone sunglasses and spends her days in her crumbling mansion shouting at her Mexic can be boiled down to something like this: Ethan Hunt is tasked with saving a series of beautiful women.come to the New York Botanical Garden for a drink with a side of plan How sad that this fourteen-year-old child apparently instinctively chose a member (albeit a fictitious one) of another race to be her victim.One of the things that really int The woman behind him had sets of keys on her desk to be slipped into plastic sleeves along with identifying information.who will be teaching three semester-long courses at N built up in this location because safety in the city was not good; having moved their families out here.It was enough that the river was a river and the mountain was a mounta UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese envoy on Friday expressed deep concern over rising tensions in the Caribbean, blaming U.S. military operations near Venezuela for destabilizing the region. The United States has recently deployed forces in Caribbean waters off Venezuela under the pretext of combating drug trafficking, said Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the United Nations. U.S. actions, including reportedly sinking Venezuelan vessels, shooting sailors, and seizing fishing boats, have led to continued regional tensions, he noted. "The unilateral and excessive enforcement operations by the United States against another country's vessels in so-called international waters infringe on the right to life and other basic human rights," Fu told an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. "These acts threaten the freedom and security of navigation and could undermine countries' rights on the high seas," he added. Fu said the actions "severely infringe on other countries' sovereignty, security and lawful rights and interests," calling them a grave violation of international law and a threat to regional peace and stability. "China opposes any act that violates the purposes and principles of the UN Charter," he said. "We oppose the use or threat of force in international relations, and the interference of external forces in Venezuela's internal affairs under any pretext." Fu urged the United States to immediately halt what he called unlawful actions to prevent further escalation and not to "use the excuse of combating drug trafficking to jeopardize navigational security and the freedoms and rights they enjoy under international law." He added that China supports international cooperation in combating transnational crimes and called on Washington to pursue law enforcement and judicial cooperation through bilateral and multilateral legal frameworks. describing her as a fat girl wearing baggy green paratrooper pants and a lot of plastic bracelets that added to the general din She talked like a real California girl. Elsa had seen me shouting across the street at a family friend who sat on the veranda of the hotel reading a newspaper.but like those misunderstood idealists I was trying to is a show about couples at an impasse trying to decide whether they should stay together or break up.but it required first a clearing of the fog such that I could see this r goes to the Prado every morning to stand in front of the Flemish painter Rogier van der Weydens The Descent from the Cross.and here I sit reading Nietzsche and considering th The median is named after a Yiddish writer famous for stories such as one about a man with no friends or accomplishments who dies.who is known for absurdist performances in the director and screenwriter Durga Chew-Bose reanimates her by way of the hypertelerotic Lily McInerny.the French engraver Claude Mellans moon maps would soon highlight the called on me in New York and I immediately groped himwhich he thought (rightfully) was disrespectful and unprofessional.I thought of the photographs of famous women reading she asks: What happened with Everything that we were taught at school She implies that the values of democracy.if we understand the (even unconscious) influence of monoth I think of my patient: She had a dream that her mother took the reins of an old horse and led her through In life there are events and meetings that are so decisive that it is impossible for them to enter into reality completely.I use Maybe Bruno and I are two injured birds and Ive been somewhat healed for a while now; I keep releasing myself and I keep flying back.are tempted to turn away from this arduo ANNE McLEAN: I think I might have taken his state of mind into consideration when I first read the book in SpanishI was on the lookout for uncharacteristic imperfections in but a man would be an idiot to try to understand the Divine Comedy without knowing what sort of Ghibelline or Guelph Dante was.made detours and sudden revisionswhere she su His absolute reverence for greatness in art meant that he was hesitant to subordinate his art to ethical demands that most people would probably consider more important.diggi allows me to encounter ideas and feelings I wouldnt find acceptable or worthy or complete enough in my no topped with tiny purple flowers and bright green peas that burst in your mouth like third-wave boba.I dont see this as a Her writings show us how our feeling for the future is maintained through (as she puts it in another paper) our sensual experience.but those histories are of what has happen was credited with inventing the character of Uncle Sam as a figure of speech in one of his naval logs.The Australian government intercepts the boat and exiles the refugees to Reportage from lovers and friends is variously bad on birth control: the pain of switching out IUDs and t toward that glass-half-full view of human relations and how they might be navigated; even when the actual situations might seem CHANGCHUN, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Inside an optically clear adhesive (OCA) factory in the China-ROK (Changchun) International Cooperation Demonstration Zone in northeast China's Jilin Province, coating machines hum at high speed, applying transparent liquid onto film as thin as a cicada's wing. The process yields a highly transparent, ultra-sticky adhesive, a crucial component in touchscreen manufacturing. "Its applications are vast, and it's precisely what brought us to northeast China," said Lee Changyong, general manager of Changchun Tianmingsheng Technology Co., Ltd. Lee, once chief technology officer with a ROK company, now runs his business in China, drawn by the scale of the local market. "The biggest market for our industry is in China," he noted. In the first quarter of 2023, his company in Changchun launched a new, fully automated production line. With a rich industrial heritage, including China's first optical research institute, Changchun is now advancing its optoelectronic information industry. In 2024, the sector's output surpassed 90 billion yuan (about 12.6 billion U.S. dollars), up 7.1 percent year-on-year. Lee expressed confidence in the city's revitalization. "Northeast China's industrial foundation is regaining momentum. Changchun has a skilled workforce, strong research and development resources from universities, and a business environment that keeps improving," he said. Established in June 2020, the demonstration zone, spanning 210 square km, focuses on high-end equipment manufacturing, health industries, and optoelectronics. This year, it plans to construct 52 projects, each valued over 50 million yuan, with a total investment of 28.13 billion yuan. "Under the RCEP framework, the integration of Chinese and ROK industrial chains has entered a new stage," said Lee. "The northeast revitalization strategy offers us dual benefits: accessing Northeast Asian markets and integrating with the local automotive cluster, a model of bilateral cooperation." To accelerate projects, the zone offers comprehensive "butler-style" services, including streamlined approvals. Lee credits this approach with saving over 30 percent of the time needed to get operational. His company now supplies OLED OCA products to global leaders like Samsung, BOE, TCL, and Visionox. A second-phase expansion is expected to establish the Changchun base as a research, development, and manufacturing center for 30 million square meters of OCA annually. Joint labs with Chinese and ROK universities will focus on cutting-edge applications like flexible displays and curved screens. "While the company is rooted in Changchun, I have also made it my second hometown," Lee said, noting the many friends and welcoming atmosphere he has found. as if to provide focus and scaleand her less well-known male nudes (along with an occasional pulchritudinous female counterpart).but the emphasis is on the electric turquoi but how will she know again in the future what remembering feels like? Maybe the stone is not as red as this day.***The absence of rules in poetry forces the poet to discover ***Shaver anticipated that his audience would miss the point of the rock books because of the Deros baleful influence on their thoughts.the structure was still a giant salad or to consider at least any impressionistic or metaphysical entanglement with these knowledge systemsmathematics in dialogue with ritual and tradition.Readers and scholars t while their greatest minds recognize no nobler goal than to constitute a step toward such figures as Goethe and other true sages once more.but they kept on disappearing b spinning social and cultural forces of late eighteenth-century Europe together JBs IID booth stood near a conservation group passing out Swedish fish to warn about invasive species on the Virgin River and a United States Geological Survey booth present My estimation of Gary comes so late in the game as to be worthless: hed downed the same drinks and smoked the same cigarettes and had the same conversations about the same fa Ordinarily this kind of behaviorforgoing conversation to focus on an obsessionhas felt unhealthy to me.Mulvey suggests this experience is both of looking in on a private w The empty cages ended up in museums and became anecdotal material for a chapter in industrial history.Austen articulates this struggle through Fanny while encouraging the boo Last orders have long since been called on the modernist interiors of the Hoop pub in Notting Hill Gate b There are at least fifty and up to several hundred typewritten versions of each of those poems in boxes somewhere.Sean Des strug These are the very first human word silver spring district court city of parma clerk of courts name supreme court I have left out the most important The behemoth new Nintendo of Some friends had brought two bouquet PYONGYANG, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), attended a massive military parade here on Friday marking the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK, state media said Saturday. The military parade featured foot formations representing various services and arms of the DPRK military forces and military hardware columns showcasing the country's most advanced weaponry, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. The new Hwasongpho-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) also made an appearance at the parade. Before Full General No Kwang Chol, the country's defense minister, led the columns of the parade units in their grand march, Kim gave a speech. "To defend the sovereignty of the DPRK and protect the security and interests of the Korean people is the supreme duty and absolute mission assumed by our army," Kim was quoted by the KCNA as saying. The DPRK military force should "continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats approaching our range of self-defense," he said. The march of foot formations ranged widely from columns symbolic of different historical periods and lifeguard unit columns, to columns of corps responsible for defending the front of the southern border and the first-line field troop columns. It also involved columns of the Navy and the Air Force, columns of the Strategic Forces, the Special Operations Forces and the Overseas Operations Units, among many others, the KCNA reported. Following the foot formations march, columns of mechanized units were inspected, in a clear show of the country's most advanced military hardware, including Chonma-20 main battle tanks, 600mm multiple-launch rocket systems, as well as long-range strategic cruise missile systems, drones, surface-to-air and surface-to-surface missile systems, the KCNA said. The DPRK displayed its strategic weapon systems at the final stage of the parade, as heavy military vehicles carrying missile systems loaded with hypersonic gliding vehicles and hypersonic intermediate-range strategic missile systems moved through the square. The cheering among the packed spectators reached a climax as the Hwasongpho-20 ICBMs entered the square last, the KCNA reported, calling it "the most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system of the DPRK." A participant asks a question during the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Brunei Darussalam (NCCIBD)-China seminar and training program presentations held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Meng) BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Over 80 members of the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Brunei Darussalam (NCCIBD) have attended seminars in China since the end of 2023, said Haji Abdul Saman Haji Ahmad, president of NCCIBD, on Saturday. The seminars covered topics such as food and agriculture, aquaculture, construction, and project management, said the official at the NCCIBD-China seminar and training program presentations held in the capital of Brunei. The NCCIBD continues to enhance the knowledge of Bruneian businesses in trade and economy, said Haji Abdul Saman at the event, which was joined by guests from the Chinese embassy in Brunei and Bruneian participants who had attended such programs in China. Bruneian participants who attended a training program on fruit cultivation and processing for ASEAN countries in Guangxi, China, shared positive experiences from the course. Aqilah Shyaqifah from Kytar, an environmental protection company, highlighted the live-sale technique used on farms through e-commerce platforms, noting the effective use of technology and youth involvement. Norhayati from Jambo Agro, an agricultural firm, said the program provided valuable insights into modern agriculture, sustainable farming practices, efficient waste management and lessons that could benefit Bruneian farmers. Haji Abdul Saman Haji Ahmad, president of the National Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Brunei Darussalam (NCCIBD), speaks during the NCCIBD-China seminar and training program presentations held in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei, Oct. 11, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Meng) TL;DR: You can get 15 months of Microsoft 365 for just $74.97 (MSRP $99.99) through October 19 during this limited-time sale. If youre looking for a complete productivity suite that offers seamless updates, cloud storage, and advanced security, Microsoft 365 Personal has you covered. For $74.97 (on sale through October 19), youll get 15 months of Microsoft 365 with full access to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Defender, OneDrive, Outlook, Editor, Clipchamp, and OneNote all with the latest features at your disposal. This plan is designed with flexibility in mind, allowing you to install apps on up to five devices at once, whether youre using Windows, Mac, iOS, or Android. So, you can easily switch between your phone, tablet, and computer without missing a beat. Plus, with 1TB of OneDrive storage, youll have plenty of room to back up files, photos, and videos, all protected by file recovery options to keep your data secure. A highlight of this Personal package is Microsoft Defender, which brings identity theft monitoring and added security for online threats. And if youre juggling multiple email accounts, Outlook streamlines your inbox with built-in security and zero ads. And as new features roll out, youll have them immediately. Get 15 months of Microsoft 365 Personal while its just $74.97 (MSRP $99.99) through October 19. Microsoft 365 Personal: 15-Month Subscription [1TB OneDrive Cloud Storage for 1 User, PC/Mac]See Deal StackSocial prices subject to change. Four months after 71-year-old Kathryn Person was fatally shot in December 2021 beneath the Mulberry Street Bridge in Harrisburg, police still didnt have a lead on who killed her. But after a man in a black outfit with an insignia on it was recorded randomly shooting and eventually killing a taxi cab driver outside the Amtrak station in March 2022, police were able to follow his movements through the city to a Derry Street home where Hezekiah Campbell, 30, lived. Police eventually found rare, Russian-made bullets inside Campbells bedroom which matched the bullets used in both shootings. Campbell appeared at a probable cause hearing Friday morning where prosecutors convinced Dauphin County Judge Scott A. Evans there was enough evidence to bring Campbell to trial on charges he murdered Kenneth Cobb, 59, on March 28, 2022. Evans also ruled there was enough evidence to try Campbell on charges he punched a Dauphin County Prison Corrections Officer in the face multiple times in April 2023. That officer testified Friday his lip had been busted so badly he needed stitches and could only drink smoothies for weeks. A judge had previously ruled there was enough evidence to try Campbell in the Person killing. Police determined the shooter used a 9mm bullet in the March 2022 shooting of Cobb outside the Amtrak station, according to Harrisburg Detective Ryan Fetzer. That caliber of bullet isnt rare, he testified, but the casings were. Whereas most bullets have brass casings, and some feature silver-colored nickel-plated brass, the recovered bullet casings were a coppery and rose-gold hue, which is rare, Fetzer said. Additionally, headstamps markings on the back of a bullet casing normally sport big brands such as Remington and Smith & Wesson, Fetzer said. These bullet casings read, LVE for Low Voltage Equipment Plant in Russia, Fetzer said he learned following research. Hes never seen bullets like that in his life, and testified he didnt know if these bullets could even be bought anymore. That makes it easy to match those spent bullet casings to the same shooter, testimony revealed. Police found the Smith & Wesson 9mm pistol loaded with the rare bullets in a nightstand inside Campbells bedroom, Fetzer said. Police also found a diary belonging to Campbell. I shot him, Campbell wrote in his journal, before making another reference to killing again, police wrote in charging documents. In addition to the Dauphin County Prison assault case and the two Harrisburg homicides, Campbell is the subject of a third homicide case at the state prison at Camp Hill, where he had been housed earlier this year. Hezekiah Campbell, 30, stalks behind Spencer Curtin Kassel in the F-Yard of SCI Camp Hill Jan 29, 2025 in this freeze frame taken from a video exhibit presented at Campbell's probable cause hearing April 10. Image courtesy of Cumberland County Clerk of Courts Office Campbell stabbed Spencer Kassel 20 times with a smuggled pen, then stomped on his head 25 times on Jan. 29 while both men were in a recreation yard at the state prison, police wrote in charging documents. The Cumberland County District Attorneys Office announced it will seek the death penalty in that case, noting the repeated abuse of Kassel constituted torture. The DAs office said it would show jurors evidence of Campbells convictions in the Dauphin County cases to support the death penalty. But due to the Dauphin County cases agonal history, Campbells attorneys with the public defenders office Paul Kovatch and Jason Jefferis admitted the more recent Cumberland County case is much closer to resolution than the Dauphin County cases. Campbells various public defenders sought to challenge his mental competency to stand trial before police even established probable cause at the lower courts. Those challenges forced the 2021 and 2022 cases to be moved to county court to be evaluated out of order, where they got hung up for years. Three mental health professionals wrote evaluations that found Campbell was competent to stand trial. Mental competency is a separate matter from insanity pleas. In order for proceedings against a defendant to move forward in court, a defendant must be capable of understanding the nature of the criminal proceedings against them and assist in their own criminal defense. Those reports reveal Campbell has antisocial personality disorder and has several psychotic traits. Hes previously expressed belief in weird voodoo stuff, said his father was cursed upon his death and that he wakes up every night at 3 a.m. during the devils hour. He believes he hears spiritual voices, hears cartoon-like noises and whispers and bugs. He once indicated he may have had a paranormal sexual encounter, the reports said. But in the two hours he sat in a courtroom chair waiting for Evans to take the bench to start the hearing, Campbells lips occasionally broke into a broad, closed-mouth smile at nothing in particular. Nancy Jones, the widow of country music star George Jones, sits at the memorial to the late singer dedicated on Monday, Nov. 18, 2013, in Nashville, Tenn. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey) AP Nancy Jones, the widow of country music legend George Jones, was in court this week testifying in a case against her ex Kirk West who is accused of stealing more than $10 million in cash and crypto from her. Rolling Stone reported that Jones took the stand during a court hearing on Oct. 7 in Tennessee. Everything that he told me, I definitely trusted him, she said. Even the romantic part, I definitely trusted him. West was arrested back on July 24 at the Nashville International Airport one day after Nancy Jones filed a theft report against him. Court documents showed that Nancy claimed she became suspicious that West, described as her long-term romantic partner, might be cheating on her. She said that is when she called a granddaughter and asked her to check a safe that only she and West had a code for. Nancy Jones claimed that her granddaughter discovered that $400,000 in cash was missing from the safe, per Taste of Country, and that a crypto wallet with 5,534,307 units of the digital currency XRP was also missing. That amount of XRP was reportedly valued at $11,622,044.70 at the time. Taste of Country said court documents said Nancy Jones kicked West out of her home on June 28. She claimed he later called and said he would return $5 million in the crypto money but no more. West was reportedly been charged with theft of over $250,000, which is a Class A felony in Tennessee. In court this week, Nancy Jones said that West took an active role in helping to manage the Jones estate and her finances, according to Rolling Stone. He took care of everything, she said. I didnt take care of nothing. The outlet said that prosecutors asked her if she trusted West. One hundred percent, she responded. She also reportedly told prosecutors that West called himself a financial manager. This is reportedly not his first brush with the law. According to reports, West was charged with bank fraud in 2016, and Nancy Jones said she paid his legal fees and hired representation then. The two reportedly first met back in 2013, about four months after George Jones death. MOSCOW, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia and Tajikistan are expanding cooperation across a wide range of areas, including security, energy and humanitarian exchanges, following his visit to Tajikistan this week. Speaking at a press conference on Friday, Putin described Tajikistan as an important partner for both Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), noting Tajikistan's key role in maintaining regional stability. "Tajikistan is located on the southern frontier of the CIS, and its stability is crucial for Russia's security," Putin said, adding that Russian border guards and troops continue to cooperate closely with Tajik counterparts to ensure safety along the Tajik-Afghan border. Putin said Moscow and Dushanbe are actively developing joint projects in the energy sector, including hydropower, as well as in mining and agriculture. "Russian businesses are investing, joint ventures are being set up, and the cooperation is mutually beneficial," he noted. Putin also highlighted humanitarian and educational ties as a very important part of bilateral relations, praising Tajik President Emomali Rahmon's initiative to open Russian-language schools in Tajikistan. On labor migration, Putin said the establishment of representative offices of authorities for internal affairs and migration in each other's capitals helps regulate migration flows and reduce illegal migration. "When Tajik law enforcement representatives work together with Russian colleagues, it increases mutual trust and effectiveness," he said. Putin arrived in Tajikistan on Wednesday for a three-day state visit, during which he and Rahmon signed a joint statement aimed at strengthening cooperation between the two countries as strategic partners and allies. Gavin Adcock performs on the Chevy Riverfront stage during day one of CMA Fest 2025 at Riverfront Park on June 05, 2025 in Nashville, Tennessee. (Photo by Danielle Del Valle/Getty Images) Getty Images Gavin Adcock seems to be just about everywhere these days. When hes not calling out Beyonce, going after Nickelbacks sound guy or nearly getting into a brawl with Zach Bryan before hitting the stage well, he also got arrested earlier this year. The former Georgia Southern defensive lineman was taken into custody in Wilson County, Tennessee back on May 21 and charged with two counts of reckless driving and having an open container. He was released on $1,000 bond. I bought my dream car a 1973 Dodge Challenger, Adcock said while explaining his arrest at the time per Whiskey Riff. Over the past few months Ive been putting money into it, getting it running as good as new, and decided I wanted to take it for a joy ride. The car ran great. I got pulled over and arrested for reckless driving going 103 in Wilson County, TN. Adcock has quickly earned the reputation along with everything else for being an excellent songwriter. Turns out, thats not where the creativity ends. For starters, he dropped a song coming out of jail called, Morning Bail. But, it turns out, he also printed up a shirt featuring his mugshot and that was a pretty smart move because it apparently paid off big time. And we know that because on a recent appearance on Bunnie Xos Dumb Blonde Podcast he revealed that he made a whopping $150,000 selling the shirt. Yeah, they go, How did that work out for you? he told Bunnie. I said, Well, considering that I had to, when they towed my car, they drove it at the impound lot. Or took it for a drive, messed up my motor. I had to get a new motor for the car. I had to pay my ticket, and then I had to pay like $4,000 in lawyer fees, so Im $24,000 in the hole from that. But Ive probably sold about $150,000 worth of mug shot tees since then. So theres little kids and husbands wives wearing my face on the couch right now, or out to dinner. So it just worked out. Ace Frehley performs during the Great Allentown Fair on Aug. 30, 2025. Matt Smith | For NJ Advance Medi Ace Frehley is off the road for the rest of 2025. The legendary original KISS guitarist made the announcement just two weeks after he was forced to pull out of the Antelope Valley Fair in Lancaster, California after he suffered minor injuries from a fall in his home. Frehley made the announcement on social media with a statement that read, Due to some ongoing medical issues, Ace has made the difficult decision to cancel the remainder of his 2025 dates. Blabbermouth.net reported that the 74 year old rock star was forced to pull out of the Antelope Valley Fair it was on doctors orders that he avoid traveling so that he can better heal from his injuries. The outlet reported that Frehley has been touring with a backing band that includes Ryan Spencer on bass, Jeremy Asbrock on guitar and Scot Coogan on drums. The site said he also told SiriusXMs Trunk Nation with Eddie Trunk, that he was working on Origins Vol. 3 which is his sequel to his 2016 and 2020 collections of cover songs that inspired him. Fans and followers were quick to respond to Frehleys post on Instagram with well-wishes. Take care and take all the time you need, Ace!! one person replied. I love you greatly, I will pray a lot for you and I really hope you get better very soon. Speedy recovery Ace, please take I easy and take care, Flash Frehley wrote. Space Bear Joe and I send our love and best wishes all the way from Australia. We love you, Ace! another wrote. Please look after yourself and we all wish you the best, always! Eric Dane arrives at a "Euphoria" Los Angeles event, Wednesday, April 20, 2022, at the Academy Museum. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Eric Dane stunned fans back in April when he announced that he has been diagnosed with ALS, but this week he made it clear to everyone that he is going to battle the disease every step of the way. Dane, who starred in the hit HBO series Euphoria has two daughters, Billie Beatrice, 15, and Georgia Geraldine, 13, and he said he plans to be around to watch them grow. I wanna ring every bell, he told California congressman Eric Swalwell in a TikTok video on Sept. 29. I have two daughters at home. I wanna see them graduate college, get married, maybe have grandkids. I wanna be there for all that, he added. So, Im going to fight until the last breath on this one. Dane, 52, spoke with Swalwell in Washington, D.C. about funding for ALS research, according to E!News. Dane first addressed his diagnosis back in April. I am grateful to have my loving family by my side as we navigate this chapter, he told People Magazine then. I feel fortunate that I am able to continue working and am looking forward to returning to Euphoria next week, he added. I kindly ask that you give my family and I privacy during this time. There is no cure for ALS, which is also called Lou Gehrigs Disease. Its a degenerative disease that affects the brain and spine causing patients to gradually lose the ability to speak, eat, walk and breathe on their own, PEOPLE reported. The life expectancy is typically three-to-five years. Dane has a long list of credits outside of Euphoria. He appeared in 139 episodes of Greys Anatomy as Dr. Mark Sloan, and has a number of movie credits to his name, too. Abuelos Mexican Restaurant announced a major restructuring after filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, reducing its footprint to 16 locations nationwide. Craig F. Walker/Getty Images It once had 40 stores across the U.S., but it is now down to just 16 locations. And as a result, the restaurant chain filed for bankruptcy. Abuelos a Mexican eatery that has been around for 36 years and is owned by Food Concepts International quietly made a filing in a U.S. Bankruptcy Court located in the Northern District of Texas recently. The chain cites sales declines, rising costs, staffing challenges and changing consumer preferences. It also listed both debts and liabilities of between $10 million and $50 million. Meanwhile, Food Concepts International also filed for bankruptcy in early September, and the two companies have asked the court to combine their cases. This decision is a part of a strategic reconstructing process to strengthen our long-term financial position, Abuelos said in a statement obtained by Restaurant Business. We will continue normal operations and remain committed to maintaining stability for our employees, vendors and customers. Through this time, our loyal customers can join us and expect the same quality and hospitality as weve always provided. Per FSR Magazine, the chain has found itself struggling for several years as the challenges began in 2023, with traffic dropping 5.9% that year and persisting into 2024. To solve the issue of the decrease in sales, Abuelos closed underperforming stores and slashed overhead costs. Abuelos currently operates stores across Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Kansas, Oklahoma, South Carolina and Texas. A lot of times, the unexplained goes unexplained. But in the eyes of a Kentucky woman, she chalks it up to the involvement of a higher power as she believes her baby has been blessed by the hand of God after a strange object appeared in her ultrasound. The 32-week scan appeared to show a large hand caressing the head of the unborn baby in the mothers womb. The visible answer to her prayers happened to Amanda Foster, 33, who was eight months pregnant with a boy. She shared her story earlier this year, and she has asked the Lord repeatedly to please keep his hand on my baby before every appointment after he was diagnosed with a heart condition early in the pregnancy. There was a problem with the wall that separates parts of the heart near the aorta, which is the large artery that carries blood from the heart to the body and can be life threatening. The divine sign captured in the image made its rounds online and went viral. Foster and her husband Kyle believe that it was God protecting their son after the diagnosis was given, and people are agreeing with the couple, calling the ultrasound amazing and a miracle. Others have suggested that its the unborn babys hand, enlarged and distorted during the ultrasound. We prayed and prayed along with several others. When we followed up with a specialist, it was gone, Foster shared on Facebook. I have been so thankful that Ive begun to pray before every appointment. This is after the Fosters suffered a tragic loss. Amanda Foster was pregnant with her first son, who was diagnosed at 18 weeks with Potter syndrome a condition that happens when the babys kidneys dont develop properly or are missing. The condition hinders lung development and restricts the babys position in the womb, causing a flattened face, low-set ears, and limb deformities. Due to these issues, Potter syndrome is considered a terminal diagnosis and Foster lost her first child. My thought at that time was, Well, if God is going to take my son, He will take me too! Foster shared, per the Daily Mail. It didnt work out that way, and I developed a deep resentment and anger toward God. If that wasnt enough, I was later told it was very unlikely I would ever have a healthy baby boy since Potters syndrome is more common in males. Fortunately, the couple went on to welcome two healthy girls. Glad that she was a mother, Foster never got through her trauma and admitted that she was drowning in anger, pain, mind chaos and torture. I never doubted that God wasnt real, I just didnt want anything to do with Him because of what He had done to me, Foster shared I lived a very chaotic and miserable life for a while. I had finally given up. I was tired and completely broken when I turned my life over to Jesus Christ in September of 2021. That was when her life changed drastically because by November, she was pregnant. In March of 2022, I found out he was a boy and that he was healthy! He is now two, almost three! Fast forward to now, I found out I was pregnant with another baby boy, and this pregnancy has had its ups and downs, she said. Foster took her youngest daughter, Bailey, along to the ultrasound with her and she was the one to point out the giant hand over her baby brothers face. Thinking about [the ultrasound] more and more brought me to tears and filled me with gratitude for all God has and continues to do for me, Foster shared. The company was accused by a class action lawsuit filed in July of sending people unsolicited commercial texts. (Getty Images) Getty Images If youre a Cash App user, heres something you should know. A recent settlement might entitle you to some mulah. The International Business Times reports how the company is at the center of a lawsuit (not for the first time, mind you) that it sent people unsolicited commercial texts as part of its marketing strategy. Top Class Actions adds that Cash App was accused by a class action lawsuit filed in Washington federal court in July of incentivizing users to send pre-filled text messages to their contacts without obtaining the recipients consent. An example of one such message was Hey! Ive been using Cash App to send money and spend using the Cash Card. Try it using my code and youll get $5. International Business Times notes that Cash App was accused of breaching the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) through their actions. The platform eventually agreed to.a $12.5 million settlement, but has not admitted to any wrongdoing. Under the terms of the settlement, according to Top Class Actions, affected Cash App users in Washington can get between $88 and $147. Anyone who received a Cash App referral program text between Nov. 14, 2019, and Aug. 7, 2025, is eligible for a payout. The final approval hearing for this latest Cash App settlement is set for Tuesday, Dec. 2. As for the deadline for submitting a claim, that would be Saturday, Oct. 27. To learn more about this settlement and to submit a claim if you think you have been affected please click here. WILLIAMSPORT A Florida man has admitted extorting a female student at the Penn State Berks Campus into sending him explicit pictures of herself. Allen Liam Blaney, 21, entered a conditional guilty plea Friday in U.S. Middle District Court to charges of interstate communications with intent to extort and distribution of child pornography. The plea is conditional because Blaney has the right to withdraw it if Judge Matthew W. Brann does not impose the sentence of 24 to 46 months followed by 10 years of supervised release negotiated by the parties. Blaney, a naturalized U.S. citizen born in Panama, remains free with conditions pending sentencing. Assistant U.S. Attorney Geoffrey W. MacArthur, in reviewing the governments evidence against Blaney, said the girl had sent him explicit pictures of herself prior when she was 15. In October 2022 when she was 20 she sent him more pictures in response a series of SnapChat text messages in which he threatened to injure her reputation, he said. She reported the incident to Penn State which in turn notified the FBI, he said. Blaney confessed to authorities during a search of his residence in the Orlando area, the prosecutor said. Recovered during that search were 96 images and videos of child pornography but they were not all of the girl, he said. Blaney, a college student in Florida, told the judge he takes medicine for depression and anxiety. April Knott, 63, was prescribed an opioid to take at WellSpan Chambersburg in November 2023. Knott had a medical history of sensitivity to opioids, and later died from an overdose, according to a lawsuit filed by her surviving husband. The husband of a Maryland woman with a documented history of sensitivity to opioids is suing WellSpan Health for ignoring that history and placing her on medication that ended up killing her, a federal lawsuit claims. April Knott, 63, of Sabillasville, Maryland, suffered an opioid overdose and died November 14, 2023 a week after she had been admitted to WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital for rehab. Her husband and administrator of her estate, Christopher Knott, is now suing the doctor who prescribed her the opioids, Stanton Sollenberger, as well as the hospital, WellSpan Health and WellSpan Medical Group under negligence claims. Hes also bringing claims under the wrongful death act and survival act against the defendants. Hes asking the court to grant him unspecified damages. Knott fell at home Oct. 27 and suffered a pelvic fracture, and eventually developed a urinary tract infection. After receiving treatment at WellSpan York Hospital, she was discharged and received inpatient rehab at WellSpan Chambersburg Hospital. While at Chambersburg Hospital, the lawsuit accuses Stanton Sollenberger of ordering Knott on Nov. 7 to take dilaudid suppository, an opioid; and Methocarbamol and Flexeril, muscle relaxers. Sollenberger noted Knott had a past of severe vomiting from opioid medications Morphine and Percocet, which Sollenberger documented. Medical staff did not increase monitoring of Knotts condition after At midnight, Knott began coughing and at 3:45 a.m., a nurse found her to be lethargic, disoriented and low in oxygen. She also had vomit on her gown. Nurses began giving her Narcan, an opioid antidote, and although she became more alert, she complained of chest pain. Over the next several days, Knott required routine Narcan doses to even communicate. She eventually suffered heart failure and died Nov. 14, according to the lawsuit. A spokesperson for WellSpan declined to comment on this story as a matter of company police toward ongoing litigation. WILLIAMSPORT A veteran state police sergeant is accusing the department of discriminating against white men in promotions. Daryl Jay Ellias Sr., 43, who has been a trooper since 2003, makes the allegation in a race and gender discrimination suit filed Tuesday in U.S. Middle District Court. He contends since the state police in the 1970s resolved a discrimination suit, the department overcorrected and now discriminates against white men. A state police spokesperson said the department denies the allegations. Elias, who is assigned to Troop P headquartered in Wilkes-Barre, cites several female troopers who he claims were promoted over while men who had more time in rank. He singles out the woman who was in charge of the station in Butler County in July 2024 when the attempted assassination of then-candidate Donald Trump occurred. Elias does not name the individual he claims received two undeserved promotions under the departments diversity, equity and inclusion policy prior to the assassination attempt. She received another promotion after the incident despite what he contends was a blunder when she turned down offers of resources for the Trump rally from two neighboring troops. White men like himself received no discretionary promotions over the time span she received three, Elias complaint states. Promotions from corporal to sergeant require a merit-based examination but promotions to lieutenant and above are at the discretion of the commissioner. His suit also cites a female sergeant he claims was promoted after she returned from suspension for engaging in vendor fraud. Elias claims he repeatedly was denied promotion. Elias, who has been a sergeant for more than eight years and was assigned to the departments Bureau of Forensic Services for 15 years, includes in his suit the commendations he has received. In November 2022 while stationed at the Wyoming crime lab, he said he asked Capt. Gary Mrochko, then director of the Bureau of Forensic Services, about the promotion process. This is what Elias suit says was the response: Well youre white, youre the most discriminated class and added, youre a white male, youre not getting promoted here. He also quotes Mrochko as saying the state police operates under a racist system. Elias also quotes Lt. Kelly Lentz, then assistant director of the bureau and its designated equal employment opportunity liaison, as saying he believed the only reason he was promoted was his first name was mistaken for a female. Told by Lentz he might be eligible for promotion if he obtained command experience, he transferred out of the lab and served as a station commander at Laporte and Shickshinny stations in Troop P. He still was bypassed for promotion to lieutenant in favor of individuals with less experience and time in grade, his complaint points out. Elias cites four occasions when women were promoted to lieutenant, while he and other white male sergeants with more time in rank were repeatedly bypassed. When he filed an internal equal employment complaint alleging race and sex discrimination he claims he was told he could not do so because as a white male he was not a member of a protected class. State police limited its investigation of his complaint to himself and one colonel, Elias claims. Witnesses he identified were not interviewed, he says. He then filed complaints with the Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission and the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and received notice he had the right to sue. Elias contends the state police discriminatory promotion practices have denied him an equal opportunity for advancement, reduced his career earnings and harmed his retirement prospects. He is seeking a declaration the state police violated Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and an order requiring his promotion to lieutenant or awarding front pay in lieu pf promotion. He also wants back pay, lost benefits and seniority adjustments he would have received except for the state polices alleged unlawful conduct. The suit focuses on women Elias claims were promoted despite having less time in rank than him, mentioning only in general he was including other races, too. Editors note: This column has been updated to state National Guard, not federalized, troops fired on Kent State students, killing four. By Mark S. Singel When President Trump ordered the National Guard to Chicago, he broadened his invasion of urban areas from Washington D.C. and Los Angeles into the Midwest. He also shifted troops as he set his sights on Portland, Ore. In each case, the state and local officials have stood firm in their response that the incursion of federalized soldiers is unnecessary and provocative. Gov. J.B. Pritzker of Illinois has taken a lead role in this battle with what one news outlet characterized as one of uncompromising resistance. For that, the President of the United States has threatened to arrest him. Come and get me, Pritzker responded. The premise for Trumps military actions is that protestors are endangering the troops who are enforcing his immigrant deportation policies. He uses language like Portland is a hellhole that is burning to the ground. For the record, protests in Portland have been confined to a one block area in the city that houses the Federal Building. Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson tried their best to assure the president that the protests in Portland were orderly and under control by local law enforcement. Wilson released a statement that said: I continue to maintain that the tactics used by federal agents at the ICE facility are troubling and likely unconstitutional. In terms of recent rhetoric, we still do not know what full force against Portland means, or how the administration plans to use our city as a military training ground. Democratic leaders are pointing out that the deportation policies of the Trump administration are cruel and dangerous. The mandate coming from the White House that troops round up 3,000 aliens per day is not only unconstitutional, it is impossible. Most of the targets of this purge are law-abiding citizens and the maniacal effort to meet the deportation quota is separating children from their families, taking people away from their jobs and tossing them into bleak detention centers. The lack of due process and the violation of individual rights is staggering. Still, Trumps troops storm into big cities with impunity and Trump himself has raised the temperature by threatening his opponents. Governors and mayors are looking to their own enforcement resources to protect their cities from their own federal government. We have been here before. At the height of the Viet Nam war, National Guard troops fired on students at Kent State University. On May 4, 1970, four students at the university were shot and killed. Life magazine ran a picture of Mary Ann Vecchio kneeling over the dead body of a student named Jeffrey Miller. Songwriter Neil Young saw that photo and recorded what became the anthem of the anti-war movement. The song Ohio dared to call out the president by name and lay the blame for the killings right where it belonged: the federal government. Tin soldiers and Nixon coming, Were finally on our own. This summer I hear the drumming Four dead in Ohio. The fact is that America is teetering on the edge of violence in our streets. It is a situation driven by bad public policy and distortions of reality. Like songwriters in the 1970s, citizens have a right and a responsibility to call out the government when it is wrong. The judicial branch today has a critical duty of maintaining constraints on a Chief Executive who is overstepping his authority. The showdown will either occur in federal courts or on the streets of our cities. Mayor Keith Wilson of Portland has a suggestion for a more productive use of federal resources. We continue to ask the federal government for engineers for roads and bridges, funding for schools, and resources for our healthcare system. Portland continues to manage public safety professionally and responsibly, irrespective of the claims of out-of-state social media influencers. In addition to the direct threat to the viability of our major cities, we are at a turning point in the crucial question of whether the Constitution will prevail. The sacred concept of free speech may be at risk. The notion of due process is already being shredded. The executive branch is trampling on the Constitution as clearly as its tin soldiers are marching into Los Angeles, Chicago, and Portland. Wars are raging around the world, but the recklessness of Trumps bravado may be heading to bloodshed on our own streets. Mark Singel is a former Lieutenant Governor and former Acting Governor of Pennsylvania. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis meet the press in Bellinzona, Switzerland, Oct. 10, 2025. (Xinhua/Lian Yi) BELLINZONA, Switzerland, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday outlined here China's positions on the first-phase ceasefire and prisoner swap agreement reached between Israel and Hamas, during a joint press conference with Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said that China welcomes all efforts aimed at restoring peace and saving lives, adding that the humanitarian disaster in Gaza is a stain on the 21st century and that human conscience must be awakened. The international community should work together to achieve a genuine, comprehensive and lasting ceasefire, effectively alleviate the humanitarian crisis, and restore stability in the region, Wang said. The principle of "the Palestinians governing Palestine," a consensus reached by the international community, must be upheld, and any arrangements regarding Gaza's future should respect the will of the Palestinian people, Wang said. The long-term direction of the two-state solution must remain unwavering, as only an independent Palestinian state that secures its legitimate national rights can eliminate historical injustices and the roots of violence, thereby achieving lasting peaceful coexistence between Israel and Palestine, Wang added. Wang said China is willing to continue working with the international community, including Switzerland, to make unremitting efforts for lasting peace and security in the Middle East. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, and Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis (not in the picture) meet the press in Bellinzona, Switzerland, Oct. 10, 2025. (Xinhua/Lian Yi) President Donald Trump walks on the South Lawn after arriving on Marine One at the White House, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) AP WASHINGTON President Donald Trump had what he has described as a semiannual physical at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Friday. The visit, which the White House announced earlier this week, comes as Trump is preparing to travel to the Middle East on the heels of a ceasefire deal in the Israel-Hamas war. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt described it as a routine yearly checkup, although Trump had his annual physical in April. Trump left the White House around 10:45 a.m. on Friday and returned to the grounds at 2:15 p.m., which was slightly ahead of schedule. He did not answer questions from reporters upon his arrival, and the White House has not indicated when it would release results or more information about his exams. The White House declined to explain why Trump was getting a yearly checkup at Walter Reed, which is in Bethesda, Maryland, six months after his annual exam. But in an exchange with reporters Thursday, the Republican president said it was a semiannual physical. Im meeting with the troops, and Im also going to do a, sort of, semiannual physical, which I do, Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. I think Im in great shape, but Ill let you know. Trumps April physical found that he was fully fit to serve as commander in chief. The three-page summary of the exam done by his doctor, Navy Capt. Sean Barbabella, said he had lost 20 pounds (9 kilograms) since a medical exam in June 2020 and said he has an active lifestyle that continues to contribute significantly to the well-being of the president, whos 79. In July, the White House announced that Trump had recently undergone a medical checkup after noticing mild swelling in his lower legs and was found to have a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins. Tests by the White House medical unit showed that Trump has chronic venous insufficiency, which occurs when little valves inside the veins that normally help move blood against gravity gradually lose the ability to work properly. At the April physical, Trump also passed a short screening test to assess different brain functions. Presidents have large discretion over what health information they choose to release to the public. Trumps summary from his April exam included information about his weight, body mass index, past surgeries, mental health screenings, cholesterol levels and blood pressure. And when Leavitt discussed the results of his chronic venous insufficiency diagnosis from the briefing room, she noted that the White House was disclosing details of the checkup to dispel rumors about Trumps health. At the time, Trump was frequently observed with bruising on his hand. The Republican president has also repeatedly used the issue of health as a political cudgel. He repeatedly questioned the mental and physical health of his Democratic predecessor, President Joe Biden, and pointed out that he has undergone cognitive testing that Biden hadnt. Biden has brushed aside those criticisms and said he was fit to serve, but he dropped out of the 2024 race for the White House after a disastrous debate with Trump raised doubts about his fitness for office. UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Within minutes of the Gaza ceasefire taking effect, displaced Palestinians resumed movement to the north, UN humanitarians said Friday. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said that Israeli tanks had blocked Al Rashid Road along the coast after people attempted to move north, following word of the ceasefire to be passed. "Some of the people who have already managed to reach Gaza City reported that they arrived back to find their homes had sustained further damage," OCHA said. The office said the world body and its humanitarian partners are ready to immediately scale up the humanitarian response. "After two years of war, the rehabilitation of infrastructure in Gaza is urgently needed to enable recovery," said OCHA, appealing to all leaders backing the ceasefire to help secure the conditions to carry out unimpeded humanitarian operations. The office said that all parties to the conflict must facilitate the rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need. "Aid must flow at scale in order for the UN and its partners to reach everyone in need and alleviate people's suffering," OCHA said. Stephane Dujarric, spokesperson for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said discussions are under way with Israeli authorities to gain clarity on what the United Nations and its partners will be able to bring into Gaza, how much, and through which access points. "What has changed dramatically yesterday to today (Thursday to Friday) is the fact that the guns appear to have been silenced," Dujarric said, adding that now it is safer for humanitarians to operate. "We're working through the system," he said. "We're trying to push. We're trying to get all of that aid that's in the pipeline and that's ready to go in, to go in." UN humanitarians said on Oct. 3 that approximately 170,000 metric tonnes of aid and supplies are in the pipeline. GUKPT Heads to Blackpool for the 2025 Tour's Penultimate Stop Matthew Pitt Senior Editor Copy link The penultimate leg of the 2025 Grosvenor UK Poker Tour (GUKPT) is almost upon us, with hundreds of poker tournament grinders planning to descend on the seaside town of Blackpool. Running from November 1-9 at the Grosvenor G Casino on the South Promenade, the GUKPT Blackpool festival is the penultimate leg of the 2025 GUKPT before the London-based Grand final later in the month. GUKPT Blackpool kicks off on November 1. Although you won't earn any National Poker League (NPL) points for playing it, we urge you to get involved in the ninth edition of the Kav Cup. Rick Gilby created the Kav Cup in honour of the late Derek "Kav" Kavanagh, a hugely popular figure who battled bravely with cancer. Kavanagh sadly passed away in 2017. Since its launch, 2,052 players have played in a Kav Cup and helped raise almost 75,500 in the process. The buy-in is 60 with 20 going to charity, and there's an option to buy another 10,000 starting stack for 40. Grosvenor Casinos is kindly providing dealers for the Kav Cup 9, Phil "The Tower" Heald will be the host throughout the day, and there are many prizes to be won, including a poker table worth almost 1,000 that Andy Booth and Cardroom Direct have donated for the eighth consecutive year. Last year, Karen Tomczak outlasted 249 opponents in Kav Cup 8, and walked away with 3,630. Tomczak and Phil Iddon struck a deal when heads-up, resulting in Iddon collecting a 3,500 consolation prize. Once the Kav Cup 9 crowns its champion and those playing it have slept off their hangovers, GUKPT Blackpool begins. A 250 buy-in, 100,000 guaranteed Mini Main runs November 2-5 followed by a 1,650 buy-in, 50,000 guaranteed High Roller from November 5-6. This year's 1,250 Main Event carries a 250,000 guarantee on its prize pool. The first of three flights starts on November 6, with the champion crowned on November 9. As has been the case for as long as we can remember, the festival wraps up with a two-day, 110 buy-in Online Closer at Grosvenor Poker; this comes with a 20,000 guaranteed prize pool. 2025 GUKPT Blackpool Schedule Date Time Event Guarantee Sat 1 Nov 1:00 p.m. 60 Kav Cup 9 Charity Event 6:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Cashout Satellite 10x seats Sun 2 Nov 12:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 1A 100,000 6:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 1B 100,000 9:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Turbo Cashout Satellite Mon 3 Nov 12:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 1C 100,000 6:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 1D 100,000 9:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Turbo Cashout Satellite Tue 4 Nov 12:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 1E Turbo 100,000 4:00 p.m. 250 Mini Main Day 2 100,000 6:00 p.m. 250 PLO 4-Card 9:00 p.m. 180 High Roller Turbo Cashout Satellite Wed 5 Nov 12:00 p.m. 180 High Roller Turbo Cashout Satellite 3:00 p.m. 1,650 High Roller Day 1 100,000 5:00 p.m. 200 NLHE Turbo 5:00 p.m. Mini Main Day 3 100,000 7:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Cashout Satellite Thu 6 Nov 12:00 p.m. 1,650 High Roller Day 2 100,000 1:00 p.m. 1,250 Main Event Day 1A 250,000 7:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Cashout Satellite Fri 7 Nov 12:00 p.m. 1,250 Main Event Day 1B 250,000 12:00 p.m. 140 Main Event Turbo Cashout Satellite 9:00 p.m. 1,250 Main Event Day 1C Turbo 250,000 Sat 8 Nov 12:00 p.m. 1,250 Main Event Day 2 250,000 1:00 p.m. 550 GUKPT Cup Day 1 50,000 Sun 9 Nov 12:00 p.m. Main Event Day 3 250,000 12:30 p.m. 550 GUKPT Cup Day 2 50,000 1:00 p.m. 150 Seniors (50+) 4:00 p.m. 330 PLO 4 card Bounty Mon 10 Nov 7:00 p.m. 110 Online Closer Day 1 20,000 Tue 11 Nov 7:30 p.m. Online Closer Day 2 20,000 Last year, Abdulkadir Ahmed won the 250 Mini Event, leaving 552 opponents in his wake as he collected a career-best 24,530. Jamie Dale won the 1,650 High Roller for 33,260, with Ravi Sheth triumphing over 298 opponents in the 1,250 Main Event, a result worth 68,580. Expect Sheth to attempt to defend his GUKPT Blackpool title because he can still catch Thomas Clack at the top of the National Poker League and secure a 40,000 sponsorship package for 2026. Former GUKPT Blackpool Main Event Champions Date Buy-in Entrants Prize Pool Champion Prize Nov 2024 1,250 299 314,250 Ravi Sheth 68,580 Mar 2024 1,250 207 250,000 Ludovic Geilich 56,150 Mar 2023 1,250 305 321,081 Lin Chen 65,310 Nov 2023 1,250 347 360,430 Ian Gascoigne 62,198 Nov 2022 1,250 543 597,300 Jamie Clossick 109,000 Nov 2021 1,250 533 574,580 Richard Horton 94,150 Nov 2019 1,110 367 367,000 Matthew Eardley 84,550 Nov 2018 1,110 304 304,000 Yiannis Liperis 84,250 Nov 2017 1,100 314 314,000 Daniel Corbett 87,280 Nov 2016 1,100 251 251,000 Tom Middleton 56,255 Nov 2015 1,090 275 275,000 Jonny Gray 69,050 Nov 2014 1,080 171 200,000 Justin Astley 59,000 Nov 2013 1,070 226 226,000 Richard Trigg 53,000 Nov 2012 1,070 173 173,000 Simon Deadman 49,290 Nov 2011 1,070 262 262,000 Andrew Peters 72,020 Nov 2010 1,070 246 246,000 David Johnson 67,750 Nov 2009 1,060 287 287,000 Priyan de Mel 84,900 Nov 2008 1,060 341 341,000 Brian Clarke 96,500 Nov 2007 1,050 353 353,000 Paul Bracken 109,700 There's the not-so-small matter of getting GUKPT Edinburgh out of the way before the Blackpool leg. Running October 9-19 and featuring 350,000 in guaranteed prize pools. GUKPT Edinburgh will be another well-attended Grosvenor-run series. As always, stay tuned to PokerNews for all the latest GUKPT-related news and results. Share this article Playing the Main Event of a PokerStars European Poker Tour series for the first time can be a daunting affair. Playing with some of the best players in the world for possible life-changing prize money, one can only try their best as they dream of making it to the final table. For Mykhailo Ostash, that dream has become a reality at the 2025 EPT Malta 5,300 Main Event. In his debut at the EPT, previously only having played in his home country of Ukraine, Ostash battled his way through five days of poker to become one of the five players remaining in contention for the 760,000 top prize and the lustrous EPT trophy. Whats even more, he holds the chip lead over his four rivals, ending the penultimate day with 9,870,000 in chips, good for 123 big blinds when play resumes on the final day the day where the biggest prizes of the 4,355,300 prize pool will be awarded. Ostashs debut is far from the only storyline from the final five players left from the 898 entries made at Casino Malta. Most notably, Aliaksei Boika is second in chips and only four eliminations away from defending his title, having won the Main Event when the EPT last took place in Malta in 2016. If Boika manages to hoist the trophy again, he would be added to a legendary list of two-time EPT champions and be the first to win their second trophy at the same location, let alone defend their title. Aliaksei Boika Meanwhile, Tomasz Brzezinski sits in third and has also achieved the incredible feat of making back-to-back final tables, coming fresh off of a fourth-place finish at EPT Barcelona just over a month ago. Adria Calonge cashed in that EPT Barcelona Main Event as well, picking up just over a min-cash on his first time ever doing so. The Spanish player's second in-the-money run has brought him much further, ending the penultimate day fourth in chips with over 44 big blinds in his stack. The short stack of the bunch is experienced Norwegian high roller Tom-Aksel Bedell. Bedell will come into the final day with 1,140,000 chips and will try to spin up his stack and extend his stay at the first-ever final table of an EPT Main Event of his storied career. End of Day 5 Chip Counts Seat Player Country Chip Count Big Blinds 1 Mykhailo Ostash Ukraine 9,870,000 123 2 Aliaksei Boika Belarus 7,035,000 88 3 Adria Calonge Spain 3,525,000 44 4 Tom-Aksel Bedell Norway 1,140,000 14 5 Tomasz Brzezinski Poland 5,380,000 67 Tom-Aksel Bedell Day 5 Action David Tous (15th - 38,950), Alessandro Barone (14th - 38,950), and Maxime Chilaud (12th - 46,750) started Day 5 fairly short, and all were eliminated in preflop confrontations during the first level of the day. Longmao Fan (13th - 46,750) unsuccessfully fired several big bluffs and joined them at the rail before the first break. Spanish powerhouse and 2015 EPT Monte Carlo winner Adrian Mateos (11th - 56,050) had a double encounter with an unstoppable Brzezinski, first doubling him up when Brzezinski was at risk, and, not long after, being eliminated by him after an ill-timed squeeze play. Not much later, Luis Faria (10th - 56,050) bubbled the final table. First, Faria erroneously flipped his hand over preflop, thinking he was calling all in when he was not. Leaving himself a few chips behind, he busted a few hands later, and the final nine players converged on one table. Adrian Mateos The players at the final table battled for three and a half hours, passing chips back and forth, before Joao Tomas was the first to be eliminated in a massive cooler against Boika. After that point, Ostash had taken over the chiplead, and he increased his advantage over the remaining contenders when he sent home Juan Pardo, who four-bet jammed ace-jack into his ace-queen. The remaining seven contenders then took a short dinner break, after which big action kicked off. First, Ben Heath doubled in a flip against Bedell, leaving the latter short. However, two hands later, Brzezinski flopped quad aces and doubled against Heaths kings for a chiplead pot, leaving Heath with even fewer chips than Bedell. Not to be outdone, Ostash took back the lead swiftly, flopping top set against the top pair of Brzezinski. Boika busted Heath in seventh, with Heath earning the first six-figure payout of the Main Event, taking home 118,650. After Bedell doubled, short stack ninja Toni Kaukua became the final elimination of the night, pay-jumping his way to sixth place, good for 154,250. Toni Kaukua The five remaining players battled for a little while longer before they bagged for the night. They will return tomorrow, Sunday, October 12, at 12:30 p.m. local time to crown the winner of the 2025 EPT Malta Main Event. There will be 15 hands left to play with blinds at 40,000/80,000 (80,000), after which every level will be played for 30 hands. They have locked up the eye-watering sum of 200,550 for their top-five appearance, but with four- and five-figure pay jumps coming up, there is everything left to play for. Final Table Results & Remaining Payouts Place Player Country Payout 1 760,000 2 474,650 3 339,000 4 260,750 5 200,550 6 Toni Kaukua Finland 154,250 7 Ben Heath United Kingdom 118,650 8 Juan Pardo Spain 91,250 9 Joao Tomas Portugal 70,250 PokerNews will be back on Day 6 for the thrilling finale of the 2025 EPT Malta Main Event, so be sure to tune back in to find out whose dream run will culminate in lifting the prestigious European Poker Tour trophy. Tony Kukulich is an editor/reporter working in the Beaufort County bureau. Turning to journalism as a second career, he started as a photojournalist in the San Francisco Bay Area. After moving to Bluffton in 2021, he wrote for several area publications before joining The Post and Courier the following year. SAO PAULO, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Disagreements between Brazil and the United States should be resolved through dialogue and mutual respect, President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Friday, noting that Brazil "can't depend on one country or on one president's mood." "People only respect you if you respect yourself. Anyone who thinks that bootlicking helps is wrong," Lula said here at an event. In late July, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order imposing an additional 40 percent tariff on Brazilian goods, raising the total tariff to 50 percent on most Brazilian products. Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira spoke by phone on Thursday with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. Both sides agreed to continue discussions on bilateral trade and economic issues, following a phone conversation on Monday between Lula and Trump, during which the Brazilian leader called for the removal of U.S. tariffs on Brazilian products and the lifting of sanctions, including visa revocations affecting Brazilian officials. PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 16:01:43 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 302 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 11, 2025 / Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Skillz Inc. ("Skillz" or the "Company") (NYSE:SKLZ). Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@ pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980, ext. 7980.The investigation concerns whether Skillz 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 September 2, 2025, Skillz disclosed in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that Tether Studios and its affiliate Tether Games (together, "Tether") plan to terminate all agreements with Skillz, effective September 1, 2025. Under the agreements, Skillz has licensed its software to Tether for use in monetizing Tether's games. In return, both companies share the revenue from user entry fees. After receiving the notice, Skillz filed a lawsuit on September 1, 2025, seeking to block Tether's termination of their agreements. Skillz is also disputing Tether's reasons for ending the deal.On this news, Skillz's stock price fell $1.50 per share, or 17.22%, to close at $7.21 per share on September 3, 2025.The Pomerantz Firm, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, and Paris 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, the Pomerantz Firm pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 80 years later, the Pomerantz Firm 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 numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomerantzlaw.com Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 17:00:39 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 936 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 11, 2025 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Fluor Corporation ("Fluor" or the "Company") (NYSE:FLR) and certain officers. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas, Dallas Division, and docketed under 25-cv-02496, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Fluor securities between February 18, 2025 and July 31, 2025, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, against the Company and certain of its top officials.If you are an investor who purchased or otherwise acquired Fluor securities during the Class Period, you have until November 14, 2025, to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com . To discuss this action, contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@ pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.[Click here for information about joining the class action]Fluor provides engineering, procurement, and construction ("EPC"), fabrication and modularization, and project management services worldwide. The Company operates through three segments: Urban Solutions, Energy Solutions, and Mission Solutions.Throughout 2024 and the first quarter of 2025, Fluor's Urban Solutions segment accounted for the largest portion of the Company's revenue and profit. The Urban Solutions segment offers EPC and project management services to the advanced technologies and manufacturing, life sciences, mining and metals, and infrastructure industries, as well as provides professional staffing services. The Company's infrastructure projects in this segment include work on, inter alia, the Gordie Howe International Bridge ("Gordie Howe"), as well as the Interstate 365 Lyndon B. Johnson ("I-635/LBJ") and Interstate 35E ("I-35") highways in Texas.In February 2025, Fluor provided financial guidance for the full year ("FY") of 2025, including adjusted EBITDA of $575 million to $675 million and adjusted earnings per share ("EPS") of $2.25 per share to $2.75 per share. Defendants reaffirmed the foregoing financial guidance in May 2025, notwithstanding their acknowledgement of the potential negative impacts of ongoing economic uncertainty on Fluor's business resulting from trade tensions and other market conditions. Contemporaneously, Defendants touted, inter alia, the purported health and stability of Fluor's and its customers' operations and the strength of the Company's risk mitigation strategy, both for itself and its clients.The Complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding Fluor's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) costs associated with the Gordie Howe, I-635/LBJ, and I-35 projects were growing because of, inter alia, subcontractor design errors, price increases, and scheduling delays; (ii) the foregoing, as well as customer reduction in capital spending and client hesitation around economic uncertainty, was having, or was likely to have, a significant negative impact on the Company's business and financial results; (iv) accordingly, Fluor's financial guidance for FY 2025 was unreliable and/or unrealistic, the effectiveness of the Company's risk mitigation strategy was overstated, and the impact of economic uncertainty on the Company's business and financial results was understated; and (v) as a result, Defendants' public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.On August 1, 2025, Fluor issued a press release reporting its financial results for the second quarter ("Q2") of 2025. Among other results, the press release reported Q2 non-GAAP EPS of $0.43, missing consensus estimates by $0.13, and revenue of $3.98 billion, representing a 5.9% year-over-year decline and missing consensus estimates by $570 million. Defendants blamed these disappointing results on, inter alia, growing costs in multiple infrastructure projects due to subcontractor design errors, price increases, and scheduling delays, as well as reduced capital spending by customers. The same press release also provided a negatively revised financial outlook for FY 2025, guiding to adjusted EBITDA of $475 million to $525 million, down significantly from Defendants' prior guidance of $575 million to $675 million, and adjusted EPS of $1.95 per share to $2.15 per share, down significantly from Defendants' prior guidance of $2.25 per share to $2.75 per share, citing "client hesitation around economic uncertainty and its impact on new awards and project delays and results for the quarter[.]"The same day, Fluor hosted a conference call with investors and analysts to discuss the Company's Q2 2025 financial results. During that call, the Company's Chief Executive Officer, Defendant James R. Breuer, disclosed that the infrastructure projects that had negatively impacted Fluor's Q2 2025 results were the Gordie Howe, I-635/LBJ, and I-35 projects.Following the foregoing disclosures, Fluor's stock price fell $15.35 per share, or 27.04%, to close at $41.42 per share on August 1, 2025.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 China to impose special port service fee on US-linked vessels by law: Ministry of Transport Global Times) 09:39, October 11, 2025 China announced on Friday a special port service fee for vessels linked to the US, in response to the its move to impose additional port service fees on vessels owned or operated by Chinese enterprises. The fee will take effect starting October 14. According to a notice released by China's Ministry of Transport (MOT) on Friday, China will impose, in accordance with laws and regulations, a special port service fee on vessels linked to the US, including those owned or operated by US entities or individuals, those with 25 percent or more US ownership or control, those flying the US flag, and those built in the US. Moreover, if a vessel calls at multiple Chinese ports on the same voyage, the special port service fee will only be charged at the first port of call, and subsequent ports will not charge the fee. For the same vessel, the fee will not be charged for more than five voyages within one year, according to the notice. The maritime authority at the port of call will collect the fee, the MOT said on Friday's notice. For the corresponding vessels, a special port service fee will be charged per voyage in phases, according to the MOT. For vessels berthing at Chinese ports starting October 14, the fee will be 400 yuan ($56) per net ton; starting April 17, 2026, it will be 640 yuan per net ton; starting April 17, 2027, it will be 880 yuan per net ton; and starting April 17, 2028, it will be 1,120 yuan per net ton. For shipments of less than one net ton, the fee will be calculated as one net ton. The decision was made in response to the measures announced by the Office of the US Trade Representative on April 17, which, starting October 14, will impose additional port service fees on vessels owned or operated by Chinese enterprises, Chinese-flagged vessels, and vessels built in China. Such actions seriously violate the principles of international trade and the maritime agreement between China and the US, causing significant disruption to bilateral maritime trade, said the MOT. Responding to a media inquiry regarding the rationale behind China's announcement to impose a special port service fee on US vessels, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Transport said on Friday that the US actions ignore the facts, fully revealing their unilateralist and protectionist nature, carry clear discriminatory elements, seriously harm the legitimate interests of China's shipping industry, severely disrupt global supply chain stability, and significantly undermine the international economic and trade order. In response, China will lawfully take firm countermeasures against the US' wrongful actions, promote the establishment of a fair and just international maritime market order, and safeguard the security and stability of global logistics supply chain, the spokesperson said. According to China's regulations on international maritime transport, the MOT has issued the "Announcement on the Collection of Special Port Service Fees from US-Related Vessels," deciding to charge the fee starting October 14. "This is a legitimate measure to protect the lawful rights and interests of Chinese shipping companies," said the MOT spokesperson, urging the US to immediately correct its wrongful actions and cease its unreasonable suppression of China's shipping industry. Responding to a media inquiry regarding the notice issued by the MOT on countermeasures against the US Section 301 investigation and restrictive measures targeting China's maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) said on Friday that the US move is a typical act of unilateralism with clear discriminatory intent and has seriously undermined the interests of Chinese enterprises. The spokesperson said China expresses strong dissatisfaction and reiterates its firm opposition to such actions. To safeguard the interests of domestic industries, relevant Chinese authorities, in accordance with China's regulations on international maritime transport and other related provisions, will impose a special port service fee on vessels involving US elements including those flying the US flag, built in the US, or owned, invested in, or operated by US companies, the MOFCOM spokesperson said. The measure will take effect on October 14, coinciding with the implementation of the US port fee measure against China-related vessels, the spokesperson said. China stressed that the countermeasure aims to uphold fair competition in the global shipping and shipbuilding markets and constitutes a "legitimate act of self-defense," the MOFCOM spokesperson said, urging the US to act prudently, correct its wrong approach, and work with China to find a solution through equality-based consultation and cooperation. "This measure by the Chinese side aims to protect Chinese enterprises from unfair competition in the international market... It is not what we hoped for, but it is a law-based and reasonable response to safeguard their legitimate interests," Zhou Mi, a senior research fellow at the Chinese Academy of International Trade and Economic Cooperation, told the Global Times on Friday. Zhou noted that the US move will cause widespread harm, particularly to itself. "As a major trading nation, many of its imports will be affected, and efforts to raise government revenue this way will only drive up supply chain costs, hurting the US economy in both the short and long terms while undermining global trade stability," Zhou said. Commenting on the US move, He Weiwen, a senior fellow at the Center for China and Globalization, also told Global Times on Friday that the US' measures are absurd, as they arbitrarily increase shipping costs and disrupt normal international trade. "Therefore, China must respond with countermeasures, and the resulting consequences are naturally the responsibility of the US side," the expert said. He also urged the US to promptly revoke the port docking fee on Chinese vessels and reduce the damage caused to normal trade between Chinese and American enterprises. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) UNITED NATIONS, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will travel to Egypt to attend the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit for Peace on Monday, the Office of the Spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General said on Saturday. "The Secretary-General is traveling to Egypt to attend on Monday the Sharm el-Sheikh Summit for Peace. He is expected back at UN Headquarters on Wednesday," the office said in a brief note to correspondents. The summit will be held in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday to finalize an agreement aimed at ending the war in Gaza, the Egyptian Presidency announced Saturday. The meeting, to be co-chaired by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi and U.S. President Donald Trump, will bring together leaders from more than 20 countries to seek an end to the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance efforts to bring peace and stability to the Middle East, and usher in a new phase of regional security and stability, according to the Egyptian Presidency. PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 19:00:18 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 924 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 11, 2025 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Dow Inc. ("Dow" or the "Company") (NYSE:DOW) and certain officers. The class action, filed in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Northern Division, and docketed under 25-cv-12744, is on behalf of a class consisting of all persons and entities other than Defendants that purchased or otherwise acquired Dow securities between January 30, 2025 and July 23, 2025, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), seeking to recover damages caused by Defendants' violations of the federal securities laws and to pursue remedies under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, against the Company and certain of its top officials.If you are an investor who purchased or otherwise acquired Dow securities during the Class Period, you have until October 28, 2025, to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class. A copy of the Complaint can be obtained at www.pomerantzlaw.com . To discuss this action, contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@ pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980 (or 888.4-POMLAW), toll-free, Ext. 7980. Those who inquire by e-mail are encouraged to include their mailing address, telephone number, and the number of shares purchased.[Click here for information about joining the class action]Dow is an American materials science company, serving customers in the packaging, infrastructure, mobility, and consumer applications industries. Dow conducts its worldwide operations through six global businesses organized into three operating segments: (i) Packaging & Specialty Plastics, (ii) Industrial Intermediates & Infrastructure, and (iii) Performance Materials & Coatings.Historically, Dow has touted its "industry-leading dividend," which is of particular importance to investors. On conference calls with investors and analysts, Dow's Chief Executive Officer, Defendant Jim Fitterling ("Fitterling"), has variously stated that the Company's "dividend is a key element of our investment thesis," and that "north of 65% of our owners count on that dividend." Notwithstanding an ongoing slump in the materials science industry, as well as the recent onset of tariff-related market uncertainties, at all relevant times, Defendants represented that Dow was well positioned to weather macroeconomic and tariff-related headwinds while maintaining sufficient levels of financial flexibility to support the Company's lucrative dividend. Specifically, Defendants cited various purported strengths and advantages unique to Dow in its industry, including, inter alia, the Company's purported "differentiated portfolio," "cost-advantaged footprint," and "industry-leading flexibility to navigate global trade dynamics." Throughout the Class Period, Defendants made materially false and misleading statements regarding Dow's business, operations, and prospects. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) Dow's ability to mitigate macroeconomic and tariff-related headwinds, as well as to maintain the financial flexibility needed to support its lucrative dividend, was overstated; (ii) the true scope and severity of the foregoing headwinds' negative impacts on Dow's business and financial condition was understated, particularly with respect to competitive and pricing pressures, softening global sales and demand for the Company's products, and an oversupply of products in the Company's global markets; and (iii) as a result, Defendants' public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant times.On June 23, 2025, BMO Capital downgraded its recommendation on Dow to "Underperform" from "Market Perform" while also cutting its price target on the Company's stock to $22.00 per share from $29.00 per share, citing sustained weakness across key end markets and mounting pressure on the Company's dividend.On this news, Dow's stock price fell $0.89 per share, or 3.21%, to close at $26.87 per share on June 23, 2025.Then, on July 24, 2025, Dow issued a press release reporting its financial results for the second quarter of 2025. Therein, Dow reported a non-GAAPloss per share of $0.42, significantly larger than the approximate $0.17 to $0.18 per share loss expected by analysts. Dow also reported net sales of $10.1 billion, representing a 7.3% year-over-year decline and missing consensus estimates by $130 million, "reflecting declines in all operating segments." The Company further reported, inter alia, that "[s]equentially, net sales were down 3%, as seasonally higher demand in Performance Materials & Coatings was more than offset by declines across the other operating segments." Defendant Fitterling blamed these disappointing results on "the lower-for-longer earnings environment that our industry is facing, amplified by recent trade and tariff uncertainties," while providing a dour outlook marked by "signs of oversupply from newer market entrants who are exporting to various regions at anti-competitive economics." In a separate press release issued the same day, Dow revealed that it was cutting its dividend in half, from $0.70 per share to only $0.35 per share, citing the need for "financial flexibility amidst a persistently challenging macroeconomic environment." Following these disclosures, Dow's stock price fell $5.30 per share, or 17.45%, to close at $25.07 per share on July 24, 2025.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 PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 17:01:40 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 592 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 11, 2025 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Molina Healthcare, Inc. ("Molina" or the "Company") (NYSE:MOH). 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 Molina and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.You have until December 2, 2025, to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class if you purchased or otherwise acquired Molina 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 July 7, 2025, Molina issued a press release announcing financial results for the second quarter of 2025 and slashing full year 2025 adjusted earnings per share guidance. The press release reported second quarter 2025 adjusted earnings of approximately $5.50 per share, which was "below . . . prior expectations" due to "medical cost pressures in all three lines of business." The Company also announced that it "expects these medical cost pressures to continue into the second half of the year" and cut guidance for expected adjusted earnings per share 10.2% at the midpoint, from "at least $24.50 per share" to a "range of $21.50 to $22.50 per share." The press release revealed Molina was experiencing a "short-term earnings pressure" from a "dislocation between premium rates and a medical cost trend which has recently accelerated." On this news, Molina's stock price fell $6.97 per share, or 2.9%, to close at $232.61 per share on July 7, 2025.Then, on July 23, 2025, Molina issued a press release reporting its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2025 and further slashing the Company's full-year 2025 earnings guidance. The press release revealed, in part, that the Company's "GAAP net income was $4.75 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2025, a decrease of 8% year over year;" and it "now expects its full year 2025 adjusted earnings to be no less than $19.00 per diluted share." This represented another 13.6% cut to guidance of earnings per share at the midpoint, from the cut to guidance announced less than two weeks earlier. Molina also cut its guidance for its full year 2025 GAAP net income 27% to $912 million. Molina attributed its results a full year outlook to a "challenging medical cost trend environment," including mere "utilization of behavioral health, pharmacy, and inpatient and outpatient services." The Company claimed that its guidance cut also reflected "new information gained in the quarterly closing process." On this news, Molina's stock price fell $32.03 per share, or 16.84%, to close at $158.22 per share on July 24, 2025.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 numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 17:01:23 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 436 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 11, 2025 / Pomerantz LLP announces that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Quanex Building Products Corporation ("Quanex" or the "Company") (NYSE:NX). 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 Quanex and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.You have until November 18, 2025 to ask the Court to appoint you as Lead Plaintiff for the class if you purchased or otherwise acquired Quanex 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 September 4, 2025, after the market closed, Quanex announced its financial results for the third quarter of its 2025 fiscal year. Quanex disclosed, among other things, that ongoing "operational issues related to the legacy Tyman window and door hardware business in Mexico" had "impacted results more than expected[.]" Quanex also disclosed that it was "adjusting for lower expected volumes and pushing oug the timing of when [it] expect[s] to realize procurement savings" from integration of the Tyman business. Then, on September 5, 2025, Quanex held an earnings call to discuss the quarter's financial results. During the call, Chief Executive Officer George Wilson explained that the operational challenges at Tyman "negatively impacted EBITDA in the Hardware Solutions segment by almost $5 million in the third quarter alone." Wilson explained that the issue had been "identified midyear" and described the systems used to "anticipate and plan for tooling repairs" as significantly deficient.On this news, Quanex's stock price fell $2.73 per share, or 13.06%, to close at $18.18 per share on September 5, 2025.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 numerous multimillion-dollar damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.SOURCE: Pomerantz LLP PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 01:00:13 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 326 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESS Newswire / October 10, 2025 /WHY: Rosen Law Firm, a global investor rights law firm, continues to investigate potential breaches of fiduciary duties by the directors and officers of Edwards Lifesciences Corporation (NYSE:EW).SO WHAT: If you currently own shares of Edwards stock, please visit the firm's website at https://rosenlegal.com/submit-form/?case_id=29704 for more information. You may also contact Phillip Kim of Rosen Law Firm toll free at 866-767-3653 or via email at case@ rosenlegal.com 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 achieved the largest ever securities class action settlement against a Chinese Company at the time. 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 firm's 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 FloorNew York, NY 10016Tel: (212) 686-1060Toll Free: (866) 767-3653Fax: (212) 202-3827 case@ rosenlegal.comwww.rosenlegal.com SOURCE: The Rosen Law Firm, P.A. PR-Inside.com: 2025-10-11 00:50:07 Press Information Published by ACCESSWIRE News Network 888.952.4446 e-mail http://www.accesswire.com # 1042 Words ACCESSWIRE News Network888.952.4446 Not for Distribution to U.S. Newswire Services or for Dissemination in the United StatesMIRAMICHI, NB / ACCESS Newswire / October 10, 2025 /SLAM Exploration Ltd. (TSXV:SXL) ("SLAM" or the "Company")is pleased to announce that is has raised gross proceeds of $211,000 from closing the second and final tranche of the previously announced non-brokered private placement (the "Offering") through the issuance of 527,500 units ("Units") issued at a price of $0.40 per Unit.Under both tranches of the Offering, the Company raised aggregate proceeds of $900,000 through the issuance of an aggregate of 2,302,750 Units.Each Unit consisted of:four (4) flow-through common shares (the "FT Shares");one (1) non-flow-through common share (the "NFT Share"); andtwo and one-half (2.5) transferable non-flow-through common share purchase warrants (with two half-warrants comprising one whole warrant, each a "Warrant").Each whole Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one additional common share of the Company at a price of $0.12 for a period of 24 months from issuance. The Company may accelerate the expiry of the Warrants if, at any time prior to their expiry, the volume-weighted average trading price of the common shares on the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV") is at least $0.20 for 30 consecutive trading days. In that event, the Warrants will expire 20 days after the Company issues a press release announcing the acceleration.The gross proceeds from the sale of the FT Shares will be used to incur Canadian Exploration Expenses ("CEE") on the Company's New Brunswick properties. These expenditures are expected to qualify as "flow-through critical mineral mining expenditures" under the Income Tax Act (Canada) and to be renounced to subscribers with an effective date no later than December 31, 2025 (or such other date as permitted by law). Subscribers are expected to be entitled to claim the 30% Critical Mineral Exploration Tax Credit in respect of such expenditures.The proceeds from the NFT Shares and any Warrants exercised will be used for general corporate purposes, including working capital and corporate development activities.The Offering is subject to the final acceptance of the TSXV and all other required regulatory approvals.All securities issued under the Offering will be subject to a statutory hold period of four months and one day from the closing date that expires on February 11, 2026.The Company did not pay any finder's fees on the second tranche of the Offering.Insider Participation: one insider of the Company participated in the second and final tranche of the Offering and acquired an aggregate of 112,500 Units. The participation by such insider in the Offering constitutes a "related-party transaction" within the meaning of Multilateral Instrument 61-101 - Protection of Minority Security Holders in Special Transactions ("MI 61-101"). The Company relied on the exemptions from the formal valuation and minority shareholder approval requirements under sections 5.5(a) and 5.7(1)(a) of MI 61-101, respectively, on the basis that neither the fair market value of the securities issued to insiders, nor the consideration paid by such insiders, exceeded 25% of the Company's market capitalization.This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States. The securities referenced 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 the securities laws of any state, and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, "U.S. Persons" (as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act) unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or pursuant to an available exemption.About SLAM Exploration Ltd: SLAM Exploration Ltd. is a publicly listed resource company with a 40,000-hectare portfolio of mineral claim holdings in the mineral-rich province of New Brunswick. Diamond drilling is in progress on the Goodwin copper-nickel-cobalt project in the Bathurst Mining Camp ("BMC") of New Brunswick. The drilling program follows significant copper, nickel and cobalt intercepts from 15 diamond drill holes reported by the Company in 2024 on the Goodwin project These include a 64.90 meter core interval grading 0.73% copper, 0.64% nickel and 0.05 % cobalt including 1.11% copper, 0.95% nickel and 0.07% cobalt over a 39.40 meter core interval as reported in a news release August 7, 2024. Induced Polarization ("IP") results for 3 lines over the Granges, Logan and Farquharson copper-nickel-cobalt zones show potential for depth extensions as reported July 18, August 7 and August 21, 2025 in News Releases by the Company.Prior to the Goodwin drilling campaign, the Company launched its 2025 exploration program with two new gold discoveries on its wholly-owned Jake Lee claims. Slam reported eight grab samples with assays ranging from 7.42 grams per tonne ("g/t") to 94.80 g/t gold in the initial discovery on July 9, 2025. A second discovery comprised quartz float grading 16.20 and 3.78 g/t gold respectively in Trench JT25-05 located 100 meters southwest of the initial discovery as reported August 28, 2025.SLAM drilled 2 holes and cut multiple gold-bearing veins on its wholly owned Menneval gold project in 2024. The Company previously reported gold bearing core intervals including 162.5 g/t gold over 0.2 m and 56.90 g/t gold over 0.5 m in news releases on December 13, 2021 and November 22, 2022. Assays are pending on 874 additional soil samples to expand the soil coverage and further define the target on this extensive vein system.The Company is a project generator and has received significant cash and share payments in 2025. SLAM received $9,000 cash and 1,200,000 shares from Nine Mile Metals Inc. (NINE) on February 28, 2025 pursuant to the Wedge project agreement. On March 29, 2025, the Company received a cash payment of $60,000 as well as 180,000 shares of a private company pursuant to the Ramsay gold agreement. The Company holds NSR royalties and expects to receive additional cash and share payments on the Wedge copper zinc project and on the Ramsay gold project.To view SLAM's corporate presentation, click SXL-Presentation. Additional information is available on SLAM's website and on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca . Follow us on X @SLAMGold.Qualifying Statements: Mike Taylor P.Geo, President and CEO of SLAM Exploration Ltd., is a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, and has approved the contents of this news release.CONTACT INFORMATION:Mike Taylor, President Nigerian-born author and cultural storyteller Oyindamola Olugbile has won the 2025 NLNG-sponsored Nigeria Prize for Literature, defeating Chigozie Obioma and Nikki May. The Nigeria Prize for Literature, established in 2004, is one of the countrys most prestigious literary awards. It celebrates outstanding literary excellence by Nigerian authors and rotates annually among four genres: fiction, poetry, drama, and childrens literature, completing the cycle every four years. The Advisory Board for the Prize, chaired by Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, announced Ms Olugbiles victory at the award ceremony held on Friday night at the Eko Convention Centre, Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos. Ms Olugbile clinched the coveted prize with her debut novel, Sanya, defeating Mr Obiomas The Road to the Country and Ms Mays This Motherless Land. A graduate of the University of Lagos, where she earned a B.A. (Hons) in Creative Arts, Ms Olugbile received the grand cash award of $100,000. Sanya Her novel Sanya is a debut that explores the themes of dangerous love, lost, found, and lost again, set against the backdrop of a fantastical, mesmerising empire that even the Orisa find enchanting. Ms Olugbile also holds Postgraduate Certificates from Lagos Business School, Harvard Business School Online, and the School of Politics, Policy and Governance (SPPG). She also earned an MSc from Kings College London and works as a Social Impact Management Consultant. She is the Chief Curator of the Experience Factory, an education enterprise devoted to curating out-of-classroom learning experiences for young people. PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that author Olubunmi Familoni won the 2024 edition of the prize with his book, The Road Does Not End. Process This newspaper learnt that Ms Adimora-Ezeigbo described the adjudication process as intense, rigorous, and meticulous. She noted that the eleven books initially longlisted were all outstanding entries, adding that the challenges faced by the judges during this years evaluation were both daunting and unprecedented. Ms Adimora-Ezeigbo also commended all the authors who submitted their works, describing it as inspiring to witness such remarkable creativity and passion. Each work distinguishes itself through masterful plotting, characterisation, and a good command of language that transports readers into imagined worlds. These are not merely stories; they are carefully woven realities. They are compelling in their beauty, stirring in their emotional resonance, and unflinching in their engagement with familiar yet urgent societal issues. The way the writers handled and resolved conflict highlights their skill and literary standing, making these works quite outstanding. Our task, therefore, is clear. It is to choose the most deserving laureate for The Nigeria Prize for Literature, 2025. This cycle has been one of the most competitive yet, with every entry showing an impressive level of excellence that stretched our judgment to the limit. Still, we remain committed to excellence, honouring outstanding writings and keeping alive the vital conversation around Nigerian literature, Ms Adimora-Ezeigbo added. Ananse, in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation, has launched the Ananse Centre for Design in Lagos to grow businesses and create job opportunities. The initiative partnership, supported by Nigerias Federal Ministry of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, aims to equip young fashion creatives with skills, tools, and market access to grow their businesses and create sustainable jobs. At the official launch on Friday, the Ananse team revealed the initiative also aims at increasing Nigerias economic growth. Ananse Centre With a 1,200-square-meter facility centre, located at 10A Nike Art Gallery Road, Lekki Ikate, Ananse aims to enable more than 5,000 emerging fashion and design-focused creatives and to create access to 50,000 jobs. Also, the initiative aims to address critical gaps in the fashion industry. It is a hub for creativity, skills development, and entrepreneurship, further driving innovation and inclusion within Nigerias fashion industry. According to the initiative facilitators, the training program participants will benefit from 22 courses across five modules: Business Skills, Business Development, E-commerce, Marketing, and Product Development, delivered physically at the Centres fashion hub and virtually through interactive live sessions. Speaking about the programs benefits on Friday, Samuel Mensah, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Ananse, stated that the initiative catalyses change that will turn fashion talents into sustainable livelihoods. The Ananse Centre for Design Lagos is more than a space; it is a catalyst for change. By combining training, infrastructure and global market access, we are giving thousands of young creatives, especially women, the chance to turn their talent into sustainable livelihoods. This launch marks an important step in building a future where African design thrives locally and globally, Mr Mensah said. Global participation The new Centre will feature training rooms for mentorship and masterclasses, content studios to amplify brands, photography and Computer-Aided Design labs for product development, and specialised studios for leather, clothing, shoes, and bags. A private showroom will also provide space to showcase designs, while co-working spaces will foster collaboration and peer learning. With its anchor in Lagos, the centre aims to welcome participants from across the continent. It has made affordability and accessibility central to its model, ensuring that vulnerable groups, including displaced people, can participate and benefit. On his part, Rosy Fynn, Country Director, Nigeria Program, Mastercard Foundation, stated that the program will build sustainable livelihoods and contribute meaningfully to inclusive economic growth. Our partnership with Ananse and the unveiling of the Centre for Design Lagos reflects the Mastercard Foundations strategic commitment to the creative sector as a catalyst for youth opportunity. By bringing together training, infrastructure, and access to markets, the Centre creates pathways for young people, especially young women, to thrive, build sustainable livelihoods, and contribute meaningfully to inclusive economic growth, Mr Fynn said. Designers, artisans, and other creative entrepreneurs can access the Centres full range of services from training programmes and mentorship to machinery rentals, product sampling, studio spaces, and business support. Also endorsing the centre, the Minister of Art, Culture and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, signed a five-year memorandum of understanding with Ananse to scale the model nationwide. The Ananse Centre for Design Lagos launch aligns with our commitment to advancing Nigerias creative economy. By investing in skills, facilities and global visibility for our designers, we create jobs, support women and youth, and ensure Nigerian creativity is recognised globally. Our collaboration with Ananse will help scale this model across the country and secure lasting impact for the sector, Ms Musawa said. International partners, including DHL, Ecobank and the African Union, further support the project, ensuring that Nigerian design is connected to global audiences. The strategic partners of Ananse, Botho Emerging Markets Group, also supported the initiative with research, strategy, monitoring, evaluation, and learning. The Ananse.com platform complements the Centre by providing designers with an online marketplace featuring integrated logistics and digital payments, enabling them to reach buyers worldwide. Ananse Ananse creates technology and training solutions that enable African creatives to scale globally through e-commerce, digital payments, digital sourcing, and distributed manufacturing. With a mission to empower creatives across the continent, Ananse is building a sustainable design ecosystem that drives inclusive prosperity and global recognition. The Ananse also stated that its Mastercard Foundation is a registered Canadian charity and one of the largest foundations in the world. It works with visionary organisations to advance education and financial inclusion, enabling young people in Africa and Indigenous youth in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. Its Young Africa Works strategy aims to enable 30 million young people to access dignified and fulfilling work by 2030, while its EleV strategy will support 100,000 Indigenous youth in Canada to complete their education and transition to meaningful work aligned with their traditions, values, and aspirations. It was established in 2006 through the generosity of Mastercard when it became a public company. Its Board of Directors and Leadership team determine its policies, operations, and program decisions. The Musical Society of Nigeria (MUSON) has announced that its 2025 annual festival will be held from 12 to 26 October at the MUSON Centre in Lagos. It marks the 29th edition of one of the countrys most prestigious cultural events. At a press briefing on Thursday, MUSON Chairman Louis Mbanefo unveiled this years festival theme: In the Flow. According to him, the theme signifies the organisations continued growth, renewal, and dynamic role in Nigerias creative and educational landscape. After previous years Resurgence, Resilience, and Revival themes, MUSON is back in the flow. The project continues to thrive and to flow beyond the dreams of our founding fathers and mothers, Mr Mbanefo said. Tracing the institutions origins, Mr Mbanefo recalled that MUSON was founded in 1983 by a group of friends, including Akintola Williams, Ayo Rosiji, Francesca Emanuel, and Rasheed Gbadamosi, with a shared vision to promote the appreciation and performance of music in Nigeria. Since 1984, MUSON has maintained a consistent calendar of high-quality concerts featuring Nigerian and expatriate performers. Its School of Music started in 2008 and has become a Diploma-awarding institution offering rigorous music theory and performance training. Over 500 students have graduated, many of whom have studied and performed internationally. The school also runs a Basic School for beginners and a Diploma School, the latter supported by scholarships from the MTN Foundation and annually sponsors 45 advanced students. Most of our alumni have attained international recognition and are contributing significantly to the development of musical life in Nigeria and beyond, Mr Mbanefo noted, adding that MUSON-trained musicians now serve in churches, schools, and orchestras nationwide. Highlights of 2025 Festival Mr Mbanefo added that the 2025 MUSON Festival promises two weeks of exceptional performances spanning classical, jazz, drama, and contemporary Nigerian music, reflecting the diversity and depth of the countrys creative talent. The festival will open on Sunday with a musical brunch to set the tone for a vibrant celebration of artistry and innovation. On Tuesday, the MUSON Day Concert will commemorate the institutions founding and celebrate distinguished alumni of the MUSON Diploma School. This years edition will also include a special tribute to Marion Akpata, the late pioneer Director of the MUSON School of Music, who passed away recently. As the festival unfolds, guests can look forward to captivating events. On 17 October, a lively jazz party will feature performances by some of Nigerias finest jazz artistes. On 18 October, a musical drama sponsored by Chevron will be showcased, blending theatre and music to tell a compelling story. The momentum continues on 19 October with an operatic performance reaffirming MUSONs commitment to excellence in classical music presentation. On 21 October, attention will shift to innovation with a Collabo symposium exploring how music meets technology in todays digital age. 23 October will spotlight young, talented performers in a special concert designed to nurture and showcase emerging voices in Nigerian music, while 25 October will deliver another memorable operatic performance. The 2025 edition will climax on 26 October, with a grand Gala Concert sponsored by TotalEnergies. The concert will feature the MUSON Choir and the MUSON Symphony Orchestra under the joint direction of Emeka Nwokedi and visiting German maestro Walter-Michael Vollhardt. The highlight of the evening will be a complete performance of Carl Orffs timeless choral masterpiece, Carmina Burana, promising a breathtaking finale to an inspiring festival season that celebrates both tradition and the evolving rhythm of Nigerian music. Contraception is often associated with women based on the belief that women bear the physical and social consequences of pregnancy and therefore should take primary responsibility for preventing it. Also, the majority of contraceptive methods developed and marketed are designed for women. This includes birth control pills, intrauterine devices (IUDs), and hormonal implants. But experts say contraceptives for men exist. They are effective and equally important. Taiwo Alabi, a urologist at Grandville Medical Centre in Lagos, said male contraceptive tools are an effective way to reduce the risk of unplanned pregnancies. Mr Alabi also identified that contraceptives allow men to take active control over their reproductive future. The UK National Institute of Health defines contraceptives as methods, devices, or medications used to prevent pregnancy by interfering with the normal process of ovulation, fertilisation, or implantation. The World Health Organisation (WHO) also stated that contraceptives are crucial to reducing maternal ill-health and the number of pregnancy-related deaths. Weeks ago, PREMIUM TIMES, in a report, detailed the existing contraceptive methods for women and how they function. In this report, based on an interview with Mr Alabi, a Nigerian urologist and health professional, the focus shifts to the existing contraceptive options for men and the reasons why these methods should be embraced. Contraceptives method Mr Alabi divided the methods of contraceptives for men into three. That is, the withdrawal method, the barrier method, and vasectomy. The barrier method involves the use of physical devices to prevent sperm from reaching the egg during sexual intercourse. According to Mr Alabi, one of the main ways to create a barrier is the use of condoms. It is a sheath typically made of latex or polyurethane that is worn over the penis. Condoms act as a barrier to block semen from entering the partners body, thereby reducing the risk of pregnancy, while also protecting against sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Mr Alabi stated that condom is the most commonly used contraceptive by men around the world. It is also a contraceptive recommended by most health professionals. According to a Cambridge study, multiple surveys have shown that in many countries where data exist, condoms make up over 50 per cent of all contraceptives. UNAIDS also reported that about 52 per cent of men aged 15-49 use condoms with non-regular partners. However, despite generally increasing trends in condom use over the past two decades, substantial variations and gaps remain, according to UNAIDS. Mr Alabi also noted that a condom is the only contraceptive that prevents both unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted diseases. He, however, noted that although condoms are very practical, issues with counterfeiting and sub-standard products are now highly prone to failure. The failure could be expiration, unprofessional practices by vendors, and deliberate sabotage of the barrier by a partner, he adds. The withdrawal method The withdrawal method, also known as coitus interruptus, involves the man withdrawing his penis from the partners vagina before ejaculation occurs. The aim is to prevent sperm from entering the vagina and thus avoid fertilisation. According to Mr Alabi, it is the oldest form of contraception, but with a high rate of failure. This is because even before ejaculation, a fluid known as pre-ejaculate can be released, and it may contain sperm, he explained. As a result, there is still a significant risk of pregnancy, even if withdrawal occurs before climax. He noted that this does not prevent infection or STIs. Vasectomy The third form of contraception is vasectomy. This is a surgical form of male contraception that prevents sperm from entering the semen during ejaculation, thereby avoiding fertilisation. It is a safe and straightforward procedure that involves a doctor numbing the scrotum, then cutting and sealing the tubes, called vas deferens, that carry sperm from the testicles. According to Mr Alabi, men who get a vasectomy still ejaculate, but the semen wont contain sperm, so it cant cause pregnancy. Although Vasectomy is regarded as the most effective form of contraception for men, it is the least accepted of all methods. He further noted that it is the least accepted form of contraception in Nigeria. Although there are no available data on the general prevalence of vasectomy in the country, several studies have shown that there is low acceptance. A survey conducted over 16 years showed that only 10 men volunteered for a vasectomy compared to 3,585 female sterilisations. That gives a prevalence among those presenting for sterilisation of about 0.28 per cent for vasectomy. Another study in Edo State showed that only 1.6 per cent agreed to vasectomy unconditionally, and another 5.2 per cent conditionally with the study group. In my years of practice, I have only done vasectomies about five times, and I can tell you that I will rank as one of the urologists that has done it the most. Some urologists have not done a vasectomy throughout their career, he said. The urologist also noted that a vasectomy is not effective immediately. It takes about three months for the remaining sperm beyond the area where his tubes were blocked to be cleared. Within this period, another contraceptive must be used, he said. Mr Alabi also noted that the awareness about vasectomy in Nigeria is very low. Most men, he noted, dont know about the procedure, and those who do are often not interested. Some, according to him, are concerned about doing a surgical procedure, while others have a general fear of hospitals or medical interventions. We need more awareness. We need more education, he said. Health professionals also attribute this to widespread misconceptions, fear of permanent sterility, and cultural or religious beliefs that associate masculinity with fertility. Why contraception matters for men To improve contraceptive use and family planning, theres a need to debunk the misconception that contraception is only for women, according to Mr Alabi. He stated that it gives men greater control over when and if they want to become fathers. He identified that when male partners are involved in contraception decisions, it builds better communication and supportive relationships. Also, there are peculiarities in women that sometimes make men better fit to adopt a contraceptive method. This relieves and makes the men more involved in family planning, he added. He urged that families considering adopting any contraceptive method should discuss contraception and reach a conclusion on the most preferred choice. The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Nigeria has renewed its call for improved access to healthcare and the creation of policies that supports sexual and reproductive health services for adolescent girls and young women in the country. The Foundation made the appeal in statement issued on Saturday and signed by its Nigerias Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborisade to commemorate the 2025 International Day of the Girl Child. Marked globally every 11 October, the International Day of the Girl Child highlights the achievements of girls while pushing for reforms that safeguard their rights and wellbeing. The theme of 2025 celebration is, The girl I am, the change I lead: Girls on the frontline of crisis. At an event to mark the day at the Community Commercial Secondary School, Ikot Oku, Ubo, Offot, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, the AHF Nigeria Country Programmes Director, Echey Ijezie, emphasised the importance of protecting girls from HIV, honoring their achievements, and expanding opportunities for them to thrive and stay healthy. Mr Ijezie called for actions to address period poverty, promote comprehensive sexuality education, and combat gender-based violence and child marriage, which are key drivers of health inequality. Limited opportunities In her keynote address, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare in Akwa Ibom, Inibehe Silas, noted that despite the challenges girls face in the state, they are still breaking barriers in all their endeavors. Mrs Silas promised to create opportunities for girls to be heard, their leadership nurtured, and their potentials unleashed. At the event, AHF Akwa Ibom State Cordinator, Ekemini Essien, noted that girls worldwide are disproportionately affected by HIV/AIDS and face abuse with limited opportunities. Mr Essien said urgent action is needed to empower girls with tools, knowledge, and skills. He encouraged girls to be resilient and focused for a secure future. The Foundation had earlier raised alarm over the persistently high rate of HIV infections among young women, revealing that approximately 4,000 girls globally contract HIV every week. It disclosed that in 2023 alone; 1.9 million adolescent girls and young women were living with HIV worldwide. This compares to 1.2 million boys and young men in the same age group, highlighting a severe gender disparity in global HIV prevalence among youth. Education barriers are also a major concern, with 133 million girls globally out of school, cutting off essential pathways to health, independence, and long-term well-being. Focus on the girl child Jessica Charles, the linkage Cordinator of AHF, emphasised the importance of girl-child empowerment beyond economics. Ms Charles said access to information, healthcare, education, and decision-making is crucial. She added that girls should stand tall and speak up against abuse. The Speaker of Akwa Ibom State Childrens Parliament, Rhoda Vincent, thanked AHF for empowering girls in Sexual Health Right and gender equality. Ms Vincent reminded girls of their role as change makers and encouraged them to stay focused and dedicated, especially regarding menstrual hygiene. The occasion included the distribution of disposable and reusable sanitary pads, toiletries, and a discussion on menstrual hygiene. The AHF and government officials at the occasion made several key recommendations, including increased investment in healthcare and education; promotion of comprehensive sexuality education; and addressing period poverty and menstrual hygiene. Other recommendations are combating gender-based violence and child marriage; and empowering girls with necessary tools, knowledge, and skills to excel. ADDIS ABABA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Ethiopian government has granted tax exemption for natural gas-powered vehicles to promote local energy use. The Ministry of Finance, in a statement issued late Friday, disclosed tax exemptions on all types of cargo vehicles, as well as public transport vehicles powered entirely by natural gas. The move followed the East African country's recent launch of a major natural gas plant, with an annual production capacity of 111 million liters, last week. According to the ministry, the new measure is part of a broader national strategy aimed at promoting the use of domestically produced natural gas as a crucial economic option, potentially decreasing the country's reliance on much-needed foreign currency for fuel imports. The initiative is said to align with the Ethiopian government's ambition to enhance energy security, promote environmental sustainability, and strengthen the logistics and transport sectors by transitioning toward cleaner and more economical energy options. Despite possessing substantial natural gas reserves, Ethiopia has historically struggled to effectively leverage this resource. However, recent developments in the sector show the government's intense efforts to harness the country's natural gas reserves. Inaugurating the first phase of the Ogaden Liquified Natural Gas Project in the Somali Region of eastern Ethiopia last week, Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed also launched construction of the second phase of the project, which will add an annual capacity of 1.33 billion liters. The Director-General of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), Muyi Aina, and the Mandate Secretary, Health Services and Environment Secretariat (HSES) of the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA), Dolapo Fasawe, on Friday led a joint monitoring team to assess the progress of the ongoing MeaslesRubella (MRM) vaccination campaign across selected states. According to a statement issued on Saturday and signed by the Special Assistant (Media) to the Mandate Secretary, Bola Ajao, the exercise forms part of the agencys commitment to ensuring that no child is left behind in the national immunisation drive. It also seeks to strengthen collaboration between federal and state health authorities for improved health outcomes. Monitoring visits across states The joint monitoring team visited several PHCs within and outside the FCT, including Chikora North PHC in Kogi LGA of Kogi State and the New Township PHC in Abaji Area Council, Abuja. They also toured surrounding communities, engaging mothers and caregivers on the importance of immunisation and urging them to ensure their children are vaccinated and properly finger marked as proof of vaccination. During the visits, Mr Aina commended the dedication of frontline health workers, encouraging them to maintain honesty and accuracy in data reporting. He stressed that credible data, whether or not set targets are achieved, remains crucial for effective planning and sustainable improvements in the health sector. Mr Aina explained that the monitoring exercise was designed to assess vaccination coverage and workforce commitment, particularly in hard-to-reach areas, and to ensure credible, on-the-spot evaluation of field operations. He further assured health workers that the government is aware of their challenges and is taking steps to address them through the Renewed Hope Health Reform Agenda, which aims to deliver equitable and efficient healthcare services across the country. Measles and rubella According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), measles is a highly contagious viral disease and remains one of the leading causes of death among young children globally, despite the availability of a safe and effective vaccine. Rubella, also known as German measles, is a contagious viral infection that occurs most often in children and young adults. The virus is recognised as the leading vaccine-preventable cause of birth defects. WHO warns that rubella infection in pregnant women can cause fetal death or severe congenital abnormalities known as congenital rubella syndrome. WHO reports that although cases of measles and rubella have significantly declined over the past decade due to increased vaccination coverage, recent outbreaks have occurred in several countries following disruptions to routine immunisation services during the COVID-19 pandemic. In its latest data, the organisation noted that measles cases in the Western Pacific Region rose by 255 per cent between 2022 and 2023, largely due to gaps in vaccination coverage, weak disease surveillance, and cross-border transmission. Community sensitisation At the New Township PHC in Abaji, Ms Fasawe joined the exercise by personally administering vaccines to infants and sensitising mothers on the importance of routine immunisation in preventing child-killer diseases and avoidable deaths. She urged parents to share the message within their communities, warning that unvaccinated children remain at high risk of contracting measles (rubeola) and rubella (German measles), viral infections that can lead to blindness, brain damage, hearing loss, congenital defects, or even death. Continued commitment Both health leaders commended the turnout and progress recorded by vaccination teams so far, urging them to remain proactive and adhere strictly to safety standards. During the visit, the delegation also attended to a 13-year-old patient at the Kogi PHC and recommended follow-up care to ensure quality service delivery. The MeaslesRubella vaccination campaign, flagged off by Nigerias First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, on 6 October, will run until 15 October across 19 northern states and Oyo State. According to the statement, the exercise highlights the importance of teamwork between national and state health authorities to protect children, strengthen healthcare delivery, and build a healthier nation. Media professionals and global health advocates have called for stronger collaboration to improve the visibility and accuracy of reporting on womens, childrens, and adolescents health. This was the focus of an online forum hosted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) for the Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health (PMNCH), titled Elevating Coverage of Womens, Childrens, and Adolescents Health for Media Representatives. The forum explored how journalists can go beyond event-based or technical coverage to produce consistent, impactful stories that connect health outcomes with broader social and economic realities. Health journalism needs investment and focus Pamela Sittoni, Executive Editor at the Nation Media Group in Kenya, shared practical lessons from her experience managing Healthy Nation, a health pullout under the Daily Nation. Ms Sittoni explained that consistent health coverage allows the public to understand how policies affect everyday life, from maternal care to adolescent health services. Good health journalism takes time, money, and commitment. Editors must see health as a beat that deserves long-term investment, not as an afterthought, she said. She then urged media houses to institutionalise health desks and to collaborate more with experts, saying, Partnerships can provide the data, context, and community connections that journalists need to tell stronger stories. Turning grief into advocacy Sharing a personal story, Nonkululeko Shibula, a global health advocate and board member of the International Stillbirths Alliance, South Africa, spoke about losing her baby 15 years ago and how that experience inspired her advocacy. Ms Shibula recalled the silence and lack of communication from health workers during the ordeal. The loudest silence in the room was when no one said anything to me. I was moved from one room to another, and only at the end did the doctor confirm the baby was no more. I was alone, she said. She urged journalists to use their platforms to tell such stories and give visibility to women and families affected by stillbirths. Driving accountability, action In her remarks, the Director Universal Health Coverage/Healthier Populations Cluster at WHO Africa Regional Office, Adelheid Onyango, urged journalists to use their platforms to spotlight the health realities facing women, children, and adolescents across Africa, saying the continents future depends on how well it protects and invests in its young population. Ms Onyango said the statistics remain alarming with two out of every three maternal deaths occurring in Africa, and the adolescent pregnancy rate in the region is more than twice the global average. Without urgent and coordinated action, she warned, two in three children may not reach their full developmental potential. Our continent has the youngest population on earth, with nearly one out of every four people under the age of 20. This is both our greatest opportunity and our greatest responsibility, after all, they are our children, she said. She emphasised the need to view health through a life-course approach, linking maternal health, child survival, adolescent development, and adult productivity as one continuum. Ms Onyango added that Africa has already demonstrated that progress is possible, citing major declines in maternal and under-five deaths since 2000. However, she warned that funding cuts, weak political will, and misinformation threaten to reverse these gains. Calling for stronger political leadership, she urged journalists to help break the silence around preventable deaths and push for greater accountability. Theres a lot of silence around these issues because weve normalised them. We need to make people understand that every life matters and that funds diverted to other priorities come at a human cost, she said. Silence, a problem Tulip Mazumdar, former BBC Global Health Correspondent, shared her experience covering womens health issues and how losing five pregnancies deepened her commitment to reporting on global health. Ms Mazumdar noted that newsrooms often struggle to prioritise such stories amid global crises, but said journalists must keep pushing to make maternal and reproductive health visible. The loneliness and silence that surround pregnancy loss are devastating and getting these stories on air has become harder, she said. Its because of the women and societys silence that this issue remains hidden. People think its just what women go through. She urged fellow journalists to balance empathy with evidence, to tell stories that not only expose suffering but also highlight solutions. Expanding on how journalists can sensitively report on womens health, she emphasised that empathy and ethical rigor are as important as accuracy, noting that informed consent is not a formality but a protection. Connecting data with human stories Kemo Cham, a journalist from Sierra Leone, described the daily hurdles reporters face when covering health issues from official stonewalling to lack of access to reliable data. Mr Cham recounted an incident in which a radio journalist tried to report a maternal death, only to be pressured by health officials to drop the story. He said the inability to access simple public health data such as annual mortality figures makes it nearly impossible for journalists to hold authorities accountable. Building on his remarks, Ms Mazumdar agreed that journalists often face institutional silence but said perseverance and human storytelling can still drive impact. The personal reflections of people are at the core of journalism. A powerful first-person story can speak louder than numbers but when you add accurate data, it becomes undeniable. Gender gap shapes newsroom priorities Jeanne Bourgault, the President and CEO of Internews, a global media development organisation, described the gender imbalance in newsrooms as a massive market failure. Ms Bourgault said the gender gap in journalism from reporting to newsroom leadership means communities arent getting the full story. When womens voices, expertise, and challenges are missing from coverage, audiences lose trust and engagement, she said. She outlined four layers that underpin impactful reporting: Accuracy and context, stories grounded in verified data and on-the-ground reporting; Human stories; Accountability; and Dialogue, coverage that creates two-way communication between communities and authorities. On a humid morning on Tuesday, 18 February, 23-year-old Isaac Kanshio set out for work as he had done almost every day since joining Bauhaus Global Investment in 2024. He never expected that the day would alter his future significantly. BAUHAUS is a Lebanese construction company with headquarters in Beirut and operations in Nigeria. We work from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day, except Sunday, Mr Kanshio told PREMIUM TIMES in an interview. The firstborn in a family of four, he had just completed secondary school and was waiting for university admission. With his father earning little and his mother struggling to support the family, he felt compelled to work. On 3 September 2024, Bauhaus hired him as a security guard on 31,000 per month, far below the 70,000 minimum wage that Nigerias President Bola Tinubu signed into law two months earlier. The company did not issue him an employment letter. Instead, he filled out a form that stated his monthly salary but did not include any details about his terms of engagement. In February 2025, he was transferred to the carpentry section, doubling his salary to 62,000 monthly, still below the minimum wage. However, barely two weeks into the new role, tragedy struck. That morning, on 18 February, the companys head of carpentry, a Lebanese identified as Ahmad, instructed Mr Kanshio and his colleague, Terseer Zeeku, to board a Hilux van heading to Yaikyo, about 10 kilometres from Makurdi, where a new road was being constructed. Heavy tools, including iron rods and other construction materials, had been loaded into the open back of the van. Somewhere along the MakurdiYaikyo road, the van had an accident and somersaulted. When Mr Kanshio regained consciousness hours later, he found himself in New Epic Hospital, Makurdi, bruised, bleeding, and disoriented. He was in the hospital for more than a week. Though the company footed the hospital bills, Mr Kanshio said it did not send anyone to check on him after discharge. Even feeding money during his hospitalisation was only provided after protests. The company paid (me) 15,000 for nearly two weeks of hospitalisation. Officially, no project manager visited us. The only representative who showed up was an accountant who came solely to pay the (hospital) bills, he said. Mr Kanshio was discharged while not fully recovered his leg dislocated, his ankle damaged, and his head wounds unhealed. My knee was burning with pain, I could hardly stand, yet they said we should go home, he recalled. In June, while still bedridden, the company struck Mr Kanshios name off its payroll. When I went to complain, the accountant told me it was company policy to pay for only five months after an accident, he said. Billion-naira contracts, poverty wages Ironically, the Lebanese company, which pays many of its Nigerian workers below the national minimum wage and denies them labour rights, is a major contractor with the Benue State Government. Findings by PREMIUM TIMES show that it is currently handling several major public works in the state. These include the 6 billion Makurdi High-Level underpass project, and the extension and dualisation of the WurukumAirforce Base Road. The latter, which involves the construction of a five-span bridge at Mu, was awarded to the company for 68.3 billion. Another contract, the upgrade of the MbawuarBakoNegher road and a spur to Mbaakon, was awarded at 73.9 billion. Yet, workers directly engaged in the execution told PREMIUM TIMES they earn as little as 30,000 a month, many without written contracts, health cover, or compensation when injured. The situation underscores a deeper question of accountability: how a firm entrusted with such vast public resources can subject local workers to conditions described by many as exploitative and demeaning. Hand paralysed Mr Zeeku, who sat beside Mr Kanshio in the Hilux van when they had the accident, is a 40-year-old widower and father of three. His right hand was paralysed in the crash, leaving him unable to continue with physical work. He was also sacked in June and now lives with his relatives in Jalingo, Taraba State. In August, Mr Zeekus uncle, Moses Ndera, and Mr Kanshio went to the companys head office in Makurdi to seek their reinstatement. When I met the project manager, I tried to introduce myself and explain what happened to Terseer, but the man interrupted me, shouting, Tell me what you are here for, I dont have time! You know your brother was just a casual worker, he said before walking away. Mr Ndera described the encounter as disheartening. I was in serious pain Nineteen-year-old Godwin Igoche, a 200-level accounting student at Benue State University, Makurdi, joined the construction company in the second week of August. The first child in a family of five, the teenager took the job during the holidays to earn some money for his education. On 23 August, Mr Idoche reported to work as usual. Although employed as a carpenter, he was instructed to load concrete slabs massive precast blocks made of cement, iron, and gravel used to construct bridges and culverts. Each slab weighed hundreds of kilogrammes, and the task required specialised lifting equipment and protective gear for the workers. Mr Idoche and other workers were ordered to manually load the slabs into a flatbed truck designed for construction materials, not for carrying people. Mr Idoche was stacking the slabs into the truck when one of the iron fasteners securing a slab came loose, and the concrete block brushed his left foot. None of the workers had safety boots, as the company did not provide them with any. I was in serious pain. I thought they were taking me to the hospital, Mr Idoche recounted. Instead, he was taken to Bauhauss main office, opposite JS Tarkaa Foundation, Makurdi, and handed over to the companys first aid officer. The lady rubbed a small cream on my leg, gave me some medicine, and told me to go home. None of the companys officials called to check on me, he said. Mr Idoche had worked for just a week, on a daily wage of 2,400. Yet even that meagre pay was withheld after the accident. It was my mom who kept buying drugs because we couldnt afford hospital bills, he explained. I cannot do anything strong right now. School is about to resume, but I dont know what to do, he said. They treat Nigerians like slaves Emmanuel Verem joined Bauhaus in 2024, after years of working with construction firms such as Julius Berger and China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC). What he encountered there shocked him. Once you are not a Lebanese, you are a slave to them, he told PREMIUM TIMES. Mr Verem was employed on a monthly salary of 120,000. But throughout his stay, he alleged, the company never paid him the full amount. Sometimes they paid 90,000, sometimes 80,000. The highest I ever received from Bauhaus was 105,000, he said. Mr Verem, too, was not issued an employment letter. He added that workers were not issued pay slips or given a breakdown of their salaries, leaving them unable to track deductions. He also said workers are slammed with surcharges. When they complain, they would say, We surcharged you for Sunday, even though I was never supposed to work on Sundays, he added. The provision of diesel was another flashpoint. In standard construction firms, Mr Verem said, drivers monitor diesel supplies to their trucks and sign off on the volume. But he alleged Bauhaus did things differently. They usually put diesel in when drivers have left the trucks. If you complained, they sack you. In October 2024, Mr Verem was working on the High-Level Underpass project in Makurdi when his truck ran out of diesel. He was charged 50,000 but refused to accept the daylight exploitation. When the project manager arrived, my supervisor pulled him aside. They spoke in Lebanese. After their discussion, I was told to pack up my things and get paid off, he said. I was not allowed to explain myself. The only thing I heard was the accountant being called to pay me off. You dont have the right to complain at Bauhaus. Once you do, you are sacked. In Ihugh, Vandeikya Local Government Area, where the company is constructing roads, they pay some workers as little as 30,000 per month. These locals cannot complain. If they do, they are sacked immediately. This company treats Nigerians like slaves, he repeated, his voice hardened with anger. Forced to work during holidays Under Nigerian law, work during public holidays is classified as overtime and attracts compensation. Section 13 of the Labour Act requires that overtime arrangements be clearly spelt out in employment contracts or collective bargaining agreements. At the same time, Section 1 and 4 of the Public Holidays Act mandates that employees are entitled to national holidays. The law guarantees at least six working days of paid annual leave for every worker after 12 months of continuous service (Section 18). While Mr Kanshio said that he did not work on Sundays when he worked at the company, investigations by PREMIUM TIMES revealed that Bauhaus compels many of its workers to work during holidays and Sundays without compensation. After the Nigerian government declared 5 September a public holiday to mark Eid al-Mawlid, the celebration of the birth of the Prophet Muhammad, this reporter observed dozens of Bauhaus workers working at several of the companys construction sites in Makurdi. One of the workers, who requested anonymity for fear of dismissal, said working on public holidays without compensation was routine. If you refuse, they will sack you. You know some of us travel from different states to come and work here. If you are sacked, what will you be doing again? We obey them. We are more like slaves to these people. How company abuses workers labour rights Under Nigerian laws, every person engaged by an employer whether on a permanent, casual, or apprenticeship basis is regarded as an employee. Although there is no statutory definition of casualisation or casual work under the Labour Act, the Act provides that a worker should not be employed for more than three months without the formal recognition of such employment, evidenced by a written statement stating the terms and conditions of employment by the employer. However, in a case between Owena Mass Transportation Co. Ltd and Okonogbo, the Court of Appeal defined a casual employee as a worker engaged for under six months and paid at the end of each day. Section 7 of the Labour Act requires employers to issue a written contract to all employees within three months of engagement. This requirement applies even to casual workers whose employment stretches beyond that period, ensuring clarity on terms, conditions, and rights at work. But findings by PREMIUM TIMES revealed that Bauhaus routinely ignores this legal obligation. A casual worker employed by the company in February 2024 disclosed in August 2025 that he did not have a written contract with the company. They didnt give us anything. No written employment. They wont even allow us to form a union to protect our interests, the worker said, requesting anonymity for fear of dismissal. Sometimes in 2024, some workers came together and started agitating for a labour union. Bauhaus officials asked them to write their names and submit. All of them were sacked. Sacked over unionism Grace Abu (not her real name), a casual worker at the company who now operates a point-of-sale (POS) business at one of its sites, recounted how several workers lost their jobs after trying to form a union to defend their rights. Those who begged were taken back, but no one talks about a union anymore. Bauhaus ignores FOI request In late August, PREMIUM TIMES attempted to reach the companys project manager in Benue State. A reporter visited the companys office but was denied access. The security man at the gate claimed the manager was not around. While the reporter waited, the manager drove in, yet the guard repeated that he was absent. Days later, a worker at the construction site told PREMIUM TIMES that the manager was on site. When the reporter hurried there, security personnel again blocked entry and refused access to him. On 12 September 2025, the reporter finally encountered the project manager, Charbel Alammar, a Lebanese. The meeting took place while the reporter was submitting a Freedom of Information (FOI) request. The letter asked why the company continues to engage Nigerian workers without written contracts, in defiance of Section 7 of the Labour Act. It also asked for the companys policy on workplace accidents and compensation, and the number of Nigerians employed under casual arrangements across its projects in Benue State. After going through the letter, the manager shouted, Nothing in this is true. Nothing is true. The reporter tried to explain that the request was made to allow the company to provide explanations, but the manager dismissed him, saying, This PREMIUM TIMES, I never heard that name before. You can write whatever you want. The company did not respond to the request by 19 September, when the seven-day window expired. Three days later, PREMIUM TIMES delivered a reminder, which was also ignored. The reporter persisted by sending the FOI reminder notice through Bauhaus Global Investments official email ([email protected]). As of the time this report was filed, the company had yet to respond. Union promises to investigate PREMIUM TIMES contacted the Chairman of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) in Benue State, Terungwa Igbe, about how the union protects the rights of casual workers at Bauhaus. Mr Igbe said the chairman of the industry union had not brought the matter to his attention. However, I am going to do my own investigation. I will reach out to the state chairman on construction and, if the claims are true, my office will take appropriate action, he said. He further explained that while the Labour Act mandates employers not to retain a worker for more than three months without formal recognition through a written statement of terms and conditions, enforcement of the law remains weak as default is not criminalised. We will enforce that in our state if the National Assembly makes a law to criminalise casual labour in the country. For now, it is not yet a law, Mr Igbe said. Benue Assembly weighs in When contacted, the spokesperson of the Benue State House of Assembly, Elias Audu, said the legislature usually questions contractors on worker welfare during oversight visits. Anytime we go on oversight of these companies, we ask them what they are doing to protect the interests of people working under them. Unfortunately, what you are telling me now has not been officially reported to us, Mr Audu said. He added that he would draw the attention of the House Standing Committee on Works, Housing and Transport to the issue, noting that the committee was in a better position to provide further clarification. State government silent PREMIUM TIMES called the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Tersoo Kula, but received no response. We also did not receive a response to a follow-up message stating our findings and requesting the governments position. Between legal promises and brutal reality Existing laws place liability on employers for workplace injuries. Section 12 of the Labour Act, 2004, and Section 73 of the Employees Compensation Act (ECA), 2010 guarantee that workers deserve protection, medical support, and fair compensation when injured. Employment and labour lawyer Jamiu Akolade explained that the ECA broadens the legal definition of employee to cover those under temporary, part-time, apprenticeship, or casual contracts, guaranteeing protection. In Abel v. Trevi Foundation Nigeria Limited, the Court held that even a contract staff member was entitled to compensation for injuries sustained at work. Similarly, the National Industrial Court of Nigeria, in Patovilki Industrial Planners Limited V. National Union of Hotels and Personal Services Workers, upheld the right of casual workers to unionise, stressing that temporary status does not strip them of constitutional labour rights. Mr Akolade cited. Yet the experiences of Messrs Zeeku, Kanshia and Igoche reflect a different reality. Mr Kanshio suffered a damaged leg, and Mr Zeeku had a paralysed arm while at work, but they were denied proper treatment and compensation by a company doing lucrative business with their state government. The anti-graft agency, EFCC, has confirmed that two men were arrested at the Murtala Muhammad International Airport in Lagos with undeclared foreign currency exceeding the approved limit. The EFCC said the two suspects possessed undeclared cash of $6,180 and 53,415. Passengers travelling with cash above $10,000 are expected to declare it to airport authorities while travelling. Sources at the airport had earlier told PREMIUM TIMES about the arrest of the suspects, but said the cash found on them exceeded $6.1 million. The EFCCs clarification, however, indicates the amount is much lower than that. The sources said the suspects were apprehended by officials of the Aviation Security (AVSEC) unit of the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) at the domestic terminal of the airport and were handed over to the EFCC. We are still working with the EFCC to unravel the full details, a senior AVSEC official had told PREMIUM TIMES before the EFCC statement. EFCC speaks In its statement issued on Saturday evening, the EFCC named the two suspects as Mamud Nasidi and Yahaya Nasidi. EFCC commences investigation of two suspects for undeclared $6,180 and 53,415 at Lagos Airport, the anti-graft agency said in an X post on Saturday. According to the statement, operatives from the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the commission are leading the probe following the arrest by FAAN officials. The suspects were reportedly intercepted during a routine airport check on Saturday at the point of boarding a flight to Abuja. The EFCC said investigations revealed that the suspects had just arrived in Nigeria from Dubai via Addis Ababa. Following their arrest, the EFCC said the travellers were handed over to the State Security Service (SSS), which subsequently transferred them to the EFCC for further interrogation and possible prosecution. The commission added that three mobile phones were also recovered from the suspects during the operation. According to the EFCC, the exhibits and suspects were received by Margaret Lamai on behalf of the commissions acting zonal director, Ahmed Ghali. The presidency has provided more details on the presidential pardon and clemency granted to dozens of people by President Bola Tinubu. Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga said in a Saturday statement that a total of 175 convicts and former convicts received President Bola Ahmed Tinubus mercy on Thursday. The list includes illegal miners, white-collar convicts, remorseful drug offenders, foreigners, Mr Onanuga wrote. PREMIUM TIMES reported that among those pardoned was a former federal lawmaker from Kano State, Farouk Lawan, who was jailed for receiving bribes but had served his jail term. One of those granted clemency is Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing her husband. Maryam Sanda, aged 37, was sentenced to death in 2020 for culpable homicide and had spent six years, eight months at Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre. Her family pleaded for her release, arguing that it was in the best interest of her two children. The plea was also anchored on her good conduct in jail, her remorse, and her embracement of a new lifestyle, demonstrating her commitment to being a model prisoner, Mr Onanuga wrote. In all, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, chaired by the Attorney-General and Justice Minister, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, recommended pardon for two inmates, 15 former convicts, 11 of whom have died. The committee recommended clemency for 82 inmates and commutation of sentences for 65 inmates. Seven inmates on death row also benefited from the Presidential reprieve. The committee recommended that the President should commute their death sentences to life imprisonment. Read Mr Onanugas full statement below. Details of The Presidential Pardon and Clemency Illegal miners, white-collar convicts, remorseful drug offenders, foreigners, Major General Mamman Vatsa, Major Akubo, Professor Magaji Garba, capital offenders such as Maryam Sanda, Ken Saro Wiwa, and the other Ogoni Eight were among the 175 convicts and former convicts who received President Bola Ahmed Tinubus mercy on Thursday. President Tinubu granted clemency to most of them based on the reports that the convicts had shown remorse and good conduct. He forgave some due to old age, the acquisition of new vocational skills, or enrolment in the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). President Tinubu also corrected the historic injustice committed by British colonialists against Sir Herbert Macaulay, one of Nigerias foremost nationalists. In all, the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy, chaired by the Attorney-General and Justice Minister, Prince Lateef Olasunkanmi Fagbemi, recommended pardon for two inmates, 15 former convicts, 11 of whom have died. The committee recommended clemency for 82 inmates and commutation of sentences for 65 inmates. Seven inmates on death row also benefited from the Presidential reprieve. The committee recommended that the President should commute their death sentences to life imprisonment. Prince Fagbemi presented the committees report at the Council of State meeting, chaired by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. FULL LIST OF BENEFICIARIES OF PRESIDENT TINUBUS MERCY PARDONED 1. Nweke Francis Chibueze, aged 44, serving a life sentence at Kirikiri for cocaine. 2. Dr Nwogu Peters, aged 67; Serving a 17-year jail term for fraud. Sentenced in 2013. 3. Mrs Anastasia Daniel Nwaoba, aged 63. Already served a sentence for fraud 4. Barr. Hussaini Alhaji Umar, aged 58. Sentenced in 2023 to pay a fine of N150M in the ICPC case 5. Ayinla Saadu Alanamu, age 63, was sentenced to seven years for bribery in 2019 and has served the sentence. 6. Hon. Farouk M. Lawan, aged 62. Sentenced to five years in 2021 for Corrupt Practices and had served the sentence. POSTHUMOUS PARDON 7. Sir Herbert Macaulay was banned from public office for misappropriation of funds and sentenced in 1913 by the British colonialists. 8. Major-General Mamman Jiya Vatsa, age 46, Sentenced in 1986 for treason: related to an alleged coup plot POSTHUMOUS PARDON: THE OGONI NINE 9. Ken Saro Wiwa. Sentenced for murder 10. Saturday Dobee. Sentenced for murder 11. Nordu Eawa. Sentenced for murder 12. Daniel Gbooko. Sentenced for murder 13. Paul Levera. Sentenced for murder 14. Felix Nuate. Sentenced for murder 15. Baribor Bera. Sentenced for murder 16. Barinem Kiobel. Sentenced for murder 17. John Kpuine. Sentenced for murder VICTIMS OF OGONI NINE HONOURED: Chief Albert Badey Chief Edward Kobaru Chief Samuel Orage Chief Theophilus Orage PRESIDENTIAL CLEMENCY Most of the beneficiaries showed either remorse or learned vocational skills in jail 1. Aluagwu Lawrence, aged 47, sentenced for Indian hemp (selling), 2015 2. Ben Friday, aged 60, was sentenced to 3 years or N1.3 million fine for marijuana in 2023. 3. Oroke Micheal Chibueze, aged 21, sentenced to 5 years (cannabis sativa) in 2023 4. Kelvin Christopher Smith, aged 42, was sentenced to 4 years for importing cocaine in 2023 5. Azubuike Jeremiah Emeka, aged 31, sentenced in 2021 to 5 years or N3 million fine for importing cocaine. 6. Akinrinnade Akinwande Adebiyi, aged 47, sentenced in 2023 to 3 years for dealing in Tramadol. 7. Ahmed Adeyemo, aged 38, sentenced to 15 years for cannabis. Already served nine years, 5 months at Kirikiri 8. Adeniyi Jimoh, aged 31years, sentenced to 15 years for Drugs in 2015 and served nine years at Kirikiri. 9. Seun Omirinde, aged 39, sentenced to 15 years for Drugs in 2015. Served nine years at Kirikiri 10. Adesanya Olufemi Paul, aged 61, sentenced to 14 years for theft. Had served eight years. 11. Ife Yusuf, aged 37, was sentenced for human trafficking in 2019. Had served six years at Kirikiri. 12. Daniel Bodunwa, aged 43, was sentenced in 2018 to 10 years for fraudulent intent to forge a land receipt. Had served six years in jail 13. Fidelis Michael, aged 40, sentenced to 5 years for cannabis sativa 14. Suru Akande, aged 52, sentenced to 5 years for cannabis sativa 15. Safiyanu Umar, aged 56, sentenced to 5 years without the option of a fine for possessing 5kg of Cannabis sativa, 2023 16. Dahiru Abdullahi, aged 46, was sentenced in 2016 to 21 years for possession of 3 pistols and had spent 10 years in jail. 17. Hamza Abubakar, aged 37, sentenced to 5 years for Indian hemp (selling), 2022 18. Rabiu Alhassan Dawaki, aged 52, sentenced in 2020 to 7 years for criminal breach of trust. 19. Mujibu Muhammad, aged 30, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years, no option for a fine for cannabis. 20. Emmanuel Eze, aged 49, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for Heroine. 21. Bala Azika Yahaya, aged 70, sentenced in 2017 to 15 years for cannabis. 22. Lina Kusum Wilson, aged 34, sentenced to death in 2017 for culpable homicide, had spent eight years in jail. 23. Buhari Sani, aged 33, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for possession of 558 grams of cannabis. 24. Mohammed Musa, aged 27, was sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for possession of 16 grams of cannabis. 25. Muharazu Abubakar, aged 37, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for selling Indian hemp. Already spent 3 years in Katsina Prison 26. Ibrahim Yusuf, aged 34; jailed 5 years in 2022 for possession of 5.7 grams of Indian hemp. 27. Saad Ahmed Madaki, aged 72; sentenced in 2020 for a 419 offence. Had served 4 years in Kaduna prison 28. Ex-Corporal Michael Bawa, aged 72: sentenced to life imprisonment for murder in 2005. Had spent 20 years in Kaduna prison 29. Richard Ayuba, aged 38. Sentenced to 5 years in 2022 for Indian hemp 30. Adam Abubakar, aged 30 and sentenced in 2022 to five years for possession of 2kg of tramadol. 31. Emmanuel Yusuf, aged 34; sentenced in 2022 to 4 years for possession of 2kg of tramadol 32. Edwin Nnazor, aged 60; sentenced in 2018 to 15 years for cannabis. Had spent 6 years, nine months at Zamfara prison 33. Chinedu Stanley, aged 34. Sentenced in 2023 to three years for fake lubricant oil. 34. Joseph Nwanoka, aged 42: sentenced in 2022 to five years for drugs 35. Johnny Ntheru, Aged 63, sentenced in 1989 to life imprisonment for robbery. Had spent 36 years in Umuahia Prison 36. John Omotiye, Aged 28, sentenced to six years for Pipeline vandalism 37. Nsikat Edet Harry, Aged 37, sentenced in 2023 to 5 years for Illegal possession of Indian hemp, Cocaine, & Heroin. 38. Jonathan Asuquo, Aged 28, sentenced in 2022 to 5 years for possession of Indian hemp & other drugs 39. Prince Samuel Peters, aged 54, sentenced in 2020 to 7 years for obtaining money by false pretence. Had spent 4 years, 3 months in Ikot Ekpene Prison 40. Babangida Saliu, Aged 35, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining. 41. Adamu Sanni, aged 39, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining. 42. Abdulkarem Salisu, aged 30, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 43. Abdulaziz Lawal, aged 18, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 44. Abdulrahman Babangida, aged 20, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining 45. Maharazu Alidu, aged 22, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 46. Zaharadeen Baliue, aged 38, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 47. Babangida Usman, aged 30, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 48. Zayyanu Abdullahi, Aged 28, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining, 2024 49. Bashir Garuba, Aged 20, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining 50. Imam Suleman, aged 25, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining, 2024 51. Abbeh Amisu, Aged 28, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining, 2024 52. Lawani Lurwanu, Aged 20, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining, 2024 53. Yusuf Alhassan, aged 33, was sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining in 2024. 54. Abdulahi Isah, aged 25, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining, 2024 55. Zayanu Bello, aged 35, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining 56. Habeeb Suleman, aged 22, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining. 57. Jubrin Sahabi, aged 23, was sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining. 58. Shefiu Umar, aged 28, was sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining. 59. Seidu Abubakar, age 29, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining. 60. Haruna Abubakar, Aged 24, was sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 61. Rabiu Seidu, aged 26, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining. 62. Macha Kuru, Aged 25, sentenced in 2024 to 3 years for unlawful mining 63. Zahradeen Aminu, Aged 25 years, sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining. 64. Nazipi Musa, aged 25. Sentenced to 3 years for unlawful mining in 2024 65. Abdullahi Musa, aged 30 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining. 66. Habibu Safiu, aged 20 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 67. Husseni Sani, aged 21 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 68. Musa Lawali, aged 25 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 69. Suleiman Lawal, aged 23 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 70. Yusuf Iliyasu, aged 21 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 71. Sebiyu Aliyu, aged 20 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 72. Halliru Sani, aged 18 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 73. Shittu Aliyu, aged 30 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 74. Sanusi Aminu, aged 27 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 75. Isiaka Adamu, aged 40 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 76. Mamman Ibrahim, aged 50 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 77. Shuaibu Abdullahi, aged 35 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 78. Sanusi Adamu, aged 28 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 79. Sadi Musa, aged 20 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining 80. Haruna Isah, aged 35 and sentenced to 3 years in 2024 for unlawful mining NB: Senator Ikra Aliyu Bilbis signed an undertaking to be responsible for the rehabilitation and empowerment of all the convicted illegal miners granted presidential clemency. 81. Abiodun Elemero, aged 43. Sentenced to life imprisonment for cocaine hawking in 2014. Had spent 10 years plus in Kirikiri, 82. Maryam Sanda, aged 37, was sentenced to death in 2020 for culpable homicide and had spent six years, eight months at Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre. Her family pleaded for her release, arguing that it was in the best interest of her two children. The plea was also anchored on her good conduct in jail, her remorse, and her embracement of a new lifestyle, demonstrating her commitment to being a model prisoner. LIST OF INMATES RECOMMENDED FOR REDUCED TERM OF IMPRISONMENT 1. Yusuf Owolabi, aged 36. Sentenced to life in 2015 for Manslaughter. Had spent 10 years at Kirikiri.Prison term reduced to 12 years for showing remorse and learning vocational skills. 2. Ifeanyi Eze, aged 33. Sentenced to life in 2021 for Manslaughter and had spent four years at Kirikiri. Prison term reduced to 12 years for showing remorse and learning vocational skills. 3. Malam Ibrahim Sulaiman, aged 59. Sentenced to life in 2022 for Armed robbery & possession of illegal firearms. Sentence cut to 10 years based on good conduct 4. Shettima Maaji Arfo, aged 54. Sentenced in 2021 to seven years for Corrupt Practices. Sentence reduced to four years, because of good conduct and ill-health 5. Ajasper Benzeger, aged 69 and sentenced in 2015 to 20 years for Culpable homicide. Sentence reduced to 12 years, based on old age and ill-health. 6. Ifenna Kennechukwu, aged 42. Sentenced in 2015 to 20 years for drugs (cocaine import) and had spent close to 10 years in Kirikiri. Prison term reduced to 12 years based on remorse and the acquisition of vocational skills. 7. Mgbeike Matthew, aged 45. Sentenced to 20 years in 2013 for the import of 3.10kg. Following remorsefulness and the acquisition of vocational skills at Kirikiri. Sentence reduced to 12 years. 8. Patrick Mensah, aged 40. Sentenced in 2015 to 17 years for drugs. Sentence reduced to 11 years 9. Obi Edwin Chukwu, aged 43 and sentenced in 2017 to 15 years for drugs. Sentence reduced to 10 years. 10. Tunde Balogun, aged 32 and sentenced in 2015 to 15 years for drugs. Sentence reduced to 10 years. 11. Lima Pereira Erick Diego, aged 27 and sentenced in 2017 to 15 years or a fine of N20million for drugs. Sentence reduced to 10 years. 12. Uchegbu Emeka Michael, aged 37. Sentenced in 2017 to 15 years or a fine of N20million for drugs. Sentence reduced to 10 years 13. Salawu Adebayo Samsudeen, aged 46 and sentenced in 2016 to 15 years for drugs. Sentence reduced to 10 years. 14. Napolo Osariemen, aged 61 and sentenced in 2022 to 15 years for 2 kilos of Indian hemp. The sentence was reduced to seven years. 15. Patricia Echoe Igninovia, aged 61 and sentenced in 2023 to seven years for trafficking in persons. Sentence reduced to five years. 16. Odeyemi Omolaram, aged 65 and sentenced in 2017 to 25 years in prison for drug. The sentence was reduced to 12 years based on the defendants remorsefulness and advanced age. 17. Vera Daniel Ifork, aged 29 and sentenced in 2020 to 10 years for trafficking in persons. Sentence reduced to eight years. 18. Gabriel Juliet Chidimma, aged 32 and sentenced in 2022 to six years for drug (cocaine). Sentence reduced to four years. 19. Dias Santos Marcia Christiana, aged 44 and sentenced in 2017 to 15 years for import of cocaine. Sentence reduced to 10 years. 20. Alh. Ibrahim Hameed. Aged 71 and sentenced in 2023 to seven years for illegal property (obtaining property under false pretence). Sentence reduced to five years. 21. Alh. Nasiru Ogara Adinoyi, 65, was sentenced in 2023 to 14 years for obtaining property by false pretence. The sentence was reduced to seven years. 22. Chief Emeka Agbodike, aged 69, was sentenced in 2023 to seven years for obtaining property by false pretence. Sentence reduced to 3 years. 23. Isaac Justina, aged 40. Sentenced in 2022 to 10 years for cannabis sativa and had spent 3 years in the Abeokuta Custodial Centre. Sentence reduced to four years. 24. Aishat Kehinde, aged 38 and sentenced in 2022 to five years for unlawful possession of cannabis. The prison term being served in Abeokuta has been reduced to four years. 25. Helen Solomon, age 68. Sentenced in 2024 to five years for cannabis sativa. Sentence reduced to three years. 26. Okoye Tochukwu, aged 43 and sentenced in 2024 to six years for cannabis sativa. Sentence reduced to 3 years. 27. Ugwueze Paul, aged 38 and sentenced in 2024 to six years for cannabis sativa. Sentence reduced to three years. 28. Mutsapha Ahmed, aged 46 and sentenced in 2022 to seven years without a fine option for criminal breach of trust. The sentence was reduced to five years. 29. Abubakar Mamman, aged 38 and sentenced in 2020 to 10 years in Kebbi Custodial Centre for Possession of firearms. Sentence reduced to seven years. 30. Muhammed Bello Musa, aged 35. Sentenced in 2020 to 10 years in Kebbi Custodial Centre for illegal possession of firearms. Sentence reduced to seven years 31. Nnamdi Anene, aged 67 and sentenced in 2010 to life imprisonment at Katsina Custodial Centre for illegal dealing of arms. Sentence reduced to 20 years. 32. Alh. Abubakar Tanko, aged 61, was sentenced in 2018 to 30 years at the Gusau Custodial Centre for Culpable Homicide. Sentence reduced to 20 years. 33. Chisom Francis Wisdom, aged 30; sentenced in 2018 to 20 years in Umuahia Custodial Centre for kidnapping. Sentence reduced to 12 years. 34. Innocent Brown Idiong, aged 60, sentenced in 2020 to 10 years for possession of 700 grams of Indian Hemp. Has already spent 4 years and 3 months at Ikot Abasi Custodial centre. Jail term reduced to six years. 35. Iniobong Imaeyen Ntukidem, aged 46, was sentenced 2021 to seven years in jail at the Uyo Custodial Centre. Prison term reduced to five years. 36. Ada Audu, aged 72, was sentenced in 2022 to seven years in Kuje Custodial Centre and had spent 2 years and 7 months in prison. Prison term reduced to 4 years because of old age. 37. Bukar Adamu, aged 40 and sentenced to 20 years in 2019 for advance fee fraud. Prison term reduced to nine years. 38. Kelvin Oniarah Ezigbe, 44, was sentenced in October 2023 to 20 years for kidnapping, which took effect in 2013. The sentence was reduced to 13 years for showing remorsefulness and attending the National Open University. 39. Frank Azuekor, aged 42. Sentenced in 2023 for kidnapping and jailed in Kuje Custodial Centre for 20 years, and had spent 12 years behind bars from 2013. The sentence was reduced to 13 years, based on good conduct and attendance at the National Open University. 40. Chukwukelu Sunday Calisthus, aged 47 and sentenced in 2014 to life at Kuje Custodial Centre for drugs. He had spent 11 years at Kuje. Sentence reduced to 13 years. 41. Professor Magaji Garba, aged 67. Sentenced in 2021 to seven years for obtaining money by false pretence and had spent 3 years at Kuje Custodial Centre. The prison term was reduced to four years due to good conduct and advanced age. 42. Markus Yusuf, aged 41. Sentenced in 2023 to 13 years for culpable homicide. Sentence reduced to 5 years based on ill-health 43. Samson Ajayi, aged 31 and sentenced in 2022 to 15 years for drugs. He had spent five years at Suleja Custodial Centre. The sentence was reduced to seven years. 44. Iyabo Binyoyo, aged 49. Sentenced in 2017 to 10 years for drugs and sentenced to nine years at Suleja Custodial Centre, due to good conduct. 45. Oladele Felix, 49, was sentenced in 2022 to five years without a fine option for conspiracy and exploitation. Based on good conduct and remorsefulness, the sentence was reduced to four years. Felix is spending the term at Suleja. 46. Rakiya Beida, aged 33 and sentenced in 2021to seven years, without a fine option, for theft and cheating. The sentence, being served at Suleja, was reduced to three years based on good conduct 47. Nriagu Augustine Ifeanyi, aged 44 and sentenced in 2018 to 10 years in Ikoyi Custodial Centre, for exporting cocaine. The sentence was reduced to eight years. 48. Chukwudi Destiny, aged 36 and sentenced in 2022 to six years in Ikoyi Custodial Centre for heroin import. The sentence was cut to four years. 49. Felix Rotimi Esemokhai, aged 47 and sentenced in 2022 to five years for heroin. The sentence was reduced to four years. 50. Major S.A. Akubo, aged 62, was sentenced in 2009 to life at Katsina Custodial Centre for illegally removing 7,000 assorted weapons. Following good conduct and remorsefulness, the sentence was commuted to 20 years. 51. John Ibiam, aged 39, was sentenced in 2016 to 15 years for manslaughter and served 9 years and one month in the Afikpo Custodial Centre. The sentence was reduced to 10 years after the individual showed remorse and acquired vocational skills. 52. Omoka Aja, aged 40 and sentenced in 2016 to 15 years for manslaughter, served 9 years and 1 month in Afikpo Custodial Centre. The sentence was commuted to 10 years. 53. Chief Jonathan Alatoru, aged 66, was sentenced in 2021 to seven years for conspiracy to cheat. The sentence served in Port Harcourt Custodial Centre has been reduced to five years. 54. Umanah Ekaette Umanah, aged 70 and sentenced in 2022 to 10 years in Port Harcourt Custodial Centre for forgery. Sentence reduced to five years due to old age and remorsefulness. 55. Utom Obong Thomson Udoaka, 60, was sentenced in 2020 to seven years in Ikot Ekpene Custodial Centre for obtaining money by false pretence. He had served four years and two months at Ikot Ekpene. Due to his old age and good conduct, the Initial Sentence has been reduced to five years. 56. Jude Saka Ebaragha, aged 44. Sentenced in 2020 to 12 years at Ikoyi Prison and a fine of N1million for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. The sentence was commuted to six years, and the N1m fine was waived. 57. Frank Insort Abaka, 46, was sentenced in 2020 to 12 years and a N1M fine at Ikoyi Custodial Centre for conspiracy to hijack a Fishing vessel. The sentence was reduced to six years, and the fine was waived. 58. Shina Alolo, 42, was sentenced in 2020 to 12 years and a N1M fine at Ikoyi Custodial Centre for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. Like others, the N1m fine was waived, and the sentence was reduced to 6 years. 59. Joshua Iwiki, aged 50: Sentenced in 2020 to 12 years at Ikoyi Prison and a fine of N1M for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. A N1m fine was waived, and the sentence was commuted to six years in prison. 60. David Akinseye, aged 44: Sentenced in 2020 to 12 years & N1M fine for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. His sentence was commuted to 6 years, and the fine was waived. 61. Ahmed Toyin, aged 46: Sentenced in 2020 to 12 years & N1M fine for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. Sentence also commuted and fine waived. 62. Shobajo Saheed, age 57: Sentenced in 2020 to 12 years and a fine of N1M for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. He got a similar reprieve like the others. 63. Adamole Philip, aged 52 years: Sentenced to 12 years & a N1M fine for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel, 2020. Philip also got his term reduced to seven years and the fine waived. 64. Mathew Masi, aged 39: Also sentenced to 12 years and a fine of N1million for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. The sentence was reduced to six years, and the fine was waived. 65. Bright Agbedeyi, 46, was also sentenced in 2020 for conspiracy to hijack a fishing vessel. Like the others in his category, he got a reprieve from President Tinubu. List of Inmates on Death Row Reduced to Life Imprisonment 1. Emmanuel Baba, aged 38: sentenced to death in 2017 for culpable homicide. On death row in Kuje Custodial Centre for the past 8 years. The sentence was commuted to life imprisonment based on good conduct and remorsefulness. 2. Emmanuel Gladstone, aged 45, was sentenced in 2020 to death for murder and had spent five years at Katsina Custodial Centre. Death sentence commuted to life imprisonment due to good conduct and remorse. 3. Moses Ayodele Olurunfemi, aged 51: sentenced to death in 2012 for culpable homicide and had spent 13 years on death row in Katsina. President Tinubu commuted the death sentence to life imprisonment, citing the individuals good conduct and remorse. 4. Abubakar Usman, aged 59: Sentenced to Death in 2014 and had spent 14 years on death row in Katsina. His sentence was commuted to life because of his remorse and good conduct. 5. Khalifa Umar, aged 37: Sentenced to death in 2014 and had spent 11 years on death row in Kano Custodial Centre. His sentence has been commuted to life imprisonment. 6. Benjamin Ekeze, age 40. Sentenced to death in 2017 for armed robbery and conspiracy, and had spent 12 years on death row at Kirikiri, Lagos. The sentence was also commuted to life. 7. Mohammed Umar, 43: Sentenced to death in 2018 for culpable homicide and had spent seven years on death row in Onitsha Custodial Centre. He got the Presidential reprieve, commuting the death sentence to life imprisonment. Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President, (Information and Strategy) October 11, 2025 President Bola Tinubu has granted clemency to Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, during a domestic dispute. Mr Tinubus decision was announced on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga. Ms Sanda, now 37, had spent six years and eight months at the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre before her release. According to Mr Onanuga, the decision followed pleas from her family, who argued that freeing her was in the best interest of her two children. He added that the pardon was also based on her good conduct in custody and her remorse and embrace of a new lifestyle. PREMIUM TIMES had extensively reported Ms Sandas prosecution and conviction. The Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja found her guilty of culpable homicide and sentenced her to death by hanging in January 2020. Justice Yusuf Halilu held that Ms Sanda fatally stabbed her husband with a kitchen knife, saying the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The victim, Bilyaminu Bello, was the son of a former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Haliru Bello. Ms Sanda was first arraigned by the Nigerian police in November 2017 for allegedly stabbing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, to death at their Abuja home. Her trial began amid several bail applications, which were repeatedly denied until March 2018, when she was eventually granted bail on health grounds. The proceedings were marked by frequent adjournments, the disappearance of witnesses, and the withdrawal of her defence lawyer, causing significant delays. During the hearings, witnesses narrated how Ms Sanda had allegedly attempted to stab her husband multiple times before his death, while she argued that the killing was not premeditated but the result of a domestic quarrel. After over two years of trial, Justice Yusuf Halilu of the Federal Capital Territory High Court found Ms Sanda guilty of culpable homicide on 27 January 2020. He ruled that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and sentenced her to death by hanging. Ms Sanda is among 175 convicts and former convicts that President Tinubu pardoned or reduced their sentences. The list includes illegal miners, white-collar convicts, remorseful drug offenders, foreigners, Mr Onanuga wrote. According to Mr Onanuga, President Tinubu granted clemency to most of them based on the reports that the convicts had shown remorse and good conduct. He forgave some due to old age, the acquisition of new vocational skills, or enrolment in the National Open University of Nigeria (NOUN). Ekiti State Governor Biodun Oyebanji on Friday presented a budget estimate of N415.57 billion for the 2026 fiscal year to the Ekiti State House of Assembly. Christened Budget of Impactful Governance it comprises recurrent expenditure of N221.87 billion, representing 53 per cent of the total estimate, and capital expenditure of N193.70 billion, which translates to 46 per cent. The budget proposal for the 2026 fiscal year is about 11 per cent higher than the approved 2025 budget, which stood at N375.79 billion and had N252.15 billion as its recurrent expenditure and N104.51 billion as capital expenditure. Laying the budget before the members of the House of Assembly during a plenary held at the Old Assembly Complex, Ado-Ekiti, Mr Oyebanji said it is expected to focus on consolidating the various achievements recorded by his administration in the last three years. He said the budget is tailored towards completing all ongoing infrastructural development projects. He added that the budget would also focus on investing in agriculture and the related value chain, address wealth creation as well as the welfare of the people to further ensure the fulfilment of the Shared Prosperity agenda of his administration. Mr Oyebanji said the planned substantial investment in agriculture and wealth creation is aimed at generating employment, stabilising food prices, assuring food security and boosting the contribution of agriculture to the states Gross Domestic Product (GDP). The governor explained that the revenue sources expected to fund the include Federal Allocation, Value Added Tax (VAT), Independent Revenue (from MDAs and Tertiary Institutions), International Donor Agencies and other sundry income sources. He stated that the 2026 budget estimate was a product of statewide consultations with the representatives of various towns and communities, various interest groups, revered traditional rulers and civil society organisations at town hall meetings held across the three senatorial districts, enabling the people to articulate the needs of their towns, communities and groups for consideration in the budget. He further explained that the budget stemmed from the State Development Plan, 2021-2050, Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), 20262028 and the Six Pillars of his Administration. It was prepared in compliance with the National Chart of Accounts (NCoA) Template as unanimously agreed by the sub-nationals through the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF). The governor pledged the governments commitment to ensure fiscal responsibility towards implementing the proposed 2026 Budget, which he described as an embodiment of the policy thrust of his administration and direction of the Ekiti State Government in the coming year. Mr Oyebanji noted that probity, transparency, and accountability are the hallmarks of governance in Ekiti State under his watch, which he described as necessary for upholding good governance and improving the standard of living of the people. He said: Distinguished Honourable members, without any fear of contradiction, I make bold to say that our administration has demonstrated a high level of fiscal discipline and prudence in the utilisation of our commonwealth to implement laudable developmental projects. These projects are not only impactful, they will set our state on the path of realising the Shared Prosperity vision. I, therefore, affirm my commitment to continued fiscal discipline, transparency and accountability. To further promote good governance, we have designed a framework for effective policy formulation and implementation that would further boost the economy of our dear State. We have also institutionalised several fiscal reforms at the state and the local government levels for quality service delivery. These reforms are already paying off. Mr Oyebanji also expressed his profound gratitude to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for his very strong support to the government and the good people of Ekiti State, noting that the support has translated to several interventions and has been very helpful in the quest to alleviate poverty in the state and in the delivery of his campaign promises to Ekiti people. Reviewing the performance of the 2025 budget, Governor Oyebanji expressed satisfaction with the improvement in its performance, with several projects and programmes being executed. In his remarks, the Speaker of Ekiti State House of Assembly, Adeoye Aribasoye, assured that the lawmakers would deliberate on the budget with diligence, patriotism, and impartiality to ensure that it reflects the aspirations of the generality of Ekiti people. The speaker urged his colleagues to act as stewards and work on the budget proposal with integrity, discipline and a shared sense of purpose. He noted, With united effort, we can sustain the momentum of reforms, catalyse inclusive growth, and build an Ekiti State where opportunity is within reach for all. He also urged heads of MDAs to be prepared to shed light on their respective aspects of the budget when invited. Mr Aribasoys reaffirmed the pledge of the legislature that every naira will be accounted for and directed to priority sectors that yield maximum public benefit. Mars Aviation Limited, a firm associated with businessman Bashir Haske, has denied any role in an alleged Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) fraud. A Federal High Court in Abuja, presided over by a judge, Musa Liman, had earlier granted an interim order freezing the companys Fidelity Bank account following an application by the EFCC. The order stemmed from an ex parte motion filed on 1 July by EFCC counsel Geraldine Ofulue, with the suit number: FHC/ABJ/CS/1299/2025, in which the agency claimed the account was tied to suspected money laundering and criminal misappropriation. Intelligence reports The Nation Newspaper reported that the EFCC told the court that intelligence reports linked payments from NNPCL to the company, allegedly for contracts that violated public procurement procedures. The agency said substantial sums were deposited in the account across several transactions, prompting it to seek the interim freezing order to preserve the funds pending investigation. As of the time of filing this report, the EFCC had not released an official statement on the matter. Rebuttal In a statement dated 7 October made available to PREMIUM TIMES on Friday, Mars Aviation said the order was obtained without giving it a chance to respond to the allegations. The application leading to the order was made without notice, and we were not allowed to present our position before the court, the firm stated. We have since instructed our legal team to take all lawful steps to challenge the order and ensure the facts are fully presented before the court. The company insisted that all payments received were for legitimate business transactions in line with Nigerian laws and international aviation standards. Mars Aviation Limited has always operated transparently and in compliance with applicable regulations, it added, reaffirming its commitment to good corporate governance and due process. While acknowledging the EFCCs role in combating financial crimes, the company urged the agency to exercise its powers objectively and free of political influence. We believe that once the full facts are before the court, Mars Aviation Limited and its management will be vindicated, the statement concluded. Background This newspaper reported that the anti-graft agency had started an investigation into alleged abuse of office and misappropriation of funds involving several former NNPC executives, including the immediate past Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, and his predecessor, Abubakar YarAdua. In a letter dated 28 April and addressed to the present NNPCL management, the commission is specifically probing the disbursement of over $2.9 billion approved for the rehabilitation of Nigerias three state-owned refineries. The letter, with reference number CR:3000/EFCC/ABJ/HQ/SDC.2/NNPC/VOL.1/698, requested certified salary and allowance records of 14 current and former senior executives, including Messrs Kyari, YarAdua, and former refinery managing directors Ibrahim Onoja (PHRC), Mustafa Sugungun (KRPC), and Efifia Chu (WRPC). The funds under investigation include $1.56 billion allocated to the Port Harcourt refinery, $740.6 million for Kaduna, and $656.9 million for Warri, which were released under a controversial rehabilitation scheme. Several of the listed officials had either been sacked or retired, following a shake-up initiated by President Bola Tinubu, who also dissolved the NNPC board and appointed a new management team led by Bayo Ojulari as GCEO and Ahmadu Kida as board chair. Despite the massive financial injection into the refineries, public records and site visits indicate that the facilities have largely failed to resume meaningful operations. The Warri refinery, which was reopened in December 2024, shut down in January due to safety issues, while the Port Harcourt refinery has operated below 42 per cent of its installed capacity. The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) has challenged the Federal Government to expose and hold accountable those allegedly behind what it described as a false and treasonable campaign portraying Nigeria as a country conducting a genocidal war against Christians. In a statement issued on Friday and signed by its Deputy National Legal Adviser, Haroun Muhammad Eze, the apex Islamic body said the governments failure to identify and publicly name the local originators of the malicious propaganda was undermining its own efforts to defend the countrys image globally. The statement, titled Lets Call a Spade a Spade About the Real Enemies of Nigeria, accused some leaders of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) of instigating the false narrative for personal and political gain. The NSCIA said while it appreciated the patriotic responses of several government agencies and the National Assembly in rejecting recent international claims of systematic persecution of Christians, it was concerned that the government stopped short of speaking the whole truth. Council wondered why the government could not, at least for once, go the whole hog by calling a spade a spade, by speaking the whole truth, the statement said. The NSCIA alleged that certain CAN leaders had found a big business in self-flagellation, resorting to activities that verge on treason to attract sympathy and funding from foreign interests. These elements exploit religious antipathy as an easy pathway to global recognition and fame, it said. CAN leaders instigating false genocide campaign NSCIA According to the Council, the global perception that Nigeria is unsafe for Christians was being deliberately fuelled by political desperadoes and religious irredentists seeking to incite religious conflict and delegitimise the government. It recalled that during the 2023 presidential elections, a presidential candidate was heard in a leaked audio recording telling a religious leader that the poll was a religious war, a development it said was part of a broader effort to divide the country along faith lines. When they failed miserably at setting Nigerians against one another, they began seeking to delegitimise the government by venting lies and projecting persecution and victimhood to a global audience, the NSCIA said. The Council described as plainly mendacious the claims that terrorist groups in Nigeria target Christians alone, saying attacks are indiscriminate and affect adherents of both major religions. Citing the U.S. State Departments 2023 International Religious Freedom Report, the NSCIA said terrorists and bandits attack mosques and churches without discrimination. It added that in the first half of 2025 alone, at least 2,266 civilians were killed across Northern Nigeriamostly Muslim-majority areaswhile over two million people were displaced. The Council also referenced the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) 2025 Annual Report, which it said acknowledged attacks on both faiths, though with what it described as a tinge of bias against Muslims. The NSCIA accused some senior Christian clerics of misleading the international community. It cited a March 2025 appeal by Bishop Wilfred Chikpa Anagbe of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi to the U.S. Congress to redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern and a recent statement by Rev. Joseph Hayab, Chairman of the Northern CAN, alleging systematic attacks against Christians. The Council said it was extremely concerned that the federal government failed to condemn those claims, noting that a major television station recently gave airtime to Rev. Hayab to repeat the allegations despite rebuttals from the Minister of Information. The NSCIA, however, acknowledged a more conciliatory comment by a CAN official, who had cautioned against rushing to foreign bodies for sympathy and urged Nigerians to work collectively to end insecurity at home. Why run to America when you have a Senate here where you can file your petition? In the end, when they place Nigeria as a country of particular interest, all of us will suffer, the Council quoted the CAN official as saying. The NSCIA said it was disappointed that the CAN President had since restated the false narrative, showing that those propagating the falsehood were, in reality, playing the script of CAN. Islamic terrorism narrative deceptive The Council also claimed that some of the terrorist groups labelled Islamic were in fact creations of anti-Islamic interests. It further alleged that the propaganda against Muslims was part of an effort to gain disproportionate dominance in Nigerias political structure, saying the presidency had earlier confirmed that 62 per cent of presidential appointees were Christians in a country where Muslims are preponderant. The NSCIA also criticised President Bola Tinubus recent visit to Plateau State, during which he met with Christian leaders at the COCIN Church headquarters without, it said, recognising the oppressed Muslim minority in the state. It is obvious that the propaganda around the Muslim-Muslim ticket is being successfully used to blackmail and extort the federal government to the detriment of Muslims, the NSCIA statement said. The NSCIA expressed concern over what it called discriminatory policies by some federal agencies. It cited a recent circular by the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) barring co-insurance arrangements between conventional insurers and Takaful operators, describing the directive as divisive and inconsistent with international best practices. This circular of exclusivity violates the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA 2025), recently assented to by Mr President, and is intended to further create a divide between Muslims and non-Muslims in the country, the Council said. Despite its strong criticism, the Council reaffirmed its commitment to Nigerias unity, saying it had deliberately refrained from responding aggressively to persistent attacks and insults against Muslims in order to protect the nations corporate existence. Council strongly believes in one and indivisible Nigeria and shall continue to work to preserve this ideal even in the face of the greatest provocation, the statement concluded. READ THE FULL STATEMENT BY THE NSCIA BELOW NSCIA/HQ/PRS/088 Date: 18th Rabiul Thani 1447 AH 10th October 2025 LETS CALL A SPADE A SPADE ABOUT THE REAL ENEMIES OF NIGERIA The Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs (NSCIA) recently observed the avalanche of refutations by many agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria, well-meaning Nigerians across religious divides and the National Assembly of the recent false allegation circulating on some international platforms and the social media that there is a systematic genocidal campaign against Christians in Nigeria and accused the government of Nigeria of facilitating the mass murder of Christians. Though the NSCIA was particularly struck and appreciative of the sense of duty and patriotism of the government agencies and functionaries, the sole purpose of which was to counteract the negative false narrative constantly being peddled against our country by foreign forces whose primary objective is to create an alibi for the ongoing genocide in the Gaza, Council wondered why the government could not, at least for once, go the whole hog by calling a spade a spade, by speaking the whole truth! It is common knowledge that the negative profiling that Nigeria currently suffers all around the world is largely the aftermath of the activities of some Nigerian citizens (now revealed as agents of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN)) who have found a big business in self-flagellation. These elements have resorted to engaging in activities that verge on treason to achieve material gains. They also exploit transactions in religious antipathy as easy pathways to global recognition and fame. Thus, Council is surprised that the Federal Government embarked on this otiose voyage of urging the international media and commentators to act responsibly by avoiding sensationalism and support Nigerias efforts against terrorism and other forms of criminality without referring to the local originators of the false narrative. Without a shred of doubt, the world is aware that some political desperadoes and religious irredentists have been trying hard to plunge Nigeria into a religious war. During the buildup to the 2023 presidential election, a presidential candidate had actually, in a leaked audio recording, spoken to an Islamophobic religious leader declaring the election as a religious war. When they failed miserably at the project to set Nigerians against one another while banking on external support, they began seeking to delegitimise the government in power by venting lies, projecting persecution and victimhood to the global audience while being the masquerade behind the insecurity in the land. Importuning that terrorist groups, whose religious identities are conflated, are carrying out attacks against Christians alone in Nigeria is plainly mendacious. The U.S. State Departments 2023 Report on International Religious Freedom notes that terrorists, bandits and armed criminal groups target mosques and churches indiscriminately in Nigeria. In the first half of 2025 alone, terrorists and bandits are reported to have killed at least 2,266 civilians across Northern Nigeria, where Muslims are predominant, leaving over 2 million people displaced and over 7.8 million others in need of urgent aid. Even the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) 2025 Annual Report acknowledges attacks on both faiths, though the tinge of bias against Muslims is still there. Council wishes to place on record that its decision to be quiet in the face of all the attacks, innuendos and insults being hurled at Muslims in this country is as a result of the necessity of protecting the corporate existence of this nation. Council is equally aware of the fact that whenever arrant falsehood or sheer subterfuge have become fashionable, recourse to reason and ratiocination becomes a categorical imperative. That appeared to have been the case some time in March 2025, when a false alarm was raised by one Bishop Wilfred Chikpa Anagbe of the Catholic Diocese of Makurdi, who appealed to the US Congress to redesignate Nigeria as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC) owing to increased Islamist attacks against Christians. Also, about a week ago, there was a similar false allegation on the same subject by Rev. Joseph Hayab, Chairman of Northern Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN). Council is extremely concerned that no mention or condemnation of these false and odious statements was made by the Federal Government. Indeed, as if they were desirous to show that they were above the law, or that are actually defacto people in power, a popular television station allotted substantial airtime to Rev. Hayab on Monday, 29th September 2025 to, as it were, correct the errors committed by the Minister of Information and National Orientation by restating the false narrative that Christians are being targeted and persecuted across Nigeria. While all these were on, the Council, in its own tradition, refrained from joining issues, on the assumption that there is a ray of light from CAN, when its Director of National Issues and Social Welfare, stated that: Sometimes, our situation is being taken advantage of by groups who know what they benefit from foreign interests. Those foreign interests have a right to poke their nose into whats going on in our system, but we also have a right to report things as they are. Yes, its concerning that this insurgency is lasting too long. Also, the spate of killings does not take any pattern. If they open fire in a marketplace, the bullets dont look for a Christian or spare a Muslim or even spare a baby. So, all we must be doing now is adopt an all-of-society action to stop this insurgency and also address issues of groupthink. Why run to America when you have a Senate here where you can file your petition? In the end, when they place Nigeria as a country of particular interest, all of us will suffer. But those who run abroad to look for sympathy know why they do that. The Council is, however, extremely disappointed by the false proclamation of the CAN President, which has now shown clearly that the individuals who were propagating the falsehood were, in reality, playing the scripts of CAN. When the Chiefs of Defence and Army were Muslims, the complaint from CAN was that both were complicit, but now that all service chiefs, except one, are Christians, another culprit has to be created by CAN to malign Islam and the Muslims. Is it a secret that some of the terrorist groups being paraded as Islamic were creations of anti-Islamic groups? Mrs Hilary Clinton, for instance, publicly acknowledged that the United States of America created Al-Qaeda, which is being projected as Islamic. The NSCIA is aware that these propagandas are meant to serve some inglorious purposes, including disproportionate dominance in the current political configuration. The presidency has, in May 2025, asserted that 62% of presidential appointees are Christians in a country where Muslims are preponderant, without a whimper from the Council. Likewise, Mr Presidents recent visit to Plateau State incorporated a meeting with Christian leaders at the headquarters of COCIN Church without any recognition for the oppressed Muslim minority in the state! It is thus obvious that the propaganda around the Muslim/Muslim ticket is being successfully used to blackmail and extort the federal government, and to the detriment of the Muslims. The Quran is clear that some would be satisfied with a Muslim (no matter how fair, just and equitable) only if the Muslim denounces Islam. The activities of CAN and its local and international proxies are orchestrated to attract further imbalance, undue sympathy, generate international funds and stoke Islamaphobia further. Surely the disbelievers spend their wealth to hinder others from the Path of the Almighty; they shall surely continue to spend it and regret shall (ultimately) be their reward (Quran 8:36). It is also of serious concern to the Council how some Federal Government agencies are being used to fight the government by targeting Muslims and Islamic beliefs. A few weeks ago, the National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) issued a circular prohibiting a co-insurance between the conventional insurers and Takaful Operators without any identified mischief caused by the existing principle and against the established international best practices. This circular of exclusivity, which clearly violates the Nigerian Insurance Industry Reform Act (NIIRA 2025), which was recently assented to by Mr. President, is intended to further create a divide between the Muslims and the non-Muslims in the country. Council strongly believes in one and indivisible Nigeria, and it shall continue to work to preserve this ideal even in the face of the greatest provocation. Signed. Imam Haroun Muhammad Eze, Esq. Deputy National Legal Adviser The Women in Leadership Coalition, a group of womens rights advocates and organisations, is working to push for modern labour reform and increase female representation in government and boardrooms. The coalition made this known during a press briefing in Isale Eko, Lagos, on Friday. The Women in Leadership Coalition includes the Women in Management, Business and Public Service (WIMBIZ), the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), Women in Leadership and Women in Career. The executive director of WIMBIZ, Omowunmi Akingbohungbe, said the coalition is gathering data on the current state of female representation in states cabinets and plans to publish a document highlighting the status of each state. Ms Akingbohungbe stated that WIMBIZ is advocating for a minimum of 16 weeks of paid maternity leave, 14 days of paternity leave, and 35 per cent female representation on the boards of listed organisations and at all levels of government. This is a body (NGF) that has regular engagement with the state governors, and even has some meetings scheduled where all the parties involved will be there, she said. So right now, what we are doing is a collection of data. Lets even have a document published to show the status of all the state cabinets currently. How many females do they have in this cabinet? Do they even have any policy in place to drive this now? When we have that collated, we will make it public. Ms Akingbohungbe said the coalition aims to secure commitment from state governors on increasing female representation and showcasing states that have made progress in this area, adding that Lagos State has made significant strides in female representation. This effort comes as Nigeria continues to grapple with low female representation in government, despite constitutional provisions and policy frameworks aimed at promoting equality. Legal sector Ms Akingbohungbe also highlighted the organisations focus on the legal industry, mentoring programmes, and a collaboration with other women-focused NGOs to advocate for gender representation in leadership. She noted that after identifying some gaps, they discovered a significant disparity, noting that women constitute less than five per cent of all Senior Advocates in Nigeria. She said they had a series of engagements with law firms, judges, councils of corporate organisations, just to understand the legal sector. However, they found out that many female lawyers require mentorship to prepare them for the journey ahead. We embarked on a mentoring programme over three months, she said. We had over 2000 female lawyers across Nigeria register for this mentoring programme, and they had intense engagement, even one-on-one with veterans in the industry. Annual conference Meanwhile, Ms Akingbohungbe announced the 24th annual WIMBIZ conference, taking place on 6 and 7 November. The conference is themed Own, Walk, Nurture (OWN), encouraging women to own their stories, walk in power, and nurture the future. She said the event aims to empower women through networking, mentoring, and professional development. She noted that registration for the conference will close by 17 October to ensure a seamless experience. Key speakers expected at the high-level event include Bimbola Wright, the chairperson of WIMBIZ 2025 conference planning committee, Amina Ogi, a judge and Arunma Oteh, a financial expert. READ ALSO: WIMBIZ seeks strategic alliance with Head of Civil Service of the Federation to drive female mentorship in public service The objective is really cross-fertilisation, where the more seasoned professionals are learning and picking up from the creativity and innovative mindset of the younger ones, and the younger demographic is also benefiting from the depth of experience of the older demographic, Ms Wright said. The conference will feature four plenary sessions on wellness, retirement, intergenerational collaboration, and a womens debate on access versus certification. On her part, Rolake Akinlugbe-Filani, a member of the board of trustees, explained further that the annual conference is a foundation for women to launch and learn from those who have gone before us. Mrs Akinlugbe-Filani, noted that delegates from the UK, Saudi Arabia, Canada and others would be attending the conference. ABIDJAN, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Clashes broke out on Saturday morning in Abidjan, the economic capital of Cote d'Ivoire, between security forces and opposition supporters attempting to hold a protest despite a formal ban issued by the prefect. In Cocody, a commune in the east of Abidjan, several people tried to gather in small groups near the Saint Jean church. However, they were quickly dispersed by security forces using tear gas after brief altercations. This attempted gathering was initiated by a coalition of major opposition parties comprising the African People's Party of Cote d'Ivoire (PPA-CI) of former President Laurent Gbagbo and the Democratic Party of Cote d'Ivoire (PDCI) of Tidjane Thiam. They had planned a march to protest the removal of their leaders from the electoral list, a decision that prevented them from being candidates in the Oct. 25 presidential election. "As of 11:30 a.m. (local time), 237 people have been arrested, among them women and young people," said Interior and Security Minister Vagondo Diomande during a press conference in Abidjan. He lamented that "some completely irresponsible young people were sent into the streets to erect barricades." The minister, however, emphasized that the rest of the national territory remained calm. "Security forces have been deployed to allow all citizens to go about their business and for national life to continue its normal course," he said, praising the professionalism of the units involved. Diomande said this protest was held in violation of Article 138 of the Constitution, which strictly regulates public gatherings. "Those caught participating in an unauthorized demonstration will face the law," he warned. As the electoral campaign for the presidential election began on Friday, the minister praised "the sense of responsibility of the majority of young people," and called on all citizens to preserve the image of a stable Cote d'Ivoire. Five candidates, including incumbent President Alassane Ouattara, who chose the city of Daloa in west-central Ivory Coast to launch his campaign, are in the running for this election. At least 15 members of Boko Haram Insurgents were reportedly killed on Friday as they attacked a military post in Ngamdu, along the DamaturuMaiduguri Road in the Kaga Local Government Area of Borno State. The attack occurred around 2:30 a.m. and was repelled by troops of Operation Hadin Kai after a fierce gun battle. Uba Sani, an army lieutenant-colonel and spokesperson of the operation, said the terrorists suffered heavy losses, with reports of about 14 bodies buried around Bula Wura, near Wasaram in the local government area. However, he said four soldiers paid the supreme price and five others were injured in the encounter. Troops of Operation HADIN KAI successfully repelled a coordinated terrorist attack in the Ngamdu general area, following a swift response by forces on ground and reinforcement elements from 29 Task Force Brigade, Mr Sani said. He said the terrorists employed Rocket Propelled Grenades (RPGs), armed drones, and command-initiated Improvised Explosive Devices, targeting troops and platforms. Despite the strength of the attack, he said, the troops overpowered the insurgents. Unfortunately, own troops recorded 4 x Killed in Action (KIA) and 5 x Wounded in Action (WIA). Additionally, some Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and Gun Trucks (GTs) sustained varying degrees of damage during the encounter, Mr Sani added in a statement. According to him, the terrorists attempted to prevent military reinforcements and inflict further casualties by planting multiple IEDs along the NgamduDamaturu Main Supply Route (MSR). This necessitated a temporary closure of the MSR, as engineers swiftly responded to clear 3 IED-laden spots Following successful clearance, the MSR has now been reopened to both military and civilian movement, he added Mr Sani stated that in response to the attack, troops were immediately resupplied with critical logistics, including MRAP tyres and ammunition, to sustain operations and restore full mobility. He commended the troops for their gallantry and assured the public that normalcy had been restored in the area. The attack comes less than a week after the insurgents displaced about 5000 residents of communities in Kirawa in Gwoza Local Government Area. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said it has kicked off investigation into the arrest of two travellers found in possession of undeclared foreign currencies valued at $6,180 and 53,415 at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that security officials at the local wing of the airport had detained some passengers suspected to be travelling aboard an Aero Contractors flight with substantial sums of money, allegedly exceeding $6.1 million, according to sources. The sources, who requested anonymity as they are not authorised to speak publicly, said the travellers were believed to be couriers of a politically exposed person But in a statement issued on Saturday evening, the EFCC confirmed that its operatives have started questioning two suspects identified as Mamud Nasidi and Yahaya Nasidi in connection with the intercepted funds. The anti-corruption agency, however, put the recovered cash at $6,180 and 53,415, equivalent to N9 million (at N1,471 to a dollar) and N105.5 million (at N1,976 to a pound) in that order. EFCC commences investigation of two suspects for undeclared $6,180 and 53,415 at Lagos Airport, the commission said in a Twitter (now X) post. According to the statement, operatives of the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the commission, are leading the probe. The suspects were reportedly nabbed during a routine airport check on Saturday at the point of boarding a flight to Abuja. The EFCC said investigations revealed that they had just arrived in Nigeria from Dubai by way of Addis Ababa. Following their arrest, the EFCC said the travellers have been handed over to the State Security Service (SSS), which subsequently transferred them to the EFCC for further interrogation and possible prosecution. The commission added that three mobile phones were also recovered from the suspects during the operation. According to the EFCC, the exhibits and suspects were received by Margaret Lamai on behalf of the acting zonal director, assistant commander of the EFCC (ACE I) Ahmed Ghali. If Pakistan, Nigeria, or any nation wishes to escape this cycle, leaders must abandon the illusion of clever deals with extremists. Real security lies not in proxy wars or militant allies but in building just societies, resilient institutions, and inclusive politics that deny extremists the grievances they exploit. Anything less is sowing seeds for future catastrophe. In the jagged mountain ranges straddling Afghanistan and Pakistan, a resurgent Pakistani Taliban, known as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (T.T.P.), is ratcheting up a relentless and deadly guerrilla war against Pakistani security forces presently. Roads clogged with convoys of battered trucks, overloaded with beddings, cooking pots, sacks of grain, and families fleeing in haste, are now familiar sights. Many have sought refuge in schools, government offices, and private homes in safer parts of the district. Pakistan is, without doubt, experiencing its own Boko Haram moment and this is not merely an insurgency; it is the bitter harvest of decades of shortsighted political choices. But to understand how the tiger turned on its rider, a little bit of history will suffice here. In 1994, a one-eyed cleric in Kandahar named Mullah Omar, a veteran of the anti-Soviet jihad, gathered a band of religious students who sought to end the chaos of Afghanistans civil war. They called themselves the Taliban. Promising stability under Gods law, Omars Taliban rose swiftly, sweeping across Afghanistan and capturing Kabul within two years. For Afghans weary of the brutality of warlords, the Taliban seemed like a reprieve. But for the world, its rise marked the birth of a movement whose fanaticism and brutality would reverberate far beyond Afghanistans borders. The Talibans ascent was not solely born of Afghan desperation. It was also the product of calculated but dangerously myopic bargains. Chief among its patrons was General Hamid Gul, the powerful former head of Pakistans Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI). Gul, nicknamed the godfather of the Taliban, saw it as a tool to secure Pakistans strategic depth in Afghanistan; a buffer against Indian influence. He offered ideological backing, training, and defence of the Taliban project, believing Pakistan could shape and contain it. In truth, he was playing with fire. That fire soon spread. Under the Talibans protection, Osama bin Laden built the network that carried out the September 11 attacks, which was the deadliest assault ever on American soil. Yet Pakistan, even while partnering publicly with Washington in the War on Terror, shielded Taliban leaders and famously sheltered bin Laden himself in Abbottabad, and a stones throw from a military academy. What began as strategic depth became a national disaster, burning Pakistans credibility abroad and destabilising its security at home. The tragedy deepened in 2007 when militants within Pakistan coalesced into the TTP. Unlike the Afghan Taliban, these militants aimed their fury inward. They bombed markets, attacked mosques, assassinated religious leaders. Their most horrifying act came in 2014 when they stormed a school in Peshawar, slaughtering over 140 children and teachers. For a nation that had once midwifed the Taliban, this was a brutal reckoning: the monster had turned on its maker. Leaders imagine they are manipulating extremists as pawns in a game of chess. But pawns have wills of their own. Ideologies, once unleashed, cannot be boxed back in. Gul believed the Taliban would be Pakistans strategic tool; American officials believed Saddam Hussein could be their counterweight to Iran. Both were catastrophically wrong. Pakistan launched fierce military campaigns and claimed victory in 2018, boasting that the TTP had been crushed. But the illusion of peace was shattered when the Taliban returned to power in Kabul in 2021. The TTP drew new strength, reuniting splinter factions and absorbing Al Qaeda affiliates. Armed now with American-made weapons abandoned in Afghanistan; sniper rifles, night-vision goggles, drones, they began a new offensive, pushing beyond the tribal areas into Punjab, the political and economic heart of Pakistan. Scenes of displacement have returned. Roads are again clogged with desperate families, children clinging to bundles of belongings, entire communities uprooted. The ghosts of past miscalculations are alive, and the bitter harvest of transactional politics is upon Pakistan once more. But Pakistan is not alone in this pattern of folly. The United States, too, armed and funded the Afghan mujahideen, during the Cold War, to fight the Soviets, inadvertently laying the foundations for the Taliban and Al Qaeda. In Iraq, Washington propped up Saddam Hussein during the Iran-Iraq war, only to later face him as a rogue dictator who invaded Kuwait. The logic was the same: short-term gain, long-term catastrophe. This is the curse of transactional leadership. It mortgages the future for a fleeting sense of control in the present. Leaders imagine they are manipulating extremists as pawns in a game of chess. But pawns have wills of their own. Ideologies, once unleashed, cannot be boxed back in. Gul believed the Taliban would be Pakistans strategic tool; American officials believed Saddam Hussein could be their counterweight to Iran. Both were catastrophically wrong. The costs of these miscalculations are always borne by the powerless. The families of Bajaur trudging through the mountains, the children massacred in Peshawar, the passengers fleeing collapsing towers in New York these are the true victims of short-term bargains struck in secret rooms by ambitious men. The architects of such strategies rarely pay with their lives. Ordinary people do. Then theres Saudi Arabia, a Wahhabi theocracy where Salafi extremism is not just preached but exported. Saudi clerics breed radicals, while wealthy patrons, hiding behind charities, bankroll madrassas around the world, including the institutions that gave rise to Mullah Omar. For decades, the United States has propped up the Saudi monarchy, even as 15 of the 19 9/11 hijackers were Saudi citizens. Yet, despite this staggering complicity in global terror, few Saudis have been held accountable. Complacency, however, would be a grave mistake; they, too, will one day face the reckoning they have long evaded. The lesson is universal: the monsters created for expedience never stay loyal. They mutate, grow stronger, and eventually devour their masters. Mullah Omars ragtag students reshaped global politics. Boko Harams so-called political tool became a global jihadist franchise. The transactional bargains that midwifed them are now cautionary tales etched in blood. Nigeria offers its own grim parallel. Boko Haram was once courted and tolerated by politicians in Borno for electoral leverage. But it soon broke free, splintering into factions, with some pledging allegiance to the Islamic State. Similarly, transnational fighters from the Sahel were invited into Nigeria to sway elections, but after the ballots were cast, they refused to leave. Instead, they turned to kidnapping, banditry, and trafficking, unleashing a wave of insecurity that now threatens the very elites who once saw them as convenient allies. For decades, successive Nigerian administrations have treated terror financing with the casual indifference of political expediency. While the US State Department has moved decisively, sanctioning Boko Haram sponsors, some of who now rot in UAE prisons, here at home, their collaborators stroll freely through our streets. Even more damning, many of them sit in positions of power, quietly pulling the strings of governance while the nation pays the price of their impunity. The lesson is universal: the monsters created for expedience never stay loyal. They mutate, grow stronger, and eventually devour their masters. Mullah Omars ragtag students reshaped global politics. Boko Harams so-called political tool became a global jihadist franchise. The transactional bargains that midwifed them are now cautionary tales etched in blood. If Pakistan, Nigeria, or any nation wishes to escape this cycle, leaders must abandon the illusion of clever deals with extremists. Real security lies not in proxy wars or militant allies but in building just societies, resilient institutions, and inclusive politics that deny extremists the grievances they exploit. Anything less is sowing seeds for future catastrophe. History has spoken clearly: whether in Kabul, Baghdad, Maiduguri, or Peshawar, the monsters of transactional leadership never remain in their cages. They return, and when they do, they bring only rubble, blood, and regret. Osmund Agbo is a US-based medical doctor and author. His works include Black Grit, White Knuckles: The Philosophy of Black Renaissance and a fiction work titled The Velvet Court: Courtesan Chronicles. His latest works, Pray, Let the Shaman Die and Maam, I Do Not Come to You for Love, have just been released. He can be reached@ [email protected] The New York city elections may be a sort of referendum on the true position of the majority of Americans on the war in Gaza. They may indicate the reaction of the populace to the flip-flop manner of the Trump administration, the chief supporter of Israel, which now styles itself as the chief peace maker. Also, they may indicate their position on other contentious Trumpian policies, including immigration and healthcare. As the Gaza war entered its third year on 7 October, and multinational peace negotiators gathered in Egypt to panel-beat a peace agreement, Palestinian rallies rocked New York. The rallies took on added importance as the citys 4 November election may be determined by the position of voters on the genocide. A few years ago, it would have been unthinkable that Americans, who used to believe that the world rotated round them, would hold local elections whose outcomes may be determined by where candidates stand on a foreign issue. But no conscious human can ignore the nightmare in Gaza, brought daily to all by the electronic media and the internet. On this day, the three leading candidates had to declare where they stand on the Gaza war. The New York city elections may be a sort of referendum on the true position of the majority of Americans on the war in Gaza. They may indicate the reaction of the populace to the flip-flop manner of the Trump administration, the chief supporter of Israel, which now styles itself as the chief peace maker. Also, they may indicate their position on other contentious Trumpian policies, including immigration and healthcare. There were a number of options on which rally to join. These included the Flood New York City for Gaza at the News Corporation, the one at the Consulate General of Israel, and the Tell Google: Stop Retaliation. There were several attacks in the media against Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the Democratic candidate and front runner. Unperturbed, Mamdani, who has consistently stood against the genocide, went to the Union Square to hold a vigil. He sat amongst rows of people at night, holding a lit candle. He is the son of the famous intellectual, Mahmood Mamdani, a professor of anthropology, African studies and political science, specialising in colonialism and post-colonialism. The junior Mamdani, 33, was first elected a member of the New York State Assembly in 2020, defeating Aravella Simotas, a four-term incumbent. He was re-elected unopposed in 2022 and 2024. This 7 October, he issued a five-paragraph statement which seemed to have shaken the pro-Israeli camp. Mamdani said: Two years ago today, Hamas carried out a horrific war crime, killing more than 1,100 Israelis and kidnapping 250 more. I mourn these lives and pray for the safe return of every hostage still held and for every family whose lives were torn apart by these atrocities. In the aftermath of that day, Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Israeli government launched a genocidal war: a death toll that now far exceeds 67,000; with the Israeli military bombing homes, hospitals, and schools into rubble. Apart from his position on Gaza, Mamdani is campaigning on a pro-worker and anti-poverty programme, under which he wants to introduce rent freeze and social housing that would build 200,000 subsidised houses in three years. He also promises to introduce city-owned grocery stores and universal childcare, abolish tuition fees in public schools and remove property tax exemptions for private universities. Everyday Gaza has become a place where grief itself has run out of language. I mourn these lives and pray for the families that have been shattered. Peace must be pursued through diplomacy, not war crimes, and our government must act to end these atrocities and hold those responsible to account. The Israeli government, used to being pampered, yelled at Mamdani: By repeating Hamass lies, he excuses terror and normalises anti-semitism. He stands with Jews only when they are dead. Shameful. While Mamdani condemned both Hamas and Israel for the war in Gaza and got bashings for it, Independent candidate and former Governor of New York State, Andrew Cuomo condemned Hamas alone, and has not received retributions. In his statement on the commemoration, Cuomo said: Two years ago today, the world watched in horror as Hamas terrorists murdered, raped and kidnapped innocent men, women and children. Today on 7th October, I am remembering the hostages and all who were brutally taken from us at the hands of Hamas. To the Jewish people I stand with you. I mourn with you and I will forever be by your side in the fight against evil and anti-semitism in all forms. The Republican candidate, Curtis Sliwa, a radio talk show host and founder in 1979 of the Guardian Angels, a crime prevention organisation, also condemned Hamas alone. His statement: October 7th was a dark day, and the memory of the attacks and the innocent lives lost must never be forgotten. The death and destruction that has followed in the region is deeply disheartening, and my prayers are with all families here in New York and abroad who continue to feel this pain. What happens there also impacts us here at home, which is why my focus as mayor will be on ensuring that all forms of hate are confronted and that every New Yorker is kept safe. Apart from his position on Gaza, Mamdani is campaigning on a pro-worker and anti-poverty programme, under which he wants to introduce rent freeze and social housing that would build 200,000 subsidised houses in three years. He also promises to introduce city-owned grocery stores and universal childcare, abolish tuition fees in public schools and remove property tax exemptions for private universities. He equally promises to make the MTA, city bus fleet, fare-free, and freeze subway fares. In order to fund these welfare schemes, he plans to increase corporate taxes and introduce a two per cent income tax for those earning above $1 million. New York is considered a Democratic stronghold, having voted Democratic in national elections since 1988. Cuomo told voters that they should vote for him because he is the true democrat, as Mamdani is just a socialist on the Democratic line, and Im the Democrat, running on an independent line. Republican Curtis Silwa plans to ensure safe streets, city sanitation, restore the New York City Police Department (NYPD), shelter security and the homeless outreach, and lower business tax to six per cent as-of-right job-creation credits. The Republican candidate says he wants to shrink the Department of Education (DOE), central office, return funding to classrooms and student enrichment, and end non-essential emergency contracting The Independent, Andrew Cuomo, says the city is in crisis, adding: New York City should be for everyone, not just the wealthy. With the right leadership we will restore affordability. New York is considered a Democratic stronghold, having voted Democratic in national elections since 1988. Cuomo told voters that they should vote for him because he is the true democrat, as Mamdani is just a socialist on the Democratic line, and Im the Democrat, running on an independent line. He added that: Only 13 per cent of New Yorkers voted in the June primary (in which Mamdani defeated him). The general election is in November, and I am in it to win it. My opponent, Mr Mamdani, offers slick slogans, but no real solutions. Cuomo submitted: We need a city with lower rent, safer streets, where buying your first home is once again possible, where child care wont bankrupt you. Thats the New York City we know. But Silwa dismissed Cuomo: In the streets, the word about Andrew Cuomo is slapping fannies and killing grannies. He must apologise, he must humble himself. Cuomo added that he is the guy who can fight Zohran Mamdani. Despite the massive national and international campaigns against him, Mamdani is the candidate to beat. Owei Lakemfa, a former secretary general of African workers, is a human rights activist, journalist and author. Governor Umar Namadi of Jigawa State has been honoured with the GovTech Public Service Award at a ceremony on Friday, held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa in Abuja. The governor received the award for his remarkable efforts in digitising governance and modernising service delivery in his state. The governors spokesperson, Hamisu Gumel, in a statement Saturday said Mr Namadis leadership resulted in several achievements, including the establishment of the Jigawa State ICT and Digital Economy Agency. This agency serves as a crucial centre for innovation and digital policy, focusing on preparing the youth for the digital economy, Mr Gumel said. He said the governor was awarded alongside his counterparts: the Governors of Abia State, Alex Otti; Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State; Douye Diri of Bayelsa State; Dapo Abiodun of Ogun State; and Caleb Muftwang of Plateau State. Mr Gumel stated that the governors were recognised for their contributions to public service and for enhancing the digital abilities of both civil servants and numerous young people in their respective states. The event was organised by the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) under the theme, Redefining Possibilities: Harnessing Emerging Technologies for Public Service Delivery and Socio-Economic Development, which reflects the Federal Governments Renewed Hope Agenda, emphasising the role of technology in enhancing governance. In his acceptance speech, Governor Namadi thanked the BPSR and the Federal Government for the honour, reaffirming his commitment to leveraging technology to transform governance in Jigawa State. Katsina State Government has signed two Memoranda of Understanding with Revive, a Belgium-based international NGO, to provide medical services and training focused on breast and cervical cancer treatment for women in the state. The partnership will see a team of 25 medical professionals visit Katsina for two weeks to provide medical services, conduct diagnoses, and train local healthcare workers. Speaking on the partnership during the delegation visit to Belgium, Katsina State Commissioner for Health, Musa Adamu Funtua, said the partnership aimed at combating breast and cervical cancer among women in the state. We are committed to ensuring that our women have access to quality healthcare services, and this partnership is a testament to our governments dedication to improving the health and well-being of our citizens, the Commissioner said. Speaking on the partnership, the wife of the Governor, Fatima Dikko Radda, expressed profound satisfaction with the MoU, describing it as a game-changer for womens health in Katsina State. This collaboration is deeply personal to me because I have witnessed firsthand the devastating impact of breast and cervical cancer on our women. Many suffer in silence due to lack of access to early detection and treatment. This partnership with Revive will change that narrative by bringing world-class medical expertise directly to our women, Mrs Fatima Radda stated. She commended Governor Dikko Umaru Radda for his unwavering commitment to healthcare development and pledged to continue championing initiatives that improve the health and well-being of women and children across the state. As a mother and advocate for womens welfare, I am committed to ensuring that no woman in Katsina State dies from preventable diseases. This medical mission is just the beginning, and I call on all women to take advantage of this life-saving opportunity, she added. In her remarks, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Hadiza Yaradua, stated that three medical oncologists from Katsina will also travel to Belgium for hands-on training at a leading teaching hospital. Mrs Yaradua disclosed that the delegation, which included Dr Gadafi (Oncologist), Dr Aliyu (Medical Director, Primary Healthcare Katsina), and Aisha Mukhtar (SSA to the Governors wife), visited Belgium last week to engage with the Board of Directors and medical professionals of Revive. She noted that the collaboration focuses on womens health, particularly breast and cervical cancer, which affects one in every ten women. This partnership represents another milestone in our continuous effort to promote preventive healthcare, strengthen medical capacity, and ensure that women have access to quality and lifesaving services, Mrs Yaradua stated. She noted that over the past two years, the Radda administration has made significant investments in the health sector, upgrading Primary Healthcare centres across all 361 wards and equipping hospitals with modern medical facilities. The next step in this progress is to invest in our human capital by strengthening the capacity of our medical professionals and building strategic partnerships that can bring lasting impact, the women affairs commissioner emphasised. The partnership is expected to strengthen Katsina States capacity to combat womens cancer and improve overall healthcare delivery across the state. NEW YORK, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Better Business Advice has recognized Northwest Registered Agent as a leading service for new entity formation in Delaware. The recognition underscores the company's emphasis on privacy, data protection, and the concept of building a lasting "business identity" rather than simply registering a name. Top Delaware Registered Agent Service Northwest Registered Agent - provides dependable Delaware registered agent service, emphasizing privacy, compliance, and expert guidance to support strong business identity and long-term success Why Northwest As Your Delaware Registered Agent Every company formed in Delaware must designate a registered agent. While this may sound procedural, it plays a vital role in ensuring compliance with state law. A registered agent serves as the official point of contact for service of process and government notices. Without one, businesses risk missed deadlines, fines, and even the loss of good standing with the state. For entrepreneurs, this choice goes beyond legal compliance. The right registered agent sets the foundation for how a business presents itself and how well it is protected. Better Business Advice pointed to Northwest Registered Agent's privacy-first approach, transparent pricing, and in-house operations as the defining reasons behind its recognition. More Than Just a Business Name: Building a Business Identity Northwest Registered Agent frames its work around a concept called "business identity." The idea is that forming a company is not just about filing paperwork or picking a name. It is about creating an entire professional foundation that conveys credibility and protects personal information from day one. A business identity includes more than just a registration certificate. It represents the professional presence, data protection, and compliance practices that help companies operate with confidence. For many entrepreneurs, especially those launching their first venture, this distinction is what separates short-term paperwork from a sustainable business. Northwest supports this identity-building approach with services that extend beyond filings. Its Corporate Guides provide one-on-one assistance with state-specific rules, compliance reminders, and even practical resources like building a simple WordPress website. By giving new businesses an immediate online presence, Northwest helps entrepreneurs establish themselves in a marketplace where digital credibility is often as important as state registration. Privacy and Data Protection at the Core Better Business Advice emphasized Northwest's in-house operations as a unique feature in the registered agent industry. Unlike providers that rely on outside vendors or third-party platforms, Northwest keeps all client data within its own systems. This means your personal and business information is never sold, shared, or exposed for any reason. The policy is not limited to avoiding data exchanges for marketing or payouts. Northwest does not use external platforms at all for its core services. Every legal notice, document scan, and compliance reminder is handled securely by the company's own internal staff and systems. This structure minimizes the risk of data exposure and ensures that sensitive information, like your home address and phone number, stays private. In an era where entrepreneurs are increasingly cautious about cybersecurity and digital footprints, this in-house approach adds a layer of protection that goes beyond standard compliance. Features That Define the Service Better Business Advice highlighted several specific features that distinguish Northwest's Delaware registered agent services: 1. Strong privacy protections Northwest lists its own business address whenever possible during registrations, shielding entrepreneurs' personal addresses from public databases. Combined with its in-house data management, this creates a level of confidentiality rarely offered in the industry. 2. Same-day document scanning Every document received on behalf of a Delaware business is scanned and uploaded to the client's secure account the same day. This ensures time-sensitive information is delivered without delay. 3. Guidance through Corporate Guide Northwest's support goes well beyond a call center. Its Corporate Guides offers expertise in Delaware compliance, explains complex rules in plain language, and provides practical support. For businesses without an online presence, they will even build a basic WordPress website to get operations started. 4. Reputation built on trust With a 4.7-star rating on Google and more than 1,000 reviews, Northwest places in the top 1% of all businesses reviewed on the platform. This reputation reflects consistent reliability and customer satisfaction over more than 20 years of service. How the Service Functions in Delaware The process of working with Northwest is designed to be straightforward. Entrepreneurs can choose Northwest at the time of forming a new Delaware LLC or corporation, or existing businesses can switch their registered agent to Northwest. Once established, the company becomes the official point of contact in Delaware. State communications and legal notices are sent to Northwest's office, where they are securely processed and uploaded to the client's account. Clients receive immediate notifications when new documents are available. Northwest also helps entrepreneurs track key compliance deadlines. Delaware businesses must submit annual reports and often pay franchise taxes. Missing these deadlines can result in fines or the loss of good standing with the Secretary of State. Northwest's system not only delivers timely compliance reminders to reduce the risk of missed deadlines, but also offers their Renewal Service filing for an additional fee plus state charges. Transparent and Predictable Pricing Registered agent services often involve unexpected add-on fees. Northwest takes a different approach, which Better Business Advice noted as a strength. The Delaware registered agent service costs $125 annually. This flat fee includes privacy protections, real-time document scanning, compliance reminders, and full access to their Corporate Guides. There are no hidden charges for services that many competitors classify as extras. For entrepreneurs forming new Delaware entities, there is a base service fee plus the state filing fee. Northwest avoids upselling tactics, so clients only pay for what they choose. Entrepreneurs with businesses in multiple states can also take advantage of bundled pricing that simplifies management across jurisdictions. Delaware's Role in Business Formation The recognition of Northwest Registered Agent also reflects the importance of Delaware in the broader landscape of U.S. business formation. Delaware's Court of Chancery and corporate-friendly laws make it a destination for entrepreneurs and large corporations alike. However, the advantages of incorporation can only be realized if businesses maintain compliance. This is where the role of a registered agent becomes critical. By serving as a consistent and reliable bridge between businesses and the state, providers like Northwest ensure entrepreneurs can operate with security while benefiting from Delaware's favorable business environment. Starting a business in Delaware is more than a legal formality. It is about building a foundation that balances compliance, privacy, and professional credibility. Choosing a registered agent is one of the most important early steps in that process. Northwest Registered Agent has been recognized by Better Business Advice for its focus on privacy, transparent pricing, and client-first operations. By managing all services in-house, maintaining strict confidentiality, and offering tools to help entrepreneurs establish their business identity, Northwest provides far more than a mailing address. For entrepreneurs seeking a reliable foundation in Delaware, the company offers the guidance, protections, and long-term stability needed to create and maintain a credible business identity. Visit Better Business Advice for the full article. About Northwest Registered Agent Northwest Registered Agent is a national provider of registered agent representation, entity formation, compliance support, and business identity services for organizations seeking long-term growth and protection. Founded over 20 years ago and headquartered in Spokane, Washington, the company operates offices across the United States. All services are managed in-house, ensuring client data is never sold, shared, or handled by third-party platforms. Offerings include flat-fee registered agent service, same-day document scanning, and dedicated support from Corporate Guides who assist with compliance and provide practical resources such as website setup. Northwest's emphasis on privacy, transparency, and identity-building helps entrepreneurs establish and protect businesses in Delaware and beyond. About Better Business Advice: Better Business Advice covers the news and strategies driving modern business success. The information provided by Better Business Advice does not, and is not intended to, constitute legal advice; instead, all information, content, and materials are for general informational purposes only. As an affiliate, Better Business Advice may earn commissions from services mentioned in the links provided. SOURCE BetterBusinessAdvice.com SHENZHEN, China, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- INMOTION, the world's best electric unicycle brand, today officially unveiled its new performance flagship electric unicycle the P6. Powered by a 235V high-voltage system and a peak output of 20 kW, the P6 delivers a real riding top speed of 150 km/h. Equipped with a 4200Wh Samsung 50S high-density battery, it offers up to 150 km of range with an energy consumption of approximately 25 Wh/km, perfectly balancing power and efficiency. Mike, President of INMOTION's Unicycle Division, stated: INMOTION P6 High Performance Electric Unicycle Max Speed 93MPH 'Every generation has its moment to break the limits. While redefining single-wheel performance, the P6 also embeds safety into its core: with the Raptor S Tesla-grade SiC controller, distributed battery architecture, active cooling system, tire pressure monitoring, and IP-rated protection for both the vehicle and the battery providing comprehensive protection for both extreme riders and tech enthusiasts.' Performance Evolution: Speed, Control, and Range in One Breakthrough * 235V High-Voltage System & 20 kW Peak Power -- Free spin speed up to 220 km/h, real riding top speed 150 km/h, with instant explosive acceleration. * High-Performance Motor -- 6 kW continuous output, 20 kW peak, delivering 300 Nm peak torque for powerful launches and climbing. 050 km/h acceleration in just 0.1s. * Ultra-Long Range, Ride Without Limits -- 4200Wh Samsung 50S battery with up to 150 km range, about 10% higher efficiency than traditional platforms; supports 14A fast charging (1.5hour). * Center-Mounted Hydraulic Suspension-- 90 mm travel, independently adjustable high/low-speed damping, adapting smoothly between city and mountain terrain. Safety First: Automotive-Grade Core Protection Equipped with the Raptor S high-performance SiC controller, the system offers superior voltage, current, and temperature endurance with overall capability up to 60% higher than typical 250V platforms, ensuring stability for both high-performance riding and daily commuting. The active cooling system combines copper heat pipes and fan-assisted design, improving heat dissipation efficiency by around 30%, maintaining stability even under continuous high load. For the first time, the P6 adopts an automotive-grade distributed battery system with BMU + BCU + BDU triple-layer control, enabling module-level monitoring and redundant protection, enhancing safety by over 50%. Smart Experience: More Connected, More Personal The RideConnect IoT system offers real-time GPS tracking, anti-theft protection, remote control, and ride recording, providing 24/7 intelligent vehicle security. A brand-new custom pedal firmware allows riders to adjust pedal response to match personal riding style and terrain. Acceleration, braking, and turning dynamics can be individually tuned for ultimate control and personalized feel. Pricing & Launch Perks MSRP: USD $4,999, with 12-month price protection (price difference refunded if the price drops). Launch Month Exclusive Offers: Includes free 14A charger, P6 seat, 1-year extended warranty for motor, battery, and controller, plus 1-year complimentary RideConnect service total value exceeding $1,000. Purchase Link: https://official.inmotionworld.com/p6 Community & Service INMOTION is partnering with top content creators (including Kuji Roll) and world-class EUC racers for independent performance reviews and real-world tests to showcase the P6's true capabilities. The company also announced the establishment of an official U.S. service center to provide professional after-sales support. About INMOTION Founded in December, 2012, Shenzhen INMOTION Technologies Co., Ltd. is a global leader in premium personal electric mobility. Recognized as a National-Level 'Specialized, Refined, and Innovative' Little Giant Enterprise, and home to the Guangdong Provincial Engineering Technology Center for Intelligent Self-Balancing Vehicles, INMOTION integrates R&D, manufacturing, and sales of advanced personal mobility devices. Its high-end brand INMOTION is deeply rooted in mainstream markets across Europe and North America, offering a full product lineup of electric unicycles, e-scooters, and e-motorcycles. INMOTION products have won multiple international design awards, including Germany's iF Design Award, Japan's G-Mark Good Design Award, and the Red Dot Award, demonstrating China's dual breakthroughs in industrial design and technological innovation. We don't just build transportation tools we create adrenaline-fueled ways to move. Every ride is a statement of your individuality. Safety Notice Always wear full protective gear and comply with local regulations. The top speed stated is achieved under specific test conditions; actual performance may vary based on rider weight, terrain, and environment. Fast charging requires a compatible charger and compliant electrical conditions. SOURCE INMOTION TECHNOLOGIES Co., Ltd New Montefiore Einstein Research Published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine Emphasizes Importance of Multi-Faceted, Symptom-Focused Treatment Strategy for Critically Ill Patients BRONX, N.Y., Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- In the U.S., more than 5 million people are admitted to Intensive Care Units (ICUs) each year for the treatment of acute or life-threatening medical problems. Mechanical ventilation, when a machine moves air into and out of the lungs of people experiencing acute respiratory distress, is a crucial form of life support provided to more than 300,000 patients annually in the ICU. New research published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine shows that in a cohort of more than 10,000 people, patients who received a high proportion of deep sedation while mechanically ventilated had a greater risk of adverse discharge losing their ability to live independently compared to patients who did not receive deep sedation. Dr. Michael Kiyatkin_Montefiore Einstein Good Intentions Lead to Unintended Harm Deep sedation - when medications keep patients from being fully conscious and not easily aroused - is commonly used in ICUs across the country with the aim of preventing ventilated patients from experiencing emotional distress and/or pain during their critical recovery. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the use of deep sedation has become more common practice in ICUs nationwide. The problem is that when a patient is deeply sedated, it inhibits them from being able to move their bodies, causing unintended harm. Findings from investigators in the Department of Anesthesiology at Montefiore Einstein suggest that patients who received targeted, symptom-focused treatments with non-opioid medications, instead of deep sedation, had higher rates of independent living after being discharged from the hospital. "In this study, we found sedative medications were more likely to be delivered to patients to aid with sleep and rest, however use of sedative medications can actually strip the exhausted patient of the healthy restorative sleep they need most during illness," said author Matthias Eikermann M.D., Francis F. Foldes Professor and Chair, Department of Anesthesiology at Montefiore Einstein. "Our data shows this lack of quality sleep leads to greater rates of immobility in the ICU, which compounds into even more delirium and greater loss of the muscles and nerves needed during recovery." With evidence from this study, the Department of Anesthesiology spearheaded the creation of a system-wide Mobilization Committee including the departments of Anesthesiology, Medicine, and Rehabilitation Medicine (including physical therapy, and respiratory therapy teams) and nursing, with the goal of reducing the use of deep sedation and increasing early mobilization in the ICUs. This multidisciplinary group will conduct targeted rounds in the ICUs to identify barriers to early mobilization and develop strategies to implement patient-centered interventions. Efforts are supported by a digital patient board in Montefiore Einstein's electronic record system to track these newly developed protocols and a new Surgical ICU Order Set to ensure clinicians have the tools needed to identify alternative pain treatments. By deploying a new symptom-focused treatment strategy, Montefiore Einstein investigators believe that providers will be able to more comprehensively evaluate patients and recognize symptoms of emotional distress, treating them accordingly with antipsychotics or non-opioid analgesics. "Our hope is that the data published in this investigation will fuel national efforts to improve education about deep sedation and adherence to evidence-based guidelines," said Dr. Eikermann. "The ultimate goal is to enhance overall patient care and help people return to the lives they want to live with their loved ones." About Montefiore Health System Montefiore Health System is one of New York's premier academic health systems. It is a recognized leader in providing exceptional quality and personalized, accountable care to approximately three million people in communities across the Bronx, Westchester, and the Hudson Valley. It comprises ten hospitals, including the Children's Hospital at Montefiore, Burke Rehabilitation Hospital, and over two hundred outpatient ambulatory care sites. The advanced clinical and translational research at its medical school, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, directly informs patient care and improves outcomes. From the Montefiore-Einstein Centers of Excellence in cancer, cardiology and vascular care, pediatrics, and transplantation, to its preeminent school-based health program, Montefiore is a fully integrated healthcare delivery system providing coordinated, comprehensive care to patients and their families. For more information, please visit www.montefiore.org . Follow us on Twitter , Instagram , and LinkedIn , or view us on Facebook and YouTube About Albert Einstein College of Medicine Albert Einstein College of Medicine is one of the nation's premier centers for research, medical education and clinical investigation. During the 2024-25 academic year, Einstein is home to 712 M.D. students, 226 Ph.D. students, 112 students in the combined M.D./Ph.D. program, and approximately 250 postdoctoral research fellows. The College of Medicine has more than 2,000 full-time faculty members located on the main campus and at its clinical affiliates. In 2024, Einstein received more than $192 million in awards from the National Institutes of Health. This includes the funding of major research centers at Einstein in cancer, aging, intellectual development disorders, diabetes, clinical and translational research, liver disease, and AIDS. Other areas where the College of Medicine is concentrating its efforts include developmental brain research, neuroscience, cardiac disease, and initiatives to reduce and eliminate ethnic and racial health disparities. Its partnership with Montefiore, the University Hospital and academic medical center for Einstein, advances clinical and translational research to accelerate the pace at which new discoveries become the treatments and therapies that benefit patients. For more information, please visit einsteinmed.edu, follow us on Twitter, Facebook , Instagram, LinkedIn, and view us on YouTube. SOURCE Montefiore Health System YAOUNDE, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Cameroon's political parties concluded their presidential election campaigns on Saturday night ahead of Sunday's vote. The ruling Cameroon People's Democratic Movement (CPDM) held its final rallies in major cities across the country, including the national capital of Yaounde and the commercial hub of Douala. Incumbent President Paul Biya, who is also the party's candidate, was not present at the rallies but called on supporters to vote for him via his social media platforms. "I am firmly committed to ensuring the advent of a new Cameroon citizenship in order to continue building our beloved and beautiful country. Therefore, on 12 October 2025, I would appreciate your overwhelming support," Biya said in a social media post. He is seeking to extend his 43 years in office by winning a new seven-year mandate. Joshua Osih of the Social Democratic Front, the leading opposition candidate, held his final rallies in Douala and the southwestern town of Buea. "Throughout this campaign, we have presented a program for development and peace for our country. Tomorrow, Sunday, vote for change," Osih told supporters. Issa Tchiroma Bakary, Biya's former ally, concluded his campaign in his hometown of Garoua, located in the northern part of the country. He urged his supporters to "vote peacefully and defend their votes." The number of opposition candidates was reduced from 11 to 9, as Bello Bouba Maigari, another former ally of Biya, announced a coalition with two candidates, including Akere Muna and Ateki Seta Caxton. More than 8 million registered voters will cast their ballots on Sunday in an election taking place amid rising tensions in the two English-speaking regions of Southwest and Northwest, where armed separatists are fighting to create a new nation. Campaigning was generally timid in these regions, where separatists have vowed to stop the vote. Progress Accompanies Organization's Monumental Call to Action: Join Collective Initiative to Biobank Every Endangered Species by 2075 SAN DIEGO, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance has for the first time unveiled milestone progress in its effort to facilitate the development of a network of globally distributed biobanks. Announced today at the IUCN World Conservation Congress in Abu Dhabi, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is on a mission to protect the future of our planet's biodiversity by helping grow biobanking capacity worldwidestarting with pilot sites in four biodiversity hotspots: Kenya, Vietnam, Hawai'i, and Peru. The non-profit organization has called on conservation champions, organizations, and global partners to join in its ambitious and urgent initiative that cannot be done alone: to biobank every endangered species by 2075. Pictured at the Frozen Zoo are Marlys Houck, curator of the Frozen Zoo, and Ann Misuraca, research coordinator II. Credit: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance "Advances in science and technology bring us hope and these innovations have brought us here today. We have a call to action to biobank all endangered species worldwide by 2075," Dr. Nadine Lamberski, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's chief conservation and wildlife health officer, said at a press conference. "And we can't do this alone. Our delegation has one clear message: join us in this commitment. Together, we can drive a movement to save wildlife and the ecosystems we depend on, and raise awareness about the critical tool we can use to accomplish this: biodiversity biobanking." As a proud partner of the IUCN Species Survival Commission as a Center for Species Survival focused on biodiversity banking, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is working collaboratively to advance biobanking initiatives and drive global progress in safeguarding biodiversity. To reach its goal, the non-profit organization is doing its part by ensuring other conservationists around the world are equitably equipped with the knowledge and tools needed to develop biobanking programs in-country. Each location has different needs, and varying degrees of existing infrastructure that can support biobanking. Calling on its decades of experience, San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance is supporting each area accordingly with a tailored combination of the following: Network building and organization Knowledge exchange and training Physical resources and facilities This announcement marks the 50th anniversary of San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance's groundbreaking Frozen Zooa pioneering biobank that has safeguarded the viable genetic material of endangered species for half a century. Established in 1975, the Frozen Zoo holds the most extensive repository of living wildlife materials on Earth. From its inception, this collection was designed as a resource for the entire world, and it continues to serve the global community today. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance recently held its inaugural Frozen Zoo Symposium which welcomed global partners in person and virtually, broadcasting to 15 countries. The event included a cell culture training workshop that hosted participants from six countries, providing more inclusive access to biobanking knowledge and training. San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance (SDZWA) and partners have made significant headway in the establishment of four pilot sites for biobanking. Milestones in each region so far include: Kenya SDZWA is working in close collaboration with the Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRTI) and Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) to establish a biobanking network in the region, further linking rangers, veterinarians and scientists who support some of the world's most iconic wildlife. The construction of a biobank headquarters is in planning stages, but collection and repository capabilities are near. SDZWA is working in close collaboration with the Wildlife Research and Training Institute (WRTI) and Kenya Wildlife Services (KWS) to establish a biobanking network in the region, further linking rangers, veterinarians and scientists who support some of the world's most iconic wildlife. The construction of a biobank headquarters is in planning stages, but collection and repository capabilities are near. Vietnam SDZWA is partnering with Institute for Ecology and Conservation of Nature at Vinh University to build upon existing infrastructure by supplying training and personnel support. Representatives from Vietnam joined experts in San Diego for a biobanking symposium and workshop hosted by SDZWA as a first step toward establishing capacity for living cell biobanking. Partners in Vietnam are working toward a wildlife-specific biobanking amendment to an existing government decree, and to establish a collaborative network that would facilitate biobanking throughout the country. SDZWA is partnering with Institute for Ecology and Conservation of Nature at Vinh University to build upon existing infrastructure by supplying training and personnel support. Representatives from Vietnam joined experts in San Diego for a biobanking symposium and workshop hosted by SDZWA as a first step toward establishing capacity for living cell biobanking. Partners in Vietnam are working toward a wildlife-specific biobanking amendment to an existing government decree, and to establish a collaborative network that would facilitate biobanking throughout the country. Hawai'i SDZWA is collaborating with Bishop Museum on enhancing capacity and training personnel for living cell biobanking at the Museum's existing cryogenic facility at its Pacific Center for Molecular Biodiversity. SDZWA's Conservation Genetics team recently received a grant from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to expand technical knowledge and on-island capacity for biobanking Hawaiian birds, some of the rarest birds on the planet. SDZWA is collaborating with Bishop Museum on enhancing capacity and training personnel for living cell biobanking at the Museum's existing cryogenic facility at its Pacific Center for Molecular Biodiversity. SDZWA's Conservation Genetics team recently received a grant from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums to expand technical knowledge and on-island capacity for biobanking Hawaiian birds, some of the rarest birds on the planet. PeruPeru's Ministry of the Environment, with support from San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance, has initiated the process of creating a national biobanking network. "The world has reached a pivotal moment. Nature is in crisis. The loss of biodiversity is occurring at a speed and scale that is outpacing our ability to get out in front and halt the decline of species. The health of wildlife, people, and the ecosystems we depend on are at risk," Lamberski emphasized. "We must take bold steps to save the health of our planet." PHOTOS AND VIDEOS: sdzwa.org/PR/Global-Biobanking-Network CONTACT: San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance Public Relations 619-685-3291 [email protected] sdzwa.org SOURCE San Diego Zoo Wildlife Alliance PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct. 9, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Vianai Systems today announced that hila, its agentic deep-analytics solution, is available directly through Gemini Enterprise. With hila, business users, financial analysts, and all business executives in an enterprise have access to a powerful personal data analyst that can provide fast and accurate answers to questions about the business, based on structured data available within Google Cloud. Additional capabilities in hila, such as interactive charts, detailed reports, and more granular context modeling, are available to organizations via Google Cloud Marketplace. With advanced, proprietary technology for business knowledge capture and accurate analytical code-generation, hila is one of the leading GenAI analytical engines in productive use today within some of the world's largest organizations. This launch enables enterprises to unlock fast, accurate, and actionable insights across the Google Cloud ecosystemfrom data in BigQuery, third-party ERP applications, or a mix of bothwithout the cost and complexity of traditional BI and middleware stacks, that slow down decision-making and distance business users from data and insights they need. On Google Cloud, organizations will be able to activate this capability for all users rapidly. Example queries include: "Recommend concrete levers to cut operating costs by 10% without affecting revenue." "Report Q2 2025 gross margin by product and channel; flag the largest QoQ declines." "List top 25 materials purchased over the last four quarters and show supplier overlap and spend shifts." "Identify irregular patterns in procurement spend in Q2 2025 compared with spend for the last 4 quarters." "Giving every business professional and decision-making executive access to data-driven insights about their business has long been a goal of every leading organization," said Dr. Vishal Sikka, CEO and Founder of Vianai Systems. "GenAI has opened a door to this capability, leapfrogging traditional analytical stacks and business processes, which are slow, unresponsive and expensive, and keep business users disconnected from the data and insights they need. With hila's powerful GenAI-driven analytics, business professionals and executives get instant, interactive access to deep insights available within their operational enterprise data - be it in finance, supply chain, procurement, HR, sales, or any other business domain. This solution is already in productive use at some of the world's largest organizations, and today, with our partnership with Google and the launch of the hila agent within Gemini Enterprise and on Google Cloud Marketplace, hila is available to every customer on Google Cloud. We cannot wait to see the amazing value business users will derive from hila on Gemini Enterprise." "Vianai is helping customers innovate by bringing its hila agents to Google Cloud," said Kevin Ichhpurani, President, Global Partner Ecosystem & Channels at Google Cloud. "Leveraging the power of Gemini models, these solutions allow businesses to easily deploy sophisticated analytics without technical expertise, unlocking value from their data faster and more effectively." Google Cloud customers can immediately sign up to deploy Vianai's hila GenAI-driven advanced analytics solution for their users on Gemini Enterprise and Google Cloud Marketplace. About Vianai Systems Vianai Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of natural language to code applications and platform, hila, built for the enterprise. The hila Platform uniquely brings the combined capabilities of domain-specific conversational AI for crucial enterprise data with patented anti-hallucination techniques, for maximum accuracy and reliability of Generative AI for enterprises. The hila Platform helps enterprises minimize the risks of AI, while taking full advantage of the transformation potential of reliable AI systems. Follow Vianai Systems on X and LinkedIn. Media contact: Sameer Patel [email protected] 650-619-2895 SOURCE Vianai Systems KABUL, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan's counter-narcotics police have rounded up 14 individuals over the past 24 hours on charges of involvement in drug smuggling and selling, the Ministry of Interior Affairs said in a statement on Saturday. The alleged drug smugglers have been arrested from Parwan, Takhar, Kunduz, Paktia, Laghman, Kapisa and Daykundi provinces, said the statement posted on the ministry's X account. Police also recovered about 100 kg of various illegal drugs, including 67 kg of opium poppy and 7 kg of hashish, from the possession of the arrested individuals, the statement added. If you were looking for the Charlestown Democratic Town Committee website and ended up here, try this Got news tips, gossip, suggestions, complaints?E-mail us: progressivecharlestown@gmail.com We strive to avoid errors in our articles. Our correction policy can be found here COLOMBO, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake said on Saturday that the security of investors and investments coming into the country will be ensured under the current government. He made the remarks during a discussion at the Presidential Secretariat with a delegation of foreign business representatives visiting the country to study Sri Lanka's investment opportunities, business environment and legal framework. The president said a secure environment for investments has now been established in Sri Lanka, adding that the current government is formulating new laws to ensure transparency and stability in the investment process. Stressing that attracting foreign investment remains a top priority of the government, Dissanayake said measures are being taken to guarantee investor protection, expand investment opportunities and facilitate investor operations. The government will also introduce an investment protection act, he added. BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- The Brunei Economic Development Board (BEDB) will invite new participants to join its micro bootcamp cycle in November to nurture Brunei's entrepreneurial community, according to the BEDB on Saturday. Serving as an entry point into the BEDB's wider enterprise ecosystem, the micro bootcamp offers Bruneians continued support and opportunities for growth, it said. Held three times a year, the program combines workshops, mentorship, and practical exercises designed to equip participants with essential knowledge in business planning, marketing, finance, and operations, while helping them develop the skills and confidence to run sustainable businesses, said the BEDB. The continued success of the micro bootcamp underscores BEDB's commitment to building a resilient and innovative enterprise ecosystem, in alignment with Brunei Vision 2035 of fostering a dynamic and sustainable economy driven by local entrepreneurship, it added. DUSHANBE, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- The Council of Heads of State of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) has decided to establish "CIS Plus," an expanded format of the organization, the press service of the CIS Executive Committee reported Friday. The initiative was first proposed by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev during the previous CIS Council meeting in Moscow in October 2024. The new format will serve as a platform for cooperation between CIS member states and other countries, regional blocs and international organizations interested in engaging with the Commonwealth in areas of mutual interest. According to the Kremlin, CIS leaders have also approved a decision to grant the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) observer status within the Commonwealth. "We support the strengthening of contacts between the CIS and the SCO," said Russian President Vladimir Putin during the restricted session of the Council. "It would be beneficial to fully harness the potential of cooperation between the two organizations to ensure the secure and sustainable development of our countries and the entire Eurasian region," he added. The meeting of the CIS Heads of State Council was held on Friday in Dushanbe, the capital of Tajikistan, under the chairmanship of Tajik President Emomali Rahmon. PYONGYANG, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) and president of the State Affairs of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), held talks Friday with Dmitry Medvedev, chairman of the United Russia party and deputy chairman of the Russian Security Council, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported Saturday. Medvedev came to Pyongyang to pay a congratulatory visit to the DPRK as the head of the delegation of the United Russia party on the occasion of the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK, said the KCNA. During the talks, Kim extended warm greetings to Russian President Vladimir Putin and a warm welcome to Medvedev. The visit is an expression of the firm support and solidarity of the United Russia party and the Russian people with the WPK and the DPRK people in their just cause and will serve as a significant opportunity for expanding and developing the DPRK-Russia relations into a strong and comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance, Kim was quoted by the KCNA as saying. Noting that the ruling parties have an important position and role in strengthening the political cooperation between the two countries and creating a political environment favorable for the development of bilateral ties, the DPRK leader expressed his hope that the WPK and the United Russia party will boost cooperation steadily and conduct exchanges and maintain contact more closely to attain the common goals of defending the interests of the two countries and promoting the wellbeing of the two peoples, the KCNA reported. Medvedev, for his part, said he was happy to visit Pyongyang on the occasion of the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK. He said that the bravery and self-sacrificing spirit of the DPRK soldiers displayed in the Kursk liberation operations proved the solidity of the fraternal ties between the two countries, the special relations of trust, and the invincibility of the alliance forged at the cost of blood. Medvedev added that he is willing to make efforts to further boost exchanges and cooperation between the two parties and two countries, the KCNA reported. Kim and Medvedev also discussed long-term plans for further revitalizing contacts and cooperation between the WPK and the United Russia party, and exchanged views on issues of mutual concern, including the international and regional situation, the KCNA said. YANGON, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Myanmar held a ceremony to mark the 2025 International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction at the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement in Nay Pyi Taw on Friday, the state-owned daily The Mirror reported on Saturday. During the event, Chairman of the National Disaster Management Committee and Union Minister for Home Affairs Lt-Gen Tun Tun Naung delivered a speech, highlighting the theme "Fund Resilience, Not Disasters." He said that the Mandalay earthquake, which occurred on March 28, 2025, caused losses of over 7,979 billion kyats (about 3.79 billion U.S. dollars), and emergency response and rehabilitation efforts were carried out under the guidance of the Head of State and the supervision of the National Disaster Management Committee. He added that, since Myanmar ranks eighth among the ten most vulnerable countries according to the Global Risk Index, it is crucial to continue prioritizing and implementing disaster risk reduction activities. He also emphasized that, to build disaster resilience, not only the government and private sector but also development and humanitarian organizations must work together and increase investment in disaster risk reduction initiatives. A video message from UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and a short video on Myanmar's disaster management efforts were screened, and winners of commemorative competitions were awarded during the event, the report said. The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction is celebrated on Oct. 13 every year. Direct air link brings more Belarusians to Hainan Chinadaily.com.cn) 10:04, October 11, 2025 China's tropical island province of Hainan opened a new direct air link to Belarus recently, marking a milestone in connectivity and boosting ties under the Belt and Road Initiative. The Sanya-Minsk route, operated by Belavia Belarusian Airlines, is the first regular flight connecting the Belarusian capital with the Chinese resort city of Sanya. The airline currently offers one weekly round-trip flight. The eastbound flight takes off from Minsk at 9:40 am on Wednesdays and arrives in Sanya at 8:00 pm. The westbound flight departs Sanya at 10:00 pm the same day, arriving in Minsk at 9:20 am the next day. Dmitry, a Belarusian tourist and passenger on the inaugural flight, said the new route makes travel to China much easier. Ambassador of Belarus to China Aleksandr Chervyakov attended the inaugural ceremony, saying that the new route "will inject new impetus" into growing tourist numbers, deepening business ties and strengthening the friendship between the two peoples. Igor Nikolaevich Cherginets, general director of the airline, said bookings remain robust through mid-January. Due to high demand, the airline plans to increase service to two round-trip flights per week starting Nov 1. Travel industry representatives highlighted the appeal of Hainan for Belarusian tourists. Olga Myshkovskaya, a Belarusian travel agent, said tourists are drawn not only to Hainan's tropical beaches, but also to its sightseeing, shopping and wellness tourism. He Jinsai, chairwoman of Hainan Dimension International Travel Service Co, estimated that the new route would bring an additional 25,000 inbound tourists to Sanya annually. She said Belarusian tourists often prefer slow-paced vacations, with average hotel stays of up to 14 days, which allows for the development of diverse tourism products. Yuan Ailin, vice-director of Sanya Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine, said the facility regularly receives international patients from Russian-speaking countries, adding that visitors from Belarus show particular interest in treatments such as acupuncture and massage therapy. Russian-speaking countries and regions remain important source markets for Sanya, and the city is preparing to welcome more visitors by enhancing its services and products, experts noted. Zhang Hao, deputy director of the Sanya Tourism Board, said, "The flight enables tourists from Belarus and neighboring countries to travel to Sanya more conveniently and creates opportunities to develop new international visitor markets." The route is expected to spur more marketing initiatives and tourism product development tailored to the local market, according to Zhang. It will also serve as a bridge, expanding the international cooperation space for Sanya and accelerating its development as an international tourist destination. Sanya has also implemented several measures to attract visitors from Belarus and the surrounding countries. The city is strengthening market promotion through road shows in Minsk and Moscow, the Russian capital, with plans for deepening cooperation with foreign airlines and travel agencies. Service improvements include expanding multilingual services and implementing convenient payment measures for citizens of 86 countries who can visit Hainan visa-free. The city is also designing specialized tour packages featuring beach resorts, TCM wellness and cultural experiences, Zhang said. The route is the second regular direct flight connection between China and Belarus. The first, linking Minsk with Urumqi, the capital of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, was launched last year. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) BELLINZONA, Switzerland, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Friday that China and Switzerland have maintained high-level exchanges and continuously deepened mutually beneficial cooperation. Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, made the remarks at the fourth round of China-Switzerland Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue in the southern Swiss town of Bellinzona. This year marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Switzerland, Wang said, China values the extraordinary path the bilateral relationship has taken over the past 75 years and is willing to work with Switzerland to carry forward the useful experience, uphold dialogue, enhance mutual trust, deepen cooperation, and set an example of peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation between countries with different national conditions and social systems. Wang expressed the belief that Switzerland will continue to adhere to the one-China principle and safeguard the political foundation of bilateral relations. He noted that 80 years ago, countries around the world founded the United Nations with the ideal of never again going to war. Today, humanity once again stands at a crossroads, facing choices between peace and war, dialogue and confrontation, win-win cooperation and zero-sum rivalry. Switzerland hosts many UN agencies, and both countries are partners in practicing multilateralism. Amid the complex and volatile international landscape, China is ready to strengthen strategic communication with Switzerland, firmly uphold the UN-centered international system, promote a fairer and more reasonable global governance system, and jointly promote world peace and development, Wang added. For his part, Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said Switzerland highly appreciates China's green development strategy and opening-up policy, and will continue to firmly adhere to the one-China policy. He noted that as the global balance of power undergoes profound changes, Switzerland values China's important and positive role, welcomes the Global Governance Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, and will continue to support the International Organization for Mediation established by China. Switzerland will also enhance multilateral cooperation with China to jointly meet global challenges, Cassis added. KIEV, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Saturday that he discussed the possibility of bolstering his country's air defense in a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump. "I informed President Trump about Russia's attacks on our energy system, and I appreciate his willingness to support us," Zelensky said on X. According to him, the two leaders talked about opportunities to bolster Ukraine's air defense, as well as concrete agreements to achieve that goal. Zelensky said that there are "good options and solid ideas" on how to strengthen Ukraine. Earlier this week, Ukraine imposed emergency power outages in Kiev and nine regions across the country after Russian missile and drone strikes largely targeted the country's energy facilities. On Sept. 27, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told the UN General Assembly that Moscow remains open to negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. A girl tries on Chinese traditional attire during celebrations marking China's traditional Mid-Autumn Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 11, 2025. (Photo by Marian Draganov/Xinhua) SOFIA, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Hundreds of residents and visitors in the Bulgarian capital took part on Saturday in celebrations marking China's traditional Mid-Autumn Festival, featuring cultural performances, workshops, and exhibitions that promoted cultural exchange between the two countries. The event, organized under the auspices of the Chinese Embassy in Bulgaria, was held at the Toplocentrala Center for Contemporary Arts in Sofia's South Park, one of the city's most popular venues. Starting in the afternoon, visitors were introduced to a wide range of Chinese cultural traditions, from a tea ceremony and tastings of Chinese delicacies to workshops where participants crafted handmade souvenirs. Traditional Hanfu costumes were also showcased. Many guests donned the elegant attire. The festivities culminated in the evening with live performances by finalists of the National Songwriting and Singing Competition, "Ancient Rhymes in a New Voice - Eternal Classics." The concert featured songs inspired by poems from China's Tang and Song dynasties, combining classical literature with contemporary music. Addressing the audience, Chinese Ambassador to Bulgaria Dai Qingli said the Mid-Autumn Festival represented more than family reunions. "It is also a symbol of striving for a better life and expressing good wishes to loved ones and friends," she said. "Through poetry and music, we hope to continue writing a new chapter in cultural exchange and friendship between China and Bulgaria." Many attendees expressed their enthusiasm for the event. Dimitar Stoimenov, who recently visited China, said he was impressed by the country's culture and achievements and came to learn more. Mila, who attended with her 10-year-old daughter Sofia, said they joined the festival after being invited by her son's Chinese language school. "We found the tea ceremony very interesting," she said. Her daughter added, "I want to write my name in Chinese characters." University student Joanna, who tried on traditional Hanfu clothing, said she "felt great in Chinese clothes." People wearing Chinese traditional attire pose for a group photo during celebrations marking China's traditional Mid-Autumn Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 11, 2025. (Photo by Marian Draganov/Xinhua) People participate in workshops marking China's traditional Mid-Autumn Festival in Sofia, Bulgaria, Oct. 11, 2025. (Photo by Marian Draganov/Xinhua) NEW YORK, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- At least four people were killed and 12 others injured in a shooting early Saturday morning in Leland, Mississippi, according to media reports. Leland Mayor John Lee told CBS News that the shooting happened around midnight, and four of the injured people were airlifted to local hospitals. There was no immediate information about their condition. The mayor said the shooting happened on a main street of the town, where people came for Leland High School's homecoming game against Charleston High School. Leland is a small city in Washington County with a population of about 4,000, CBS News cited 2020 census data. There are no suspects in custody and the investigation is ongoing, according to the report. Laura Restrepo is a woman of action. The renowned Colombian novelist and political journalistwho spent the 1980s covering Colombias drug trade and cartelshas lived, at various points, in Argentina, Mexico, Europe, and the U.S., and has traveled around the world to report on humanitarian crises. Ive lived all over the placeits been my destiny, whether I chose it or not, Restrepo says via Zoom from her home in Pereira, a tropical and rainy haven in the coffee-growing district of Colombia, in the foothills of the Andes. She describes it as a peaceful place, a gentle jungle, adding, Violence is much calmer here than in the rest of the country. Restrepo moved to Pereira earlier this year from Catalonia, where she lived for a decade with her husband, Carlos Payan Velver, a prominent Mexican politician and founder of the newspaper La Jornada, who died in 2023. Colombia is a difficult place to live, always has been, but theres a huge love for life and a lot of energy, she explains. I wanted to go back to where things were livelier. A literary star across Latin America and Europe, Restrepo is the author of 11 acclaimed novels that mix reportage and fiction and explore love, madness, female power, family disfunction, and the impact of drugs. They include Isle of Passion, her 1989 debut; Leopard in the Sun; and Delirium, which won the Premio Alfaguara de Novela prize and was turned into a 2024 Netflix series. Her work has been translated into 24 languages, according to her publisher, HarperVia. Restrepos lyrical new novel, Song of Ancient Lovers, out in December, is a multilayered story, blending myth and reality, thats set primarily in war-torn Yemen, in the refugee camps of the present day. Its also a retelling, in shifting chapters, of the legend of the Queen of Sheba and her romance with King Solomon. It follows Bos Mutas, a South American academic who is obsessed with the Queen of Sheba and travels to Yemen to research her story. There, Bos meets Somali midwife Zahra Bayda, who works for Doctors Without Borders. Bos visits refugee camps with Zahra, helps deliver supplies, witnesses wars devastation, and meets refugees and local women who claim theyre the Queen of Shebas descendants. As the story unfolds, Bos and Zahra grow closer, and Bos begins to appreciate that the Queen of Sheba was many things (a leader, a survivor) and that her spirit can be felt in strong women throughout history and in the refugees of today. My characters are always going through rough situations, but theyre not defeated, Restrepo says. Depression, sadness, thats a field I run away from. Restrepo was inspired to write Song of Ancient Lovers, which has been translated from the Spanish by Caro De Robertis, after taking a monthlong trip to Yemen in 2009 as a reporter with Doctors Without Borders. The Yemen desert is unsettling and hypnotizing, like seeing the sea for the first time, she says. Roads disappear as the wind blows. She visited refugee camps, where womenmany of whom, like the women in the novel, claimed to be the Queen of Shebas descendantshanded her notes, asking for help with escaping or finding loved ones. This novel is a form of translating those small handwritten notes for the rest of the world, Restrepo explains. The author visited cities throughout Yemen and, a couple of years later, traveled to Ethiopia as a reporter and to do further research for Song of Ancient Lovers, which took 11 years to complete. I visited the places where prostitutes, lepers, and beggars live, she says. I never took pictures or recordings. People are intimidated by that. At night, Id write it down before it faded away. Gabriella Page-Fort, Restrepos editor, praises her ability to write panoramic and unexpected books. The force Laura carries throughout the Spanish-reading universe is immense, Page-Fort says. As an author, there isnt a corner of the written world she doesnt get into. Id follow her everywhere. Born in 1950 in Bogota, Restrepo moved often as a child with her parents and sister. My mother was always living in one place, dreaming of another, she says. The author has a degree in philosophy and letters and a postgraduate degree in political science, both from the University of Los Andes, Bogotabut life has always been her preferred classroom. In her 20s, eager to effect change, Restrepo worked in the Socialist Workers Party in Spain, as well as in the underground movement in Argentina that opposed the countrys military dictatorship. (A writer must be on the opposite side of power, she notes.) In 1980, she gave birth to her son, then worked in Colombia as a journalist covering the drug trade, and became a target of drug lord Pablo Escobar. One day, a man who knew Escobar came to my house and said, Pablos going to kill you, she recalls. Thats a story that can be told by thousands of Colombian journalists. Many got killed. I was lucky. In 1984, Restrepo was selected by Colombias president to join a negotiating committee that aimed to facilitate peace talks with the countrys M-19 guerillas. She received death threats because of her involvement and went into exile for several years in Mexico, where she wrote Isle of Passion, a historical drama about Clipperton Island in the eastern Pacific, inspired by true events. I had a hard time getting it published, she says. Editors asked, Is this literature or journalism? I have a tendency to break borders between genres. Thomas Colchie, Restrepos agent and a noted translator, began representing her in the 90s after her work was recommended to him by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. That was unusual at the time, Colchie remembers. Latin American male authors were unlikely to give endorsements for women writers. Laura was one of the key authors to change how women writers in Latin America thought of themselves, and how they were received. For Restrepo, a remarkable woman who radiates passion and warmth, telling womens stories is vital. In Song of Ancient Lovers, she imagines the Queen of Shebas rise from poverty to power and weaves this into a wider tale about the refugee crisisone that explores how women harness hope in dark times. The author dedicated the novel to her late husband, who infused her days with positivity. He was a magical person who saw life in a wonderful light, she says. Restrepo is settling into life in Pereiraunpacking boxes, enjoying time with her son and dogs. When Im working, I forget about everything except feeding the dogs, she says. That I never forget. Her homes wraparound windows offer views of the surrounding tropical landscapethere are birds and monkeys, and the occasional puma sighting at the nearby river. Its a fine place to get lost writing. Even if you write about faraway regions, youre just writing about yourself, Restrepo says. If you read my books, you know who I am. Elaine Szewczyks writing has appeared in McSweeneys and other publications. Shes the author of the novel Im with Stupid. Since 1764, when Horace Walpole captivated readers with The Castle of Otranto, gothic novels have been shaped by, and have sometimes been synonymous with, their locales. With all genres, setting matters, says Yah Yah Scholfield, debut author of the Southern gothic On Sundays She Picked Flowers (Saga, Jan. 2026). But with gothic fiction in particular, the setting is a character all its own. You cant have Wuthering Heights without the moors, and you cant have Rebecca without Manderley. PW spoke with Scholfield and other authors about the importance of place in their forthcoming gothic horror novels. As in real estate, its all about location, location, location. Hooked on classics Scholfields gothic references include Shirley Jacksons The Haunting of Hill House and We Have Always Lived in the Castle, and Toni Morrisons Beloved, particularly the concept of this place that is so sick and heavy with human living, they say. Their debut follows Judith Rice, who as an adult in 1965 flees her abusive mother abusive to a run-down house in the forests of southern Georgia, where she contends with the ghosts of the houses violent past as well as her own. The American literary canon also influenced the next novel from Vincent Tirado, who writes horror for adults and teens. After watching the recent TV miniseries The Fall of the House of Usher, which draws on that short story and other works by Edgar Allan Poe, Tirado wanted to write something in a claustrophobic family home. That sparked You Should Have Been Nicer to My Mom (Morrow, Mar. 2026), billed as a modern gothic horror. The Abreu clan, trapped together in the old family house, grapple with a secret revealed in the patriarchs will: one of them is a demon, who, if not exorcised, will damn them all. When the night devolves into a series of feuds and scandalous revelations, its up to the patriarchs favorite descendant, Xiomara, to find out the truth. She starts to relive a lot of her memories as shes walking through the house, Tirado says. Its all about her relationship with the house as well as with the extended family. In The Glowing Hours (Hells Hundred, Feb. 2026), Leila Siddiqui looks to a seminal point in gothic history: the June 1816 gathering at the Villa Diodati in Switzerland where Mary Shelley began writing Frankenstein. I often wondered, What if the villa was actually haunted? she says. Siddiqui was intrigued by how the constant storms of the so-called year without a summera global weather anomaly caused by a volcanic eruptionkept the house party confined to the villa, or, as Siddiqui phrases it, caught in its trap. She reimagines the historical moment through the perspective of Mehrunissa Begum, an Indian woman of means who, after becoming stranded in London, finds work as a maid for the Shelleys. Escape proves impossible, both from the house and the house party. Run for the hills A road trip through what L.L. Madrid calls three quirky towns in Arizona led to her debut, My Lips, Her Voice (Creature, Oct.). The books present-day Copper City setting takes inspiration from Jerome, Ariz., which Madrid says was once known as the wickedest town in the West; Tombstone, Ariz., and its Wild West nostalgia tourism; and Bisbee, Ariz., with the beautiful, brutal open-pit copper mine nearby. Small towns, she says, can really draw some people in, but others feel like, This place is too small for me. Its not what I envision for my life. In the book, three high schoolers are caught between this push and pull: Mara and her ex-girlfriend Zadie, who are eager to leave Copper City behind, and Maras cousin Audrey, whose dream is to stay in town and run her aunts bakery. After Maras body is found in the local copper mine, which is said to be haunted, and her spirit takes up residence in Audreys body, the three teens band together to find Maras killer. The mine, Madrid says, puts a southwest spin on a traditional moor, luring characters to it despite the creeping sense of dread. Debut author Linda Hamiltons The Fourth Wife (Kensington, Mar. 2026) takes place in 1882 Salt Lake City, in recently colonized Utah. Hazel Russon, a Mormon, gives up her dreams of a monogamous life with her sweetheart when a high-ranking church leader orders her to become the fourth wife of Jacob Manwaring, whose dilapidated mansion overlooks the mouth of a canyon in Salt Lake Valley. The paranormal nature of the house itself embodies the social pressures trapping Mormon women during this era. Hazel and the other wives know that the house swallows all sounds, Hamilton says. That, in many ways, represents the silence and the pressure on the women to remain compliant, to not voice their issues and not feel that they will ever actually be heard within this strict religious patriarchy. Global terror Middle grade author Maria Tureaud situated her adult debut, This House Will Feed (Kensington, Jan. 2026), in her native Ireland, specifically in the coastal town of Kilrush and the limestone landscape of the Burren, a hot spot for sightings of folklorish things like the puca, she says. With all of the ancient burial grounds there, its already haunted. So it was easy to take the setting and create a house thats feeding off of folklore. The novel begins in 1848, when Maggie OShaughnessys only escape from the Great Famine is a risky offer from landowner Lady Catherine: impersonate Catherines deceased daughter and collect the widows pension that would be owed to her were she living, thereby keeping everyone on the estate fed. Upon Maggies arrival at the mansion, eerie, disembodied voices in the house beg her to feed them, too. Traditional Japanese architecture informs the paranormal practicalities of Kylie Lee Bakers Japanese Gothic (Hanover Square, Apr. 2026), which follows dual timelines. In one, present-day NYU student Lee Turner, who may have killed his roommate, flees to his fathers new house in rural Japan; in the other, a young samurai named Sen evades imperial soldiers at the same house in 1877. They intersect when Lee sees a samurai out of his window and Sen sees a foreigner out of hers. The windows and doors are an important part of the story, Baker says. Not all of the doors open to where you would expect them to, and the windows dont always remain as windows. Lee and Sen communicate across centuries via windows that vanish and reappear, and through closet doors that function as portals. There was typically less furniture in Japanese houses than in Western houses of the same period, Baker notes. That forces you to pay more attention to subtle changes and what things do stand out in a room. The emptiness of that sort of house helped me home in on a few scary elements in the story. A boarding school in 1928 Sussex, England, is the centerpiece of Spoiled Milk by Avery Curran (Doubleday, Mar. 2026). Two rival students at the secluded Briarley School for Girls team up to solve the mysterious death of their classmate, and it soon becomes clear that something supernatural is afoot. Curran describes Sussex as a pretty pleasant place, in contrast to the oppressive weather and gloomy landscape of books like Jane Eyre. But like the other locales discussed in this piece, its not without its terrors. The relative comfort of the characters lives is almost entirely dependent on a global system of exploitative commerce, of the slave trade and of colonization, Curran says. It felt correct to me that those things would manifest themselves in Briarley; I wanted to have them externalized into the characters world. Horror is a good way of getting to do thatspecifically gothic horror, which is always about secrets revealed. Elyse Martin, a writer in Portland, Maine, is the author of the forthcoming graphic novel Copy Cat (HarperAlley, 2026) and has also published in Electric Literature and elsewhere. Read more from our Horror & Dark Fantasy feature. Hostile Landscapes: PW Talks with T. Kingfisher 5 New Cannibal Horror Novels When PW checked in with two authors whose forthcoming books feature monster-hunting protagonists, each cited what in retrospect seems an obvious antecedent: Herman Melvilles Moby-Dick. So much about American life and American culture feels like a monster hunt: the mythical American dream, this perception of the city on the hillboth are in pursuit of something unattainable, says Sheldon Costa, debut author of The Great Work (Quirk, Nov.). The easy reference is Moby-Dick. I love Moby-Dick. Regardless of how you feel about Moby-Dick as a big important American book, its also a monster-hunting book. In Costas novel, which received a starred review from PW, Gentle Montgomery and his nephew Kitt dodge the law, doomsday cults, and other hunters as they chase a giant salamander thats terrorizing frontier towns in the 19th-century Pacific Northwest. Gentle believes the salamander, which causes surreal nightmares that drive people mad, is responsible for the death of his best friend, Liam, and that its blood is an alchemical ingredient that Gentle can use to bring Liam back from the dead. The monster hunt, Costa says, is the perfect vehicle for digging at deeply American themes, especially violence and this perception of the natural world as dangerous and something that needs to be conquered. The Works of Vermin by Hiron Ennes (Tor, Oct.) finds protagonist Guy Moulene willing to take on any job to keep his beloved sister out of debt. He joins the ranks of exterminators charged with ridding Tiliard, a city carved into an ancient tree stump, of all manner of terrible pests. His latest quarry: an enormous centipede thats eating its way through Tiliards artworksa particularly destructive act in a city where, Ennes explains, artistic movements are basically substitutes for political parties. Thats not the books only metaphor. Debt is like a very hungry organism, Ennes says. Itll eat away at you. It will follow you. It will prove itself very, very difficult to shake off. Debt can be a very daunting hunter. Guy is chasing one monster to get away from another monster and in doing so, ends up in a den full of all sorts of different monsters, and not just the insectile kind. Like Costa, Ennes draws a through line from Melville to contemporary horror. Good monster stories dont really end with the monster. From Moby-Dick all the way to The Works of Vermin, the monster is either a stand-in for something, or youre as hunted by the monster as youre the one hunting the monster. There is a chance that President Donald Trump will order a military strike against the Nicolas Maduro regime in Venezuela in the near future. Both credible reports and President Trump himself have basically said it out loud. For many Americans, this raises immediate fears of another costly foreign entanglement another doomed regime change operation. Their concerns are legitimate. But take it from someone who grew up in Venezuela and personally saw how the chavista regime took over the country and steadily turned it into a brutal dictatorship at the helm of a massive criminal empire: An attack against Maduro will not really be a years-long war of occupation. It would be a decisive operation against the Maduro-led Cartel de los Soles. President Trump's Venezuela approach is right. He's right to see Maduro as the head of a cartel. Hes also right to deploy military assets against him and his structure. And, if he decides so, he will be right to order strikes against them. Nicolas Maduro is an indicted drug lord. Hes leading a criminal organization masquerading as a government thats providing a safe haven for criminal gangs to send drugs to American shores. More than 100,000 Americans reportedly died from overdoses between January 2023 and January 2024. Allowing a rogue regime to run a country as a base for narcotics trafficking is not an option. No one is talking about sending hundreds of thousands of American troops to the streets of Caracas. America has a flotilla of around 5 destroyers, a few support ships, 10 F-35, over a hundred tomahawk missiles, and around 5,000-10,000 soldiers deployed in the Caribbean. Thats a mighty force, but not enough for an invasion. According to Ryan Berg, Director of the Americas program in the Center for Strategic & International Studies, America would need ten times the troops deployed in the region for a full-fledged invasion to be possible. Theres no indication that type of scale-up will happen soon. American forces in the region do have the capability, however, of targeted attacks against key members or infrastructure of the cartel. The U.S. military is poised to eliminate the Maduro cartel, not to invade, occupy, and impose a puppet government in Venezuela. Yes, a strike could severely weaken Maduros grip on power. But it will be Venezuelans who will determine his fate. Venezuela isnt Iraq. Its not a fragile mosaic of warring sects. For more than a century, it has had a unified national identity and a functioning central government. Until the late 20th century, Venezuela was one of Latin Americas more stable democracies. Unlike post-Saddam Iraq, it has no dormant sectarian fissures primed to explode. If Maduro's regime collapses, theres a legitimate and competent political alternative ready to take power. Last year, a whopping 70% of the Venezuelan electorate voted for the opposition to take power. The leader of the opposition, Maria Corina Machado, the leader of the opposition and Nobel Peace Prize winner, is inside the country and has the popular support to steer the country towards democracy and stability. In short, if there is a transition, it will be Venezuelan-led, not American-imposed. An attack is not risk-free. Nothing in global politics is. If the regime falls under the pressure of popular mobilization and the elimination of their drug-trafficking operations, theres bound to be political instability in Venezuela, but failing to act is also risky. If Trump does nothing (as the Biden Administration did) Maduro will be emboldened. The flow of drugs towards America will increase, and the humanitarian crisis in Venezuela will keep getting worse. By trying to avoid instability in the short term, America would have years or even decades of more regional tensions. Thats not a good strategy. Trumps strategy towards cartels is refreshing: You dont talk nice to them, you hit them hard. And hes right. Daniel Chang Contreras is a speaker for the Dissident Project. He was born and raised in Venezuela, and fled socialism in 2017. His analysis has appeared in National Review, Real Clear World, France 24, and other outlets. Key Points Energy Transfer has a solid, predictable business model that helps support its high yield. The company is reentering growth mode with numerous projects in its pipeline. The stock is cheap, both versus peers and historically. 10 stocks we like better than Energy Transfer Energy Transfer (NYSE: ET) has long been a favorite among income investors, and with the stock down roughly 20% from its recent high, the setup now looks even better. The pullback has pushed the stock's yield to nearly 8%. Its distribution is well covered by its distribution cash flow (operating cash flow minus maintenance capital expenditures), while the company has significantly improved its balance sheet over the past several years. For patient investors looking for steady income and solid growth potential, Energy Transfer stands out as one of the most appealing long-term buys in the pipeline space. A pipeline giant Energy Transfer owns one of the largest integrated midstream systems in North America. It transports, processes, and stores natural gas, crude oil, refined products, and natural gas liquids (NGLs) through a vast network that touches nearly every major producing basin in the U.S. Its footprint stretches from the Permian to the Marcellus Shale and connects to key Gulf Coast export hubs. This scale gives Energy Transfer a major advantage, as it can capture incremental volumes and expand more efficiently than smaller peers. Its vast network of assets also allows it to more easily take advantage of any seasonal or geographic price spread arbitrage opportunities. While it is an energy stock, Energy Transfer has a very steady, predictable business model. About 90% of its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) this year is expected to come from fee-based services that are not impacted by energy prices or spreads. The company has also said that it now has the highest percentage of take-or-pay contracts in its history, which means it gets paid regardless of whether customers use its services. Meanwhile, the master limited partnership (MLP) has done a great job of improving its balance sheet. Back in 2020, it made the hard choice to cut its distribution to reduce debt and fund growth with internal cash flow. Since then, it has steadily lowered leverage and rebuilt distribution coverage, and now its payout is above pre-cut levels. Last quarter, its distributable cash flow covered the distribution by more than 2 times, leaving plenty of room for future increases. Meanwhile, management expects to keep raising its distribution by 3% to 5% annually, supported by a steady stream of fee-based cash flows and new projects coming online. While the new income tax law replaces the Income Tax Act, 1961 and omits 13 offences, 35 actions and omissions continue to attract criminal liability under 13 provisions. Photograph: Kind courtesy Niti.gov.in NITI Aayog on Friday released the second paper in its Tax Policy Working Paper Series titled 'Towards India's Tax Transformation: Decriminalization and Trust-Based Governance'. The paper suggests reducing the number of criminal offences from 35 to 6. It recommends a three-tier reform approach: First, fully decriminalising 12 offences that are administrative or technical in nature; second, retaining criminal liability for 17 offences but only where fraudulent or mala fide intent can be proven; and third, maintaining prosecution for six core offences involving deliberate and high-value tax evasion or fabrication of evidence. "Criminal provisions should be simple, precise and clear, which means good drafting. So, this report has tackled it in three ways: number one, it has tackled all the 35 sections. It has said only six sections need to be retained fully. What are the reasons?," NITI Aayog CEO B V R Subrahmanyam while briefing the media "Because these sections are directly related to either wilful default, or willful tax evasion, or willful false allegations, and deliberately going out of my way to falsify accounts," Subrahmanyam added. "So, these sections should be retained. That's probably the only way that these categories of offences can be handled," Subrahmanyam stated. According to him, the working paper is part of a set of 12 tax policy papers that NITI Aayog plans to bring out by December 2025. Its recommendations are expected to feed into the government's proposed new Income Tax Act, slated to take effect from April 1, 2026. The report notes that while the new income tax law replaces the Income Tax Act, 1961 and omits 13 offences, 35 actions and omissions continue to attract criminal liability under 13 provisions. All these offences are punishable with imprisonment and fine, and in 25 cases, the law mandates minimum jail terms. 'While these measures are intended to safeguard state revenue and deter evasion, the continuing breadth of criminalisation, compounded by a presumption of culpable mental state, signals an ongoing reliance on criminal law as a routine enforcement tool rather than a targeted last resort,' the paper said. Applying a principle-based framework grounded in jurisprudence and global best practices, the report concludes that many of these offences -- such as delayed filing of returns, procedural lapses, or failure to provide information -- do not cause direct or substantial harm to fiscal interests, and can be better addressed through civil penalties. Among other proposals, the paper calls for the removal of mandatory imprisonment provisions, restoration of judicial discretion in sentencing, and elimination of the reverse burden of proof, which currently presumes the taxpayer's culpable intent. It also suggests introducing flexible sentencing with non-custodial alternatives for first-time, or low-level offences, and setting up a mechanism for periodic legislative review of criminal provisions. Citing global examples from the US, the UK and Australia, the report says most mature tax systems reserve prosecution for deliberate and fraudulent offences, and deal with routine non-compliance through administrative or monetary penalties. India, it notes, could benefit from adopting a similar trust-based model. The recommendations build on the government's ongoing reforms under the Transparent Taxation - Honouring the Honest platform and the Jan Vishwas Act (2023), which aim to simplify compliance and reduce criminalisation of business laws. "Criminal sanctions, when indiscriminately imposed, stimulate a climate of fear and inhibit genuine entrepreneurial activity while also overburdening the judicial apparatus with matters better addressed through civil or administrative remedies," said Sandeep Jhunjhunwala, tax partner at Nangia Andersen LLP. "By recalibrating the punitive paradigm, decriminalisation could enhance voluntary compliance, streamline enforcement mechanisms, and align regulatory frameworks with principles of proportionality and economic pragmatism," added Jhunjhunwala. Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff 'The name will be declared at the right time.' IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at a public meeting in Purnea along with Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Chaudhary, September 15, 2025. Photograph: DPR PMO/ANI Photo In a setback to the Opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal, its MLA Bharat Bind resigned from the RJD and the Bihar assembly on Thursday. He made it clear about joining the Bharatiya Janata Party to contest the next month's Bihar assembly polls. Bind, who belongs to the extremely backward classes (EBC), was elected from the Bhabua assembly constituency in the 2020 assembly polls on an RJD ticket. His importance in the BJP lies in the fact that EBCs are considered loyal to Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal-United. Bind is a former state head of the Bahujan Samaj Party and had unsuccessfully contested the 2015 assembly polls. Later he joined the RJD. "Prime Minister Modi's work for the poor and marginalised is the real social justice," Bind tells Rediff Senior Contributor M I Khan. Why did you quit the RJD ahead of next month's assembly polls? I was not comfortable, and the party's style of functioning disillusioned me. The BJP has offered me to nominate me on its party ticket, so I decided to formally resign from the RJD. I will soon formally join the BJP and will contest the polls. There is an allegation that you were hobnobbing with the BJP since last year's trust vote in the state assembly, as you sat with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) MLAs. It had angered the RJD leadership. Yes, I was with them then. As you know, I left the RJD in March itself and now the BJP's offer to contest polls was a big opportunity for me. In a democracy, everyone is free to take their own decision. If I decided to do so, it is part of my democratic freedom. In politics nothing is permanent, as I found something better in the BJP than the RJD, so I have hands with it. IMAGE: RJD leader Tejaswi Yadav with Bharat Bind in Patna. Photograph: ANI Photo This time it appears that the battle is a close one in Bihar, and both the NDA and Mahagathbandhan claim they will win and form the next government. The NDA will return to power again as the people have made up their mind to support and vote for it. There is no anti-incumbency and the NDA's development works, welfare schemes and Prime Minister Narendar Modi's popularity will help us. But who will be the next chief minister? The NDA has not declared its chief ministerial candidate so far. It will be decided by the BJP high command and the name will be declared at the right time. It is the party (BJP) that will decide the next chief minister. What about Nitish Kumar as the next chief minister? As of now, he is the chief minister and the NDA will contest polls under his leadership. I am a party worker, how can I say that Nitish Kumar will continue as chief minister? Small allies of the NDA are reportedly delaying seat-sharing. Everything is all right in the NDA, seat-sharing has been settled. There is no problem. Five parties of the NDA, including the BJP, JD-U, Lok Janshakti Party-Ramvilas of Union Minister Chirag Paswan, Hindustani Awam Morcha of Union Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha of of former Union minister Upendra Kushwaha are united and intact. IMAGE: Bharat Bind was elected from Bhabua in 2020 on an RJD ticket. Photograph: Kind courtesy Bharat Bind/Facebook But reports doing the rounds suggest that Paswan, who called himself the Hanuman of Prime Minister Modi, and Manjhi, who called himself the Chela of Modi, have been creating trouble in the NDA. No, it is not true, now all is well in the NDA. You belong to a marginalised community, yet you are leaving RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who is projected as a social justice messiah. PM Modi has been doing development and empowerment of all sections of society. This is real social justice. Modi is trying hard to improve the poor, marginalised and backwards. Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff 'All these people who came from the Congress -- all outsiders -- have been given complete control of the party.' 'Today, we get no response or protection from the central leadership.' 'You can't run a party thinking only your people matter and nobody else should remain.' IMAGE: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photograph: ANI Photo Former Union minister and four-time MP Rajen Gohain resigned from the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday, ending his nearly 30-year association with the BJP. The 74-year-old leader resigned along with 17 other members, marking a significant blow -- state BJP president Dilip Saikia begs to differ, though --- to the party ahead of the 2026 Assam assembly elections. The veteran, a prominent face of the BJP in Assam and a long-time associate of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, represented the Nagaon Lok Sabha constituency from 1999 to 2019 and served as Union minister of state for railways between 2016 and 2019. In this interview with Prasanna D Zore/Rediff, Gohain launched a scathing attack on the BJP's state and central leadership, accusing the party of failing "to fulfil the promises made to the people of Assam and betraying indigenous communities by allowing outsiders to settle in the state." You resigned from the BJP after decades with the party. What prompted this decision? The party no longer values us (the old BJP leadership in Assam). Nobody consults us, we have no importance whatsoever. All these people who came from the Congress -- all outsiders -- have been given complete control of the party. We didn't join the party to see these people. We joined for leaders like Vajpayeeji. Today, we get no response or protection from the central leadership. You were a four-time MP. Did you raise these concerns with the central leadership? I met Amit Shahji (Union home minister) during the delimitation period, hoping for justice. But when the chief minister (Himanta Biswa Sarma) said something, they simply accepted his word. No worker's voice matters anymore. Whatever Himanta Biswa Sarma says becomes final. What did you discuss with Amit Shah? IMAGE: Union Home Minister Amit Shah receives a painting of the commander of Ahom kingdom Lachit Borphukan from Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma at the Srimanta Sankaradev Kalakshetra in Guwahati, May 10, 2022. Photograph: PTI Photo I met him during delimitation. I belong to the Ahom community, which had significant influence in 46 constituencies. That community was systematically broken up and weakened through delimitation. The Ahom identity has been destroyed. Nobody asks us anything. We've been completely sidelined. This is why my trust in the party has broken. You also met Prime Minister Modi? No. But I met Amit Shahji before the delimitation in 2023. God knows what transpired. Running a party by listening to just one person doesn't work. Leadership should be based on principles. Why did you call BJP the 'biggest enemy of Assamese people'? Because they destroyed the Ahom identity. They have helped Bangladeshi immigrants enter Assam systematically. They say one thing to show people but do something else entirely. There are many ways -- land policies, rules and regulations -- that can control this (inflow of Bangladeshi immigrants into Assam). But they've done nothing. They just make statements for show while Bangladeshi dominance continues. State BJP president Dilip Saikia dismissed your influence, noting that the BJP never won any of the eight assembly seats in Nagaon when you were MP... Whether my leaving makes a difference or not, I don't know. But I want to tell the public -- don't support national politics. Otherwise, Assam won't be saved. The BJP is most responsible for destroying our community. Only regional parties can save Assam now. Will you join the Congress? I may even leave politics altogether. I'm not desperate for power. I am not greedy but I cannot sit quietly if needed. How many seats does the Ahom community influence today? We were the deciding factor in 40-46 seats. I don't know the impact on assembly elections, but it will definitely affect parliamentary elections. Will you form a regional party? Rajen Gohain. I may form a party or join someone else. I haven't decided yet. What message would you give Himanta Biswa Sharma and the central leadership? It's not just me who's dissatisfied. There are lakhs of workers across the country who feel the same. Many leaders in Bihar and elsewhere are also unhappy. Addressing this dissatisfaction should be the central leadership's priority. We crossed 300 seats, then dropped to 240. That should tell them something. You attribute the decline in seats to leadership arrogance? When arrogance sets in, it doesn't work. You can't run a party thinking only your people matter and nobody else should remain. You've criticised delimitation for enabling outsiders to win. Can you elaborate? Outsiders like Ashok Singhal winning (from an assembly constituency in Assam; Singhal, an MLA from Dhekiajuli, is Assam's minister for health ) was very difficult earlier, but delimitation has made it possible. The way constituencies were redrawn, such outsiders could now win in 10-20 places. This was done deliberately. Aren't many people in Assam from outside originally, from Bihar and Madhya Pradesh? That's a large community too. But what we're seeing now is unprecedented. You also raised concerns about 'Brahminism' in the Assam BJP. There are reportedly 14-15 Brahmin MLAs now. Yes, this never happened before. Himanta Biswa Sharma, who is himself a Brahmin, has created this Brahmin dominance. It wasn't like this earlier and the people of Assam have begun to feel and see this dominance. But it was not always like this. Brahmins also founded this party. There is nothing wrong with that. But earlier, everyone was taken along. Now it's become so pronounced that people are noticing, and there's growing dissatisfaction in Assam. I desperately hope the central leadership recognises this alienation of indigenous communities from the BJP and does some soul-searching as to who they should trust with Assam's future. A crack in the windshield of an aircraft belonging to the largest domestic airliner, IndiGo, carrying 76 passengers from Madurai was detected by the pilot ahead of its landing at the airport in Chennai on Saturday, authorities said. Photograph: Courtesy IndiGo on Facebook The pilot noticed the crack in the front glass and informed the Air Traffic Controller at the airport in Chennai. On receipt of the information, arrangements were made at the airport and the plane landed safely, they said. The aircraft was taken to a separate bay (Bay No 95) for parking and passengers later safely disembarked. Currently, arrangements are being made to replace the windshield, they said. The cause of the incident is not yet known, they said. Due to the incident, the flight's return journey to Madurai has been cancelled, they added. Meanwhile, IndiGo in a statement to PTI did not mention the cracks in the windshield and only said the aircraft had been grounded for "maintenance requirement". "A maintenance requirement was noticed on IndiGo flight 6E 7253, operating from Madurai to Chennai on October 10, 2025, before landing at its destination", an IndiGo spokesperson said. "Following standard operating procedures, the aircraft landed safely in Chennai and will resume operations only after necessary checks and clearances," the statement added. Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders including Home Minister Amit Shah and party president J P Nadda held a meeting with party leaders and those of the allies on the ensuing Bihar polls in New Delhi on Saturday, with the BJP state unit chief Dilip Jaiswal indicating that seat-sharing arrangements with the National Democratic Alliance partners will be announced by Sunday. IMAGE: Ticket seekers for upcoming Bihar Legislative Assembly elections, at Janata Dal-United office, in Patna. Photograph: ANI Photo This came a day ahead of the expected meeting of the Central Election Committee of the BJP, which includes Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior leaders, to finalise the names of the party candidates for the Bihar assembly polls scheduled to be held in two phases on November 6 and 11. Sources said the seat-sharing formula with the Janata Dal-United and the Lok Janshakti Party-Ram Vilas has almost been finalised while discussions were on with other two allies -- the Hindustani Awam Morcha-Secular supremo Jitan Ram Lam Manjhi, also a Union minister, and Rashtriya Lok Morcha chief Upendra Kushwaha. According to NDA sources, the JD-U is likely to contest around 101 or 102 seats and the BJP on one seat less than the JD-U. Ahead of the meeting, BJP Bihar unit president Dilip Jaiswal said, "All is well in the NDA and the seat share of the allies will be announced today or by tomorrow at 11 am." "Everything has been decided in the NDA. The NDA is moving forward with firm unity. All is well," he told reporters, when asked about the NDA's seat-sharing formula. "I think the central leadership will make an announcement this evening or by 11 am tomorrow," he added. Whether the announcement will be made in Patna or in Delhi, Jaiswal said the NDA leadership will decide on this. BJP's in-charge for political affairs in Bihar Vinod Tawde and Bihar election in-charge Dharmendra Pradhan, also a Union minister, were present at the meeting. Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary, who was also here to attend the BJP core group meeting, said discussions were on with the allies on seat-sharing for the state assembly polls. "Nobody has any kind of resentment. Everyone has expressed their views, all are happy," the BJP leader told reporters when asked if Kushwaha aur Paswan had any resentment over the sharing of seats. During the day-long meeting at Nadda's residence, Manjhi came and discussed seat-sharing with senior BJP leaders. "We have expressed our views before the senior leadership of the BJP. We have all the options open. There is an old saying that no one is anyone's friend in politics, no one is anyone's enemy," HAM-S's national general secretary Rajesh Pandey told reporters after the meeting. Meanwhile, the central parliamentary board of the LJP-RV authorised party chief Chirag Paswan to take all the decisions at a meeting held at his residence in New Delhi. The Darul Uloom Deoband on Saturday asserted that there were no directives to keep women journalists away from covering the visit of Afghanistan foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to the seminary. IMAGE: Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi waves on his arrival at Darul Uloom in Deoband, in Saharanpur on Saturday. Photograph: ANI Video Grab "There were no restrictions from the Afghan foreign minister's office about who would attend," Deoband PRO Ashraf Usmani, also the media in-charge of Muttaqi's Saturday programme, told PTI, and dismissed as 'baseless' claims that women journalists were kept away. This followed a controversy over the absence of female journalists from a press conference of the visiting Afghanistan Minister in New Delhi a day earlier, with the Opposition terming it as 'unacceptable' and an 'insult to women'. The Islamic seminary's clarification came regarding a public event of the Afghanistan minister that was scheduled to be held during his visit to the Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur on Saturday but was called off at the last moment due to 'overcrowding' and 'security reasons'. "There were no directives from anywhere on the attendance of women journalists. But the programme got called off at the last moment," Deoband PRO Ashraf Usmani, also the media in-charge of Muttaqi's Saturday programme, told PTI. "Though the programme was called off due to overcrowding, the presence of a couple of women journalists for the Afghanistan minister's event was enough to rebut reports of women journalists being made to keep away from the event," he said, even naming news channels those journalists represented. "There were no restrictions from the Afghan foreign minister's office about who would attend," he added. The absence of women journalists from the Friday presser by the Afghan leader has snowballed into a major controversy as, over the years, the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan has been criticised for the denial of rights to women. "More people turned up for the event than were expected. So the Afghanistan minister's speech didn't happen as local administration cited security concerns as a reason for cancelling the public event," Usmani added. "Various things were doing the rounds, from women journalists not being allowed to them being made to sit separately. All of this was baseless," said Usmani, who is a Nazim (equivalent to departmental head) in Darul Uloom Deoband. Ashraf Usmani said that today's programme of the Afghan foreign minister was organised by Darul Uloom Deoband. "As far as the coverage of today's event is concerned, women reporters were allowed to cover it. The seating arrangements for the women reporters were made along with their male counterparts," he said while replying to queries, adding that there was no 'purdah' or curtain at the venue of the programme. Usmani is a Nazim (equivalent to departmental head) in Darul Uloom Deoband. Usmani added that there was an unexpected rush of the media at the programme venue even when Muttaqi was having lunch at the guest house. "As the district administration announced that the programme had been cancelled owing to overcrowding, we hurriedly invited the media at the guest house for a quick interaction before Muttaqi left for Delhi," he said. Meanwhile, the president of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind, Maulana Arshad Madani, when asked about Friday's press conference of the Afghan foreign minister, told reporters, "It was a coincidence that yesterday's press conference was attended only by men. The Afghan foreign minister had not said no to women coming to the press conference. It was wrong and propaganda." According to political observers, the AIMIM sees a catchment area in Bihar, where Muslims are more than 17 per cent of the total population but have never got a proportionate representation in the state legislature. IMAGE: AIMIM chief and Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi. Photograph: @aimim_national/X The All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen, which has been spurned by the INDIA bloc in Bihar, on Saturday said it was planning to contest around 100 seats in the upcoming state assembly polls, five times the number it had fought in the last elections. The party, headed by Hyderabad MP Asaduddin Owaisi, claimed that it was aiming to build a "third alternative" in Bihar, where politics has, for years, been all about the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance and the Congress-Rashtriya Janata Dal combine. Talking to PTI-Bhasha, the AIMIM's state president Akhtarul Iman said, "Our plan is to contest 100 seats. Both the NDA and the 'Mahagathbandhan' (the name by which the INDIA bloc is known in Bihar) will be forced to realise our presence." He also claimed that the 'Mahagathbandhan', which had in 2020 accused the AIMIM of splitting secular votes, can no longer do so. "It is now common knowledge that I wrote to (RJD president) Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi Yadav, expressing willingness for a tie-up. But no response came. "Now, we must do all that we can to expand our footprints. Yes, we are also in talks with like-minded parties to explore the possibility of a third front. It will all be clear in a few days", said the AIMIM leader. The elections to the 243-member Bihar assembly will be held on November 6 and 11, and the counting of votes will take place on November 14. The AIMIM had contested the 2020 assembly polls in alliance with former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party and the now-abolished Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, headed by ex-Union minister Upendra Kushwaha, who has since floated a new outfit, Rashtriya Lok Morcha, and joined the NDA. In the last assembly polls, the AIMIM had won five seats and was understood to have damaged the RJD, Congress, and the Left combine in a number of other assembly segments. In 2022, however, four MLAs of the AIMIM joined the RJD. Iman, who had himself previously been in the RJD as well as the JD-U headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, is now the lone legislator of the AIMIM. According to political observers, the AIMIM sees a catchment area in Bihar, where Muslims are more than 17 per cent of the total population but have never got a proportionate representation in the state legislature. Last month, Owaisi flew down to the Seemanchal region and toured, over a course of four days, districts like Kishanganj, Araria, Katihar and Purnea, which have a substantial population of the minority community. Although Owaisi has been charging the RJD, JD-U and the Congress with apathy towards Muslims, the barrister-politician is, in turn, accused of being "a B team of the BJP", which cuts into "secular votes" to help the saffron party. On a three-day visit to Gujarat, President Droupadi Murmu offered prayers at the historic Somnath temple and paid tributes to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. Later, President Droupadi Murmu visited the Gir National Park, the only natural habitat of the majestic Asiatic lion. As she toured the park, she admired its rich biodiversity, home to a variety of flora and fauna unique to the region. She met members of local tribal communities, including the Siddi tribe, and lauded their literacy achievements. IMAGE: President Murmu in the Gir national park, here and below. All photographs: Kind courtesy Rashtrapati Bhavan/X IMAGE: President Murmu interacts with members of the local community. Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff Mutha Trucker, a YouTube news source covering the trucking industry has reported that Montgomery Transport LLC, a Birmingham, Alabama-based trucking company, filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy and ceased operations effective immediately. 1000 employees out of work as trucker files for bankruptcy The sudden shutdown has left hundreds of drivers stranded across America as the companys leadership instructed them to halt operations. This abrupt closure represents a significant disruption in the trucking industry and has created immediate challenges for both drivers and clients dependent on Montgomerys freight services. Details of the Bankruptcy Filing The company officially announced its Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing, which indicates a complete liquidation rather than a reorganization. Unlike Chapter 11 bankruptcy, which allows companies to restructure while continuing operations, Chapter 7 signals the complete cessation of business activities. The announcement came suddenly, with employees receiving notification with almost no advance warning, forcing an immediate operational halt across the companys network. Impact on Employees The bankruptcy has resulted in approximately 1,000 employees losing their jobs, including 600 truck drivers who were actively working on deliveries across the country when the announcement was made. The company has instructed drivers who are close to home to return and await further instructions. Those currently completing deliveries have been told to finish their current loads but not to accept any new assignments. The widespread impact has created an immediate employment crisis for hundreds of families dependent on the company for their livelihoods. Background of the Companys Financial Troubles According to internal communications shared by employees, Montgomery Transports financial troubles began unfolding earlier this year. In June 2025, the companys principal owner, One Equity Partners, reportedly decided to exit the trucking industry and sell the company. By July 2025, P and S Transportation had begun due diligence to purchase Montgomery Transport, with a planned closing date of September 30. However, on September 26, a lawsuit and restraining order filed by Rollins Montgomery reportedly halted the sale process. With the traditional purchase agreement derailed, the company attempted to proceed with the sale through Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. By October 8, the situation deteriorated further when creditors failed to reach consensus terms, forcing the company to convert to Chapter 7 bankruptcy and shut down operations completely. Police have arrested a man from Alwar district of Rajasthan on charges of spying for Pakistan's intelligence agency ISI. IMAGE: Mangat Singh was in contact with a female Pakistani 'handler' 'Isha Sharma'. Photograph: ANI on X The accused, Mangat Singh, was produced before a special court in Jaipur on Saturday and remanded in police custody for three days, officials said. He was arrested on Friday. Singh, a resident of Govindgarh in Alwar, had been in contact with a female Pakistani "handler" for the past two years and was allegedly passing sensitive information related to Indian military movements through social media, according to officials. "He was in contact with the handler. He had saved the handler's numbers under the names such as 'Isha Sharma' and 'Isha Boss'. He shared several photos and videos linked to Army and BSF movements, particularly from Alwar Cantonment and Ambala Cantonment areas," a public prosecutor said. According to the investigation findings, Singh allegedly received over Rs 10,000 in multiple transactions from Pakistan in exchange for the information. His mobile phone contained records of sensitive exchanges, including coded messages hinting at troop movements before Operation Sindoor. Singh, who worked in a factory in Alwar, was known locally as a 'Siddh Purush' and often participated in religious events. This allowed him to build rapport with defence personnel and civilians alike, the officials said. "He used religious gatherings to gain people's trust. During this time, he came in contact with several Army and BSF personnel," the public prosecutor said, adding that agencies are now preparing to question individuals who may have interacted with the accused. He was detained by the intelligence unit of the Rajasthan Police and after interrogation by intelligence agencies, he was placed under arrest on Friday under the Official Secrets Act. Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Saturday voiced confidence that the India-Afghanistan ties will grow stronger in future as he thanked the people for the welcome he received during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, one of the most influential Islamic seminaries in South Asia. IMAGES: Taliban Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi arrives at Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic seminary, in Deoband, Uttar Pradesh on October 11, 2025. Photographs: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters; ANI video grab "We will be sending new diplomats, and I hope you people will visit Kabul as well. I have hopes for stronger ties in the future from the way I was received in Delhi. These visits may be frequent in the near future," Muttaqi said here. The Afghan leader, who reached Deoband from Delhi by road with his delegation, was welcomed by Mohtamim (vice-chancellor) of Darul Uloom Deoband Abul Qasim Nomani, president of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind Maulana Arshad Madani and officials of Darul Uloom, amid a floral shower. Hundreds of students of the Islamic seminary and a large number of locals who had gathered at the Deoband campus jostled to shake hands with the visiting foreign dignitary, but were stopped by security personnel. "I am thankful for such a grand welcome and the affection shown by the people here. I hope that India-Afghanistan ties advance further," the Afghan foreign minister told reporters. Prior to his arrival, intelligence and security agencies made extensive arrangements at Deoband. Officials from the Afghan embassy in Delhi arrived here on Friday for the high-level visit and met officials at Darul Uloom to review all arrangements. Muttaqi, who landed in New Delhi on Thursday on a six-day trip, is the first senior Taliban minister to visit India after the group seized power four years back. India has not yet recognised the Taliban set up. Kabul will soon send its diplomats to India as part of "step-by-step" efforts to improve bilateral relations, Muttaqi had said on Friday, even as he asserted the Taliban will not allow anyone to use Afghan soil against other countries. Muttaqi also pitched for India and Afghanistan joining hands to remove obstacles for the development of the Chabahar port in Iran in view of the Trump administration bringing it under sanctions. The Afghan foreign minister's visit to India assumed greater significance as it came at a time when both India and Afghanistan are having frosty relations with Pakistan over a range of issues, including cross-border terrorism. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met United States Ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor and said he was confident that India-US ties will further strengthen during his tenure. IMAGE: US Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor meets Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Photograph: Courtesy @narendramodi/X Gor is on a six-day visit to India after the US Senate confirmed his appointment as the American Ambassador to India. Gor is accompanied by Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Michael J Rigas. 'Glad to receive Mr. Sergio Gor, Ambassador-designate of the US to India. I'm confident that his tenure will further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership,' Modi said in a post on X. Gor, who arrived in New Delhi on Friday, said he had a great series of meetings, including with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. "I had an incredible meeting with Prime Minister Modi. We discussed bilateral issues, including defence, trade and technology," he said after meeting the prime minister. "We also discussed the importance of critical minerals," he said. The US greatly values its relationship with India, Gor said, adding President Donald Trump considers PM Modi as a great and personal friend. India-US ties have hit a rough patch after Washington, DC imposed 50 per cent tariffs on Indian exports. However, recent phone calls between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Modi have raised hopes of a positive turn to the stressed relationship. United States President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) reacted to not winning the Nobel Peace Prize this year, claiming that he had extended assistance to the awardee, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, on multiple occasions. IMAGE: US President Donald Trump speaks during an announcement about lowering US drug prices, at the White House in Washington, DC on October 10, 2025. Photograph: Kent Nishimura/Reuters He said the Venezuelan opposition leader called him and accepted the prize "in honour" of him. "The person who got the Nobel Prize called me today and said, 'I am accepting this in honour of you because you really deserved it'... I didn't say, 'Give it to me', though. I think she might have... I've been helping her along the way. They needed a lot of help in Venezuela during the disaster. I am happy because I saved millions of lives..." Trump said while speaking to reporters at the White House. Machado was awarded the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize for promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy. Trump, who had expected to receive the prize for his efforts to "end seven wars," also linked the conflict in Ukraine to his broader peacemaking claims. "I said, 'Well, what about the seven others? I should get a Nobel Prize for each one'. So they said, 'but if you stop Russia and Ukraine, sir, you should be able to get the Nobel'. I said I stopped seven wars. That's one war, and that's a big one," he told the gathering, listing conflicts he said were halted under his leadership, including "Armenia, Azerbaijan, Kosovo and Serbia, Israel and Iran, Egypt and Ethiopia, Rwanda and the Congo." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday also said that Trump deserves the Nobel Peace Prize. In a post on X, he wrote, "Give @realDonaldTrump the Nobel Peace Prize - he deserves it!" The Norwegian Nobel Committee described Maria Corina Machado as a "brave and committed champion of peace" and stated that the Prize has been awarded to a "woman who keeps the flame of democracy burning amid a growing darkness." "Democracy is a precondition for lasting peace. However, we live in a world where democracy is in retreat, where more and more authoritarian regimes are challenging norms and resorting to violence. Machado has spent years working for the freedom of the Venezuelan people," the committee said. "The Venezuelan regime's rigid hold on power and its repression of the population are not unique in the world. We see the same trends globally: rule of law abused by those in control, free media silenced, critics imprisoned, and societies pushed towards authoritarian rule and militarisation. In 2024, more elections were held than ever before, but fewer and fewer are free and fair," the Nobel Committee said. "Peace laureate Maria Corina Machado has shown that the tools of democracy are also the tools of peace. She embodies the hope of a different future, one where the fundamental rights of citizens are protected, and their voices are heard," it said. Machado meets all three criteria stated in Alfred Nobel's will for the selection of a Peace Prize laureate, the selection committee said. Border Security Force troops in Akhnoor, Jammu and Kashmir, have intensified their patrolling along the Chenab river, a crucial stretch of the India-Pakistan border in the Jammu sector. Operating under challenging terrain and weather conditions, the BSF has deployed additional personnel and surveillance equipment to monitor riverine routes that could be exploited for infiltration attempts by Pakistan-based terrorists. Patrols are being conducted both on land and in boats, with troops maintaining round-the-clock watch to ensure no breach of the international boundary occurs. The Chenab river area, known for its strategic importance and proximity to civilian habitations, has witnessed attempts at cross-border infiltration in the past. The current operation aims to reassure residents of border villages and strengthen coordination with local authorities to respond swiftly to any security threat. IMAGE: BSF patrols on high alert along the International Border ahead of winter, as inputs suggest 150 to 170 terrorists are active across the LoC at Akhnoor, here and below. All photographs: ANI Photo IMAGE: BSF lady soldiers patrol the international border in the Samba sector in Jammu and Kashmir. IMAGE: BSF personnel patrol the international border in the Samba sector. Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff 'Prashant Kishor is forgetting that the BJP will field a strong candidate against Tejashwi from Raghopur.' 'His entry will force a three corner contest in Raghopur, an easy battle for the RJD.' IMAGE: Jan Suraaj Party Chief Prashant Kishor. Photograph: ANI Photo If Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor contests next month's Bihar assembly election from the Raghopur assembly seat against Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Tejashwi Yadav, the current MLA from Raghopur, it will ensure a lively electoral encounter defined by caste and contrasting political personalities. "Tejashwi will lose Raghopur if I contest the polls from there," Prashant Kishor claimed before he traveled to the constituency to confer wirh electors there. Raghopur is considered a traditional RJD stronghold, a bastion of the Lalu Prasad-Rabri Devi political dynasty. Tejashwi Yadav has twice won the assembly election from Raghopur, in 2015 and 2020. His father Lalu Prasad has won the seat twice, his mother Rabri Devi thrice though she has also been defeated in Raghopur. Raghopur is a Yadav-dominated rural constituency. In recent decades, no non-Yadav won the seat. Political analysts believe Prashant Kishor plans to use Raghopur to stay in the news since Tejashwi is likely to be the Mahagathbandan's chief ministerial candidate. Prashant Kishor Pandey is a Brahmin, a powerful upper caste, who has little chance, political observers say, to get Yadav support and votes to defeat Tejashwi. "Prashant Kishor is forgetting that the BJP will field a strong candidate against Tejashwi from Raghopur. His entry will force a three corner contest in Raghopur, an easy battle for the RJD," one observer points out. Two days ago, the Jan Suraaj Party declared its first list of 51 candidates for the Bihar assembly polls. Party sources said then that Prashant Kishor would not contest the polls and only lead the campaign and plan the Jan Suraaj's electoral strategy. Prashant Kishor has said his party will contest all 243 assembly sests. Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) is included among the 14 Best Food Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. Albertsons Companies (ACI) Consistent Payouts Keep it in Focus Among Food Dividend Stocks Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) is an American grocery company. With locations in 34 states and DC, the chain is a staple for many shoppers, and in most cities, its either the first or second place people think of for groceries. However, Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) isnt just leaning on its reputation. The chain has been quietly mixing old-school grocery runs with new ways to shop. You can swing by in person, order online, get groceries delivered, or tap a mobile app all depending on how much time you have and whats convenient. Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI) is also putting more focus on its own store brands and loyalty perks, hoping to keep people coming back. So far, it seems to be working: shoppers are signing up for programs and using digital tools more than ever. For Albertsons, the challenge is simple stay relevant, make shopping easier, and keep customers choosing its stores in a world where grocery habits are changing fast. On the financial side, Albertsons Companies, Inc. (NYSE:ACI)s dividend makes it an appealing option for income investors. The companys quarterly dividend comes in at $0.15 per share and, as of October 5, has a dividend yield of 3.45%. While we acknowledge the potential of ACI as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If youre looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 11 Best BDC Stocks to Buy Now and Dividend Champions List: Top 15 Stocks to Buy. Disclosure: None. The pseudonymous crypto trader Capo of Crypto, known among retail traders for correctly predicting the 2022 capitulation, says this weeks carnage may be only the opening act. In a new market note on Oct. 11, Capo warned that the Oct. 10 crash is a preBlack Swan event, arguing that altcoins have suffered historic capitulation, yet several majors still havent fully flushed. He added that while Bitcoin (BTC) remains above $100,000, that level is far from the $60,000 to $70,000 area that would align with a complete correction, implying that downside potential remains significant before a durable base forms. Related: Over $19 billion liquidated in worst crypto crash since COVID Tariff shocks yet to be absorbed Capos warning comes amid a violent macro shock, as Donald Trumps announcement of 100% tariffs on China triggered a sweeping risk-off move. Bitcoin wicked as low as $102,000 on one major futures pair, while spot markets briefly slipped under $110,000. Major altcoins including Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), XRP and Dogecoin (DOGE) cratered between 15% and 30% as over $7 billion in leveraged longs were liquidated within hours. On Oct. 10, Trump wrote on Truth Social: It has just been learned that China has taken an extraordinarily aggressive position on Trade in sending an extremely hostile letter to the World, stating that they were going to, effective November 1, 2025, impose large-scale Export Controls on virtually every product they make. Capo believes the wicks should eventually be filled, suggesting that prices could revisit the flash-crash lows once traditional markets reopen and reassess the tariff path. He also flagged structural cracks in legacy markets that, under the wrong conditions, could trigger short-lived global disruptions that shake confidence in core systems a reset before the next phase begins. In simpler words, 100% tariffs on China made global investors panic about higher costs, slower trade, and weaker growth. That kind of news pushes money out of risky assets like crypto and stocks and into safer ones like the U.S. dollar or bonds. As traders rushed to sell, Bitcoin and altcoins crashed hard, especially since many investors were using leverage (borrowed money). Those forced liquidations made prices fall even faster, turning a normal sell-off into a full-blown crypto market crash. 'More downside': Capo In the near term, he expects a brief consolidation over the weekend, followed by more downside as liquidity returns next week. A black swan event refers to an unexpected, high-impact occurrence that catches markets off guard, such as the 2008 financial crisis, the 2020 COVID crash, or FTXs collapse, often triggering widespread panic and volatility. For the uniniated, Capo of Crypto is a pseudonymous market analyst and trader known for his bearish macro calls. Capos credibility among traders stems from his 2022 bear-market calls, during the FTX collapse, he publicly predicted a BTC capitulation zone in the $13,000 to $14,000 range and warned of a final nuke in altcoins, both of which materialized. Related: Whale bags $160M by shorting ahead of Trumps China tariff Market recap On the morning of Oct. 11 (ET) 9 A.M, total crypto market capitalization hovered around $3.86 trillion, up modestly from intraday lows but still nursing a 24-hour drawdown. Bitcoin clawed back to the low $110,000s, while Ether rebounded to the mid $3,800s. According to CoinGlass data, over $19.3 billion in crypto positions were liquidated in the past 24 hours, one of the largest wipeouts on record, as nearly 1.67 million traders were forced out. Longs made up over 85% of the losses, led by Bitcoin (BTC) and Ethereum (ETH). This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Oct 11, 2025, where it first appeared in the Business News section. Add TheStreet as a Preferred Source by clicking here. Ukrainian power workers restored electricity to nearly 1 million people in Kyiv and other areas, as officials braced for further Russian air strikes that have already severely damaged power generation and gas supplies. The Black Sea port city of Odesa, meanwhile, suffered widespread power outages overnight on October 11 after a Russian strike similar to the one a day earlier that plunged wide swathes of the Ukrainian capital into darkness. With Russias all-out war now in its 44th month, officials have warned that Russia intends to exhaust the country by targeting critical energy infrastructure with the onset of cold weather across Ukraine. Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the October 10 attack as one of the largest concentrated strikes against the countrys energy grid. Kyiv was badly hit, and at least 20 people were wounded. Russias Defense Ministry claimed the strikes had targeted energy facilities supplying Ukraines military, saying it had used hypersonic missiles and strike drones against them. Utility workers restored power to more than 800,000 Kyiv residents on October 11, the countrys largest private energy company, DTEK, said. The main work to restore the power supply had been completed, the company said in a post to Telegram,but warned of some localized outages. Kyiv officials said surface transport -- tram and trolleybus service had resumed operations. Odesa, Ukraines main Black Sea port, was hit by Russian drones early October 11, knocking out power to more than 240,000 households. DTEK said utility workers managed to resume power supplies by mid-morning on October 11. At least one person was reported wounded in the attacks, said Oleg Kiper, the head of regional military administration. In the northern region of Chernihiv, a second utility worker working to restore electricity died after being hit in a Russian double tap drone strike -- where a second air strike targets emergency or utility workers responding to an initial strike. Russia has frequently employed double tap strikes throughout its war. Four more workers were wounded in the attack, said Vyacheslav Chaus, head of the regional military administration. At least two more people, including a 4-year-old girl, were killed in Russian shelling that struck the territory of a church in Kostyantynivka, located in Ukraine's war-torn Donetsk region, Andriy Yermak, the head of Ukraine's Presidential Office, said. Local police said a 2-year-old child of the priest was found at the scene in the aftermath. The child's mother had died in Russian strikes last week, the statement added. Ukrainian officials have pleaded with Western allies to increase their supplies of air defense weaponry. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has asked Washington to supply more Patriot air defense systems, which are considered the only system capable of intercepting Russian missiles. In a "positive and productive" phone call on October 11, Zelenskyy said he and US President Donald Trump discussed Russian attacks on Ukraine's energy infrastructure . "We discussed opportunities to bolster our air defense, as well as concrete agreements that we are working on to ensure this. There are good options and solid ideas on how to truly strengthen us," he said in a post to X. There was no immediate comment on the phone call from the White House. With reporting by RFE/RLs Ukrainian and Russian services Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL) is included among the 14 Best Food Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. Analysts See Long-Term Upside for Hormel Foods Corporation (HRL) Among Leading Food Dividend Stocks Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL), the company behind many familiar grocery staples, had a somewhat uneven performance in its fiscal third quarter of 2025. The food maker reported adjusted earnings of $0.35 per share on $3.03 billion in sales. That was slightly better than expected on the revenue side but fell short of analysts profit estimates, which were around $0.41 a share. Organic sales were up 6% from a year ago, and overall revenue climbed roughly 4.5%. Even so, profits slipped about 5% compared to last years results. To make things tougher, Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL)s management issued a cautious outlook for the next quarter that didnt do much to lift investor confidence. For the upcoming period, the company expects revenue to land somewhere between $3.15 billion and $3.25 billion. Thats only a modest improvement from the $3.1 billion it reported in the same quarter last year. Organic sales growth is now projected to slow to a range of 1% to 4%, a clear step down from the stronger growth seen earlier in the year. That said, Hormel Foods Corporation (NYSE:HRL)s dividend provides a little relief to worried investors. The company has been rewarding shareholders with growing dividends consistently for the past 59 years and offers a per-share dividend of $0.29 every quarter. The stock supports a dividend yield of 4.71%, as of October 5. While we acknowledge the potential of HRL as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If youre looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 11 Best BDC Stocks to Buy Now and Dividend Champions List: Top 15 Stocks to Buy. Disclosure: None. A 43-year-old man was on bail when he took part in a burglary spree in the county last August, which saw a car burnt out and thousands of euro in cash and goods stolen, Roscommon Circuit Court heard. At the court the man was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison for burglary with other sentences to run concurrently. Judge Kenneth Connolly said it was an aggravating factor that the burglaries were quite clearly a premeditated spree. These types of offences terrify local communities, the judge added. The court was told that Joseph Cahill, with an address at Bawnlea Avenue, Jobstown, Tallaght, Dublin 24 had 129 previous convictions, 83 of which were committed while on bail. Most of these were also theft offences, the court heard. Earlier this year, Mr Cahill pleaded guilty to four counts of burglary, one count of theft, and one of criminal damage. A charge of arson was taken into consideration. The pleas were made on a full facts basis. The court heard that the accused had a significant drug debt. A letter of apology in which Mr Cahill promised not to offend again was also handed into court. The judge said that the accuseds drug addiction was a dual tragedy for himself and a horror for society. Sentencing, Judge Connolly said that the accused had a very difficult past but had a shameful number of previous convictions, saying that he had only been released from prison in January 2024. There was also a lack of financial restitution, he noted. *See full report in the Roscommon Herald's print edition. Lucian Blaga, the diplomat In the Romanian culture, the name of Lucian Blaga is associated with excellence. Sergiu Celibidache (1912-1996) Steliu Lambru, 11.10.2025, 14:15 In the Romanian culture, the name of Lucian Blaga is associated with excellence. His work is studied in high schools, as his name and creation are found in the pages of Romanian language and literature textbooks. I will not crush the worlds corolla of wonders is among his most popular poems, and the universe of his creation is considered one of great strength. Lucian Blaga was born in 1895 in Alba County, then part of Austro-Hungary, and died in 1961 in Cluj. He studied theology in Sibiu and biology and philosophy in Vienna, where he also defended his doctoral thesis in philosophy in 1920. He made his debut as a writer in 1919, at the age of 26, influenced by expressionism. He wrote poetry and drama and was active in the cultural press. A refugee from Cluj to Sibiu after 1940, the year Northern Transylvania was ceded to Hungary, during the war years he was the founder of the Sibiu Literary Circle, of modernist orientation. In Sibiu he was also a professor at the university that today bears his name. In 1948, the education reform law issued by the communist regime led to Blagas removal from the chair. He returned to Cluj and was a librarian at the local branch of the Academy of the Romanian Peoples Republic. In parallel with his work as a librarian and researcher at the Institute of Philosophy of the Academy, he made translations from the German literature. He was married to Cornelia Brediceanu, daughter of Coriolan Brediceanu, a Romanian lawyer and politician from Banat, with whom he had a daughter, Dorli. Lucian Blaga was also a diplomat. In 1926 he chose to represent the Romanian state abroad, his culture and abilities recommending him for this purpose. He held positions as cultural attache at the Romanian legations in Warsaw, Prague, Lisbon, Bern and Vienna. He was also attache and press advisor in Warsaw, Prague, Bern, between 1926 and 1936, and in Vienna between 1936 and 1937. Also between 1936 and 1937 he held the position of undersecretary of state in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the government led by another writer, the poet Octavian Goga. The highest diplomatic position held by Blaga was that of Minister Plenipotentiary, the equivalent of todays ambassador, of Romania to Portugal between 1938 and 1939. In 1939, the personal authority regime of King Carol II removed Blaga from diplomacy, as he was considered too close to Germany and to the ideas of the fascist Iron Guard party. He was supported by his wife in choosing a diplomatic career and she followed him to Romanian missions abroad and helped him prepare reports. Their daughter was born in 1930 in Bern, where Blaga was a press attache. In the archive of the Oral History Center of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation there is an interview with the lawyer, translator and journalist Horia Stanca from 2000. He recalled that among his acquaintances in the cultural world of the interwar period was also Lucian Blaga: I met Blaga without cultivating a friendship with him because Blaga was always abroad. He was first a press attache, then he was also a plenipotentiary minister, and lately he had been a plenipotentiary minister in Lisbon. When he appeared as a university professor in Cluj, we were no longer in Cluj, we had already been moved to Bucharest. I then left for Berlin, so I only got to know him during the holidays when I went home to Sibiu. He met frequently with my brother, Radu. Blaga cultivated him as a kind of successor to him, Blaga had taken Radu as an assistant. In the end, however, Radu dealt more with theater and his poems. Horia Stanca met Lucian Blaga several times and the meetings were memorable. But not because of Blagas intellectual scope, but because of the writers reserved character: I met Blaga on a few occasions. Once I met him at a theater, one evening, when there were more people there and of course it was a very cheerful, very interesting society, but where you couldnt talk and have discussions. We never had any discussions anyway. Then I met him one day, being together with my brother, Radu, in Sibiu, on the boulevard, and we sat down at a table to have a beer. Two more friends of my brothers joined us and we stayed there for at least two hours telling stories. But Blaga didnt talk at all. And I said to Radu afterwards: And Radu says: I say: . Blaga wasnt a talkative person at all, not at all. He would tell a joke every now and then, but his jokes were a bit blunt. The cultural personality Lucian Blaga was also a diplomat who represented his country and was neither the first nor the last to undertake this endeavor. He did his job competently, especially thanks to his qualities and the support of his family. (LS) October 11, 2025 UPDATE The latest news from RRI Newsflash Newsroom, 11.10.2025, 20:00 London The Fitch financial rating agency has revised upwards its estimates regarding the evolution of Romanias deficit, which is expected to decrease this year to 8.5% of the Gross Domestic Product, from the record level of 9.3% recorded last year. In an analysis published on Friday, the agency notes that, in the coming years, the budget deficit is expected to be reduced only to 7% in 2026 and to 6.5% in 2027. The agency revised the deficit forecast in the context in which, it says, the fiscal measures already taken by the Romanian government could encounter difficulties in implementation, amid modest economic growth and persistent political uncertainty. Fitch analysts also say that reducing deficits and stabilizing debt are crucial conditions for lifting the negative outlook associated with the BBB minus country rating assigned to Romania. EU budget The Romanian Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare says Romania has a duty to firmly defend its interests with arguments and a realistic understanding of the European context, but at the same time to respect its commitments. He participated, on Friday, in Luxembourg, in the ECOFIN meeting of EU finance ministers, where discussions focused on the future budget of the European Union. According to a statement from the Romanian Finance Ministry, Alexandru Nazare told his counterparts that the financing of the EU budget must take into account the level of economic development of each EU member state. Romania the statement also shows will support a sustainable and realistic European budget, capable of supporting the Unions priorities and bringing tangible benefits to citizens. On the sidelines of the ECOFIN meeting, Minister Nazare discussed with the European Commissioner for Economy, Valdis Dombrovskis, the deficit reduction measures adopted by Romania, as well as the next steps for developing a realistic national budget for 2026. Another important topic was the renegotiation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (PNRR). Festival Bucharest is hosting this weekend the 9th edition of the International Light Festival SPOTLIGHT. The theme of this years edition is Symbiosis, inviting the public to reflect on how light can create connections between the city, the community and the environment. During the three days of the festival, from Friday to Sunday, artists from Romania, France, Germany or the Netherlands present over 20 interactive installations, spectacular video mapping sessions and digital artworks that transform the center of Bucharest into a spectacular visual landscape. In parallel with the street projections, conferences dedicated to professionals and enthusiasts in the field of digital art and international festival production are also taking place in Bucharest. Among the guests of the 2025 edition are internationally renowned artists and curators who will discuss or give presentations about the creative processes behind the great light festivals. Expo The Romanian Pavilion at the Osaka 2025 World Expo hosted, on Saturday, an event dedicated to architecture and design, which brought together prominent academic and professional figures from Romania and Japan in a dialogue about the architectural concept, the construction process and the cultural significance of the Romanian Pavilion. Entitled The Magic Box, the Pavilion offered an interactive and multi-sensory approach to the numerous visitors who crossed its threshold. At Expo Osaka 2025, Romania organized numerous economic and commercial promotion events, five large-scale artistic events and about 2 thousand other live performances within the National Pavilion. 160 countries and regions participated in the World Expo. It was open for 184 days and it will end on Monday. Fake banknotes The Romanian police have drafted almost 230 criminal cases this year for acts of fraud with fake prop banknotes. The European Central Bank has identified and classified this type of banknote as a means of counterfeiting. Prop banknote frauds are comparable, in their social and economic impact, to other methods of fraud victims are fooled through seemingly ordinary transactions, such as sales of goods or currency exchanges. The clarifications come after the Romanian Police announced a record seizure of such fake banknotes in the Black Sea Port of Constanta. 160 boxes containing fake money worth 960 million Euros were confiscated. The action was carried out as part of an international operation aimed at identifying suspicious packages containing counterfeit banknotes entering the European Union from countries such as China or Turkey. (LS) THE WEEK IN REVIEW The week in review Corina Cristea, 11.10.2025, 13:19 Decisions on measures to reduce the budget deficit The Constitutional Court postponed this week, for the second time, the decision regarding the pensions of magistrates. The draft law, for which the government has committed itself to Parliament, provides for the reduction of the pensions of magistrates and the gradual increase of their retirement age, from 48 to 65 years. In return, the judges of the Constitutional Court rejected the complaints of the opposition parties regarding the health reform and state-owned companies, so that both projects received the green light for promulgation. Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan assessed that the decisions of the Constitutional Court so far allow the Government to reduce unnecessary positions, to cap allowances, to cut excessive salaries and to bring efficiency to public health. It is not easy to change wrong patterns, formed over the years, but, every day, we make efforts to put things right the head of the executive pointed out. Most likely on Monday, the members of the governing coalition would present a final version of the measures for the reform of the public administration part of the efforts to reduce the very large budget deficit. Discussions in the US between the heads of diplomacy from Bucharest and Washington On a two-day visit to Washington, on October 8 and 9, the head of diplomacy from Bucharest, Oana Toiu, had political-diplomatic talks with her American counterpart, Marco Rubio, who, on this occasion, recognized Romanias efforts to fulfill its commitments regarding defense spending and the role of security provider in the Black Sea. Strengthening the strategic partnership between Romania and the US and identifying opportunities to expand it were the main topics of the first bilateral meeting of the two officials. Oana Toiu addressed with Marco Rubio the agendas of defense, security, energy and economy, as well as the positive influence that the two countries can have in the neighborhood. The Romanian and American ministers also discussed the role of US companies in Romanian projects in the nuclear, civilian and gas sectors, as well as opportunities for further economic cooperation. The Visa Waiver file was also addressed, with the Romanian official highlighting the advantages that the elimination of visas would bring to bilateral cooperation in the field of border security, as well as in tourism. A distinct point of discussion was the role of the Romanian community in the US, an essential bridge between the two societies and an active factor in strengthening bilateral relations. The two officials also discussed the visit that President Nicusor Dan is expected to make to Washington in the first quarter of next year, during which the Romanian leader is expected to meet with President Donald Trump. Visit to Bucharest of the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen The European Commissioner for Agriculture, Christophe Hansen, was in Romania for a two-day visit, during which he had meetings with Romanian officials, with representatives of farmers and agricultural producers. The future Common Agricultural Policy of the EU must remain balanced and benefit from an adequate budget, given that some member states propose to reduce European funds Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan told him, during discussions on Wednesday. Romania receives at least 16.6 billion euros through the future Common Agricultural Policy, being the sixth largest beneficiary of funds in the field, Christophe Hansen stated, on Thursday, at a national conference on agricultural issues. Present at the same event, the Minister of Agriculture, Florin Barbu, warned, however, that the budget allocated to Romania is 5 billion euros lower than that provided for in the 2014-2020 strategic program. According to the minister, the new Common Agricultural Policy should also include clearly established funds through which it will be possible to intervene promptly regarding compensation in the event of calamity. The Commissioner specified that Romania will receive 11.5 million euros from the agricultural reserve to support farmers whose production was affected by the spring frost. Romanian proposal to establish a maritime security hub in the Black Sea Romania is proposing to the European Union the establishment of a maritime security hub in the Black Sea, which it would coordinate. This structure would also include countries that are not members of the Union, but have access to the Black Sea. The Minister of Investments and European Projects, Dragos Pislaru, stated that the aim is to support projects both in the field of defense and for the development of the entire region: A maritime security hub, which aims to bring concrete actions to strengthen security, both in terms of, obviously, the defense area, but also in terms of critical infrastructures lets not forget that we have Neptun Deep, we have the coastal protection area, drones fly around the Black Sea, but also in terms of protecting trade, the port of Constanta these are old plans, lets develop them in a European context. And now, here, it is very appropriate to do it, especially in this security perspective and, of course, with the broader perspective of developing the entire area. The proposal was discussed on Thursday in Bucharest, within the framework of an international conference on how the Unions strategy for the Black Sea can be put into practice. The intersection of Sara Road and Meadowlark Lane in Rio Rancho, where the city would like to build a roundabout to reduce the number of traffic accidents. RIO RANCHO The city of Rio Rancho wants to make a variety of improvements to a segment of Sara Road and install a roundabout where the street intersects with Meadowlark Lane, but the start of construction is undetermined as officials look for other sources of revenue to close a $6 million funding gap. The details of the project and its funding challenges were outlined by a Texas-based consulting firm Wednesday, when a representative and city officials held a virtual town hall allowing residents to ask questions. Were exploring all opportunities that are presented to us, said Alex Clay, project manager. We will definitely update everyone as we progress. The project received $1.4 million from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, according to Savina Garcia, a civil engineer with Huitt-Zollars, who presented during Wednesdays meeting. The city is working with the Mid-Region Council of Governments to look for additional funds, which could come from state and federal sources, she said. Deputy City Manager Peter Wells wrote in a statement following the meeting that the citys need to identify and secure funding for projects is not uncommon. He noted that construction will not occur until after design is completed and all necessary funding is secured. The purpose of the project, which launched in January 2024, is not only to improve various aspects of the roadway but also to reduce the number of vehicle crashes, according to Garcia. The Sara Road project would go from Meadowlark Lane to New Mexico Highway 528. The improvements would include reconstructing the pavement; adding a 12-inch waterline to replace aging ones; rehabilitating and replacing parts of a sewer line; adding roadway lighting; and replacing curb, gutter, and sidewalk, while adding signing and stripping. The project would span less than a mile and retain existing roadway alignment, access points, and traffic signals. The improvements to the intersection would transform it from an all-way stop to a single-lane roundabout, which would require acquisition of property, according to Garcia. The traffic circle, she said, would reduce overall collisions by 35% and result in 10% to 40% fewer pedestrian and bicycle rider collisions, according to data provided by the firm, which cited the National Cooperative Highway Research Program. There have been crashes at this intersection, and implementing this roundabout will really help the intersection and provide connections for pedestrians and bicyclists, Garcia said. Ad The roundabout, if constructed, would not be the first for Rio Rancho and would add to two others currently under design, according to the city's website. The entire project could take nine months to a year to complete, Garcia said. Following the meeting, Wells said the city appreciates citizens participating in the meeting. The city is committed to delivering a project that prioritizes safety and long-term community benefits, he wrote. Resident feedback provided at the meeting will be considered throughout the life of the project, according to Wells. Reconstruction of Sara Road and Meadowlark Lane is one of five city projects currently in design, according Rio Ranchos website. Those projects include the Loma Colorado Boulevard Extension, the second phase of widening of Unser Boulevard, Idalia Road improvements and the second phase of Southern Boulevard reconstruction. Meanwhile, eight city road projects are currently under construction, the website said. Editor's note: This story has been updated to correct the name and title of an official who spoke at the meeting as well as the number of city roundabout projects in design. Candy Ezzell As we reach the conclusion of this anything-but-special legislative session, I find it more important than ever to share with New Mexico how the Democrats priorities truly harm our state. To make a long story short, the Legislature accomplished absolutely nothing for concerned families in our state. Democrat lawmakers completely denied consideration for Republican proposals that addressed: public safety, reforming our disastrous Children, Youth, and Families Department, violent juvenile crime wave, and improved access to health care especially for our rural communities. Instead, Democrats thought it was more important to ram through legislation that expands the governors executive powers in order to control and mandate vaccines for our children. If yall remember the COVID-19 pandemic, this is deeply concerning for our state. Furthermore, Democrats also thought it was important to force you, yes YOU, to pay for more abortions through Planned Parenthood. While doctors are fleeing our state and forcing folks where I live to drive hours to get basic health care, the Democrats prioritized using your tax dollars to kill more babies. Did you know that New Mexico aborted more than 21,000 babies last year compared to birthing only 18,000 babies? Our state may fail to offer basic and quality health care to New Mexicans, but no one can dispute the fact that we are the best in the world at providing services to kill babies. Its shameful, and it goes to show you how the true needs of everyday New Mexicans mean nothing to the Democrats who run our state. I will continue to fight for our communities but remember this: We are trying to work with people that prioritize the worst for our state, making it difficult to address even our states most important issues with the most commonsense solutions. Tata Motors outpaced both Mahindra and Ashok Leyland even as YoY retail sales declined Sales data released by the Federation of Automotive Dealers Association (FADA) has shown strong performance in Indian markets in Sept 2025. Sales growth was seen both in terms of 2W and PV sales while tractor and CV sales also ended positively. The transition to GST 2.0 norms and the onset of the festive season coupled with favorable weather conditions boosted sales across the commercial vehicle segment. CV sales stood at a total of 72,124 units in Sept 2025. This was a 2.66% YoY growth from 70,254 units sold in Sept 2024. MoM sales however, declined by 4.59%. There had been 75,592 units sold in Aug 2025. CV Retail Sales Sept 2025 Across the CV sector, LCV sales were up 6.03% YoY to 44,392 units. MCV sales also ended positively with an 11.65% YoY growth to 6,257 units. HCV sales declined by 5.66% to 21,401 units while others in this segment to suffered a 25.29% YoY decline to 65 units. Tata Motors, at No. 1 on this list, launched the new Ace Gold Plus in Sept 2025. This is a diesel variant of its Ace range of mini trucks. The company has suffered a YoY decline in retail sales to 23,827 units as against 24,899 units sold in Sept 2024. Market share dipped to 33.04% from 35.44% YoY. Mahindra has reported commercial vehicle sales at 21,126 units in the past month. This was a growth over 18,654 units sold in Sept 2024 taking up market share to 29.29%. The companys product portfolio includes Treo, Zor Grand, e-Alfa, Treo Yaari, Treo Zor, and the relatively new Mahindra ZEO 4-wheeler and their bread and butter, the Bolero CV lineup. Further strengthening its presence in this segment, in August 2025, Mahindra acquired 58.96% stake in SML Isuzu, renaming it as SML Mahindra Ltd (SML). At No. 3 was Ashok Leyland with 13,273 units sold last month. This was a YoY increase from 12,648 units sold in Sept 2024 to command an 18.40% market share. Particular emphasis was seen across the companys CVs in the medium and heavy range. 4th on this list was VE Commercial Vehicles with 6,355 unit sales in the past month. It was a growth over 6,063 units sold in Sept 2024 taking up market share to 8.81% from 8.63% on a YoY basis. Maruti Suzuki CV sales fell to 3,277 units from 3,464 units YoY. Force Motors increased its retail count to 1,492 units from 1,341 units YoY, while Daimler India retail sales fell to 1,228 units in the past month from 1,516 units sold in Sept 2024. SML Isuzu too suffered a YoY decline to 844 units from 1,054 units. Other CV makers in this segment added 702 to total retail tally last month, a YoY growth from 615 units sold in the same month last year. Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has pushed back on local media reports suggesting it plans to open an office in India, with a general partner calling the coverage entirely fake news. Earlier on Thursday, Indian media outlets reported that a16z was preparing to establish a physical presence in the country by setting up an office in Bengaluru. The reports, which cited unnamed sources, also said the firm was in the process of hiring a local partner. However, Anish Acharya, a Bay Area-based general partner at a16z who has spent the last six years with the firm, dismissed the reports. As much as I adore India and the many impressive founders+investors in the region, this is entirely fake news! he wrote on X. When contacted, an a16z spokesperson confirmed Acharyas statement and referred to his post. The denial comes as a16z appears to be scaling back some of its international ambitions. Earlier this year, the firm decided to shut down its London office which opened in 2023 after the U.K. government reportedly spent five years trying to woo the powerhouse firm, according to the outlet Sifted. The closure came just 18 months after a16z set up shop, with the firm citing a shift in strategy and more favorable regulatory developments back home. The firm said, however, that it would continue to invest internationally through remote teams and local networks. Reports later indicated that several of its scouts were active across Europe. So far, India has not been a major focus for a16z unlike other U.S. venture firms such as Accel, General Catalyst, and Lightspeed Venture Partners, which have made deep inroads into the market. The firms only notable bet in India has been crypto exchange CoinSwitch, which it backed as part of the companys $260 million funding round in 2021. In the months that followed, a16z was reportedly seeking to invest about $500 million in Indian startups, though it has not made any major investments in the country since. As TechCrunch has previously noted, a16z co-founder and general partner Marc Andreessen delivered a talk at Stanford Graduate School of Business many years ago, saying while it is extremely tempting to back startups in emerging markets, it is also challenging for a venture fund to expand to more countries. Venture capital is a very hands-on process of understanding the people youre working with for both evaluating the company and work[ing] with the company, he said at the time. PEOPLES UNION FOR CIVIL LIBERTIES 332, Patpar Ganj, Opposite Anand Lok Apartments (Gate No. 2), Mayur Vihar-I, Delhi 110 091 E.mails: puclnat[at]gmail.com website: www.pucl.org [10 October 2025] Press Note PUCL condemns regressive and defamatory views of DU vice chancellor Prof Yogesh Singh at odds with constitutional values Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) India, is shocked at the troubling views expressed by Dr Yogesh Singh, professor and Vice Chancellor Delhi University on 28th September, 2025 in a speech titled Naxal Mukt Bharat: Ending Red Terror Under Modis Leadership, Why Campuses are Targets? The speech was addressed to university teachers, students and others and was later emailed to both former and current students of Delhi University, using the vast database available to the university. It was also uploaded on Prof Singhs official YouTube channel and on his social media platforms. The speech has three dimensions which are particularly troubling from the point of view of the Vice Chancellors responsibility to ensure that he is faithful to constitutional values. Denigration of the constitutional value of freedom of thought, conscience and speech Firstly, the Vice Chancellor lays out the proposition that Naxalism has moved from the forests to the universities, transmuting into Urban Naxalism and is now polluting the young minds of students. The polluting is done by teachers both through classroom and out of classroom interactions, where students, interalia, are convinced to care about tribals thousands of kilometeres away. Ostensibly sounding a note of caution, Prof Singh issued a veiled warning about professors in classrooms who, he said, spoke of corruption and used emotional blackmail to trick innocent students into following them and went on to attack academic institutions and researchers who fudge data and arrive at what he termed agenda-driven analysis . In what appears to be an open call to weaponise campuses and teachers against anyone who dared to speak in a critical voice, Prof Singh told teachers they had a responsibility to speak out against these people: and repeatedly reminded them that the armed forces, government and police were doing their work. Teachers and professors need to be strategic to do research that builds up a counter narrative to weaken and challenge urban naxals, he said. PUCL India is alarmed at the manner in which the Vice Chancellor posited the ostensible naxal threat on campuses. For over a decade now, the loose and repeated usage of such terms have been weaponized against all those who harbor social justice concerns. The main thrust of Prof Singhs astonishing and unnerving speech was to exhort and challenge the universitys teaching staff to identify and remove elements on campuses - be they teaching faculty, researchers or students - who seek to work against the nation and break it. The repeated calls to members of the teaching faculty to seek out and identify those who are allegedly urban naxals is a dangerous attempt to surveil and police both classrooms and teaching faculty. The repeated calls to members of the teaching faculty to seek out and identify those who are allegedly urban naxals is a dangerous attempt to surveil and police both classrooms and teaching faculty It is disappointing that the head of the institution derides efforts by the faculty to teach students to think critically about society and to do academic research which aims at the pursuit of truth. It is particularly reprehensible that the Vice Chancellors call is to crush all independent voices of enquiry and dissent in campuses which he loosely and repeatedly termed urban naxals and anti-national. Moreover, it is disappointing that the head of the institution derides efforts by the faculty to teach students to think critically about society and academic research and the pursuit of truth. It is particularly reprehensible that the Vice Chancellor call is to crush all independent voices of enquiry and dissent in campuses which he loosely and repeatedly termed urban naxals and anti-national. In blatant support for crude indoctrination over rational discourse in classrooms, the Vice Chancellor praised films made by propagandist film-maker Vivek Agnihotri and asked teachers to make use of the films in classroom instruction. Mr Singhs anti-intellectual mindset was clearly in evidence, as he disregarded the falsehoods and disinformation peddled in these films and instead, maligned critically acclaimed films like Hazaaron Khwaishein Aisi, that, in his opinion, glorified urban naxals and spoiled the minds of students. The Vice Chancellors remarks are nothing other than an attempt to promote a homogenous discourse. in which dissenting voices have no place in the name of nationalism. In effect it is against the ethos of a university as a space which cultivates the freedom of thought. The Vice Chancellor is promoting a culture of McCarthyism, encouraging and even inciting faculty to report on other faculty who may have anti national thoughts. In effect the word anti-national will be deployed to root out any opposition to the government in power doing disservice to the constitutional idea of India as a country in which diversity of views flourish. The Vice Chancellor must remember that, at the heart of any university, is the freedom of thought and the freedom of speech. The freedom of thought and speech implies that a university is space where different ideas are debated and discussed. A university is a space where students learn that there are viewpoints they may not agree with, but they have a space too in a constitutional democracy. It is this constitutional promise of the freedom of speech and thought which the Vice Chancellor casts aside in his remarks to crush thoughts he does not agree with. In fact, the Vice Chancellors remarks are anthithetical to the ethos of the constitution, based as it is on the freedom of thought, conscience and expression. The PUCL fears that such clearly defamatory and inciting speeches emanating from a person of such high office bodes ill for democratic discourse in campuses when academic censorship is at an all time high. The recently released report Free to Think 2025 report by the Scholars at Risk (SAR) Academic Freedom Monitoring Project has placed India amongst countries that were completely restricted with respect to academic freedom. Trading in false, unsubstantiated and malicious remarks about faculty students and academics of Delhi University In the over 20 minute speech, replete with unsubstantiated and defamatory statements about alleged urban naxals on campus, Prof Singh named Delhi universitys professors and student activists charged and imprisoned under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967, including members of the feminist student group Pinjar Tod (Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal), charged in the Delhi riots case and Prof Hany Babu and professors Dr Shoma Sen and Dr Anand Teltumbde (mispronounced by Prof Singh as Teltumbedke), charged in the Bhima Koregaon case. The taking of the names of Devangana Kalita and Natasha Narwal fails to mention that the Delhi High Court while granting them bail cast serious doubt on the credibility of the prosecution itself. In Devangana Kalita v NIA, the Delhi High Court held that We are afraid, that in our opinion, shorn-off the superfluous verbiage, hyperbole and the stretched inferences drawn from them by the prosecuting agency, the factual allegations made against the appellant do not prima facie disclose the commission of any off ence under sections 15, 17 and/or 18 of the UAPA. In Natasha Narwal v NIA, the Delhi High Court held that in its anxiety to suppress dissent, in the mind of the State, the line between the constitutionally guaranteed right to protest and terrorist activity seems to be getting somewhat blurred. If this mindset gains traction, it would be a sad day for democracy. It behoves the Vice Chancellor to note that all of those he mentions are accused and not convicted by any court of law. A trial is yet to commence in all cases. In fact while the others named have been released on bail, Prof Hany Babu is still denied bail, more than five years after his arrest in July 2020, in an egregious instance of injustice. Besides, the Vice Chancellor has abrogated his responsibility to lead from the front and even stand in defence of his own students and faculty who have been wrongly charged and accused in long drawn-out criminal proceedings. Has the Vice Chancellor forgotten that a senior professor of Delhi University, Prof G N Saibaba, was acquitted by the Supreme Court in March last year and succumbed barely a few months later in October after his health deteriorated due to prolonged incarceration? The VC displays his patriarchal mindset in his attempts to denigrate and patronise the members of the Pinjra Tod Prof Singh set his sights on the Pinjra Tod movement for non-discrimination and safety of women students of Delhi University. In an appalling display of paternalistic and patriarchal bias, he said that women students who approached him to ensure safety for girls on campuses when he was Vice Chancellor of Delhi Technical University were arrogant, aggressive, disrespectful and unmindful of their responsibilities towards "nation, parents and the system. He decried their demand for freedom to move about safely on campus after 9p.m and for better lighting and security. The members of Pinjra Tod were articulating the principle of equality and demanding a freedom from patriarchal mores which sought to control womens freedom of movement. Instead of responding to the constitutional imperative of gender equality, the Vice Chancellor sought to make light of the demand by casually observing that, absolute freedom is a utopia that doesnt and should not exist. In Anuj Garg v. State of Delhi, the Supreme Court in striking down a Delhi law which prohibited women from working in a bar at night, struck down the ban as a misguided instance of paternalism based on gender stereotypes. The Court went on to hold that, Instead of prohibiting women employment in the bars altogether the state should focus on factoring in ways through which unequal consequences of sex differences can be eliminated. It is states duty to ensure circumstances of safety which inspire confidence in women to discharge the duty freely in accordance to the requirements of the profession they choose to follow. The Vice Chancellor is constitutionally mandated to undertake measures to ensure gender equality and not patronize women students with an attitude of benevolent patriarchy. PUCL India calls upon the Vice Chancellor to rescind his views forthwith and demands that all attempts be made to ensure that campuses are free spaces that nurture healthy debate and discussion. Such regressive and patriarchal views as the Vice Chancellor holds, have no place in a free and democratic institution and must be rejected for their anti-constitutional thrust. If these views overshadow the constitutional promise of freedom , generations of students will have minds dominated by fear and heads cowed down by authority. The Vice Chancellor must not forget it is Tagores Geetanjali which captures the essence of a university and the heart of what we expect a university to cultivate in its students. It deserves to be quoted in full: Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high; Where knowledge is free; Where the world has not been broken up into fragments by narrow domestic walls; Where words come out from the depth of truth; Where tireless striving stretches its arms towards perfection; Where the clear stream of reason has not lost its way into the dreary desert sand of dead habit; Where the mind is led forward by thee into ever-widening thought and action Into that heaven of freedom, my Father, let my country awake. Kavita Srivastava (President) 9351562965 V. Suresh (General Secretary) 9444231247 The September 2025 uprising in Nepal forced Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli from office and left nineteen young people dead in the streets of Kathmandu. This event requires serious analysis from those committed to real social change. While we stand with the youth who risked their lives against a corrupt and violent state, we must also honestly assess what this movement achieved, what it failed to accomplish, and what it reveals about the possibilities and limits of spontaneous rebellion today. What the Uprising Revealed The immediate trigger, a ban on social media platforms, seems trivial until we understand its significance. The Oli governments attempt to silence online criticism revealed a fundamental issue- Nepals ruling class, despite having a formal democracy, governs with the same authoritarian tendencies as the previously established monarchy. Politicians who once rallied people against royal autocracy have since become a closed group, sharing power among themselves while accumulating wealth that is disconnected from productive activity. When young Nepalis saw the children of political leaders displaying luxury goods and taking foreign vacations on Instagram and TikTokplatforms the government then banned- they confronted a clear contradiction. The political class that claims democratic legitimacy is visibly enriching itself while the majority struggles with unemployment, poverty, and the need to migrate for survival. Remittances from workers abroad now account for one-third of Nepals GDP, highlighting the failure of the domestic economy to support its own people. This pattern is seen across South Asia. In Sri Lanka, the Rajapaksa familys corruption and economic mismanagement sparked mass protests in 2022. In Bangladesh, Sheikh Hasinas authoritarian rule ended in August 2024 after violent street demonstrations. Now Nepal faces a similar situation. The common element is not just corruption- though that is certainly present- but something deeper: the failure of postcolonial capitalist development to bring genuine improvement in living conditions for most people, even after decades of formal democracy. Nepals political elite emerged from real mass struggles. The Maoist insurgency, the Communist Party of Nepal, and the Nepali Congress all played roles in ending the monarchy in 2008. Many made significant sacrifices in that fight. However, political power cut off from a plan for changing property relations and productive capacities inevitably falls apart. Without restructuring the economy to meet the needs of the people rather than just profit for the elite, political democracy becomes hollow- it becomes a way to manage competition among elite groups while leaving the structural issues that create poverty, migration, and dependence unresolved. The Limits of Spontaneity The September 2025 protests showed remarkable courage. Young people faced water cannons, tear gas, and live ammunition. They forced a prime minister to resign. They burned symbols of state power, including government buildings, party offices, the Supreme Court, and the Presidential palace. For a brief moment, it seemed as if state authority had collapsed. But what happens when the fires go out? This is where the limits of the uprising become clear. Spontaneous revolt can cause destruction- it can lead to resignations, damage property, and create momentary crises for those in power. However, it cannot build alternative structures of power or implement a plan for social change on its own. The protests struggled with organization. While activists like Sudan Gurung of Hami Nepal took on coordinating roles, the movement was intentionally leaderless and decentralized. This mirrors a broader trend in contemporary protest movements worldwide, like Occupy and the Arab Spring. Horizontal organization and skepticism of leadership arise both from valid critiques of hierarchical party structures and from confusion about how power functions and how it might be seized and used for meaningful change. Without organization capable of sustaining the struggle beyond quick bursts of anger, lacking clear demands that go beyond just removing individual politicians, and not connecting to workplace struggles where workers can effectively halt production and services, such movements will wear themselves out. The anger is real, and the grievances are valid, but anger alone cannot restructure society. The violence toward individual politicians and their families highlights this issue. Attacking Sher Bahadur Deuba in his home or assaulting Ravi Laxmi Chitrakar may seem like justice to those who have suffered under corrupt governance. Yet individual politicians can be easily replaced. The system that produces them- the integration of Nepal into global capitalism as a dependent economy, the challenging geography that makes it susceptible to pressure from India and China, the lack of industrial development that forces workers abroad, and the concentration of land and wealth- remains unaffected when one corrupt official is swapped for another. The Question of Class A Marxist perspective asks us to consider which classes were involved in the uprising and what their interests were. The protests were primarily led by youth, crossing some class lines. Students, unemployed youth, small business owners harmed by the social media ban, and workers all had reasons for anger. However, the movement did not develop specific working-class demands or organisation. Nepals working class remains small and divided due to limited industrialisation. The largest concentrations of Nepali workers are not in Nepal but as migrants in India, the Gulf states, Malaysia, and elsewhere. This migration highlights Nepals marginal role in the global economy- unable to generate enough jobs or productive work internally, it exports labour. The protests mainly reflected the frustrations of educated urban youth dealing with unemployment and corruption rather than organising workplace struggles against exploitation. This observation is not a dig at the protesters, but it points out the movements class foundation and its potential paths. Without grounding protest movements in the specific power that workers wield- the ability to quit work and stop production- they remain reliant on street mobilisation, which is often temporary and draining. The most enduring and impactful movements historically have combined large street protests with organised workplace actions, where workers not only protest but also demonstrate the capacity to manage production themselves. Geopolitical Constraints and Possibilities Nepals location between India and China influences its political options in significant ways. India has traditionally seen Nepal as part of its security area, with intelligence agencies playing large roles in Nepali politics. China has increased its influence through infrastructure investment and diplomatic connections. The United States pursues its interests through development programs like the Millennium Challenge Corporation grants. Any truly transformative movement in Nepal must navigate these external pressures. This does not mean accepting control by foreign powers, but it does mean recognizing that small countries sandwiched between major powers face challenges that sheer determination cannot overcome. Regional cooperation among progressive movements, linking struggles in Nepal with those in India, Bangladesh, and beyond, becomes essential rather than simply aspirational. The reported plans by the Delhi Police Commissioner to respond to Nepals protests acknowledge something significant: ruling classes throughout South Asia understand that the conditions leading to rebellion in Nepal are present across the region. Youth unemployment, corruption, inequality, and authoritarian governance are not unique to Nepal but are widespread throughout South Asia. The question is whether movements can establish transnational coordination and shared goals. What Is To Be Done? The typical activist response to spontaneous uprisings is to call for building the party or the movement in vague terms. However, effective organizing requires clarity about social forces, immediate demands, and strategic vision. For Nepal, several tasks seem crucial. First, connect urban protest movements with rural struggles concerning land, water, and agricultural policy. Most Nepalis still reside in rural areas and rely on agriculture. Any transformative plan must focus on their conditions, not just those of urban youth. Second, develop organization among migrant workers abroad. Since remittances make up one-third of GDP, Nepali workers overseas represent significant potential power- but only if they are organized. Creating transnational worker organizations to coordinate actions across borders addresses both Nepals specific issues and the broader reality of global labor migration. Third, clarify demands that extend beyond removing individual politicians to tackle structural problems: land reform, public ownership of key industries, democratic economic planning aimed at meeting needs rather than profit, and real sovereignty that rejects subservience to Indian or Chinese interests. Fourth, engage in patient political education to help people understand not only that the system is corrupt but also why it creates corruption- how capitalism in peripheral economies inevitably produces the conditions people are rebelling against. This requires study circles, worker education, and developing local intellectuals who can connect immediate struggles to a longer vision. Fifth, learn from both the successes and failures of previous movements. The Maoist insurgency in Nepal mobilised thousands and challenged state power for years but ultimately reached a political settlement that left underlying structures unchanged. Understanding this requires a honest assessment, not glorification or condemnation. Rebellion Is Not Revolution The September 2025 uprising in Nepal is significant. It shows that even in small countries facing various external pressures, public anger against corrupt governance can erupt dramatically. It indicates that South Asian youth refuse to passively accept systems that offer neither dignity nor decent living conditions. It exposes cracks in the legitimacy of political arrangements throughout the region. However, rebellion is not the same as revolution. Forcing one prime minister to resign while leaving the same system intact is not real change. Burning buildings does not create alternative institutions. Spontaneous uprisings without organisation, without clear demands, and lacking roots in working-class power will either fade away or be redirected into replacing one group of elite managers with another. The job for socialists is not to step back from these movements or lecture participants about their shortcomings. It is to participate actively while addressing the limitations- to help build the necessary organizational structures, develop clarity of program, and connect with working-class power that can turn spontaneous rebellion into a sustained effort for fundamental change. Nepals uprising will not be the last in South Asia. The conditions that lead to these explosive moments-unemployment, corruption, inequality, authoritarian governance, and the crisis of capitalism-are growing, not shrinking. The question is whether the next uprising, wherever it happens, can evolve from spontaneous rebellion into organized struggle that truly transforms society rather than merely swapping individuals in positions of power within an unchanged system. That transformation requires a clear understanding of how capitalism operates on both global and local levels, how state power functions and how it can be contested, and how movements can build the capacity not just to resist but also to govern- to really reorganize production and distribution based on human needs rather than profit. This is the work that lies ahead. Nepals uprising offers valuable lessons for this endeavor, both in what it accomplished and what it could not. 8 October 2025 The Editors Guild of India Statement on the Exclusion of Women Journalists from the Press Conference by the Afghan Minister October 11, 2025 | New Delhi: The Editors Guild of India strongly condemns the exclusion of women journalists from the press conference held on Friday, 10 October 2025, by Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi at the Afghan Embassy in New Delhi. The conference was meant to address diplomatic and bilateral engagements during Mr. Muttaqis visit to India. While diplomatic premises may claim protection under the Vienna Convention, that cannot justify blatant gender discrimination in press access on Indian soil. Whether or not the MEA coordinated the event, it is deeply troubling that such a discriminatory exclusion was allowed to proceed without objection. The absence of solidarity in pointing this discriminatory practice at the event signals a troubling complacency in our community. The Editors Guild of India urges the Government of India to publicly reaffirm that press access at diplomatic events held in India must respect gender equity. We also call upon our journalist colleagues and media houses to reflect on this lapse and adopt a zero-tolerance stand against any kind of discriminatory exclusion of anyone at a press event. A free and inclusive press must defend representation, not enable exclusion. Sincerely, Anant Nath, President Ruben Banerjee, General Secretary K Ve Prasad, Treasurer Sri Lanka identifies 12 high-risk districts for rat fever spread Xinhua) 10:15, October 11, 2025 COLOMBO, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Sri Lankan health officials have identified 12 districts as high-risk areas for the spread of leptospirosis, also known as rat fever, said a minister on Friday. Minister of Health and Mass Media Nalinda Jayatissa told parliament that these districts include areas where a large number of people are engaged in agriculture, adding that the disease mainly spreads among paddy farmers during the cultivation season. The minister said the government has sufficient stocks of drugs used to prevent and treat rat fever to last for 12 months. Over 10,000 cases of leptospirosis were reported in 2024, and about 200 people die from the disease each year, he said. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) While the start of 2025 brought with it much optimism about high traveler numbers, the projections did not pan out for every airline. By September, two Scandinavian airlines Play and Braathens Aviation left travelers in different parts of the world stranded after suddenly having to shut down operations amid high-profile bankruptcies. Earlier in the year, Ravn Alaska, Air Belgium, and SKS Airways in Malaysia all also shut down operations. Larger names such as WizzAir and Qantas Airways shut down their branches in Abu Dhabi and Singapore. At the end off October, news also broke that charter carrier Verijet was filing for Chapter 7 bankruptcy. The Vero Beach, Florida-based airline had amassed over $38.7 million in liabilities and faced a slew of lawsuits when 60-year-old founder Richard Kane died suddenly from a heart attack at the end of September. Details about Verijet and where it flew As first reported by an outlet covering the private jet space, the filing was submitted in the 11th circuit of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Florida. Contrary to the more common Chapter 11, Chapter 7 bankruptcy means that the owners are not looking to restructure or requesting financial assistance but will head straight into liquidation. With a fleet of single-engine Cirrus SF50 Vision jets, Verijet ran short-haul flights in different regions of the U.S. Related: Tourists still stranded after airline goes bankrupt, cancels flights In 2023, the airline also expanded to the Bahamas and other international destinations like the Dominican Republic, Turks and Caicos, and the Cayman Islands as part of very rapid growth since Kane founded Verijet at the height of the Covid pandemic in 2020. In 2023, Verijet was recorded as the 13th-largest operator of charter and fractional flights in the country. Its $38.7 million in liabilities included over $10.5 million owed to jet card customers (individuals and corporations that lease private jet as part of an hourly or daily rate for a business model commonly used by such operators), as well as additional debts to aircraft lessors, insurance companies, and various creditors. Verijet started flying to the Bahamas and other international destinations in 2023.Image source: Shutterstock Financial problems led to Verijet's bankruptcy In November 2024, customer Sam Crigman sued Verijet in the Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Miami-Dade County after purchasing a 50-hour jet card for $147,812 back in March. The lawsuit claimed there were numerous delays, canceled flights, and countless excuses for Verijets failure to provide the flight services." Since Kane's death, the carrier has not been running flights and is unlikely to run them in the future, since it's asking a judge to go straight to liquidation. This story was originally published on BioPharma Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily BioPharma Dive newsletter. Today, a brief rundown of news involving AstraZeneca and Ascenta Capital, as well as updates from Expedition Therapeutics, Ferring Pharmaceuticals and Sanofi that you may have missed. AstraZeneca has upped its planned investment in a new drug manufacturing facility in Virginia. In a Thursday announcement, the company said its adding $500 million to a previously announced $4 billion commitment to the Albemarle County, Virginia, plant, which will produce drugs like its experimental obesity pill, a blood pressure medication and an oral PCSK9 inhibitor. AstraZeneca is now adding antibody-drug conjugates to the facilitys manufacturing capabilities as well. The plant will employ 700 workers, once operational. Ben Fidler Venture firm Ascenta Capital announced Thursday the closing of a $325 million fund to back development-stage biotechnology companies. The firm, which was founded in 2023 by Moderna veterans Evan Rachlin and Lorence Kim, has already put more than $100 million into six biotechs, among them Odyssey Therapeutics, OrsoBio, and Cardurion Pharma. In a statement, the company said its preference is to lead or co-lead investments in multi-medicine biotechs at the early stages of human testing. Delilah Alvarado Expedition Therapeutics raised a $165 million Series A round to support testing of a lung disease drug it recently licensed from Fosun Pharma. The drug is part of a class of medicines that target the enzyme DPP-1, which is linked to the development and progression of multiple inflammatory conditions. Expeditions financing, co-led by Sofinnova Investments and Novo Holdings, will fund a Phase 2 trial in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. The company is run by former Goldman Sachs banker Yi Larson and is one of many recently formed startups aiming to in-license assets from China. Ben Fidler Ferring Pharmaceuticals plans to lay off up to 500 employees in an effort to cut costs. The Switzerland-based company said Tuesday it is aligning its operations with a recently announced Enterprise Model thatll boost its core business and provide flexibility to pursue new opportunities. Chief Medical and Science Officer Pierre-Yves Berclaz took an early retirement as part of the initiative, and a new company council was formed to replace an old advisory committee as well. Ferring didnt say when the job cuts would be completed. Delilah Alvarado Scientists have uncovered the first South American amber deposits containing preserved insects in a quarry in Ecuador, according to a study published in Communications Earth & Environment. The discovery captures a vivid picture of a 112-million-year-old forest that once thrived on the ancient supercontinent Gondwana and opens new doors for exploring a long-overlooked prehistoric ecosystem. Amber (fossilized tree resin) has been found in samples dating back as far as 320 million years, but it became far more common between 120 million and 70 million years ago, during the Cretaceous era (143.1 million to 66 million years ago). These ancient resins sometimes contain "bio-inclusions" -- trapped remains of plants or animals -- that offer rare, detailed glimpses of life forms such as insects and flowers that are not usually preserved as fossils. Until now, nearly all known major amber deposits were located in the Northern Hemisphere, leaving scientists with limited insight into what Southern Hemisphere ecosystems looked like during the time when the continents were beginning to separate from Gondwana. To investigate, Xavier Delclos and his research team examined amber and surrounding rock samples collected from the Genoveva quarry in Ecuador. The amber, dated to roughly 112 million years ago, belongs to the Hollin Formation, a sedimentary layer that stretches across Ecuador's Oriente Basin. The team identified two distinct kinds of amber: one formed underground near the roots of resin-producing plants, and another that developed in the open air. Among 60 samples of the latter, the researchers found 21 bio-inclusions representing five insect orders, including Diptera (flies), Coleoptera (beetles), and Hymenoptera (a group that includes ants and wasps), as well as a fragment of spider web. In addition, the rock surrounding the amber contained numerous plant fossils such as spores, pollen, and other botanical traces. According to the researchers, the characteristics of the fossils indicate that the amber originated in a warm, humid forest filled with dense vegetation and resin-producing trees in southern Gondwana. They emphasize that this rare find provides a crucial new resource for understanding life and biodiversity during this key period in Earth's history. B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) is one of the cheap stocks to buy for the next 5 years. On October 6, B2Gold announced that its Goose Mine, which is located in the Back River Gold District in Nunavut, Canada, officially achieved commercial production earlier on October 2. The companys internal criteria for this milestone required 30 consecutive days with an average mill throughput of at least 65% of the design capacity, which is 4,000 tpd. The mill successfully met this requirement and recorded an average throughput of 2,652 tpd from September 3 through October 2, which is exactly 66% of design capacity. Mill feed during this initial period primarily came from the mined-out Echo open pit. Is B2Gold Corp. (BTG) One of the Cheap Stocks to Buy for the Next 5 Years? Following the integration of a supplemental mobile crusher, crushing rates significantly increased in the latter half of September. From September 19 to October 2, the mills average throughput rose to 3,249 tpd, which is 81.2% of design capacity. B2Gold anticipates the mill will operate near the 4,000 tpd design capacity throughout Q4 2025. For Q4, mill feed will shift to the Umwelt deposit, with expected grades averaging between 6.5 and 7 grams per tonne gold. B2Gold Corp. (NYSE:BTG) is a gold producer in Canada. The company operates the Fekola Mine in Mali, the Masbate Mine in the Philippines, and the Otjikoto Mine in Namibia. While we acknowledge the potential of BTG as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If youre looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. Hungarian author Laszlo Krasznahorkai was awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize for Literature yesterday for what the Swedish Academy described as his "compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art." The Academy called him "a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterised by absurdism and grotesque excess. But there are more strings to his bow, and he also looks to the East in adopting a more contemplative, finely calibrated tone." Born in 1954, Krasznahorkai published Satantango, his first novel, in 1985, "a literary sensation in Hungary and the author's breakthrough work," the Academy wrote. "The novel portrays, in powerfully suggestive terms, a destitute group of residents on an abandoned collective farm in the Hungarian countryside just before the fall of communism." Among his other titles is The Melancholy of Resistance (1998), "a feverish horror fantasy played out in a small Hungarian town nestled in a Carpathian valley." In War & War (2006) Krasznahorkai "shifts his attention beyond the borders of his Hungarian homeland in allowing the humble archivist Korin to decide, as his life's final act, to travel from the outskirts of Budapest to New York." In Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming (2019), "Dostoyevsky's idiot is reincarnated in the hopelessly infatuated baron with his gambling addiction. Now ruined, he is on his way home to Hungary having spent many years living in exile in Argentina." Herscht 07769: A Novel (2024) offers "a credible portrayal of a contemporary small town in Thuringen, Germany, which is nevertheless also afflicted by social anarchy, murder and arson." Krasznahorkai won the 2019 National Book Award for Translated Literature for Baron Wenckheim's Homecoming and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize for lifetime achievement. He also won two successive Best Translated Book Awards, in 2013 and 2014, for Satantango and Seiobo There Below, a short story collection, respectively. His books are published in the U.S. by New Directions. The NYPD is seeking the public's assistance in identifying an individual sought for questioning in connection to a Rosebank robbery on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025. (Courtesy of the NYPD) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. The NYPD is seeking the publics assistance in identifying an individual sought for questioning in connection to a robbery in Rosebank on Thursday, Aug. 28. According to police, the alleged robbery took place on the sidewalk in the vicinity of Bay Street and Virginia Avenue around 9:21 p.m. At that time, a 20-year-old man was approached from behind, punched and choked by an unknown individual, as alleged in a statement from the Deputy Commissioner of Public Informations Office. The unidentified individual then allegedly forcibly removed the victims backpack and about $300 before fleeing on foot eastbound on Virginia Avenue. The NYPD is seeking the public's assistance in identifying an individual sought for questioning in connection to a Rosebank robbery on Thursday, Aug. 28, 2025. (Courtesy of the NYPD) The NYPD shared that the victim sustained pain and redness about the body and was taken in stable condition to Richmond University Medical Center in West Brighton. The individual sought for questioning by police is described as a man with a light complexion. He was last seen wearing a white tank top and black pants. Images of the man sought for questioning were provided by the NYPD to the media. The Advance/SILive.com was informed by a Deputy Commissioner of Public Informations Office spokesperson that the images were taken at 1125 Bay Street. Anyone with information regarding this incident is asked to call the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org , or on X @NYPDTips. All calls are strictly confidential. A skybridge connects the north tower, called the Harries Residential Tower, and south tower of the new University Center Complex at Stevens Institute in Hoboken in 2022. The annual cost of attending Stevens Institute of Technology tops $65,000 a year once tuition and mandatory fees are added in, making it one of the most expensive colleges in New Jersey. But some of the schools students may not have to pay any tuition at all starting next year. The private university in Hoboken says it is launching the Stevens Investment program to offer free tuition for students from families that earn $75,000 or less a year. The program, which will be offered to incoming students, wont be open to transfer students or students without U.S. citizenship or permanent residency, university officials said. After the first year, students can continue to attend the school tuition-free if their families continue to meet the $75,000 or less income requirement. Students also need to maintain a 2.0 grade point average and accumulate credits within a specific time frame. Our role as an institution is to work to remove barriers that might prevent these talented individuals from accessing the transformative education Stevens provides, said Nariman Farvardin, the schools president. Undergraduates currently pay $65,606 in annual tuition and mandatory fees to attend Stevens, according to the school website. That includes the $63,010 tuition that would be free under the new program. However, the total cost of attending Stevens goes up to $87,926 a year once books, housing and meals are included for those who live on campus, the school said. The program covers tuition. Fees, housing and food may be covered through outside scholarships (if applicable), other grants, loans, federal work study among other sources, Stevens officials said. It is unclear how many of Stevens current students come from families that earn less than $75,000 a year. University officials declined to say how many of its more than 4,200 undergraduates would have qualified for the program had it existed when they applied. School data shows about 12% of Stevens first-year undergraduate students received the full amount of their financial needs via grants and scholarships last year. Its too early to estimate how many students will qualify for free-tuition, a Stevens spokesperson said. But we anticipate strong interest. Many other colleges offer similar free tuition programs for lower income families. Carnegie Mellon University in Pennsylvania, Yale University in Connecticut and Cornell University in New York also have a $75,000 and under threshold. Rutgers-New Brunswicks "Scarlet Guarantee" program promises free tuition and free mandatory fees for students in families that earn less than $65,000 a year. Families that make less than $100,000 a year can also get a tuition discount. Princeton University covers full costs of attending the Ivy League school for most families earning under $150,000 and it eliminates tuition for those earning up to $250,000. However, the free tuition programs do not usually mean the universities are absorbing the total cost of the students attending the school. The programs are usually considered last dollar offers, which means students still apply for taxpayer-funded state and federal grants. Then, the university covers the last dollars, the term for any extra money the students need to pay for tuition and fees each semester after they receive their Pell Grants, Tuitional Aid Grants and other scholarships and aid. Funding for Stevens new program comes from a combination of strategic resource alignment, institutional, donor and fundraising support, a Stevens spokesperson said. Stevens has faced financial challenges over the last year. In a statement this summer, Stevens officials said drops in international enrollment and research funding led the administration to make the difficult but necessary decision to implement a reduction in its workforce. The university cut 45 staff members. Stevens remains one of the most difficult universities to get into in New Jersey. Of the students who enrolled at Stevens last year, close to 60% had a high school GPA of 4.0 or higher. The school received 10,673 freshman applications and admitted about 48% in the fall of 2024, Stevens officials said. Women make up only 34% of Stevens undergraduates, a gender imbalance seen at many engineering-focused universities. Walt Disney and Micky Mouse in front of the Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File) AP Disney announced Wednesday that it is raising ticket prices for its U.S. theme parks, with new rates taking effect immediately, according to CBS News. The price increases impact select admissions to both Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California, and Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, Florida. Single-day tickets on peak attendance days including major holidays like New Years Eve and Thanksgiving will now cost up to $199, the highest price currently offered. For some of the busiest days, such as Nov. 2429 and Dec. 20Jan. 3, ticket prices at Disneyland will rise even further, reaching $224, according to Disneys website. The increases reflect what the company describes as growing demand for park visits during high-traffic periods. In addition to daily admissions, Disneylands Magic Key annual pass program is seeing some increases. While the lowest-priced day ticket remains unchanged at $104, five of the resorts seven ticket tiers will increase by 3% or less. The Inspire and Believe Magic Key passes Disneylands two most expensive annual pass options will rise by $150 and $100 respectively. The Inspire Key will now cost $1,899, and the Believe Key will be priced at $1,474. Disney said the Enchant and Imagine passes will not see price changes. An actor dressed as Mickey Mouse greets visitors at the entrance to Magic Kingdom Park at Walt Disney World Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey) AP At Walt Disney World, ticket prices through October 2026 remain steady at both the lowest and highest tiers. In a statement, Disney emphasized its commitment to accessibility and guest experience. Disney Parks offer a full day of experiences each day, with ticket, hotel and dining options designed to suit a wide range of needs and budgets for all who visit. Our commitment to creating magical experiences for everyone remains at the heart of what we do and that will never change, the company said. Disneys recent theme park ticket price increases mark the end of an unusually long pause on admission hikes at Walt Disney World the longest in years, according to Disney Tourist Blog. Disney Theme Park Ticket Price Increases Park/Ticket Type New Prices Notes Disneyland (Lowest Tier) $104 Remains unchanged Disneyland (Peak Days) Up to $199 For major holidays Disneyland (Busiest Days) $224 Nov. 2429 and Dec. 20Jan. 3 Disneyland (Regular Tiers) Varies Five of seven ticket tiers increased by 3% or less Walt Disney World Varies Prices through October 2026 remain steady at lowest and highest tiers Disneyland Annual Pass Price Changes Pass Type New Price Price Increase Inspire Key $1,899 +$150 Believe Key $1,474 +$100 Enchant Key Unchanged $0 Imagine Key Unchanged $0 Before the latest round of changes, the last significant increase in regular park ticket prices at the Florida resort took effect on Dec. 8, 2022. That means Disney went 445 days without raising ticket prices a notable departure from its usual pricing cadence. Factoring in the effective date of the most recent hikes, which were announced earlier this year but only implemented this fall, the gap stretches to 755 days. Two key factors contributed to the extended break from raising base admission costs. Mickey and Minnie Mouse perform during a parade as they pass by the Cinderella Castle at the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. (AP Photo/John Raoux) AP First, Disney had already implemented two separate increases in 2022 one in February and another in December. Combined with earlier hikes, that two-year stretch from 2021 to 2022 saw the steepest overall rise in ticket prices on record. The period coincided with the height of revenge travel, as pent-up consumer demand pushed attendance and spending higher following the pandemic. Disney capitalized on that momentum, though the company now appears to be recalibrating amid signs of more cautious spending behavior. Second, the cost of Disneys Lightning Lane Multi-Pass a paid skip-the-line service also rose throughout 2022 and 2023. While technically separate from base admission and considered optional, the add-on is widely purchased by guests, effectively acting as an indirect increase to the overall cost of a visit. Disney Parks offer a full day of experiences each day, with ticket, hotel and dining options designed to suit a wide range of needs and budgets for all who visit, Disney officials said in a statement. Our commitment to creating magical experiences for everyone remains at the heart of what we do and that will never change." Matthew Cona of Great Kills, 14, ran Running 4 Heroes, a national nonprofit organization. His run paid tribute to NYPD Detective Didarul Islam, who died in the line of duty in July. He was joined by members of the NYPD, MTA Running Club, Metropolitan Fire, North Shore Rescue Squad, and local residents. (Couertesy Jamie Cona) Couertesy Jamie Cona STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. For 14-year-old Matthew Cona of Great Kills, honoring fallen heroes isnt just a one-time event its a calling. As a youth runner with Running 4 Heroes, a national nonprofit organization, Matthew continues to honor first responders who have died in the line of duty through one-mile tribute runs that bring together law enforcement, emergency responders and local communities. Matthews most recent run, held this past Thursday at 5:30 p.m. on Staten Island, paid tribute to NYPD Detective Didarul Islamd, who died in the line of duty in July. He was joined by members of the NYPD, MTA Running Club, Metropolitan Fire, North Shore Rescue Squad and local residents. It was a beautiful night, filled with a strong sense of community and support, said Matthews mother, Jaimie Cona. Members from the NYPD, MTA Running Club, Metropolitan Fire, North Shore Rescue Squad, and local residents all came together to run alongside him. The atmosphere was warm and inspiring a truly lovely evening. My son is a 14-year-old runner with a nonprofit called Running 4 Heroes, she added. The organization is based in Florida and has nine youth runners across the country. When a first responder dies in the line of duty, one of the runners is assigned a one-mile run. Im proud of my son every day, but hearing how deeply people appreciated his efforts today, she continued. Seeing the impact he made by bringing first responders and the community together to honor Detective Islam and show our support for law enforcement made me even prouder." Matthew Cona of Great Kills, 14, ran Running 4 Heroes, a national nonprofit organization. His run paid tribute to NYPD Detective Didarul Islam, who died in the line of duty in July. He was joined by members of the NYPD, MTA Running Club, Metropolitan Fire, North Shore Rescue Squad, and local residents. (Couertesy Jamie Cona) Couertesy Jamie Cona Honoring a hero from the past Just one year ago, Matthew also ran in honor of another NYPD hero Detective Troy David Patterson, who passed away in 2023 after spending more than 30 years in a coma following a gunshot wound sustained in the line of duty. A Farrell student, U.S. Naval Sea Cadet with the DC3 Nathan Bruckenthal Division, and an explorer with the Metropolitan Fire Department, Matthew says the mission behind the runs keeps him motivated and grounded. Our first responders are so crucial and we love to support them however we can, said Matthew. First responders put their lives at risk for us every day. This is a way I can show my respect for those who gave the ultimate sacrifice. During the 2024 run honoring Detective Patterson, Matthew carried an American flag, which was later presented to the fallen officers family. The event was supported by the FDNY, MTA Police, and U.S. Coast Guard a show of solidarity that has become a signature of Matthews runs. Matthew Cona of Great Kills, 14, ran Running 4 Heroes, a national nonprofit organization. His run paid tribute to NYPD Detective Didarul Islam, who died in the line of duty in July. He was joined by members of the NYPD, MTA Running Club, Metropolitan Fire, North Shore Rescue Squad, and local residents. (Couertesy Jamie Cona) Couertesy Jamie Cona Detective Pattersons legacy Detective Patterson was shot in the head on Jan. 16, 1990, while washing his car in Brooklyn. When he refused to give three teens $20, one of them shot him point-blank. He was just 27 years old at the time. He never regained consciousness and remained in a vegetative state until his death 33 years later. Patterson was posthumously promoted to detective in 2016 and served with the NYPD for 40 years. He is survived by his son and grandchildren. Running 4 Heroes was founded in 2019 by then-10-year-old Zechariah Cartledge of Florida, inspired by the mission of the Tunnel to Towers Foundation. With every run, Matthew not only pays tribute to a life lost but also strengthens bonds between civilians and those who protect them. Running for heroes reminds us what real sacrifice looks like, he said. Its a small act, but it carries a big meaning. For more information on Running 4 Heroes and upcoming tribute runs, visit www.running4heroes.org. This story was originally published on CIO Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily CIO Dive newsletter. As the financial sector harnesses generative AIs capacity to speed and simplify processes, Bank of America has leaned on sustained research and technology investments to rapidly scale multiple use cases. The firm unveiled a generative AI-powered knowledge management assistant called AskGPS for its Global Payments Solutions division last week. In-house engineers fed the model 3,200 internal documents, from product guides and term sheets to FAQs. The tool provides tailored answers to the divisions more than 40,000 business clients, according to the Sept. 30 announcement. Pre-generative AI, we had standard library search to find documents, not answers, and they simply didnt have the power of generative AI, Jarrett Bruhn, head of data and AI for GPS at Bank of America, told CIO Dive. Deep, difficult questions would take up to an hour of searching. AskGPS speaks 29 languages, which is a major advantage for a globally dispersed banking unit, and is already easing the onboarding process for new hires, Bruhn added. This is their go-to for acronyms and product knowledge, Bruhn said. If youre in a meeting and supply chain finance comes up or someone mentions a new acronym, you no longer have to spend all that time digging through everything to access the product knowledge. The idea for AskGPS began germinating early in the evolution of commercial-grade large language model capabilities. Engineers on the GPS team worked with the banks global technology team on the building process, from initial design through deployment. Collaboration ensured that the tool would be scalable, secure and aligned with the banks broader AI strategy to build adaptable tools that benefit multiple lines of business, a Bank of America spokesperson told CIO Dive. AI across banking Banking provided fertile soil for data-hungry generative AI applications. Bank of America and its peers in the heavily regulated financial industry were well positioned to impose sturdy guardrails around sensitive data amid the proliferation of potential use cases. The banking sector is a blueprint for how AI should be rolled out in any sector, Alexandra Mousavizadeh, co-founder and co-CEO of Evident Insights, told CIO Dive. Its already got all of the checks and balances and governance and risk functions you need. A massive fire broke out at a battery energy storage facility in Peoria, Arizona, earlier this month, requiring a large-scale response from multiple area fire departments. This picture of the blaze was captured by the local fire department's drone at the onset of the incident. (Courtesy of the Peoria Fire-Medical Department) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. A massive fire broke out at a battery energy storage system facility in Peoria, Arizona, earlier this month, requiring a large-scale response from multiple area fire departments and the shutdown of surrounding streets. The cause of the fire has not yet been identified, and no injuries were reported, but local reports noted that at least two Tesla Megapacks similar to those installed in several battery energy storage sites on Staten Island burned and smoldered for hours. The facility, which is considered the largest stand-alone battery energy storage system in Arizona, is operated by Salt River Project, which owns seven other such sites throughout the state. According to Salt River Projects website, the 25-megawatt (MW) battery storage facility has been online since 2021 and stores enough energy to power about 5,600 typical residential homes. The blaze was reported at 4:14 p.m. on Oct. 1 and stabilized by Peoria Fire-Medical units at around midnight, a spokesperson for the department noted. The scene was then turned over to Salt River Projects site representatives for fire watch and continued monitoring. Site representatives were present through the event and worked closely with our Incident Command, the spokesperson said. Local media reports noted that the Salt River Project site consists of a series of Tesla Megapacks that are connected directly to SRPs energy grid. The same branded Megapacks have been installed in several battery energy storage sites on Staten Island. The lithium-ion structures which started popping up in several NYC neighborhoods in 2022 are designed to remove pressure from the citys stressed grid, using rechargeable batteries to store electrical energy from various sources, and then releasing that stored energy when needed. There are currently more than a dozen of them located on Staten Island, each constructed to help the state meet some of its ambitious environmental goals. And many more are in the pipeline several of which are set to receive more than $1.5 million in incentive awards from the New York Energy Research and Development Authority. Residents who live near the facilities have voiced concern about fire risk and environmental hazard. But developers continue to clarify that all necessary safety measures have been taken. The FDNY has examined the site and has no safety concerns. The City and the International Fire Code require a distance of 10 feet between any battery and a building which this project abides by, a representative from NineDot Energy, which has several battery projects on Staten Island, told the Advance/SILive earlier this year, referencing a site in Manor Heights that is located directly next to a residential home. NineDot also noted that the FDNY has examined and tested the BESS technology used on this site [Tesla Megapacks] and determined the technology is safe for use in NYC, in large part because of the several layers of safety redundancy, which prevent so-called thermal runaway [i.e., a fire spreading from one cell or module to another]. The spokesperson for the Peoria Fire-Medical Department said they could not yet comment on whether or not the Arizona fire was an instance of thermal runaway. An alligator, partially hidden above, attempted to crash happy hour at a Florida tiki bar earlier this week. (Stuart Police Department Facebook) STUART, FLORIDA Talk about an unwanted guest. An alligator caused a major disturbance earlier this week when it decided to make an appearance at a tiki bar called Harlows Hideout, according to a report by Floridas 29news.com. A photo showed the gator hiding out in some bushes right next to guest seeding at the Stuart bar. Stuart is located on Floridas east coast, right above West Palm Beach. It was only about 4-5 feet long, but nonetheless, once it was discovered, workers called police. Members of the Stuart Police Department responded immediately and not only removed the reptile without anybody getting hurt (including the gator!), but made light of the situation in a statement. An alligator walks into a bar... No, seriously, the Stuart Police Department joked as it posted several photos on its Facebook page. No, it wasnt a rowdy tourist dodging their tab, it was an actual alligator, apparently looking to crash happy hour, police said. Stuart Police Officers arrived and promptly took the scaly suspect into custody without incident. No injuries to the gator or any humans, just one wild story and a few surprised bar-goers. Police continued its joke while making it known the gator was relocated to a more suitable venue, where the only cocktails are in the swamp and the sun never sets on happy hour. Residents attend a vigil honoring the victims of a blast at an explosives plant, Accurate Energetic Systems, on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Centerville Tenn. (AP Photo/Obed Lamy) AP McEWEN, Tenn. (AP) The blast in rural Tennessee that leveled an explosives plant and was felt for miles around left no survivors, authorities said Saturday. The total number of dead was unclear, as was the cause of the Friday blast. By the weekend the devastation came into focus, with officials saying theyd found no survivors. Smoke fills the air as debris covers the ground and vehicles after a powerful blast ripped through a military explosives manufacturing plant in Hickman County, Tenn., on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. (WTVF-TV via AP) AP Theres a gauntlet of emotions there, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said during a news conference, pausing to clear his throat before he asked for prayers for the families of the victims in a shaky voice. Weve recovered no survivors, he added. A person attaches a hose to a fire hydrant to fill a tanker truck after a blast resulted in multiple fatalities and others missing at Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosives plant, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Bucksnort, Tenn. (AP Photo/John Amis) AP State officials brought in a rapid DNA team to help identify the remains of people recovered at the site. The explosion left a smoldering wreck of twisted metal and burned-out vehicles at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, which supplies and researches explosives for the military. A sign is displayed near the site of an explosion at a explosives manufacturing plant about 60 miles southwest of Nashville, Tenn., on Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Adrian Sainz) AP Davis said about 300 responders are working in a slow, methodical method as they deal with explosive material that has been damaged and remains volatile. An ambulance and a helicopter used for air evacuations were brought in, for the safety of first responders. Its not like working an accident. Its not like working a tornado. Were dealing with explosions. And I would say at this time, were dealing with remains, he said. Family members gather at Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosive plant, after a blast on Friday resulted in multiple fatalities and several missing on Saturday, Oct 11, 2025, in Bucksnort, Tenn. (AP photo/ Obed Lamy) AP Guy McCormick, a supervisory special agent with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives said explosive specialists and bomb technicians are trying to make the area safe before national ATF investigators arrive. He said the nature of the scene can change because of the heat and pressure caused by the explosion. Smoke fills the air as debris covers the ground and vehicles after a powerful blast ripped through a military explosives manufacturing plant in Hickman County, Tenn., on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. (WTVF-TV via AP) AP Davis said it could be days, weeks or even months before foul play is ruled out. The site is located in a heavily wooded area of middle Tennessee, between the economically vital Tennessee River to the west and the bustling metropolis of Nashville to the east. Modest homes dot the wooded landscape, residences belonging to good old country people, as local man Terry Bagsby put it. A lot of grief Bagsby, 68, is retired but he helps out working the register at a gas station near the site. He said people in the close-knit community are very, very sad. He said he knows people who worked at the site and are missing. I dont know how to explain it. Just a lot of grief. The companys website says it processes explosives and ammunition at an eight-building facility that sprawls across wooded hills in the Bucksnort area, about 60 miles (97 kilometers) southwest of Nashville. Its not immediately known how many people work at the plant or how many were there when the explosion happened. Accurate Energetic Systems, based in nearby McEwen, said in a post on social media on Friday that their thoughts and prayers are with the families and community impacted. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions, the post said. Explosion jolts residents from sleep The company has been awarded numerous military contracts, largely by the U.S. Army and Navy, to supply different types of munitions and explosives, according to public records. The products range from bulk explosives to landmines and small breaching charges, including C4. When the explosion occurred, residents in Lobelville, a 20-minute drive from the scene, said they felt their homes shake, and some people captured the loud boom of the explosion on their home cameras. The blast rattled Gentry Stover from his sleep. I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it, he told The Associated Press. I live very close to Accurate and I realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee posted on the social platform X that he is monitoring the situation and asked Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident. A small group gathered for a vigil Friday night at a nearby park, clutching candles as they prayed for the missing and their families and sang Amazing Grace. The U.S. has a long history of deadly accidents at workplaces, including the Monongah coal mine explosion that killed 362 men and boys in West Virginia in 1907. Several high-profile industrial accidents in the 1960s helped lead President Richard Nixon to sign a law creating the Occupational Safety and Health Administration the next year. In 2019, Accurate Energetic Systems faced several small fines from the U.S. Department of Labor for violations of policies meant to protect workers from exposure to hazardous chemicals, radiation and other irritants, according to citations from OSHA. In 2014, an explosion occurred at another ammunition facility in the same small community, killing one person and injuring at least three others. Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana) AP GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians made their way back to their Gaza neighborhoods on Saturday, weaving through dust-shrouded streets as bulldozers clawed through the wreckage of two years of war and a ceasefire held in its second day. Displaced Palestinians walk through an area surrounded by destroyed buildings in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi) AP Aid groups urged Israel to reopen more crossings to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, and about 200 U.S. troops arrived in Israel to help retrieve hostages and monitor the ceasefire with Hamas. Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana) AP The U.S. troops will set up a center to facilitate the flow of aid as well as logistical and security assistance. The head of the U.S. militarys Central Command said he visited Gaza on Saturday to prepare it. A displaced Palestinian boy carries a wooden board as he walks along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to pause their war and release the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana) AP This great effort will be achieved with no U.S. boots on the ground in Gaza, Adm. Brad Cooper said in a statement, noting that his command would lead the center. Aid is just one issue for Palestinians returning to their destroyed homes. Displaced Palestinians ride on a horse-drawn cart loaded with belongings as they pass along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana) AP When people get there, theyre going to find rubble. Theyll find that their homes and their neighborhoods have been reduced to dust, UNICEF spokesperson Tess Ingram told The Associated Press on Friday from central Gaza. A ceasefire alone is not enough, Ingram added, and called for a surge of humanitarian aid that begins to address the tremendous damage that has been done over the past two years. Displaced Palestinians ride on trucks loaded with belongings and wave Egyptian and Palestinian flags as they travel along the coastal road near Wadi Gaza in the central Gaza Strip, moving toward Gaza city, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi) AP Tons of desperately needed food The World Food Program said Saturday it was ready to restore 145 food distribution points across the famine-stricken Gaza Strip, once Israel allows for expanded deliveries. Before Israel sealed off Gaza in March, U.N. agencies provided food at 400 distribution points. A U.N. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet public, said Israel has approved expanded aid deliveries, starting Sunday. Though the timeline and how the food will enter Gaza remain unclear, the distribution points will allow Palestinians to access food at more locations than they could through the U.S.- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, which had operated four locations since taking over distribution in late May. COGAT, the Israeli military body in charge of humanitarian aid, said that more than 500 trucks had entered Gaza on Friday, although many crossings remain closed. The aid is among the 170,000 metric tons of food aid that have been positioned in neighboring countries awaiting permission from Israel to restart deliveries. Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, after Israel and Hamas agreed to a pause in their war and the release of the remaining hostages. (AP Photo/Abdel Kareem Hana) AP Israel braces for hostages return Israels military has said that under the truce deal, the 48 hostages still in Gaza would be freed on Monday. These are key steps toward ending the war ignited by Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. The fighting has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, flattened entire neighborhoods and displaced around 90% of Gazas more than 2 million people, some multiple times. In Israel, families were awaiting the return of hostages taken in the 2023 attack. The government believes around 20 of the hostages remain alive. Its been a few nights that we cant sleep. We want them back and we feel that everything is just hanging on a thread, Maayan Eliasi, a resident of Tel Aviv, said at a gathering at the citys Hostages Square. A future for Gaza Questions remain on who will govern Gaza after Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm, as called for in the ceasefire agreement. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unilaterally ended the previous ceasefire in March, has suggested Israel could resume its offensive if Hamas fails to disarm. If its achieved the easy way, so be it. If not, it will be achieved the hard way, Netanyahu said Friday, pledging that the next stage would bring Hamass disarmament. The scale of destruction will become clearer if the truce holds in the weeks ahead, but more than three out of every four buildings have been destroyed, the U.N. said in September a volume of debris equivalent to 25 Eiffel Towers, much of it likely toxic. A February assessment by the European Union and World Bank estimated $49 billion in damage, including $16 billion to housing and $6.3 billion to the health sector. The death toll is expected to rise as more bodies that couldnt be retrieved during Israels offensive are found. A manager at northern Gazas Shifa Hospital told the AP that 45 bodies pulled from the rubble in Gaza City had arrived over the past 24 hours. The manager, speaking on condition of anonymity for safety reasons, said the bodies had been missing for several days to two weeks. New security arrangements on the ground U.S. President Donald Trumps initial 20-point plan calls for Israel to maintain an open-ended military presence inside Gaza, along its border with Israel. An international force, comprised largely of troops from Arab and Muslim countries, would be responsible for security inside Gaza, though the timeline is unclear. The Israeli military has said it will continue to operate defensively from the roughly 50% of Gaza it still controls after pulling back to agreed-upon lines. U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff told Israeli officials on Friday that the United States would establish a center in Israel to coordinate issues concerning Gaza until there is a permanent government, according to a readout of the meeting by a person who attended it and obtained by the AP. Another official who was not authorized to speak to the media confirmed the contents of the readout. The readout said no U.S. soldiers will be on the ground in Gaza, but there will be people who report to the U.S. and aircraft might operate over the strip for monitoring. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel in the 2023 attack, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. In Israels ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which doesnt differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the U.N. and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties. The war has also triggered other conflicts in the region, sparked worldwide protests and led to allegations of genocide that Israel denies. Community Board 3 meetings take place in the boards office, on the second floor of 1243 Woodrow Rd., Woodrow. (Advance/SILive.com | Jan Somma-Hammel) STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Staten Islands Community Boards will hold public meetings next week, including an introduction of a new borough parks commissioner and discussing liquor license applications, among other topics. Representatives of Staten Islands three Community Boards provided the following list of public meetings: Community Board 1 Community Board 1 will hold a full board meeting on Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 6:30 p.m. It will be held in-person only at St. Marys Episcopal Church, located at 237 Davis Ave., in Livingston. The new Staten Island borough commissioner of NYC Parks, Joseph G. Homsey, will be introduced. Community Board 2 There are no meetings scheduled next week for Community Board 2. Community Board 3 There will be a Parks & Recreation and Environmental Committee meeting and public hearing on Tuesday, Oct. 14, at 6:30 p.m. On Wednesday, Oct. 15, a Budget Committee meeting and public hearing will be held at 5:30 p.m. The meeting will review Community Board 3 district needs and budget requests for Fiscal Year 2027. Additionally, a Community Alliance Committee meeting and public hearing will be held on Oct. 15 at 6:30 p.m. On the agenda are multiple requests for new and temporary retail permits with the New York State Liquor Authority. Those requests include: FF&G Restaurant Inc. - 4126 Hylan Blvd., 10308 MSA Hospitality LLC - 27 Seguine Ave., 10309 Santorini - 2945 Veterans Road West, 10309 Arden Genki Sushi Corp - 262 Arden Ave., 10312 All meetings are held in the boards office, on the second floor of 1243 Woodrow Rd., Woodrow. Open to the public All Community Board meetings and meetings of their committees are open to the public. They provide an excellent opportunity for residents to learn about happenings in their neighborhood and surrounding areas. Below is more information about the Islands three Community Boards: Community Board 1 Arlington Castleton Corners Clifton Concord Elm Park Fort Wadsworth Graniteville Grymes Hill Livingston Mariners Harbor New Brighton Port Richmond Randall Manor Rosebank St. George Shore Acres Silver Lake Stapleton Sunnyside Tompkinsville West Brighton Westerleigh The board chairman is Nicholas Siclari. The district manager is Joan Cusack. The telephone number is 718-981-6900. Community Board 2 Arrochar Bloomfield Bulls Head Chelsea Dongan Hills Egbertville Emerson Hill Grant City Grasmere High Rock Lighthouse Hill Midland Beach New Dorp New Springville Oakwood Ocean Breeze Old Town Richmond South Beach Todt Hill Travis The phone number is 718-568-3581. The fax number is 718-568-3595. The chairman is Fred Guinta. The district manager is Debra A. Derrico. Community Board 3 Annadale Arden Heights Bay Terrace Charleston Eltingville Great Kills Greenridge Huguenot New Dorp Oakwood Pleasant Plains Princes Bay Richmond Valley Richmond Rossville Tottenville Woodrow The office phone number is 718-356-7900. The interim district manager is Stacey Wertheim. STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. Coastal flooding still appears to be a predominant concern for the storm expected to impact New York City on Sunday and Monday. According to Jay Engle, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Upton, New York, the city should expect widespread minor to moderate coastal flooding of 1.5-2.5 feet; major flooding is forecast for Long Island, as of Saturday morning. Much of the city, including Staten Island, remains under a coastal flood watch, but as explained by Engle, its possible those watches are upgraded to warnings in the coming hours. Here is the most up-to-date briefing on the coastal storm to impact the region later this weekend (mainly Sunday into Monday). Click the link here for the detailed information: https://t.co/610UeEFm73 pic.twitter.com/NFbbWNgXXS NWS New York NY (@NWSNewYorkNY) October 11, 2025 Were basically looking at the high tide times beginning Sunday into Monday, were looking at some inundation, maybe 1-2 feet of water inundation in some - especially the more vulnerable coastal locations, Engle told the Advance/SILive.com. AccuWeather continues to maintain that the storm surge is generally expected to reach 1-3 feet, however, some areas along the East Coast could see a surge of 4-5 feet. As noted in an AccuWeather report, wind direction and speed will contribute in driving a significant amount of water from the ocean toward the coast. Were not expecting flooding from rainfall, mainly because of the dry conditions weve had previous to now, but it will be a long-duration rainfall, added Engle. Weather Alert for NYC:High winds and coastal flooding are expected Sunday through Monday. Secure outdoor items, plan ahead for travel, and use caution near coastal areas. Stay informed with NotifyNYC New York Citys official emergency notification system. Get real-time pic.twitter.com/EaWZM9faME NYC Emergency Management (@nycemergencymgt) October 10, 2025 By the time the storm moves out, the system should have delivered a general 1.5-2 inches of rain to the five boroughs. Much of the city is set to be placed under a high wind watch as gusts are expected to reach around 50 mph, according to the weather service. AccuWeather believes gusts along the coast will range from 40-60 mph. Sustained winds could reach about 25-35 mph in the city, Engle said. The high wind watch is expected to extend from noon on Sunday through noon on Monday. As previously reported, rain will taper off on Monday and the storm will fully clear out by Tuesday. Restaurant chain Bar Louie, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March, has joined the growing stable of restaurants owned by Sun Holdings. The Dallas-headquartered Sun Holdings, which acquired Uncle Julio's in January 2025, announced on Oct. 7 it had also acquired Bar Louie, which has 39 restaurant and cocktail bar locations across the United States. Founded in 1991 in Chicago, Illinois, Bar Louie filed for bankruptcy in March; at the time, it had 31 company-owned locations and 17 franchised locations across 19 states. The company had previously filed for bankruptcy in 2020 and was purchased by BLH TopCo as part of that process. The bankruptcies of the restaurant chain, which had 130 restaurants in 2018, according to Nation's Restaurant News, come as many popular restaurant brands have filed for Chapter 11, including Razzoos Cajun Cafe earlier this month. Other recent bankruptcy filings include Bravo Brio Restaurants LLC, which operates 25 Brio Italian Grille restaurants and 23 Bravo Italian Kitchen restaurants, as well as Red Lobster, Tijuana Flats, TGI Fridays and Hooters. Marvel team-up: Actors Robert Downey Jr. and Tom Holland reunite for this unique mash-up What restaurants does Sun Holdings operate? The acquisition grows Sun Holdings' already-expansive collection of restaurants, which includes more than 1,800 dining establishments, including Applebees, Arby's, Burger King, Freebirds World Burrito, Golden Corral, IHOP, McAlisters, Papa Johns, Popeyes, and Taco Bueno locations in 27 states, according to its website. This acquisition marks an exciting step forward in our growth strategy, said Sun Holdings President and CEO Guillermo Perales in a statement on the company's website. Bar Louies signature martinis and distinctive brand make it a strong addition to our casual dining portfolio. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, Nations Restaurant News reported. Contributing: Fernando Cervantes Jr. Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & msnider@usatoday.com What's everyone talking about? Sign up for our trending newsletter to get the latest news of the day This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Bar Louie, in bankruptcy, joins portfolio with Burger King, Popeyes There seems to be a moment in the career of every pop star when she has become so famous that its hard not to write songs about being famous. Taylor Swift who is not so much a pop star as an epoch and a mega-culture unto herself has reached that point. Taylor Swift has written a song lamenting that she would trade the Cartier for someone to trust. Credit: Sydney Morning Herald The second song on Swifts newly-released album, Life of a Showgirl, has her crooning (to her also-famous footballer fiance Travis Kelce) about how that view of Portofino was on my mind when you called me at the Plaza Athenee (a famous five-star hotel in Paris) and lamenting that she would trade the Cartier for someone to trust. In the song, titled Elizabeth Taylor, Swift sings that oftentimes it doesnt feel so glamorous to be me and in the next breath she is reminiscing about dining in the best booth at Musso & Frank (a famous five-star fine-diner in Hollywood). She is too clever not to deliver such lines without her usual Swiftian irony, but Elizabeth Taylor brought to my mind a scene from the sitcom 30 Rock, where studio executive Jack Donaghy (played by Alec Baldwin) delivers a tough talk to his networks superstar, comedian Tracy Jordan. 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 George Miller has some advice for anyone concerned about the rise of AI and its impact on the creative industries, and filmmaking in particular. Be alert but not alarmed and be excited, he says. At 80, the filmmaker behind Babe, Happy Feet and the Mad Max universe has seen plenty of technological innovation, in both medicine, where he began his career, and cinema. And he knows that big shifts often trigger big anxieties. Ill never forget when I was a young medical student and Christiaan Barnard in South Africa did the first heart transplant, he says. I remember the debate, We should not be doing this. This is playing God. This is against human nature. And now there are probably three heart transplants going on [in his hometown of Sydney] today, and I know people who are walking around having active lives because of heart transplants. That happens at every turn, you know. And here we are again in this rapidly accelerating process. Miller has always embraced innovation. Without CGI, he couldnt have made Babe, with its talking pig. Without motion-capture, he couldnt have made Happy Feet, with its dancing penguins. Part of me has always been interested in tools, and I think that applies to just about everything we do, he says. And AI is the next tool and as much as people are threatened by or uneasy about it, its here to stay. Advertisement Miller is lending his enthusiasm and his expertise to Omni 1.0, a festival of AI filmmaking for which he is a judge. And its a mark of the staggering speed at which AI is advancing that the first iteration, Omni 0.5, was held only in April. Staging Omni every six months gives the festival a chance to stay relevant, but its still a stretch. The early entries that came in were significantly, noticeably inferior to the ones that came at the end of the two-month submission period, says Miller of the first festival. I just cant wait to see what has happened in six months. Omni was the brainchild of Aryeh Sternberg and Travis Rice, colleagues at the University of NSW. They had expected 50 or 60 entries, says Sternberg, whose career has largely been in the advertising and audience targeting space. And we got nearly 1000. OK, we said, this is something real. Submissions came from all around the world, in all shapes and sizes. We had a few 30-seconders, we had quite a few between three and 15 minutes. We had a good handful that were up to 30 minutes, and we had 15 feature-length entries. And we had one that was 4 hours long. Travis Rice (left) and Aryeh Sternberg, co-founders of the Omni AI Film Festival. Entries for round two closed on September 14, and the uptick in quality has been significant, Sternberg says, which is reflective of three factors. One is the technology itself, which continues to evolve tremendously fast. The second is its exposure and availability to filmmakers. And the third is its exposure and availability to people who didnt realise before that they had the ability to create content. Advertisement For all that AI has the potential to democratise production like nothing before it, it also poses a plethora of ethical, industrial and legal issues that the tech companies behind its development dont seem in any great hurry to resolve. But for Miller, thats no reason to turn your back on it. People should be concerned because of all the ethical issues, he says. But the thing people cant do is just opt out through fear because its a question of adapt or die. The emergence of Tilly Norwood, the so-called AI actress, does not represent an existential threat to real flesh and blood performers, in Millers view. He likens it to the fact Marlon Brando was scanned before his death so that his likeness would be available to anyone willing to pay for its use. Actor or AI asset? Marlon Brando was scanned before his death, but having his likeness is not the same as having him, insists Miller. You do not have Marlon Brando and all that comes with it. You wont, as a director, have that discourse with him. You wont get the wild, imaginative, often unique things that he does. Youll have an artefact that looks like Marlon Brando, but thats not why people still watch Marlon Brando movies. Miller is not alone in his view that AI is merely a tool, incapable of generating original compelling stories and characters with human imagination to drive it. But Sternberg is convinced that the situation will change. How long, do you think, until a genuine AI-generated feature film emerges that is good enough to compete with traditional movies? Advertisement Once a cat is trapped, the system sends an alert to the mobile of a registered pest control worker, who can then humanely destroy the animal removing the risk of animals being trapped and distressed for long periods of time. On French Island in Victorias Western Port, authorities have been engaged in a multi-year game of cat and mouse to try to catch the last of the estimated 20 to 30 feral cats on the island. Rod Brindley (left) and James Smith inspecting a smart trap at French Island. Credit: Jason South Timberscope feral animal management co-director Rod Brindley said the more than 350 traditional traps on the island had caught thousands of cats. Theyre wandering further now, you know, he said. The last ones going to be the hardest one to get; thats for sure. Traditional traps are a blunt instrument. Workers spend hours every day setting them, checking them, and releasing the bandicoots, potoroos and other native wildlife inadvertently caught in the war on cats. On the day this masthead visits, a determined echidna has been caught in a caged trap, and shows no willingness to leave before it is pried out into reluctant freedom. Smart traps have been installed at locations across Australia by Bush Heritage. The initiative is a game changer for the reduction of feral cats. Credit: Jason South Current versions of camera-enabled smart traps are labour-intensive, and require the manual sorting of thousands of images. With AI technology, target species can be identified almost instantly. With the assistance of a $1.7 million federal government grant, Bush Heritage Australia in partnership with tech company eVorta and Timberscope has launched a year-long trial to develop smart traps for cats. The technology has been trialled in seven locations with disparate habitats and challenges: in the Tiwi Islands, Christmas Island, French Island, Victorias Alpine regions, Bush Heritages own Naree Reserve in NSW, Yourka Reserve in Queensland, and Pullen Pullen Reserve on Maiawali Country in Queensland. Bush Heritage Australia senior ecologist Dr James Smith, who is leading the program, said following the success of the trial, about 100 smart traps would be rolled out nationally within the next 12 months. Measuring things in the environment is really hard to do because peoples time is limited, so with a camera that can sit there all year and record all day and all night, youll have a much better handle on whats there, Smith said. Threatened species commissioner Dr Fiona Fraser said more than 2200 plants and animals in Australia were threatened with extinction, with habitat loss, climate change and invasive species such as cats the biggest contributing factors. Cats have already led to the extinction, or are very closely associated with the extinction, of over 20 Australian mammal species, and as we speak, they continue to apply significant pressure to 200 Australian animal species which are already threatened with extinction, Fraser said. She said islands such as French Island were invaluable tools in the fight against extinctions because once invasive species like foxes and cats were eradicated, native populations could flourish. Loading If we are to protect our native animals from feral cats, we need to throw the kitchen sink at them, we need to have all the right rules and regulations and tools and technologies in place, because cats are highly adapted to the Australian landscape now. Theyre super-smart predators, and our native fauna have not evolved to be able to cope with that predation threat. Sue Jackman, Melbourne Water executive general manager of service delivery, said her organisation and Parks Victoria were investigating whether Felixers could be a suitable option for the island, and any use of the technology would have to be approved by Agriculture Victoria. Felixers use four sensors and an artificial intelligence camera to identify cats and foxes from non-target wildlife and humans, before spraying them with a dose of toxic gel called 1080. But the use of 1080 has been contentious because animals poisoned with the substance die slowly, and there is a risk of secondary poisoning to dogs and some birds that eat the carcasses of animals poisoned with 1080. Fraser said all available technologies should be deployed on French Island. The last two or three cats that remain from an eradication project are often the smartest, the wiliest, and theyre also used to the other tools and technologies which have been used to remove previous cats, she said. And so we need to have all the different options available to get rid of those last two or three cats. Platform engineer and eVorta founder Hamesh Shah, who developed the technology, said it could identify target species in less than one second, freeing up small organisations resources. In some of our bigger projects, you would need 10 or 15 people to go through all those images to get the answers as quickly as we do, he said. Advertisement Review Eating outNorth Sydney Sydneys only brick-and-mortar Mexican bakery specialises in hard-to-find treats Pancho Bakerys busy location means its easy to overlook, but its conchas, coyotas and molletes mean this one-of-a-kind shop deserves to be noticed. Lee Tran Lam October 12, 2025 Save 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 / 11 Pancho Bakerys oven trays began filling long before its physical store opened in July. Edwina Pickles 2 / 11 Chicken tamal. Edwina Pickles 3 / 11 Andrea Aviles and Fernando Castillejos. Edwina Pickles 4 / 11 Chocolate concha waffle with jam and strawberries. Edwina Pickles 5 / 11 Empanadas with salsa macha. Edwina Pickles 6 / 11 Champurrado (ancient hot chocolate). Edwina Pickles 7 / 11 Edwina Pickles 8 / 11 Coffee horchata, horchata and hibiscus ice tea. Edwina Pickles 9 / 11 Edwina Pickles 10 / 11 Edwina Pickles 11 / 11 Vanilla conchas. Edwina Pickles Previous Slide Next Slide Mexican$$$$ Interest in Pancho Bakery has zipped far beyond its North Sydney location. Customers have travelled more than an hour for its pastries (a chef from Brazil among them). Melbourne restaurants have enquired about its bread. People in Adelaide have such deep Pancho Bakery cravings, theyve requested its baked goods via mail. Obviously, we send them super fresh and we make sure they arrive the next day, says co-owner Andrea Aviles. So whats inspired the intense following? Well, this is Sydneys only brick-and-mortar Mexican bakery and it offers a hard-to-find specialty: conchas. Named after the Spanish word for shell, this pastry with deeply scored spirals emerged in 18th-century Mexico. Most likely, this brioche-style dough was first kneaded by migrants who arrived with European baking traditions. Chicken tamal. Edwina Pickles Advertisement Pancho Bakerys oven trays began filling long before its physical store opened in July. The business was launched in 2020: Aviles started it with Fernando Castillejos, who is also from Mexico City. Like many baking experiments that year, Pancho Bakery was pandemic-inspired. We were hoping to bring a little bit of joy and comfort to our people, Aviles says. For online customers, they made conchas (the most popular bread in Mexico, according to Aviles), palmiers (orejas or ears in Mexico) and tres leches cake (three-milk cake) all pastries they still create today. In 2020, I came across Pancho Bakerys conchas at Newtown restaurant Maiz. They were our first customers, says Aviles. Pancho Bakery still has a presence at Maiz: a cherry blossom concha filled with sakura (cherry blossom) cream was a recent offering, inspired by Japans melonpan bread (which has similar shell-like configurations). Pancho Bakery also sells goods at Latin grocer Mistura in Newtown and The Twelve Cafe in Camperdown, so opening far from the inner west and over the bridge made sense. Pancho Bakery sits in Greenwood Plaza, near storefronts for Typo and Kana Sushi. Andrea Aviles and Fernando Castillejos. Edwina Pickles Advertisement The pastry counter is vividly lined with concha flavours both traditional (vanilla) and experimental (Oreos). Ive crunched through coconut, Tim Tam and dulce de leche versions, but my favourites have been the pistachio-green pastry and the chocolate concha pressed into waffle form, served with apricot jam and sliced strawberries. Optimising conchas with coffee or hot chocolate is a Mexican pastime. At Pancho Bakery, pastries are especially good with the espresso: shots of Schibellos Colossus blend infused with the cinnamon-spiced rice milk known as horchata. The instant sugar rush it shares with the milky sweetness of Vietnamese coffee is exactly why I love it: it charges my brain with wonderfully uncomplicated joy. Ive never seen coffee-spiked horchata in Sydney before. Ditto champurrado, an ancient hot chocolate that predates European-style cocoa by thousands of years. At Pancho Bakery, its thickened with corn a foundational Mexican ingredient. We melt it in the chocolate because its how Aztecs used to have it, says Castillejos. The cinnamon-sweetened sips are highly sustaining. Consider this the original energy drink (but way more pleasant than chugging Red Bull). While Pancho Bakery offers some familiar items (empanadas with excellent salsa macha), I savour the new-to-me experiences most. Like coyotas, introduced here by co-owner Marcela Ramirez (this disc-shaped pastry is beloved in Mexicos north, where shes from). Advertisement Champurrado, an ancient hot chocolate. Edwina Pickles I order the candied guava version which evokes a jam tart or eating the best bit of an Iced VoVo. Pancho Bakery was also the first place I encountered molletes: here, theyre made in-house with teleras bread, layered with twice-cooked pinto beans and nicely smoked cheese. Currently, Pancho Bakery is celebrating Day of the Dead with an ofrenda (altar) featuring traditional pastries (pan de muerto) shaped like bones and flavoured with corn husk ash, cacao and other significant ingredients. Despite the altars marigolds and bright decorations, the busy Greenwood Plaza setting means its easy to overlook Pancho Bakery and this one-of-a-kind shop deserves to be noticed. I feel hopeful when a customer buys a pastry and delivers their verdict: Its good! they say, loudly, enthusiastically and accurately. Three other Mexican eateries to try Radio Taco At this new Mexican diner, staff wear uniforms declaring amo la birria (I love birria). They sure do! The viral taco is available in many variations (from loaded fries to ramen-bowl form), filled with your pick of beef, chicken or mushrooms. Churro-dipping is also popular here. 67 Abercrombie Street, Chippendale, radiotaco.com.au Mamis This budget-friendly taqueria also offers molletes (topped with pico de gallo salsa), ace fajita-cut mushroom tacos, buttery corn esquites showered with queso fresco cheese and a breakfast burrito thats suitable for late risers: its an all-day option. Need a caffeine hit? Grab a Mexican-style cola. 286 Bondi Road, Bondi, mamis-bondi.square.site Lottie Joe Valero used to be the only chef at a Potts Point taco stand. Hes upsized to Lottie, a Mexican restaurant with a grand rooftop location worth maximising on warm days. There are empanadas, tostadas and tres leches cake sweetened with apricot jelly, but dont overlook the pastel Azteca (its like a mini lasagne with poblano chilli sauce). Rooftop, 8 Baptist Street, Redfern, instagram.com/lottie.syd Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant cant pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide. Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up Its sleeting on the west coast, raining on the east. Im in New Zealands South Island in shoulder season, so this is not unexpected and Ive planned accordingly: hikes by day, tiny camper by night, no fixed itinerary. My vehicle of choice is the Nomad, a Toyota minivan hybrid cleverly converted for single occupancy by Kiwi company Mad Campers. A tiny camper allows for travel around New Zealands South Island without a fixed itinerary Credit: Pedro Merino / Stocksy United I opt for rain, heading east to picturesque Banks Peninsula. Ive enough time to tramp a section of the Summit Walkway before making my way to the small town of Duvauchelle for the night. Its foggy and cold on Mount Herbert, where I join the walk. I know there are spectacular views all around but all I can see is paddock grass and sheep dung. The wind whistles eerily across the hills, clouds scud across the sky and the mist whirls in the hollows of the valleys below. It barely seems possible that Christchurch is just an hours drive away. At Duvauchelle Im soon tucking into tomato and zucchini pasta with hot smoked salmon and bay vistas on the side. The Nomad has a fully equipped kitchen at the rear that can handle some creative cookery but the vans superpower is a lounge with a Perspex roof bubble that provides 190cm headroom, so I can stand up inside. The Nomad is also certified self-contained, a must for free camping. The next day (glorious sunshine, oh bliss) Im heading to Motueka, my base for a few days walking in Abel Tasman National Park. I begin the Abel Tasman Coast Track walk at Marahau, along with 30 raucous 12-year-olds on a school outing. While the full coastal trek takes five days to Wainui. Im tackling the section from Marahau to Akersten Bay, about a four-hour return trip plus an hour for lunch and siesta. The path winds through forest with regular views out to sea and down to the golden sand beaches of Tasman Bay. Liverpool City Council is under fire over its response to the discovery of asbestos in a south-west Sydney park near a school and its haphazard warning to residents, as investigators examine whether more sites have been contaminated. The council removed about 520 tonnes of soil from Pye Hill Reserve in Cecil Hills, supplied by landscaper company HiQ Cecil Park as part of the reserves refurbishment, after a resident reported the suspected asbestos. Asbestos signage and closure at Rickard Road in Chipping Norton. Credit: Janie Barrett The council closed off a portion of the reserve near a playground, school and houses on August 29 12 days after the resident raised concerns, more than a week after its asbestos management officer was alerted and three days after the presence of asbestos was confirmed on August 26. The reserve was deemed cleared of asbestos on October 3 and reopened. During a post-work inspection of the reserve on Friday, the council discovered two more areas containing asbestos. The areas have been fenced off with signage, and arrangements have been made to remove the material. Headquartered in Norwalk, Connecticut, Booking Holdings Inc. (BKNG) has grown into one of the worlds largest online travel service providers. With a market cap of $166.3 billion, the company manages a portfolio of prominent brands, including Booking.com, Priceline, Agoda, and Kayak, that collectively serve travelers in over 220 countries and territories. The booking company is set to report its third-quarter earnings after market close on Tuesday, Oct. 28. Ahead of the event, analysts expect BKNG to report a profit of $95.56 per share, up 13.9% from $83.89 per share in the year-ago quarter. The company has consistently surpassed Wall Streets EPS estimates in its last four quarterly reports. More News from Barchart For the current year, analysts expect Booking Holdings to report an EPS of $220.87, up 18.1% from $187.10 in fiscal 2024. www.barchart.com Booking Holdings' shares have gained 21% over the past 52 weeks, outperforming the S&P 500 Index's ($SPX) 16.3% gains and the Consumer Discretionary Select Sector SPDR Fund's (XLY) 18.6% returns over the same period. www.barchart.com Over the past year, Booking Holdings has outperformed the broader market, fueled a rebound in international travel, and experienced robust demand from high-income travellers. Ongoing technology investments and its diverse portfolio of leading travel brands have also contributed to sustained growth and reinforced its position as a market leader. On Oct. 9, BKNG shares climbed 1.2% after BTIG analyst Jake Fuller reiterated a Buy rating on Booking Holdings, setting a $6,250 price target. The consensus opinion on BKNG stock is reasonably bullish, with an overall Moderate Buy rating. Out of 38 analysts covering the stock, 22 advise a Strong Buy rating, two suggest a Moderate Buy rating, and 14 suggest a Hold. The average target price for BKNG is $6,081.41, indicating a potential upside of 17.1% from the current price levels. On the date of publication, Kritika Sarmah did not have (either directly or indirectly) positions in any of the securities mentioned in this article. All information and data in this article is solely for informational purposes. This article was originally published on Barchart.com 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 In this series, we explore all you need to know about Australias first treaty, between Victoria and its Indigenous peoples. See all 19 stories . In harbourside Wellington, New Zealands capital, the nations library is just metres from its parliament, its court of appeal and the citys biggest cathedral. Step inside the library and youll find a treasure box or, at least, a room inspired by a traditional Maori one, its curved walls clad in native timber from fallen rimu trees, its lights dimmed. The treasures on show are documents, including what historians call the most significant in the nation: Te Tiriti o Waitangi, or the Treaty of Waitangi. The display case faces towards the parliament. Its a deliberate design feature so that Te Tiriti watches the foundation of this modern nation state, says curator Stefanie Lash. The nine time-worn pages contain the signatures of more than 500 Maori chiefs and British naval officer William Hobson, who in 1840 entered into an agreement for the Crown that aimed to provide for British settlement while protecting Maori interests. This is a piece of parchment that is a symbol of hundreds of years of race relations and national history, says Lash. Time collapses on to the face of that parchment. Its an incredibly powerful object. The Treaty of Waitangi is displayed to the public in a room designed like a Maori treasure box, in the He Tohu exhibition in the National Library. Credit: Courtesy Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kawanatanga Every signature tells a story. In 1824, Kahe Te Rau-o-te-Rangi, one of at least 17 women who added their names, was on Kapiti Island, north of Wellington, when she learned an invading party was on its way. She lathered herself in shark fat, powdered in red ochre for insulation and with her child attached to a raft of dried reeds and tethered to her back swam the length of the island, to stay in its shadow, then dashed across the channel to sound the alarm. Years later, she was the fourth of a cohort of 40 leaders in one treaty signing, indicating her prestige. Still, the treaty was not honoured for more than a century. Its just one of many agreements the British made as their colonial parties encroached on lands that Indigenous nations presided over across the world. In Australia, the countrys first formal treaty between a state and First Nations people is about to be debated in the Victorian parliament, the culmination of nearly a decade of work to forge a framework. In NSW, meanwhile, a treaty commission is consulting Indigenous communities across the state about their desire for a treaty. There are unique aspects of Aboriginal culture yet also shared experiences with other Indigenous and cultural groups globally, says NSW Treaty commissioner Aden Ridgeway. For Aboriginal peoples in NSW, the central question is not abstract or academic, it is deeply personal: What is the benefit for us, and how will it meaningfully improve the lives of Aboriginal people? Indigenous treaties, whether historical or modern, are all born from unique circumstances. Yet, they can also offer precedents for others. How do Indigenous treaties work in other countries? Have they succeeded? And what are they still contending with? Advertisement Waitangi Treaty signatory Te Rangitopeora, songwriter and leader in 1863. Credit: Gottfried Lindauer, digitally treated What is an Indigenous treaty? In the 1600s and 1700s, Indigenous people in the Northeastern Woodlands, an area that today takes in New York and the Great Lakes stretching into Canada, exchanged items to represent agreements. The best-known were leather wampum belts, beaded with shells from the Atlantic coast. A wampum belt was given to actually prove or support the spoken words, Jonathan Lainey, curator of Indigenous cultures at McCord Steward Museum, tells us from Montreal. What you said could be many things, of course. So sometimes people were exchanging wampum belts to support their request, or to support their promise, or to support their engagement. The exchange became so common that in 1760, the British gave their own wampum belt, with a hatchet patterned on it, to make a peace agreement with the Wendat Nation, today located in Quebec City. The wampum belt with a hatchet on it that the British gave the Wendat Nation in Quebec in 1760. Credit: Courtesy of the McCord Stewart Museum Montreal The earliest agreements between the British Crown and people in the so-called New World were aimed at building relationships. Indigenous nations saw treaties as relational documents to find a way to let the newcomers into their ongoing and existing networks of reciprocity and exchange, says Harry Hobbs, an associate professor of constitutional law at UNSW and co-author of the book Treaty. Over time, however, treaties became more about dividing land and resources. In Australia, Britain didnt sign treaties. The occupation of land was justified under the doctrine of terra nullius, which the High Court found to be a legal fiction in the 1992 Mabo case, which recognised native title. The central idea is that the parties are coming to that moment of agreement because they see some mutual benefit and enter into this new relationship. Carwyn Jones, Te Wananga o Raukawa university Early treaties recognised some level of sovereignty in parties such that they could be treated with. In the United States, treaty-making stopped in 1871 because a law was passed such that Indigenous tribes were no longer considered sovereign nations, although different types of agreements were negotiated; and Canada also paused treaty-making in 1923. Today, these first waves of treaties are known as historic treaties. They were written much more at the level of principle rather than detail, UNSWs Hobbs says. That means [today] theres a huge amount of disagreement about, are they actually being interpreted correctly? Are they being enforced or not? Advertisement In the 1970s, a push for legal mechanisms to resolve Indigenous land claims gained traction across Canada, the US, New Zealand and Australia. This led to historic treaties being re-examined and the first modern treaties in Canada. In 2007, the UN adopted the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which includes the right to the recognition, observance and enforcement of treaties, agreements and other constructive arrangements concluded with states or their successors. The exact differences between these types of agreements can be difficult to pin down, says Sheryl Lightfoot, the vice-president of the United Nations Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, but the word treaty tends to invoke a certain status of historical self-determination or sovereignty of people. In any case, for these agreements to work, Lightfoot says, there needs to be mutual not imposed agreement between parties and there has to be understanding of who holds what jurisdiction over certain issues and where those responsibilities apply. They are, essentially, a modern agreement of governance responsibilities. Still, the old-fashioned acknowledgement of a new relationship remains key. Carwyn Jones, from the Maori laws and philosophy program at the Te Wananga o Raukawa university, says: The central idea is that the parties are coming to that moment of agreement because they see some mutual benefit and enter into this new relationship. Thats a really important foundation of treaties. The chief Te Rauparaha was one of more than 500 Maori leaders who signed the Treaty of Waitangi in the 1840s. Credit: Copy after Isaac Coates via Alamy How does the Treaty of Waitangi work? The Treaty of Waitangi had three main provisions: it allowed the British Crown to establish government, it preserved Maori people authority over their own affairs, and it gave them what is considered today to be citizenship but based on cultural equality. It was an agreement where there were different spheres of authority, and it would develop according to those three presumptions, says Dominic OSullivan, professor of political science at Charles Sturt University. But in 1877, Supreme Court Chief Justice James Prendergast infamously ruled that Waitangi was a simple nullity and unenforceable in domestic law. For over a century, New Zealand governments widely ignored obligations under the treaty. In fact, no one knew where the document was. Between the years of about 1865 and 1908, or thereabouts, its more or less unaccounted for, says National Archives manager Stefanie Lash. The treaty sheets, especially two made of sheepskin, have been gnawed by rodents. When people think of the treaty, they would think of that big Waitangi sheet that has clearly sustained some real damage. To me, the way that sheet looks and the damage its sustained speaks to the way that the treaty relationship has played out over the centuries. Advertisement From the late 1960s, a wave of Maori activism gained momentum, peaking during the Maori land march in the mid 70s when 5000 people joined a month-long trek to parliament across the North Island. It prompted the creation of the Waitangi Tribunal, which turned 50 last week, to investigate claims of Crown treaty breaches after 1975. Ten years later, the tribunals scope was expanded to include breaches back to 1840. Over time, its findings have contributed so much to our understanding of who we are, whats happened here, says Lash. Outcomes have included laws to establish Te Reo Maori as a national language (phrases such as Kia ora, or hello, are often part of everyday conversation) and the setting up of the public broadcast channel Maori Television Service in 2004. Many tribunal cases have involved the issue of sovereignty. There are two versions of the treaty: one, in English, says Maori people ceded to the Crown all the rights and powers of sovereignty yet the other, in Maori, uses the words Kawanatanga (meaning governance) and Tino Rangatiratanga (highest chieftainship), which Maori people have understood to mean they kept authority to manage their own affairs. (Only 39 of the more than 500 Maori chiefs signed the English-language version, leading some to believe they were at odds with it.) The tribunal as well as courts, elected officials and local communities continue to reconcile these differences in the texts today. What form does redress take? In the 1990s, the conservative National Party led a policy of engaging in negotiations with groups of Maori tribes (known as iwi or hapu) to deliver redress. A landmark settlement, the Sealord Deal, delivered $NZ170 million ($150 million), which enabled Maori people who make up some 17 per cent of the population to have a stake in the countrys biggest fishing company and control over about a third of the countrys fishing quota. (The Treaty of Waitangi states Maori people are granted full exclusive and undisturbed possession of their Lands and Estates Forests Fisheries.) Its a product of its time But it shouldnt stop us intelligently applying what we understand the core of the promise was. Andrew Little, fomer minister for Treaty of Waitangi negotiations So far, there have been more than 80 tribunal settlements totalling more than $NZ2.6 billion ($2.3 billion). Thats one of the critical things that Maori wanted, was restoration of the economic base, says Andrew Little, who was minister for Treaty of Waitangi negotiations in the Labour government from 2017 to 2023. So theres fishing, farming, a lot of forestry, and tourism is a big deal. Just north of Christchurch, youve got the whale-watch business there. Also on the central North Island, Rotorua, Maori tourism is a big deal. Still, restitutions are a work in progress. Says OSullivan: These things are significant, but people wouldnt necessarily call them wins, I dont think. They would call them part of the process of restoring rangatiratanga. Andrew Little, a former minister for Treaty of Waitangi negotiations: The treaty represents this incredible dream. Advertisement The treaty continues to spark political debate, too. In 2024, David Seymour, leader of the right-wing ACT Party (which is part of the coalition government) argued the treaty created an inequality in peoples rights and introduced legislation to redefine its principles and put them to a referendum. The bill led to the nations biggest protest, of 42,000 people, prompted 300,000 written responses (the most the government had ever had) and was defeated in April with just 11 votes in support. The vote, says Little, was another turning point that proved voters and political leaders expected the treaty to be respected. But he acknowledges the way the treaty is written is broad. Its a product of its time. It was written kind of at a high level, and we have to apply it in a world where we have become more technocratic, and government has become more complex and sophisticated. But it shouldnt stop us intelligently applying what we understand the core of the promise was, which was the rights and interests of Maori would be protected to enable this nation state of New Zealand to try to prosper. The treaty represents this incredible dream, and it wasnt delivered on for the first 150 years of its life. And we spent the last 30 years trying to catch up so we can deliver on it. Lakota leaders attending a treaty signing at Fort Laramie in the US state of Wyoming in 1868. Credit: Alexander Gardner How did the US and Canada do Indigenous treaties? When the American Revolutionary War raged between Britain and the 13 united colonies that had broken from its grasp, the fledgling Congress saw an opportunity for its forces to attack their enemy in whats now Detroit. But to do so, they needed both permission from the Delaware nation to cross their territory and assurances they wouldnt be attacked when they did. It was 1778, and Congress drew up its first written treaty with an Indigenous tribe. They also made an offer they never repeated: for the Delaware nation to join the union as a 14th state (the Congress never upheld the promise). These were negotiated in English to native people who didnt speak English. So they had to trust the interpreters. Robert Miller, federal Indian law expert and member of the Eastern Shawnee tribe As the US formed into a republic, it made 375 treaties with Indigenous tribes that are ratified today by the US Senate (there had also been about 100 treaties the British signed that the US didnt recognise). The treaties included ceding of land, recognition of reservations for tribes and acknowledgment of their self-governance. Many remain problematic. These were negotiated in English to native people who didnt speak English. So they had to trust the interpreters, Robert Miller, an expert in federal Indian law, tells us from Arizona State University. What did Indian people understand they were being promised before they would sell land? He points to a treaty that covered salmon fishing rights in the Pacific Northwest that was translated from English into Chinook Jargon (a mix of languages that helped with trade in the area) then into the tribal language. For others, bribes and signing under duress are factors thought to have been at play. Advertisement A Texas man has had his execution halted after an appeal court ruled that the evidence for shaken baby syndrome, which was used to convict him, was in serious dispute. The reprieve for Robert Roberson came just days before he was to become the first person in the United States to be executed over the syndrome, and reflects a raging global debate about a medical theory that has also led to the prosecution and imprisonment of hundreds of Australians. Robert Roberson before his scheduled execution in 2024. His death was postponed until October 2025. Credit: AP The launch on the weekend of this mastheads new, four-part investigative podcast, Diagnosing Murder, lays out the human cost in Australia, and examines the controversy through the eyes of scientists, doctors on both sides of the argument, lawyers, and families. Its prompted one of Australias most respected forensic doctors, the long-time head, now retired, of the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Professor Stephen Cordner, to break cover and speak publicly for the first time to urge Australia to hold an inquiry into the medical and legal issues involved. Australia would mandate price floors for critical minerals and pump money into new rare earth projects, according to leaked plans about a resources deal with the US that Prime Minister Anthony Albanese is trying to lock in before meeting President Donald Trump. Officials from the prime ministers department have started contacting Australian miners about how they could contribute to the new $1.2 billion critical minerals strategic reserve, according to the confidential departmental brief obtained by this masthead. Anthony Albanese and Donald Trump posing for a selfie in New York last month. On Saturday, Trump threatened to impose a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese goods and cancel a meeting with President Xi Jinping after China moved to dramatically expand export restrictions on critical minerals. In another sign of the importance of rare earths to the Washington trip, Ukraine has urged Australia to provide the war-torn nation with mining expertise to make Trumps minerals deal with Volodymyr Zelensky workable. One lesson Craig Lowndes has learnt in more than three decades as a racing car driver is that you never know whats just around the corner. The next major landmark he will pass has been a long time coming: when he lines up on Sunday in his 32nd Bathurst 1000 at Mt Panorama he will equal the number of appearances of his legendary mentor, the late, great Peter Brock. The iconic race will also represent a figurative fork in the road for Lowndes, as it will be his swansong appearance with Triple Eight his employers for the past 20 years after signing to launch a new venture with Team 18 next year. The 51-year-old could hardly have hoped for a more fitting venue to end his 458-race association with Triple Eight. Bari Weiss knows the price of courage, as well as its value. In 2020 it cost her a job she loved, as opinion writer and editor at The New York Times. That job wouldve been worth about $US150,000 ($229,000) a year. Now we can calculate a return on investment on courage: after leaving the Times, Weiss started publishing her own writing and that of some of the most interesting voices internationally on Substack. The newsletter evolved into an online news site called The Free Press, which has an estimated $US15 million annual turnover from subscriptions. Last week, Paramount acquired The Free Press for a reported $US150 million, one thousand times Weiss erstwhile salary. The 41-year-old will also become the new editor-in-chief of Paramount-owned CBS News. Thats the value of courage quantified. Brought in as a dissenting voice, Bari Weiss says she was bullied out of The New York Times for wrong think. Credit: AP If Weiss were a progressive and The New York Times was conservative, she would be celebrated as the heroine of a media Cinderella story, complete with wicked stepsisters. Brought in as a dissenting voice, she was then bullied out of the Times for wrong think. Co-workers demeaned her work and character on the company-wide Slack messaging service. The ideas she brought to the Times became unsayable. Weiss felt she had no option but to leave an increasingly censorious environment. From picking lentils out of the ashes on Substack, she has emerged as queen of the mainstream media realm. The wicked stepsisters at the Times cant contain their envy. Weiss is richer in social clout than in Emmys or Pulitzers, its new media column sneered. While newsroom leaders do not traditionally trumpet their personal beliefs, columnist Jessica Testa curdled, Ms Weiss has described herself as a left-leaning centrist, a radical centrist, a gay woman who is moderately pro-choice. Press Release from Business Wire: IonQ (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 COLLEGE PARK, Oct 10, 2025 (BSW) - IonQ (NYSE: IONQ), a leading quantum company, today announced its participation in GITEX Global 2025, one of the world's largest and most influential technology exhibitions, taking place October 13-17 at the Dubai World Trade Centre. IonQ executives and partners will highlight advancements in quantum computing, secure infrastructure, and commercial applications that are accelerating enterprise adoption of quantum technologies. Rima Alameddine, Chief Revenue Officer at IonQ, will speak on the panel "Cracking the Quantum Code: How to Build a Profitable Business in the Quantum Economy," on October 14, in Hall 10, AI stage. This session will convene global quantum leaders to discuss the path from breakthrough science to viable commercial success, including how to unlock investment, scale quantum solutions, and deliver near-term value across sectors. Gregoire Ribordy, Co-founder and CEO at ID Quantique, an IonQ company, will also speak on October 16 during the panel "Establishing Quantum-Safe Infrastructure and PaaS Models." During this session, Ribordy will outline the role of quantum-safe communication and platform integration in protecting global IT systems. Held annually in Dubai, GITEX brings together over 6,800 technology enterprises and 2,000 startups from across the globe. This year's event is anticipated to highlight significant updates across biotech, physical AI, quantum computing, semiconductors, and data centers. IonQ's presence at GITEX [Hall 1, H1-50] follows a year of rapid global momentum, including strategic partnerships across Europe and Asia with organizations like QuantumBasel, Einride, Emergence Quantum, and KISTI, along with the recent acquisitions of ID Quantique and Oxford Ionics. About IonQ IonQ, Inc. [NYSE: IONQ] is a leading quantum company delivering solutions to solve the world's most complex problems. IonQ's current generation quantum computers, IonQ Forte and IonQ Forte Enterprise, are the latest in a line of cutting-edge systems that have been helping customers and partners such as Amazon Web Services, AstraZeneca, and NVIDIA achieve 20x performance results. The company is accelerating its technology roadmap and intends to deliver the world's most powerful quantum computers with 2 million qubits by 2030 to accelerate innovation in drug discovery, materials science, financial modeling, logistics, cybersecurity, and defense. IonQ's advancements in quantum networking and sensing also position the company as a leader in building the quantum internet. The company's innovative technology and rapid growth were recognized in Fortune Future 50, Newsweek's 2025 Excellence Index 1000, Forbes' 2025 Most Successful Mid-Cap Companies list, and Built In's 2025 100 Best Midsize Places to Work in Washington DC and Seattle, respectively. Available through all major cloud providers, IonQ is making quantum computing more accessible and impactful than ever before. Learn more at IonQ.com. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251010342874/en/ Contact IonQ Media contact:[email protected] IonQ Investor Contact:[email protected] 2025 Business Wire, Inc.Disclaimer:This press release is not a document produced by AFP. AFP shall not bear responsibility for its content. In case you have any questions about this press release, please refer to the contact person/entity mentioned in the text of the press release. BP has won an arbitration case it brought against Venture Global, alleging that the LNG exporter had violated its long-term supply contract with the supermajor in order to make bigger profits on the spot market. The development delivers a blow to Venture Global, which has become one of the largest exporters of liquefied natural gas in the United States in a matter of years, not least because it tapped the spot market right when demand for gas was soaring. The problem that BP and half a dozen other energy companies had with that was that they had long-term contracts with Venture Global and were not getting any deliveries. To do that, Venture Global used a loophole that allowed it to delay the official commissioning of its liquefaction plant. This is what made it possible for the company to sell substantial amounts of LNG to spot market buyers and not deliver any volumes to its long-term clientsand funders of the facility. Related: Oil Tankers Jam Seas as Global Glut Builds BP, Shell, and Spains Repsol, along with two other European energy companies, were foundation buyers for the Calcasieu Pass facility, meaning they provided Venture Global with the money to build the place in Louisiana in exchange for a commitment from the company to supply them with certain volumes of LNG over a long-term period. Naturally, this did not sit well with BP, Shell, Eni, or Repsol, all of whom took the matter to arbitration court, accusing Venture Global of making billions from the above tactics while they had to source LNG from other suppliers. Interestingly, just two months ago, the court looking into all the arbitration cases against Venture Global found in favor of the latter against Shell. The court said Venture Global had not violated its long-term contract with the supermajor by delaying the start of cargo deliveries. By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: Oilprice Intelligence brings you the signals before they become front-page news. This is the same expert analysis read by veteran traders and political advisors. Get it free, twice a week, and you'll always know why the market is moving before everyone else. You get the geopolitical intelligence, the hidden inventory data, and the market whispers that move billions - and we'll send you $389 in premium energy intelligence, on us, just for subscribing. Join 400,000+ readers today. Get access immediately by clicking here. Nobel institute to probe possible leaks over peace prize Oslo, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 The Norwegian Nobel Institute will investigate whether leaks preceded Friday's award of the Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado because of suspicious betting. The odds of Machado winning the prize jumped from 3.75 percent to nearly 73 percent overnight Thursday to Friday on the predictive betting platform Polymarket. But no expert or media outlet had mentioned her being among the favourites for the prize, which was announced just a few hours later in Oslo. "You don't normally see this in the betting market. It's very suspicious," Robert Naess, a data specialist, was quoted as saying by Norwegian broadcaster NRK. "I don't think there have ever been any leaks in the entire history of the prize. I can't imagine that's the case," Norwegian Nobel Committee Chairman Jorgen Watne Frydnes told the NTB news agency. The institute will nevertheless investigate whether there could have been any leaks, its director, Kristian Berg Harpviken, said. "It's too early to be categorical about the existence of a leak. But it's something we will now look into," he told the Aftenposten newspaper. The Nobel Institute did not respond to AFP's requests for comment. An extremely limited number of people know in advance the name of the laureate chosen by the five members of the Nobel Committee. In the past, however, unexpected names of Nobel nominees have emerged in the Norwegian media, fuelling speculation about possible leaks, but this has not been the case in recent years. Machado, an opposition leader barred from running in Venezuela's 2024 presidential election, was awarded "for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy", the committee said. CORRECTED: Venezuela's Machado wins Nobel Peace Prize for 'civilian courage' Oslo, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded Friday to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who accepted the accolade in hiding in the country described by the Nobel jury as a "brutal" state. Machado, the democracy activist who challenged President Nicolas Maduro in last year's elections, has become a "unifying" figure in Venezuela, the jury said. She has refused to leave despite threats against her life. She dedicated her award to the Venezuelan people and to US President Donald Trump, who had coveted it himself, as Washington steps up its pressure on Maduro's government. "More than ever we count on President Trump," she wrote on X, citing his "decisive support of our cause". The 58-year-old told Nobel Institute director Kristian Berg Harpviken she was confident the opposition would secure a peaceful transition to democracy in Venezuela. "I'm sure that we will prevail," she said in the call, which was filmed and posted to X. Machado, in hiding for the past year, is "one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times", said Nobel Committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes. "Despite serious threats against her life, she has remained in the country, a choice that has inspired millions." Rumours have circulated on social networks that she is sheltering at the US embassy. Venezuelan opposition figurehead Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who lives in exile in Spain, hailed her win as "a well-deserved recognition of the long struggle of a woman and an entire people for freedom and democracy". - Rock star popularity - Machado was the opposition's presidential candidate for Venezuela's 2024 elections, but Maduro's government blocked her candidacy. She then backed the reluctant, little-known ex-diplomat Gonzalez Urrutia as her stand-in, accompanying him on rallies where she was welcomed like a rock star. Maduro claimed electoral victory, but numerous officials have recognised Gonzalez Urrutia as Venezuela's president-elect. An engineer by training, Caracas-born Machado entered politics in 2002 at the head of the association Sumate (Join us), pushing for a referendum to recall Maduro's mentor, the late socialist leader Hugo Chavez. The call led to treason accusations and death threats, prompting her to send her three children to live abroad. The committee said it was aware Machado might not be able to attend the Oslo ceremony on December 10. "We always hope to have the laureate with us in Oslo, but this is a serious security situation which needs to be handled first," Frydnes told reporters. The United States has in recent weeks carried out strikes off Venezuelan shores in international waters, claiming to act against drug smugglers. Washington accuses Maduro of leading a drug cartel, and does not recognise him as the country's legitimate leader. Machado and Gonzalez Urrutia have backed US military pressure on the regime as a "necessary measure" towards the "restoration of popular sovereignty". - Trump's hopes for prize - Once relatively democratic and prosperous, Venezuela is now a "brutal authoritarian state that is now suffering a humanitarian and economic crisis", Frydnes said. Systematic suppression of the opposition has included "election rigging, legal prosecution and imprisonment". Machado has been a "key, unifying figure in a political opposition that was once deeply divided", he said. She was not among those mentioned as possible laureates in the run-up to Friday's announcement. Since returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump has repeatedly insisted that he "deserves" the Nobel for his role in resolving numerous conflicts -- a claim observers say is broadly exaggerated. His office called the committee's decision a sign of "politics over peace". "President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives," White House Director of Communications Steven Cheung said on X. The committee had made its choice days before the recent announcement of a US-backed deal to end the fighting in Gaza. Regardless, Nobel experts had insisted Trump had no chance, noting that his "America First" policies run counter to the ideals of the Peace Prize as laid out by its founder Alfred Nobel. phy/po/cc/rlp/rmb Venezuela's Machado wins Nobel Peace Prize - and dedicates it to Trump Oslo, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded Friday to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who dedicated the award to the Venezuelan people -- and to US President Donald Trump. Machado, the democracy activist who fronted the campaign to end President Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian rule in last year's elections, has become a "unifying" figure in Venezuela, the jury said. She has refused to leave despite threats against her life. She dedicated her award to the "suffering people of Venezuela" and, in a surprise move, to Trump, who had long coveted it, citing his "decisive support of our cause". "More than ever we count on President Trump," she wrote on X, a month into a major US military buildup near Venezuela's shores and a campaign of deadly strikes on suspected drug boats. Machado, 58, told Nobel Institute director Kristian Berg Harpviken, who called her with news of her prize, she was confident of a peaceful transition to democracy in Venezuela. "I'm sure that we will prevail," she said in the call, which was filmed and posted to X. The trained engineer, in hiding for the past year, is "one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times", said Nobel Committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes. Venezuelan opposition figurehead, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who lives in exile in Spain, hailed her win as "a well-deserved recognition of the long struggle of a woman and an entire people for freedom and democracy". Within Venezuela, however, some people were openly critical of the award. "That woman has done nothing for peace in Venezuela," Pedro Gonzalez, a 68-year-old pensioner in Caracas grumbled. "All she has done is call for protests, call for riots, and all that sort of thing." Venezuela's ambassador to the United Nations joked that Machado was no more qualified to win a Peace Nobel than a Physics Nobel. But in Argentina, home to some of the millions of Venezuelans who have fled the country's economic meltdown under Maduro, there were celebrations. Maria Angel Navas, a 31-year-old Venezuelan lawyer and activist, called the prize an "endorsement and recognition of a struggle that has been ongoing for years." - Rock-star politician - Machado was the opposition's presidential candidate for Venezuela's 2024 elections, but Maduro's government blocked her candidacy. She then backed the reluctant, little-known ex-diplomat Gonzalez Urrutia as her stand-in, accompanying him on rallies where she was welcomed like a rock star. Maduro claimed electoral victory, but only a handful of countries recognised his win. Caracas-born Machado entered politics in 2002 at the head of the association Sumate (Join us), pushing for a referendum to recall Maduro's mentor, the late socialist leader Hugo Chavez. The call led to treason accusations and death threats, prompting her to send her three children to live abroad. The committee said it was aware Machado might not be able to attend the Oslo ceremony on December 10. The award comes a month into a US campaign of military pressure on Maduro's government, including strikes on boats in waters near Venezuela alleged to be carrying drugs. Washington accuses Maduro of leading a drug cartel, which he denies. Machado and Gonzalez Urrutia have backed the US pressure on his government as a "necessary measure" towards the "restoration of popular sovereignty". - Trump's dashed hopes - Machado was not among those mentioned as possible laureates in the run-up to Friday's announcement Yet, hours before the prize was awarded, the odds of her getting it soared from 3.75 to nearly 73 percent on the predictive betting platform Polymarket -- triggering an investigation by the Norwegian Nobel Institute into a possible leak. Once a relatively democratic and prosperous petro-state, Venezuela is now a "brutal authoritarian state that is now suffering a humanitarian and economic crisis", Frydnes said. Over 7 million Venezuelans -- around one-quarter of the population -- have fled the country's economic meltdown under Maduro. Since returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump has repeatedly insisted that he "deserves" the Nobel for his role in resolving numerous conflicts -- a claim observers say is broadly exaggerated. His office called the committee's decision a sign of "politics over peace". The committee had, however, made its choice days before the announcement of the deal he brokered to end the fighting in Gaza. phy/po-cb/phz North Korea reports holding military parade Seoul, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 North Korea has held a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of its ruling Workers' Party, with high-level foreign guests in attendance, state media said Saturday. "A grand military parade celebrating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea was held at Kim Il Sung Square on October 10," Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency said. It featured some of the isolated, nuclear-armed country's most powerful weapons, KCNA said, including an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The event came as North Korea's leader Kim Jong Un has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow's forces. Chinese Premier Li Qiang is leading Beijing's delegation to this week's 80th anniversary celebrations, while the deputy head of Russia's Security Council Dmitry Medvedev -- a key ally of President Vladimir Putin -- also joined in Pyongyang. Last month, Kim appeared alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin at an elaborate military parade in Beijing. The celebrations in Pyongyang come after Seoul said a meeting between North Korea and the United States "cannot be ruled out" on the sidelines of this year's APEC summit in South Korea. US President Donald Trump met Kim three times during his first term and once famously said the pair had fallen "in love", but he ultimately failed to secure a lasting agreement on North Korea's nuclear programme. Since then Pyongyang has repeatedly declared itself an "irreversible" nuclear state. In a joint statement from Moscow and Pyongyang released by KCNA earlier this week, Russia's ruling party said it "expressed firm support for the measures taken" by North Korea "to bolster up the country's defence capabilities". North Korea reports holding 'grand' military parade Seoul, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 North Korea held a "grand military parade" to mark 80 years under the ruling Workers' Party, showing off some of its most advanced weapons to a bevy of high-level foreign guests, state media reported Saturday. The event came as leader Kim Jong Un has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow's forces. Dmitry Medvedev -- deputy head of Russia's Security Council and a key ally of President Vladimir Putin -- was in Pyongyang for the 80th anniversary celebrations, while Chinese Premier Li Qiang led Beijing's delegation. "A grand military parade celebrating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea was held at Kim Il Sung Square on October 10," Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency said. It featured some of the isolated, nuclear-armed country's most advanced weapons, including its new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which KCNA described as its "most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system". The parade displayed "our country's inexhaustible defense technology potential and its astonishing pace of development that the world can no longer ignore", KCNA said. Among the featured weapons, long-range strategic cruise missiles, drone launch vehicles, and ground-to-air and ground-to-ground missiles paraded one after another, it added. The country's "invincible" army "has always added doubled strength to our Party's efforts to overcome difficulties and bring earlier a bright future", Kim said in a speech. Last month, Kim appeared alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin at an elaborate military parade in Beijing. The celebrations in Pyongyang come after Seoul said a meeting between North Korea and the United States "cannot be ruled out" on the sidelines of this year's APEC summit in South Korea. US President Donald Trump met Kim three times during his first term and once famously said the pair had fallen "in love", but he ultimately failed to secure a lasting agreement on North Korea's nuclear programme. Since then Pyongyang has repeatedly declared itself an "irreversible" nuclear state. In a joint statement from Moscow and Pyongyang released by KCNA earlier this week, Russia's ruling party said it "expressed firm support for the measures taken" by North Korea "to bolster up the country's defence capabilities". "It is crucial to see this parade not as an isolated event, but as the culmination of a deliberate, structural shift in regional geopolitics," Seong-Hyon Lee, a visiting scholar at the Harvard University Asia Center, told AFP. "It serves as a stark warning that Seoul's strengthened alliance with Washington will be met with a consolidated and powerful trilateral bloc on its doorstep." North Korea shows off 'most powerful' missile at military parade Seoul, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 North Korea showed off its "most powerful" intercontinental ballistic missile at a military parade attended by top officials from Russia and China, Pyongyang's state media reported Saturday. The event to mark 80 years under the ruling Workers' Party came as leader Kim Jong Un has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow's forces. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia's Security Council and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, attended the parade Friday alongside Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Vietnam's leader To Lam -- all seated near Kim, according to images released by the official Korean Central News Agency. The spectacle featured some of the country's most advanced weapons, including its new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which KCNA described as its "most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system". Thousands of people in colourful traditional dress filled the streets of the North Korean capital for the late-night event, the images showed, waving national flags and cheering as weapons rumbled down the main streets. Among the featured weapons, long-range strategic cruise missiles, drone launch vehicles, and ground-to-air and ground-to-ground missiles paraded one after another, KCNA added. The country's "invincible" army "has always added doubled strength to our Party's efforts to overcome difficulties and bring earlier a bright future", Kim said in a speech. He made an apparent nod to North Korean troops fighting alongside Moscow's forces in Russia's war against Ukraine. "The heroic fighting spirit displayed, and the victory achieved, by our revolutionary armed forces on the foreign battlefields for international justice ... demonstrated the ideological and spiritual perfection," he said, according to KCNA. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said. - Structural shift - The parade displayed the isolated, nuclear-armed country's "inexhaustible defense technology potential and its astonishing pace of development that the world can no longer ignore", KCNA said. The celebrations in Pyongyang come after Seoul said a meeting between North Korea and the United States "cannot be ruled out" on the sidelines of this year's APEC summit in South Korea. US President Donald Trump met Kim three times during his first term and once said the pair had fallen "in love", but he ultimately failed to secure a lasting agreement on North Korea's nuclear programme. Since then Pyongyang has repeatedly declared itself an "irreversible" nuclear state. Last month, Kim appeared alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin at an elaborate military parade in Beijing. In a joint statement from Moscow and Pyongyang released by KCNA earlier this week, Russia's ruling party said it "expressed firm support for the measures taken" by North Korea "to bolster up the country's defence capabilities". Seong-Hyon Lee, a visiting scholar at the Harvard University Asia Center, told AFP: "It is crucial to see this parade not as an isolated event, but as the culmination of a deliberate, structural shift in regional geopolitics." "It serves as a stark warning that Seoul's strengthened alliance with Washington will be met with a consolidated and powerful trilateral bloc on its doorstep." Madagascar army contingent calls on security forces to 'refuse orders' Antananarivo, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 A Madagascar army contingent near the capital on Saturday called on soldiers and security units to "join forces" and "refuse orders to shoot" at protesters, while several thousand marched in the capital. But security forces used stun grenades and tear gas to try to disperse the large crowds in Antananarivo, AFP reporters saw. The demonstrations on Saturday were the largest in several days in the youth-led movement that was sparked by anger over power and water shortages and evolved into a broader anti-government movement. "Let us join forces, military, gendarmes and police, and refuse to be paid to shoot our friends, our brothers and our sisters," soldiers of a large military base in Soanierana district, on the outskirts of Antananarivo, said in a video released Saturday morning. They called on soldiers at the airport to "prevent all aircraft from taking off" and those in other camps to "refuse orders to shoot your friends". "Close the gates and await our instructions," they said. "Do not obey orders from your superiors. Point your weapons at those who order you to fire on your comrades-in-arms, because they will not take care of our families if we die." It was unclear how many soldiers had joined the call on Saturday. In 2009, the military base in Soanierana led a mutiny in a popular uprising that brought the current president, Andry Rajoelina, to power. The newly appointed minister of the armed forces called on troops to "remain calm" in a press conference Saturday . "We call on our brothers who disagree with us to prioritise dialogue," Minister General Deramasinjaka Manantsoa Rakotoarivelo said. "The Malagasy army remains a mediator and constitutes the nation's last line of defence," he said. - Violent crackdown - Several people were injured on Thursday as security forces dispersed protesters with tear gas, rubber bullets and armoured vehicles. Videos of police violence went viral on social media, including a video of one man being left unconscious on the ground after he was chased and severely beaten by security forces, which AFP reporters also witnessed. The United Nations on Friday reacted by calling on authorities to "desist from unnecessary force and to uphold the rights to free association and peaceful assembly". The UN has said that at least 22 people were killed in the first days of the protests that started on 25 September at the call of a youth-led movement called "Gen Z". President Andry Rajoelina has disputed the toll, saying on Wednesday that there were "12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals". Rajoelina initially adopted a conciliatory tone and sacked his entire government in response to the protests. But he has since doubled down, appointing a military officer as prime minister on October 6 and picking the first members of his new cabinet from among the armed forces, public security and armed police, announcing that the country "no longer needs disturbances". Among the world's poorest countries, Madagascar has undergone frequent popular uprisings since independence in 1960, including mass protests in 2009 that forced then-president Marc Ravalomanana from power as the military installed Rajoelina for his first term. He won re-election in 2018 and again in 2023 in contested polls boycotted by the opposition. Bangladesh army says arrest warrants against officers affecting morale Dhaka, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 The Bangladesh army said Saturday that arrest warrants issued against senior officers had affected troop morale ahead of elections, but pledged to uphold justice amid rising tensions. On Wednesday, Bangladesh's International Crimes Tribunal (ICT) issued warrants for two dozen military officers over their alleged role in enforced disappearances during ousted premier Sheikh Hasina's rule. The tribunal is prosecuting former senior figures connected to Hasina's ousted government and her now-banned Awami League party. The warrants followed an inquiry commission's verification of more than 250 cases of disappearances, allegedly carried out by security forces, spanning the 15 years that Hasina's Awami League was in power. Major General Md Hakimuzzaman, the army's adjutant general, acknowledged the impact of the tribunal's move. "I can't deny that the arrest warrants against military officers are affecting us, but we will remain steadfast in ensuring justice," Hakimuzzaman told reporters in Dhaka. The interim government, led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus, has formed the commission to investigate cases of disappearances and has received around 1,700 complaints so far. Hakimuzzaman said 15 serving officers had been taken into custody following the warrants. "They are detached from their families and are being held in high-security detention with guards and other necessary arrangements," he said. The officers are expected to appear before the ICT on October 22. "There are certain issues that need to be resolved soon, and we will seek answers from the appropriate authority," Hakimuzzaman added. This marks the first time such a large number of senior-ranking former and serving security officials are likely to face civilian trials in Bangladesh. Possible Nobel leak was 'likely' espionage: report Oslo, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 A potential leak that preceded the announcement of the Nobel Peace Prize to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was "highly likely" the result of espionage, the Nobel Institute told Norwegian media on Saturday. The odds of Machado winning the prize jumped from 3.75 percent to nearly 73 percent overnight Thursday to Friday on the predictive betting platform Polymarket. But no expert or media outlet had mentioned her as being among the favourites for the prize, which was announced just a few hours later in Oslo. "Highly likely it's espionage," the director of the Nobel Institute and secretary of the Nobel committee, Kristian Berg Harpviken, told Norway's TV2 television. On Friday, the head of the Nobel committee said he didn't believe Machado's name had been leaked. "I don't think there have ever been any leaks in the entire history of the prize. I can't imagine that's the case," committee chairman Jorgen Watne Frydnes told the NTB news agency. Harpviken said the institute would nevertheless investigate and "where necessary, we will further tighten security". Espionage "could make it appear as if someone on the inside deliberately leaked information. That is not likely," he said. "It's too certain to say for sure, but it's no secret that the Nobel Institute is subject to espionage," he added. "It is obvious that the institution is of interest to actors who want to acquire information, both states and other organisations," he said, adding: "The motives can be both political and economic." "This has been going on for many decades." Harpviken did not respond to AFP's requests for comment. An extremely limited number of people know in advance the name of the laureate chosen by the five members of the Nobel Committee. In the past, unexpected names of Nobel nominees have emerged in the Norwegian media, fuelling speculation about possible leaks. But this has not been the case in recent years. Machado, an opposition leader barred from running in Venezuela's 2024 presidential election, was awarded "for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy", the committee said. The Nobel Peace Prize has long been coveted by US President Donald Trump, whose office called the committee's decision to award it to Machado instead of him a sign of "politics over peace". Madagascar soldiers join protestors as thousands gather in Antananarivo Antananarivo, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 Soldiers joined thousands of anti-government demonstrators in Madagascar on Saturday, calling on security forces to "refuse orders to shoot" and condemning police action to quell over two weeks of protests that have rocked the Indian Ocean island. The youth-led demonstration in the capital, Antananarivo, was one of the biggest since the protest movement erupted on September 25, sparked by anger over power and water shortages and led President Andry Rajoelina to sack his government. Police used stun grenades and tear gas to try to disperse the large crowds but left as soldiers from the CAPSAT contingent of administrative and technical officers rode into the city on army vehicles to join the demonstrators. They were welcomed with cheers from protesters who called out "Thank you!" to the uniformed troops, some waving Madagascar flags. The departure of the police and other security forces opened the way for the crowds to reach the symbolic Place du 13 Mai in front of Antananarivo's city hall. CAPSAT Colonel Michael Randrianirina told AFP at the site that police had shot at the soldiers as they passed barracks, hitting one and a journalist. "The journalist was hit in the buttock, while the soldier died," he said. "For all those who sent the gendarmes here, starting with the head of gendarmerie, the prime minister, the president... they must leave power," he told AFP. Local media reported that at least one person was killed on Saturday, with videos on social media showing a man in civilian clothes in a pool of blood on steps near the square. AFP reporters heard live shots being fired during the demonstration. - 'Refuse to shoot' - Before leaving their camp at Soanierana on the outskirts of the city, the soldiers called on the army and security units to "join forces" and "refuse orders to shoot" at protesters. "Let us join forces, military, gendarmes and police, and refuse to be paid to shoot our friends, our brothers and our sisters," Randrianirina said, surrounded by soldiers in uniform, in a video shared on social media. The military base in Soanierana in 2009 led a mutiny in a popular uprising that brought Rajoelina to power. It was unclear how many soldiers joined their call Saturday. Protesters welcomed their support against the police, who have been accused of brutality. "We don't have any weapons. We try to protect ourselves with stones from the tear gas they throw at us. And now, we really feel a sense of pride," said a 24-year-old, who gave her name only as Lucie. With frequent power and water cuts, life in Madagascar was "hell", said one young man on condition of anonymity. "And once you ask for what you want, they give you tear gas. There is no freedom," he told AFP. The newly appointed minister of the armed forces urged troops earlier Saturday to "remain calm". "We call on our brothers who disagree with us to prioritise dialogue," Minister General Deramasinjaka Manantsoa Rakotoarivelo told a news conference. - Violent crackdown - The United Nations has said that at least 22 people were killed in the first days of the protests that started on September 25 at the call of a youth-led movement called Gen Z. Rajoelina has disputed the toll, saying last week there were "12 confirmed deaths and all of these individuals were looters and vandals". Madagascar is one of the world's poorest countries and has undergone frequent popular uprisings since its independence from France in 1960. Mass protests in 2009 forced then-president Marc Ravalomanana from power as the military installed Rajoelina for his first term. He won re-election in 2018 and again in 2023 in contested polls. Faced with near daily protests since September 25, Rajoelina fired his government on September 30, appointing an army general as prime minister, but the move did nothing to quell the uprising. Security forces used force again on a demonstration on Thursday, leaving several people injured. Videos of the crackdown were widely shared on social media, including one of a man left unconscious on the ground after being chased and beaten by security forces. strs-jcb/br/phz We recently published 10 Big Names With Whopping Gains; 6 Jump All-Time Highs. Brookdale Senior Living Inc. (NYSE:BKD) is one of the best performers on Thursday. Brookdale Senior Living extended its winning streak to a third day on Thursday to hit a new all-time high as investors cheered a significant jump in its occupancy rate in the third quarter of the year, supported by the official appointment of a new chief executive officer (CEO). During the session, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. (NYSE:BKD) jumped to its highest price of $9.09 before paring gains to finish the day just up by 9.36 percent at $8.88 apiece. Snowflake (SNOW) Partners With Bloomreach to Power AI-Driven Personalization racorn/Shutterstock.com In an updated report, the company registered a weighted average consolidated occupancy rate of 81.8 percent in the third quarter of the year, marking an increase of 2.9 percent year-on-year and 1.7 percent from the second quarter. In September alone, consolidated occupancy rate surged to 82.5 percent from the 81.8 percent the month earlier, and from 79.2 percent in the same period last year. In other news, Brookdale Senior Living Inc. (NYSE:BKD) recently welcomed Nick Stengle as its new CEO and a member of the board, replacing Denise Warren, who served as interim CEO since April 2025. Prior to Brookdale Senior Living Inc. (NYSE:BKD), Stengle served as president and chief operating officer at Gentiva, a leading provider of hospice, palliative, and home health services with over 12,000 associates and approximately 550 locations across 38 states. While we acknowledge the potential of BKD as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Iraq criticises US sanctions on firm, militias over ties to Iran Baghdad, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 Iraq on Saturday criticised US sanctions on a company, individuals and armed groups Washington has said have ties with Iran-backed militias, calling the move "deeply regrettable". The US government on Thursday announced sanctions on the Al-Muhandis company, a firm with links to the Hashed al-Shaabi or the Popular Mobilisation Force (PMF), armed groups trained by Iran during the war against the Islamic State group. Washington also targeted individuals and other Iraqi militias the US Treasury said had aided Tehran in "evading US sanctions, smuggling weapons, and engaging in widespread corruption in Iraq". "The Government of Iraq views this unilateral action as deeply regrettable, as it contradicts the spirit of friendship and mutual respect that has long characterised the bilateral relationship between the two countries," Iraqi government spokesman Basim Alawadi said in a statement. "Taking such a decision without prior consultation or dialogue represents a negative precedent in the approach to relations between allied nations," he added. The US sanctions targeted Kataeb Hezbollah, a powerful Iraqi armed faction that has been listed as a terrorist organisation by the United States. Kataeb Hezbollah was integrated into Iraq's regular security forces like other armed groups, but the faction has developed a reputation for sometimes acting on its own. Other US sanctions announced on Thursday targeted Aqeel Muftin, the president of Iraq's National Olympic Committee, who was accused of managing an Iraqi commercial bank associated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force. 'Heavy clashes' at Afghanistan-Pakistan border: Taliban forces Kabul, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 Afghanistan's Taliban forces launched armed reprisals against Pakistani soldiers along the shared border on Saturday, accusing Islamabad of carrying out air strikes on its soil, senior officials from several provinces said Saturday. On Thursday, two explosions were heard in the Afghan capital and another in the southeast of the country. The following day, the Taliban-run defence ministry blamed the attacks on Pakistan, accusing its neighbor of violating its sovereignty. "In retaliation for air strikes carried out by the Pakistani army on Kabul," Taliban forces are engaged "in heavy clashes against Pakistani security forces in various areas" along the border, the Afghan military said in a statement. Later, Taliban defence ministry spokesman Enayat Khowarazm told AFP the "successful" operations had ended at midnight. But he warned: "If the opposing side violates Afghanistan's territory again, our armed forces are ready to defend their territory and will respond firmly." Islamabad did not confirm that it was behind Thursday's attacks, but called on Kabul "to stop harbouring the Pakistani Taliban (TTP) on its soil." The TTP, trained in combat in Afghanistan and claiming to share the same ideology as the Afghan Taliban, is accused by Islamabad of having killed hundreds of its soldiers since 2021. Taliban officials from Kunar, Nangarhar, Paktia, Khost, and Helmand provinces -- all located on the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan -- confirmed that clashes were ongoing. "This evening, Taliban forces began using weapons. We fired first light and then heavy artillery at four points along the border," a senior official in Pakistan's Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province, bordering Afghanistan, told AFP. "Pakistani forces responded with heavy fire and shot down three Afghan quadcopters suspected of carrying explosives. Intense fighting continues, but so far, no casualties have been reported," he continued. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called on his country's neighbours "to exercise restraint". - Uptick in violence - In recent months, TTP militants have intensified their campaign of violence against Pakistani security forces in the mountainous areas bordering Afghanistan. Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of failing to expel militants who use Afghan territory to launch attacks on Pakistan, an accusation denied by authorities in Kabul. The TTP and its affiliates are behind most of the violence -- largely directed at security forces. Earlier this year, a UN report said the TTP "receive substantial logistical and operational support from the de facto authorities", referring to the Taliban government in Kabul. Pakistani Defence Minister Khawaja Muhammad Asif told parliament on Thursday that several efforts to convince the Afghan Taliban to stop backing the TTP had failed. "We will not tolerate this any longer," Asif said. "United, we must respond to those facilitating them, whether the hideouts are on our soil or Afghan soil." Earlier Saturday, the TTP claimed responsibility for deadly attacks in several districts in northwest Pakistan that killed 20 security officials and three civilians. The considered and meticulous ways in which it is meted out is breathtaking the subjugation, humiliation and disrespect that the Palestinian people are expected to withstand are nothing we would ever accept for ourselves, and there is no doubt that the seeds of what has been done in Gaza are being planted in the West Bank as we speak, and have been for many, many years. Allow Google Search To use the search feature, we need your consent to load Google Custom Search, which may use cookies or similar technologies. Please click 'Allow and Continue' below to enable search. See our privacy policy for more information. Allow and Continue (Reuters) -Several cargoes of BHP iron ore were put up for sale in China on Thursday and at least one was sold to a local trader, potentially defusing concerns in Australia that Beijing had imposed a ban on iron ore sales from the world's biggest miner. BHP sold a 170,000-metric-ton cargo to a Chinese trader on Thursday, the first day of trading after China's week-long national holiday, according to two traders with direct knowledge of the matter. The cargo was paid for in dollars, they said. The same day, the Shanghai branch of China Mineral Resources Group (CMRG) - set up in 2022 to centralise iron ore purchasing and win better terms from miners - offered eight cargoes of BHP iron ore totaling 1.14 million tons to steelmakers, according to an offer sheet reviewed by Reuters. AUSTRALIAN FEARS OF CHINESE BAN ON ITS IRON EXPORTS Bloomberg reported last month that CMRG had told major steelmakers and traders to temporarily halt purchases of all new BHP cargoes, escalating an earlier pause on purchases of BHP's Jimblebar fines product, a type of iron ore, during a standoff in negotiations over new term contracts. That news triggered fears in Canberra that China was preparing a ban on Australia's most profitable export, much as it did with coal and other commodities in 2020. While CMRG told steelmakers last month during negotiations with BHP not to buy BHP's Jimblebar fines, purchases of other grades of iron ore can be made with permission from CMRG, two other sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. TRADE IN BHP'S JIMBLEBAR FINES STILL FROZEN None of the cargoes sold or offered on Thursday were Jimblebar fines, whose trade remains frozen according to all four sources. Reuters could not determine when CMRG bought its cargoes from BHP or how many cargoes have been sold. CMRG did not respond to Reuters' emailed request for comment. A BHP spokesperson said that BHP does not comment on commercial negotiations. Jimblebar is a small but liquid product, with roughly 40 million tons a year produced, for which a limited shortage would be unlikely to trigger a rally in iron ore prices, the two trader sources said. Rio Tinto's flagship Pilbara fines product could also act as a substitute, they added. Last week, BHP CEO Mike Henry doused concerns about CMRG's decision in talks with Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers, according to local media, saying the move was part of commercial negotiations. The Treasurer's office did not respond to a request for comment. (Reporting by Reuters staff in Beijing and Melbourne; Editing by Joe Bavier) Describing a conversation she had with officers while being interviewed about the case, she added: An officer asked Can I just check that you went to Taiwan, and is this the name of the hotel you stayed at? Can you tell us why it would be of interest to somebody to know that you were in Taiwan in that hotel? In Israels ensuing offensive, more than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza and nearly 170,000 wounded, according to Gazas Hamas-run Health Ministry, which does not differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children. "That work will go on. Because we know Israel is capable of breaking the ceasefire at any time, as it has done on every previous occasion. And we know this ceasefire based on (US President Donald) Trump's plan does nothing to address the root causes of Israeli occupation and colonisation of Palestine, and its system of apartheid against Palestinians. It also does nothing to hold those responsible for genocide to account. The potentially historic breakthrough was soon followed by the sight of a huge column of people filing on foot north along the coastal road overlooking sandy beaches towards Gaza City, the enclave's biggest urban area, which had been under attack just days ago in one of Israel's biggest offensives of the war. Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman No one does spectacle like Empire of the Sun. On Friday night, the duo didnt just take the Miller Lite stage during weekend two of the Austin City Limits Music Festival they transcended it. The set unfolded like a glittering fever dream: lasers sliced through the Zilker air, sequins caught every stray beam. The crowd was so dense it melted into one giant organism, stretching toward the larger stage where Hozier would close the night. Advertisement Article continues below this ad By the time the duo launched into We Are the People, Luke Steele had already cycled through more looks than a runway model at warp speed a red kimono for battle, a silver-sequined tunic that turned him into a human disco ball, and finally, a white robe that looked heaven-sent. Dancers orbited around him like planets, refracting light across the crowd until everything shimmered. A large crowd watches Empire of the Sun at ACL Fest in Zilker Park on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman This is the best place to be in the world right now, Steele told the audience midset. Lets cook this place up with some love. And he meant it. 'We're in a time of battle' Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Suns ACL performance felt less like a concert and more like a spiritual transmission. The Australian act has always thrived on visual theater, but something about this stop the final night of their North American tour felt especially charged. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Maybe it was the Texas heat meeting Steeles high-voltage aura. Maybe it was just the crowd, moving to Alive. Either way, the performance hit like a psychedelic sermon on the power of color, rhythm and costume. Backstage, Steele told us the red kimono he wore handpicked from a Seattle collector who sources them in Kyoto was more than just flair. Luke Steele from Empire of the Sun posed for a photo backstage at Austin City Limits Music Festival on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Dave Creaney/Special to American-Statesman Red has been the color for this tour, he said. Its a battle color. Fire. Were in a time of battle physical and spiritual. So the red is coming out, and were taking on the dark side. Advertisement Article continues below this ad His backstage look combined jewelry from Santa Fe, Romania and Egypt; a '70s-inspired headpiece by a London designer; and makeup done by a queen from way back, he said with a self-referential grin. Everythings inspiration, he added. Like Paul McCartney said, its all there you just reach out and grab what you like. Celestial soundtrack from Empire of the Sun Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman The setlist leaned heavily on the crowd-pleasers. Half Mast sent the audience into a singalong and for some, a flashback to Mac Millers The Spins while High and Low and Cherry Blossom turned Zilker Park into one pulsating dance floor. Even in the chaos elbows, spilled drinks and the occasional panicked shuffle the crowd remained in motion. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Empire of the Sun performs at the Austin City Limits Music Festival in Zilker Park in Austin, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. Mikala Compton/Austin American-Statesman Now dont stop moving, dont let them win, Steele sang near the end, part mantra, part command. Somewhere in the crowd, a guy covered in neon lights danced like his life depended on it. Maybe he understood what Empire of the Sun was trying to say all along: that even in the crush of humanity, theres still space to shine. When Walking on a Dream hit and Steele emerged in yet another kimono white this time the crowd was hypnotized. Even the five-year-olds on their parents shoulders were dancing, glowing in the reflection of Empire of the Suns celestial light show. Advertisement Article continues below this ad Oil and gas explorer Civitas Resources is involved in discussions over a potential merger with Permian Basin peer SM Energy, reported Bloomberg, citing people with knowledge of the matter. According to the report, the talks envision a merger of equals that would not include a takeover premium. The sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the discussions are not public, said no agreement has been reached and that other parties are also pursuing Civitas. Representatives for both companies refused to comment, reported the media outlet. If completed, the merged business would have an enterprise value of at least $14bn, encompassing debt, making it among the largest oil and gas transactions so far this year, as per data compiled by Bloomberg. The Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico, considered the most productive oilfield in the US, has experienced a wave of consolidation in recent years as smaller producers seek greater scale and larger operators pursue footholds in the region. Recently, Crescent Energy entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Vital Energy for $3.1bn. Civitas and SM are mid-size, publicly traded producers in the basin. As per an August investor presentation, Civitas holds around 140,000 net acres in the Permian Basin and has a market capitalisation of roughly $3.2bn. SMs market capitalisation is around $2.9bn, with roughly 109,000 acres concentrated in the Midland Basin. Bloombergs figures put SMs enterprise value at approximately $5.5bn and Civitas at roughly $8.5bn, encompassing debt. Both companies also hold assets outside the Permian. SM has positions in the Eagle Ford shale and Utahs Uinta Basin, while Civitas has acreage in the Denver-Julesburg Basin in Colorado. In August, Wouter van Kempen succeeded Chris Doyle as interim chief executive of Civitas. "Civitas Resources in talks over possible merger with SM Energy" was originally created and published by Offshore Technology, a GlobalData owned brand. China's emerging AI regulation fosters open, safe AI future: researchers Xinhua) 10:24, October 11, 2025 SHANGHAI, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China is developing an AI regulatory framework designed to promote openness and innovation while containing potential risks, according to the research published Friday in the journal Science. A team led by researchers from Tongji University Law School concluded that China's six-pillar system has been notably effective in encouraging open-source innovation while keeping safety risks under control. Among its features are open-source and research exemptions, meaning that releasing a model on platforms such as GitHub or Hugging Face, or using it solely for academic purposes rather than public service, does not require regulatory filing. The third pillar comes from the legal efficiency due to China's establishment of Internet Courts that handle disputes involving frontier technologies, according to the paper. China is also exploring tighter AI oversight, including stricter governance of AI use in research to bolster integrity, and a mandatory ethical-review obligation for certain high-risk AI activities. The sixth pillar is a mechanism that allows companies to introduce AI products gradually, moving them from closed testing environments to real-world use, as seen in the road-testing procedures for driverless cars before their full market launch. China's AI governance framework and the principles it embeds can offer Chinese wisdom and a ready-made blueprint for the global governance of artificial intelligence, said Zhu Yue, an assistant professor at Tongji University and the paper's first and co-corresponding author. China is actively promoting global AI governance. In 2023, China launched the Global AI Governance Initiative at the 78th UN General Assembly to enhance international cooperation on AI capacity building. "We advocate for an open future of AI...because in-depth global cooperation, for which openness has always and will always be necessary, is a prerequisite for the urgently needed national institutions and international governance to enforce standards preventing recklessness and misuse by rapidly progressing frontier AI," according to the researchers. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Coinbase and Mastercard are reportedly in advanced talks to acquire BVNK, a U.K.-based fintech firm building stablecoin infrastructure. If completed, the sale could value BVNK between $1.5 billion and $2.5 billion, according to an initial report from Fortune, citing six sources familiar with the matter. The talks remain ongoing, and neither Coinbase nor Mastercard has reached a final agreement, per Fortune, though Coinbase reportedly has the inside track. At this scale, the prospects for BVNK outstrips Stripes $1.1 billion acquisition of stablecoin startup Bridge, first reported in October last year, which at the time was the largest in the crypto industry. The deal was completed in February this year. We dont comment on rumors or speculation, a Coinbase spokesperson said, responding to Decrypts inquiry on the matter. Mastercard and BVNK have also been approached for comment. Founded four years ago, BVNK helps businesses integrate stablecoins into payments, cross-border transfers, and treasury operations. It raised $50 million in December last year at a $750 million valuation in a Series B round. BVNK also received concurrent investments from Visa in May, though the deals size was not disclosed at the time. Stablecoins Could Lure $1 Trillion in Deposits Away From Banks: Analysts Still early Industry observers say the latest wave of massive corporate interest in stablecoins reflects a broader shift in how payment networks and crypto firms look at digital money. Prospects of acquiring BVNK signal how major firms view stablecoins as critical payment infrastructure, though motivations diverge sharply, Ryan Yoon, senior analyst at Tiger Research, told Decrypt. For Coinbase, it could represent vertical integration to own both issuance (USDC via Circle) and enterprise distribution, capturing more value chain, while for Mastercard, it could be defensive positioning against disintermediation if stablecoin settlement bypasses card networks, plus optionality to white-label crypto services without custody burden, Yoon said. Both firms vying for BVNK acknowledge programmable dollars on public rails could erode interchange economics, such that these moves could be seen as a rational tactic to secure an early positioning, he explained. Capital allocation suggests the infrastructure thesis has crossed a threshold where strategic inaction carries more risk than timing uncertainty, he added. Solana DeFi Exchange Jupiter to Launch Native Stablecoin Stablecoins are becoming and will further become commonplace, Chris Miglino, co-founder and president of crypto venture capital firm DNA Fund, told Decrypt. [In] the same way that DATs have infiltrated Wall Street, stables will replace money transfer. News that the Bank of England could allow certain exemptions for its planned stablecoin holding cap has been greeted with muted enthusiasm from within the UK crypto industry, with stakeholders calling for the proposed limits to be "recalibrated." The potential waiver would enable crypto-exchanges and other large entities to exceed the mooted 10 million ($13.3 million) limit for businesses. This holding limit drew criticism from the UK crypto industry in September, when it emerged that the central bank intended to go ahead with a previously discussed cap, which would also prohibit individuals from holding more 10,000 or 20,000 ($13,300 or $26,600) in stablecoins. According to one source cited by Bloomberg, the Bank of England has now modified its approach, which it originally justified in terms of protecting financial stability. People familiar with the matter have also said that the Bank of England will include stablecoins in the UKs Digital Securities Sandbox, which was launched by the UK Treasury in late 2023 as a means of testing new payment technologies. Bank of England's Stablecoin Cap Proposal Criticized as 'Restrictive' "Cumbersome" retail cap While this could be taken as a sign that the central banks approach to stablecoins and crypto is liberalising, for some industry commentators the potential exemption doesnt go far enough. While there are indications in the press that this policy may be under review, we believe it remains critically important that these limits are recalibrated, said Simon Jennings, the Executive Director of the UK Cryptoasset Business Council, speaking to Decrypt. Jennings explained that the cap on retail users, which is not in line for an exemption, runs the risk of being cumbersome, costly and potentially unworkable in practice. The impracticality of a cap is something also highlighted by Fireblocks' senior director for financial markets Varun Paul, who previously served as the Bank of Englands head of fintech. Because people can have many different wallets, it becomes very difficult to monitor their total holdings, he told Decrypt. Putting that responsibility onto stablecoin issuers is implausible, because stablecoins are bearer assets and the issuer does not (and should not) know the identities of all holders at any given time. Similarly, Paul noted that putting the burden of enforcement on individual wallet providers is also impractical, because it would require sharing data with other providers, something which may violate privacy rights. An active-duty airman was found dead Wednesday at F.E. Warren Air Force Base in Wyoming, the fourth airman associated with the base to die since mid-July. The airman, assigned to the 90th Missile Wing, was not identified and an investigation is underway, according to local radio station KGAB, citing a base news release. The base said there is no known threat to the community. It is with deep sadness that we face the loss of a member of the Mighty Ninety, and on behalf of our entire team, I offer my deepest condolences to the family and friends of the lost individual, said the wings commander, Col. Terrance Holmes. The death marks the fourth incident involving personnel from the base since mid-July. An airman from F.E. Warren was found dead on Sept. 30 and linked to the shooting death of a woman at Fort Collins, Colo., in what was deemed a murder-suicide. In August, airman Jadan Orr was charged with involuntary manslaughter after firing a rifle through a wall at an off-base apartment and killing another service member. Orr pleaded not guilty in September. On July 20, an airman was killed on base in an incident originally thought to be potentially due to a Sig Sauer M18 discharge. The death prompted Air Force Global Strike Command to pause use of the pistol and later implement service-wide safety inspections, but in August another airman was arrested in connection with the death. A squad of Iraqi soldiers clears a building during an exercise at the Besmaya Training Center. Housed at a former Republican Guard complex, the center includes 26 weapons ranges, M1A1 tank training and a bomb disposal school. (Michael Gisick/Stars and Stripes) BESMAYA TRAINING CENTER, Iraq In many ways, this collection of dusty ranges and well-tended barracks south of Baghdad represents the culmination of the U.S. militarys years-long effort to train the Iraqi army. Roughly 75 percent of Iraqi units have been through training here, much of which is now led by a cadre of 800 Iraqi soldiers. Specialized instruction includes an M1A1 tank course and a bomb disposal school. As the U.S. military contemplates its exit from Iraq, Baghdad-based officers involved in the training effort say the Iraqis are nearly ready to take over the $24 million a year program in Besmaya and others like it. The Iraqis, however, disagree. If the Americans leave, the training here will fall apart or become fake training, said Iraqi Army Col. Abbas Fadhil Sahib, the commander at Besmaya. We will have to put a sign on the gate that says, We are very sorry to accept you for training. Iraqi Army Col. Abbas Fadhil Sahib has won wide praise from U.S. military advisers since taking command of Iraq's premier military training center in 2006. His relations with his own superiors, however, have been more problematic. (Michael Gisick/Stars and Stripes) For Abbas, an outspoken officer who has commanded here since the center opened in 2006, the problems boil down to a reluctance by old-style minds at higher echelons of the Iraqi military to embrace the American-style training, which focuses on realism and repetition as opposed to the lecture-heavy model traditionally conducted in Iraq. Even persuading the Iraqi Ministry of Defense to release ammunition to units coming to train at Besmaya has been a continual problem requiring U.S. intervention, Iraqi and U.S. officers say. To some of their hierarchy, training is not seen as being as important as maintaining a stockpile, said U.S. Army Col. Hardee Green, chief of army training for the U.S. advisory command in Baghdad. Well call the MOD and get them to release the ammunition, but I understand Abbas concern. Thats frustrating for him. Arif Akil Salma, an Iraqi Army trainer, leads a course in building clearance at the Besmaya Training Center. Much of the training at the American-funded center is led by an Iraqi cadre of some 800 soldiers. Sixty civilian contractors and 21 American military advisers also work at the center. (Michael Gisick/Stars and Stripes) Beyond the ingrained attitudes of officers who came of age during a decade of sanctions that limited Iraqs ability to repair or replace its military hardware, questions remain about what kind of training the new Iraqi army can afford once the Americans stop paying the bills. A single one of the computer-operated pop-up targets at Besmayas small arms ranges, which are maintained by a group of 60 U.S. contractors, costs about $30,000. Besmaya has the potential to be the centerpiece of Iraqi ground training, said Lt. Col. Douglas Boltuc, who leads the U.S. militarys 21-person advisory team at the center. But Iraqis have to come to an understanding of what theyre going to invest in their national defense. Iraqi Army Col. Abbas Fadhil Sahib has tea with U.S. Army Lt. Col. Douglas Boltuc. Abbas has won wide praise from U.S. military advisers since taking command of Iraq's premier military training center in 2006. His relations with his own superiors, however, have been more problematic. (Michael Gisick/Stars and Stripes) What Iraqi officers describe as a total lack of logistical support from their own government and a lack of high-level interest has fed the view that, without continued U.S. help, the training will collapse. It has also opened a gulf between the views of the American advisers, who believe the Iraqis are nearly self-sufficient, and the Iraqis themselves, who say theyre not even close. U.S. Army Capt. Robin Wright, one of two American advisers at Besmayas bomb disposal school, said that if he and his partner left today, Theyd be fine. But Iraqi Lt. Col. Mwafaq Nasser, the schools deputy commander, has a different take. Its only two guys, but they give us huge support, he said. When they leave, were afraid we wont get any support from the MOD. When we ask the MOD for anything now, they dont help us. With nearly two years remaining until the U.S. is scheduled to leave Iraq completely, senior American military advisers play down those concerns. The notoriously bad Iraqi logistical system has only recently become a focus, they say, and the fact that Iraqi commanders are taking entire units out of sector to send them to training shows that the Iraqis have bought into the concept. Besides, American officials say, the goal is not to leave behind a replica of American military training but a sustainable model that works for Iraq. Mundir Mohammed, a bomb disposal specialist from the 11th Iraqi Army Division, smiles from within an armored suit during training at the Besmaya bomb disposal school, which includes Iraqs only facility to repair damaged bomb-disposal robots. Mohammed says his mother wishes he had a different job. (Michael Gisick/Stars and Stripes) Were aiming for Iraqi-good-enough, Green said. I think were pretty close. For Abbas, who claims to have been the first officer to join the new Iraqi army following the U.S. invasion, the future also remains uncertain. Repeatedly passed over for promotion, Abbas produced a sheaf of orders, one directly from the minister of defense, relieving him of his command in Besmaya. The orders were rescinded in November, he said, after what he described as something like an act of God. But while American advisers say Abbas deserves much of the credit for the successes at Besmaya, he has fallen far from the graces of his own superiors, reflecting widespread division within the Iraqi military. He has a lot of enemies, said Abbas logistics officer, Lt. Col. Harith Hammoudi. He tries to fix hard problems so the higher people began to, let us say, hate him. Abbas himself, who blames his estrangement on his refusal to pay bribes, puts it more bluntly. This stupid cow government breaks everything, he said. Brian K. Ditch, 45, pleaded guilty Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in federal court to abusing and mistreating his uncle, a disabled veteran, and then hiding his death for years to steal his government benefits. (Dent County Sheriffs Office) A Missouri man pleaded guilty Friday in federal court to abusing and mistreating his uncle, a disabled veteran, and then hiding his death for years to steal his government benefits. Brian K. Ditch, 45, pleaded guilty to transferring more than $20,000 of Social Security and Veterans Affairs benefit payments from his uncles bank accounts to his own and for possessing a firearm while a felon, according to records from U.S. District Court in the Eastern District of Missouri. District Judge Zachary M. Bluestone accepted the agreement and scheduled sentencing for Jan. 8. Since 2008, Ditch was solely responsible for caring for his uncle, Thomas Clubb, in the town of Salem. However, Ditch would lock his uncle in the garage for more than 24 hours at a time, beating him, forcing him to sit in his own waste and denying his access to food or water. Clubb, a quadriplegic, had served in the Army and received $9,559 each month from the Department of Veterans Affairs, as well as benefits from Social Security, according to court records. He is believed to have died in 2019. Ditch told relatives that Clubb had been moved into a nursing home, according to court records. Over the years, the VA deposited roughly $1.6 million into Clubbs bank account, according to court records. Meanwhile, the Social Security Administration deposited more than $235,000. Ditch used the money to buy exotic reptiles, fund lavish vacations and enrich himself, the indictment says. Salem police officers found the uncles partially frozen body in a trash can in March, as well as three shotguns, according to court records. The U. S. Capitol on Tuesday, July 1, 2025 in Washington. (Eric Kayne/Stars and Stripes) MANCHESTER, Conn. (Tribune News Service) The U.S. Senate has approved $5 billion to support advance procurement for new Columbia-class boomer submarines that can launch ballistic and cruise missiles, a boon for General Dynamics Electric Boat and suppliers of the Groton, Conn., shipyard. The new funding was included in the National Defense Authorization Act which was introduced in the Senate in mid-July. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of the NDAA bill last month, with work still ahead to work out a compromise bill for final passage on Capitol Hill and President Donald Trumps signature. The Columbia-class sub represents the largest single Pentagon program today, with the latest Congressional estimate at $126.4 billion to purchase a dozen subs to replace aging Ohio-class subs that were built from 1976 to 1989. The Congressional Research Service recently noted the possibility of the Navy pushing for more Columbia subs beyond the initial dozen, given the strategic value they offer with no known, near-term credible threats to the survivability as cited in a review of the Columbia program last month. Among other advances, Columbia subs are being installed with electric-drive propulsion systems that are quieter than mechanical-drive propulsion on Ohio subs. General Dynamics declined to comment on the defense spending bill. The Senate bill includes additional billions of dollars for Connecticut to fund submarine construction at Electric Boat, jet engine assembly at Pratt & Whitney with facilities in East Hartford and Middletown, and helicopters built by Sikorsky in Stratford and Bridgeport. Electric Boat is aiming to deliver the first sub in the fleet by early 2029, about 17 months behind schedule according to the Congressional Research Service, with the second sub on schedule as of last spring. Construction of the first three subs are spaced apart by multiple years to allow Electric Boat and its contractors extra time to fix any issues they may discover in the assembly process. Sections for subs are barged to Groton for final assembly after being fabricated at an auxiliary shipyard Electric Boat operates in Rhode Island, and at the Newport News Shipbuilding yard in Virginia operated by Huntington Ingalls Industries. In addition to the $5 billion earmarked to purchase parts for future Columbia-class subs, the Senate bill provides $3.9 billion to assemble the third sub in the dozen planned for the fleet, to be named the USS Groton on the heels of the USS District of Columbia and the USS Wisconsin. The USS District of Columbia carries a price tag of $16.1 billion, with the USS Wisconsin at just over $10.7 billion and the USS Groton at $10.5 billion. Starting with the USS Groton, the Navy wants Electric Boat to hit a pace of one new Columbia sub annually with the goal of completing production by 2036. It is a mammoth task for Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding both yards face a production goal of two Virginia-class subs annually with each manufacturer tasked with building sections for final assembly in both Connecticut and Virginia. At last report, Electric Boat had more than 15,000 employees in Connecticut, with plans to hire more than 3,000 people this year to replace workers hitting retirement and keep up with Navy demand for Virginia-class attack subs and the Columbia program. To free up more space at its Groton yard, Electric Boat is building a new warehouse in North Stonington to supply both its Connecticut and Rhode Island shipyards. And Electric Boat purchased a portion of the Crystal Mall to build office space there for engineers. In a statement, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT called the bill a serious, long-term commitment to our national security and to the thousands of workers at Electric Boat, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and other defense contractors and suppliers in Connecticut. In a CT Insider interview last week, Blumenthal said the Trump administration must adhere to schedules for submarine construction that Congress has funded in previous defense spending bills. The question is whether they are going to make the kind of investments and continue the timetables that have been set in the past, said Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate Armed Services committee. We have to hold them to what theyre saying. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-CT, voted against the bill. In a Friday statement, Murphy indicated his vote was driven in part by Trumps use of military personnel to support law enforcement in U.S. cities; the presidents invocation of the Insurrection Act to crush his political opposition in Murphys words; and approving military actions in the Caribbean region without congressional authorization. It is wildly irresponsible for the Senate to act like its business as usual and green light President Trumps Department of War while he is militarizing our cities, Murphy stated. I do not take this vote lightly, but this president views the United States military as his own personal police force. I will not support his efforts to use our men and women in uniform to consolidate power and transform our democracy into an authoritarian regime. Other spending in the Senate defense bill includes: $2 billion for a Virginia-class attack sub; $1.7 billion for Sikorsky CH-53K King Stallion helicopters for the Marine Corps; $732 million for Sikorsky UH-60M Black Hawk helicopters for the Army; $255 million for construction of a new pier and munitions facility at the Naval Submarine Base New London; $107 million to support the Sikorsky HH-60W Jolly Green II helicopter program for the Air Force; and 34 more F-35A Lightning II jet fighters with engines from Pratt & Whitney. Includes prior reporting by Paul Schott. 2025 Journal Inquirer, Manchester, Conn. Visit www.journalinquirer.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. A recent episode of The Ramsey Show sparked a strong reaction when a caller from Idaho asked if it was appropriate for her daughter to request reimbursement from a potential employer for a job interview trip that would cost about $1,000. Her daughter, who just graduated college, was preparing to travel for the final round of interviews after passing three earlier stages. Asking For Reimbursement Sends The Wrong Message The mother, Chelsea, estimated that the total cost, including airfare, Uber rides, hotel stays, meals, and three days of missed wages, would significantly impact her daughters budget. She wondered if it would be inappropriate to ask the company for at least partial reimbursement. Don't Miss: Meet Flippy: The AI Robot Helping Fast Food Brands Cut Tens of Billions in Labor Costs And You Can Invest Early Accredited Investors Can Now Tap Into the $36 Trillion Home Equity Market Without Buying a Single Property Hosts Jade Warshaw and Ken Coleman responded without hesitation. Yes, it would be wildly, wildly silly, Coleman said. Not even inappropriate. Just silly. Youre guaranteeing she doesnt get the job. The fact that youre asking us this concerns me, Coleman added. This is entitlement 101. You are not entitled to your expenses for applying to a job. They emphasized that asking for compensation during the hiring process shows a lack of understanding of how the job market works and could easily ruin a candidates chances. Coleman also expressed disbelief at the trend of parents attending interviews with their adult children, calling it a major red flag for employers. Trending: This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to become a landlord in just 10 minutes, with minimum investments as low as $100. Warshaw noted that being gracious and flexible is key when trying to land a role. Youre already causing drama, she said. When opportunity knocks, you have to be ready to answer the door. Thats on you. Coleman joked that the question gave her indigestion, and someone in the studio even handed her a bottle of Tums during the segment. God bless you for the question, but no, please dont do that, he said. Their comments come amid broader conversations about Gen Zs involvement in the workplace and job-seeking process. A recent survey by ResumeTemplates.com found that 77% of Gen Zers said they brought a parent to a job interview, and 53% had a parent speak directly with hiring managers. Additionally, 45% said their parents regularly talk to their current boss, and 73% get help from their parents with work assignments. FRANKFURT (Reuters) -A digital euro could drain up to 700 billion euros ($810.88 billion) in deposits during a run on commercial banks, pushing around a dozen euro zone lenders into a liquidity squeeze, a European Central Bank simulation showed on Friday. The study, requested by European legislators, was aimed at evaluating the risks that a digital currency, essentially an electronic wallet guaranteed by the ECB, would pose to the banking sector under different scenarios, including a hypothetical "flight to safety". The ECB has presented the digital currency as an alternative to U.S.-dominated means of payment, but bankers and some lawmakers fear it may empty banks' coffers. The ECB's study found that, were there to be an unprecedented run on commercial banks, depositors would withdraw 699 billion euros from euro zone banks to park them in digital euros if a limit on individual holdings was set at 3,000 euros each. This is equal to 8.2% of all retail sight deposits, although the impact would be greater for small market lenders and retail banks, the ECB said. Under this scenario, which the ECB described as highly unlikely, 13 of the 2,025 banks in the analysis would deplete their mandatory cash buffer, as measured by the Liquidity Coverage Ratio. "There is a strong focus on aggregate numbers and I still see a risk that smaller banks that heavily rely on retail deposits might run into trouble with excessively high holding limits," Markus Ferber, lawmaker for the European People's Party, said. "In a digital age, bank runs happen much quicker and much more forcefully than before. So, there is good reason to be extra cautious." The ECB said the figures may be an overestimation as they don't consider the fact that some depositors have more than one bank account. Under the ECB's "business as usual scenario", in which depositors don't make full use of their digital euro allowance, just over 100 billion euros would flee banks' coffers, leaving the sector well within liquidity requirements, the study found. And even this outflow could be more than offset by an ongoing trend out of cash and into electronic means of payment, which should add to banks' deposits, the ECB added. The ECB also simulated individual holding limits of 500 euros, 1,000 euros and 2,000 euros, obtaining lower outflow estimates. "The analysis confirms that holding limits effectively restrict deposit outflows from the banking sector to levels that safeguard the stability of the financial system and support the correct formulation and implementation of monetary policy," the ECB said. A senior European Union official has called for the creation of euro-backed stablecoins to challenge the dominance of U.S. dollar-pegged tokens in global crypto markets. Pierre Gramegna, managing director of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), said Europe must accelerate its efforts to issue domestic stablecoins and strengthen its digital financial sovereignty. Europe should not be dependent on U.S. dollar-denominated stablecoins, which are currently dominating markets, Gramegna said during a Thursday hearing on the eurozones economic outlook, where digital assets were among the topics discussed. He added that Stablecoins are an inevitable part of this equation. In a rapidly evolving financial landscape, Europe should do its best to facilitate the generation of euro-denominated stablecoins by domestic issuers. Digital Euro Gains Momentum as EU Debates Strategy to Counter U.S. Crypto Lead Gramegnas comments come amid growing concerns that the U.S. is gaining a decisive lead in the digital currency space following the introduction of the GENIUS regulatory framework earlier this year, which spurred growth in dollar-backed stablecoins such as USDC and USDT. European officials worry that continued reliance on U.S.-issued tokens could undermine the EUs control over its financial system and payment infrastructure. Paschal Donohoe, president of the Eurogroup, supported Gramegnas stance on financial innovation but noted that the European Central Banks (ECB) digital euro project could also play a vital role in modernizing payments. The digital euro could still be a net positive for commerce in the region, he said. Momentum is already building behind the digital euro initiative. According to ECB Executive Board member Piero Cipollone, the central bank could roll out a digital euro by 2029 as discussions among member states progress. He described recent talks as a major breakthrough after euro area finance chiefs reached consensus on customer holding limits to protect bank deposits. Cipollone said that by early May next year, the European Parliament should have a position on the legislative framework underpinning the project, following an October progress report and several rounds of negotiations. Member states are also expected to reach a general agreement by the end of this year. The digital euro is designed to reduce Europes reliance on private payment companies such as Visa and PayPal, while also curbing the influence of dollar-denominated stablecoins in the region. However, several technical and policy questions remain unresolved, including privacy safeguards, bank coexistence, and whether the currency should operate on a public blockchain such as Ethereum or Solana. Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton has died at 79, according to People, who spoke with a family spokesperson on Sat., Oct. 11. The legendary actress, known for iconic roles in films such as Annie Hall, The Godfather, and The First Wives Club, died in California. As of writing, her loved ones have asked for privacy, and no further details are available at this time. Keaton, born Diane Hall in Los Angeles in 1946, became a Hollywood staple in the 1970s. Her career took off with her role as Kay Adams in The Godfather films and through her various collaborations with director Woody Allen, which led to her winning the Academy Award for Best Actress for 1977s Annie Hall. After graduating high school in 1964, Keaton pursued drama but soon left college for New York to start a career in theater. She adopted her mothers maiden name, Keaton, because an actress named Diane Hall was already registered with Actors Equity. Her Broadway career began in 1968 with a role as an understudy in Hair. She later earned a Tony nomination for her performance in Allens 1969 Broadway show, Play It Again, Sam. Keatons breakout film role came in 1972 when she was cast as Al Pacinos girlfriend in The Godfather. Keaton told People in 2022 that she landed the life-changing role without ever having read the book. I just was going around auditioning. I think that was amazing for me. And then I had to kind of read the book, she said. She reprised her role in the franchises sequels, The Godfather Part II (1974) and The Godfather Part III (1990). Keatons role in the romantic comedy, Annie Hall (1977), not only won her an Oscar but also cemented her as a style icon, with her characters menswear-inspired wardrobe mirroring her own personal style. Other popular films Keaton starred in include Reds (1981), Father of the Bride (1991), Father of the Bride Part II, and Somethings Gotta Give (2003). While Keaton mostly stuck to film, she did have some memorable TV appearances. She lent her voice to the animated Netflix series Green Eggs and Ham, which ran from 2019 to 2022. She also starred in the HBO mini-series The Young Pope in 2016. Keaton even made an appearance in Justin Biebers music video for Ghost in 2021. Her last acting credit was in the comedy film Summer Camp (2024), with Kathy Bates, Alfre Woodard, and Eugene Levy. According to IMDb, she has three upcoming projects, but its unclear if these projects wrapped before her death. Though she was romantically linked to Allen, Pacino, and Warren Beatty throughout her lifetime, Keaton never married. Im really glad I didnt get married. Im an oddball, she told People in 2019. I remember in high school, this guy came up to me and said, One day youre going to make a good wife. And I thought, I dont want to be a wife. No. She adopted two children, daughter Dexter in 1996 and son Duke in 2001. She is survived by her children. Chittenango, N.Y. A Madison County couple has been charged with physically abusing a 6-year-old boy. On Thursday, deputies arrested Holly M. Craner, 24, and Brandon J. Griffin, 30, at 620 Manor Drive, Chittenango, according to the Madison County Sheriffs Office. Both were charged with second-degree assault (a felony) and several misdemeanors: endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree aggravated harassment, criminal obstruction of breathing, and third-degree menacing. Court documents allege that on Oct. 1, Griffin assisted Craner as she put pressure on the 6-year-old childs neck. That same day, Griffin allegedly smacked the child in the mouth and spanked him until the point of injury. Both were charged with second-degree assault (a felony) and several misdemeanors: endangering the welfare of a child, second-degree aggravated harassment, criminal obstruction of breathing, and third-degree menacing. Craner and Griffin were both taken to the Madison County Jail, where they are being held on $5,000 cash bail or $10,000 bond. Fort Drum, N.Y. - A fire burning on an artillery range at Fort Drum in Jefferson County cannot be reached by firefighters due to safety concerns over unexploded artillery, a military spokesperson said. The fire is on Range 48, an ordnance impact area, which soldiers use to test weapons and artillery, according to Fort Drum spokesperson Julie Halpin. The fire is several acres, she said Saturday. Its hard to speculate on size because we cannot see directly into that area. Firefighters would be able to knock the fire down if it came close to structures or people, she said. Smoke from the fire has reached parts of Fowler, Antwerp and Gouverneur due to winds coming from the south, Halpin said. The fire was started last weekend by artillery practice, according to Halpin. It was knocked down by rain on Wednesday but rekindled on Friday. Conditions on the range are dry and there is brush build-up, she said. Soldiers have continued artillery training as the fire has burned since the range represents a small percentage of training space, Halpin said. The fire has not caused any damage. We drop bombs there, Halpin said. Damage on the range isnt a concern. New York state issued a burn ban last week because of a lingering drought that has led to a high wildfire risk in many parts of the state including the North Country. Much of the state is now considered at high risk of wildfires. High risk means that dry leaves and sticks ignite rapidly, and brush and campfires are likely to escape, the DEC said. Fort Drum, home of the U.S. Armys 10th Mountain Division, covers 107,265 acres. It is located outside Watertown and is home to more than 31,000 soldiers and their families. Utica, N.Y. A former corrections officer testified Friday against three of his co-workers who are facing murder charges in the fatal beatings of an inmate last year. Robert Kessler, who is headed to prison for his role in the beatings after taking a plea deal, described in detail how guards pepper sprayed and several times beat and punched Robert Brooks in prison until he wasnt moving. Brooks was taken to a Utica hospital where he died later that night. Kessler also testified about the attempted cover-up, describing how he was ordered to keep rewriting his report on what happened. He said the earlier versions were shredded. Three officers - Mathew Galliher, Nicholas Kieffer and David Kingsley - are on trial in the Utica courtroom for the death of Brooks who was beaten by correctional officers in December at Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County. The three each face charges of second-degree murder and first-degree manslaughter. Galliher and Kieffer also face other charges. The officers face a maximum penalty of 25 years to life in prison if the jury finds them guilty. Another guard is set to stand trial alone in January and six others indicted in the case have all pleaded guilty. Many of them were mentioned in Kesslers testimony. Kessler and two other prison employees facing charges have agreed to be cooperating witnesses. One of them, Sgt. Glenn Trombly, is expected to testify next week. On Friday, Kessler for several hours described in detail what happened the night Brooks was brutally beaten. Kesslers normal role that day was checking inmates in and out of the facility. Brooks had been transferred to Marcy from nearby Mohawk Correctional Facility. Kessler testified that Kingsley had been involved in one of the beatings. He said Kieffer had pepper-sprayed Brooks and beat him as well. He said that Galliher was present for part of the beatings. Kessler told the courtroom another guard, Christopher Walrath, was the first officer to initiate violence against Brooks. He said that while he was checking Brooks in, Walrath rushed past him and put Brooks in an aggressive headlock, even getting blood on the wall. Walrath has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Kessler said he, Walrath, Kieffer and another guard, Nicholas Anzalone, collapsed in on Brooks, all beating him for five to seven seconds. Anzalone has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and has been promised 22 years in prison. Kessler said he joined in on hitting Brooks partly out frustration but also because he thought Walrath had acted on a potential threat from Brooks. Walrath had to be pulled off Brooks, Kessler said. Kessler said Kieffer told a guard who was dropping Brooks off from Mohawk to get out of here, you didnt see anything. Following the initial beating, Kessler said he and Anzalone guided Brooks to another part of the facility. Kieffer, who was walking behind them, abruptly told them to stop and put Brooks on the ground. Kessler said Kieffer then pepper sprayed Brooks in the face for no reason. Brooks had never become violent or threatening and never fought back, Kessler said. Kessler testified that Kieffer called in an alert for backup, saying Brooks had become resistant. Four officers responded, including Trombly. Brooks was escorted to the medical wing, Kessler said. He said he punched Brooks twice on the way. Three guards picked Brooks up in the air and carried him by his arms and legs to the infirmary, Kessler said. In the infirmary, Brooks was assaulted by Anzalone, Kingsley and another guard, Anthony Farina, Kessler said. Farina has pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and been promised 22 years in prison. Kessler said the group continued to hit Brooks and put their hands around his neck. Brooks eventually became limp and was not fighting back, Kessler said. The beating in the infirmary was captured on some of the officers body-camera videos. They did not know the cameras were recording. Guards called an ambulance for Brooks and he was sent to the hospital, Kessler said. Brooks died later after arriving at the hospital. Kessler also testified about what guards did after Brooks left. He said that night he, Kieffer and Anzalone colluded to write reports together that made the incident look much less severe than it was, even leaving out some of the beatings. Kessler said this was done at the instruction of Trombly. Kessler said Trombly forced him to write multiple drafts of his use of force report before one was accepted. The others were shredded, he said. Kesslers testimony for the prosecution was followed by a grueling, three-hour cross-examination by the three defense lawyers who tried to blame the worst of the beatings on the guards not on trial. David Longeretta, who is representing Kieffer, had Kessler explain that Brooks had at some points resisted. Kessler said, however, that Brooks never posed a threat or acted so violently to incur such a reaction from the guards. Longeretta also worked to paint Walrath, Anzalone and Farina as the primary perpetrators of the beatings rather than his client. Kevin Luibrand, who is representing Galliher, questions led Kessler to say that Walrath, Farina and Anzalone had all lost it at some point that night. Kessler, who admitted to punching Brooks, said in court that he took a plea deal, pleading guilty second-degree assault. Hes been promised five to seven years in prison. The trial is set to resume next Tuesday. With a statewide burn ban in effect through Oct. 15 due to persistent drought conditions, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation forest rangers were busy last week putting out wildfires. Oct. 5, ten rangers along with local fire departments began fighting a 37-acre wildfire in the Piseco Lake area. Fire crews are still working to contain it. Oct. 3, a ranger helped extinguish a wildfire caused by burning brush at a farm in Tully. The fire was declared out two days later and the farms owner was ticketed for leaving a fire unattended. Oct. 1, rangers used an inflatable boat to contain out a .7-acre fire in Tuxdeo. As of Oct. 6, the fire was 85% controlled with three hot spots. Oct. 1 a ranger helped put out a .2-acre ground fire at a seasonal camp in Newcomb. Fire crews protected the camp and contained the fire, which was declared out on Oct. 5. Sept. 30, a ranger stamped out a -acre of burning leaf litter in Hartwick. The following reports are excerpted from DEC: A search crew carries a 90-year-old with early signs of dementia who went mising last week in Hancock. The person was found conscious and alert but dehydrated. NYS DEC A 90-year-old with early signs of dementia went mising in Hancock on the afternoon of Oct. 4. Rangers joined search crews from multiple law enforcement and fire departments. A crew found the missing person the next morning in a ravine on Dry Brook Ridge Road, conscious and alert but dehydrated. A 17-year-old hiker got to the summit of Wittenberg Mountain on Oct. 2 when they began persistently vomitting. Four rangers and EMS provided nourishment and escorted the hiker one mile to the trailhead where they refused further medical treatment. A 77-year-old hiker injured their leg approximately -mile from the trailhead on Haystack Mountain on the evening of Oct. 2. The elderly hiker tried to make it back with help from another hiker but kept falling. Rangers assisted the hiker back to the trailhead and then to the hospital. Rangers rescued a 32-year-old hiker from Long Island who injured their ankle on the Cascade Mountain trail last week. NYS DEC On the afternoon of Oct. 1, a 32-year-old hiker from Long Island injured their ankle on the Cascade Mountain trail. Four rangers splinted the hikers ankle and started back down the trail when the hiker tripped on a rock and couldnt continue. A NY State Police helicopter hoisted the hiker off the mountain and transferred them to Lake Placid EMS for transportation to the hospital. On the night of Oct. 2, a 32-year-old hiker from Allegany texted 911 for help because they were exhausted, out of water, and falling frequently from dizziness. The hiker made it to the Johns Brook outpost where they waited for two rangers who provided basic first aid and nourishment and guided them back to the trailhead. A camper began vomiting excessively from alcohol consumption on the morning of Oct. 4 at Taconic Hereford Multiple Use Area. A ranger found the camper at a campsite with three other people and transported them to an ambulance in the parking area. Rangers rescued a 29-year-old hiker from New Jersey was struck with severe case of cramps while descending the summit of Black Dome last week. NYS DEC A 29-year-old hiker from New Jersey was struck with severe case of cramps while descending the summit of Black Dome on Oct. 3. Two rangers gave the hiker electrolytes and food. After resting, they were able to walk with rangers to Big Hollow Road trailhead. An 83-year-old hiker from Massachusetts injured their ankle on the Escarpment Trail on Oct. 5. An off-duty EMT who was hiking in the area provided medical care before rangers arrived at the Elm Ridge lean-to and provided first aid. The hiker was checked out by Windham Ambulance at the trailhead. On the evening of Oct. 4, a 51-year-old hiker from Feura Bush got lost off the Cranberry 50 trail with no light source. Two rangers began searching near Dead Creek trail and found the lost hiker in good health shortly after midnight. Rangers suggest bringing the 10 Hiking Essentials when venturing into the wilderness and not relying on cell phones for light and navigation. By Julie Zhu and Liam Mo HONG KONG/BEIJING (Reuters) -Chinese humanoid robot maker AgiBot plans to launch an initial public offering in Hong Kong next year, eyeing a valuation of HK$40 billion to HK$50 billion ($5.14 billion to $6.4 billion), sources with knowledge of the matter said. AgiBot's listing plans, backed by investors such as Tencent and HongShan Capital Group (HSG), comes as Beijing steps up efforts to develop automation to address its aging population and bolster its position in robotics amid escalating technological competition with the United States. The Shanghai-based company appointed China International Capital Corp Ltd (CICC) and CITIC Securities earlier this year to lead its Hong Kong listing, the sources said. Morgan Stanley has joined the effort in recent weeks, two of the sources added. According to PitchBook, it reached a valuation of $2.07 billion as of March. The company is expected to issue 15%-25% of its shares, one of the sources said. AgiBot plans to file a preliminary prospectus early next year, two of the sources said, with one adding that the firm aims for a public listing by the third quarter of 2026. Details of the IPO, including its timeline, offering size and valuation are subject to change, the sources cautioned, declining to be identified as the plan is not public yet. Reuters is reporting for the first time AgiBot's listing plans, the valuation target and appointed banks. AgiBot and Morgan Stanley declined to comment. CICC and CITIC did not respond to emailed queries from Reuters. Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Ltd (HKEX), the city's exchange operator, declined to comment on individual companies or their transactions. ROBOTS IN VOGUE Founded in 2023 by former Huawei employees Deng Taihua and Peng Zhihui, Agibot gained prominence after Chinese President Xi Jinping inspected the company's robots during a visit to Shanghai earlier this year. The company produces humanoid robot series called Yuanzheng and Lingxi, as well as data collection tools used for model training, which it also sells externally. The company aims to deploy its humanoid robots across various sectors including manufacturing and logistics. At its data collection site in Shanghai, the company trains its robots to carry out tasks such as folding clothes, making coffee and washing toilets. In August, Agibot announced a partnership worth tens of millions of yuan with automotive parts maker Fulin Precision Engineering to deploy nearly 100 Yuanzheng robots at Fulin's factories. In the same month, the company also completed a strategic financing round with investors including LG Electronics and Mirae Asset. Chinese automaker BYD and asset manager Hillhouse Investment are also among its investors, according to corporate database Qichacha. By Nora Eckert DETROIT (Reuters) -Ford Motor is walking back a program that would have allowed dealers to offer a $7,500 tax credit on EV leases after the federal subsidy expired September 30, the company said on Thursday. "Ford will not claim the EV tax credit but will maintain the competitive lease payments we have in the market today," a spokesperson said. The decision follows a similar move from General Motors on Wednesday. While automakers including Hyundai and Stellantis have offered cash off incentives to bridge the gap for buyers, Ford and GM took a different approach. The in-house lending arms at these two automakers planned to initiate the purchase of EVs in dealers inventory, and the companies would apply for the $7,500 credit on those cars and then roll that money into EV lease terms for customers. For customers who want to purchase an electric vehicle, Ford Credit continues to offer 0 percent financing for 72 months and other incentives, a spokesperson said. GM opted to kill the program after concerns were raised about it by Republican Senator Bernie Moreno of Ohio, a former car dealer who is active in auto policy, a person briefed on the matter told Reuters. It is unclear why Ford canceled its program. Ford and GM developed their strategies after discussions with officials at the Internal Revenue Service, Reuters previously reported. Some auto executives, including Ford CEO Jim Farley, have warned that EV sales will drop significantly in the absence of the credit. Other automotive leaders, such as the CEO of Hyundai Motor North America, have affirmed that the electric vehicle market is more resilient than that. (Reporting by Nora Eckert; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama ) Brazil 'frustrated' with delays in COP climate commitments Brasilia, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 Brazil expressed frustration Friday as countries -- including major polluters such as India and EU members -- drag their feet in submitting new climate targets, less than a month before the country hosts COP30. The targets, known as nationally determined contributions (NDCs), must be reviewed every five years. Yet few countries have delivered their updated pledges for 2035. "We have to admit that we are frustrated," COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago told a press conference in the capital Brasilia. Brazil, which will host the UN climate summit in the Amazonian city of Belem in November, was among the first to update its NDCs a year ago. China, the world's largest polluter, followed suit last month. But many others have missed even the latest September deadline, amid geopolitical and trade tensions that have distracted from climate action. So far, 62 countries have announced their new climate goals, a number expected to reach 125 by the end of the year, according to Correa. "It's a bit sad," he admitted. Conference organizers stressed that the responsibility now falls mainly on the largest emitters, including India and the European Union. Brazilian Environment Minister Marina Silva also voiced her "disappointment" over delays from "historically allied partners" on climate policy, such as the EU. "We hope they will submit their NDCs preferably before COP30," she said, so that society can assess "in a transparent manner" whether national targets are aligned with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5C above pre-industrial levels. COP30 will take place from November 10 to 21, days after a summit of heads of state and government. According to Correa, delegations from 162 countries are expected to attend the event in Belem, a poor Amazonian city where accommodation prices have soared out of control. Next week, representatives from 50 countries will gather in Brasilia for a "Pre-COP" meeting aimed at advancing negotiations on the future of global climate action. At least 23 dead due to heavy rains in Mexico Mexico City, Oct 10 (AFP) Oct 10, 2025 At least 23 people have died in Mexico due to heavy rains this week, local authorities across the country said Friday. Mexico's civil protection authorities reported intense rainfall in 31 of Mexico's 32 states, with the worst affected areas being Veracruz in the east, Queretaro and Hidalgo in the center, and the north-central state of San Luis Potosi. In Hidalgo state, 16 deaths were reported and 1,000 homes affected. Five deaths were reported in Puebla state, and 11 people were still unaccounted for. A minor died in Veracruz state, and a police officer died in Queretaro. "We are working to support the population, reopen roads and get the power back on," President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on X after a meeting with local officials and members of her cabinet. The military will help distribute aid in affected areas. US threatens to sanction nations that back shipping carbon tax Washington, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 The United States on Friday threatened to impose sanctions and take other punitive action against any country that votes in favor of a carbon tax on maritime transportation to be implemented through a UN agency. "We will fight hard to protect our economic interests by imposing costs on countries if they support" the Net Zero Framework, said a joint statement by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his counterparts at the departments of energy and transportation. Members of the London-based International Maritime Organization (IMO) are set to vote next week on the adoption of the Net Zero Framework (NZF) agreement aimed at reducing global carbon emissions from the shipping sector. Washington, however, described the proposal as imposing "a global carbon tax on the world." Since returning to power in January, US President Donald Trump has reversed Washington's course on climate change, denouncing it as a "scam" and encouraging fossil fuel use by deregulation. In the statement, Rubio, Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the Trump administration "unequivocally rejects" the NZF proposal. They threatened a range of punishing actions against countries that vote in favor of the framework, including: visa restrictions; blocking vessels registered in those countries from US ports; imposing commercial penalties; and considering sanctions on officials. "The United States will be moving to levy these remedies against nations that sponsor this European-led neocolonial export of global climate regulations," the statement said. At least 23 dead due to heavy rains in Mexico Mexico City, Oct 11 (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 At least 23 people have died in Mexico due to heavy rains this week, local authorities across the country said Friday. Mexico's civil defense authorities reported intense rainfall in 31 of 32 states, with the worst-affected areas being Veracruz in the east, Queretaro and Hidalgo in the center, and the north-central state of San Luis Potosi. In Hidalgo state, 16 deaths were reported and 1,000 homes affected. Five deaths were reported in Puebla state, and 11 people were still unaccounted for. A minor died in Veracruz state, and a police officer died in Queretaro. Laura Velazquez, the national coordinator for civil defense, said the affected states had experienced landslides, overflowing rivers and road collapses. "We are working to support the population, reopen roads and get the power back on," President Claudia Sheinbaum wrote on X after a meeting with local officials and members of her cabinet. The military will help distribute aid in affected areas, with more than 5,400 troops deployed, along with rescue equipment and vehicles. Shelters were open for those displaced from their homes. Mexico has been hit by particularly heavy rains throughout 2025, with a rainfall record set in the capital Mexico City. Tropical Storm Raymond is currently off the country's Pacific coast, dumping heavy rains as it moves northward. Damage from that storm has been reported in Chiapas, Guerrero, Oaxaca and Michoacan states. It is expected to hit the southern part of Baja California over the weekend, according to the US National Hurricane Center. Press Release from Business Wire: World Free Zones Organization (AFP) Oct 11, 2025 HAINAN, Oct 11, 2025 (BSW) - The World Free Zones Organization's 11th annual World Congress continued its agenda today with a focus on the role of digitization and sustainability in the future of free zones and the mechanisms for enhancing their position as strategic trade gateways. This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251011933300/en/ Dr Al Zarooni and President of CIRD launching the global institute (Photo: AETOSWire) The day's sessions featured a series of sessions addressing critical themes such as the digitization of trade corridors, the impact of the OECD Global Minimum Tax, and the role of free zones as regional trade gateways. Sustainability took centre stage with sessions focusing on the transition to net-zero through renewable energy, circular economy models, and green financing frameworks. Speakers underscored that decarbonization is not only a climate imperative but also a competitive advantage for the next generation of free zones. The Congress also witnessed the inauguration of the Global Free Zones Research Institute, a pioneering international think tank dedicated to advancing research, policy dialogue, and capacity-building for free zones worldwide. The Institute's activities will include conducting research on critical issues facing free zones, providing policy recommendations, organizing expert panels and international exchanges, publishing industry reports, and offering specialised training and consulting services to governments and free zone authorities. The second day of the Congress witnessed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between six free zones and five economic and technology zones in Hainan Province. The agreement aims to enhance cooperation in cross-border data flows and strengthen the position of the signatories as key hubs in the global digital economy. The signatories on the free zone side included the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority (DIEZ) from the United Arab Emirates, PIROT Free Zone from Serbia, Tatu City Free Zone from Kenya, Luanda Special Economic Zone from Angola, Santa Fiesta Free Zone from Argentina, and the General Authority for Investment and Free Zones (GAFI) from Egypt. From Hainan Province, the signatories included Haikou Jiangdong New Area, Haikou Fosing Industrial Internet Park, Hainan Resort Software Community, Sanya Yazhou Bay Science and Technology City, and Overseas Returnees Town Lingshui. The MoU establishes a framework for cooperation on cross-border data flows through the development of joint mechanisms that ensure data security and resilience while facilitating the smooth and secure transfer of information between the signatories. *Source: AETOSWire View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20251011933300/en/ Contact Mazen DiranyWorld-FZO [email protected] 2025 Business Wire, Inc.Disclaimer:This press release is not a document produced by AFP. AFP shall not bear responsibility for its content. In case you have any questions about this press release, please refer to the contact person/entity mentioned in the text of the press release. This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System this week said it plans to appeal a U.S. district court decision that vacated its regulation of debit card transaction fees. The Fed filed the notice Monday, according to the U.S. District Court for North Dakota, where the case was initially filed, and an entry with the Eight Circuit Court of Appeals docket. In the case, a North Dakota truck stop and convenience store, called Corner Post, is suing the Fed over its regulation of fees that can be imposed on merchants when consumers swipe a debit card. Plaintiffs in the case alleged that the Fed should have used a fee standard that calibrates the rule for each bank card issuer, so its proportional to each issuers costs, instead of being the same for all of them. Not doing so exceeded the Feds statutory authority and was arbitrary, and capricious, they contended. Bank card issuers and other intermediaries, such as card networks, impose fees for card transactions. Regulations for the transactions grew out of the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. In a separate filing last month, the Fed also asked the North Dakota court to clarify its August ruling in the case, nudging it to say that the decision pertained only to debit card interchange fee standards, and not to the entire rule, known as Regulation II, which includes other aspects of oversight. The interchange fee standards in 12 C.F.R. 235.3(b) are the only provision of the broader Regulation II placed at issue by the complaint and by Plaintiffs motion for summary judgment, the Feds Sept. 3 request for clarification said. Accordingly, the other provisions of Regulation II should stand despite the Courts ruling. Corner Post is backed by retail trade groups, which have long argued that the debit fees paid by merchants are too high. Theyve made the same arguments about credit card fees, which are unregulated, and members of Congress have sought to rein those fees in as well. In the debit fee case, U.S. District Judge Daniel Traynor ruled in August that the Fed was in excess of the Boards authority when it promulgated the debit card regulations. The lawsuit was initially filed by the North Dakota Retail Association and North Dakota Petroleum Marketers Association in April 2021, but those trade group plaintiffs dropped off the case last August, leaving Watford City, North Dakota-based Corner Post as the sole plaintiff. Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Actor Darius McCrary, known for Family Matters, was arrested Sunday by U.S. Border Patrol near the Mexico border on a felony warrant from another state. According to court booking records obtained by People, the 49-year-old was arrested and booked at 7:17 p.m. that night on a fugitive arrest charge. He is being held without bail in a San Diego jail pending his first court appearance, scheduled for Wednesday. The warrant stems from a Michigan case and is connected to McCrarys failure to appear in court in relation to unpaid child-support obligations, his representative, Ann Barlow, told TMZ. His rep further told Us Weekly that McCrary was detained near the Mexico border while working with a real estate developer on a housing project for the homeless in Tijuana. Darius was doing a good deed when he discovered he had a felony warrant at the Border of Mexico for a missed court appearance, the statement read. The missed court appearance was for an ongoing child support dispute whereas Oakland County mailed the notice to appear to Darius PO BOX giving him only three days to appear in Michigan Court. Unfortunately Darius had Covid therefore did not check his PO Box until the day after his court date. However immediately notified the Judge with a doctors note diagnosis of Covid. open image in gallery Darius McCrary was arrested Sunday by U.S. Border Patrol for allegedly missing a court appearance related to unpaid child support ( Getty Images ) In his 2019 finalized divorce from former Harlem Globetrotter Tammy Brawner, McCrary was ordered to pay child support and complete substance abuse and batterers intervention programs. Brawner was granted full custody of their 3-year-old daughter, Zoey. McCrary has faced multiple arrests over unpaid child support. He was first arrested in Michigan in 2015 but released after paying a $5,500 fine. In November 2023, he was arrested again for owing over $52,000 in back payments, pleaded not guilty, and was released on a $13,197 bond with GPS monitoring. In 2018, Brawner claimed that McCrary had partially dislocated their young daughters arm. Brawner told doctors that McCrary injured Zoeys arm while taking her to the bathroom, though he denied it, saying he only lifted her by the hands. The child was later diagnosed with Nursemaids elbow, a partial dislocation common in young children. Originally rising to fame in his teenage years as Eddie Winslow on Family Matters, McCrary appeared alongside actors such as Reginald VelJohnson and Jo Marie Payton during the shows run from 1989 to 1998. Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Strictly Come Dancing star Dianne Buswell has poured water on rumours that she is the reason Stefan Dennis wont be performing this weekend. It was announced on Friday (10 October) that the Neighbours star will not be taking part in tonights Movie Week episode due to illness. In line with the programmes rules, Dennis and Buswell will receive a pass to next weeks episode when it is hoped the actor will be well enough to perform. Hours before Saturdays live show (11 October), Buswell addressed claims that she is the one responsible for his absence. Just to clarify Ive had lots of people messaging me thinking this is a cover up for me not being able to dance?! she wrote on Instagram. open image in gallery ( Instagram / Dianne Buswell ) Firstly, we wouldnt lie, especially about someone being sick. And secondly, I am fine. Yes I am pregnant, but Im also very capable and feeling good! She continued: Thirdly, there are things in place if any pros were to get sick or injured. The 36-year-old dancer is the first star to ever compete on Strictly while pregnant. After news of Denniss illness was announced during Friday nights episode of Strictly companion show It Takes Two, Buswell wrote on Instagram: Sending Aussie love to wonderful @stefandennis7 you are such a trooper and I know how much you wanted to dance. open image in gallery Stefan Dennis and Dianne Buswell during their appearance on the live show of Saturday's Strictly Come Dancing show on BBC1. ( Guy Levy/BBC/PA Wire ) Dennis, 66, best known for playing the villainous businessman Paul Robinson on the Australian soap Neighbours, is partnered with Buswell, who won last years competition with comedian Chris McCausland. His illness is the latest blow to this years season after fellow contestant Dani Dyer was forced to leave the competition when she fractured her ankle in rehearsals ahead of the first live broadcast. She was replaced by Love Island star Amber Davies, who was drafted in as Nikita Kuzmins celebrity partner at the last minute. Prior to that, in August Game of Thrones star Kristian Nairn also withdrew from the series due to medical reasons. He was replaced by Emmerdale actor Lewis Cope. open image in gallery ( BBC ) Earlier this week, Vicky Pattison and partner Kai Widdrington missed a scheduled appearance on It Takes Two because of illness. On Instagram, Pattison shared a picture of recovery essentials, including lozenges, cough syrup, ginger shots, oranges and juice, but said she would be well enough to dance on Saturday night. Tonights episode of Strictly sees the return of Movie Week, a beloved fixture in the shows run in which the couples dance to famous film soundtracks. Dennis and Buswell were due to perform the Waltz to Is It You (I Have Loved) from Shrek. Follow along with all Strictly-related live updates here... Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Stay ahead of the curve with our weekly guide to the latest trends, fashion, relationships and more Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice It might be known to millions as the Happiest Place on Earth, but Disney is also on its way to achieving another title: the most expensive place on Earth. Disney fans, including me, are angry and upset that the companys latest price hike announcement means single-day, single-park passes will jump to well over $200 per person for the first time during Thanksgiving and Christmas 2026. Tickets for this same period in 2025 top out at $199 for Magic Kingdom and less for the other parks. Its the fourth consecutive year that the company has raised prices for single-day or annual passes at its Anaheim and Orlando theme parks. And those $200 per-person, single-day passes? That includes children aged 10 or over. If youre thinking that younger kids must be significantly cheaper, Im about to burst your bubble because tickets for those aged three to nine are just $5 cheaper than an adult pass. Only those under age three can get in without the purchase of a park ticket. Thats a hefty day trip for a family of any size. And the price hikes dont stop there. open image in gallery Former Disney Cruise Line cast member Caitlin Hornik, seen at Disney World in 2021, reacts to Disney's latest price hikes ( Caitlin Hornik ) Disney has quietly raised prices across its U.S. theme parks on food, drinks, and souvenirs this month. One example, shared by popular account Disney Food Blog, was the price of Disney's signature Celebration Cake, which rose from $39 to $45 for a Mickey Mouse-inspired mousse creation that feeds four to six people. Disney is known to roll out price hikes each October as part of its fiscal plan, but this years announcement has struck a deeper nerve for fans. As the cost of a Disney vacation grows increasingly out of reach, the very enthusiasts who helped build the brands legacy are being priced out of the magic. Im one of them. Working for Disney Cruise Line as a performer in the Walt Disney Theatre was my first real job at barely 20 years old. I lived and worked on the Disney Wonder, sailing around Alaska and then the Caribbean, for more than seven months. It was every bit as magical as youd imagine. It was also my real introduction to Disney. I didnt visit the parks growing up, aside from one short-lived trip to Disneyland California. I didnt actually step foot onto Walt Disney World property until I worked for the company. But Ive now visited the Florida, California, Tokyo, and Paris parks as an adult and aim to hit all seven one day. I've been to the U.S. parks so many times that Ive lost count, but I know it's at least a dozen times in the past 11 years. open image in gallery Posing in front of my floating home, the Disney Wonder, while docked in Vancouver, Canada in September 2014 ( Caitlin Hornik ) Though its been many years since my cast member days, I take as much pride in having worked for the company now as I did then; I wear it like a badge of honor. And because of that, I love visiting the parks as often as possible. It reminds me of such a wonderful time in my life, sailing the high seas with Mickey Mouse as my boss. What more could I have asked for? For myself and millions of others, Disney is comfort. Its putting on Peter Pan when youre sick and being instantly brought back to childhood. Its listening to the Fantasmic theme when youre feeling blue and being immediately uplifted at the thought of Mickey Mouse dancing in Hollywood Studios. Its knowing you have a sense of belonging and community as a Disney fan, regardless of where you are in the world. But now Im priced out and Im only buying a ticket for one (Maybe two if Im treating my mom). Im far from being a family of four, and soon wont be able to step into a single park for less than $800. While planning a 2026 vacation to Florida's Disney World recently, I was struck by how expensive park tickets had become and that was before Thursdays announcement. No stranger to the companys prices as a former Disney Cruise Line cast member, I quickly tallied up the cost of park tickets and a hotel for four nights and was disheartened when I realized I was approaching $2,000 before even considering flights, food, and drinks. It became immediately apparent that I could no longer afford a quick weekend trip to get my Disney fix. open image in gallery Posing with my favorite princess and old friend, Snow White, during a 2023 visit to the parks ( Caitlin Hornik ) As an adult with no children, Im not someone who plans years in advance and saves for a dream Disney vacation. Sure, when I book a trip I put money aside each month in preparation, but I dont travel to the parks with any regularity, nor am I an annual pass holder. But so many people plan and save for years for this dream vacation that now just became less attainable. With Disneys dynamic pricing model, ticket prices vary depending on the date of the trip. Certain times of year are less expensive, while peak times, like holidays, are much more expensive. Even the difference of one week can mean saving (or spending) hundreds more. That means a family of four hoping to spend Thanksgiving or Christmas Day 2026 at the Magic Kingdom will have to shell out $209 per person for the day instead of this years $199. While it might not seem like a lot, it adds up quickly when you consider the other price hikes around the parks. Its a disappointing reality for me and thousands of others who see Disney (and their fellow fans) as their safe place. Of course, I could just go somewhere else. I could go to an all-inclusive resort on a beautiful tropical island or to somewhere more cultured than a theme park, but as a former cast member, Disney is a uniquely comforting place to me. open image in gallery My first visit to Walt Disney World in 2014 ( Caitlin Hornik ) The only thing more magical than landing at Orlando International Airport and taking the first ride of the trip (the airports monorail, of course) to the waiting Mears buses (RIP the Magical Express) is that first glimpse of Magic Kingdoms castle while skipping joyfully (yes, Im that person) down Main Street. Its a feeling of pure joy one that carries me all the way to Big Thunder Mountain Railroad. Knowing it may be a long time before I feel that again is genuinely upsetting. Its comforting to know that Im not alone in this; that others longing for a jolting ride on Space Mountain or a healing hug from Mickey Mouse will have to wait. Though for what, Im not quite sure. Prices certainly arent going to decrease anytime soon, no matter how loudly we scream into the ether or on social media. Comments on Disney Food Blogs Instagram post announcing the new price hikes ranged from anger to heartbreak. We are not renewing our annual passes next year after 11 years, one person who commented on Disney Food Blogs post promised. The prices are insane and the parks are too crowded. Not magical anymore. Another park-goer lamented the ticket prices on Facebook, saying that while he and his family have been avid visitors for the last 20 years, their Disney vacations might be coming to an end. We have loved our time there, but this [price hikes] could put us in a situation where we may never visit again! he wrote. This is so sad for young families who could be enjoying all the fun there is there, but just can't cover the cost. You should be ashamed Disney!! The most magical place on earth has become the most costly place on earth! open image in gallery The joy of skipping down Main Street USA is unrivaled ( Caitlin Hornik ) open image in gallery Posing in front of the castle in 2023. It will never get old ( Caitlin Hornik ) Meanwhile, a Disney spokesperson told Business Insider the parks have "options designed to suit a wide range of needs and budgets for all who visit." "Our commitment to creating magical experiences for everyone remains at the heart of what we do and that will never change," they added. That said, not everyone is upset, of course. Some Disney diehards argue the higher prices might reduce crowds during peak seasons. "If you charge just enough to have some people second-guess going during the best time of the year, people who are at the parks then are probably going to enjoy it a bit more," Disney fan Lucas Lozano told Business Insider. Travel planner Rob Stuart agreed, saying, It wont affect demand at all except in the positive people will think its less crowded. Maybe theyre right. Perhaps this is part of Disneys strategy not just to manage crowds but also to nudge would-be park visitors toward other, equally profitable experiences, like Disney Cruise Line. Once I realized a 2026 trip to the parks was out of the question, it dawned on me to check DCL sailings instead. Sure enough, it was significantly cheaper to sail on the new Disney Destiny for four nights than to visit the parks for the same amount of time thousands of dollars cheaper. With DCL slated to roll out the Destiny and the Adventure in the coming months, bringing the total number of ships in its fleet to eight (with several more in the works), there are more options than ever before to sail on a Mickey boat, as I like to call them. Disney knows exactly what its doing even if its at the expense of families whove spent years saving for a visit, only to have that dream priced out of reach. Maybe, instead of walking down Main Street, theyll find themselves sailing into the sunset. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Long Beach Police have identified a 22-year-old California State University, Long Beach student who was stabbed to death by one of his roommates over the weekend. The incident occurred on Sunday October 5 on Temple Avenue, according to the police department. Officers who responded to the incident found two men at the scene with stab wounds to their upper bodies. One of the victims was taken to a hospital in stable condition, while the other victim was declared dead at the scene. Police have identified the individual who died as 22-year-old Spencer Timms. He was studying industrial design at the university and had just transferred to the school from Saddleback College. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office listed Timms cause of death as being multiple stab wounds to the chest. The Walter Pyramid at California State University, Long Beach. A CSULB student, Spencer Timms, 22, was killed in a stabbing at a nearby commercial district on October 5 ( Google Maps ) Alejandro Iniestra, 34, of Long Beach, was at the scene when police arrived and has been arrested as a suspect in the stabbing. He has been charged with murder and is being held on a $2 million bail, according to the Long Beach Current. Investigators believe Iniestra attacked both of the roommates, but a motive has not been made public by police. The University of California, Long Beach provided the following statement to local broadcaster KTLA: We are deeply saddened by the loss of our student, Spencer Timms. We have been in touch with Spencers family and have been reaching out to and supporting his Beach classmates and faculty," the university said. The identity of the other roommate injured in the attack has not been made public by police. The dean for the school's College of Arts Royce W Smith sent students emails discussing Timms on Wednesday. It is with a heavy heart that I share with you that one of our Department of Design and College of Arts students, Spencer Timms, passed away in Long Beach this past Saturday, the statement said. Smith described Timms as being an "incredibly positive and impactful student, maintaining a 4.0 GPA during his time at CSULB and sharing a passion for design." I remember quite well meeting Spencer on one of my visits to the department and clearly recall seeing and admiring the creative fire in him and his work, Smith said in the statement. A student who knew he had something special to offer and who put all of himself into honing his talents and focusing his ambition. Police have asked that anyone with information regarding the incident to contact investigators. The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice The Real Housewives of Potomac star Wendy Osefo and her husband, Eddie, have asked for privacy after they were arrested on insurance fraud charges. The Carroll County Sheriffs Office in Maryland announced the arrests, shortly after TMZ broke the story, late Friday morning. The sheriffs office said it had responded to a report of a burglary and theft at the Osefos home in April 2024. When they arrived, the Osefos said they returned from vacation to find their home had been robbed, according to the authorities. They reported approximately 80 items of jewelry, luxury goods, clothing, and shoes were stolen, worth a total of more than $200,000, the sheriffs office said in a Facebook post. open image in gallery Real Housewives of Potomac star Wendy Osefo and her husband, Eddie, have asked for privacy after they were arrested on insurance fraud charges ( Michael Loccisano/Getty Images ) Despite the Osefos playing the victims, police claim they are actually the suspects. An investigation found more than $20,000 of the items reported stolen were returned by the Osefos to where they bought them, police said. Detectives also discovered Wendy on social media wearing a diamond anniversary band, which she had claimed was stolen, weeks after the reported robbery, according to bail memos obtained by ABC News. According to the bail memos, an anniversary band was listed on two separate insurance claims with different insurance companies. The couple, both 41, was indicted on Thursday on charges of insurance fraud, conspiracy insurance fraud and making false statements. They were arrested but posted a $50,000 bond each and were released from custody on Friday, according to authorities. open image in gallery Wendy and Eddie said in April 2024 that they returned from vacation to find their home had been robbed, according to the authorities ( Carroll County Sheriff's Office ) open image in gallery Eddie and Wendy were indicted on Thursday on multiple charges, including insurance fraud and making false statements ( Carroll County Sheriff's Office ) The Osefos are back home safely with their family and in good spirits. They are grateful for the outpouring of concern and support from friends, fans, and colleagues, a representative for the couple told ABC News Friday. "The Osefos, alongside their legal team, look forward to their day in court. At this time, they respectfully ask for privacy as they focus on their family and the legal process ahead, the representative added. Wendy has been one of Bravos Real Housewives since 2020 and, according to her online profiles, has taught at Johns Hopkins School of Education. Shes also a political commentator who has appeared on networks such as CNN, Fox News and ABC, according to her website. Eddie said he is an attorney and serial entrepreneur on his Instagram profile. He is the founder and CEO of a cannabis company called Happy Eddie. Sign up for the daily Inside Washington email for exclusive US coverage and analysis sent to your inbox Get our free Inside Washington email Get our free Inside Washington email Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice A producer and editor for WGN-TV was aggressively detained and driven away by Border Patrol agents on Friday morning during an Immigration and Customs Enforcement action in Chicagos Lincoln Park neighborhood. Debbie Brockman, who has worked for the local television station since 2011, was violently forced to the ground by two federal agents before having her hands cuffed behind her back. While she was face down on the street with the masked agents placing handcuffs on her, a local resident filming the encounter asked her name. Debbie Brockman, I work for WGN. Please let them know, a frantic Brockman told Josh Thomas, who works at a Chicago law firm and lives near the intersection where the arrest occurred. According to Thomas, another unidentified man had also been detained by the agents. Brockman was accused of assaulting a federal law enforcement officer, a Homeland Security official told The Independent. But no charges have been filed against her and she was released from Customs and Border Protection custody on Friday afternoon, WGN said in a statement. With onlookers shouting at the agents and calling them fascists, the officers eventually pulled up the cuffed Brockman whose pants had fallen during the rough encounter and tossed her into an unmarked silver van with New Jersey plates. As the officers got in the car, according to videos from Thomas and others at the scene, residents shouted Nazi f*cks at the agents as the vehicle peeled off and rammed another SUV. A WGN-TV producer and editor was roughly detained and taken away by Border Patrol agents in Chicago on Friday morning. ( YouTube ) Get out of our neighborhood. Get out of our city, one pedestrian is heard yelling at the agents as other bystanders honked their car horns and tossed epithets at the officers. The TV station addressed the incident in a statement. Earlier today, a WGN-TV creative services employee was detained by ICE. She has since been released, and no charges were filed against her, the station said. Out of respect for her privacy, we will have no further statements about this incident. In a statement to The Independent, Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin said Border Patrol agents were conducting immigration enforcement operations and when several violent agitators used their vehicles to block in agents in an effort to impede and assault federal officer. In fear of public safety and of law enforcement, officers used their service vehicle to strike a suspects vehicle and create an opening, she said. As agents were driving, Deborah Brockman, a U.S. citizen, threw objects at Border Patrols car and she was placed under arrest for assault on a federal law enforcement officer. McLaughlin added: This incident is not isolated and reflects a growing and dangerous trend of illegal aliens violently resisting arrest and agitators and criminals ramming cars into our law enforcement officers. These attacks highlight the dangers our law enforcement officers face dailyall while receiving no pay thanks to the Democrats government shutdown. As of publication, Brockmans name had yet to show up on a federal criminal arrest docket in Chicago. Speaking to the Chicago Tribune, Thomas said that by the time he came out of his apartment, the agents already had an unidentified Latino male in the vehicle and had Brockman face down in the middle of the road. I walk out the front door of the condo, shes laying on the ground in the street and theyre wrestling with her, trying to get her hands behind her back, he said. They said they were detaining her for obstruction. She said, I didnt obstruct. The Trump administration has surged federal officers into Chicago and other Democratic-led cities to support the presidents mass deportation agenda, which has been met with growing protests outside ICE facilities. Trump has federalized hundreds of National Guard troops, including troops from Texas, to support federal officers in Chicago and elsewhere, but a federal judge on Thursday temporarily blocked the administration from sending the military to Americas largest city. A lawsuit from Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzkers administration and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson accuses the president of seeking to escalate tensions by sending troops into the state in an attempt to justify a wider presence of military forces on American soil. Protesters, members of the press, and local faith leaders have also sued the administration over what they have called a pattern of extreme brutality from federal agents, decked out in combat gear and armed with so-called less-lethal crowd control weapons that have seriously injured civilians, according to the lawsuit. Another federal judge ordered federal officers to stand down from using those weapons without warning, among other constraints. Ferrari (RACE), a crown jewel of the auto sector and darling of investors, has hit a roadblock. The Maranello, Italy-based luxury automaker unveiled its latest long-term plan at its capital markets day on Thursday, and investors were not impressed. Ferrari said 2025 net revenue would come in at or exceed 7.1 billion euros ($8.24 billion), up from its prior projection of more than 7 billion euros, but not high enough for investors in a stock that trades at 40 times forward earnings, per Yahoo Finance tabulations. Ferrari said its 2025 adjusted EBITDA would come in at greater than 2.72 billion euros ($3.14 billion) or above, higher than the 2.68 billion euros ($3.1 billion) seen previously, but not good enough for investors. A Ferrari worker inspects a car inside the company's factory in Maranello, Italy, on Oct. 2. (Reuters/Remo Casilli/File Photo) Reuters / Reuters The automaker's longer-term guidance was too conservative for the market as well. Ferrari's 2030 revenue target of 9 billion euros ($10.4 billion) on adjusted EBITDA of 3.6 billion euros ($4.16 billion) or more missed the mark. Per Bloomberg, RBC's Tom Narayan noted that Ferrari's 2030 EBITDA forecast implies a 6% CAGR (compound annual growth rate), below the 10% rate forecast at the company's 2022 capital markets day. Ferrari's stock tumbled over 10% following the updated guidance. Ferrari, which commands adjusted EBITDA margins in the high 30% range, has metrics most automakers would dream of. But the brand views itself as somewhat in transition. Read more: How to find the best luxury car insurance The company had forecast an EV target of 40% of sales only three years ago. Today, the company sees only 20% of its sales being fully electric, with 40% being gas-powered cars and 40% hybrid. Ferrari said the changes were due to a "client-centric" approach to its product portfolio, meaning clients were not necessarily champing at the bit to get into an electric Ferrari. Fellow luxury automakers, such as Lamborghini, Bentley, and Porsche (PAH3.DE), have also throttled down their EV ambitions, given market conditions. Ferrari will still release its upcoming EV and revealed more details about the vehicle. Dubbed the Ferrari Elettrica, the EV will debut in 2026 as another product line for the company. The EV chassis of the Ferrari Elettrica. Ferrari The EV chassis, which was displayed on Thursday in Maranello, will be a four-seat grand touring vehicle with four electric motors, one for each wheel. The Elettrica will have over 1,000 horsepower and can rocket from 0 to 60 mph in 2.5 seconds. "With the new Ferrari Elettrica, we once again affirm our will to progress by uniting the discipline of technology, the creativity of design and the craft of manufacturing," Ferrari executive chair John Elkann said in a statement. Polish contract packer FILLSY has opened a manufacturing facility in Zyrardow, Poland, in collaboration with Meadow. The plant will produce Swedish packaging technology company Meadows aluminium pre-fill solution, the MEADOW KAPSUL. FILLSY will fund the project, committing to invest 4m ($4.6m) by the end of 2027. It also looks to invest another 10m to build production lines and expand the plant by the end of 2030. The facility is expected to produce up to 10 million units annually from 2025, with a target capacity of 100 million units per year by the end of 2027. FILLSY will be the first European manufacturer to industrialise the MEADOW KAPSUL technology at scale. The plant will be fitted with latest industrial machinery intended to serve clients in the European market and will include a showroom for MEADOW KAPSUL to allow partners and prospective customers to see the technology and its applications across food, personal care and home-product categories. The announcement follows the European Unions February 2025 adoption of the Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation, which sets binding targets for recyclability and material reduction. The new plant is projected to increase regional capacity to cope up with rising demand for packaging solutions that are compliant with regulation and designed to address packaging waste. Meadow CEO and co-founder Victor Ljungberg stated: We are thrilled to announce this partnership with FILLSY. It marks a major production foothold for Meadow in Europe, and comes at a time of growing market demand for our solutions. FILLSY co-founder Pawe Siwirski stated: By establishing this factory at the heart of Europe, in a country that is a growing hub for FMCG [fast-moving consumer goods] innovation, we are ensuring that the MEADOW KAPSUL system is readily available to brands across the continent. This investment is a huge step in strengthening Europes capacity to deliver sustainable packaging at scale, supporting the cosmetics and wider consumer goods industries as they work to comply with [...] packaging and waste regulation. "FILLSY and Meadow set up packaging plant in Poland" was originally created and published by Packaging Gateway, a GlobalData owned brand. Advertisement Review Eating outCoburg Forget avo toast, this cafe is serving one of the best value brunches in town Theres only one thing on the menu at Coburgs Palestinian cafe Beit Siti, and it gives Melbournes brunch scene a run for its money. Dani Valent October 12, 2025 Save 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 November 2025 hit list. See all stories . 1 / 6 Inside Palestinian cafe Beit Siti in Coburg. Chris Hopkins 2 / 6 The breakfast sofra, a banquet of many small dishes, is one of the best value brunches in town. Chris Hopkins 3 / 6 Arabic coffe made with Coburgs Constance Coffee beans. Chris Hopkins 4 / 6 The qudsiyeh (hummus with fava beans). Chris Hopkins 5 / 6 The homely cafe was born from food truck Falastini. Chris Hopkins 6 / 6 The makdous (stuffed eggplant) as part of the breakfast sofra. Chris Hopkins Previous Slide Next Slide Middle Eastern$$$$ At Palestinian cafe Beit Siti, theres only one item on the menu, but it contains multitudes, and tells many tales. The one thing is a sofra, or banquet of many small dishes, and its one of the best-value brunches in town. The only choice you need to make is whether you want the vegetarian or vegan versions (both are $25, and a meat menu may be added soon), and what you want to drink. The food just arrives: suddenly youre feasting. Qudsiyeh is a plate of hummus topped with ful, a warm mash of fava beans, the comforting tones sharpened by green chilli relish and bright olive oil. Related Article Three family-run Middle Eastern restaurants with soul in spades Advertisement Galayet bandora can be translated from Arabic as frying pan of tomatoes and its really that literal: onion, garlic and green chilli highlight the sweet tartness of the chopped tomatoes and whole cumin seeds add textural pop. Cute, plump baby eggplants are salted, pressed and stuffed with walnuts and chilli to create makdous. Theyre pert and savoury, shining in a slick of olive oil, a chewy counterpoint to the lusciousness of the dippy dishes. Food is always held in time. There are the stories a meal carries from the past. Theres the hope it can carry for the future. And, at its best, theres a powerful anchoring in the present, bringing those around the table to the here and now. The world is a mess but or maybe and is better we can break bread and swipe it through hummus and be together in this room. I felt all this here. The makdous (stuffed eggplant) as part of the breakfast sofra. Chris Hopkins Beit Siti means grandmas home in Arabic and is a reference to owner Rahaf Al Khatibs paternal grandmother, Teta Um Amjad, who fled Palestine in 1948 after the creation of Israel. Al Khatib was born in Jordan and emigrated to Melbourne with her parents and teta when she was four. While her parents worked long hours as pharmaceutical chemists, Al Khatib and her three younger siblings were nurtured by her grandmother, speaking Arabic and eating many of the Palestinian dishes shes now sharing in Coburg. Advertisement It wasnt a straight path: Al Khatib worked in HR, got burnt out during COVID and used a redundancy payment to buy the vehicle that she turned into Falastini Food Truck. That led to pop-ups, events and, since May, this cosy two-room couch-dotted cafe on a main road near Coburg Station. Because cuisine is a tapestry, not a single thread, some plates tell different family stories. The mish was introduced by a Gazan staff member a fermented chilli-amped yoghurt sauce, its made here with milk left over from the coffee machine, and is a lovely dressing for the tomatoes, or simply as a pita soaker. The qudsiyeh (hummus with fava beans). Chris Hopkins With all these dishes there are also olives, pickles, cheese, bread, oil and zaatar humble ingredients are elevated to something special by the care thats gone into the preparation and the plating. Coburgs Constance Coffee supplies excellent beans, including a cardamom-scented blend roasted especially for glossy, silky Arabic coffee. Baked goods arent strictly traditional or regional: a precisely crafted sponge cake reflects Al Khatibs mums chemistry background, and a choc-chip cookie leans towards halva with the addition of tahini and nigella seeds. Beyond the simple act of gathering to eat, there are Palestinian textiles for sale, and books lying around that celebrate and lament Palestinian people, culture and stories. Rahaf Al Khatib sees Beit Siti as an act of resistance. Her warmth, sense of welcome, and the pure deliciousness of the food mean that this resistance is expressed as an opening rather than a wall. Advertisement Al Khatibs mother and grandmother have died: shes the matriarch and theres a sense that she keenly feels her role as keeper of tales, now and for a hopeful future. With heart, courage and creativity, shes created a space of humanity and connection, a grandmothers house for everyone. Three other brunch sets to try Torissong Teishoku are Japanese set meals; you choose a main course and it arrives alongside soup, pickles, rice, salad and a sweet. Torissongs thoughtful and appealing tray meals start at $28 with a main dish of agedashi tofu or red miso eggplant, or you can splurge on steak for up to $58. Theres also a kids version from $14. Bookings are recommended. 2/143 Queensberry Street, Carlton, instagram.com/torissongmelbourne Republica For a brunch set with a difference, head to this sprawling St Kilda Sea Baths restaurant where DJs are spinning from 10.30am every Saturday. Blue swimmer crab scramble is the go, and Brisket Mary is the morning cocktail of choice, a spin on Bloody Mary with brisket-fat vodka, spicy tomato juice, horseradish and tabasco. 10-18 Jacka Boulevard, St Kilda, republica.net.au Semosh Mums Kitchen Every Friday, Saturday and Sunday, this welcoming Turkish restaurant puts on a generous breakfast spread for $35 per person. Settle in for a savoury and sweet traditional banquet including boreks, shakshuka, various cheeses, olives, pickles and, of course, tea an essential accompaniment to any Turkish gathering. 324 Keilor Road, Essendon North, semoshmumskitchen.com.au Good Food reviews are booked anonymously and paid independently. A restaurant cant pay for a review or inclusion in the Good Food Guide. Restaurant reviews, news and the hottest openings served to your inbox. Sign up Victoria is legislating the first treaty with Indigenous peoples in Australia. Watch the video to find out how we got here and what it will mean in practice. October 14, 2025 by Jack Latimore Victorias only mental health hospital for prisoners is slashing key specialist roles that care for some of the states highest-risk psychiatric patients, at the same time concerns grow over the danger of drug abuse within its wards. Doctors and drug specialists are being culled from Thomas Embling Hospital even as the state government adds dozens of beds to the Fairfield facility, which already has staffing challenges that cant cope with demand. Thomas Embling Hospital in Fairfield, pictured in 2023. Credit: Scott McNaughton Forensicare, which runs the hospital for mentally ill patients in the criminal justice system, has blamed the Victorian budget for its redundancies. Despite proposing to cut a drug specialist nurse position, Forensicare has privately conceded illicit drugs were circulating within the facility. When Matthew Danos first invited Georgia Geminder to his home during COVID lockdowns, he left out one small detail: it was the flat designed by Sir Roy Grounds the Australian modernist architect behind the National Gallery of Victoria for his family. I met Georgia during COVID lockdowns; we had been chatting on text for two months because we couldnt see each other, Danos, the managing director of James Richardson Investments, recalls. We had our first date here because it was when they introduced the singles buddy policy. We sat by the courtyard before she got picked up by her sister at 8.45pm to beat the 9pm curfew. Matthew Danos has put the famous Sir Roy Grounds home in Tooraks Hill Street on the market. Credit: Alex Coppel This was is no ordinary courtyard. The first of five units known as the Hill Street Flats, 1/24 Hill Street, Toorak, is renowned for its use of geometry a circular courtyard, open to the sky and featuring two batches of bamboo, in the centre of a square-building footprint. All the primary spaces lounge, dining, [the sleeping areas] were arranged in an open plan that exploded across and around the fully glazed courtyard, wrote architect Tony Lee in his book Roy Grounds: Experiments in Minimum Living. London: A senior Hamas leader has confirmed plans to release Israeli hostages from Monday morning (Israel time) to meet a crucial deadline in the Gaza ceasefire ahead of a ceremony in Egypt to mark a peace deal that could end the war. The move comes as US President Donald Trump prepares to fly to Egypt for the peace ceremony on Monday, along with as many as 20 other national leaders, in a sign of international support for enforcing the terms of the agreement. Flanked by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff speaks at a rally supporting the hostages in Tel Aviv on Saturday. Credit: AP But top Hamas officials are seeking to assert their control over key parts of Gaza as the Israel Defence Forces withdraw from the devastated war zone, with the BBC reporting that 7000 fighters are being recalled to the territory. The Hamas Interior Ministry said on Friday its police force would deploy across Gaza, and by Saturday, armed and masked men wearing caps labelled Internal Security were seen carrying out vehicle checks, according to witnesses, and footage on social media and Al Jazeera TV. Hyundai reduces 2026 IONIQ 5 pricing by up to $9,800 Average price reduction for all 2026 IONIQ 5 models is $9,155 Enhances EV accessibility and competitiveness Pricing for the exceptionally well-equipped 2026 IONIQ 5 SE begins at $35,000 MSRP $7,500 cash incentive carries over for 2025 IONIQ 5 models 2026 IONIQ 5 Lineup Changes Dual amperage Level 1 / Level 2 combination charger now included with all models New Sage Silver Matte color added Vibrant Ultimate Red and Cosmic Blue Pearl colors available on all models FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif., Oct. 1, 2025 -- Hyundai Motor America today announced substantial pricing reductions across the 2026 IONIQ 5 lineup, reinforcing the brand's commitment to making EVs more accessible and competitive in the rapidly evolving EV market. The repositioning effort includes model price reductions ranging from $7,600 to $9,800, enabling Hyundai to better align with current market dynamics and support increased U.S. production volume. These changes come as part of a broader strategy to maintain the IONIQ brand's leadership in the electric vehicle space while responding to shifting consumer expectations and competitive pressures. "Hyundai is taking bold steps to ensure our award-winning IONIQ 5 remains a top choice for EV buyers," said Randy Parker, president and CEO, Hyundai Motor North America. "This pricing realignment reflects our commitment to delivering exceptional technology and innovation without compromise." 2025 IONIQ 5 Pricing Compared with 2026 IONIQ 5 Pricing Model Motor 2025 MSRP 2026 MSRPi Price Reduction IONIQ 5 SE RWD Standard Range 125 kW (168 hp) Electric Motor $42,600 $35,000 ($7,600) IONIQ 5 SE RWD 168 kW (225 hp) Electric Motor $46,650 $37,500 ($9,150) IONIQ 5 SEL RWD 168 kW (225 hp) Electric Motor $49,600 $39,800 ($9,800) IONIQ 5 Limited RWD 168 kW (225 hp) Electric Motor $54,300 $45,075 ($9,225) IONIQ 5 SE AWD 74 kW + 165 kW (320 hp) Electric Motors $50,150 $41,000 ($9,150) IONIQ 5 SEL AWD 74 kW + 165 kW (320 hp) Electric Motors $53,100 $43,300 ($9,800) IONIQ 5 XRT AWD 74 kW + 165 kW (320 hp) Electric Motors $55,500 $46,275 ($9,225) IONIQ 5 XRT AWD with Tow Hitch 74 kW + 165 kW (320 hp) Electric Motors $55,950 $46,725 ($9,225) IONIQ 5 Limited AWD 74 kW + 165 kW (320 hp) Electric Motors $58,200 $48,975 ($9,225) Freight Charges for the 2026 model year IONIQ 5 are $1,600. Prices in the chart above do not include freight charges. Hyundai's IONIQ 5 has earned top accolades including: Hyundai IONIQ 5 Awards: World Car of the Year World Electric Vehicle of the Year World Car Design of the Year IIHS Top Safety Pick+ Best Electric SUV U.S. News & World Report Best Tech Powertrain MotorTrend EV of the Year Car and Driver Top Pick for New Parents/Suburbanites/Tomorrow Seekers Newsweek Auto Awards Best Cars for the Money U.S. News Best Electric Vehicle Cars.com Wards 10 Best Engines & Propulsion Systems Best Buy Awards Kelley Blue Book Remaining 2025 model year IONIQ 5 vehicles will continue to qualify for $7,500 purchase and lease incentives. 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, and several cutting-edge R&D facilities. These operations, combined with those of Hyundai's 850 independent dealers, contribute $20.1 billion annually and 190,000 jobs to the U.S. economy, according to a published economic impact report. For more information, visit www.hyundainews.com. Taiwan's population declines for 21st consecutive month Xinhua) 10:33, October 11, 2025 TAIPEI, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Taiwan's population has registered negative growth for a 21st consecutive month, according to figures released by the island's interior affairs office, highlighting the serious demographic challenges it faces. The latest statistics reveal that Taiwan's population totaled 23.317 million at the end of September. In that month alone, its total population dropped by 87,107 year on year, and by 11,312 from the previous month. By the end of September, the number of residents aged 65 or above neared 4.62 million, accounting for 19.8 percent of the island's population -- just shy of the 20 percent threshold that defines a "super-aged" society. Only 81,381 babies were born in Taiwan the first three quarters of this year, which was down 16,352 from the same period last year. Local media have warned that if the current demographic trend continues, Taiwan's twin challenges of declining birth rates and population aging will intensify further. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) When retired Army veteran Luis Angel Gomez hired Dreamscape Pools for his Hillsborough County, Florida home in 2023, he thought his backyard project would be straight-forward as his nieces was. But, unlike his nieces experience, it turned into what Gomez calls his biggest nightmare ever. (1) After he paid almost the full contract price of $111,535, contractor David Robbins stopped showing up, leaving Gomez with an unfinished pool and mounting financial strain. Other people across Florida report similar experiences with Robbins, who faces charges of grand theft and has since had his contractor license revoked. The red flags Contractors typically ask for deposits upfront, but paying the full contract price before work is complete, as Gomez nearly did, is a major red flag. According to the Federal Trade Commission, homeowners should never pay in full before the work is complete and should limit upfront payments to no more than one-third of the total project cost. (2) In this case and others like it, Robbins took large deposits and sometimes nearly the entire contract value without finishing the projects. Another customer, Jamie Wolczynski, said he paid $66,000 for a pool installation that remains unfinished more than three years later. (1) Financial consequences for victims For Gomez, the fallout has been severe. Completing the project required hiring another contractor for $78,000 money he had to get through a loan. This not only adds more debt to the mortgage he was already paying, but could also impact his credit score and strain his budget for day-to-day necessities. This is an issue many Americans face, as the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau notes, "Overall financial stability and well-being deteriorated from 2023 to 2024 ... more households had difficulty paying bills or expenses (and) access to credit remains difficult for many consumers. (3) On top of this, borrowing to fix unfinished work also reduces a households ability to save for retirement or emergencies, as debt repayment takes priority. What victims can do Victims of fraudulent or negligent contractors have several avenues for recourse. The first step is often to file a police report and pursue legal action. In Robbins case, civil lawsuits have led to judgments against him, including a $144,000 award in Manatee County that the customer is still waiting to collect. (1) In Florida, some victims may qualify for the Florida Homeowners Construction Recovery Fund, which provides compensation to people who lose money due to licensed contractors misconduct. (4) SHERWOOD PARK, AB, Oct. 10, 2025 -- Sherwood Ford is hosting two exciting community events this October: the Fill a Ford Food Drive, running all month long, and Ford Dealer Days, taking place on Saturday, October 18, from 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. at the dealership. Community members are encouraged to drop off food items to help feed our community. Plus, doing so during Ford Dealer Days will enter individuals for a chance to win Oilers event tickets. Fill a Ford Food Drive: Feeding Families Through the Holidays Throughout the month of October, Sherwood Ford invites the community to participate in its Fill a Ford Food Drive, benefiting the Strathcona Food Bank. Guests are encouraged to drop off non-perishable food items at the dealership to help local families in need during the upcoming holiday season. Every donation countstogether, we can fill our Ford vehicles and fill plates across Strathcona County. Plus, each test drive taken this month will earn a monetary donation from Sherwood Ford to the Strathcona Food Bank. As a special bonus, participants who drop off donations on October 18 between 1 and 3 p.m. during Ford Dealer Days will have the opportunity to earn extra entries for prize giveaways, including exclusive Edmonton Oilers Ford merchandise and game-day tickets. Register today to join the fun and make an impact. Ford Dealer Days at Sherwood Ford on October 18 from 13 p.m. Location: Sherwood Ford, 2540 Broadmoor Blvd, Sherwood Park, AB Date: Saturday, October 18 Time: 1:00 p.m. 3:00 p.m. Admission: Free! Sherwood Ford is thrilled to be a host location for Ford Dealer Days, a family-friendly celebration that brings together the excitement of the Edmonton Oilers and the innovation of Ford. This interactive event will feature fun activities, test drives, and chances to win exclusive prizes, all while connecting with the local community. Event Highlights Capture the Moment: Step into the fan-favourite photo booth and snap memorable photos with friends, family, and even Hunter, the Oilers' mascot. Experience the Ride: Take part in exclusive test drives of the latest Ford models and discover advanced technology, comfort, and performance firsthand. Play and Win: Join fun games and raffles for the chance to win OilersFord merch and Edmonton Oilers game tickets. Meet the Legends: Meet beloved Oilers alumni and Lynx, their mascot, and enjoy a meet-and-greet and autograph session. Alumni guests will be announced closer to the event; follow Sherwood Ford's social channels for updates. Fuel Up: Enjoy complimentary food and drinks while exploring everything Ford has to offer. Frequently Asked Questions Do I need to register to attend? Yes, registration is highly recommended so we can ensure the best experience for all guests. Register here. Who can attend? Everyone is welcome! Bring your friends, family, and fellow Oilers fans. Is there a cost to attend? No, this event is completely free. Will there be test drives? Yes! Take a test drive during the event for another chance to win seats to an Oilers game. Is it indoors or outdoors? The event will take place both indoors and outdoors at Sherwood Ford. About Sherwood Ford Located in Sherwood Park, Alberta, Sherwood Ford is a trusted community-driven dealership dedicated to serving drivers across the Edmonton area. Known for its award-winning customer service, wide selection of new and pre-owned Ford vehicles, and commitment to local causes, Sherwood Ford takes pride in supporting the community year-round. Event Registration: https://tradablebits.com/tb_app/518964 Gap Inc has entered a multi-year alliance with Google Cloud to reimagine retail using AI. The partnership will offer the US apparel retailer a unified, AI platform built on Google Cloud technologies such as Gemini, Vertex AI and BigQuery. The platform is intended to enhance product creation, customer experience and employee enablement. This is said to expedite a human-centred digitally enabled technology strategy across the companys range of brands: Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta. Gap Inc states that the collaboration is expected to speed up product innovation by using AI tools to speed design, planning and pricing processes, with the aim of increasing efficiency and streamlining the path from concept to shelf. The company also anticipates improvements in customer experience and marketing, with hyper-personalised shopping, smarter recommendations and seamless consumer engagement to enhance relevance and loyalty across its customer base. Employee empowerment is another benefit highlighted. AI will be used to reimagine how teams and service agents make decisions and carry out tasks, helping the company become more agile and responsive. It already works with Google on advertising. The retailer uses Google Ads and Google AI to optimise ad placements and campaigns as part of its omnichannel strategy. Gap Inc chief technology officer Sven Gerjets stated: We believe this partnership gives us the expertise and speed to bring AI to life across our business, empowering teams, sparking creativity and delivering for customers faster and with greater personalisation than ever. In September 2025, Gap Inc announced its expansion into beauty and accessories as it continues to position itself as a highperforming house of iconic American brands. In the second quarter of fiscal 2025, the company posted net sales of $3.7bn, flat year-on-year, with online sales rising 3% and comprising 34% of total net sales. "Gap collaborates with Google Cloud to embed AI across operations" was originally created and published by Retail Insight Network, a GlobalData owned brand. Centre bats for pvt players in power distribution sector Staff Reporter : Central Government has circulated a draft of proposed amendments in Electricity Bill 2023, laying thrust on complete unbundling of States monopoly in power distribution sector. Union Ministry of Power has sought State Governments comments on the Draft Electricity (Amendments) Bill 2025, which bats for putting an end to era of cross subsidy. As the preface states, the new bill gives an outlook of ensuring an affordable, reliable and clean power along side improving the service quality. The circular dated October 9 provides 30 days time for States to provide their feedback on the proposed amendments. The draft talks about reducing Rs 6.9 lakh crore cumulative losses and make the power sector financially sustainable. As is well known, the distribution utilities are saddled with huge liabilities due to transmission and commercial losses. So the goal envisaged while trifurcating of State Electricity Board have not been met. Now Central Government wants to bring in competition in power distribution sector so that overall financial health of power utilities can be improved. The competition would ensure best of industry practices on each of the distribution company. Also, through systematic intervention, the Centre is keen to oversee transition of India to clean energy to meet the objectives and goals envisaged in Paris Climate Accord. Listing the objectives in new Act, it is stated that electricity tariff should reflect the supply cost and also placed onus on regulators to revise the same from time to time. A time period of 120-day maximum is placed on regulators for deciding the tariff petition, and in case same is not met, then the reasons are to be recorded in writing. Hike in Power Charges: The draft in fact hints at substantial hike in power charges stating that for reliable and affordable electricity, the financial health of distribution companies must be healthy. But Distribution Licensees face chronic losses as tariffs currently charged does not fully recover the actual cost of supplying electricity. This gap force utilities to borrow heavily that affects the quality and long-term sustainability of power supply. To justify the hike, the draft refers to Supreme Court 2025 judgement that electricity tariffs must be cost-reflective to ensure the financial viability of the power sector. Cross Subsidy: The cross subsidy burden is most contentious issue that the industry has been demanding same be withdrawn to boost their competitiveness. Ending cross subsidy would benefit Railways, Metro, and the manufacturing units. Each of these sector can reap immense benefits, as fares would rationalise and manufacturing cost can come down. The proposed amendments aim to rationalise electricity tariffs, unlock demand and reduce logistics costs, thereby strengthening Indias economic productivity and global competitiveness. The Bill lays down period of 5-year for distribution utilities to end cross subsidy. Open Access & Competition: Similarly, the current investment put in by States in erecting electricity infrastructure is proposed to be opened for sharing by all. The draft refers to exempting distribution licensees from universal service obligation (USO) for consumers who are eligible for open access. Present rules bound Distribution Licensees to provide power to all consumers, including those eligible for open access (above 1 MW) that puts the companies financial health at risk. For the same the draft proposes that State Electricity Regulatory Commissions may designate one of the distribution licensees to supply power at a premium over the cost of supply, if other supply arrangements fail. Also it has implied that Distribution licensees can share existing networks instead of duplicating them thus saving costs and optimising infrastructure. Captive Power & Energy Storage: The draft also clears air on captive power and more importantly energy storage with advent of batteries a legal clarity given to captive generation and new recognition of Energy Storage Systems (ESS). Clean Energy Push: To meet the target of power generation of 500 GW through non-fossil means, Centre said State must meet the minimum target set. Coldrif syrup sample fails again; toxic batch linked to Chhindwara childrens deaths Staff Reporter : Another sample of Coldrif syrup, the pediatric medicine allegedly responsible for the deaths of 23 children in Chhindwara, has failed laboratory testing at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) facility in Eidgah Hills, Bhopal. The failed sample was collected from Jabalpur and belongs to the same batch previously flagged for substandard quality in Chhindwara. Food and Drug Controller Dinesh Shrivastava confirmed that this brings the total number of failed samples from the batch to four, all of which have been found to contain hazardous substances. The Jabalpur sample reinforces our concern that the entire batch is toxic and unfit for consumption, Shrivastava said. Following the Chhindwara tragedy, the FDA launched a State-wide crackdown, collecting 254 syrup samples from various districts across Madhya Pradesh. Shrivastava added that the department is receiving three to four lab reports daily, with over 35 reports submitted so far. The presence of toxic compounds in multiple samples has raised serious questions about pharmaceutical oversight and batch-level quality control. Authorities are expected to take stringent action against the manufacturer once the full set of reports is compiled.The tragic deaths have sparked public outrage and renewed calls for stricter drug safety protocols. The FDA continues to monitor the situation closely, with further reports anticipated in the coming days. Germany could suffer economic losses of around 40 billion euros if this winter turns out colder than average, gas utility Uniper has warned in a report that said such a development could plunge Germany into a recession. Every year, as October begins and with it, quite often, heating season, Europe begins a race to fill its gas storage facilities in time to secure a comfortable level of stocks ahead of peak demand for electricity and heat. Norway stands ready to step up gas exports to the European Union, U.S. LNG producers stand ready to boost cargoes bound for Europe, and, according to Germanys energy market regulator, there is plenty of gas. There is one problem with that. The situation could change very quickly. Germanys gas storage capacity is currently at a little over 76% full. It should be 90% full to prevent the economic devastation Uniper is warning about. There would still be losses, even with 90% full storage, but they will be a lot lower than 40 billion euros, which is equal to some $46.6 billion. If storage is full at 90%, a very cold winter would only cost the German economy 14 billion euros, or $16.3 billion, according to the study that Uniper commissioned, conducted by a consultancy outlet called Frontier Economics. The second sum might not look like peanuts, but, according to Uniper, the difference between the two is a difference of around 25 billion euros, which would make the difference between stability and recession. This is how vulnerable Germanys economy has become to any unfavorable fluctuations in gas supply. Related: Oil Tankers Jam Seas as Global Glut Builds From the Uniper report, it appears that some financial damagemeasurable in double-digit billion sumsis guaranteed. It is also unlikely that this damage remains as low as 14 billion euros because keeping storage levels at 90% during peak demand season is impossible precisely because it is peak demand season. Not everyone is so pessimistic, however. In another recent report, Independent Commodity Intelligence Services said that even extra-low temperatures during December and January would not compromise the supply security of natural gas in Germany, so there was no reason to worry about it. Even in the event of a very cold winter, gas storage and additional liquefied natural gas (LNG) can together ensure sufficient supply with Europe having built enough regasification capacity, ICIS said in its report. The outlet admitted that in a severe winter scenario, Europe could see its gas reserves drop all the way to 20%, which is red-zone low, but that would not be a problem because there will be more liquefaction capacity coming online next summer. Still, ICIS also admitted that price could become a problem as demand for LNG rises during the winter. Criminal held with pistol, live cartridge Staff Reporter : Gohalpur police nabbed a notorious criminal and seized a country-made pistol and a live cartridge from him. The arrested has been identified as Juber Khan (24), resident of Azizganj, Pasiyana, Gohalpur. SHO of Gohalpur Police Station Ritesh Pandey informed that late night on Thursday, police received a tip-off that a 2425-year-old youth, wearing a half T-shirt and black lower was roaming near Panchsheel School, Raddi Chowki, with a pistol and planning to commit a crime. Acting promptly on the information, police started a search and found a suspected man and arrested him. In the questioning, he identified himself as Juber Khan. During a search, police recovered a country-made pistol in his waistband which was found loaded with one cartridge in the magazine. During the interrogation, the accused claimed that the firearm and cartridge had been given to him about five to six years ago by Sameer Khan, a local resident who was later killed in an encounter by Narsinghpur Police. Gohalpur police have seized pistol and cartridge and registered a case against Juber Khan under Sections 25 and 27 of the Arms Act. It was further revealed that Juber Khan is a habitual offender, with seven previous cases registered against him at Gohalpur Police Station, including illegal extortion, assault, theft and Arms Act violations. The criminal was arrested by Sub-Inspector Kishore Bagri, In-charge, Anand Nagar Outpost, Head Constables Arun and Devendra and Constables Alok Yadav, Gopal, Abhiranjan and Samrendra. DGP suspends Seoni SDOP Pooja Pandey over alleged loot of Rs 1.45 crore Hawala money Staff Reporter : The credibility of the Madhya Pradesh Police has once again come under severe scrutiny following major action taken in the alleged theft of Rs 1.45 crore in Hawala money in the Seoni district. Director General of Police (DGP) Kailash Makwana has, with immediate effect, suspended Seoni Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDOP) Pooja Pandey. The suspension order explicitly cites her prima facie suspicious conduct in the case. In this high-profile incident, a total of 10 police personnel, including SDOP Pooja Pandey and Bandol Station House Officer (TI) Arpit Bhairam, have faced action so far. The incident occurred late on the night of October 8, on NH-44 near the Shiladehi by-pass in the Bandol police station area of Seoni district. The police had received a tip-off that a large sum of Hawala money was being transported in a car travelling from Katni to Jalna in Maharashtra. A team led by SDOP Pooja Pandey intercepted the car, which was carrying Sohanlal Parmar and his associates. The police team officially recorded the seizure of Rs 1.45 crore in cash during the car search. However, the aggrieved party later claimed that the car was actually carrying a total of Rs 2.96 crore in Hawala money. It is alleged that the police personnel assaulted and intimidated the car occupants and pocketed a large portion of the remaining cash. The police are accused of officially recording only Rs 1.45 crore, while the rest of the amount was allegedly divided among themselves. DGP Takes Strict Cognisance: The day after the incident, on October 9, the victims filed a written complaint with Seoni Superintendent of Police (SP) Sunil Mehta, creating a stir within the Police Department. SP Sunil Mehta and Jabalpur Inspector General (IG) Pramod Verma took swift cognisance. Following an initial inquiry, IG Verma suspended Bandol TI Arpit Bhairam along with nine other police personnel and instructed SP Ayush Gupta to submit a detailed report within three days. The role of SDOP Pooja Pandey was found to be highly suspicious during the subsequent investigation. Following this, on October 10, DGP Kailash Makwana intervened directly, issuing the order for her immediate suspension. The DGPs order clearly states that the SDOP displayed gross misconduct regarding the amount seized during the checking. Dr Richa Jain attends Medical World Congress held in Dubai Business Reporter : Dr Richa Rajkumar Jain recently attended the Anti-Aging Medicine World Congress (AMWC) held in Dubai, a premier event that brought together dermatologists and medical professionals from around the globe. The congress featured approximately 50 lectures and live presentations over three days, focusing on cutting-edge treatments and advancements in aesthetic medicine. The event saw participation from over 5,000 doctors representing around 150 countries, including Russia, America, Canada, Dubai, Bangkok, Thailand, Monaco, and Saudi Arabia. The conference included an exhibition showcasing advanced skin care technology, injectables, fillers, machines, analyzers, and laser techniques. As the only representative from Nagpur, Dr Richa Jain gained valuable insights into the latest treatments. Dr Jain has introduced these world-class treatments at her clinic in Nagpur To celebrate Diwali, Dr Richa Jains clinic is offering attractive discounts. Dr Jain received an attendance certificate from the AMWC directors, acknowledging her participation in the conference. One can visit Dr Richa Jains Unique Clinic at Telephone Exchange Chowk and Rahate Colony, or call on 9371110379 or 9422880029 for more details. Gaza peace deal comes into force TEL AVIV : A CEASEFIRE agreement between Israel and Hamas for the Gaza Strip came into effect at noon local time, the Israeli military said on Friday, adding that troops were withdrawing to agreed-upon deployment lines. The announcement came hours after Israels Cabinet approved President Donald Trumps plan for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, the release of the remaining hostages and of Palestinian prisoners. Tens of thousands of people who had gathered in Wadi Gaza in central Gaza in the morning started walking north after the militarys announcement at noon local time. Beforehand, Palestinians reported heavy shelling in parts of Gaza throughout Friday morning. The Israeli Cabinets approval of Trumps plan marks a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year war that has destabilised the Middle East. A brief statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office early Friday said the Cabinet approved the outline of a deal to release the hostages, without mentioning other aspects of the plan that are more controversial. An Israeli security official, speaking on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the withdrawal, said the military would control around 50 per cent of Gaza in their new positions. After the Cabinet approval, Gaza residents reported intensified shelling well into Friday morning. In central Gazas Nuseirat refugee camp, Mahmoud Sharkawy, one of the many people sheltering there after being displaced from Gaza City, said artillery shelling intensified in the early hours. Details of the deal A senior Hamas official and lead negotiator made a speech on Thursday laying out what he said were the core elements of the ceasefire deal: Israel releasing around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners, opening the border crossing with Egypt, allowing aid to flow, and Israeli forces withdrawing. To help support and monitor the ceasefire deal, US officials said they would send about 200 troops to Israel. HC dismisses State Govts appeal against retired employee Legal Correspondent : A division bench of High Court Chief Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva and Justice Vinay Saraf dismissed the State Governments appeal against retired employee. The case concerned recovery. Advocate Ashok Gupta argued on behalf of the respondent, Deepak Johri, a resident of Khandwa. He argued that the respondent had retired from the post of dresser. A recovery of Rs 5,76,000 had been issued against him. The High Court termed the recovery as unfair and ordered the return of the amount along with interest. A contempt petition was filed when the amount was not returned. Meanwhile, an appeal was filed by the state against the order of the single bench. According to the Supreme Courts judgement, recovery from a retired employee is unfair. The High Court agreed with the argument and dismissed States appeal, upholding the earlier order of single bench. Its a recognition of Venezuelans struggle for freedom: Machado OSLO : VENEZUELAN : Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado who was named on Friday as the recipient of the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize said she was humbled, grateful and honoured, for the honour which she said was a recognition of the Venezuelan peoples fight for democracy and peace. In a conversation with Robin Hardy of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, 58-year-old Machado said she was still coming to terms with the announcement. Im still processing. I think this is what can I tell you? I mean, this is something that I believe the Venezuelan people deserve. I am just part of a huge movement and I dont know, Im humbled, Im grateful and Im honoured not only by this recognition, but Im honoured to be part of whats going on in Venezuela today and very grateful. Thank you, she said. Looking back at her struggle Machado said, It has been a very long journey at a very high cost for Venezuelan society. For many years, the world didnt realise how hard, how difficult, how painful and destructive this process had been. And when some people persevered, I believe that we are very close to achieving, finally, freedom for our country and peace for the region. She added, Even though we face the most brutal violence, our society has resisted and insisted on struggling through civic means and peaceful means. I believe that the world will now understand how urgent it is to finally, you know, succeed because of the implications not only, I insist, for Venezuela and Latin America. This will have enormous impact for the hemisphere, the whole hemisphere, and for the world. Speaking about how Venezuelans might react to the news, Machado said, I think that in the moment that we need most to stay strong, united and focused because were living the darkest hours. But at the same time, theres enormous hope that has been rising in the last times. The news is probably breaking right now. Its being broadcast from downstairs. Im getting everythings... Oh my God, its really happening. Oh my God, I cant believe. I cant believe this is true. Machado, who has been living in hiding due to threats to her life, was asked if she would be able to travel to Norway for the formal ceremony in Oslo on December 10. She replied, Oh well, I trust the Venezuelan people and I trust our allies, and I definitely believe we are in the final stage of a very long, painful struggle for freedom. And certainly it would be the highest honour to represent my country and meet you personally. Machado said the award belongs to all Venezuelans. I want to insist that I accept this as a recognition to our people, to the millions of Venezuelans that are, you know, anonymous and that theyre risking everything they have for freedom, justice and peace. And Im sure, absolutely convinced, that we will achieve it. Thank you very much, she said. Jaishankar, Muttaqi hold India upgrades tech mission in Kabul to Embassy NEW DELHI : INDIA on Friday announced the upgrading of its technical mission in Kabul to the status of an embassy and decided to restart its development projects in Afghanistan with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar appreciating the Taliban set-up for showing sensitivity towards New Delhis security concerns. Jaishankar made the twin announcements during his wide-ranging talks with visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi for the first time, signalling a new approach in New Delhis ties with Kabul though it has not yet recognised the Taliban set-up that came to power in August 2021. Muttaqi, on a six-day trip to India, said Afghanistan will not allow any elements to use its territory against New Delhis interests and identified the Daesh terror group (ISIS) as the main challenge for the region. He added that Kabul is at the frontlines of this struggle. Since the Taliban came to power, New Delhi has been insisting that Afghan soil must not be used for any terrorist activities against any country. The Afghan Foreign Minister also invited Indian companies to invest in the mining and mineral sector in his country, saying it would help strengthen the bilateral trade relations. In the talks, the two sides welcomed the commencement of the India-Afghanistan air freight corridor, which is expected to enhance direct trade and commerce between the two countries. Hours after Jaishankar announced an upgrade of its diplomatic presence in Kabul, Muttaqi told a select group of journalists that Kabul will also send diplomats to India as part of step-by-step efforts to improve the bilateral ties. India had withdrawn its officials from its embassy in Kabul after the Taliban seized power in August 2021. In June 2022, India re-established its diplomatic presence in the Afghan capital by deploying a technical team. Your visit marks an important step in advancing our ties and affirming the enduring friendship between India and Afghanistan, Jaishankar told Muttaqi in his opening remarks. In the interaction with the small group of journalists, Muttaqi said Kabul will soon send its diplomats to New Delhi. The Foreign Minister (S Jaishankar) said you can send diplomats to New Delhi now. When we go back, we will select people and send them, he said. Asked if the Taliban regime will appoint an ambassador, Muttaqi said: we will now send diplomats and gradually the contacts will increase. Till now, Afghan missions in India have officials who were largely appointed by previous Ashraf Ghani Government. OBCs across State come out in massive protest; demand roll back of September 2 GR Staff Reporter : Large number of members from Other Backward Class (OBC) communities across Maharashtra took to the streets of Nagpur on Friday, demanding immediate cancellation of the State Governments order dated September 2, allowing the issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to members of the Maratha community. The demonstrators warned that the move, if implemented, would erode the quota rights of existing OBC communities. The protest, organised under the banner of the Sakal OBC Maha Morcha, commenced from Yashwant Stadium and culminated at Samvidhan Square after a three-kilometre march through central Nagpur. Participants arrived from various parts of Vidarbha and other regions of the State, holding placards and portraits of social reformers while chanting slogans such as Mahayuti Sarkar cannot take away OBC rights and Ek Mission OBC Arakshan. The rally, spearheaded by the Sakal OBC Sanghatana, an umbrella body representing several OBC castes, was aimed at pressing the State Government to withdraw the Government Resolution (GR) that permits issuance of Kunbi caste certificates to Marathas who can establish OBC antecedents, thereby making them eligible for reservation benefits in education and Government employment. Leading the protest, Congress MLA and prominent OBC leader Vijay Wadettiwar delivered a scathing speech at Samvidhan Square, accusing the State Government of betraying the OBC community. This Government has backstabbed the very voters who supported it in the last elections. The September 2 order is an encroachment on OBC rights and will not be tolerated, he declared. Wadettiwar criticised Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil for his demand to include Marathas under the OBC category, asserting that the two communities are historically and socially distinct. The Kunbi uses a sickle that reaps crops, while the Maratha uses a sword meant for warfare. They cannot be treated as one, he remarked. The MLA further argued that the OBC category already comprises 374 castes and 497 sub-castes competing for limited reserved seats, and the inclusion of Marathas would severely reduce opportunities for the original OBC communities. He cited previous committee reports that found the Maratha community to be neither socially, economically, nor educationally backward, and therefore ineligible for reservation. Wadettiwar also condemned the alleged disparity in the certification process, claiming that while genuine OBC members wait months to obtain caste certificates after furnishing extensive documentation, Marathas could now secure Kunbi certificates within hours based on simple declarations. He further alleged that the fallout of the September 2 order was already visible, with several local government and agricultural assistant posts being filled by Marathas possessing OBC certificates from the Marathwada region, to the detriment of local OBC youths. At the onset, the protesters started gathering at the Samvidhan Square from 10 am. A OBC Shahiri Jalsa was organised at the venue for the protesters where songs depicting the condition of OBC community and enlightning about work of several social reformers were being sang. Other prominent leaders like Laxman Hake, Mahadev Jankar, Anil Deshmukh and others were present for the programme. The morcha concluded peacefully at Samvidhan Square but sent a clear message to the State Government: The OBC communities would not accept any decision that compromises their constitutional rights to reservation. What is the issue? The Maharashtra Governments resolution allows individuals from the Maratha community, specifically those belonging to the Marathwada region, which was once part of the Hyderabad State, to apply for Kunbi caste certificates. Kunbis are recognised as an OBC group in Maharashtra and are eligible for reservation benefits in education, employment and government schemes. Under the new GR, Marathas who can produce documentary proof of Kunbi lineage (such as records in the old Hyderabad Gazette or family documents) can be classified as Kunbi and avail OBC benefits. The decision came after Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange Patil held a hunger strike demanding reservation for the Maratha community under the OBC category. Paediatricians body urges State Govt to withdraw case against Chhindwara doctor Staff Reporter : The Indian Academy of Paediatrics (IAP), representing nearly 50,000 paediatricians across India, has written to Deputy Chief Minister Rajendra Shukla, urging the withdrawal of criminal charges filed against Dr Praveen Soni, a paediatrician from Chhindwara. The doctor was arrested in connection with the deaths of children allegedly caused by a contaminated cough syrup. In its letter, the IAP stated that the medicine prescribed by Dr Soni was a licensed and lawfully manufactured drug, routinely available in the Indian market. The contamination, it said, was a manufacturing and quality control failure, not a prescribing error. Holding the doctor criminally liable for this tragedy is contrary to medical ethics, legal principles, and multiple Supreme Court judgements, the letter emphasised. The issue gained further momentum on Friday when the Progressive Medical Teachers Association (PMTA) held a press conference at Gandhi Medical College, Bhopal, demanding justice for Dr Soni. PMTA convenor Dr Rakesh Malviya said, The drug prescribed by Dr Soni was approved by authorities; if the medicine was contaminated, the accountability lies with the manufacturer and regulators, not the doctor. The press conference was attended by several senior doctors including Dr Lokendra Dave, Head of the Pulmonary Medicine Department at GMC, Dr Parag Sharma, Associate Professor Dr Rajesh Tikkas, Professor of Paediatrics and Dr Lalit Shrivastav, Senior Ophthalmologist at Kamla Nehru Hospital. All echoed the demand for withdrawal of the case. The IAP has cautioned that criminalising routine medical prescriptions will create fear among doctors and harm healthcare delivery, especially for children, urging the government to intervene swiftly. Tata Trusts board meets amid infighting among trustees NEW DELHI : TATA Trusts board discussed routine issues, staying away from contentious matters, in its meeting held on Friday amid murmurs of a rift among the trustees over board appointment and governance issues. Todays meeting was routine, with no contentious issues discussed, a source said, adding that there were presentations on various hospital and rural development projects. There was no reference to past events, the source added. The meeting comes after the top brass of the Tata Group, including Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata and Tata Sons Chairman N Chandrasekaran, met Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday. When contacted, Tata Trusts declined to comment on what transpired in the meeting. However, reports said the agenda of the meeting is mainly focused on regular philanthropic activities and review of funding proposals for healthcare projects. On Tuesday, Noel Tata and Chandrasekaran, along with Tata Trusts Vice Chairman Venu Srinivasan and trustee Darius Khambata, met Shah and Sitharaman at the Home Ministers residence. The meeting came against the backdrop of infighting among the trustees of Tata Trusts over board appointments and governance issues, which threaten to impact the functioning of the over USD 180 billion conglomerate. Tata Trusts exerts decisive influence over Indias most valuable conglomerate through its about 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons, the promoter and holding company of the salt-to-semiconductor group. Sources said Tata Trusts is said to be vertically split, with one section aligned with Noel Tata, who was appointed Chairman of the Trusts following the death of Ratan Tata. The other grouping of four trustees is led by Mehli Mistry, who has ties with the extended Shapoorji Pallonji family, which owns about 18.37 per cent of Tata Sons. Mehli reportedly feels he has been kept out of the loop on key matters. According to sources, the flashpoint is said to be board seats at Tata Sons, which controls the 156-year-old group that spans around 400 companies, including 30 listed firms. The dispute has its roots in a meeting of six trustees of the Tata Trusts, the umbrella group representing several charitable trusts, including the Sir Dorabji Tata Trust and Sri Ratan Tata Trust. The meeting on September 11 was convened to consider the reappointment of former defence secretary Vijay Singh as a nominee director on the Tata Sons board. There are seven trustees of the Tata Trusts, including Singh. Singh did not attend the September 11 meeting as his nomination was on the agenda. General Motors and its joint ventures in China have reported nearly 470,000 vehicle deliveries in the third quarter, up 10.1% year-on-year. It marks a second straight quarter of annual growth in both China sales and market share in 2025. The US company said demand for its new energy vehicles (NEVs) remained a key driver. Sales of both NEVs and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) have now increased on an annual basis for 10 consecutive quarters since Q2 2023. GM highlighted what it described as a broad NEV portfolio in China, spanning BEVs, plug-in hybrids (PHEVs) and extended-range electric vehicles (EREVs) across major segments. Buicks premium NEV sub-brand, ELECTRA, introduced its first model, the ELECTRA L7, in September after its launch in the second quarter. The vehicle is built on GMs locally developed Xiao Yao super architecture and features the Xiao Yao assisted driving system co-developed by Buick and Momenta. The company said the model has been well received. From 2025, all newly introduced Buick models in China will be NEVs, covering BEV, PHEV and EREV options across mainstream price points. Buick plans to launch its first flagship MPV, ENCASA, under the ELECTRA line by year-end. GM senior vice president and president of GM China Steve Hill said: Our strong Q3 performance and broad-based growth once again underscore the steady progress we are making in China. Building on GMs global standards and leveraging local innovation and partnerships, we will continue to enhance product value and customer experience, laying a solid foundation for profitable growth for the full year. In the US, GM last week reported an 8% increase in third-quarter vehicle sales compared with a year earlier, citing continued demand for both electric and petrol-powered models. The company said it set another quarterly EV sales record with 66,501 deliveries. US EV sales industry-wide continued to grow as buyers sought to take advantage of the $7,500 federal tax credit. GMs US EV sales reached 144,668 year to date, up 105% from a year ago. "GM posts 10% rise in China Q3 deliveries " was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. In the Capital Connectors series, exclusive interviews with six influential Chinese and global bankers reveal the opportunities and challenges for Hong Kong in its evolution as an international financial hub. Hong Kong has become the fundraising venue of choice for Chinese technology giants, surpassing the US thanks to growing liquidity, market reforms and proximity to their home market, according to a senior banker at Goldman Sachs. With Chinese technology firms being a clear focus of international investors and expanding globally, Hong Kong would continue to be a "big beneficiary", said Jacky Leung, the bank's head of Hong Kong coverage and co-chief operating officer of the technology, media and telecom group for Asia excluding Japan. Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. "Hong Kong remains the first and most important destination for Chinese companies to access offshore capital and expand globally, a trend we believe will continue," he said. The percentage of Chinese stocks in the portfolios of US and European investors had returned to the high single digits, edging closer to the peak of around 13 per cent in 2021, according to Leung. "They are making money out of their investments, suggesting a healthy capital market," he said. The MSCI China Index and Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index have gained more than 30 per cent this year. "That shift has been supporting the market rally, and we are still seeing the inflow of capital coming in, supporting the case for a sustainable market rally," Leung said, also noting the increasing presence of Middle Eastern investors. Last month, a delegation from Qatar joined Goldman's inaugural Asia Leaders' Conference in Hong Kong, which attracted 2,000 participants, including leadership from Tencent Holdings, Baidu and Xiaomi. Hong Kong's growing role as a global financing hub for Chinese tech firms has come amid US-China trade tensions and the DeepSeek moment - when the Hangzhou-based start-up shocked the world with a low cost artificial-intelligence model that cemented China's technology capabilities and policy support. "The US-China dynamic will not go away overnight, and Hong Kong will continue to serve as a gateway for China to springboard into the rest of the world," Leung said. Large tech companies would likely lean towards Hong Kong for listing and fundraising due to the liquidity they could tap into, while mid-sized firms would remain open-minded, depending on the geopolitical environment, he said. HSBC Holdings' US$13.6 billion bid to take full control of Hang Seng Bank could be enticing enough for investors to cash out as the deal creates long-term value for the London-based bank, although some analysts said the offer could be sweeter. On Thursday, HSBC offered to acquire the remaining 36.5 per cent stake in Hang Seng Bank it does not own at HK$155 per share, a 30 per cent premium over the previous closing price. The bank owns 63.5 per cent of Hong Kong's largest domestic bank. The proposal valued Hang Seng Bank at HK$290 billion (US$37.3 billion), representing 1.8 times its book value - "significantly higher" than comparable Hong Kong peers, according to HSBC. The book value offers insights into whether a stock is over or undervalued. Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. The generous offer propelled Hang Seng Bank's stock to log its biggest intraday surge on record. HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery said Hang Seng Bank's acquisition meets the criteria HSBC set in February. Photo: Jelly Tse alt=HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery said Hang Seng Bank's acquisition meets the criteria HSBC set in February. Photo: Jelly Tse> However, Mike Leung Kit-man, director of Wocom Securities, said a "reasonable" price-to-book ratio should be between 2.3 and 2.5 times. "I'm more optimistic about Hang Seng Bank's prospects given that the worst may be over," Leung said. "The Hong Kong stock market has advanced so much this year, and property prices, especially commercial real estate, may rise a bit next year." He added that property prices would at least stabilise while the bank dealt with sour loans. Leung compared HSBC's proposal to Chong Hing Bank's privatisation by Yuexiu Group in 2021 and China Merchants Bank's acquisition of Wing Lung Bank in 2008 - both deals carried a price-to-book multiple of more than two. General view of Hang Seng Bank Headquarters in Central on October 9, 2025. Photo: Jelly Tse alt=General view of Hang Seng Bank Headquarters in Central on October 9, 2025. Photo: Jelly Tse> Other analysts said HSBC's move reflected the new management's priorities and was aimed at creating long-term value for shareholders. The valuation fit the British financial giant's calculation, said Andrew Coombs, Citigroup's equity research analyst, in a note on Thursday. Enforcement and Insurance Implications A change in insurance policies could be coming to the trucking industry, signaling a major shift in their approach to non-domiciled commercial drivers licenses (CDLs). As enforcement of the new non-domiciled CDL rule takes shape, insurance companies are likely to position themselves to avoid potential liability exposure. According to an insurance executive at one of the largest brokers in the country, who spoke on condition of anonymity, he expects that insurance carriers are likely to implement policy changes that explicitly prevent the hiring of drivers with non-domiciled CDLs within the next year. The concern stems from the potential for nuclear verdicts in accident cases involving non-domiciled CDL holders, as juries may show little sympathy toward carriers employing drivers whose licenses may be invalid under the new regulationsespecially after DOT Secretary Duffy has come out so strongly against the states that issue non-domiciled CDLs. His words of warning when referring to carriers and brokers looking the other way on non-domiciled CDLs: Its all over. Potential Liability for Brokers The implications extend beyond just the carriers themselves. The same insurance executive warned that freight brokerages utilizing motor carriers known to hire non-domiciled CDL holders could potentially face legal culpability. Plaintiffs attorneys may target brokers as well as carriers in lawsuits involving accidents with non-domiciled CDL drivers. Several carriers have already reported increased scrutiny from their insurance providers. One fleet executive commented that his insurance renewal was more stringent than prior periods, demanding: Pictures of drivers licenses Verification that driver domiciles match their CDLs and business entity Clean MVRs (Motor Vehicle Records) Correct address information on payment documentation Signed statements confirming certain previously leased drivers would not be affiliated with the company Damian Gunjak, a trucking fleet executive, confirmed this trend: Our captive provider already told us as much this year. A non-issue for us since we dont hire unqualified, inexperienced drivers. Twitter (now X) co-founder Jack Dorsey called for tax relief for Bitcoin (BTC) transactions in the United States. On Oct. 9, Dorsey posted on X, we need a de minimis tax exemption for everyday Bitcoin transactions. The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) classifies digital assets as property, requiring individuals to calculate and report capital gains on every transaction, even for purchases as small as a cup of coffee. A de minimis exemption would remove this hurdle by allowing low-value transactions, such as groceries, rideshares or meals, to be excluded from capital gains reporting. Related: Jack Dorsey declares victory over China in Bitcoin mining chip race Tax levied on digital assets Crypto investors in the U.S. face a complex tax structure that varies sharply by state. The IRS classifies digital assets as property, meaning that every sale, swap, or purchase triggers a capital gains event. Short-term gains, which means on assets held for less than a year are taxed at income rates ranging from 10% to 37%, while long-term holdings qualify for lower rates of 0%, 15%, or 20%, depending on income level. Additionally, crypto earned through staking, mining, or airdrops is taxed as regular income at the time it is received. States like California, New York, and Hawaii levy some of the highest crypto taxes, with combined rates exceeding 10% for top earners. Meanwhile, Florida, Texas, Wyoming, Nevada, and South Dakota impose no state income tax, offering crypto traders a major advantage. However, Washington State stands out, despite lacking an income tax, it applies a 7% excise tax on long-term capital gains over $250,000, which includes crypto. Jack Dorsey creator, co-founder, and Chairman of Twitter and co-founder & CEO of Square arrives on stage at the Bitcoin 2021 Convention, a crypto-currency conference held at the Mana Convention Center in Wynwood on June 04, 2021 in Miami, Florida.. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images) Dorseys broader Bitcoin vision Dorsey has held a long-standing belief that Bitcoin can serve as both a store of value and a medium of exchange. On Oct. 8, his company Block Inc. introduced merchant tools through its Square unit, allowing small businesses to accept Bitcoin payments with no fees through 2026. Dorseys comments came as Bitcoin slipped below key support levels this week, pressured by a stronger dollar and investor caution ahead of Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powells remarks. At the time of writing, Bitcoin was trading lower at $121,025, down 1%, per Kraken's price feeds. More News: Cynthia Lummis proposes new bill Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-Wyo.) introduced Senate Bill 2207, aiming to amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to reform the treatment of digital assets. The draft defines a digital asset as any digital representation of value recorded on a cryptographically secured distributed ledger. Demolishing a piece of Manipurs history Man from Meghalaya | Even as Manipur is coming to grips with the information that the historic building at the Redlands in Shillong has been demolished, Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, who was in Manipur on a two day visit struck a politically correct position in asserting that his Government never gave the order to demolish the said building. In the same vein the Meghalaya Chief Minister struck another politically very correct posture in asserting that the territorial integrity of Manipur must be respected. As things have unfolded, already there are debates doing the round with some chipping in that as the Chief Minister of Meghalaya Conrad Sangma cannot escape responsibility for pulling down the 90 years old building, yet at the same time it stands that the responsibility for the upkeep and maintenance of the building must rest with one of the departments of the Government of Manipur. This is the situation under which the Meghalaya Chief Minister was in the State, probably to give a stronger footing to the National Peoples Party, of which he is the president, ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections. Early days yet, but the visit of the Meghalaya Chief Minister will surely go a long way in providing a stronger wicket to the NPP when the time for election comes. And this is true especially in the face of the sticky wicket in which the BJP finds itself in and there is a growing voice on the need for a party which is more attuned to the regional reality of Manipur and the North East. A clearer picture over the demolition of the building at Redlands may emerge in a few days time, but Manipur has not forgotten that this is the place where Maharaj Bodhchandra signed the Merger Agreement with the Government of India in September to merge with India on October 15, 1949. And this is October and a number of armed organisations must have lined up with their agenda of imposing a general strike on this date to remind the people of how Manipur merged with the Union of India more than 70 years back. The coming days will tell, but yet at the same time, it is not clear if Raj Bhavan and the men who count, will feel inclined to come out with a statement on the demolition of the 90 years old building but this is what people of Manipur would expect. And surely an explanation is owed to the people for in this age, there is nothing to stop in taking up steps to preserve old buildings with modern know-how. An explanation is what is expected, an explanation that will find takers with the people. To Manipur, the building at the Redlands is something much more than just a concrete structure for it is a place which is closely woven into the more recent history of the place. This much must be respected. Back in 2019, Conrad Sangma was the rallying point against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), before it became an Act, and fast forward to 2025, he has emerged as a personality who can go some way in fulfilling the desire for a regional voice, a voice that would be in a position to focus on North East and Manipur specific issues. This is what seems to be blowing in the favour of the NPP at the moment in Manipur but it remains to be seen how effectively this is capitalised upon. Sangma started off on the right note in asserting that trust building is necessary for peace and normalcy to return. A stand that is far removed from the situation is improving line, a line Manipur has seen being parroted by some Delhi based mandarins and followed by some in Manipur. How the process of building trust is taken up rests with Delhi and the people on either side of the clash divide, but it is significant to note that in Sangma, Manipur has seen the Chief Minister of a neighbouring State personally visiting the place to get a first hand account of the situation here. This is where his decision to take the road from Imphal to Kangpokpi and beyond becomes significant. Manipur must take note that even if the visit is more about preparing the ground for the NPP ahead of the Assembly elections due in 2027, at least the Chief Minister of a neighbouring State has deemed it fit to pay a visit and interact with different civil society organisations of the place. The man from Meghalaya seems to be making all the right noises at the moment and this is what has piqued the interests of the people. IDP students protest | IMPHAL, Oct 10 : The IDP Students' Welfare Association has announced that they have locked the Department of Vocational Studies and Skill Development (DVSSD) at Manipur University in protest against the alleged humiliation of displaced students by the Head of the Department (HoD). Addressing the media at the Manipur Press Club today, Ksh Naocha, media and publicity secretary, stated that their protest will continue until the Head of the Department (HoD) is removed from his post. He claimed that the HoD, instead of sincerely apologizing to the displaced students, put unfounded charges on them. He said that they have submitted a memorandum to the Vice Chancellor of MU on October 8 and their protest will continue until their demand is entertained. Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) is one of the stocks that Jim Cramer expressed thoughts on. Expressing their appreciation for the dividend, an investing club member inquired about the stock during the lightning round. Cramer remarked: Its actually one of my favorites when it comes to a great stock. Its just what they make, I cant bear. Its actually the greatest performing stock of all time, just so you know. Philip Morris International Inc. (NYSE:PM) manufactures and sells cigarettes and smoke-free products, including IQOS and ZYN nicotine brands. Cramer called it a very good stock during the June 9 episode. He said: Its a very, very good company, a very good stock. Theyre trying very hard to get away from cancer sticks, so to speak. We know theyre doing that. Ive met with the company. I was at a presentation that they made. I think that Im not going to recommend the stock for precisely what you said, but I will tell you it is a very, very good company, and its a stock that has done very well and probably will continue. I just cant get behind it because of what they do. While we acknowledge the potential of PM as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey. AMD CEO Lisa Su has overseen a 7,000% stock surge, boosting the chipmaker's value to $378 billion. Yet Su's net worth is $1.5 billion, a fraction of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's $167 billion fortune. Su isn't AMD's founder and only holds a 0.3% stake, which has limited her wealth gains. Lisa Su, the CEO of Advanced Micro Devices, has built one of the world's most valuable companies and made investors billions but is barely a billionaire herself. She has delivered a 70-fold increase in her company's stock price during her 11 years in charge, including a 41% surge this week to fresh highs thanks to its OpenAI partnership. The chipmaker's market value has soared to $378 billion, surpassing Home Depot, Bank of America, and Procter & Gamble. Yet Su doesn't rank among the world's 500 richest people, per the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. Forbes puts her net worth at $1.5 billion less than 1% of the $167 billion fortune of her rival and distant cousin, Jensen Huang, the CEO of chipmaker Nvidia. There is one big difference: Huang cofounded Nvidia, while AMD was established in 1969 by a group of engineers who had left Fairchild Semiconductor. One of them, Jerry Sanders, served as CEO until 2002. AMD filings show Su has amassed about 4.7 million shares or a 0.3% stake, worth about $1.1 billion based on the company's stock price ahead of Friday's market open. Her compensation, including salary, bonuses, and stock options, totaled around $31 million last year, per the filings. Su's small ownership stake is the main reason she's not worth more. For comparison, Huang still owns close to a 4% stake in Nvidia, which is worth upward of $160 billion despite significant dilution over the years. Nvidia is also about 12 times larger than AMD, with an unmatched $4.7 trillion market capitalization. Oracle's $847 billion market value is a little over double AMD's figure, but cofounder Larry Ellison owns nearly 41% of the enterprise-software giant a roughly $350 billion stake that makes him the world's second-wealthiest man after Elon Musk on both Bloomberg and Forbes' rich lists. The difference in size between Su's fortune and theirs underscores that founding a company, and retaining a large stake in it, is the most common path to enormous wealth. Seven of the top 10 people on Bloomberg's list are founders, and another two, Elon Musk and Warren Buffett, shaped their companies, Tesla and Berkshire Hathaway, in their respective images as much as any founder. Steve Ballmer, who joined Microsoft as Bill Gates' assistant in 1980 and later became CEO, is a rare exception because he parlayed a quirk in his contract into a sizable equity stake. Symposium on Palace Museum centenary held in Beijing Xinhua) 10:37, October 11, 2025 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, attends and delivers a speech at a symposium on the centenary of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 10, 2025. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing) BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- A symposium on the centenary of the Palace Museum was held in Beijing on Friday, gathering more than 100 officials, experts and scholars, as well as representatives in the cultural sector to discuss the protection and inheritance of cultural heritage. 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, attended and delivered a speech at the symposium. Attendees agreed that the Palace Museum stands as a unique symbol of Chinese history and is an important emblem of Chinese civilization. Established amid the sweeping social transformations of modern China, the Palace Museum has journeyed through a century, and it represents an enduring achievement in both China's cultural history and the cultural history of humanity, they said. Attendees called for greater efforts to safeguard and pass down cultural heritage, explore its value further, and to share it more effectively with the world. They also emphasized the importance of strengthening international cooperation, and of promoting deeper exchange and mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. In a market where polished listings command attention and inflated prices, one Utah investor built a multimillion-dollar real-estate portfolio by chasing the opposite. Jeremy Barker doesn't look for trophy buildings or trendy developments. He looks for what he calls "pigs." "I like to look for pigs," Barker recently told Business Insider. "We could put lipstick on it and make it look really pretty." Don't Miss: Meet Flippy: The AI Robot Helping Fast Food Brands Cut Tens of Billions in Labor Costs And You Can Invest Early Accredited Investors Can Now Tap Into the $36 Trillion Home Equity Market Without Buying a Single Property Barker's first deal came by accident. When his startup outgrew its office space, he bought a larger commercial building, kept what he needed, and leased out the rest. That move turned a business expense into an income stream, and the building has since more than quadrupled in value. "I just rinsed and repeated," he said. Today, Barker owns more than 30 commercial and residential properties that bring in seven figures a year in rental income, according to BI. His playbook hasn't changed. He finds neglected buildings in good locations, buys them well below market value, cleans them up, leases them out, and lets appreciation do the rest. One recent example includes a 90,000-square-foot call center that sat empty for years. Overgrown trees, old cubicles, outdated wiring. A mess most investors wouldn't touch. Barker offered $2 million on the $3.4 million listing, got $500,000 in credits for deferred maintenance, and closed for $2.4 million. Before the deal was finalized, he had a "for lease" sign out front, and tenants lined up before he even took ownership. "The long market tells are important to me," he said. Trending: Arrived Home's Private Credit Funds has historically paid an annualized dividend yield of 8.1%*, which provides access to a pool of short-term loans backed by residential real estate with just a $100 minimum. From Ugly Deals to Smart Structures Barker's success comes down to spotting value where others see risk. It's an approach that also applies to how more investors are structuring real-estate ownership itself. Rather than taking on full operational and tax exposure, many are moving income-producing properties into Self-Directed IRAs. They're keeping the upside of real estate while gaining the tax advantages of a retirement account. Luxor Technology Corporation, a provider of Bitcoin mining software and financial services, announced the launch of its new energy business, Luxor Energy. The new division aims to provide a full suite of energy management services to Bitcoin mining operations, including a Retail Electricity Provider (REP) business and specialized solutions for grid participation. The move by Luxor, which already manages over one gigawatt of Bitcoin mining hardware through its LuxOS firmware, positions the company to become a more vertically integrated service provider in the energy-intensive digital asset sector. Luxor Energy will offer services that include support for Demand Response, Ancillary Services, and Peak Avoidance programs. These services allow power-hungry Bitcoin mines to quickly curtail their energy consumption during periods of high demand on the electric grid, a capability increasingly valued by grid operators like the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT). Bitcoin mining facilities, due to their flexible and interruptible load, have become significant participants in these programs, helping to stabilize grids that are experiencing growing strain from extreme weather and the transition to renewable energy sources. This development is particularly relevant in markets like Texas, which has seen a boom in crypto mining but also faces persistent grid reliability challenges. Luxor Energy's retail electricity provider service is designed to accept collateral in Bitcoin and will offer reduced collateral requirements for users of the Luxor Pool. The company is also developing an automated system to pay client energy bills, netting them against their mining pool balance, according to a company press release. A core offering of the new division is Intelligent Mining, a proprietary system that continuously adjusts mining machine performance for optimal profitability. The system integrates the company's dispatch signal with real-time data on hashrate and power prices, which is then fed into its LuxOS firmware. The company stated that field results from operations in ERCOT's West Texas region have demonstrated an 814 percent improvement in profitability compared to legacy binary mining methods, where machines are either fully on or fully off. Matt Williams, Luxor's Head of Financial Services, noted the importance of energy procurement in the sector. "Energy is the most critical component for data centers, and our new Energy business will supercharge mining operations," Williams said. By providing end-to-end energy and software management, Luxor is capitalizing on the ongoing trend where efficient power management and grid participation are as critical to a miner's bottom line as hardware efficiency. This expansion reflects a broader industry focus on mitigating regulatory concerns over high energy use by presenting miners as flexible grid resources. After the Federation of Indian Pilots (FIP) urged the civil aviation ministry to ground all Boeing 787 Dreamliners operated by Air India following two recent technical incidents involving the aircraft, the carrier denied any electrical failure as the cause of the incidents. The pilot group highlighted concerns over electrical system malfunctions and automation failures in a letter to Civil Aviation Minister K Rammohan Naidu. FIP pointed to recurring electrical and automation malfunctions in the fleet. On October 9, Air India flight AI154 from Vienna to Delhi was diverted to Dubai after experiencing a sudden autopilot failure, which led to issues with critical systems, including the Instrument Landing System and Flight Directors. Pilots had to manually fly the aircraft at night before safely landing in Dubai, according to reports. ALSO READ | Catastrophic failure: Air India flight crash exposes aircraft design risks Earlier, on October 4, Air India flight AI117 from Amritsar to Birmingham deployed the ram air turbine (RAT)an emergency power sourceduring landing, raising alarms about possible electrical system issues. Both flights involved Boeing 787 Dreamliners. The FIP, representing around 5,000 pilots, cited these incidents alongside the June crash of an Air India Dreamliner that tragically killed 260 people, calling for all Dreamliners in India to be grounded pending thorough checks of their electrical systems. The group also called for a special audit of Air India operations by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). Air India responds Air India, in a statement, described the un-commanded RAT deployment on flight AI117 as an isolated event unrelated to system faults or pilot error. The carrier also categorically stated that the AI154 diversion was due to a technical issue, but the aircraft landed safely, and passengers were well cared for. "Based on the conclusions from our preliminary investigations, the deployment of the RAT was neither due to a system fault nor pilot action. The deployment of the RAT was 'uncommanded', consistent with similar occurrences with other airlines in the past, as reported by Boeing," Air India said. The airline stressed that passenger and crew safety remain its highest priorities and that preliminary reports have been submitted to DGCA, with the involved aircraft cleared for continued service following internal investigations. Air India operates 33 Dreamliners, which form a significant part of its fleet, while IndiGo also leases 787 aircraft from Norse Atlantic. The ongoing debate over the safety of the Dreamliner electrical systems continues amid calls for regulatory scrutiny and enhanced operational checks. The Union Government has, in the last few years, taken several steps to bring in tax transparency through various policy reforms, whether it was the Transparent Taxation Honouring the Honest platform that was launched in 2020 or the Jan Vishwas Act that decriminalised and rationalised various offences. Now, the Niti Aayog has further called for decriminalising various tax offences and rationalising punishments under the new Income Tax Act of 2025. It emphasises trust being at the heart of Indias tax administration, encouraging voluntary compliance and ensuring that criminal prosecution is an exception and not the norm. In a new working paper released by the think tank, Niti Aayog has called for a shift away from fear-based enforcement towards trust-based governance. International experience shows that mature tax systems rely on trust-based governance, reserving criminal prosecution for deliberate and egregious non-compliance while addressing procedural or technical defaults through administrative and civil measures, said BVR Subrahmanyam, CEO, Niti Aayog. By aligning with this approach, India can not only improve compliance outcomes and ease of doing business but also foster a culture of trust and cooperation between taxpayers and the administration, he said. The Income Tax Act, 2025, marks significant progress, omitting 13 offences, but continues to criminalise 35 actions and omissions across 13 provisions, the paper noted, adding that all these offences are punishable with imprisonment and fine. Reserve punishment for acts causing real harm Niti Aayog says only conduct that threatens core values like governance, public safety, law, and fiscal security should attract criminal sanctions. Punishment must be reserved for acts causing real, quantifiable harm, not hypothetical or indirect inconvenience, it added. Importantly, it said offences should be clearly defined, fit-for-purpose, and subject to periodic legislative review to prevent redundancy or overreach. Of the 35 criminal offences identified, the paper calls for 12 to be fully decriminalised and addressed through civil or monetary penalties alone. It also said that 17 offences should retain criminal liability only for fraudulent or malafide intent, removing criminal sanctions for good faith procedural lapses. Further, the Niti Aayog paper has called for removing mandatory minimum imprisonment for most offences, enabling the judiciary to exercise discretion based on individual case circumstances. Also, courts should be permitted to choose between fines and imprisonment. More importantly, it feels that offence definitions should be simplified and clarified. These reforms will help reduce litigation, enhance investor confidence, and lead to greater voluntary compliance and higher revenue collection by ensuring that enforcement mechanisms remain proportionate and fair, said Subrahmanyam. The Enforcement Directorate has arrested Anil Ambanis aide, Ashok Kumar Pal, the Chief Financial Officer of Reliance Power Ltd, over alleged money laundering charges linked to a fake bank guarantee and fake invoicing case worth 17,000 crore. Officials confirmed that he was arrested on Friday night at the agencys Delhi office after hours of questioning under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. On Saturday morning, he was produced before the judge. Sources said that Pal played a crucial role in the diversion of company funds and the submission of forged financial documents in Reliance, a company in which the public holds more than 75 per cent of the company funds. According to the Reliance company website, Pal has been a chartered accountant and has over 25 years of experience. He has worked at the company for more than seven years. The EDs investigation pertains to a fraudulent Bank Guarantee of over 68 crore submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for a Battery Energy Storage BESS tender. In August, the ED made its first arrest in relation to the case-Partha Sarathi Biswal, who is the managing director of Biswal Tradelink Pvt Ltd, and an Odisha-based company, for arranging the fake guarantees. ALSO READ | Who is Partha Sarathi Biswal, first to be arrested in 3,000-crore Enforcement Directorate case against Anil Ambani? The ED discovered that Biswal Tradelink existed only on paper, and there were no statutory company records at the registered address. Further investigations revealed that the guarantee was issued in the name of "FirstRand Bank, Manila, Philippines -- a location where the bank has no operational branch." "The guarantee was arranged through Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd (BTPL), a small entity operating from a residential address with no credible record in providing such guarantees. BTPL director Partha Sarathi Biswal, already in judicial custody, is alleged to have assisted in executing the forged document," an official said while speaking to ANI. Officials say that Pal finalised, approved, and executed the documents on behalf of RPL fr the SECI bid. They also said that he cleared payments and managed paperwork through Telegram and WhatsApp, which bypassed the Reliance Powers Official SAP and vendor master systems. The ED also said that Pal had used fake domains that impersonated the State Bank of India SBI to pass the fake bank guarantees as real. Email domains like s-bi.co.in were used instead of the real sbi.co.in. Other banks like the Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, and the Punjab National Bank were also impersonated. The probe follows a money laundering case registered based on an FIR report filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation. As part of the investigations, Anil Ambani was also summoned for questioning, and the probe agency also sought details from about 12 to 13 banks about the procedures in which loans were granted to Reliance Housing Finance, Reliance Communication, and Reliance Commercial Finance. At the inauguration of the 49th International Kaleen Mela and the 4th Carpet Expo in Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh's Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath urged the industry to see the recent US tariffs not as a setback but as a chance to break into new markets. Adityanath acknowledged the challenge posed by the US trade barriers but quickly shifted the focus to opportunity, as he addressed a room buzzing with entrepreneurs from across the globe, who were seemingly tense about the recent Trump tariffs. When one door closes, ten more can open, he said, promising vigorous efforts towards free trade agreements with nations like the UAE and the UK, which could unlock fresh avenues for exports. A high-level government committee will be set up to support the industry and keep a close eye on the evolving situation, he added. Adityanath also recounted the carpet industry's near collapse 11 years ago, highlighting how concerted efforts revived the famed carpet hubs of Bhadohi, Mirzapur, and Varanasi. The once-struggling clusters now boast a bustling Carpet Expo Mart and attract hundreds of buyers from nearly 90 countries. MSME initiatives Adityanath also stressed the government's role in championing regional crafts through MSME and the One District One Product scheme, which has thrust products like Bhadohi carpets and Varanasi silk onto the world stage. Uttar Pradesh's exports have surged past the Rs 2 lakh crore mark. In UP, the carpet sector is a vibrant slice of living culture, employing up to 30 lakh people, including a significant number of women who craft carpets from their homes, empowering themselves economically. Adityanath also spoke on the recent labour shortages, assuring that efforts are underway to engage more local workers and women. The event also saw the distribution of loans to beneficiaries of various state schemes, reinforcing the government's pledge to support and elevate this crucial sector. North Korea unveiled the 'Hwasong-20' intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)the most lethal addition to its arsenalfor the first time during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers Party. Kim Jong Un has called for the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve the chances of penetrating missile defences, and some experts say the Hwasong-20 could be designed for that purpose. Hwasong-20 ICBM | X The parade also featured Kim's newest tanks, artillery systems, and drones, which have been a key focus of his efforts to expand his conventional military capabilities after he spent much of his early rule concentrating on nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. However, Hwasong-20 was undoubtedly the main attraction of the parade. Hwasong-20 ICBM | X Theoretically, with an operational range of 15,000 km, the Hwasong-20 is capable of striking anywhere in the United States mainland, although many doubt if Pyongyang has the technology to perfect the missile's guidance system and the ability to ensure the payload's atmospheric re-entry. For those interested, here are five things to know about Kim Jong Un's Hwasong-20 ICBMs: 1. Hwasong-20s are reportedly designed with a larger, rounder nose, which is an indication that they could contain multiple independently targetable re-entry vehicles (MIRVs). This would allow a single missile to carry several independent nuclear warheads, increasing the ability to penetrate defence systems. This is a major challenge to most missile defence systems in the world, reports said. Hwasong-20 ICBM | X 2. At least three of them were wheeled out on 11-axle launcher trucks. As per available information, large Transporter-Erector-Launcher (TEL), can be used to move them over land and launched from various locations, making it much harder for adversaries to locate and destroy before launch. 3. Hwasong-20s use solid-fuel rockets, which are more mobile, harder to spot for spy satellites, increase deterrence capabilities, and can be launched on short notice. Another notable feature of this ICBM is its advanced guidance system, which could integrate inertial navigation technology combined with a domestic GPS system or optical sensors to improve accuracy. They also do not require the loading of cryogenic propellants immediately before launch. 4. Earlier, Vietnamese media reports had claimed that its engine is manufactured from carbon-fibre-reinforced composite materials, which increase strength, reduce weight, and tolerate higher temperaturesespecially important for the warheads re-entry phase. This enhancement could enable the missile to carry a larger payload or achieve greater range. North Korea marked the 80th anniversary of its ruling party with a major military parade overseen by Kim Jong Un, showcasing a new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile, said to be its most powerful yet. pic.twitter.com/xmVzIs2r67 Clash Report (@clashreport) October 11, 2025 5. Despite its intimidating strike range, experts are not certain if the missiles re-entry vehicle capability is foolproof. This is a crucial factor for surviving atmospheric re-entry before striking targets with accuracy. This theory stems from the fact that during Kim's previous ICBM tests, the warheads often followed steep, high arcs to avoid overflying neighbouring territory and have not conclusively demonstrated warhead survival through re-entry. In what could come as a definite leap in India's armoured warfare, state-run Armoured Vehicles Nigam Limited (AVNL) is planning to unveil a prototype of the light-weight, new-generation Bharat tank by next year. Chennai-headquartered public sector firm AVNL is a major manufacturer of various Main Battle Tanks such as Ajeya, Bhishma, Arjun; Infantry Combat Vehicle (Sarath); Armoured Personnel Carrier, Combat Support vehicles (BLT, MPV, and AERV), and other defence mobility solutions. On the sidelines of the recently concluded AeroDefCon 2025 at Chennai Trade Centre, an AVNL official revealed that the primary focus of the company has always been making world-class battle tanks. As tanks continue to be a mainstay of land-based warfare, offering mobility, firepower, and protection, the company said it has showcased five of its advanced tank models at the expo. ALSO READ: Indias defence industrial push: Why private sector still waits for lift off AVNL is currently working on the Bharat tank project, in line with the Atmanirbhar Bharat initiative of the government of India to achieve self-reliance in defence, according to a company official. "The design and development phase will be completed by the end of 2025, and by late 2026, we aim to roll out the first prototype," DTNEXT quoted the AVNL official as saying. Expected to weigh around 25 tonnes, this highly agile modern light tank with superior firepower will be suitable for diverse terrains and will be particularly useful in border and high altitude regions. Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) is included among the 12 Most Promising Dividend Stocks According to Wall Street Analysts. What Makes Accenture (ACN) One of the Most Promising Dividend Stocks on Wall Street Photo by NeONBRAND on Unsplash Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) is a global professional services company that focuses on digital transformation, consulting, and technology solutions. Its core strategy revolves around promoting digital growth by incorporating advanced technologies such as cloud computing and artificial intelligence. Operating in more than 120 countries, the company uses its extensive global network to provide tailored solutions that address a wide range of business challenges. In recent years, Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) has concentrated on strengthening its leadership in technology and innovation. Through its advancements in AI and a series of strategic acquisitions, the company has reinforced its standing in the global marketplace. On the financial side, Accenture plc (NYSE:ACN) is popular among dividend investors because of its strong cash position. In fiscal Q4 2025, the company reported a free cash flow of $3.8 billion, and it came in at nearly $11 billion for the whole year. For FY26, the company expects to return $9.6 billion in shareholder returns. On September 25, it announced a 10.1% hike in its quarterly dividend to $1.63 per share. Through this increase, the company stretched its dividend growth streak to 15 years, which makes ACN one of the most promising stocks. The stock supports a dividend yield of 2.58%, as of October 8. While we acknowledge the potential of ACN as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If youre looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 14 Best Food Dividend Stocks To Buy According to Analysts and Dividend Champions List: Top 15 Stocks to Buy. Disclosure: None. In what has come as a historic moment for the Indian Air Force, Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh received the Qualified Flying Instructor (QFI) badge on Friday, becoming the first woman fighter pilot in the country to earn the badge. Squadron Leader Singh also holds the distinction of being the first woman Rafale pilot, according to reports. She completed the flying instructor course from Tamil Nadu's Tambaram-based Flying Instructors School. The fighter pilot will now be training rookie pilots of the Indian Air Force. "Valedictory ceremony for the 159th #QFIC was conducted at FIS AFS Tambaram on 09 Oct 25. Air Mshl Tejbir Singh, SASO TC IAF was the Chief Guest. 59 officers from IAF, sister services & friendly foreign countries were conferred the coveted #QualifiedFlyingInstructor badge," a tweet from the Training Command of the Indian Air Force (IAF) said. Valedictory ceremony for the 159th #QFIC was conducted at FIS AFS Tambaram on 09 Oct 25. Air Mshl Tejbir Singh, SASO TC IAF was the Chief Guest. 59 officers from IAF, sister services & friendly foreign countries were conferred the coveted #QualifiedFlyingInstructor badge. pic.twitter.com/WUnVEzt22a TRACOMIAF_CMCC (@tracomiaf) October 10, 2025 The QFI badge to Squadron Leader Singh comes as a slap on the face of Pakistan, which falsely claimed that the Rafale fighter jet that she was flying was shot down during Operation Sindoor. Meanwhile, Pakistan attempted to discredit her further after reports of her earning the badge were going viral, by claiming that the IAF shared an edited image of Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh. The Fact Check department of the PIB, in a tweet, said, "A Pakistani propaganda account "Ousai2002" has claimed that the Indian Air Force shared an edited image of Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh. #PIBFactCheck This claim is #FAKE." A Pakistani propaganda account "Ousai2002" has claimed that the Indian Air Force shared an edited image of Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh.#PIBFactCheck This claim is #FAKE. Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh was awarded the Qualified Flying Instructor (QFI) badge during the pic.twitter.com/6X0tndDKOZ PIB Fact Check (@PIBFactCheck) October 11, 2025 Earlier, Pakistan-based X handle, operating under the username Azhar Naseem Khan, shared a video Chief Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh visiting the home of IAF pilot Shivangi Singh, and claimed that the IAF chief was consoling the mother of the IAF pilot as she had gone missing during the India-Pakistan military stand-off. However, a PTI fact check revealed that it was the video of the IAF chief visiting the family of late Sgt Surendra Kumar, who laid down his life in the line of duty during Operation Sindoor in Rajasthans Jhunjhunu. We are two months away from the Netflix premiere of Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery, in which Daniel Craig returns as detective Benoit Blanc. Filmmaker Rian Johnson, who directed the first two films, said the new entry is relatively "more traditional" and has much in common with Agatha Christie's mysteries compared to the last two. While speaking to Deadline at their recent event, Johnson said, The reality of this movie, it has almost like a more traditional murder mystery structure. This is how most Agatha Christie books work, where in the first act you meet all the suspects, you meet the protagonist, whos not the detective. Then the murder happens, and the detective shows up. Written and directed by Johnson, Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery has been slated for a premiere on Dec. 12, 2025. Blanc, the flamboyant, Southern aristocrat-style detective has a newer, bigger challenge to deal with this time around. Not much is known about the new case, aside from the information that Blanc will venture into darker territory this timethe promos hinted at a religion-centric crime and a darker tone, unlike the previous entries. Wake Up Dead Man also features a who's who of seasoned and up-and-coming actors in Hollywood, such as Josh O'Connor, Glenn Clse, Josh Brolin, Mila Kunis, Jeremy Renner, Kerry Washington, Andrew Scott, Cailee Spaeny, and others. An original creation of Johnson, who was inspired by the most popular detectives in fiction from Sherlock Holmes to Hercule Poirot to Gideon Fell (created by author John Dickson Carr), Blanc made his first appearance in Knives Out (2019), in which he was called upon to investigate the death of a bestselling novelist played by Christopher Plummer. In the sequel Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery, Blanc travelled to Greece to deal with the case of an eccentric tech billionaire and the strange events at his peculiar vacation hideaway. The alleged gangrape of a second-year medical student on a private college campus in West Bengal's Durgapur has led to political leaders trading barbs on social media after it invoked similarities to Kolkata's RG Kar rape case of 2024. The victim's father alleged that one of his daughter's classmates had taken her out of the college campus on the pretext of eating some food. Durgapur, West Bengal | The victim's father says, "At 10 PM, her friend called us and said that your daughter has been raped. We live in Jaleshwar. My daughter was studying here. Yesterday, one of her classmates took her out on the pretext of getting something to eat, but when https://t.co/Rf1Z3KOXaA pic.twitter.com/6dcDP0Dviu ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 However, the friend allegedly abandoned her after 2-3 men arrived and snatched her mobile phone away. They then raped the student in a forested area near the campus, as per an Indian Express Bengali report. It added that the victim's father also claimed the accused demanded money to get her phone back, warning her against going to the police about the matter. "In this sensitive matter, I strongly urge the Honorable Chief Minister of West Bengal, @MamataOfficial, to take exemplary action against the accused as per the law," wrote Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi in a post on X. , Mohan Charan Majhi (@MohanMOdisha) October 11, 2025 Calling the Mamata Banerjee-led West Bengal a "safe haven for rapists and criminals", BJP leader and Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar declared that the state had turned into a "nightmare for women's safety" under the CM's "failed and lawless rule". After the horrific rape of a young woman doctor at R.G. Kar Hospital, yet another horrifying crime has emerged! A second-year medical student at a private medical college in Durgapur has been gang-raped! The survivor, a student from Jaleswar in Odisha, was allegedly abducted Dr. Sukanta Majumdar (@DrSukantaBJP) October 11, 2025 "BJP is a political party, and such crimes against women should not be politicised. Unfortunately, the BJP always views such through a political lens, which is most unwarranted," fired back West Bengal minister Shashi Panja in a video. #WATCH | Delhi | On Durgapur alleged gangrape case, West Bengal Minister Shashi Panja says, "... There has been an unfortunate incident in a private medical college in a private college in Durgapur. The complaint is of a gang rape. The police are investigating. There's an ongoing pic.twitter.com/seCCgAAf7E ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 The student is currently undergoing treatment at a nearby hospital, a police officer said. After the victim's father criticised the security arrangements at the college, the father of the postgraduate student who was raped in 2024 at the RG Kar Medical College also spoke out, criticising the administration for "not doing its job properly". #WATCH | North 24 Parganas, West Bengal | On the alleged gangrape of a second-year student of a private medical college in Durgapur, father of the RG Kar Medical College rape and murder victim says, "They are doctors, first-class citizens of society, and they (government) cannot pic.twitter.com/7144sipmEn ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 "Despite all that's happening, a national report (NCRB) has come out calling West Bengal the safest. It has been ranked number one, calling it the safest state. We will challenge those who prepare these reports. How do they make these reports?" he questioned. A blueprint for the National Democratic Alliance's (NDA) seat-sharing arrangements for Bihar's capital Patna was prepared on Saturday after a meeting of top BJP leaders in Delhi earlier today. The blueprint is set to be revealed in the Sunday meeting, which includes various constituent leaders from the state, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and BJP President J.P. Nadda. Although a final consensus on seat-sharing has yet to be reached, the prepared blueprint indicates that the seating formula would be revealed on Sunday, a Jagran report said, citing unnamed sources. #WATCH | Patna, Bihar: On Bihar elections, BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy says, "...A broad consensus has already been reached. I am confident that everything will be finalised very soon. Now the election has been announced. Now we are all in the election field. Our preparation is that pic.twitter.com/qAp90kgx90 ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 The sources added that the final seat formula is expected to be revealed after the Sunday meeting, after ironing out a few minor issues. The BJP's Central Election Committee is also scheduled to meet that evening to finalise the names of candidatesthe last hurdle for the NDA ahead of formally entering the electoral battle. This follows disputes over seat allocation that have threatened the optics of the alliance. The new blueprint has reportedly settled differences of opinion put forth by Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) leader and former Bihar CM Jitan Ram Manjhi and Rashtriya Lok Morcha (RLM) chief Upendra Kushwaha. The report added that seat allocation for the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) was still an issuenot because of numbers, but because of Chirag Paswan's "preference" for certain seats, most of which are held by the Janata Dal (United), as per BJP sources. ALSO READ | Bihar elections: Did BJP, Chirag Paswan reach a consensus on seat-sharing? In terms of numbers, Paswan's party is expected to get around 25-26 seats, as opposed to his initial demand of 45 from the BJP and JD(U). Sunday's meeting is expected to resolve the seat-sharing disputes between BJP and Nitish Kumar's JD(U), with the latter to remain the "elder brother" in the alliance. As the National Democratic Alliance is expected to announce its seat-sharing formula for the Bihar Assembly elections in a day or two, Union minister Chirag Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas)a key constituent of the alliancewill hold its key meeting on Saturday. The meeting will deliberate on the seat-sharing arrangements and finalise the partys candidates, reports said. Quoting sources, the IANS news agency reported that an understanding has been reached between the LJP (RV) and the Bharatiya Janata Party regarding the distribution of seats. As per the report, Chirags party is expected to get around 25-26 seats. Chirag, who hopes to play a major role in the elections, had demanded a minimum of 45 assembly segments from the BJP and Nitish Kumars JD(U), leaving the seat-sharing talks in the doldrums. VIDEO | Delhi: Putting an end to all speculations about his disappointment over seat sharing within NDA, LJP (Ram Vilas) chief and Union Minister Chirag Paswan says, "When my PM is there, I don't have to think about my own respect..."#BiharElections2025 #BiharElectionsWithPTI pic.twitter.com/StmmSmTyhD Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) October 10, 2025 However, the consensus was reportedly arrived at after several rounds of meeting between Chirag and Union minister Nityanand Rai, who has been tasked by the BJP central leadership with the responsibility of holding discussions with the regional party. Though the clear outcomes of the meetings are yet to be known, Chirag said on Friday that the discussions were moving forward in a positive manner. "The talks are going in a positive manner and are in their end stage now. We want to hold discussions on all minute issues, seats, candidates, and campaigning, he told reporters. In the 2020 elections, the LJP (RV) contested on over 135 seats, but managed to win only one. The nascent party, however, inflicted heavy damage to the JD(U), which was not part of the NDA at that time. Meanwhile, LJP (RV) MP Shambhavi Choudhary said all MPs and office bearers of the party have authorised Chirag to make the final decision on seat-sharing. "Our national president has said that they are continuously discussing, and all our MPs and office-bearers have authorised our national president, and whatever decision they take will be final. Since there are elections, such meetings continue to occur during the election period. We have a week to submit nominations. Our effort is to ensure that everything happens in a well-coordinated manner," she told reporters. The alleged exclusion of women journalists from a press conference by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, in New Delhi has sparked outrage, with the opposition Congress demanding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi clarify his position. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra termed the incident as an insult to some of Indias most competent women. "Prime Minister @narendramodi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India," Priyanka Gandhi wrote on X. Prime Minister @narendramodi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of womens rights isnt just convenient posturing from one election to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) October 11, 2025 "If your recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, how has this insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride," she said. The government, meanwhile, clarified that it had no role in the event addressed by the Afghanistan minister. The Ministry of External Affairs had no involvement in the press interaction held yesterday by the Afghan foreign minister in Delhi, official sources said. They also pointed out that the Afghan Embassy territory does not come under the jurisdiction of the Indian government. Senior Congress leader and former Union Minister P. Chidambaram said the male journalists should have boycotted the press meet when they found out that women were not allowed to attend the event. "I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan. In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited)," he said. I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited) P. Chidambaram (@PChidambaram_IN) October 11, 2025 The controversy erupted after women journalists were allegedly barred from Muttaqis press meet at the Afghan embassy in New Delhi, hours after he held wide-ranging talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. Muttaqi is part of the Taliban government, known for its anti-women stance. Since assuming power in 2021, the Taliban have imposed several restrictions on women in accordance with their interpretation of Islamic Sharia law. The Haryana government has transferred Rohtak superintendent of police Narendra Bijraniya after he was named in the case relating to the alleged suicide of IPS officer Y Puran Kumar and replaced him with Surinder Singh Bhoria. Bijraniya has not been given a post as of now. The reshuffle has come amid the growing pressure from the officer's family, who are seeking action against senior officials who are alleged to be responsible for the IPS officers death. Kumars wife, Amneet Puran Kumar, filed a complaint at the police station naming the DGP Shatrujeet Kapoor, the Rohtak SSP, and other senior officials, citing harassment and abetment. She filed the complaint after Puran Kumar named 8 senior IAS and IPS officers in his suicide note. He had alleged harassment and held them directly responsible for his decision to take his own life. He had also accused them of blatant caste-based discrimination, targeted mental harassment, public humiliation, and atrocities. #WATCH | Senior Haryana IPS Officer Y Puran Kumar death case | Chandigarh DGP Sagar Preet Hooda says, "We spoke to the family members and requested them to get the post-mortem conducted as soon as possible. They have some grievances, and we are working on them. The investigation pic.twitter.com/TJ4r5MH4TL ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 According to sources who spoke to the Times of India, the Haryana state government is also considering sending the Director General of Police DGP Shatrujeet Singh Kapoor on a long leave. They are also considering the idea of appointing an officiating DGP to diffuse the situation. Amneets complaint had demanded FIRs and arrests of the senior officials who were named. She had personally handed over her complaint to the Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini when he visited their residence in Chandigarh around 12:30 pm on Thursday. Amneet had also asked for permanent security for her daughter and her family, saying that they were in serious threat and mental distress. Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi wrote to Amneet on Friday. She called the incident a grim reminder that even the highest officers in service are not immune to the prejudiced and biased attitude of those in power, an attitude that continues to deny many the ideals of social justice". The state government is also trying to get Kumars family to agree to a post-mortem and cremation. Earlier, Amneet claimed that authorities had moved his body without the consent of the family to the Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research. An eight-day-long official visit by any countrys top diplomat to another country is a rarity, more of an exception than the rule. More so, if the guest country is Afghanistan and the host country is India. Because, the images of the December 1999 IC 814 hijack episode of the Indian Airlines Airbus A300 that landed in Kandahar into the lap of a supportive Taliban regime is still just to fresh in Indian memory. Consequent events over the years have also not helped improve Indo-Afghan bilateral relations. One of the released prisonerson demand, by the IC 814 hijackerswas Muhammad Masood Azhar who founded the Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) terror outfit that continues to inflict terror acts in India including the 2001 attack on Parliament. Without doubt Kabul is trying hard for a tie-reset with New Delhi. Therefore, visiting Afghan Foreign Minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi made all the right noises in India. In an interaction with a male-only troupe of Indian journalists in Delhi, Muttaqi declared on Friday that Afghan soil would not be used against any country. This is being seen as a statement against Pakistan, a country with which Taliban-ruled Kabuls relations has suddenly plummeted ever since the Taliban re-took Kabul in 2021. But how effective that position will be is anyones guess. According to a recent report by the United States Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), terrorist groups such as ISIS-Khorasan or Daesh and Tehrik-e Taliban Pakistan (TTP) operate freely in Afghanistan while the Al Qaeda has found a favourable atmosphere to freely operate in Afghanistan. A UN report talks about how Afghanistan is now a permissive environment allowing Al-Qaeda to consolidate, with the presence of safe houses and training camps scattered across the country with grant of sanctuary to many lower- and mid-ranking members of Al-Qaedas leadership in Kabul even as senior Al-Qaeda leaders are sheltered in the provinces. With all these terror groups having pledged support to jihad in Kashmir, it is difficult to see how the ruling Taliban can control anti-India activities from its soil. What has given a strategic twist to the issue is the growing interest and presence of major foreign powers like the US and China in Afghanistan that have staked rival claims to carve out Afghanistan as a sphere of influence. As a result, Afghanistan has again become a geostrategic hot-spot. China has offered to help in the infrastructural development of the war-torn country while the US has sought the return of the Bagram air base while aligning closely with Pakistan. The developments have resulted in an enhancement of the bargaining capacity of the Taliban regime. Therefore, in the long run, Indo-Afghan relationship would be hostage to these factors. A key aspect is to what extent the writ of the Kabul-centred Taliban run. Beyond Kabuls borders, it is the warlords and ethnic militias that are very fickle by nature and not necessarily aligned with the position of the power in Kabul. With unpredictability being the key characteristic feature, India will have no choice but to become familiar with this unpredictability. But what has opened up space for India in Afghanistan is the sharp souring of relations between Kabul and Islamabad. India is also driven by the imperativeness to enhance connectivity with Iran and Central Asia and for that to happen Afghanistan is key. US ambassador-designate Sergio Gor, who is in India on a six-day visit even as the ties between the two countries have hit a rough patch owing to the trade and tariff tensions, said on Saturday that US President Trump considers Prime Minister Narendra Modi a great and personal friend. Gor's remarks come after his meeting with the prime minister, during which the two reportedly discussed bilateral issues, including defence, trade, and technology. Gor called the meeting with PM Modi "incredible" and said the US values its relationship with India. We also discussed the importance of critical minerals amid the trade tensions between the US and China. Trump announced on Friday that he was placing an additional 100 per cent tax on Chinese imports in retaliation for the export controls placed on rare earth elements by China. "Glad to receive Mr. Sergio Gor, Ambassador-designate of the US to India. Im confident that his tenure will further strengthen the IndiaUS Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership," Modi said in a tweet. Earlier, the US embassy in India had said Gor will be meeting with his government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen the "ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship." Glad to receive Mr. Sergio Gor, Ambassador-designate of the US to India. Im confident that his tenure will further strengthen the IndiaUS Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership.@SergioGor pic.twitter.com/WSzsPxrJXv Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) October 11, 2025 Gor has already met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. Jaishankar said he discussed with Gor the India-US relationship and its global significance, while external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said Misri and Gor had a "productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities." Gor, whose appointment to India was confirmed by the US Senate a few days ago, will have a testing time ahead as his appointment comes at a time when the relationship between the two countries has been impacted by Trump tariffs, which India dubbed "unfair, unjustified and unreasonable". India and the US recently resumed negotiations for the trade deal after a brief hiatus of a few weeks. Amid dissatisfaction in Congress over seat-sharing with the National Conference (NC) for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections, the NC has announced the names of three candidates for the four seats from Jammu and Kashmir. NC president Dr Farooq Abdullah, who was earlier seen as a frontrunner for one of the seats, has decided not to contest. Instead, the party has fielded senior leaders Choudhary Muhammad Ramzan, Sajad Kichloo, and Shammi Oberoi as its nominees. The selections carry both political and tactical significance as the party faces a contest in which the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also has considerable stakes. Chaudhary, a veteran NC leader and four-time MLA from Handwara in north Kashmirs Kupwara district, has held several ministerial portfolios in earlier NC-led governments. He lost the 2014 and 2024 Assembly elections to Sajad Lone, the chief of the Peoples Conference (PC). His nomination is viewed as a calculated attempt by the NC to curb Lones growing influence in Kupwara. By fielding Kichloo, a two-time MLA from Kishtwar, the NC aims to reinforce its presence in the Chenab Valley comprising the district of Doda, Kishtwar and Bhaderwah and challenge Sunil Sharma, the BJPs Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly. Sharma defeated Kichloo in 2014 in Kishtwar. In 2024, Sharma won the constituency by defeating Kitchloo. He remains one of the BJPs most prominent figures in Jammu. Oberoi is an NC loyalist and an aide of NC vice-president and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. The Congress is dissatisfied with the NC over the offer of a seat where the BJP enjoys an advantage, while retaining the three safer seats for itself. The BJP with a strong organisational base in the Jammu region is confident of securing at least one Rajya Sabha. A win would bolster the BJPs claim of sustained political relevance in the Union Territory despite electoral setbacks in the Kashmir valley during the 2024 Assembly elections. Political analysts say the Rajya Sabha elections will serve as an early test of the NCCongress alliance, which was forged ahead of last years Assembly polls. Any breakdown in coordination could strengthen the BJPs assertion that the alliance was fragile. (Reuters) -Latin American e-commerce firm MercadoLibre will test the waters for online pharmaceutical sales in Brazil through its newly acquired drugstore, its local head said on Thursday, a first step in entering the country's multi-billion-dollar online medicine market. Uruguay-based MercadoLibre, Latin America's largest company by market cap, already sells medicines online in Mexico, Argentina, Chile and Colombia, but not in Brazil, the firm's largest market. In a call with journalists, executive Fernando Yunes confirmed recent media reports that MercadoLibre had acquired a physical drugstore in Brazil, a requirement under local law for companies selling pharmaceuticals. Yunes said the company does not intend to build a nationwide drugstore chain. Another executive added that the goal is to allow small and medium-sized drugstores to sell in MercadoLibre's e-commerce platform in Brazil, and not to compete directly with pharmaceutical companies. "The pharmaceutical sector is the only one in Brazil that we do not operate in. It's a sector where we see potential for improvement in access," Yunes said. "We want to be a marketplace, we want drugstores selling on MercadoLibre." Next steps will depend on how its first drugstore performs, executives said. MercadoLibre is also talking with Brazilian authorities to update the country's regulation for the pharmaceutical sector, which creates operational challenges, Yunes noted. "Brazilian law was created a long time ago. We believe it needs to be modernized. This will allow pharmacies to have greater access to customers," he added. (Reporting by Michael Susin; Writing by Fernando Cardoso; Editing by Kylie Madry and Natalia Siniawski) Actor-Politician Pawan Singh announced on Saturday that he will not be contesting in the upcoming Bihar assembly elections, shutting down all speculations. In the past week, the Bhojpuri star has been meeting with many NDA and BJP leaders, creating buzz suggesting that he might contest either from Ara or Barhara with the party. Pawan Singh, however, clarified on X that he did not join the party to contest the Bihar Legislative Assembly elections, and said, nor do I intend to contest the assembly elections. He said that he was a true soldier of the party and would remain one. The post has cleared up the rumours and speculations that spread last week after he met with the leaders. | pic.twitter.com/reVNwocoav Pawan Singh (@PawanSingh909) October 11, 2025 Just the day before, his wife Jyoti Singh had met Jansuraj chief Prashant Kishore in Patna, which also fuelled another round of speculation saying that she wanted to contest in the elections. Jyoti made headlines recently after she accused Pawan of abandonment, infidelity, and abuse. The ongoing dispute between the couple also included politics, as Pawan accused his wife in a counter-argument of pressuring him to let her contest in the elections. Jyoti had denied the claims. Local reports said that many in the Ara city believed that Pawan Singh contesting on a BJP ticket could strengthen the NDAs hold there. The party only won by a close margin in the last elections in the region. Last week, a photograph of Pawan embracing the senior NDA leader Upendra Kushwaha trended and made headlines. On September 30th, the film star also met with senior BJP leader and Union Home Minister Amit Shah and party National President JP Nadda in Delhi. Pawan Singh hails from Shahabad, which includes Bhojpur, Ara, Rohtas, Sasaram, Kaimur, Bhabha, and Buxar making it an area crucial to Bihar politics. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the NDA had lost four of the five seats in the region following the suspension of Pawan Singh and the conflict between the Rajput and the Kushwaha communities. The split in the votes and Pawan contesting as an Independant were considered the cause of the party's defeat in the region. When the meeting with the leaders happened it was considered to as a move to bring back the influential commmunities back to voting for the NDA. In a heartbreaking incident, an eight-year-old died by suicide in Thiruvananthapuram district in Kerala. According to media reports, the boy, identified as Shreyas, was found dead at his home in Chempazhanthy in Thiruvananthapuram district on Saturday. The boy, a Class II student, allegedly took the extreme step after his mother scolded him for making noise. A Malayala Manorama report said the boy and his twin brother were studying when their mother scolded the boy for making noise. Shreyas then went into his room and closed the door. The mother did not check on him as she thought the boy was sleeping. However, when he did not come out of the room after a long time, the mother broke open the door and found him hanging from the window with a cloth tied around his neck. Although he was rushed to the hospital, the boy was declared brought dead. A case of unnatural death has been registered by the police and an investigation is underway. (Further details awaited) In what appears to be a case of mass suicide, five members of a family in Sikar of Jaipur district in Rajasthan were found dead on Saturday morning. According to media reports, a woman and four of her childrenthree sons and a daughterdied by suicide after consuming poison at Anirudh Residency on Palwas Road in Sikar. The woman and her children allegedly took the extreme step over a dispute with her husband. A packet containing some poisonous substance was reportedly recovered from the scene. The neighbours grew suspicious after the door of the house remained unopened for a long time. The neighbours tried to call the people inside, but received no response. They then broke open the door and found the people inside dead. Soon the police were informed about the incident. "Decomposed bodies of Kiran (35), three sons Sumit (18), Ayush (4) and Avnish (3), and daughter Sneha (13) were found in the flat," Sikar Sadar police station SHO Indraj Marodia has been quoted as saying by PTI. #WATCH | Sikar: Five members of a family found dead inside home at Anirudh Residency, Deputy SP, Sikar Suresh Sharma says, "...We received a complaint from Anirudh Residency of a flat being locked for many days and foul smell coming from inside...We checked and found five dead pic.twitter.com/7mzqRxb9BW ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 According to the SHO, it suspected that the family consumed poison and died by suicide two to three days ago. "...We received a complaint from Anirudh Residency of a flat being locked for many days and foul smell coming from inside...We checked and found five dead bodies of family members," news agency ANI quoted Sikar Deputy SP Suresh Sharma as saying. "The forensic team is called to collect samples; further enquiry is underway," he added. US Ambassador-designate to India Sergio Gor on Saturday met External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in New Delhithe second day of his visit to the country. ALSO READ | Who is Sergio Gor? Trumps close aide named next US ambassador to India amid raging tariff war This comes days after his appointment to the post was confirmed by the Senate, as the India-US relationship undergoes strain due to US President Donald Trump's 50 per cent tariffs, as well as the revision of the H-1B visa fee to $100,000. "Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance," Jaishankar wrote in a post on X after the meeting, congratulating Gor on his appointment. Pleased to meet Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor of the US today in New Delhi. Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance. Wish him the best for his new responsibility. @USAmbIndia pic.twitter.com/cBMiYeRSVV Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) October 11, 2025 Gor was accompanied by the Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources, Michael J. Rigas, for his six-day visit to India "from October 9 to October 14" (US time). A statement from India's Ministry of External Affairs said that the Saturday meeting was a "productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities". New Delhi and Washington are looking to strengthen strategic and trade ties, as the India-US trade deal remains in the works. Technology and defence are other key sectors that the two nations are looking to cooperate on. At the same time, India is likely to remain cautious too, as the attempts to thaw India-US ties come amid the imposition of 100 per cent tariffs on Chinaon top of the baseline rate of 30 per centfrom November 1. Seen as a punitive move in response to China's rare earth export restrictions, a think-tank report has warned that "no deal with the US is ever final". The Global Trade Research Institute (GTRI) report, titled 'Trumps tariff offensive hits a rare earth wall', also suggests that instead of depending on shifting US promises, New Delhi should prioritise self-reliance in critical technologies and minerals, shielding its economy from future trade shocks. Meetings with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh lie ahead for Gor, as well as other officials from various ministries and top business leaders. In a major setback to the Bharatiya Janata Party in Bihar ahead of the assembly elections, MLA Mishrilal Yadav resigned from the party on Saturday, citing humiliation. Yadav, who represents Alinagar constituency in Darbhanga district, is a prominent leader from the Other Backwards Classes (OBC). We felt humiliated while in the BJP. We were tortured within the party, and our self-respect was not protected, Yadav said at a press conference in Patna. He also alleged that Dalits and other backward communities were not getting their due in the organisation. #WATCH | Patna, Bihar: On his resignation from the BJP, BJP leader Mishrilal Yadav says, "Today, not only the backward Dalits but also I am being insulted; my self-respect as an MLA is also being hurt. It has become difficult for an MLA like me to maintain my self-respect within pic.twitter.com/jXLzmHLpUo ANI (@ANI) October 11, 2025 I won the 2020 election from a seat where no NDA MLA had won in the past 30 years, yet the party still refused to respect me, he said. Yadav had contested the elections on a ticket of Vikassheel Insan Party (VIP). All four MLAs of the VIP, including Yadav, joined the BJP after the regional party ceased to be an NDA constituent in 2022 when its founder Mukesh Sahni was expelled from the Nitish Kumar cabinet at BJP's instance. In Alinagar, a constituency dominated by Brahmin, Yadav and Muslim voters, Yadav polled 61,082 votes in the 2020 elections while his rival RJDs Binod Mishra came second with 57,98 votes. Yadav did not divulge his future plans, but, according to reports, he is understood to be in touch with the opposition INDIA bloc, helmed by the RJD. I am a secular-minded person, so I may join a secular party. But for now, I can say I will contest the Alinagar seat and win again, he said. Yadav also indicated that his son, who has served as a district head for the past decade, may contest the upcoming elections, though he did not specify under which partys banner. The two-phase Bihar assembly elections will be held on November 6 and 11, while the counting of votes will take place on November 14. An allegation of a rape case involving a medical college student has emerged in West Bengal, this time from a private medical college in Durgapur in West Midnapore district. The alleged rape of the second-year student has sparked tension on the premises of this college. However, the incident took place outside the college premises. The main perpetrator of the crime was known to the victim. According to primary reports, the student who belongs to Jaleshwar in Odisha, left the college premises from the back gate around 8:30 pm on Thursday after she was asked to exit the premises by her boyfriend to eat pani puri with him. The victim alleged that her boyfriend also called his friends and then took the girl to a secluded place and raped her. Police investigations are underway; no arrests have been made so far. Police reached the college premises and spoke to the authorities to gather further details. Meanwhile, the girls parents have also come to the college to find out more about what happened. The BJP lashes out at the state administration over crimes against women taking place. Since the last 14 and a half years under the leadership of Mamata Banerjee and TMC this is what we have got. Egiye Bangla? (Bengal moves forward?). How are we progressing forward? It can be a six-month-old child, an 80-year-old woman or a second-year student in a medical college from Odisha. There is no control in West Bengal. Catch any girl and rape her. She had gone to buy food and she was gangraped. Said BJP leader Agnimitra Paul. Paul went on to question what investigation is being done in all rape cases in the state. West Bengal cannot provide security to its own women. How will they provide security to someone coming from Odisha?It is shameful, said Paul. In the streets of Amman, the unease is palpable. Cafe conversations revolve around Gaza; shopkeepers glance more at television screens than at customers; mothers pause in markets, watching news clips with tears and disbelief. For Jordanians, Gaza is not distant; it is part of their collective memory and moral compass. A nation on the razors edge Jordans foremost strategic priority is no longer an abstract notion of regional stability. It is something far more immediate: keeping the nation intactsocially, politically and economically, while upholding justice for the Palestinian cause across the river. The latest US-backed peace initiative envisions a phased ceasefire, expanded humanitarian access, and gradual reconstruction of Gaza. Jordan joined the international call for an immediate truce. These diplomatic steps, however, are existential for Amman. They can mean containment or collapse, both at home and across the region. Every development in Gaza reverberates through Jordanian society. Public empathy for Palestinians runs deep, and citizens expect leaders to do more than offer rhetoric. Yet the leadership confronts an impossible equation: stability without justice will not placate public sentiment, and justice without stability risks tearing the system apart. Jordan walks a narrow line between both imperatives. The fragile ceasefire and the ghosts of the past The recent ceasefire, while welcomed across the Arab world, carries a heavy sense of deja vu. The Oslo Accords promised peace but delivered stalemate and settlement expansion. The 2014 Gaza truce was hailed as a step toward calm, only to be undone by the next cycle of violence. More recently, a US-brokered ceasefire was reportedly breached within days amid pressure from hard-right political factions in Israel, a stark reminder that domestic politics can unravel deals negotiated on the international stage. This pattern of temporary silences followed by renewed bloodshed has conditioned much of the Arab world to greet each new deal with a healthy dose of cynicism. It is not peace itself that is distrusted but the sincerity and structure of its pursuit. Ceasefires have too often been intermissions between wars rather than foundations for justice. The current truce, dependent on fragile understandings among external guarantors and competing local factions, shares that vulnerability. For Jordan, this is not merely a diplomatic concern but a national one. A breakdown could reignite popular outrage, destabilize border regions, and revive fears of displacement. Across the Arab world, it would reinforce the belief that the international system treats Palestinian suffering as a problem to be managed, not resolved. The external and internal fronts Jordans borders demand constant vigilance. To the north, the chaos in Syria still spills over. To the west, Gaza threatens escalation. The nightmare scenario, the forced displacement of Palestinians into Jordan, remains existential. Amman has drawn a clear red line: it cannot accept another wave of displacement. This is not simply economic; it is a matter of identity and national survival. A child looks on as protesters gather during a rally in solidarity with Palestinians, in Amman, Jordan | Reuters The more complex challenge is domestic. Across towns and campuses, young Jordanians voice growing frustration over scarce jobs, rising prices, and shrinking prospects. Layered atop this discontent is the moral weight of Gazas devastation. Economic strain plus moral outrage creates a combustible atmosphere that the state must carefully manage. Diplomatic success abroad is therefore inseparable from stability at home. Failure to secure a lasting peace risks igniting domestic anger that no security measure can easily contain. Regional alliances and the search for credibility The recent visit of Qatars Emir was more than ceremonial; it signalled recognition that Jordan cannot navigate this crisis alone. Gulf financial assistance is critical, but money cannot buy legitimacy. Jordan needs credibility, at home and in global forums. Credibility begins with ensuring citizens see their government as an engaged advocate for justice. It means Jordans red lines, especially the rejection of displacement and the demand for a genuine peace process, must be clearly and consistently articulated. It also requires that global powers translate rhetoric about international law into concrete accountability. Balancing strength and compassion Jordans foreign policy has long been guided by pragmatism, moderation and restraint. These remain essential but must be matched with conviction and clarity. The public expects leadership that speaks the language of conscience as well as diplomacy. The kingdom cannot be perceived as complacent or complicit in an unjust status quo. King Abdullah IIs repeated calls for a just and comprehensive peace reflect that balance. His warnings against forced displacement, his emphasis on the sanctity of Jerusalems holy sites, and his insistence on humanitarian norms reinforce Jordans role as both stabiliser and moral voice in a polarised region. The test of resilience Jordan has weathered regional storms before. It has done so not through military might but through clarity of purpose and resilience of spirit. Its survival has often depended on the delicate ability to mediate, absorb and adapt. Today, that balancing act is more precarious. The kingdom must maintain ties with the United States, Europe and the Gulf while staying true to its peoples demand for dignity and justice. If Jordan falters under the weight of Gaza, the loss will not be its alone. The region would lose one of its last anchors of moderation. In an Arab world struggling with fragmentation and fatigue, Jordans steadiness is both a strategic necessity and a moral imperative. The road ahead Jordans challenge is to remain steady amid storms: maintaining cohesion in shared grief and guarded hope while pressing relentlessly for a peace that restores justice, not merely calm. The lesson from three decades of failed processes is clear: ceasefires that ignore the root causes of occupation and dispossession are unlikely to hold. For the Arab world, and for Jordan in particular, the cost of another broken promise will be measured not only in lives lost but in trust eroded. Ultimately, Jordans survival strategy is profoundly human. Its mission is to protect cohesion at home while standing for a peace abroad that its people can believe in. In this region, stability and justice are not opposing goals; they are the same fight, fought on different fronts. The author is a strategic consulting and national security expert. He is a governing body member of the Society to Harmonise Aspirations for Responsible Engagement (SHARE). Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians have begun returning to what remains of their homes in Gaza following the start of a fragile ceasefire between Hamas and Israel. The truce, which came into effect at midday yesterday, offers the first genuine pause in violence since March, bringing a moment of respite to a population battered by months of relentless conflict. Israeli forces withdrew from several key areas last morning, moving to positions agreed upon as part of the ceasefire arrangement. The IDF announced that troops are now stationed at updated deployment lines in preparation for the ceasefire agreement and the return of hostages."The next key part is the exchange of hostages and prisoners. Under the agreement, Hamas will have 72 hours to release all hostages, including the bodies of those who have died. Israel, in return, will free 250 Palestinian prisoners serving long sentences in Israeli prisons and also around 2,000 Gazans arrested during the war, including minors who were not involved in the October 7 attacks. The scale of displacement has been immense. It is believed that up to 90 percent of Gaza City's residents fled during the conflict. On the first day of Israels partial pullback, around 200,000 people made their way back to northern Gaza. For many, it is not the first attempt to return, as previous ceasefires were short-lived and marked by renewed fighting. With roads, bridges and other infrastructure damaged, most Gazans are forced to walk over 20 km, carrying whatever they have managed to save. Those unable to walk face exorbitant transport costs, with vehicle hire reportedly costing as much as 4,000 shekels (around $ 1,200) a price far beyond the reach of most. Aid groups and witnesses describe returnees as physically weakened, malnourished and emotionally drained, bearing the visible toll of conflict and displacement. What awaits them is devastation on a vast scale. Gaza City, once the territorys bustling urban heart, has been reduced to ruins. Recent assessments suggest that nearly three quarters of the city's buildings have sustained damage. In neighbourhoods like Sheikh Radwan, Sabra and Zeitoun, entire residential blocks have been flattened. Same is the case in southern areas like Khan Younis, where entire neighbourhoods have been destroyed beyond recognition. Basic infrastructure is virtually non-existent in the north. There is no electricity, no running water and no functioning sanitation. Humanitarian conditions remain dire. Aid agencies warn that food, fuel and clean water are in critically short supply, and a famine had already been declared in parts of Gaza months earlier. Security remains a serious concern. The Israeli army has warned civilians to avoid areas such as Beit Hanoun, Beit Lahia and Shujaiyya, which are deemed extremely dangerous. Though Israel has pulled back from some areas, it continues to control significant portions of Gaza and maintains the right to conduct military operations. In areas vacated by Israeli forces, armed Hamas fighters have been seen patrolling the streets, some wearing insignia of the groups internal security agency. Their presence highlights the unresolved question of who will govern Gaza going forward, particularly in light of international proposals that seek to exclude Hamas from any future role. According to a statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus office, the Israeli military will complete its redeployment by today. Notwithstanding the ceasefire, Netanyahu made clear that the war could resume if Hamas refuses to disarm, stating that Gaza will be demilitarised, one way or another. President Donald Trump, meanwhile, is expected to fly to Israel on October 13, and deliver an address to the parliament, the Knesset. Last Wednesday, the State Security Court of Jordan handed down prison sentences of varying lengths to nine individuals over their alleged links to the Islamist Muslim Brotherhood (MB). Out of them, two were sentenced to 15 years for trying to manufacture missiles, with structures and warehouses set up in Amman and Zarqa. Additionally, the convicted individuals were accused of receiving training and financing in Lebanon to carry out terrorist attacks using rockets and drones on Jordanian soil. Mohammed Shoaib Raza The courts decision comes against the backdrop of Jordans increased crackdown on MB-related individuals and assets, following its outlawing last April, after the groups members were found to be associated with destabilisation efforts. Given the group's illegal status, the intensified crackdown should not be a surprise. However, the sentencing marks a major break in the monarchy's decades-long, love-hate relationship with the MB. The April ban affirmed that the Jordan chapter of MB (MB was originally founded in Egypt in 1928) was already dissolved by the countrys apex court, the Court of Cassation, when it failed to rectify its legal status in 2020. Following the ban, Jordans state security apparatus is following a proactive strategy to clamp down on the group. In July, Jordanian authorities exposed a massive financial network run by the MB, involving about 30 million Jordanian dinars (US$42 million). Signalling zero tolerance for circumvention and active surveillance, security forces in August arrested several individuals gathered at a private home in Irbid. The alleged purpose of the meeting was to discuss the dissolved Muslim Brotherhood society. The ongoing crackdown on the MB also involves continuous monitoring by authorities, who are actively scrutinising the activities and ownership structures of all affiliated associations and companies. In parallel, legal measures have been intensified against organisations, particularly those MB-linked companies accused of financial and regulatory violations. Recently, several organisations in the country faced legal action after being suspected of operating under the MB's "influence." While the serious nature of the charges leading to the MB's outlawing cannot be denied, it is essential to understand the underlying reasons behind the monarchys intolerance towards any MB-related individuals or activities, as evidenced in recent months. Firstly, the Islamists in the country have underscored their relevance by capitalising on issues on which the monarchy has fallen short. For instance, MBs political wing (though unofficial), the Islamic Action Front (IAF), emerged as the top party, securing 31 out of 138 seats in the 2024 parliamentary elections. This victory represented the Islamists' largest parliamentary representation since 1989 and nearly tripled their previous parliamentary representation (up from 10 in 2020). Conversely, pro-establishment parties like the National Charter Party and al-Eradah lagged, securing only 21 and 19 seats, respectively. These remarkable parliamentary gains have heightened the monarchys anxieties about the resurgence of Islamism as a legitimate political alternative in the Hashemite Kingdom. The IAF achieved its best result in 35 years, thanks to the strong backing of the Jordanian Palestinians. Ammans diplomatic stance vis-a-vis Israel did not align with public perception, which furthered their inclination towards Islamists who, raised the slogan You either vote for normalisation or against normalisation. As such, the states intensified suppression of the MB and its affiliates reflect a pre-emptive attempt to neutralise potential challenges to royal authority. The second factor behind an increased crackdown stems from MBs shift in its modus operandi, reflecting resilience and survival tactics. Despite being outlawed, the MB built a "complex" system using funds collected from various sources. This money was used not just for political and charitable activities inside Jordan but also for illegal operations abroad. Specifically, the group was found to be transferring funds out of the country and even using them to buy apartments outside Jordan. Authorities also noted that the MB exploited the Gaza war to illegally raise donations, though the final destination of those funds is unknown. MB was accused of diverting funds intended for charity to achieve its political goals, despite the ban. This adaptive fundraising system involving covert transfers and offshore investments blurs the line between legitimate civil society and transnational subversive activity. This blurring has compelled the monarchy to securitise the movement as an existential threat to both its internal stability and its regional alignments. It is implausible that Jordan was unaware of the MB's political aspirations and only recently learned of them, as the expedited actions against the banned group might suggest. Conditions in Jordan have never been more favourable for Islamists since the Arab Spring, a reality known to both King Abdullah II. As such, the Jordanian regime would not tolerate any challenge to its legitimacy or risk the country falling into the hands of Islamists. It would be too soon to predict the IAF's future, as the party has never officially declared any affiliation with MB. While Amman may earn accolades from Arab brethren for its actions, the MB will likely shift its operational tactics in response to changing circumstances. The author is a doctoral candidate at the Centre for West Asian Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. US President Donald Trump said on Friday that he spoke to Venezuelan opposition leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, hours after the White House accused the Nobel Committee of choosing politics over peace. Trump said Machado told him that she received the award in his honour. The President did not directly criticise the Committee's decision, but he credited himself for resolving several wars and said Machado might have given him the prize if he had asked. The person who actually got the Nobel Prize called today, called me, and said, 'I'm accepting this in honour of you, because you really deserved it,'" Trump told reporters in the Oval Office. "It's a very nice thing to do. I didn't say, 'Then give it to me,' though I think she might have. She was very nice". #WATCH | US President Donald J Trump says, "The person who got the Nobel Prize called me today and said, 'I'm accepting this in honour of you because you really deserved it'... I didn't say, 'Give it to me', though. I think she might have... I've been helping her along the pic.twitter.com/XY1HH1OG5x ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2025 Trump had vigorously campaigned for the prize. After he brokered peace between Israel and Hamas, facilitating the release of hostages, earlier this week, there were speculations that this years award would go to the US president. In his media address, Trump said he had been helping with Machados activities in Venezuela. I've been helping her along the way. They needed a lot of help in Venezuela during the disaster. I am happy because I saved millions of lives, he said, and reiterated his claim that he had stopped seven wars. The White House had earlier criticised the Nobel Committee's decision to grant the peace prize to the Venezuelan leader. "President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will," White House spokesman Steven Cheung said in a post on X. President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will. The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace. https://t.co/dwCEWjE0GE Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) October 10, 2025 According to reports, Nominations for the Nobel must have been made before January 31 to be valid for this year's prize. Trump returned to the White House for his second term in office on January 20. Trump acknowledged on Friday the committee's decision in practice focused on 2024 when he had been campaigning for president, but he suggested his contributions to peace were so great that they should have given him the prize anyway. StandardAero, Inc. (NYSE:SARO) is among the 9 Defense Stocks That Will Skyrocket. On September 29, the company announced the appointment of Michael L. Kaplan as its Chief Legal Officer, effective October 6, 2025. Michael L. Kaplan Returns to StandardAero, Inc. (SARO), Appointed as Chief Legal Officer Kaplan had previously served as SVP, General Counsel, Chief Security Officer, and Secretary at the firm, and is returning to succeed Steve Sinquefield, who is retiring after four decades in aviation and had held the position for more than 10 years. He will be based out of StandardAero, Inc. (NYSE:SARO)s headquarters in Scottsdale, Arizona, and will report to the companys Chairman and CEO, Russell Ford. Kaplan brings over 25 years of legal and executive leadership experience, having most recently worked as Senior Counsel at Norton Rose Fulbright, a global law firm. Chairman and CEO Russell Ford shared the following remarks on Kaplans return to the company: We are delighted to welcome Michael back to StandardAero. He brings deep legal and compliance expertise across a variety of industries, including knowledge of both our business and aviation, and he has a track record of delivering substantial value in his roles all of which will help fuel StandardAero as we continue to execute on our strategic growth plan. StandardAero, Inc. (NYSE:SARO) is a leading provider of aerospace engine aftermarket services for fixed and rotary wing aircraft. It serves the commercial, business aviation, and military end markets. While we acknowledge the potential of SARO as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 11 Best Military Drone Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds and 10 Best Money Making Stocks to Invest In Disclosure: None. Reports of another terrible terror attack are coming from Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province where government forces are repeatedly being engaged by the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) group in recent days. In the latest incident, TTP fighters attacked a police training centre in Dera Ismail Khan district, reportedly killing at least seven policemen. In Dera Ismail Khan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, an attack on a military training center, has reportedly killed around 50 newly trained soldiers. According to media outlets linked to the military, seven Pakistani soldiers were killed during the six-hour battle, and at least 200 people pic.twitter.com/uk5R2cCwIf Wahida (@RealWahidaAFG) October 11, 2025 It was in Dera Ismail Khan district that a Pakistan Army Major had died during an intelligence-based anti-TTP operation a few days ago. According to reports, TTP launched the deadly suicide attack on the police training centre in response to the Pakistan Air Force's raid targeting its leadership in Kabul yesterday. READ HERE | Pakistan Air Force strike Kabul amidst India-Afghanistan talks? Social media videos claim so A TTP suicide bomber targeted the walls of the training centre before more fighters opened fire, media reports said. At least six militants were killed in the gun battle that followed, but several policemen were injured apart from the seven who died, the reports added. TTP earlier claimed that its fighters forced their way into the facility by detonating an explosive-laden vehicle near the gates but later retracted, Arab News PK reported. While two policemen were crushed under the compound wall that collapsed in the explosion, others were killed in the gunfight, top police sources reportedly told Arab News. UPDATE: According to the latest reports from Dera Ismail Khan, 50 policemen have been confirmed killed, while 3 attackers have also been killed. https://t.co/8SmIC3OpJ1 pic.twitter.com/DidFuXCbm1 OSINT Updates (@OsintUpdates) October 11, 2025 There were about 200 trainees and staff at the facility at the time of the attack, and all of them were safely evacuated, the news report said. All militants involved in the attack were neutralised and the gun battle was over, officials confirmed. ALSO READ | Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: All 30 'India-sponsored terrorists' behind attack that killed 13 Pakistan Army soldiers neutralised, claims Islamabad Islamabad has often claimed that the banned TTP is an "Indian proxy" which was using Afghan soil to target Pakistan. At a time the foreign minister of Afghanistan met with his counterpart in New Delhi, Pakistan scrambled fighter jets to target multiple positions in Kabul. This was seen as a message to India and Afghanistan. As dusk settles over north India and the moon begins its quiet ascent, countless women, draped in crimson and gold, lift their sieves skyward. The image, luminous, intimate, and enduring captures the essence of Karwa Chauth, a festival that fuses faith, beauty, and storytelling. Observed on the fourth day after the full moon in the Hindu month of Kartik, Karwa Chauth is one of Indias most evocative traditions. What began centuries ago as a regional ritual has evolved into a pan-Indian celebration, one that embodies devotion, art, and the power of cultural reinvention. The name combines Karwa (an earthen pot used in the ritual) and Chauth (the fourth day), and historically, the festival symbolized both marital fidelity and feminine solidarity. Women wake before sunrise to share the sargi, a meal gifted by their mothers-in-law, and then fast through the day without food or water, praying for their husbands well-being. The fast is broken only when the moon rises, and the woman offers her prayers, viewing the celestial orb through a sieve before taking her first sip of water. Each element, the mehendi on the hands, the glow of the diyas, the rhythmic recitation of stories, is steeped in symbolic beauty. The day is as much a performance of art as it is of faith. It transforms the domestic space into a sacred theatre, where love is expressed through color, rhythm, and ritual. Karwa Chauths visual richness has long inspired artists, who have captured its essence in both folk and classical traditions. In Rajasthani and Mughal miniature paintings, one often finds delicate depictions of women in ornate attire offering prayers to a crescent moon, their faces aglow with reverence. These works, rich in detail and emotion, turn the act of fasting into an image of divine femininity, devotion rendered in pigment and gold leaf. Similarly, Madhubani paintings from Bihar portray the festival through vibrant geometry and symbolism, the moon, the sieve, the karwa, and the couple, surrounded by motifs of fertility and cosmic harmony. The bold lines and vivid colors evoke not just the rituals physicality but its emotional pulse: the merging of love, faith, and continuity. Across centuries and styles, Karwa Chauth has thus become more than a ritual, it is a visual language of intimacy and endurance, continually reinterpreted by artists to mirror the sensibilities of their times. If art gave Karwa Chauth its beauty, cinema gave it its immortality. Bollywood, with its gift for transforming tradition into spectacle, reimagined Karwa Chauth as the ultimate expression of love. The festivals cinematic journey began in the 1990s, when Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) immortalized Kajols secret fast for Shah Rukh Khan, a scene that turned a private ritual into a national fantasy. Later films like Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam (1999), Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), and Baghban (2003) turned Karwa Chauth into a visual poem, part romance, part reverence. Through these depictions, the festival moved beyond its cultural roots to become a pop-cultural emblem. Television serials, advertisements, and now social media carry this legacy forward transforming moonrise into a performance of both infinite love and devotional desire. In contemporary India, Karwa Chauth occupies a fascinating space between display, faith and fashion. Urban couples often observe the fast together, reinterpreting it as a gesture of mutual love rather than one-sided sacrifice. Designer boutiques launch themed collections, restaurants offer moonrise dinners, and social media glitters with images of fasting couples under city skies. Critics argue that commercialisation has diluted its spiritual essence. Yet perhaps it is this very capacity for reinvention that keeps the festival alive. In an age of rapid change, Karwa Chauth offers a moment to reflect on commitment, continuity, and beauty. Integral at a time where the sanctity and longevity of a marriage is being questioned. It remains a festival that celebrates not submission, but connection; not tradition alone, but the emotional poetry that underlies it. At its heart, Karwa Chauth is a festival of enduring emotion. Whether painted in the glowing hues of a Madhubani canvas, preserved in the miniature elegance of Mughal art, or immortalized in a Bollywood moonlit frame, the ritual remains unchanged in spirit: a woman looking at the moon, her reflection framed by love and light. In that moment, the boundaries between the sacred, the artistic, and the cinematic dissolve and what remains is something timeless. The quiet poetry of love, retold each year under the same silver moon. Slam the stable doors too hard after financial shenanigans and the result is market distortions. The impact of the post great financial crisis (GFC) Dodd-Frank Act in the US and the clampdown on British and international banking by the G20 Financial Stability Board, headed by Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, is being felt across the globe. Business activity has been driven into the secretive world of private equity and credit. That is always going to be an opportunity for recklessness and finagling. The consequences are coming sharply into view. The collapse of closely held car parts maker First Brands, which expanded exponentially through acquisition, looks an unlikely candidate to hobble financial markets. But it could be the canary in the mine. Some $2.5billion of funds allegedly disappeared as the sums were done in the bankruptcy courts. The US Justice Department has opened a probe. Britain's City regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, also is monitoring developments in case the ripples cause stress in the Square Mile. As we know from the Lehman Brothers implosion, you can never tell where the dominos might fall. Secretive world: By dipping into private credit in the search of superior returns, rash fund managers expose us all to danger Some of the disclosures could pose a threat to stability. Technically, private finance ought to be off limits to the regulated financial sector. It has now emerged that funds managed by UBS and fast-growing investment bank Jefferies have substantial exposures through arms-length offshoots. If that rings a bell, think of the Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) holding dodgy assets which exploded in the GFC, leaving investors across the globe nursing losses. Initial reports suggest that the liabilities of First Brands were in the order of $10billion, but a figure as high as $50billion has been mentioned in some reports. The liabilities of sub-prime car lender Tricolor also are worrying debt markets. Asset manager Aegon is sounding the alarm. Jim Schaeffer, head of leveraged finance at the $380bn fund manager, is warning of trouble ahead with 'more and more companies just hitting the wall'. He told Bloomberg that firms are 'going down' after years of elevated debt payments. They also are under pressure because of Donald Trump tariff wars and surging import costs. Schaeffer cites the danger of private credit markets where exposures are estimated at $1.7 trillion. The First Brands crisis has similarities to the Greensill scandal in the UK. The motor group took factoring to the extreme by double-pledging its trade receivables invoices to suppliers to third-party investors. By dipping into private credit in the search of superior returns, rash fund managers expose us all to danger. Waving goodbye British pharma trailblazer AstraZeneca is not taking risks with its future. A drug-unfriendly Starmer Government raised the levy on sales to the NHS and has done nothing to lower the barriers to the use of new medicines in hospitals and clinics. Across the Atlantic, AZ is listening to Trump's call for more medicines to be manufactured in America. The response has been rapid. AZ is scuttling off to New York for a second main market listing for its shares. It is also delivering on its pledge of $50billion of new investment in the US. Ground has been broken in Virginia on a new $4.5billion research and manufacturing plant for its innovative cancer medicines and weight loss market. New investment in its Cambridge labs is at a halt and a proposed Liverpool vaccine development site derelict. Bonkers. Tinned tuna company Princes Group has confirmed plans to list on the London stock market this month in a move that could value it at 1.5billion. The almost 150-year-old firm, which is owned by Italian food brand Newlat, said it will make its stock market debut by the end of October. Heritage: Princes Group is headquartered in Liverpool's Liver Building (pictured) The group which is headquartered in Liverpool's Liver Building is best known for its Princes Tuna and Napolina products but also licensed brands such as Branston and Flora. It marks the latest in a recent spate of UK listings in a much-needed boost for the London stock market, which has seen major firms bought out or defect overseas in recent years. Co-op's boss has urged Rachel Reeves not to bow to pressure from large companies to ease the business rates burden. Shirine Khoury-Haq warned that small firms could pick up the tab. Labour's tax reforms have been met with outcry from retailers including Tesco, Marks & Spencer and John Lewis, whose large shops will have to pay more under proposals. But Khoury-Haq cautioned Labour against 'protecting big business' at the cost of smaller shopkeepers. She warned that 60,000 small retailers and 150,000 jobs are at risk if reform is not delivered in England, findings from YouGov and Opinion Matters for the Co-op suggest. Concern: Co-op boss Shirine Khoury-Haq warned that 60,000 small retailers and 150,000 jobs are at risk if reform is not delivered in England Khoury-Haq said: On this topic, the Government is making a choice - is it about protecting the big profits of big business or protecting high streets and everyday, ordinary people? Thats what it boils down to. If they dont protect small businesses, I will be incredibly disappointed because we understand what the long term effects of that would be. 'It is very clear to us that where there isnt a thriving High Street, there are direct outcomes including negative for prospects for young people, and on poverty, education and loneliness. 'We see that just with whats happening with High Streets at the minute. There are negative societal outcomes that will happen if another 60,000 small businesses close.' Around 7 in 10 Brits lack confidence Labour will deliver on this area, according to Co-ops research. Tesco and others have argued big shops are 'anchor tenants' and people would be less willing to visit town centres without them. The FT reported that Reeves planned to exclude big shops from the higher rate in response to the backlash. This could be paid for through higher bills for other large properties, such as offices, warehouses and banks, an industry source told The Mail. But it could also mean lower reductions for small retailers. Khoury-Haq also reiterated a plea to the Chancellor to halt a 'layering of costs on retail' at next month's Budget. The sector has seen annual costs jump by 7billion, driven by the increase in national insurance contributions and minimum wage after last year's Budget. Photo by BeInCrypto Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group launched a security token platform for retail investors. The move enters a market that has grown to $1.27 billion (JPY 193.8 billion) in cumulative issuance as of August 2025. ASTOMO, the new platform, allows individuals to invest in fractionalized real estate starting at $653 (JPY 100,000). This lowers the entry point for a product category primarily targeting institutional and high-net-worth investors. MUFG Joins Financial Institutions Expanding Token Products Japan's security token market has expanded rapidly over the past two years. Major financial institutions have concentrated issuance under the country's Financial Instruments and Exchange Act. Industry projections suggest the market could reach $2.29 billion (JPY 350 billion) in accumulated issuance, though no official timeline has been provided. MUFG's retail entry follows similar moves by other major Japanese financial groups. In February 2025, Daiwa Securities issued a $6.5 million (JPY 1 billion) tokenized corporate bond for a Toyota Group entity. The bond sold out quickly after launch. Mizuho Trust Bank and Nomura Holdings have issued security tokens since late 2023, backed primarily by real estate beneficiary certificates. Major banks and securities firms are applying blockchain technology to regulated assets. They have moved beyond real estate into corporate bonds and infrastructure investments. Japan legally defines security tokens as "Electronically Recorded Transferable Rights" under existing securities law. This requires the same regulatory compliance as conventional financial instruments. Regulatory Structure Shapes Market Development Japan's security token market has developed within a strict regulatory framework, distinguishing it from tokenization trends in other markets. Unlike other jurisdictions where tokenized assets integrate into decentralized finance protocols, licensed financial institutions channel almost all Japanese issuance. The Osaka Digital Exchange launched a secondary trading platform for security tokens in December 2023. This addressed liquidity constraints that have historically limited private asset investments. Pending tax reforms may expand eligible assets for tokenization to include movable property and venture capital fund interests. Industry observers say this would resolve double taxation issues. The regulatory approach has created a market structure characterized by institutional dominance and domestic focus. Jurisdictional differences in securities definitions and tax treatment keep cross-border transactions limited. Multiply Group, an investment holding company headquartered in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates, has agreed to acquire a majority stake in Italy-based ISEM Packaging Group, as stated in a press release posted on Zawya. Multiply will own 60.8% of the Italian packaging company post deal completion. Private equity firm Peninsula Capital and other minority investors will hold the remaining 39.2% interest. The transaction is awaiting regulatory clearance, with its financial terms remaining undisclosed. The move expands Multiplys portfolio into the packaging sector, creating its fifth consumer-focused vertical alongside its existing beauty and apparel businesses. ISEM, established in 1949 and based in Bologna, operates 11 manufacturing plants. The firm produces rigid boxes, folding cases, silk paper and dust bags. Global brands such as LVMH, Kiko, Gucci, LOreal, Puig and Coty Lancaster are among its clients. The partners look to combine Multiplys investment capabilities with Peninsulas sector expertise and presence in Southern Europe to speed up ISEMs international expansion. This is Multiplys sixth global alliance since its listing on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange in December 2021. Multiply Group group CEO and managing director Samia Bouazza stated: With this acquisition, alongside Peninsula Capital and the management of ISEM, we see opportunities to maximise competitive advantages, elevate value creation and create synergies within the industry and potentially with our beauty and apparel sectors. ISEM group CEO Francesco Pintucci added: Multiply Groups investment will further strengthen ISEMs industrial platform and accelerate our global expansion, enabling us to serve our clients even better with greater scale, agility and technological excellence while preserving the entrepreneurial DNA and human values that define our success. "Multiply Group to buy majority stake in Italian packaging company ISEM" was originally created and published by Packaging Gateway, a GlobalData owned brand. We attempted to send a notification to your email address but we were unable to verify that you provided a valid email address. Please visit my profile to update your email address if you wish to receive notifications. Otherwise, disable notifications and hide this message. A glimpse at ongoing discussions that might not be as important as the team's 2-3 record amid a shaky start . . . However, this kind of flexing is more noteworthy than all of those fake drawings that scare fans who still love Arrowhead. Here's the word . . . "The Kansas City Chiefs confirmed theyve hired a management and consulting firm to lead the stadium design process in Kansas. "CAA Icon will lead efforts in Kansas. Some of the companys priorities will be to ask design and architectural firms to indicate their levels of interest in working on a stadium project with the team. "Chiefs leaders have previously said theyd build a domed stadium if they move to Kansas. " Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . . Developing . . . Lots of news to consider for the midday as we share more than a bit of info by way of police action, court reporting and, of course, community outreach . . . Check TKC news gathering . . . Officer released from hospital after KCPD vehicle gets rear-ended An officer was released from a local hospital Saturday morning after their parked patrol vehicle was rear-ended in the Northland overnight, the Kansas City, Missouri, Police Department said. Bribery, endangerment claims against UG commissioner won't be resolved by election Bribery and child endangerment claims against a District 6 commissioner in Wyandotte County likely won't be resolved before the Nov. 4 election per hearing. Overland Park police launch new program for neurodivergent individuals KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Overland Park Police Department announced Friday the launch of a new community-focused program. The police department said the goal of the program is to improve interactions between first responders and community members with developmental disabilities, mental health needs or other similar concerns. 'He didn't deserve to die': Additional lawsuits intended to be filed by family of man killed by Lenexa officer The family of Jose Enrique Cartagena-Chacon intends to file multiple lawsuits after it was revealed that no charges would be filed against a Lenexa police officer who killed Cartagena-Chacon in June. Independence DWI enforcement nets dozens of citations, 7 arrests In addition to the stops, Independence officers were involved in several chases. 'We need to make a change': Mother applauds move to shut down Independence motel where her daughter died The City of Independence shut down four motels since the beginning of the year, citing excessive police calls. A mother says it's about time, after her daughter was found dead in one of those motels. Hit-and-run driver strikes man, kills dog in Kansas City A routine morning dog walk turned into tragedy when a hit-and-run driver struck a man and his dog. KCK man convicted in 2022 killing of estranged wife, pointing gun at officers A Kansas City, Kansas man has been convicted for killing his wife and pointing a gun at police officers before surrendering in 2022. Shots fired into room of sleeping children led to arrest of Kansas City man An arrest has been made after a dozen shots were fired into the room of two sleeping children. Man pleads guilty in QuikTrip, Scooter's robberies in Overland Park A man has pleaded guilty to multiple felonies connected to two robberies in May. Mother honors son killed in gun violence with plans for inclusive memorial park Three years after losing her 18-year-old son, Dakota Rogers, to gun violence, Stacy Rogers is channeling her grief into creating something meaningful in his memory. 'It automatically opens that dialogue,' Overland Park Police look to implement, expand new training The department has made two items available: a sticker decal and a blue envelope with a form. 'We carry the most precious cargo': Cameras help Platte County school catch drivers ignoring bus stop signs Platte County R-3 School District is helping law enforcement crackdown on cars illegally passing stopped school buses through new technology. KCK police and faith leaders unite for Faith and Blue Weekend Friday kicked off Faith and Blue Weekend in Kansas City, Kansas, where law enforcement officers and faith leaders meet to strengthen their community. Developing . . . BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Azerbaijani Army launched a counter-offensive operation, later called the "Iron Fist", on September 27, 2020 in response to the large-scale provocation of the Armenian armed forces along the frontline. The erupted 44-day Second Karabakh War ended with liberation of Azerbaijans territories from nearly 30-year Armenian occupation. First Vice-President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Mehriban Aliyeva has made a post on her official Instagram page on the Armenian armed forces firing rockets on the city of Ganja. Trend presents the post: "Armed Forces of Armenia continue intensive bombardment of residential areas of Azerbaijan which is the blatant violation of the humanitarian ceasefire regime and of the Geneva Conventions of 1949. Today, around two oclock in the morning, the rocket strike unprecedented by its cruelty was made against the city of Ganja. As a result of this rocket attack, as the data show, 9 people (including 4 women) have died, 34 are wounded while numerous civilian facilities came under serious blow. It can be said that the attacks against our cities and villages continued the entire previous day. Since the moment of the entry into force of the humanitarian ceasefire regime, the Armenian side has launched 548 shells into several districts of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Entangled by its inability to reconcile with its defeat on battlefield, the Armenian side is deliberately attacking civilian population. I call upon the international community not to remain indifferent to all happened. International organizations, rights advocating entities, mass media and public opinion leaders must firmly condemn such barbaric cruelty to the civilian population of Azerbaijan. Yerevan must stop ignoring international conventions, and UN Security Council resolutions urging Armenian occupational forces to halt aggression against Azerbaijan. Showing a straight disrespect to the agreements reached with the mediation of Russia in Moscow, Armenia provokes a new stir up of war in South Caucasus of which the consequences will be devastating for itself. Dear compatriots! Today, you demonstrate such best qualities of our people as unity, solidarity, compassion and mutual assistance. All it can do is to create a feeling of immense pride! Truth and justice are on our side! We will win! May Allah rest the souls of the dead. I wish the soonest recovery to all injured. May the Almighty Lord protect our Army, our People and our Motherland! Karabakh is Azerbaijan!" BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 12. The Azerbaijani Army launched a counter-offensive operation, later called the "Iron Fist", on September 27, 2020, in response to the large-scale provocation of the Armenian armed forces along the frontline, Trend reports. The erupted 44-day Second Karabakh War ended with the liberation of Azerbaijans territories from nearly 30-year Armenian occupation. Trend presents the chronicle of the 16th day of the Second Karabakh war: - President Ilham Aliyev gave an interview to the Turkish Haber Global TV channel. - The territory of Aghdam district came under fire from the Armenian Armed Forces. The commander and large manpower of the forces were killed. - As a result of an exploded shell in the village of Kangarli, Tartar district, Firudin Baylarov (born 1970) was seriously injured and hospitalized. - The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry shared a video of the destruction of three Armenian UAVs. - Mobile support points for the Azerbaijani troops participating in the hostilities were created. - The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry shared a video from the liberated village of Suleymanly, Jabrayil district. - The death toll as a result of missile attacks on Ganja city by Armenia reached 10 people. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The situation in the Middle East and issues arising from the agreement on Gaza were discussed during the phone conversation between Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan today, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, Trend reports. The conversation also appreciated Turkiye's successful mediation efforts in this important agreement. Additionally, the ministers exchanged views on bilateral and regional issues of mutual interest. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Gaza agreement was discussed during the phone conversation between Azerbaijan's Foreign Minister Jeyhun Bayramov and his Pakistani counterpart Mohammad Ishaq Dar today, the Azerbaijani Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement, Trend reports. The conversation also discussed current and future strategic partnership relations between the two countries, regional security, and especially the situation in the Middle East. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel Nvidia (NVDA) once again grabbed the headlines when its CEO, Jensen Huang, confirmed funding in Elon Musks xAI. The company agreed to invest up to $2 billion in xAIs latest $20 billion raise. As CFO, Colette Kress has emphasized that Nvidias capital deployment strategy prioritizes accelerating industry AI adoption, even above buybacks. CEO Jensen Huang says hes super excited about xAI and only regrets that I didnt give [it] more money. Musk personally invited Nvidia to invest, and Huang is delighted by the opportunity. More News from Barchart In practical terms, the xAI investment means more Nvidia GPUs powering Musks Colossus 2 data center and a stake in a potentially transformative AI player. This strategic backing of emerging AI leaders, alongside past stakes in OpenAI and others, can strengthen Nvidias AI ecosystem position and future chip sales. Nvidias Valuation Hits Stratospheric Levels After Historic AI Rally NVDA stock has soared on the back of the AI boom. So far in 2025, NVDA is up over 40%, recently becoming the first company to surpass a $4.5 trillion market cap. Investors are now watching for it to hit the $5 trillion mark. This surge extends an incredible multi-year rally. Nvidia has been the top-performing S&P 500 stock over the past 10, 15, and 20 years, and it has been the third-best stock over the last five years. Since late 2022, its market value has jumped from roughly $418 billion to $4.56 trillion. According to independent analysis, Nvidias total returns have reached 1,341% over five years, 31,025% over 10 years, and 72,005% over 15 years. Simply put, Nvidias dominance in AI chips and data center infrastructure has powered one of the most remarkable runs in market history. Following its unprecedented rally, NVDA's valuation has reached a notably high level. Its price-to-book (P/B) ratio stands at 46, significantly above the sector median of 4, indicating it is trading at a premium. Similarly, the price-to-sales (P/S) ratio is 28, well above the sector median of 4, further suggesting an expensive stock compared to its peers. www.barchart.com Nvidia Crushes Q2 Earnings Estimates Nvidia tops its Q2 earnings estimate on both top and bottom lines by far margins. In Q2 fiscal 2026, the company reported revenue of $46.74 billion, up an impressive 56% year-over-year (YoY). The Data Center segment, which drives most of Nvidias AI business, delivered $41.1 billion, also up 56%. Even its Gaming division, once the companys main focus, continued to rebound with $4.3 billion in sales, a 49% increase from last year. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. First Deputy Minister of Defense Chief of the General Staff of the Azerbaijan Army, Colonel General Karim Valiyev paid a visit to fraternal country at the invitation of Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Turkiye, Army General Selcuk Bayraktaroglu to participate in the Distinguished Visitors Day of "Ates Serbest-2025", Trend reports. Colonel General Karim Valiyev held a meeting with his Turkish counterpart in Ankara. The discussions focused on issues of interest related to military cooperation between the two fraternal countries. As part of the visit, the Chief of the General Staff of the Azerbaijan Army also participated in the Distinguished Visitors Day of "Ates Serbest-2025" exercise. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Critical Infrastructure Defence Challenge (CIDC 2025), one of Azerbaijans leading cybersecurity events, was held for the second time at the Baku Congress Center on October 9-10, bringing together the countrys strongest cyber defense teams to compete in simulated attack and defense scenarios, Trend reports. The event also featured an exhibition of cybersecurity solutions, where the Azerbaijan Cybersecurity Center (ACC), operating under the Innovation and Digital Development Agency (IRIA), showcased its stand and presented two locally developed products, GAIA and Awero. Both solutions demonstrated advanced functionality and practical applications in digital security. As part of the program, panel discussions addressed current cyber challenges. During a session titled A New Playground for Cybercriminals: Smart Cities, Deputy Chairman of the Innovation and Digital Development Agencys Board, Shahin Aliyev, discussed cybersecurity threats and innovative defense models for smart city infrastructure. In the competitions cyber warfare segment, two teams representing the Innovation and Digital Development Agency achieved notable success. The Digital Rangers team, composed of IRIA employees, and the Dopamine team from the Azerbaijan Cybersecurity Center, both secured positions within the top ten finalists. ACCs participation in the event underscored the importance of strengthening local and international partnerships in the cybersecurity field and highlighted Azerbaijans growing digital resilience on the global stage. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel ZANGILAN, Azerbaijan, October 11. The participants of the international conference "Joining efforts and expanding cooperation to resolve the problem of missing persons" have begun their visit to Zangilan within the framework of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons, Trend's Karabakh bureau reports. The conference participants arrived in the liberated Zangilan district as part of their visit to the liberated territories. During their visit to the district, the conference participants visited the "ZAFAR" monument in the reconstructed Aghali village. The participants of the visit got acquainted with the conditions created for the return of the population in the village. Yesterday, in the first half of the day, the conference participants also got acquainted with the mass grave discovered in Balligaya village of the Aghdara district, and the former Shusha jail where Azerbaijani prisoners of war had been kept during Armenian occupation. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. Deputy Foreign Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mr. Josip Brkic, participated on October 910, 2025, in Szeged, Hungary, at a meeting of Western Balkan and Hungarian ministers, held in the format of ministers for European affairs and chief advisors (Sherpa), Trend reports. During the plenary session titled Multiannual Financial Framework and the Accession of the Western Balkans, Deputy Minister Brkic emphasized the importance of the European Unions Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), not only as a financial but also as a political instrument that clearly outlines the EUs future priorities, particularly in the areas of foreign relations and enlargement. He added that Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a candidate country, remains committed to fulfilling its obligations in order to gain access to EU funds, which are of great importance for its further progress. He also highlighted the Western Balkans Growth Plan, which provides an additional 6 billion in support for implementing reforms and investments in the Western Balkan countries. He stressed that Bosnia and Herzegovina recognizes the strategic importance of this plan and sees it as an opportunity to accelerate its European path. In this context, he recalled that the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina has adopted the Reform Agenda and the list of reforms, representing a concrete step toward more effective use of available EU resources on the countrys European path. He also emphasized the significance of the new EU Multiannual Financial Framework 20282034 as a strategic response to the geopolitical situation, aiming to strengthen European sovereignty, increase competitiveness, and build resilience. During the plenary session, Deputy Minister Brkic stated that Bosnia and Herzegovina welcomes the fact that enlargement policy and external action remain among the EUs key priorities. He noted that Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a candidate country, actively utilizes available EU funds and instruments to implement reforms and fulfill obligations that bring it closer to membership. He emphasized that this focus on enlargement policy further promotes reforms within Bosnia and Herzegovina and confirms the shared commitment to the regions European perspective, which is both achievable and concrete. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bulgaria hosted a ceremonial validation of a special commemorative edition of a postage stamp, dedicated to the 70th anniversary of Bulgarias membership in the United Nations (UN), Trend reports. The ceremony was attended by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications Grozdan Karadzhov and Minister of Foreign Affairs Georg Georgiev, who affixed the first stamp on the commemorative edition. Bulgaria regards multilateralism and the UN as the most effective instruments for addressing challenges in todays international environment, Minister Georgiev stated in his speech. He emphasized the countrys long-standing commitment to the principles and goals enshrined in the UN Charter, which serve as a foundation for peace, security, and sustainable development. Minister Georgiev also expressed Bulgarias support for the ongoing reform process within the UN system, aimed at ensuring it responds more effectively to dynamic global challenges in times of conflict, instability, and terrorism. In his address, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Transport and Communications Grozdan Karadzhov noted that the commemorative stamp will carry Bulgarias message to the world as an active and constructive member of the Organization. A postage stamp is a small artistic canvas that easily crosses borders and tells our story. Through it, significant events are recorded in the collective memory of generations, Minister Karadzhov emphasized. Topics related to international organizations have held a special place in Bulgarian philately since the early 1960s, with notable issues dedicated to the Red Cross, the World Wildlife Fund, UNESCO, and the UN. The first Bulgarian postage stamp dedicated to the United Nations was issued in 1961. During the ceremony, Minister Georgiev also presented awards to the finalists of the national student essay competition on the topic: Bulgaria in the UN: The Voice of Small and Medium-Sized States in World Politics. Young people who analyze, participate, and work on topics related to multilateral diplomacy represent the next step in developing our engagement with the UN system, noted Bulgarias top diplomat. He stressed the importance of active involvement of the Bulgarian public, especially youth, in strengthening the countrys authority within the organization. Minister Georgiev also acknowledged the UN Society in Bulgaria, which over the years has become a valuable partner and trusted advisor on foreign policy matters. The first prize in the competition was awarded to Lazara Prichkapova, who will join the Bulgarian delegation to the 80th session of the UN General Assembly in New York. Finalists Yordan Petrov, Nikolay Shukerov, and Ivana Yotova received certificates and honorary awards. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. Estonia has allocated 10,000 euros to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) to support its ongoing efforts in Syria, particularly in identifying and eliminating the remaining elements of the countrys former chemical weapons program, Trend reports. The OPCW has been working on Syrias chemical weapons issue for more than a decade. Now, in cooperation with the countrys new authorities, it is possible to finally close this chapter a significant step toward a world free of chemical weapons. Estonia is proud to contribute to the OPCWs Syria mission trust fund and to support the organizations vital disarmament work, said Estonian Ambassador to the OPCW Paul Teesalu. OPCW Director-General Fernando Arias welcomed Estonias support, noting that it strengthens the organizations ability to complete its mission in Syria and ensure accountability for those responsible for the use of chemical weapons. Estonias contribution reinforces the OPCWs efforts in Syria, helping to eliminate the countrys chemical weapons program and uphold global non-proliferation goals. To continue our work in Syria and future missions, the Technical Secretariat relies on sustained financial support from member states, such as todays contribution from Estonia, Arias said. The OPCW, established in 1997 and headquartered in The Hague, has 193 member states. Its mandate and structure are based on the Chemical Weapons Convention, which aims for the complete prohibition and destruction of chemical weapons. Estonia has been a member since 1999. The organization also serves as a consultation and cooperation forum among its members and was awarded the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize for its global disarmament efforts. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Government of Estonia has approved a proposal from the Ministry of Defense to amend the Defense Forces Statute, introducing a new structural unit within the Estonian Defense Forces, the Future Capabilities and Innovation Command. According to Minister of Defense Hanno Pevkur, the new command will focus on developing and implementing next-generation defense capabilities in cooperation with the national defense industry. Modern conflicts have demonstrated how rapidly the battlefield is evolving and how vital it is to develop innovative defense solutions. The purpose of the Future Capabilities and Innovation Command is to test, develop, and bring future capabilities into operational use through close collaboration with the defense industry, Minister Pevkur said. The new command will coordinate expertise and develop methods to address critical capability gaps swiftly and effectively. Our role is to consolidate knowledge and create processes that allow us to respond to emerging capability needs in an accelerated manner while ensuring high-quality solutions. Our activities will cover the entire chain from identifying capability gaps to acquiring the necessary solutions taking into account the overall needs and resources of the Defense Forces. Innovation does not always mean inventing something new; it often means recognizing, refining, and applying the value that already exists in Estonia whether thats knowledge, equipment, infrastructure, or best practices, said Major Ivo Peets, Commander of the Future Capabilities and Innovation Command. The Future Capabilities and Innovation Command will be responsible for managing capability growth within the Defense Forces, ensuring ongoing modernization, and maintaining situational awareness. The new structure will also serve as a bridge between the defense and civilian sectors, combining expertise and resources to accelerate the development and implementation of key projects. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. In January this year, the United States and Estonia reached an agreement under which the U.S. allocated $50 million (approximately 48.8 million euros) to Estonia in recognition of the countrys role in resolving the Danske Bank money laundering case, Trend reports. Meanwhile, In September, the first projects financed by these funds received approval. Under the agreement, the funds will be directed toward strengthening the prevention, detection, and investigation of financial crimes, including money laundering, cybercrime, and terrorist financing. The initiative will also promote public awareness of financial and cybercrime risks, enhance asset seizure and confiscation processes, and expand international cooperation in combating illicit financial activities. The partnership further reinforces EstoniaU.S. cooperation in fighting financial crime and underscores their shared commitment to upholding the rule of law worldwide. A special commissioncomprising the Secretaries General of the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, and the Ministry of the Interior, along with a U.S. representative as an observeroversees the selection and implementation of related projects. In the first round, nine projects were approved with a total budget of 25.7 million euros. The commission emphasized that the selected projects should form a coherent framework, strengthen institutional capabilities, and improve Estonias overall system for combating financial crime. The initiatives will focus on prevention, improved investigative practices, technological upgrades, and sustainable training programs. This approach ensures that professionals remain up to date with emerging risks, legal developments, and new technologies in the complex field of financial crime investigation. The supported projects target corruption prevention, public awareness of financial fraud, improved asset tracing and confiscation, enhanced cybercrime investigation capabilities, detection and analysis of cryptocurrency-related income, and strengthened financial supervision to combat money laundering more effectively. The projects will be implemented by the Office of the Prosecutor General, the Police and Border Guard Board, the Tax and Customs Board, the Environmental Board, the Internal Security Service, the Academy of Security Sciences, the Financial Supervision Authority, and the three ministries represented in the commission. It is highly symbolic that funds originating from money laundering penalties are now being used to reduce economic crime. Financial crime is highly specialized and technically complex, so these resources must help strengthen the capabilities of investigators, prosecutors, and judges. It is equally significant that part of the funding will go toward prevention, including the creation of a strategic framework for anti-corruption efforts, said Tiina Uudeberg, Secretary General of the Ministry of Justice and Digital Affairs. Tarmo Miilits, Secretary General of the Ministry of the Interior, emphasized that the additional funding would enable a major leap in addressing technically sophisticated, large-scale cybercrime cases that often require international cooperation. Cybercrime revenues are on par with those from drug trafficking and corruption, which makes it essential that our skills and technical capacities stay one step ahead of criminals, he noted. Building a sustainable training system is just as important, ensuring that knowledge and expertise in financial crime investigation become a cornerstone of crime prevention. These joint projects will make law enforcement more effective in locating, seizing, and confiscating criminal assetsultimately reducing the profitability of crime, he added. Merike Saks, Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance, highlighted efforts to enhance the Financial Supervision Authoritys capacity to combat money laundering. With these projects, the Tax and Customs Board will gain new tools to identify cryptocurrency transactions, recover unpaid taxes, and exchange data for criminal investigations. While strengthening investigative capacity is essential, it is equally valuable that the projects also promote public awareness and prevention, helping citizens avoid becoming victims of financial fraud, she said. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, October 11. At the Central AsiaRussia summit in Dushanbe on October 9, Kazakhstans President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev outlined his vision for the regions future. He emphasized the importance of strengthening political solidarity, economic cooperation, and cultural unity, while highlighting Kazakhstans role not merely as a participant, but as a key driver in the development of Central Asias transport, logistics, and energy infrastructure. Situated at the heart of Eurasia, Kazakhstan serves as a critical hub in the regions transport and logistics network, ensuring sustainable connectivity between East and West, as well as North and South. Tokayev noted that 11 international transport corridors, five rail and six road, pass through the country, handling approximately 85 percent of overland freight between Asia and Europe. Over the past 15 years, more than $35 billion has been invested in modernizing this strategically vital sector. During his address, Tokayev highlighted several key developments. In the past three years, rail transit of goods from Russia to Central Asia through Kazakhstan grew by 26 percent, exceeding 30 million tons, while reverse transit increased by nearly 50 percent. Transit from Russia to China via Kazakhstan tripled, reaching 5 million tons. To maintain this growth, Kazakhstan plans to construct more than 5,000 kilometers of new railways and renovate an additional 11,000 kilometers of existing lines by 2030. The President stressed that a flagship project for the country is the eastern branch of the NorthSouth International Transport Corridor, where freight traffic has already seen significant growth, reaching almost 2.5 million tons in 2024. Kazakhstan aims to double the corridors capacity by 2027. To unlock the routes potential and attract necessary funding, Tokayev proposed launching a Joint Program for Investment and Infrastructure Support of the corridors eastern branch. "This initiative can involve international financial institutions, development banks, and investment funds. In concrete terms, Kazakh and Russian authorities could discuss this project ahead of my visit to Russia on November 12," Tokayev said. He also highlighted projects to develop transport corridors through Afghanistan, opening access to South Asian markets. In this context, he proposed creating a Council for the Development of the Eurasian Route within the NorthSouth Corridor to coordinate efforts and address operational issues promptly. The council could be chaired by transport ministry officials from participating countries, with involvement from experts, specialists, and business representatives. Additionally, the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR), or Middle Corridor, running through China, Kazakhstan, the Caspian Sea, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and Turkiye, connecting East Asia with Europe, has already become a vital artery for freight flows between East and West. Strengthening road connectivity with neighboring countries also remains a priority. Tokayev noted that the section of the Western EuropeWestern China corridor from Kyzylorda to the Russian border will be expanded to four lanes by 2030. Tokayev paid particular attention to water and energy infrastructure and associated ecological challenges, which are transboundary in nature. He affirmed Kazakhstans readiness to engage in large-scale investment and joint projects in this sector. This area is crucial for enhancing cooperation among Central Asian countries and Russia, as water and energy are now key factors for sustainable regional development. A prime example of regional cooperation is the joint implementation of the Kambarata Hydropower Plant-1 project in Kyrgyzstan (capacity: 1,860 MW; annual generation: around 5.6 billion kWh) with participation from Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan. The project plays a pivotal role in ensuring the regions energy and water security, strengthening interdependence, and creating conditions for stable resource allocation. In parallel, Kazakhstan plans to construct a nuclear power plant with Rosatom, opening new opportunities for energy diversification and resilience. Furthermore, the Green Corridor joint initiative of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and Azerbaijan aims to establish a cross-border energy route for exporting green energy from Central Asia to Europe. To address ecological challenges systematically, including the state of transboundary rivers and the Caspian Sea, Tokayev proposed establishing a Council of Ministers from Central Asian countries and Russia on environmental issues. A joint space-based monitoring program using satellite constellations was also suggested to objectively assess water resources and agricultural lands. Beyond infrastructure and energy, Kazakhstan advocates deepening industrial cooperation, particularly with Russia. Moscow and Astana are jointly implementing 114 projects valued at over $21 billion. In the agro-industrial sector, a proposal has been made to create joint clusters for deep grain processing to increase the share of high-value-added products, helping regional countries avoid mutual competition and enhance export potential. In the security sphere, emphasis was placed on continued coordinated work among the CIS Security Council secretaries, combating terrorism and extremism, and addressing cybercrime using artificial intelligence. Regarding Afghanistan, Kazakhstan supports its inclusion in regional economic processes. Overall, Tokayev's proposals represent a comprehensive and pragmatic strategy aimed at transforming Central Asia into a prosperous region by strengthening transport links, synergies in key energy projects, and systemic solutions to environmental problems. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. Product exports through the Caspian port of Gilan Province, located in northern Iran, grew by 289 percent during the first half of the current Iranian year (from March 21 through September 22, 2025) compared to the same period last year (from March 20 through September 21, 2024), Meysam Mohammadinejad, an official at Iran's Anzali Free Trade Zone, told local media, Trend reports. According to him, more than 172,000 tons of products were exported through the Caspian port in the reporting period compared to the same period last year (44,000 tons). Mohammadinejad said that in the first half, the number of ships carrying export products from the Caspian port grew to 88 from 26 recorded in the first half of last year. The port authority reported that a substantial volume of 320,000 metric tons of goods was transacted via the Caspian port over a six-month operational period. The influx of product imports experienced a six percent uptick relative to the corresponding timeframe of the previous fiscal year. As many as 183,000 tons of crude oil, mainly intended for food, were imported through this port. Crude oil imports rose by 41 percent compared to the same period last year. "In total, 540,000 tons of cargo were loaded and unloaded at the Caspian port in the six months. This indicates a 43 percent rise compared to the same period last year," he added. To note, the Caspian port is the port with the largest infrastructure in the Caspian Sea of Iran. This port was established to develop economic relations with the Caspian littoral countries and increase cargo transportation within the North-South International Transport Corridor. ---- Follow the author on X: @BaghishovElnur Theyre known affectionately as the "DQ Sisters Patty DeMint and Michelle Robey, siblings who pooled their money to fulfill their dream of opening a Dairy Queen franchise in Meaford, New York, in 2017. In the beginning it was all soft serve and sprinkles as the pair fostered a beloved community hub while going above and beyond for their employees anything from offering money in times of need to delivering Christmas presents to their workers children. They also earned a reputation for hiring locals looking for a second chance. Whether you are a felon, whether you are misplaced, whether you are 80 years old, whether you are 14 years old, DeMint told CBS News (1), everyone needs a place to call home as far as a job goes." Must Read But then, in 2019, the ice cream hub hit a rocky road when a former employee filed a lawsuit against the sisters for violating a vague, Depression-era New York state law. Suddenly, DeMint and Robey faced a $6 million lawsuit that threatened to bankrupt them and shutter their shop. Suing the DQ Sisters over biweekly pay New York's Frequency of Pay law (2) requires manual workers to receive their pay on a weekly basis. Its a law that the sisters said theyd never heard of, which is why they paid their employees biweekly a process that they said was never flagged by anyone, including during an audit conducted by the states Department of Labor. Robey told CBS that the lawsuit was ridiculous, adding, we knew we paid every employee every dime that they were owed." But her sister noted that the former employee, whod been laid off, would say all the time, 'I'm gonna get you, I'm gonna get you,' and she did. Ultimately, the lawsuit, which included accusations of withholding wages and overtime pay, became part of a trend of lawsuits against New York businesses, according to CBS, filed by law firms that solicited, through ads on social media, claimants who were paid biweekly. Labor lawyer Howard Wexler told the news outlet that the lawsuits took what was a law that required you to pay your employees weekly into more of a 'gotcha' based on technical violation. TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, October 11. As a result of efforts over the past six years, Uzbekistan has commissioned 12 solar and 5 wind power plants with a total capacity of 4,682 MW (3,030 MW from solar and 1,652 MW from wind), generating "green" energy, Trend reports via the Ministry of Energy of Uzbekistan. This was announced during an online meeting between the Minister of Energy and young professionals. The event brought together 50 young specialists studying abroad in the fuel and energy sector, conducting research in renewable energy, and working in international companies. In addition, two energy storage systems with a total capacity of 300 MW and eight modern thermal power plants with a combined capacity of 3,274 MW have been put into operation. During the past period of 2025, solar and wind power plants in Uzbekistan produced over 8 billion kWh of electricity. Renewable energy accounted for 22 percent of the countrys total electricity production, with plans to increase this share to 54 percent by 2030. These investment projects are being implemented by major international companies, including ACWA Power (Saudi Arabia), Masdar, Tepelen Group AG, and Amea Power (UAE), Total Energies, Voltalia, and EDF (France), Gezhouba Overseas Investment Group, China Datang Overseas Investment, and Universal Energy (China), Hyper Partners and Siemens Energy (Germany), Stone City Energy (Netherlands), Nebras (Qatar), Sojitz Corporation and Kyuden International Corporation (Japan), as well as Aksa Enerji, Cengiz Enerji, and Odash Enerji (Turkiye). Notably, the meeting supported initiatives to introduce innovative technologies in the energy sector, enhance management efficiency through artificial intelligence, develop new methods of natural gas production, produce biogas from plants considering climatic conditions, modernize energy devices, and localize their production. Recommendations were provided for the practical implementation of these proposals, and each young specialist was assigned a responsible industry mentor. Following a dynamic and substantive discussion, participants agreed to continue holding such meetings in the future. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. The Central Bank of Iran (CBI) has released the official exchange rates for foreign currencies as of October 11, Trend reports. According to the rates announced by the CBI, the value of 43 currencies went up, while 4 currencies dropped compared to October 9. The official rate for $1 is 582,899 rials, while one euro is valued at 676,959 rials. On October 9, the euro was priced at 670,299 rials. Currency Rial on October 11 Rial on October 9 1 US dollar USD 582,899 577,518 1 British pound GBP 777,589 773,316 1 Swiss franc CHF 727,288 720,086 1 Swedish krona SEK 61,284 61,142 1 Norwegian krone NOK 57,637 57,817 1 Danish krone DKK 90,649 89,762 1 Indian rupee INR 6,568 6,504 1 UAE Dirham AED 158,720 157,255 1 Kuwaiti dinar KWD 1,900,160 1,885,554 100 Pakistani rupees PKR 205,986 204,773 100 Japanese yen JPY 383,811 378,124 1 Hong Kong dollar HKD 74,899 74,210 1 Omani rial OMR 1,515,142 1,500,189 1 Canadian dollar CAD 416,377 413,863 1 New Zealand dollar NZD 334,119 333,649 1 South African rand ZAR 33,447 33,640 1 Turkish lira TRY 13,936 13,844 1 Russian ruble RUB 7,138 7,086 1 Qatari riyal QAR 160,137 158,659 100 Iraqi dinars IQD 44,463 44,075 1 Syrian pound SYP 45 44 1 Australian dollar AUD 378,770 380,086 1 Saudi riyal SAR 155,440 154,005 1 Bahraini dinar BHD 1,550,263 1,535,952 1 Singapore dollar SGD 449,271 445,493 100 Bangladeshi takas BDT 478,465 474,184 10 Sri Lankan rupees LKR 19,255 19,088 1 Myanmar kyat MMK 278 275 100 Nepalese rupees NPR 410,335 406,292 1 Libyan dinar LYD 107,251 106,316 1 Chinese yuan CNY 81,746 81,110 100 Thai baht THB 1,785,769 1,776,510 1 Malaysian ringgit MYR 137,989 136,991 1,000 South Korean won KRW 408,077 405,431 1 Jordanian dinar JOD 822,142 814,553 1 euro EUR 676,959 670,299 100 Kazakh tenge KZT 108,319 106,881 1 Georgian lari GEL 215,141 213,091 1,000 Indonesian rupiahs IDR 35,110 34,780 1 Afghan afghani AFN 8,753 8,677 1 Belarusian ruble BYN 171,228 169,954 1 Azerbaijani manat AZN 342,878 339,708 100 Philippine pesos PHP 999,298 995,377 1 Tajik somoni TJS 62,568 62,068 1 Turkmen manat TMT 166,297 165,086 Venezuelan bolivar VES 3,045 3,062 The CBI adopted the SANA system for currency exchange offices, where one euro costs 842,374 rials and $1 costs 725,330 rials. NIMA is a scheme for selling a percentage of the foreign money earned from exports. The price of one euro in this system amounted to 817,839 rials, and the price of $1 totaled 704,204 rials. On the black market, $1 is worth about 1,09 -1,12 million rials, while one euro is worth 1,27-1,30 million rials. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, October 10. Saida Mirziyoyeva, Head of the Presidential Administration of Uzbekistan, held a meeting with European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jozef Sikela, during her visit to Brussels, Trend reports via the press service of the President of Uzbekistan. "We discussed ways to further expand cooperation between Uzbekistan and the European Union, which is currently developing dynamically across political, economic, investment, and cultural-humanitarian areas," Mirziyoyeva stated. "Particular attention was given to advancing concrete projects and initiatives. We emphasized the importance of fully leveraging the new opportunities emerging for collaboration, including at the Central Asian regional level. We reaffirmed our commitment to further strengthening our partnership with the EU," she added. Meanwhile, trade turnover between Uzbekistan and EU countries has been growing dynamically. The portfolio of investment projects with leading European companies exceeds 30 billion euros. Uzbekistan is a major beneficiary of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and the European Investment Bank is opening a regional office in Tashkent. Photo: Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies under the President of the Republic of Tajikistan DUSHANBE, Tajikistan, October 11. Tajikistan and Russia are strengthening cooperation in the digitalization of economic sectors via the IT Park, Trend reports via the Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies under the President of Tajikistan. The initiatives have been discussed during a meeting between Khurshed Mirzo, Director of the Agency for Innovation and Digital Technologies under the President of Tajikistan, and Dmitry Grigorenko, Deputy Prime Minister and Chief of Staff of the Government of the Russian Federation, held on October 9 at IT Park Dushanbe. The sides discussed expanding bilateral cooperation in information technology, developing an innovation ecosystem, and supporting startups. The Russian delegation was also introduced to the infrastructure and achievements of IT Park residents. Moreover, it was noted that joint efforts will help implement scientific and technical projects, introduce advanced digital practices, and strengthen human potential in the field of digital innovation. Following the meeting, the parties reaffirmed their readiness to further expand cooperation and implement new initiatives in innovation and digital technologies. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, October 11. The Turkmen delegation, led by Mergen Gurdov, Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Turkmenistan, discussed expanding trade and investment cooperation within the framework of the Turkmenistan-UAE Business Forum, held at the Sharjah Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), Trend reports via Turkmen MFA. The event was organized jointly with SCCI, with the support of the Embassy of Turkmenistan in the UAE and the Federation of UAE Chambers of Commerce and Industry, bringing together representatives from government agencies and the private sectors of both countries. In his remarks, Mergen Gurdov emphasized that the high-level political dialogue between Turkmenistan and the UAE has created favorable conditions for expanding trade and investment ties. He reaffirmed Turkmenistans commitment to economic diversification and attracting foreign investment. SCCI Chairman Abdullah Sultan Al Owais expressed readiness to support Turkmen businesses entering the UAE market. The forum featured presentations on investment opportunities in the UAE, as well as projects from Turkmen entrepreneurs in the fields of industry, agriculture, energy, and logistics. An exhibition of Turkmen goods - including food products, textiles, and construction materials - was also organized, alongside bilateral business meetings. During the visit, the Turkmen delegation visited a permanent exhibition of industrial goods in Sharjah, reviewed the activities of local enterprises, and was informed about current trends in the industrial sector of the UAE. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. Georgias Deputy Minister of Economy and Sustainable Development Genadi Arveladze met with Raja Al-Marzouqi, Head of the Negotiation Team of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), during his working visit to Saudi Arabia, Trend reports. The discussions focused on strengthening trade and economic ties between Georgia and GCC member states, with particular attention to the possibility of launching negotiations on a free trade agreement. According to Arveladze, deepening trade relations with GCC countries is a key priority of Georgias economic policy. The Gulf Cooperation Council member states represent a strategic market for Georgian exports. They are well acquainted with Georgia and its economic potential. Our country maintains direct air connections with most GCC countries and continues to see growing tourist flows. The example of the United Arab Emirates, with which we have already signed an economic cooperation agreement, demonstrates that enhanced cooperation with other GCC states will bring tangible results and open new opportunities for economic partnership, he said. The meeting also outlined next steps for bilateral engagement. A GCC mission is expected to visit Georgia on December 2 for expert-level consultations, which will serve as a basis for formal negotiations. Both sides expressed readiness to conclude the consultations by January 2026. If the consultations proceed successfully and receive a positive political endorsement from GCC member states, negotiations on the free trade agreement could begin in the first half of next year. The meeting was also attended by Zviad Barkaya, Deputy Head of the Georgian Government Administration, Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Khvtisiashvili, and Georgias Ambassador to Saudi Arabia, Nikoloz Revazishvili. ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, October 11. Energy sector leaders from Central Asian countries, including representatives from Turkmenistan, met in Brussels and discussed renewable energy priorities, regional electricity trade, and cross-border cooperation, Trend reports via the Turkmenistan Ministry of Energy. The meeting, held at the office of the German Society for International Cooperation (GIZ), was part of a working visit organized under the EU4SustainableCentralAsia: Renewable Energy in Central Asia (EURECA) project, which is supported by the European Union and the Federal Republic of Germany. The visit featured thematic sessions, technical site visits, and a regional dialogue on energy policy. The Turkmen delegation, comprising three officials from the Ministry of Energy, was joined by heads and deputy representatives of energy agencies from other Central Asian countries, as well as technical specialists. Turkmenistans Ambassador to Belgium, Sapar Palvanov, delivered a welcoming address, highlighting Turkmenistans role in ensuring stable regional energy supplies while advancing its climate commitments and clean energy initiatives. The delegation highlighted the countrys achievements, including the completion of a 10 MW hybrid solar-wind power plant and preparations for a 300 MW solar power plant, as well as ongoing work on wind energy and smart energy solutions in Arkadag city. Personnel training and cooperation programs with GIZ were also noted. The visit coincided with the Global Gateway Forum 2025, during which Turkmen officials engaged with European partners and international financial institutions to prepare and scale green energy projects, including regional hydropower development and grid modernization. BAKU, Azerbaijan, October 11. Transport, customs, and energy issues between Azerbaijan, Iran, and Russia will be discussed in Baku next week, Amin Taraffo, the Director General for International Affairs at Irans Ministry of Transport and Urban Development, told local media, Trend reports. According to him, next week, a meeting of the joint commissions of the three countries will be held with the participation of the deputy prime minister of Azerbaijan, the deputy prime minister of Russia, and the minister of roads and urban development of Iran. Taraffo said that the meeting will exchange views on the processes and infrastructure related to the passage of trucks between Iran and Azerbaijan, as well as areas of cooperation related to the movement of Russian trucks. The goal is to facilitate the passage of trucks and simplify the customs process. This is aimed at maximizing the use of freight transportation on the East and West routes of the North-South International Transport Corridor, he pointed out. Meanwhile, an intergovernmental agreement signed between Russia, Iran, and India on September 12, 2000, laid the foundation for the North-South Transport Corridor. In general, several countries have ratified the said agreement (Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bulgaria, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Oman, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkiye, and Ukraine). The purpose of creating the corridor is to reduce the time of delivery of goods coming from India to Russia, as well as to Northern and Western Europe (the delivery time on the current route is more than six weeks; it is expected to be three weeks via North-South). The Qazvin-Rasht railroad (175 km) was put into operation on March 6, 2019, to connect Azerbaijan's railroads with Iran's railway network within the corridor. The Rasht-Astara railroad is to be built on Iranian territory. The North-South Corridor has three directions within Iran. The eastern direction is Turkmenistan and Central Asian countries; the middle direction is Russia and other countries across the Caspian Sea; and the western direction is Azerbaijan, Georgia, Russia, and Eastern European countries. On May 17, 2023, an agreement was signed between Russia and Iran on the construction of the Rasht-Astara railroad in Gilan province in northern Iran. Nine stations will be built on the Rasht-Astara railroad line, which is about 163 kilometers long. With the completion of this railroad, the North-South international corridor will be improved, and Iran's railroad network will be integrated with the Caucasus countries, Russia, and Northern European countries. According to the agreement, the Russian side is expected to spend 1.6 billion euros for the construction of this railroad. This railroad will be built and completed within 48 months. Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, October 11. The official launch of the Nuclear Medicine Center project took place in the Mirzo-Ulugbek district of Tashkent, Trend reports citing Uzatom. The groundbreaking ceremony was held with the support of the Presidents of Uzbekistan and Russia. The Nuclear Medicine Center will initially focus on early cancer diagnosis using advanced technologies such as positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) and will introduce non-invasive tumor treatments with Gamma Knife and Cyber Knife systems. The center will also include a radiopharmaceutical laboratory. This state-of-the-art facility will enable Uzbekistan to establish a comprehensive oncology care cycle, providing early and accurate cancer diagnosis. It is expected to create more than 100 high-tech jobs, including specialists in radiology, medical physics, and radiochemistry, as well as serve as a scientific hub for developing a national training system in nuclear medicine. In September 2025, during the visit of Alexander Beglov, Governor of Saint Petersburg, to Tashkent, an updated cooperation plan between Saint Petersburg and Tashkent was signed, extending through 2028. The agreement includes projects in healthcare, education, industry, and trade. Beglov also announced plans to establish the Nuclear Medicine Center in Tashkent in 2027 with the participation of the Berezin Saint Petersburg Medical Institute. EBRD provides loan to Ipak Yuli Bank to support MSMEs in Uzbekistan The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved significant financing for Uzbekistans Ipak Yuli Bank to support the growth of micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). This funding aims to boost the countrys private sector development and foster sustainable economic growth. Access to paid information is limited If You already have a account, please log in Login Register OP Life Assurance, part of the OP Financial Group, has adopted the Guidewire Jutro Digital Platform, aiming to improve the digital capabilities of its sales teams. The company implemented Guidewire PolicyCenter and Guidewire BillingCenter on the Guidewire Cloud Platform to transform its term life insurance offerings. The addition of the Jutro Digital Platform is intended to further improve its sales channel capabilities, facilitating the acquisition of new business, retention of customers and engagement with partners. OP Life Assurance deputy CEO Katja Taponen said: We are proud to be the first life insurance company to go live with Guidewire, which has helped us to realise our ambition of innovation in IT thanks to the Guidewire Cloud Platform and Jutro Digital Platform. Now, customers can purchase the new life insurance as well as covers for critical illness and temporary or permanent disability not only through our digital channel but also from insurance sales agents. The Jutro Platform allows insurers to update and deploy products and features across all digital channels and partner networks, enabling the creation, testing and deployment of digital customer journeys. CGI, a Guidewire partner, supported OP Life Assurance in the implementation of the Jutro Digital Platform. Guidewire senior vice-president and EMEA managing director Will McAllister said: OP Life Assurance is among a growing number of insurers that are using Jutro to tap into new sales channels, reducing the risk of forfeiting market share to competitors. It enables insurers to build apps that are reusable and brandable, plus any experience that customers build with Jutro has native integration to Guidewires core policy, claims and billing system. Last month, InvoiceCloud joined the Premier tier of the Guidewire PartnerConnect programme after a successful deployment with NLC Insurance Companies. "OP Life Assurance adopts Guidewire Jutro Platform " was originally created and published by Life Insurance International, a GlobalData owned brand. TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, October 11. A delegation from Uzbekistan, led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Olimjon Abdullaev, held a meeting in Stockholm with Swedens Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, Benjamin Dousa, to discuss the current state and prospects of bilateral trade and economic cooperation, Trend reports. Minister Dousa noted that Swedish delegations visiting Uzbekistan this year returned with highly positive impressions. He emphasized that, thanks to the ongoing reforms in Uzbekistan and its open foreign policy, including efforts to strengthen regional cooperation in Central Asia and deepen ties with the European Union, the countrys significance for Sweden continues to grow. Meanwhile, in January 2025, Sweden exported goods worth approximately $760,000 to Uzbekistan, reflecting a sharp 65.6 percent decline compared to January 2024, when exports totaled around $2.2 million. Over the past five years, trade between the two countries has decreased at an average annual rate of 1.35 percent. ASTANA, Kazakhstan, October 11. The contest to choose a name for Kazakhstans first nuclear power plant has concluded, with more than 27,000 people participating, Trend reports via the Agency of Kazakhstan for Atomic Energy. The contest, launched on September 25, 2025, via the eGov Mobile application, ran for two weeks. The submitted proposals are now being processed. Specialists will analyze and systematize all entries and prepare a consolidated report, which will then be reviewed by the Competition Commission. The final decision on the plants name will be made at a commission meeting at the end of October. The agency noted that the contest demonstrates open collaboration between the state and civil society, as well as high public engagement. Kazakhstan is set to build its first nuclear power plant with Russian company Rosatom. The development follows a nationwide referendum held on October 6, 2024, in which 71.12 percent of voters supported the establishment of nuclear power facilities, with a turnout of 63.66 percent. Iran's non-oil exports to Azerbaijan decline in 6M2025 Irans non-oil exports to Azerbaijan fell to around $280 million and 420 thousand tons in the first six months of the year, down significantly from the previous year. Access to paid information is limited If You already have a account, please log in Login Register Articles Sorry, there are no recent results for popular articles. Gaza academic, business groups invite Trump to visit the Strip A group of Palestinian academics, businessmen, activists and civic officials have invited U.S. Donald Trump to visit Gaza and witness 'firsthand the resilience of Palestinians' amidst destructions of the besieged strip Saturday October 11, 2025 12:20 PM , ummid.com News Network [Image Source: Times of Gaza/X)] Gaza Strip: A group of Palestinian academics, businessmen, activists and civic officials have invited U.S. Donald Trump to visit Gaza and witness firsthand the resilience of Palestinians amidst destructions of the besieged strip. Donald Trump is likely to visit Israel Monday. Talking to reporters Friday, Trump said he is planning to travel to the region Sunday and hopefully will be in Israel on Monday when the Israeli captives will be released. During his visit to Israel, Trump is likely to meet the released hostages and their families, and also address Knesset, the Israeli parliament. Trumps visit to the Middle East comes days after he announced the implementation of the first phase of the Gaza Ceasefire deal signed between Hamas led Palestinian Resistance Groups and Israel. As he visits Israel, the Palestinians led by Gaza Chamber of Commerce and Gaza Municipality have invited him to also visit the besieged Strip over 83% of which has been turned into rubble because of two years of Israeli bombings. We would be deeply honored to welcome you to Gaza, to witness firsthand the resilience of our people and the renewal your leadership has helped make possible. Your visit would symbolize the triumph of peace over war and remind the world that recovery rooted in dignity and justice is the only path to lasting stability, they said in a letter sent to Trump on Friday. The signatories of the letter included Gaza Chambers of Commerce & Industry, Chair Ayed A. Aburamadan, Gaza Municipality Mayor Dr. Yahya Al-Sarraj, Gaza College Chair of the Board Marwan W. Tarazi, Head of Innovation and Creativity Sector, Council of Economic Unity, Arab League Prof. Abedalkarem Al-Madhoun, General Union of Farmers Chair Abdul Sattar Shaath, Petrol & Gas Assoc,. Chair Ahmed Al Helou. Others who signed the letter sent to Trump are Dr. Aladin Aklouk (National Gathering of Palestinian Tribes, Clans and Families), Hammam Nabaheen (Palestinian Information Technology Association), Saifudin Aburamadan (Palestinian Mukhtars Charitable Association), Maher K N Shabir (Palestinian Trainers Syndicate), Dr. Adnan M. Aish (Al Azhar University Academic), Dr. Wael Hamdi Daya (Academic and Economist), Ismael Nakhala (Vehicles Importers Syndicate), Zareef Abdulfattah Ghurr (Network of Institutions Representing PWDs), Khaleel Abu Shammaleh (Human Rights Activist), Mohammad A. Harara (Community Activist) and Saifudin Ouda (Academic & Financial Expert). In their letter, the Palestinian groups hailed Trumps peace efforts. After years of hardship, Gazans long for normalcy to raise their children in safety, to work, to learn, and to contribute as equal partners to a peaceful and prosperous region. If this moment of peace grows into lasting recovery, it will stand as one of your enduring legacies a moment when leadership transformed suffering into renewal. A stable Gaza is not only the foundation of a stable Palestine but also of a more secure and thriving Middle East and world. Full Text of the Letter Gaza October 10, 2025 President Donald J. Trump The United States of America Subject: Gratitude for Ending the War on Gaza. Dear Mr. President, We wish to express our sincere gratitude for your leadership and unwavering commitment to ending the war on Gaza. Today marks a historic turning point the day when the guns fell silent and the possibility of peace returned to a land long scarred by suffering. As you know, Gaza lies in ruins. Entire neighborhoods have been reduced to rubble, hospitals and schools destroyed, and livelihoods lost. Thousands of families mourn their loved ones, and generations of children have known little but fear. Yet amid this devastation, your efforts have restored to us the most vital of human needs: hope. The task ahead is immense. Rebuilding Gaza must mean more than reconstructing buildings it must restore dignity, trust, and opportunity to a people who have endured years of blockade and hardship. We look forward to your continued leadership in helping Gaza rise again: to rebuild essential services in health, education, and water and sanitation; to revive livelihoods and strengthen social protection; and to guide the transition from emergency relief to sustainable recovery and lasting stability. [Image Source: Times of Gaza/X)] Beyond physical reconstruction lies a greater challenge restoring ownership and voice. The people of Gaza must be at the heart of rebuilding their own future. Recovery cannot succeed if it is managed for us rather than with us. What we need now is a framework that not only delivers relief but also rebuilds confidence, ensures fairness and accountability, and grants Palestinians a genuine role in shaping their future. In parallel with the efforts for reconstruction and peace, we also stress the importance of continuing the work toward a final and just resolution to the conflict, and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state in accordance with international legitimacy and United Nations resolutions, ensuring lasting peace and security for all peoples of the region. After years of hardship, Gazans long for normalcy to raise their children in safety, to work, to learn, and to contribute as equal partners to a peaceful and prosperous region. If this moment of peace grows into lasting recovery, it will stand as one of your enduring legacies a moment when leadership transformed suffering into renewal. A stable Gaza is not only the foundation of a stable Palestine but also of a more secure and thriving Middle East and world. We would be deeply honored to welcome you to Gaza, to witness firsthand the resilience of our people and the renewal your leadership has helped make possible. Your visit would symbolize the triumph of peace over war and remind the world that recovery rooted in dignity and justice is the only path to lasting stability. With deepest appreciation and respect... Follow ummid.com WhatsApp Channel for all the latest updates. Select Language to Translate in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic Gaza: Two Years of Genocide, Resistance, Ceasefire and Hope Despite serious concerns, many experts remain hopeful that with strong global supervision and accountability, the agreement could become a durable and historic milestone, fostering peace in Gaza and providing the Palestinian people a meaningful path toward securing their fundamental rights Saturday October 11, 2025 7:35 PM , Khursheed Alam Dawood Qasmi Two Years of Zionist Brutality and Gazas Unparalleled Endurance During two relentless years of Zionist oppression and genocide, the people of Gaza displayed a level of patience, steadfastness and love for their homeland that will be remembered as one of the most remarkable chapters in human history. Throughout this period, they sacrificed thousands of their children, women and elders; endured the destruction of their homes and essential infrastructure; and withstood continuous bombardment, shelling, hunger, disease and siege. Yet they never wavered in their resolve to defend their land and sacred sites. The people of Gaza neither contemplated migration nor abandoned their resistance; instead, with every new wound and tragedy, they emerged even stronger. In these two years, thousands of Palestinians were martyred. The most of them were innocent children and women. Those who survived continued to face daily threats to their lives, starvation and forced displacement. Meanwhile, Netanyahu, his ministers and the occupying forces committed such heinous crimes and acts of savagery that no known punishment could ever be deemed sufficient. History will record the patience, courage and endurance of the people of Gaza in golden letters and will forever salute their sacrifice and resilience. Israels Failure to Achieve its Objectives According to political analysts, despite two years of relentless war and unceasing aggression, Israel has failed to achieve any of its major goals. Though it inflicted large-scale destruction upon Gaza, it neither managed to eliminate the resistance nor succeeded in breaking the spirit of its people. The central aims of the Zionist state included the eradication of Hamas, the elimination of its leadership, the release of its captured citizens, and the forced displacement of Palestinians through fear and devastation. Yet the reality today is that the resistance remains alive, its leadership active and Israel has been compelled to negotiate with the very people it sought to destroy. This situation itself stands as undeniable proof of Israels failure to achieve its strategic objectives. Analysts note that if, after two years of bloodshed, Israel is still forced to sit across the table with Hamas leaders to negotiate prisoner releases, it is a clear admission of its military defeat. A small besieged territory, under blockade for over twenty years, has managed to frustrate a nuclear power despite all its might and the backing of several global powers. However, throughout this campaign, the occupying state succeeded only in extending its record of terrorism: killing civilians, demolishing infrastructure, starving the people of Gaza, depriving them of water and medicine and forcing them to survive beneath an open sky. Trumps Twenty-Point Plan and Hamass Wise Response It was 29th November 2025, when U.S. President Donald Trump, flanked by Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, held a press conference at the White House. On this occasion, Trump presented a twenty-point plan for a ceasefire in Gaza, a plan that had, by then, become a necessity for both the United States and Israel. Initially, Washington had given Israel a free hand to do whatever it wished in the Gaza Strip under the pretext of eliminating Hamas. Yet after two years of brutal warfare, the Zionist state failed not only to dismantle Hamas; but even to secure the release of its own hostages. Meanwhile, the world witnessed an extraordinary outpouring of public outrage against Israels genocide in Gaza. Across continents, mass protests and rallies erupted almost daily. According to one report, over the span of these two years, more than 45,000 protest events were held in nearly 800 cities around the globe. This overwhelming wave of public dissent shook the worlds conscience and compelled political leaders to reassess their positions. The pressure eventually reached Washington itself. It is said that speaking to the CNN, Trump said: I told Netanyahu that the whole world now stands with Palestine. You cant fight everyone. He understood my point. Thus, Trumps twenty-point plan was, in essence, a product of political compulsion and an implicit acknowledgment of the ground realities. In contrast, Hamas responded with prudence, patience and strategic clarity, demonstrating remarkable political wisdom in the face of mounting international maneuvering. On the surface, Trumps twenty-point ceasefire plan appeared different from previous proposals; yet political analysts and Palestinian circles argued that it offered Palestinians nothing new or of real substance. Netanyahu and the plans backers greeted it with apparent satisfaction, and several Arab and Muslim states publicly endorsed it. Trump applied heavy pressure on Hamas and adopted a menacing tone, warning that if Hamas did not accept the plan, the gates of hell would be opened. Hamas, however, did not capitulate immediately; instead it undertook careful scrutiny and delivered a measured, prudent response. It praised aspects of Trumps initiative, deeming the first nine points workable, while insisting that the remaining items required detailed negotiations. In particular, Hamas categorically rejected clauses designed to delay Israeli withdrawal and to rapidly disarm the movement. Hamas also made it clear that the governance and administration of Gaza would remain solely in Palestinian hands, and that the members of any administrative committee would be chosen by the Palestinians themselves. This cautious yet resolute response reflected remarkable diplomatic acumen. Hamas effectively compelled the occupying power to return to the negotiating table and created pressure for the release of Israeli hostages. The tone of Abu Ubaidas sardonic remark captured this reality: You may sift through every grain of Gazas sand, yet you will not find your captives. You will have to come to the negotiating table. Thus, Hamass measured stance kept the situation within the framework of dialogue while strengthening its international position. It sent a clear message to the world that Hamas was not merely a reactive party, but a responsible actor safeguarding both the principles of negotiation and the broader national interest. Terms of the Agreement Negotiations between Hamas and the occupying Israeli regime were held in the Egyptian city of Sharm el-Sheikh. The talks lasted for four days, and notably, Israel was compelled to sit across the table from the very same Khalil al-Hayya whose assassination it had attempted just weeks earlier in Qatar. Under the supervision of the United States, Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, the discussions culminated on 9th October in what has been described as a historic ceasefire agreement. Analysts view this accord as a significant step toward ending the two-year-long bloody war in Gaza. However, several observers have also expressed concern that once its hostages are released, Israel might, true to its history, renege on the deal, as it has done on multiple occasions in the past. Key Points of the Agreement The principal terms agreed upon in the ceasefire deal are as follows: Immediate enforcement of a complete ceasefire Exchange of Prisoners: Hamas will release twenty Israeli captives, while the occupying Israeli regime will free two thousand Palestinian prisoners. Hamas will release twenty Israeli captives, while the occupying Israeli regime will free two thousand Palestinian prisoners. Return of Remains: The bodies of twenty-eight deceased Israeli hostage will be returned in phases. The bodies of twenty-eight deceased Israeli hostage will be returned in phases. Humanitarian access: Four hundred trucks carrying food, water, medicine, and construction materials will be allowed to enter Gaza daily. Return of Displaced Families: Palestinians displaced from their homes will be permitted to return to their respective areas. Palestinians displaced from their homes will be permitted to return to their respective areas. Military Withdrawal: Israeli forces will complete their withdrawal from Gaza within twenty-four hours. This agreement is widely seen as the first concrete step toward peace, recovery, and stability in the devastated Gaza Strip. Approval of the Agreement by the Israeli Cabinet The Israeli cabinet has formally approved the ceasefire and prisoner-exchange agreement reached concerning Gaza. On this occasion, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described the deal as a decisive turning point. He expressed gratitude to U.S. President Donald Trump and his special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff for their efforts, declaring that the initiative serves the interests of Israel, the United States, and all humanity, as it will allow separated families to reunite once again. Plight of Palestinian Prisoners and Struggle for Their Freedom At present, more than 11,000 Palestinian prisoners are languishing in Israeli jails, including a significant number of women, children and elderly detainees. These prisoners are subjected to torture, starvation, deprivation and denial of basic medical care. Many have lost their lives due to brutal treatment and prolonged solitary confinement. In truth, one of the central aims of the Al-Aqsa Flood operation was the liberation of these innocent and defenseless Palestinians and individuals imprisoned for years without fair trial or due process. This war, therefore, has come to symbolize not only resistance against occupation but also a broader human struggle for justice and freedom in the face of oppression and captivity. Martyrdom and Human Loss Since 7th October 2023, Israeli aggression in Gaza has resulted in the deaths of 67,194 Palestinians and injuries to 169,890, the majority of whom were women and children. These figures have been recorded by the Gaza Ministry of Health, though thousands more, whose deaths went unrecorded, are believed to have perished. According to analysts, the Zionist state has killed thousands of innocent civilians during this campaign. In addition, due to famine and lack of basic facilities, 460 Palestinians, including 154 children, have lost their lives. Nevertheless, the current ceasefire agreement marks the first step toward ending this long-standing bloodshed. It is hoped that this accord will prove durable, serve as a foundation for Palestinian freedom, and advance their right to self-determination and independence. Concerns Regarding the Agreement Israels history is replete with broken promises, which has led some analysts to express serious concerns about the current ceasefire and prisoner-exchange agreement. In the past, Israel has repeatedly violated international and regional accords, raising the possibility that it may once again fail to fully implement the agreed terms. Analysts note that the most sensitive aspects of the agreement are the release of prisoners, military withdrawal, and the provision of humanitarian aid. Any deviation by Israel on these points could create significant problems not only for the Palestinian people; but also for international politics and trust. Consequently, the success of the agreement depends not only on the intentions of the parties involved; but also on the presence, oversight and pressure of the international community, monitoring bodies and human rights observers. Despite these concerns, many experts remain hopeful that with strong global supervision and accountability, the agreement could become a durable and historic milestone, fostering peace in Gaza and providing the Palestinian people a meaningful path toward securing their fundamental rights. Follow ummid.com WhatsApp Channel for all the latest updates. Select Language to Translate in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic RSS Contribution in Freedom Struggle: The Real Story The RSS is an organization working for Hindu Nation and had nothing to do with the freedom movement which aimed at a secular, democratic inclusive nation Saturday October 11, 2025 10:13 PM , Ram Puniyani On the occasion of 100th year of foundation of RSS, Prime Minister Modi, the ex-Pracharak of RSS, paid eulogies to the RSS. He said that RSS has sacrificed tremendously for the freedom of the country, and in places like Chimur, the RSS organized a protest also. As per him, the contribution of RSS to Nation building is tremendous. What is the real story? Freedom movement was for composite Indian Nationalism; inclusive to the core. Muslim Communalists were struggling for Muslim Nation and Hindu Communalists (RSS, Hindu Mahasabha) for Hindu nation. While Savarkar was not part of the RSS, he was a sort of Patron and ideologue of Hindutva and Hindu Nation. He was the guiding icon of RSS to a great extent. After apologizing and getting released from Andmans and later Ratnagiri jail, Savarkar never supported the freedom movement and was receiving a princely pension of Rs 60 per month, (close to Rs 4 Lakh of today) He helped the British in getting recruits for their army. Hedgewar, who was to be the first Sarsanghchalak of RSS, did participate in Khilafat Movement and was imprisoned for a year. With this taking along of Muslims and later Mopilla revolt of Kerala (which was primarily the struggle of peasants against landlords) his Hindu Nationalism came to the fore and he left the Congress. Later, he was part of the foundation of RSS, along with other Chittapavan Brahmins. They were disturbed due to the coming up of Dalits in the form of movement against Landlord-Brahmin (Non Brahmin Movement). The other factor of foundation of the RSS was the attempt of Gandhi to make the movement all inclusive, including Muslims. The third core factor for formation of RSS was inspiration from Mussolini and Hitler. RSS and Nationalism The major evidence of their nationalism being different was manifest when Pundit Nehru gave the call for unfurling tricolor on January 26, 1930. Hedgewar also called for unfurling the flag but it was a saffron flag. Currently, even when the Rs 100 coin has been issued to commemorate the 100th year of RSS, the coin has the picture of Bharat Mata with the Saffron flag, not the Indian Tricolor. The Tricolor was accepted by the Constitution and the Government planned to unfurl it on 15th August 1947. Shamsul Islam, an eminent scholar of RSS, writes RSS English organ Organizer in its issue of August 14, 1947, denigrating the National Flag wrote that it would "never be respected and owned by Hindus. The word three is in itself an evil, and a flag having three colors will certainly produce a very bad psychological effect and is injurious to Country. Hedgewar did participate in salt Satyagrah as he saw this as an opportunity to expand his organization by trying to lure the freedom fightrers who were jailed. So he resigned from the post of Sarsanghchalak and went to jail and upon return assumed the same post again. During this period he dissuaded others from participating in the movement. RSS as an organization did not take part in any anti British movement. In the wake of 1942 Quit India Movement many claims and their hollowness came out. Atal Bihari Vajpayee claimed that he participated in the freedom movement. In the wake of 1998 general elections, he had issued an appeal for seeking votes; he wrote that not only was he working for the RSS at shakha level but he also participated in the freedom movement . As such, he was part of the RSS at that time, and as schools/colleges were closed, he had gone to Bateshwar, his native village. He became an onlooker to the procession which was part of the Quit India Movement. As an onlooker he was arrested. He immediately gave a letter dissociating from the procession and was released in a couple of days. "On August 27, 1942, at about 2 p.m. Kakua alias Liladhar and Mahuan came to the Ala and delivered a speech and persuaded the people to break the forest laws. Two hundred people went to the Forest Office and I along with my brother followed the crowd and reached Bateshwar Forest Office. My brother stayed below and all other people went up. I do not know the name of any other person, except Kakua and Mahuan, who was there. Golwalkar was SarsanghChalak at this time. In 1942 also there was a strong sentiment in the hearts of many. At that time too routine work of the Sangh continued. Sangh vowed not to do anything directly. (Shri Guruji Samgra Darshan, Vol IV, page 39-40). This ideologue of the RSS clearly spells out that fighting against the British has not been part of their agenda. We should remember that in our pledge we have talked of the freedom of the country through defending religion and culture, there is no mention of the departure of the British from here. A longish quote from Golwalkar clarifies their whole attitude, There was some unrest in the mind due to the situation developing in the country from time to time. There was such unrest in 1942. Before that there was the movement of 1930-31. At that time many other people had gone to Doctorji (Hedgewar). The delegation requested Doctorji that this movement will give Independence and Sangh should not lag behind. At that time, when a gentleman told Doctorji that he was ready to go to jail, Doctorji said definitely go, but who will take care of your family then? That gentleman replied , I have sufficiently arranged resources not only to run the family expenses for two years but also to pay fines according to requirement, then Doctorji told him If you have fully arranged for the resources then come out to work for Sangh for two years. After returning home that gentleman neither went to jail nor came out to work for the Sangh. Golwalkar also stated that "At that time too the routine work of Sangh continued. Sangh vowed not to do anything directly. However, upheaval (uthal-puthal) in the minds of Sangh volunteers continued. Sangh is an organization of inactive persons, their talks are useless, not only outsiders but also many of our volunteers did talk like this. They were greatly disgusted too." However, there is not a single publication or document of the Sangh which could throw some light on the great work the RSS did indirectly for the Quit India movement. Modis assertions have nothing to do with the truth. The RSS is an organization working for Hindu Nation and had nothing to do with the freedom movement which aimed at a secular, democratic inclusive nation. [The writer, Ram Puniyani, is Former professor IIT Bombay.] Follow ummid.com WhatsApp Channel for all the latest updates. Select Language to Translate in Urdu, Hindi, Marathi or Arabic China refutes report questioning its position on Cambodia-Thailand border conflict Xinhua) 11:15, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China carries out normal defense cooperation with all ASEAN countries, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Friday responding to a media report questioning China's neutral position on the border conflict between Cambodia and Thailand. Spokesperson Guo Jiakun made the remarks at a regular press briefing when asked to comment on a recent Western media report saying that China provided a large amount of weapon supplies to Cambodia. Guo said since the outbreak of the border conflict between Cambodia and Thailand, as a friendly neighbor of both countries, China has upheld a just and fair position and made active effort to promote talks for peace. He said the foreign ministers of China, Cambodia and Thailand reached outcome in China's Anning, Yunnan Province. The three countries held an informal consultation, and the Chinese Foreign Ministry's Special Envoy for Asian Affairs made several shuttle-diplomacy trips for peace between the two sides. With the active efforts of China, Malaysia and various parties, Cambodia and Thailand reached a ceasefire agreement and the two sides are in communication via bilateral mechanisms, said the spokesperson, adding that relevant parties have spoken highly of China for playing an irreplaceable role in this process. Noting that China supports Cambodia and Thailand in settling disputes through dialogue and consultation, and supports Malaysia, as the rotating chair of ASEAN, in promoting the political settlement of the issue through the ASEAN Way, Guo said China stands ready to, in light of the will of Cambodia and Thailand, continue promoting talks for peace in its own way and playing a constructive role for consolidating the ceasefire agreement and advancing the peaceful settlement of the dispute. "China carries out normal defense cooperation with all ASEAN countries, including Cambodia and Thailand," Guo said, stressing that attempt by individual Western media outlet to use such cooperation to sow discord between China and relevant country will never succeed. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. Banks stand to benefit as much as fintechs in a new era of open banking, with consumer financial data flowing freely between the two, generating new insights about the market, fintech executives said Thursday. The big misunderstanding is that its fintech versus bank, and we definitely don't see it that way, said Ryan Caldwell, the founder and chief executive of MX Technologies, a Lehi, Utah-based data aggregation company. Theres this confusion that its data going one way, as if theres just data leaving the bank. Thats not whats happening. Caldwell joined executives from Ambrook, an accounting and payments startup; the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz; and startup accelerator Y Combinator for a virtual town hall the Financial Technology Association convened to bolster its case for an open banking system in the U.S. The session was moderated by Patrick McHenry, a former North Carolina Republican congressman who chaired the House Financial Services Committee before leaving Congress earlier this year. Open banking, authorized under the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act, is a CFPB-formulated policy under which Americans would be able to control their personal financial data more overtly, allowing them to shift between financial institutions more easily and spurring more market competition. Open banking currently has bipartisan support in Congress, said McHenry, who works as a senior adviser for Lazard, the advisory and asset management firm. He is also an advisory board member at BGR Group, a Washington lobbying and government affairs firm. The FTA is lobbying the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to uphold the basic tenets of a 2024 open banking rule enacted under the Biden administration as the bureau revamps the framework. The Bank Policy Institute, the Kentucky Bankers Association and Forcht Bank sued the CFPB last October to block the rule, challenging several aspects of the open banking measure, including its prohibition against assessing fees for data access. In July, a federal judge stayed the litigation after the CFPB said it would revise the rule. The bureau is collecting public comments for its revision work through Oct. 21. Rather than a one-way flow of consumer data from banks to fintechs, Caldwell said, banks receive real-time data from hundreds or thousands of fintechs on what their consumers are connecting to, what they care about, what they stay connected to, and why, and they can figure out the needs that allow them to modernize and better serve their consumers. Oracle (ORCL) continues to build its sovereign cloud strategy through a strategic partnership with SoftBank (SFTBY), delivering secure AI and cloud services across Japan. The collaboration positions Oracle to capitalize on the growing demand for data sovereignty as enterprises prioritize local control over their information. Under the agreement, SoftBank will launch Cloud PF Type A, a suite of proprietary cloud and AI services powered by Oracle Alloy. This platform enables SoftBank to become a cloud service provider, offering customers access to over 200 Oracle Cloud Infrastructure services deployed across Japanese data centers. The eastern Japan facility is scheduled to launch in April 2026, followed by the western location in October 2026. More News from Barchart www.barchart.com Oracle Alloy provides a comprehensive cloud infrastructure platform that enables partners to deliver OCI capabilities while meeting data sovereignty and governance requirements. For Japan, this addresses regulatory and security concerns as organizations accelerate digital transformation initiatives. SoftBank will integrate generative AI capabilities and high-performance GPUs into the offering, which targets diverse enterprise needs across sectors. The phased rollout of AI services reflects the growing importance of localized cloud infrastructure that combines cutting-edge technology with data residency requirements. This partnership builds on similar sovereign cloud deals that Oracle has announced globally, positioning it as a leader in addressing enterprise concerns around data control, regulatory compliance, and national security. As governments and large enterprises demand cloud solutions that keep data within national borders, Oracle's Alloy platform provides a scalable model for expansion. The Bull Case for Oracle Stock Oracle ended Q2 2025 with remaining performance obligations of $455 billion, representing a 359% year-over-year (YoY) increase. Moreover, cloud-based RPS rose by 500% YoY. The company forecasts cloud infrastructure revenue to reach $18 billion in 2025 and increase to $144 billion by 2029. This revenue expansion is staggering, given that its total sales are forecast to touch $44.37 billion in 2025. Much of Oracles revenue is already locked in through signed contracts with AI leaders, including OpenAI, xAI, Meta (META), Nvidia (NVDA), and AMD (AMD). The University of South Florida is home to the highest-ranked public health degree program in Florida (U.S. News and World Report, 2025). The university is also home to a new Certification in Public Health (CPH) recipient Dr. Sten Vermund. USF College of Public Health (COPH) Dean Vermund is a trailblazer in academic public health known for his visionary leadership and commitment to advancing the field, said Dr. Jaime Corvin, COPH professor and associate dean of academic affairs. Dean Vermunds decision to pursue the CPH credential sends a powerful message about the importance of professional standards in todays public health landscape. USF president Rhea Law (center) and Rocky D. Bull (front) celebrate the spring public health graduates earning their CPH designation. The CPH, administered by the National Board of Public Health Examiners (NBPHE), affirms a practitioners mastery of core public health competencies, as well as their dedication to ethical practice and lifelong learning. The CPH is a symbol to both the public and the workforce that a certified public health professional is not only well-educated, but also deeply committed to a shared standard of excellence and professional identity. As the field faces growing complexity and public scrutiny, the CPH serves as a vital tool for ensuring professionals are equipped with the knowledge and accountability needed to meet todays challenges, said Corvin, who also serves as chair of NBPHEs certification committee. Doctors, nurses and barbers need certification to practice their professions, and Ive always wondered why public health does not have a credentialing process, Vermund said. Given that our students take the CPH exam, I thought that their dean should also be vetted. Plus, my distinguished predecessor Dr. Donna Petersen, insisted! Vermunds example aligns with a growing movement among academic institutions to embed certification into public health curricula. In the COPH, all masters students are required to earn the CPH, reinforcing the colleges commitment to preparing graduates who are not only well-trained, but also professionally recognized. A growing emphasis on certification is also being reflected across the public health workforce, with health departments and public health agencies increasingly recognizing the value of the CPH in hiring, advancement and professional development. Spring graduates show off their CPH stole at commencement. As the Association of Schools & Programs of Public Health (ASPPH) continues to advocate for excellence in education and practice, the CPH remains a cornerstone of that visionensuring that public health professionals are equipped to lead with integrity, expertise and purpose. At USF, the CPH is another example of how we practice our passion, Covin said. Dr. Vermund hopes that his leadership and example send a powerful message to students, faculty and practitioners alikecertification matters! Now is the time to lead by example, Vermund said. If you havent earned your CPH, consider joining the growing community of certified public health professionals who are shaping the future. Learn more about the CPH designation at www.nbphe.org. Online fast-fashion retailer Shein is tightening its compliance framework after facing several penalties related to data privacy, misleading discounts and environmental claims, as reported by Reuters. The company, founded in China and based in Singapore, ships apparel and accessories to more than 150 countries and has faced regulatory scrutiny in multiple regions during its rapid global growth. In 2025, French regulators imposed a 150m ($174.53m) fine for unauthorised cookie data collection and an additional 40m penalty for misleading discounts. Italy also fined the company 1m for greenwashing. Shein is appealing the 150m fine, while a European consumer protection investigation could result in further action if its products are found to breach EU safety requirements. In a letter to investors cited by Reuters, Shein's executive chairman Donald Tang stated that the company has formed a Business Integrity Group linking its compliance, governance and external affairs functions, and that internal audit capabilities have been expanded to reinforce discipline. The measures are being trialled in the US, Canada, Brazil and Mexico. T The internal restructuring focuses on areas exposed to potential legal issues, such as copyright violations and product safety compliance. Sources within Shein state that as its global profile has grown, so too have its risks, prompting senior management to allocate more resources to address persistent compliance problems. Tang noted heightened challenges during the second quarter of 2025, citing US tariffs and intensifying political and regulatory headwinds in Europe. He stated: In Q2 we grew firmly in line with both our global expansion plan and our financial projections. The companys US business, its largest market, has been impacted by the removal of duty-free status for low-value online purchases, leading to price adjustments. Coresight Research projects that US revenue will increase 20.1% in 2025 to $17.2bn, down from estimated 50% growth in 2024. Europe is to overtake the US in sales, with projected revenue rising 30.7% to $17.9bn. Regulatory attention in Europe has intensified following a French Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development investigation initiated by two lawmakers. This inquiry concluded that Shein does not align with guidelines covering responsible business conduct, labour rights, environmental standards and transparency. The report stated that information about the activity of the group, its finances and its governance remains extremely rare, hindering a clear analysis of its business, its revenue and its structure in the European Union and globally. Festive rail service will operate between Rome and Munich on select dates in December. Italy is launching a night train linking Rome with the legendary Christmas markets in Munich, departing from the Italian capital on 5 and 12 December and returning on 7 and 14 December. The Espresso Monaco is one of several limited edition rail services provided by Italy's tourist train initiative, FS Treni Turistici, which also offers a Christmas Market rail journey to Arezzo. Equipped with a bar and restaurant service, the night train will be decorated in a Christmas theme, with festive music playing in the background and a small gift for each passenger. "Forget the stress of driving and airport queues. With the Espresso Monaco, you'll fall asleep in Italy and wake up in the Alps", organisers say, describing the rail journey as "an experience that combines the comfort of an overnight journey with the thrill of discovery." Passengers have two travel options on board the train: single or double cabins, or couchettes with 4/6 beds. The train departs Roma Termini on 5 and 12 December at 19.57 and arrives in Munich at 13.00 the next day. The Espresso Monaco stops along the way in Verona, Trento, Bolzano, Bressanone, Fortezza, Vipiteno, Colle Iarco, Brennero, Innsbruck and Kufstein. The return trips on 7 and 14 December sees the train leave Munich at 13.40, arriving back in the Italian capital the next morning at 06.33. For full information including tickets see FS Treni Turistici website. Photo credit: FooTToo / Shutterstock.com. Container imports through U.S. maritime gateways in September declined 8.4% from August to more than 2.3 million, the third-highest September on record and 1.9% ahead of the same period in 2024 as resilient demand shook off trade uncertainty. Join the leaders shaping freights future at F3: Future of Freight Festival, Oct 21-22. Network with the industrys best and discover whats next. Register now! Imports from China fell 12.3% month-over-month and 22.9% year-over-year, according to Descartes Datamyne. Steep declines were seen in aluminum, 43.8%, footwear, 33.9%, and electric machinery, 31.5%. A scant 1.5% drop was seen in plastics, which grew their share of total Chinese exports to 13.5%. The losses come as the Trump administration restructures U.S. trade, using tariffs to leverage advantageous agreements with longtime trading partners while reshoring domestic manufacturing. But the sweeping tariffs in some cases have had the opposite effect, leading China to find other export markets in Europe while making raw materials, machine tools and other inputs more expensive for American manufacturers. The White House has taken particular aim at China, though damaging retaliatory tariffs that all but brought trade to a standstill earlier this year are winding down a second pause set to end Nov. 10. The U.S. accounted for 11.9% of all of Chinas exports in the first half of this year, even as shipments were lower by 10.7% y/y. Descartes also noted that China imports face other pressures in the U.S. market, including the elimination of Customs import duties and fees for shipments valued under $800, to costly port fees on China-linked ships set to go into effect Oct. 14. However, while the elimination of de minimis Customs duties have made exporting to the U.S. prohibitively expensive for smaller companies, Chinese retail giants Temu and Shein shifted from a direct shipping model to having U.S.-based sellers manage fulfillment as well as building their own warehouses in North America, to maintain pricing for U.S. consumers. Descartes data for September also showed that imports from the top 10 countries of origin fell 9.4% month-over-month, or a total 169,126 TEUs. led by 106,751 TEUs from China. Substantially weaker volumes were seen from Italy, 15.1%, South Korea, 14.1%, Germany, 11.6%, Hong Kong, 11.2%, and Taiwan, 10.2%. The top 10 U.S. ports saw containerized imports fall by 7.9% month-over-month, or a combined 169,455 TEUs. Declines were seen at Baltimore, 12.6%, Long Beach, 11.4%, and Savannah, 9.1%. Tacoma was the lone gainer, at 4.7%. Parts of a community on the outskirts of Waterford City continue to remain in what one local described as 'limbo land' as it falls between the jurisdiction of two local authorities. The Ferrybank area is more often than not regarded within the context of Waterford City, however, it straddles the country boundary between Waterford and Kilkenny. As a result questions have been raised as to who is responsible for services such as road cleaning and maintenance. Residents in areas like Belmont Heights and the local creche have voiced frustration that neither Waterford nor Kilkenny Council appears to be stepping up. Meanwhile, ongoing tensions over development approvals reflect the boundary dispute. Waterford Council has appealed Kilkennys recent planning approval for expansion at the years-long vacant Ferrybank Shopping Centre building. However, critics say boundary reassignment could ease inter-county coordination. "Ferrybank straddles the border between Waterford and Kilkenny - administratively divided, although socially it is often considered part of Waterford City," commented on local resident. "The boundary conflict remains unresolved as both Councils await clarity on responsibilities and long-term alignment." This Halloween, the Irish Wake Museum in Waterford invites visitors to experience Samhain with two very different events, one for families seeking an authentic Irish celebration, and one for those ready to explore the darker side of the citys past. From October 27 to 30, families are invited to step inside the Irish Wake Museum for a tour with a twist. The journey takes visitors through centuries of Irish customs surrounding life, death and remembrance, from early Christian rites to 20th-century traditions. Along the way, guests will uncover curious superstitions, ancient beliefs and the rituals that shaped Irish life. To keep the spirit of Samhain alive, families are encouraged to take part in an age-old Irish custom of dressing up. This family-friendly tour offers an experience that is both thought-provoking and enchanting, celebrating Irish folklore and memory. Recommended for ages eight and above, the Halloween Wake Tours will run daily from 11:15 am with limited spaces available. For something a little more sinister, the 'Waterford After Dark: Crime, Grime & Graveyards' tour is on the cards. From October 27 to 30 at 7 pm, the curators of Waterford Treasures will lead daring guests on a ninety minute walking tour exploring the citys more sinister secrets. This after-dark experience reveals the hidden side of Irelands oldest city, where vampires, ghosts, murderers and restless souls linger in the tales of centuries past. From the Viking Triangle to Ballybricken, visitors will hear stories of tragedy, mystery, and the macabre. This event is strictly for those aged 16 and over and includes some hilly terrain and steps along the route. For bookings and further information, visit www.waterfordtreasures.com Some of our most precious memories are entwined with food. I remember exactly where I was, and who I was with, when I first ate a smoked oyster at the age of six. The shock and awe of my first chilli crab at a Singapore hawker stall; red-faced and gasping for beer. The feeling of bitter resentment when I tried my first hot salt-beef sandwich at Carrolls in Great Windmill Street, London, because nobody had told me about it until then. Photo: Simon Letch Sometimes the memory is more of a quiet acknowledgement yes, the pasta carbonara at Roscioli in Rome is the best Ive ever had and sometimes its more kid-in-the-playground delight, like trying to eat live shrimp in Denmark while they did their best to jump out of my grasp. These are flavours and emotions Ill never forget. Or will I? Sometimes I walk into the next room and come to a halt, not knowing what I went in to get. I run into people Ive known for years and have to fish for a clue to their names. If I dont write a list of whats needed at the supermarket, I have to ring home once I get there to be reminded if I havent forgotten to take my phone with me. Advertisement NationalWAEducation WA students need laptops and the internet. But what happens when families cant afford them? Holly Thompson October 12, 2025 2:00am Save 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 Perth grandfather John Paulson is the sole carer of his five grandchildren aged between eight and 15. Providing for them all using just his pension has recently become a greater struggle as the cost of living continues to climb. Affording supplies for their education has become all but impossible without help. John Paulson with three out of his five grandchildren. The biggest cost, Paulson said, was that schools required students to own or have access to laptops or tablets to complete their work. Paulson said he had not been able to afford those luxuries or access to the internet which meant his grandchildren were falling behind many of their classmates. Advertisement The grandfathers story is not unique. Of the students in national charity the Smith Familys Learning for Life program, 44 per cent dont have access to a connected device at home. Since the beginning of 2019, the not-for-profit has provided laptops to 1703 families across Western Australia. The Smith Family chief executive Doug Taylor said the digital divide had a direct impact on a young persons ability to fully engage with their education. In January, our annual survey of families we work with found 55 per cent of those who responded were worried about being able to afford a digital device for their childrens schooling, he said. Taylor said while many schools provided laptops during school hours, students often were not allowed to take those devices home. Advertisement We frequently hear from families who either dont have a laptop at all, or have multiple children sharing one device, he said. In many cases, students are relying on mobile phones to do homework, which makes it difficult to access the software and programs schools require. The Smith Family chief executive Doug Taylor. Some families even resort to sitting in their cars outside fast food outlets or in shopping centres just to access free Wi-Fi. A recent survey of families who have received help from the organisation through the National Device Bank showed 93 per cent reported it had helped their childrens schooling. Advertisement Related Article Opinion Social media Restrict phones and social media, but lets not lose sight of the real issue in WA schools Belinda Provis Principal, All Saints' College The Smith Family organised for Paulson and his family to receive two laptops through the National Device Bank, and they can access the internet via a program run by Optus that allows customers to donate their leftover data. The grandkids love them, we have to schedule times for everyone to use them so that the youngest get them first and the eldest last as they stay up later, Paulson said. They are completing their homework and enjoying learning for the first time, whereas beforehand they didnt like school much. Without help, families like the Paulsons experiencing disadvantage lack access to digital devices and digital skill development opportunities, including AI literacy now critical for a students education and future career prospects. Advertisement Caroline McDaid is the chief executive at WorkVentures which helps data sanitise donated laptops, and upload specific educational programs. Devices have become much more important in education, particularly since the pandemic when computers became ubiquitous with learning, she said. In the last three years especially, there has been an increase in the use of technology in primary school classrooms and there is an expectation that there is access to that technology at home. McDaid said while the issue of digital poverty was growing, companies were throwing away huge quantities of used tech. Every five years, 10 million laptops are refreshed across Australia. While some companies already hand over thousands of those laptops to the National Device Bank, McDaid has urged more to follow. Advertisement Taylor said schools were becoming increasingly aware of digital poverty. Related Article Social media Elite Perth school swears off smartphones as youth social media ban looms We encourage them to take the time to understand each familys circumstances and to be flexible in how they support students digital needs, he said. This kind of awareness and responsiveness can make a real difference in helping students stay engaged and succeed. Start the day with a summary of the days most important and interesting stories, analysis and insights. Sign up for our Morning Edition newsletter. Advertisement PoliticsFederalCritical minerals Opinion Dirt-rich nation: Australias big test to plug in to the future Brooke Boney Gamilaroi woman, journalist and presenter October 11, 2025 2:00am October 11, 2025 2:00am Save 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 41 View all comments Confirmation that the Albanese government is positioning Australia as a global go-to for critical minerals highlights two areas of tension. The first: Australias challenge to its biggest trading partner, China, and the threat the regime could pose to the secure supply of these minerals to us and our allies. The second: how far are governments willing to go in mining practices, both at home and abroad, and at whose expense? Anthony Albanese has a hand to play that differs from nearly every other leader in the world in trade negotiations. The prime minister also has the potential to manage the transition to net zero in a way that minimises disruption to the Australian economy while promoting ethical sourcing, from conflict zones, of minerals required for battery production. Lithium ore falls onto a stockpile at the Pilbara Minerals Pilgangoora project in Port Hedland, Western Australia. Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg What constitutes a critical mineral? That changes depending on demand and utility. In the medium- to long-term, we are talking about critical and rare earth minerals used for defence tech and the components for lithium-ion batteries (the ones we see in electric vehicles). Australia is in a unique position. It exports nearly half of the worlds lithium. While it has about 15 per cent of the worlds known cobalt reserves second only to the Democratic Republic of the Congo Australia accounts for only 2 per cent of global cobalt production. Seventy per cent of the worlds cobalt, meanwhile, is produced by the conflict-ridden DRC, where Chinese companies control about three-quarters of industrial mines. Advertisement There is potential to offset some of those challenges by pivoting to extracting what we do have, importing what we dont and refining both. But we would need to build our refining capacities, and quickly. We currently export raw materials for China to refine, and we lack the capacity to produce batteries. That means were essentially ruling our nation out of being an integral part of the global clean energy transition. Australias commitment to a 62-70 per cent reduction in emissions by 2035 (and net zero by 2050) relies on shifting away from fossil fuel dependence and towards electrified systems which use lithium-ion batteries. Nearly all of these batteries come from overseas sources, which means were exporting our lithium and then importing it in another form. Related Article Exclusive Donald Trump Albanese scrambles to lock in minerals deal before Trump meeting Demand for coal is expected to plummet over the next decade. But the demand for lithium and other critical minerals (for use in lithium-ion batteries) is expected to increase fourfold by 2035, according to industry estimates. It gives us a clear timeline to work with. Australia could shift its focus in a way that balances the value of the revenue from our exports and investment in the potential of renewable-energy storage, while seizing an opportunity to lead in critical mineral diplomacy and insulate our economy from volatile trade relationships. That could also provide a more progressive backdrop if Australia hosts the COP31 climate summit next year, if the supply chain isnt compromised by human rights violations. To complicate matters, we export Australian lithium to be used alongside minerals sourced from conflict zones with no guarantees to ensure the safety of the people extracting them, who are already disproportionately affected by climate change. By engaging in this supply chain, we perpetuate that harm. Essentially, in our pursuit of net zero we are inflicting injury on those least able to manage it. Advertisement Advertisement On the surface, the effort to circumvent Chinas influence in critical mineral dominance on the global market seems logical. In April, amid a trade war, China cut supply to the US of rare earth minerals necessary for defence projects and tech. China has already built a vertically integrated system in Congo where it either owns or controls most of the mines. Related Article Indigenous culture Murujuga rock art safeguards weakened despite gas hubs harms The challenge for Australia isnt just repositioning to meet global demand for battery materials, or wooing allies such as the US and UK. We depend on foreign investment, largely from those same partners, to develop cobalt projects, and we still lack the capacity to refine what we mine. But the stakes are high if we start competing with China. That would aggravate our biggest trading partner. And it could drive down prices by flooding the market. Perhaps even worse, China could retaliate by no longer refining what we send it. But this is an important next step in our transition away from coal and towards net zero. It is a contradiction for the Australian government to put up its hand to host COP next year, in partnership with the Pacific, while signing off on deals that allow for unethical mining practices in Congo or elsewhere, including extraction of minerals in Australia to the detriment or objection of local Indigenous populations and culture. Advertisement Is the next step in our resource-extraction philosophy grounded in short-term gains or a more just transition? The transition to a cleaner, greener future is sullied by dirty cobalt out of Congo. And without our own refining capacity, we might just have started a trade war with our biggest trading partner. Brooke Boney is a Gamilaroi woman and journalist. She is studying for a masters of public policy at the University of Oxford, specialising in energy, global conflict and just transition. She is the author of All of it, a collection of essays. The Opinion newsletter is a weekly wrap of views that will challenge, champion and inform. Sign up here. Advertisement WorldMiddle EastIsraeli-Palestinian conflict Nova festival survivor takes own life two years after October 7 attacks Henry Bodkin October 12, 2025 12:29am Save 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 An October 7 survivor whose girlfriend was murdered at the Nova music festival has died by suicide. Roi Shalev, 30, was himself wounded by Hamas terrorists as they opened fire at the festival two years ago. His girlfriend, Mapal Adam, the sister of Israeli television personality Maayan Adam, was murdered in front of him in the massacre. Two years later, Shalev, who had struggled to deal with the grief of losing Adam in the atrocity, took his own life. Roi Shalev and his girlfriend Mapal Adam. His body was found in a burned-out car near a beach in the central city of Netanya on Friday (Saturday AEDT) after a social media post prompted grave concern and a large search. Advertisement Shalev had said he couldnt go on anymore in the post and asked for forgiveness shortly before his death. Dozens of friends converged at the scene after the news of his death spread, including DJ Omri Sasi, who had been one of the Nova festival organisers and had also joined in the search for him. Loading Everyone was worried and afraid he might hurt himself - now were all in shock, a friend told Ynet news. As well as coming to terms with the death of Adam, 27, and his own traumatic injury, Shalev also had to confront the death by suicide of his mother shortly after the October 7 terrorist attack. Advertisement He said in a November 2023 interview: I hold up the stick with the sunflower as high as I can, feeling like Im reaching the sky. Then suddenly I think of Mapal - and I start crying, crying my heart out. Related Article Israeli-Palestinian conflict Who are the hostages believed to still be alive in Gaza? As I cry harder, I feel like Mapal is reaching out her hand from the heavens. A number of other survivors of the massacre have taken their own lives, with some families blaming the Israeli government for not doing enough for their welfare in the weeks and months after the attack in 2023. The news of his death comes as Israel prepares to welcome home the final 20 living hostages still held captive by Hamas, followed by the bodies of 28 others. Advertisement The handover is said to be scheduled for Monday (Tuesday AEDT). US President Donald Trump is due to arrive in the country on Monday to accept the plaudits of politicians and hostage families for brokering the deal. However, as of Saturday morning, there still appeared to be disagreement between Israel and Hamas over the list of Palestinian prisoners to be released in return for the hostages. Huge preparations are taking place for Trumps visit, with his armoured motorcade flying into Israel from the Ramstein US base in Germany. Advertisement The US is also deploying 200 Centcom military personnel to oversee the ceasefire in Gaza, including Hamass disarmament, although not to the Strip itself. The withdrawal from urban areas of Israeli troops, which was completed by midday on Friday, has allowed Hamas to re-establish control of the population in Gazas cities. There were reports on Saturday that the terror group had launched a wave of arrests of alleged collaborators with Israel in Gaza City, ahead of summary executions. Our forces are working to restore order, a Hamas spokesman was reported as saying on a social media channel affiliated with the group. Advertisement At the same time, members of Hamas internal security were photographed at major junctions, the first time they have been seen above ground since the January-February ceasefire. The group also claimed to have killed members of an anti-Hamas militia near Jabalia, north of Gaza City. However, there were suggestions of reprisals amid the power vacuum, with a senior al-Qassam Brigade commander, Muhammad Imad Aql, found murdered. Sources claimed on Saturday that Hamas is still pushing for the release of Marwan Barghouti, who is serving a life sentence for terrorism. AP It came as thousands of refugees streamed back to their homes, despite many neighbourhoods being mostly or totally destroyed. Advertisement Sources claimed on Saturday that Hamas is still pushing for the release of Marwan Barghouti, a symbolic figure of Palestinian armed resistance to Israel who is currently serving a life sentence for terrorism. Another major name reportedly being pressed for is Ahmad Saadat, head of the Marxist Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, who has been held in prison since 2002. Israels government last week stated that Barghouti, known as the Palestinian Mandela would not be released. Israel is also reportedly rejecting the release of senior Palestinian health officials captured in Gaza, whom they accuse of working for Hamas. Little detail has yet emerged about the mechanism for disarming or the international stabilisation force supposed to guarantee security in the Strip. Advertisement Advertisement Updated WorldNorth AmericaExplosion No survivors in Tennessee explosives factory blast, sheriff says Updated October 12, 2025 8:16am ,first published October 11, 2025 1:30am Save 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 McEwen, Tennessee: A blast in rural Tennessee that levelled an explosives plant and was felt over 100 kilometres away killed 16 people and left no survivors, authorities say. The explosion on Friday left a smouldering wreck of twisted metal and burned-out vehicles at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, which supplies and researches explosives for the military. The cause of the blast is not known, and investigators are combing through the ruined plant searching for possible evidence. Smoke fills the air as debris covers the ground and vehicles after a powerful blast ripped through a military explosives manufacturing plant in Hickman County, Tennessee. AP Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said it was one of the worst scenes he had ever seen and especially gut-wrenching because he knows three families connected to the tragedy. Davis previously said 18 people were missing. Advertisement Aerial footage showed complete devastation at the companys wooded hilltop site near the town of Bucksnort, some 97 kilometres south-west of Nashville. Debris was scattered over an 800-metre area, and people more than 124 kilometres away felt the explosion, he said. The companys website says it processed explosives and ammunition at the eight-building facility. Its not immediately known how many people worked at the plant or how many were there when the explosion happened. Davis said investigators were trying to determine what happened and couldnt say what caused the explosion. Emergency crews were initially unable to enter the plant because of continuing detonations, said Hickman County advanced emergency medical technician David Stewart. Advertisement Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis described the scene as one of the worst he had ever encountered. AP Accurate Energetic Systems, based in nearby McEwen, said on social media that its thoughts and prayers were with the families and community impacted. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions, the post said. The company has been awarded numerous military contracts, largely by the US Army and Navy, to supply different types of munitions and explosives, according to public records. The products ranged from bulk explosives to landmines and small breaching charges, including C4. When the explosion occurred, residents in Lobelville, a 20-minute drive from the scene, said they felt their homes shake, and some people captured the loud boom of the explosion on their home cameras. Advertisement The blast rattled Gentry Stover from his sleep. Loading I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it, he told the Associated Press. I live very close to Accurate and I realised about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that. Tennessee Governor Bill Lee posted on X that he was monitoring the situation and asked Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident. State representative Jody Barrett, from the neighbouring town of Dickson, was concerned about the potential economic impact, as the plant is a key employer in the area. Advertisement We absolutely heard it at the house, Barrett said. It sounded like something going through the roof of our house. A small group gathered for a vigil at a nearby park on Friday night, clutching candles as they prayed for the missing and their families and sang Amazing Grace. The US has a long history of deadly accidents at workplaces, including the Monongah coal mine explosion that killed 362 men and boys in West Virginia in 1907. Several high-profile industrial accidents in the 1960s helped lead president Richard Nixon to sign a law creating the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) the next year. In 2019, Accurate Energetic Systems faced several small fines from the US Department of Labour for violations of policies meant to protect workers from exposure to hazardous chemicals, radiation and other irritants, according to citations from OSHA. In 2014, an explosion occurred at another ammunition facility in the same small community, killing one person and injuring at least three others. Advertisement AP Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on whats making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter. Save You have reached your maximum number of saved items. Remove items from your saved list to add more. Share More: Explosion North America Tragedy A $7 billion corner of the mortgage world ground to a halt when the government shut down last week, leaving homebuyers and sellers in limbo just before they were set to close. Most types of mortgage lending, including government-guaranteed mortgages such as FHA and VA loans, are continuing as normal throughout the shutdown, with one exception: US Department of Agriculture loans, which tens of thousands of low- and middle-income homebuyers use each year to purchase homes. With most of the USDA's staff furloughed, processing of those loans has stopped. USDA loans are designed to support affordable housing in rural communities and are either guaranteed or directly issued by the federal government. They have geographic restrictions that limit their use to rural and some suburban areas, as well as income caps. Features like a no-money-down option, low fees, and looser credit score requirements make them popular with first-time homebuyers. Julia Adame, a mortgage lender in Yukon, Okla., has two clients whose loans got stuck in final processing steps just before they were set to close on their homes. One, who was originally scheduled for a Sept. 30 closing, the day before the government shut down, is now paying her seller $150 a day to compensate for the delay. "Here we are, lingering on, waiting for the government to reopen to get their USDA commitment letter and close," Adame said. Processing halts The loans the USDA guarantees were caught in the shutdown's dragnet because they contain an extra processing step that VA and FHA loans lack: After a prospective borrower receives conditional approval for a USDA loan from their underwriter, their loan application must go to the USDA for a final review to ensure they and their home meet the program's strict eligibility requirements. Those reviews, and the loans the USDA makes directly, are on hold until the government reopens. More than 80% of employees in the division responsible for the loans are now furloughed, and the skeleton crew that remains is conducting "certain limited activities that are viewed as 'excepted' for the purpose of preserving the Governments property." Loan halt: The US Department of Agriculture building in Washington, D.C. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) ASSOCIATED PRESS The delays are largely hurting rural Americans, who have some of the highest homeownership rates in the US. However, like the rest of the country, those rates have dropped in recent years as wages failed to keep up with home price appreciation. Around 74% of people in rural areas owned their homes in 2023, down from 81% a decade earlier. Spencer S., who asked that his last name be withheld to protect his privacy, spent three months house hunting outside of Atlanta. The process was frustrating: He and his wife were beat out by all-cash offers on several homes. Then their offer was accepted on a "nice cozy bricky house" in the small city of Winder, Ga. PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (AP) The U.S. has granted Trinidad and Tobago permission to negotiate a gas deal with neighboring Venezuela without facing any U.S. sanctions, the Caribbean nations attorney general said Thursday. The U.S. Treasury Department granted an Office of Foreign Assets Control license on Wednesday that allows parties to engage in a transaction that would otherwise be prohibited, according to the agency. With Venezuela hit by U.S. sanctions, Trinidad and Tobago needed the license to pursue the development of a gas field located in Venezuelan waters. The license was granted following a request that Trinidad and Tobago made in May, according to Attorney General John Jeremie. We have six months to negotiate, within parameters, Jeremie said at a news conference. You have to hit targets, with respect to the U.S. and their posture with Venezuela. He said U.S. companies have certain commercial targets. He declined to provide further details, but said those targets are reasonable and "not difficult to meet. Government officials and experts view the gas project as vital since Trinidad and Tobago is seeking to boost its gas production. New streams of revenue are being sought by the government since its budget in recent years has seen spending outpace income. Jeremie said the license does not cover the entire gas project but allows for initial negotiations. He declined to give details about the licenses commercial terms, saying only that certain benefits are permitted. Once the first stage is successfully completed, Jeremie said the process would move toward exploiting gas. The permission was secured after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio met with Trinidad and Tobagos prime minister on Sept. 30. During that meeting, Rubio outlined U.S. support for the gas deal and steps to ensure it will not provide significant benefit to the Maduro regime, the U.S. Department of State said. Previously, in October 2023, the U.S. Treasury Department had granted a license for the same gas project. But in April of this year, Trinidad and Tobagos prime minister announced it had been revoked, a blow to the countrys energy security. The terms of the new license are different from those of the previous license, according to the attorney general of the twin-island republic. When asked if there had been any contact with Venezuela to begin negotiations, Jeremie said, I am not prepared to go into that at this time. ____ Follow APs coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america If you have an event you'd like to list on the site, submit it now! Submit A raft of creative projects for young and old funded by the Creative Communities programme are bringing people together and providing opportunities for social and cultural networking in the most rural and isolated locations in County Mayo, with further expansion of the programme around the county planned for the coming years. Providing an overview of the Creative Ireland government-funded programme in Mayo, Anna livia Cullinan, Creative Communities Engagement Officer, told a recent meeting of Mayo County Council's Community, Integration and Recreation Strategic Policy Committee (SPC) that Mayo was this year recognised as an ambassador of good practice around culture and creativity, explaining that the programme seeks to embed creativity in public policy and in so doing contribute to the physical and mental health and wellbeing of communities. She told SPC members that the national programme has been funded annually since its pilot run in 2017, with 29 million invested since then on projects ranging from community development and the creative industries as well as around climate action, the Irish language and shared island initiatives. In Mayo, a specific culture and creativity team has been established that is working under the guidance of the 2022-27 Mayo Culture and Creativity Strategy, while thanks to the input of voluntary organisations and communities working in tandem with the public sector, she said Mayo has been able to enjoy some beautiful examples of Creative Communities projects ranging from art classes to animation festivals, youth festivals, craft shows and workshops. Pointing out that eligible projects must be interdisciplinary in nature with various layers of community involved, she highlighted how such activities greatly benefit rural and isolated communities where people can come together around a craft, such as happened with a paper-making project in Dooagh, Achill. The annual Crinniu na nOg national day of creativity for children is another highlight on the annual calendar. This year we reached 2,000 children through 45 events and 37 locations so it is a really happy day now for young people and we want to make sure to roll it out right across the county. Some of the activities included ceramics, collage, mosaic, land and nature art, library and book events and podcasting libraries. [There were] some beautiful projects as well as lots of traditional creative activities from dancing, drama, puppet making and drumming to dress up. A number of strategic large-scale projects are also funded under the programme with one successful one being the childrens Books of Mayo Map, which Ms Cullinan said is an official record of children's books published in the county. Another initiative instigated in Mayo is the HeARTh creative arts project where experienced artists are partnered with older people who may be experiencing isolation in the home, and which is now being used as a model art project in other counties around Ireland, including Fermanagh. Telling the SPC she could list an endless number of beautiful projects taking place around Mayo under the Creative Communities umbrella, and responding to calls for all parts of the county to be included, she pointed out that the programme works in tandem with the Creative Communities Grant Scheme which opens annually at the start of the year and offers funding of between 1,000 and 4,000. She also advised those interested in running Crinniu na nOg projects to take note that the 2026 event is scheduled for June 6. Cllr Michael Loftus supported the endeavour, adding that the library summer reading programme has been a huge success. Ms Cullinan agreed that CrinniU na nOg would not be the success it is without the libraries, saying: They are incredible resources. Director of Services Joanne Grehan thanked Ms Cullinan for the Trojan work she and her team are doing, saying: We are delighted with your expertise and talent and you are really making an impact. Chairperson of the committee Cllr John OMalley agreed it was a great initiative that can get a lot of people involved and benefit both physical and mental wellbeing, while forum member John Gallagher said in Blacksod the local community spent several evenings over a number of weeks being creative together and putting a lot of work into making a beautiful quilt that is now on display n the Solas centre. Mr Gallagher also called for information on Creative Communities to be shared with all community groups. SPC Head Deirdre Finnerty confirmed that this was the goal and advised that information on the schemes is circulated through the councils network and the many community groups attached to it. She added that extra funding was also being sought from other public sector initiatives such as Healthy Ireland and encouraged all community groups to get involved. Kitted out in chefs hats, aprons and wooden spoons, the children of Taugheen National School warmly welcomed and enjoyed a visit recently from Rachel Fullam, Community Fundraising Officer with Cancer Fund for Children, which is currently constructing Daisy Lodge in Cong. The informative and inspiring visit was the official launch of the Neven Maguire Cookery Demonstration in the McWilliam Park Hotel, Claremorris on Monday, November 17, which the school is helping to organise with all proceeds going to Daisy Lodge. The idea grew at a Taugheen NS board of management meeting late last year. The board were discussing future plans for the school, pupil development and education. Building on the schools commendable record of charity work to date, the idea of supporting Daisy Lodge was proposed. Taugheen National School has a proud and rich history of fostering charitable involvement of its pupils. The schools annual sponsored Skipathon in aid of Trocaires Lenten campaign has been running for 36 years with great success and the children, together with their families, also embrace the annual Shoe Box appeal to help children affected by poverty. The staff and board of management passionately believe that being involved in charity is hugely beneficial to the development of a child. Teaching charity helps children understand the benefits of giving and how they can be involved in their community. It helps to develop selflessness, gratitude, empathy, a sense of purpose, pride and social responsibility. These are valuable qualities that children will bring with them into their futures. Taugheen National School is a small rural school on the outskirts of Claremorris with a breakfast club from 8am and an afterschool facility (2 to 6pm). It is in a lovely village setting beside the local community centre, childcare service and church. The board and staff want to emphasise to the children that small communities have the potential to make a positive and lasting difference in wider society. The staff hope to encourage students to have the desire to become active members of communities in the future, and in doing so become valuable citizens who contribute to society. As a children's charity, the school felt that Daisy Lodge, Cancer Fund for Children, is indeed a very worthy cause. Daisy Lodge is currently constructing a new unit in Cong to serve children from the whole island of Ireland and their families in times of need. Tickets for the event are priced at 20 and are available from Taugheen National School and the following locations: Claremorris - Sams Stores, Hunt's Filling Station; Ballinrobe - Murphys Newsagents, Jennings' Butchers; Ballyhaunis - The Shop; Hollymount - Hollymount Stores; Cong - O'Connors Spar; Knock- The Old Ground Restaurant; Tuam - Quinns Newsagents. Doors open at 7pm for a craft fair, followed by Neven Maguire on stage at 8pm. It promises to be an enjoyable and entertaining night for all. We recently published 10 Big Names With Whopping Gains; 6 Jump All-Time Highs. UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) is one of the best performers on Thursday. Shares of UiPath rallied for a 5th straight day on Thursday to hit a new all-time high, as investor funds piled into AI stocks amid the industrys heightened dealmaking momentum. In intra-day trading, UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) soared to its highest price of $18.74 before paring gains to end the day just up by 18.81 percent at $18.51 apiece. UiPath (PATH) Hits Fresh High on AI Boost Image by drobotdean on Freepik Just recently, UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) announced that it partnered with technology giant Nvidia Corp. to support enterprise customers in fortifying their existing automated workflows with AI capabilities in high-trust scenarios, such as fraud detection or care management in healthcare. A key aspect in the partnership was the introduction of an integration service connector that would connect UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) and Nvidias NIM and Nemotron, enabling enterprises to seamlessly and rapidly integrate generative AI features into their applications. Additionally, UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) said it was exploring opportunities across agentic automation in areas including advancing agentic orchestration and developing differentiated agents, among others. Sensitive processes like fraud detection or healthcare workflows demand AI that is both powerful and trustworthy. By integrating NVIDIA NIM models directly into the UiPath Platform, customers can deploy and orchestrate their own hosted models with enterprise-grade governance. That means they can bring AI into their most critical processes with the control, transparency, and confidence they need to deliver real business impact, said UiPath Inc. (NYSE:PATH) Chief Product Officer Graham Sheldon. While we acknowledge the potential of PATH as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and have limited downside risk. If you are looking for an extremely cheap AI stock that is also a major beneficiary of Trump tariffs and onshoring, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 30 Stocks That Should Double in 3 Years and 11 Hidden AI Stocks to Buy Right Now. Allentown, PA (18103) Today A few evening snow showers and flurries, mostly in the Poconos; otherwise, partly cloudy, cold, and brisk overnight. Wind chills in the teens. . Tonight A few evening snow showers and flurries, mostly in the Poconos; otherwise, partly cloudy, cold, and brisk overnight. Wind chills in the teens. Voyager Technologies Inc. (NYSE:VOYG) is among the 9 Defense Stocks That Will Skyrocket. Late last month, the company announced that it had selected Vivace Corporation to build the primary structure for Starlab, an AI-enabled, next-gen commercial space station that aims to maintain continued human presence in low Earth orbit (LEO). Voyager Technologies Inc. (VOYG)'s Partnership with Vivace Corporation to Advance Starlab Development The station is expected to be among the largest single spaceflight structures ever built for space and will aid in enhancing the commercial industrys ability to deliver technology and innovation. Under the agreement, Vivace will use its expertise in advanced aerospace engineering and collaborate with Starlab and its global partners to finalize the design and initiate the manufacturing process of the primary structure. Dylan Taylor, chairman and CEO of Voyager Technologies Inc. (NYSE:VOYG) stated the following on the Vivace partnership: Starlab offers unmatched capability amongst NASAs Commercial LEO Destination (CLD) concepts and fine tunes the American workforce to realize a state-of-the-art orbiting marketplace to build on our strategic leadership in space. As a majority shareholder, Voyager is driving this program forward with our global partners, ensuring a seamless transition from the ISS and establishing infrastructure that will serve government and commercial customers for decades to come. NASA has awarded over $217.5 million to the Starlab program to date, according to Voyagers press release dated September 24. Voyager Technologies Inc. (NYSE:VOYG) is a defense technology and space solutions company that is committed to advancing and delivering transformative, mission-critical solutions. While we acknowledge the potential of VOYG as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 11 Best Military Drone Stocks to Buy According to Hedge Funds and 10 Best Money Making Stocks to Invest In Disclosure: None. You can find original article here Nrn. Subscribe to our free daily Nrn newsletters. The Wendys Co. has launched Project Fresh, a strategic plan designed to revitalize the brand, reignite growth, and accelerate profitability across the Wendy's system. The Dublin, Ohio-based company has retained Creed UnCo, led by Greg Creed, former CEO of Taco Bell and Yum Brands, to assist in transforming its marketing program. "Wendy's board of directors and management team are dissatisfied with the current valuation of the company and have been working to put the company on the right path to create value for our franchisees, employees and shareholders," Art Winkleblack, Wendys chairman, said in a statement. The Project Fresh plan is expected to provide a roadmap centered across four core pillars: brand revitalization, system optimization, operational excellence, and a reallocation of capital and resources to drive profitable growth. Together, these initiatives will redefine how Wendy's operates, invests, and engages with customers to create long-term value. "Wendy's is a brand built on quality, authenticity, and innovation," Ken Cook, Wendys interim CEO and chief financial officer, said in a statement. "With Project Fresh, we're taking decisive steps together as One Wendy's to strengthen our foundation, enhance restaurant performance and modernize how our customers experience the brand. Project Fresh is about reigniting the energy and distinctiveness that have always made Wendy's special, while positioning the company and our franchisees for profitable growth." Grounded in a stronger franchisee partnership under the One Wendy's approach, the Project Fresh plan is expected to provide a clear roadmap centered across four core pillars: brand revitalization, system optimization, operational excellence and a reallocation of capital and resources to drive profitable growth. Together, these initiatives will redefine how Wendy's operates, invests and engages with customers to create long-term value. In addition to employing Creed UnCo, key actions across Project Fresh include: Brand revitalization: Strengthening brand positioning by leveraging Wendy's innovation and unique voice to connect across all touchpoints with the next generation of customers. HSBC Holdings' plan to take its Hang Seng Bank subsidiary private marked a key step in the UK lender's strategic overhaul, with Hong Kong's troubled property market potentially aiding the move, according to analysts. The proposal on Thursday was "many months" in the making and had "nothing to do with the bad-debt situation" at Hang Seng Bank, HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery said during a media round table in Hong Kong after the announcement. HSBC currently owns about 63 per cent of the city's largest domestic bank. Elhedery, who has heralded a sweeping business reorganisation since becoming CEO in September 2024, characterised the latest move as "an investment for growth" - both for HSBC and Hong Kong's economy. Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team. "This proposal is very aligned to everything we have said for the last 12 months in terms of customer segments," Elhedery said. "Hang Seng is a leading local bank; HSBC is a leading international bank operating in Hong Kong. We expect them both to cover the whole market, so customers can choose between the two, or bank with both." HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery said on Thursday that Hang Seng Bank's privatisation deal would be positive for the group. Photo: Jelly Tse alt=HSBC group CEO Georges Elhedery said on Thursday that Hang Seng Bank's privatisation deal would be positive for the group. Photo: Jelly Tse> The deal would be accretive as HSBC gains full access to Hang Seng Bank's earnings, rather than deducting the non-controlling interest, according to Elhedery. Additional upside was expected from revenue and cost synergies through expanded product offerings, a stronger international network and the consolidation of capabilities in areas such as insurance, asset management, markets and technology, he added. The strategy alignment between HSBC and Hang Seng Bank was long overdue, according to some analysts. "Currently, HSBC and Hang Seng are two relatively independent banks with local operations, so sometimes there is competition between them," said Kenny Ng Lai-yin, a strategist at Everbright Securities International. "After privatisation, various businesses will have synergies, saving costs and improving efficiency in terms of personnel and systems." The privatisation offer could entice Hang Seng Bank's minority shareholders to sell, given their focus on the bank's non-performing loan ratios, Ng said. Letitia James, the New York attorney general who defeated Trump in court, indicted by Justice Department Striking postal workers in Edmonton, Alberta Contact the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee at canadapostworkersrfc@gmail.com or fill out the form below. Join us in building the leadership needed to secure good-paying, secure jobs, defend public postal services and fight for workers power. The Canadian Union of Postal Workers (CUPW) leaderships Thursday evening announcement that it is unilaterally shutting down our nationwide strike and replacing it with toothless rotating strikes is a capitulation of historic proportions. Without so much as a consultative vote, the National Executive Board, just a day after meeting behind closed doors with the very government minister who wants to destroy our jobs, has ordered 55,000 postal workers to stand down in the face of the Carney governments ruthless restructuring plan. This betrayal threatens the destruction of tens of thousands of jobs, the shuttering of nearly 500 rural and suburban post offices, and the elimination of daily home mail delivery. But it threatens much more than the postal service, since the government is using us as a precedent for the kinds of attacks it wants to implement across the board. This is why all workers must come to our defence. It should be clear that the CUPW apparatus never wanted a nationwide strike. For months after postal workers regained the legal right to strike this spring, following the Trudeau governments use of Section 107 of the Canada Labour Code to pause last years walkout, the union leadership kept us muzzled with ineffective actionsfirst an overtime ban, then an ad flyer ban. These were deliberately designed to minimize disruption and protect Canada Posts bottom line. The only reason a full strike was sanctioned at all was because postal workers in Atlantic Canada and Manitoba took matters into their own hands. When Minister of Government Transformation, Public Works and Procurement Joel Lightbound announced the Carney governments restructuring plan on September 25, workers walked off the job spontaneously. The CUPW apparatus was terrified of losing control. It called a nationwide strike, not to mobilize our strength, but to contain and defuse it. And now, just two weeks later, they have moved to shut the strike down. By ordering us back to work, CUPW President Jan Simpson and the National Executive have deliberately sown confusion and demoralization, and undermined the urgently needed efforts to mobilize the entire working class behind us. They have stabbed the membership in the back, and once again handed the initiative to Canada Post and the government. They can now pursue multiple options, and at times of their own choosing, to break workers resistance. These include: maintaining operations while workers are bled financially through futile rotating walkouts; locking us out; illegalizing worker job action and imposing a government-dictated settlement; or prevailing on their agents in the CUPW apparatus to endorse a sellout. We say enough! Postal workers must countermand this sabotage. This requires making our national strike the starting point for a broader mobilization of all logistics workers and the working class as a whole to defend the right to strike, public services, and good-paying, secure jobs for all, and to establish for workers control over the use of AI and other new technologies, so as to ensure they are used for the betterment of the population, not maximizing profits and workers exploitation. To build this movement, we must take the fight into our own hands through the expansion of the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee. We must break out of the state-regulated collective bargaining system, and wage our struggle as a political class struggle, mobilizing the working class behind us in defence of public services and worker rights, and against austerity and war. The political reality: Government, management and union working together The meeting held October 8 between CUPW leaders and Lightbound confirmed what every postal worker already knows. The Carney government has no intention of backing down. Lightbound made clear the announced cuts will stand. Canada Posts offers, tabled last week, are a blueprint for restructuring the entire postal system on the backs of workers and the public. The proposals include: Ending Article 53 lifetime job security for permanent employees, opening the door to mass layoffs and casualization. A voluntary buyout scheme to cull thousands of full-time jobs. The closure of up to 493 CUPW-staffed postal outlets. Reduction of delivery days from five to three, and the replacement of home delivery with community mailboxes. The imposition of dynamic routing, surveillance, and load levelling to slash routes and intensify workloads. This plan amounts to the Amazonification of Canada Post. It would transform the postal service from a public utility into a low-wage logistics operation designed to funnel profits to Purolator and the private courier giants. The Carney Liberals, acting for Bay Street and the corporate elite, have declared postal workers jobs inefficiencies that must be wiped out so billions can be redirected to corporate subsidies and Canadas expanding war machine. CUPWs record of sabotage CUPW has responded to the Liberal-management offensive with one retreat after another. Last year, CUPW shut down a month-long strike on Trudeaus orders, submitting to a unilateral order to end the job action issued by Labour Minister Steven MacKinnon under Section 107 of the Labour Code. Then CUPW promoted illusions in the Industrial Inquiry Commission as voice for workers, fully aware it was a rigged mechanism to provide the government and management with a restructuring blueprint. One, moreover, whose very creation was bound up with a ban on us taking any collective action in defence of our rights during the entire commission process. For months after the legal right to strike was regained in May, the leadership confined us to meaningless overtime bans and flyer boycotts, shielding managements revenue streams. Now, having finally been forced to sanction a nationwide strike, the CUPW bureaucracy has once again intervened to demobilize workers just as our struggle was beginning to gather momentum and broader support. By reducing us to rotating strikes, the apparatus has deliberately handed over our most powerful weaponthe ability to halt mail and parcel flows nationwidejust when we most need it. Rotating strikes are not a tactic for victory. They are a mechanism to dissipate energy, isolate locals, and ensure management can keep operations going. We saw this in 2011, when rotating actions paved the way for the Harper government to criminalize our strike and impose concessions through legislation. By allowing some mail and parcels to move, CUPW is directly assisting management and the government. Lightbound and Carney now have a free hand to let the strike drag on, increase hardship, and prepare either binding arbitration or an outright back-to-work law. This is nothing less than collusion. The CUPW apparatus functions as an industrial police force for the Liberals and corporate Canada. A political struggle against austerity and war The strike at Canada Post is not an isolated labour dispute. It is part of a broader class confrontation. Carney and the Liberals are determined to make postal workers an exampleto prove that no section of workers can resist the program of austerity and militarism. Billions are being poured into the military, subsidies for corporations and preparations for imperialist wars. To pay for this, the ruling class insists that tens of thousands of good-paying jobs, from the post office to healthcare and education, must be destroyed. The union leaderships appeals to the NDP, Bloc Quebecois, and sympathetic politicians are a dead end. These parties are fully committed to the capitalist order. The NDP, in particular, has a long record of supporting Liberal governments that implement austerity, Canadian imperialisms wars, and back-to-work laws. Postal workers must repudiate any orientation to the political establishment, fighting instead to develop a mass movement with workers throughout the logistics sector and beyond on the basis of a socialist program that places human need above private profit. The way forward: Independent action by the rank and file Postal workers must respond decisively. We cannot allow our struggle to be strangled by a CUPW bureaucracy tied hand and foot to the Liberals and the Canadian Labour Congress. We must build a new leadership from below. Time and again, it has been the independent action of rank-and-file workersnot the union leadershipthat has pushed the struggle forward. Last fall, it was militant picketing that showed the power of shutting down Canada Post. Last month, it was spontaneous walkouts that ignited the nationwide strike. The lesson is clear: if we leave the struggle in the hands of the CUPW bureaucracy, we will suffer defeat after defeat. The only way forward is to take matters into our own hands through new organizations built from below. The Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee calls for: 1. The expansion of the nationwide strike into an industrial and political movement of all logistics workers and the working class as a whole against the corporate/government gang-up against public services and worker rights. We are fighting on questions that will impact the lives of millions of workers. These include opposing the use of AI to step up exploitation and rollout of gig work, and the subordination of key public services to corporate profiteering. 2. Rejection of CUPWs sabotage of our struggle. Postal workers must demand mass membership meetings where we can debate and vote on the course of the struggle. No more diktats from the bureaucrats! 3. Formation of rank-and-file committees in every depot, plant and delivery unit. These committees must take control of the struggle, coordinate it democratically from below, and link up across the country. 4. A concerted campaign to mobilize the broader working class behind our struggle. Our fight is not just about postal jobs. It is about the defence of all public services against privatization and cuts. Teachers, healthcare workers, college staff and airline crews are also entering into struggle. We must unite with them in a common front against austerity, war spending, and corporate domination. 5. An international strategy: Postal and logistics workers across North America and globally face the same attacks. Amazon, FedEx, UPS, DHL, Royal Mailall are slashing jobs, imposing surveillance, and destroying conditions. Our fight must be coordinated internationally through the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees (IWA-RFC). Enough is enough! Take the fight into our own hands! The events of the past weeks have confirmed the warnings made by the PWRFC since its founding: postal workers face not simply a contract dispute, but a political struggle against the combined forces of government, management and the union bureaucracy. We must draw the necessary conclusions: The CUPW apparatus cannot be pressured or reformed into defending our interests because it is locked in a corporatist partnership with management and government against our interests. Appeals to the government are futilethey are our enemy. Victory requires mass rank-and-file organization and the mobilization of the entire working class against the austerity program of the ruling elite. We call on all postal workers to join the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee. Organize meetings in your depots and plants to denounce CUPWs retreat, reject rotating strikes, and send delegations to Purolator, Amazon, Fedex and other workplaces to fight for the expansion of our nationwide strike. We should also link up with teachers, healthcare staff and all workers fighting layoffs and cuts. Together, we can and must turn this fight into the spearhead of a working-class counteroffensive against the Carney government and all corporate Canada. Tuesdays meeting between US President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney was revealing in two respects. First, Carneys effusive praise of the would-be US dictator underscored that the Canadian bourgeoisies conflict with Trump is solely about defending its own predatory profit and geopolitical interests. Not only is it indifferent to and ready to collaborate in Trumps evisceration of democratic rights. As highlighted by the systematic assault on the right-to-strike and the morphing of the official opposition Conservatives into a far-right party, it is itself turning to authoritarian methods of rule and fascist reaction. Second, Trumps repeated threat to make Canada the 51st US statecoupled with his declaration about a natural conflict between the two erstwhile alliesspeaks to the sharp deterioration in inter-state relations amid a rapidly escalating scramble among the imperialist powers to redivide the world and seize control of resources, markets, production networks and strategic territories through trade war, aggression and global war. Carney was visiting the White House for the second time in less than six months. But he left without any indication that an agreement will soon be reached to resolve the ongoing trade war between what were arguably the two closest imperialist allies for much of the last century. This was not for want of trying. Carney began the meeting by genuflecting before King Donald, proclaiming him to be a transformational president and a peacemaker for his plan to turn Gaza into a colonial protectorate. He uttered not a word about Trumps far-advanced drive to erect a fascist dictatorship, which saw the President convene just one day later a roundtable with neo-Nazis and other Hitler lovers to openly discuss sweeping domestic repression against political opponents. US President Donald Trump meets with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in the White House Oval Office, Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025. [AP Photo/Evan Vucci] During their televised Oval Office press conference, Carney sat by, exchanging pleasantries with Trump, as he vowed to send the military into more US cities and accused his Democratic opponents of taking peoples children away in chains and changing their sex. President Trump, Carney declared, has proven to be a transformational leader and, yes, a peacemakerwhether in the Middle East or in restoring economic balance through strength. Canada respects that kind of resolve. Coming from Carney, the former central banker and carefully selected political manager of the affairs of Canadas financial oligarchy, the praise of Trumps resolve sends an unmistakable signal. As he rides roughshod over legal norms, rounds up immigrants en masse, and threatens political opponents with vicious repression, Trump and the dictatorial regime he is establishing serve as models for what Canadas corporate elite is pushing for. During his first six months in office, Carney has already moved to impose Trump-style policies with his massive hike in military spending, pledge to impose a new round of public spending austerity, and criminalization of the Air Canada flight attendants strike. The sharp tensions that have erupted between Washington and Ottawa since Trump returned to the White House in January reflect not differences in the class-war agendas of the countries respective ruling classes, but disputes driven by the competing ambitions of North Americas two imperialist powers. After more than eight decades of a close military-strategic and economic partnership, American and Canadian imperialism increasingly view each other as rivals in the escalating global conflict for control over raw materials, markets, labour and geostrategic influence. Trumps insistence that Canada should become the 51st state reflects the demand of dominant sections of the American ruling class to reorganize the North American continent into a giant supply chain for US global trade and military wars against its great power rivals. His administrations strategy of systematically weakening Canada economically to facilitate its annexation was underscored by the comments of Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. The day after Carney courted Trump, he told a conference on US-Canada relations hosted by BMO bank and the Eurasia Group that America intends to assemble all automobiles for the US market domestically. Canadas auto industry, closely integrated with the US since the 1960s, would be reduced to producing parts and, according to Lutnick, would be second to the US. Trump told Carney that he is considering abrogating the US-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement (USMCA), the successor to NAFTA, in a move underlining that Washingtons drive to redefine Canada-US relations is only in its initial stages. We can renegotiate it, (USMCA) that would be good, or we can just do different deals, that is separate deals with Canada and Mexico, asserted Trump. The Canadian ruling class has been rattled by Trumps aggressive implementation of America First policies, not least because since the eruption of the Second World War it has used its close alliance with Washington to assert its own global imperialist interests. Even now, Ottawas preferred course of action is to prevail on Trump and his fascist cabal to duly recognize Canadas right and prerogatives as Americas junior partner so that the continents twin imperialist powers can confront Russia, China and other rivals together. Hence Carneys attempts to flatter Trump, his insistence that, in spite of everything, Canada and the US share common interests, and his offer of $1 trillion in Canadian investment in the US over the next five years. On the domestic front, the Canadian ruling class has exploited Trumps trade war and annexation threats to adopt large chunks of the class-war agenda that he is pursuing in the US. This has been accompanied by a dramatic lurch to the right in official politics, as Carney has sought to distance himself from his centrist predecessor Justin Trudeau by embracing many policies long demanded by the Conservative right, like oil pipelines, business deregulation and massive social spending cuts in the name of austerity. The Carney governments austerity and investment plan, set to be expanded in early November with the tabling of a new budget, aims to hike military spending to 5 percent of GDP by 2034, spur the expansion of Canadas military-industrial base, slash spending on healthcare and social programs, and boost incentives for the financial oligarchy and big business to generate profits through investments. A foretaste of the conditions which Carney and Co. plan for the working class is illustrated by the fate facing 55,000 Canada Post workers. The government is backing the enforcement of a management-dictated restructuring plan that would eliminate tens of thousands of secure jobs, expand the use of gig work, and set the standard for the gutting of all public services so they prioritize profit generation. In the federal election last April, Carney was able to overturn a massive Liberal deficit in the polls and secure an election victory by posturing as an opponent of Trump. With the help of the trade unions and New Democrats, which assisted in whipping up a Canadian nationalist hysteria that presented the country as united against Trump, Carney exploited the obvious political affinities between the would-be dictator and the far-right leader of the Conservatives, Pierre Poilievre. In addition to pivoting post-election to waging war on the working class, Carneys Liberals have junked most of the retaliatory measures taken against Trumps tariffs on Canadian exports. This includes the removal of a proposed digital services tax aimed principally at American companies and the reversal of most of the retaliatory tariffs. While Poilievre, in bellicose language akin to that of the trade union bureaucracy, has harangued Carney for abandoning elbows up in favour of elbows down, the dominant sections of Canadian big business have signaled their approval for this more conciliatory approach to Trump. The Business Council of Canada has insisted that with Japan, the European Union and Britain all abandoning their threats of retaliatory tariffs and making trade deals with Trump, Canada must follow suit. The government has responded by indicating its readiness to accept a limited reduction in the US tariffs on steel, aluminum, auto parts, softwood lumber and non-USMCA-compliant goodsrather than their full removaland the imposition of export quotas, terms similar to those Trump has negotiated with the other imperialist powers. The goal is to preserve preferential access to the US market by avoiding the total collapse of the USMCA trade agreement. In what is an olive branch to Trump, but also a move expressing the predatory designs of Canadian imperialism, the Carney government is negotiating Ottawas participation in the Golden Dome missile defence shield. Notwithstanding its name, this project aims to create the conditions for American imperialism to wage and win a nuclear war against its rivals. The tensions unleashed by Trumps drive to annex Canada and big business attempt to appease him are exacerbating deep-rooted regional frictions within the Canadian bourgeoisie. Far-right Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, whose province depends heavily on oil and energy exports south, has welcomed Carneys more conciliatory policy towards Trump compared to Trudeau. Speaking to the BMO Eurasia Group conference Wednesday, she said, I never thought elbows up was going to get us to a deal with this particular president, and I think that (Carneys) beginning to see that putting some of the credits in the bank account is going to get us a lot further. Ontario Premier Doug Ford, who heads the province where Canadas auto industry is based, wants a more confrontational response. Warning that Trump would not annihilate manufacturing in Ontario, he demanded that Canada hit Trump back twice as hard in the absence of a deal to end auto tariffs. Workers should not take sides in these squabbles, which ultimately boil down to tactical differences over how best to defend the interests of competing and often hostile factions of Canadian capital. Workers know from bitter experience that, irrespective of their differences over how to handle Trump, Smith and Ford enforce no less ruthless attacks on the working class of their respective provinces. The same could be said of Francois Legault and his right-wing, national-autonomist CAQ government in Quebec. The fraud of Team Canada united against Trump is underscored by the brutal class war ongoing within Canada itself. Over the past 15 months, the Liberal government has repeatedly outlawed strikes by workers using draconian powers in the Canada Labour Code. Currently, over 100,000 workers are on strike across the country, from the postal workers, to Alberta teachers, British Columbia government employees and Ontario college support staff. All are demanding major improvements in pay and job protection, as social inequality and poverty skyrocket. As the World Socialist Web Site previously stressed, workers in Canada must oppose Trump and everything he represents. However, to do so they must implacably oppose the Canadian bourgeoisie and all its rival factions as they work to uphold their mercenary class interests. As we declared, Trump is a menace to the workers of Canada and the world. But workers cant fight him and all he representsoligarchy, dictatorship and imperialist warby lining up with the Canadian bourgeoisie, any of its rival factions or political representatives. Rather, they must assert their independent class interests by forging a movement for workers power and fighting to fuse their struggles with the mass opposition to Trump now emerging within the American working class. Canadian workers must assist their American colleagues in breaking free of the Democratic Party, which no less than Trumps fascist Republicans is a party of Wall Street and the CIA, and its trade union allies. This perspective assumes renewed urgency as mass protests and other forms of opposition escalate in the US against Trumps Operation Dictatorship. Workers in Canada can and must supply this movement with critical international support by taking up the fight for the socialist reorganization of economic life across North America and worldwide. New Zealands Foreign Minister Winston Peters has seized on recent incidents, including the breaking of a window at his house, to ramp up his campaign to delegitimize protests against the Gaza genocide and to smear all left-wing political opposition. New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters [AP Photo/Rick Rycroft] On October 6, a window was smashed at Peters house in Auckland and shortly afterwards a 29-year-old man was arrested and charged with burglary. The man, who has been given name suppression by the court, has pleaded not guilty. Within hours of the incident, before anything had been made public about the alleged perpetrator, Peters posted on X: This is the type of violent hate-filled behaviour we warned about in the past few days about the radical left. Without providing any evidence, he blamed the act of vandalism on protesters, political bloggers, and MPs alike encouraging this behaviour, posting politicians [sic] home addresses online, and acting with pure ignorance and extremism. Speaking to the New Zealand Herald the next day, Peters singled out Green Party co-leader Chloe Swarbrick, calling her complicit in the extreme. The only evidence he gave was that Swarbrick had spoken publicly alongside a protest organiser who had called for pro-Palestine demonstrations outside Peters housean activity which is currently legal. Swarbrick rejected the accusation that she had incited the breaking of Peters window. The accused man has stated, through his lawyer, that he was not part of a protest held outside the ministers house that evening. Peters has been denounced at rallies attended by thousands up and down the country since his speech at the UN whitewashing Israels genocide in Gaza. He has since hailed US president Donald Trumps so-called peace plan, a blueprint for the colonial takeover of the Gaza Strip and the continued oppression of the Palestinian people. Peters right-wing nationalist New Zealand First Party and the far-right ACT Partywhich both play a major role in the National Party-led coalition governmenthave repeatedly made hysterical and unsubstantiated accusations that anti-genocide protesters are promoting violence and anti-semitism. The government is taking its cue from the US Trump administration, which has exploited the assassination of the fascist agitator Charlie Kirk to label all anti-fascist opposition as violent extremism and terrorism. In response to mass opposition to war, genocide and social inequality, Trump is deploying the military into American cities in what is an unfolding coup aimed at establishing a dictatorship. While New Zealands ruling class has not yet gone this far, the same political dynamic is at work. The government is responding to the profound economic crisis by implementing brutal austerity measures that are driving thousands into poverty, while boosting funding for the military in preparation to join US-led imperialist wars. This agenda cannot be imposed democratically; pretexts must therefore be found, or concocted, to justify the suppression of opposition. One such pretext was supplied by the Daily Blog, a nationalist publication which supports the Greens and the Labour Party. On October 5, the day before Peters window was broken, the blogs editor Martyn Bradbury published an article encouraging people to shout Zionist coward and war criminal if they saw members of the government in the street. He added: if you are serving a National, ACT and NZF MP food, make sure you spit in that food. This provocative statement was a gift to the right-wing government. It was immediately exploited by Peters to accuse the far left of being violent and divisive. We have seen the rise of political violence around the world and this type of horrendous encouragement of people to act against politicians in this way is dangerous. It is only a small step from justifying spitting in someones food to justifying something more violent, Peters wrote on X. The foreign ministers statements were echoed by the far-right Platform podcast, whose presenter Michael Laws declared that the Green Partys supporters, including pro-Palestinian protesters, would eventually go into something more violent than they are at the momentits just inevitable. The hypocrisy of such statements is glaring. In addition to whitewashing the mass murder of Palestinians and backing the imperialist carve-up of the Middle East, NZ First has stoked fascistic campaigns within New Zealand. A few months ago, NZ First and the Platform fomented a vile, homophobic witch hunt against Green MP Benjamin Doyle, who Peters accused, without a shred of evidence, of being a sex criminal and a danger to children. Doyle resigned from parliament last month after receiving an avalanche of death threats. NZ First has repeatedly fuelled racism and xenophobia, especially against immigrants from China, India and Muslim countries. At the partys convention last month, Peters ranted that people feel at risk because too many migrants dont salute our flag, dont honour the values of our country, dont respect the people living here, dont respect the right to have our own religion and freedom of speech. NZ First is widely despisedit received just 6 percent of the vote in the 2023 electionbut the party has been promoted for years by the entire capitalist political establishment. This includes the Green Party, which joined a coalition government with Labour and NZ First from 2017 to 2020. That government, led by Jacinda Ardern, adopted NZ Firsts anti-immigrant policies and strengthened New Zealands alliance with the US as it prepared for war against China. The Labour-Greens-NZ First coalition was embraced by the Daily Blog, which echoed NZ Firsts anti-immigrant rhetoric and its demonisation of China. Far from being left-wing or Marxist, the blogs Martyn Bradbury has repeatedly attacked the Socialist Equality Groupaccusing it of possible treason and calling for it to be investigated by the intelligence agenciesbecause of its exposure of the Daily Blogs anti-China war propaganda. The current government, meanwhile, is taking steps to restrict the right to protest, including a proposal to ban demonstrations near private residences of MPs, judges and other public officials. The New Zealand Council for Civil Liberties points out that the Bill could be used to stop protests outside an embassy including an ambassadors residence or even at parliament grounds, which is near apartments occupied by politicians. With the support of the opposition Labour Party, the government is seeking to pass laws against foreign interference, which could also be used to criminalise protests if they are deemed to be on behalf of a foreign power and harmful to New Zealands protected interests. Consultation is underway on potential changes to the Terrorism Suppression Act, which could lead to people being charged with a criminal offence if they express any support for designated terrorist organisations. Britains Labour government has used similar laws to arrest hundreds of peaceful anti-genocide protesters. The ruling elites support for genocide and imperialist wars, and its attacks on living standards and democratic rights at home, must be opposed. But this cannot be done through individualistic actions such as breaking windows or spitting in politicians foodimpotent and stupid outbursts which only play into the hands of the state and provide a pretext for repression. Two years of mass, global protests, which have failed to stop the Gaza genocide, have also demonstrated the futility of appealing to capitalist governments to change course. The only force capable of ending war and dictatorship is the working class, mobilised in an organised, global industrial and political movement, armed with a socialist perspectivein opposition to all the capitalist parties, including Labour and the Greens. The urgent task facing workers and youth is to fight to build the necessary socialist and internationalist leadership: Join the Socialist Equality Group. Thailand to expand cooperation with China for benefit of two peoples: Thai king Xinhua) 11:17, October 11, 2025 BANGKOK, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's King Maha Vajiralongkorn on Friday said that Thailand is willing to expand exchanges and cooperation with China to benefit the people of both countries and promote prosperity and development in the region and the world. The king made the remarks when he received the credential presented by the new Chinese Ambassador to Thailand Zhang Jianwei in the Dusit Palace in Bangkok. Thailand and China are friendly neighbors, and the two peoples share a bond of brotherhood, the king said, emphasizing that Thailand is willing to expand exchanges and cooperation with China at the bilateral, regional, and international levels. Zhang said China and Thailand are good neighbors, good friends, good relatives and good partners, adding that China has attached great importance to developing friendly relations with Thailand. Noting that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Thailand, Zhang said China is committed to implementing the important consensus reached by the leaders of both countries and achieving more fruitful results in building the China-Thailand community with a shared future. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) is included among the 14 Best Food Dividend Stocks to Buy According to Analysts. Why McDonald's Corporation (MCD) Deserves a Spot Among the Top Food Dividend Stocks to Buy Now McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) has come a long way from its early days as a small burger stand in Southern California. Today, its a global icon with more than 44,000 restaurants spread across over 100 countries a scale few brands have ever matched. In tougher economic times, McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) often finds itself in a stronger position. When people start tightening their budgets, the companys value meals become an easy choice. It has been leaning into that trend again, putting affordability front and center on its menu, and customers seem to be responding. Looking ahead, McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) is planning to invest heavily in artificial intelligence. The goal is to use AI to sharpen efficiency and make its already-successful franchise model even more profitable. With operating margins comfortably above 45% and per-share earnings up 12% in the latest quarter, the company looks well placed to keep raising its dividend payouts. McDonalds Corporation (NYSE:MCD) already holds a 48-year track record of consistent dividend growth. This means that the company is just two years away from becoming a Dividend King. Its quarterly dividend currently sits at $1.77 per share for a dividend yield of 2.35%, as of October 5. While we acknowledge the potential of MCD as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If youre looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 11 Best BDC Stocks to Buy Now and Dividend Champions List: Top 15 Stocks to Buy. Disclosure: None. A person attaches a hose to a fire hydrant to fill a tanker truck after a blast resulted in multiple fatalities and others missing at Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosives plant, Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Bucksnort, Tennessee. [AP Photo/John Amis] At 7:45 a.m. Central Time Friday, a massive explosion tore through the Accurate Energetic Systems (AES) munitions plant in Bucksnort, Tennessee, killing 16 and injuring more than a score of workers. Describing the incident as a mass detonation, local officials have confirmed that 19 employees are missing and feared dead, roughly one-quarter of the companys workforce. Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said the scene was one of utter devastation. Theres nothing to describe. Its gone, he told reporters. We are missing 19 souls right now. Its one of the most devastating situations Ive been on in my career, he said in remarks to the New York Times. People wait outside an office building at Accurate Energetic Systems, an explosives plant, after a blast resulted in multiple fatalities and others missing at the plant Friday, October 10, 2025, in Bucksnort, Tennessee. [AP Photo/John Amis] The blast leveled at least one structure, believed to be Building Six of the companys eight-building facility, and was so powerful that it rattled homes more than a dozen miles away and sent a plume of smoke large enough to appear on the radar of a Nashville television station. Witnesses described the terror that swept through the rural community located 50 miles southwest of Nashville. Gentry Stover, who lives nearby, told Associated Press the concussion shook him awake: I thought the house had collapsed with me inside of it. I live very close to Accurate and realized about 30 seconds after I woke up that it had to have been that. Outside the shattered plant, families waited in anguish for word of the injured and missing. Ava Hinson told the Times her son, Jeremy Moore, had worked at AES for nearly 20 years. We dont know where he is, she said. Nathan Birchard, whose girlfriend Rachel Woodall was on the early shift, stood with relatives and coworkers waiting for updates. Please pray for my girlfriend, he wrote on social media before driving to the scene. Authorities said the cause of the explosion remains under investigation. The FBI and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are on site, and Sheriff Davis cautioned that reaching the center of the wreckage could take days. It wouldnt surprise me at all if were here next week, he said. Accurate Energetic Systems is a privately held explosives manufacturer that operates on a 1,300-acre site with eight production buildings. The company produces and tests high-energy materials including RDX (cyclonite), TNT, and PBXN-series military explosives, for the Department of Defense, the Department of Homeland Security and commercial demolition clients. AES employs roughly 75 workers and is one of the few sources of stable employment in the economically depressed rural counties west of Nashville. This is the second deadly explosion at the same site in just over a decade. In April 2014, another blast destroyed a building used to manufacture ammunition components, killing one worker and critically injuring three others. That facility was then operated by Rio Ammunition, one of several defense contractors that have worked on the property. Records from the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA) show that AES was cited for five serious violations in 2019 after multiple employees suffered seizure events while working with RDX powder. Investigators determined that the workers experienced central nervous system impairment after drying and sifting the compound without adequate protective gear. Wipe samples from employees skin and break room surfaces tested positive for RDX residue, proving exposure through absorption and ingestion. RDX (cyclonite) is a potent neurotoxin. The National Center for Biotechnology Information reports that exposure can cause convulsions and unconsciousness, accompanied by headache, dizziness, and vomiting, while chronic exposure can damage the liver and kidneys. After years of appeals, AES reached a settlement with TOSHA in 2023 that vacated or downgraded the violations to other-than-serious. In exchange, the company promised only minor improvements such as installing a hand-washing station and providing long-sleeve uniforms. The final penalty was $7,200, roughly the value of a single batch of military-grade explosives. The Tennessee explosion comes only days after a blast at Chevrons El Segundo refinery in California. As the World Socialist Web Site reported, such disasters are virtually daily occurrences in America, with fatal explosions, fires, and toxic exposures killing workers in Texas, Louisiana, Colorado and Nebraska in recent months. These are not accidents in any meaningful sense, the WSWS explained, but social crimes, predictable outcomes of a deregulated, profit-driven system that treats human lives as expendable. The federal government shutdown, which began on October 1, 2025, after Congress failed to pass a funding bill, has paralyzed workplace safety enforcement across the country. Under its contingency plan, the Department of Labor has furloughed most of its staff, leaving the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) with only 460 of its 1,664 employees on duty to respond to life-and-property emergencies. All routine inspections, outreach, and training have been suspended, according to Engineering News-Record. Compounding this paralysis, the Trump administrations fiscal year 2026 budget proposal would cut nearly $50 million from OSHA and eliminate 223 positions, further eroding what little oversight remains. With three-quarters of OSHAs workforce sidelined and deeper cuts planned, thousands of high-risk worksites now operate with no federal safety oversight. The explosion in Tennessee exposes the deadly consequences of this government-engineered collapse of regulation. The explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems is not an isolated event but part of a systemic breakdown of workplace safety that has been decades in the making. The bipartisan rollback of safety regulations, token fines and the subordination of oversight agencies to corporate profit have made such catastrophes inevitable. The dead and missing in Tennessee join the thousands of workers killed each year in what can only be described as Americas industrial slaughterhouse. Their deaths were preventable. Every ignored warning, every vacated violation and every political concession to the corporate elite paved the way for this tragedy. The defense of workers lives cannot be entrusted to government regulators, the courts, or corporate management. Rank-and-file safety committees, organized independently by workers themselves, must take control of workplace safety, demand full transparency in investigations, and link up with other sections of workers across industries and states to build a unified network of rank-and-file committees capable of asserting democratic control over working conditions and prioritizing the lives of all workers over profit. This undated photo provided by the US Attorney's Office shows Jonathan Rinderknecht, a suspect in the Palisades Fire. [AP Photo/US Attorney's Office] On October 8 federal prosecutors announced the arrest of 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht, charging him with igniting a small New Years Day blazethe Lachman Firethat investigators claim smoldered unseen in roots before reemerging days later as the catastrophic Palisades Fire, which killed a dozen people and destroyed thousands of homes. The U.S. Attorneys Office for the Central District of California, led by Acting U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli, presented an affidavit as the cases factual spine. Media outlets dutifully reproduced the story: an intentional ignition on January 1, apparent suppression, subterranean smoldering, and then a wind-driven resurging conflagration on January 7 that became the disaster everyone remembers. The devastation from the Palisades Fire is shown in an aerial view in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles, Monday, January 27, 2025. [AP Photo/Jae C. Hong] At first glance the story has all the ingredients of a straightforward criminal case: a suspect allegedly at the scene, digital traces and surveillance tying him to the site, and forensic conclusions that link the later, larger fire to the earlier burn. Investigators claim they located the Palisades origin at a burned root structure just outside the handline, a manually constructed firebreak cleared of vegetation to slow or stop a blaze, from the Lachman incident and that a firebrand smoldered in dense vegetation until winds turned it into open flame. They assert having ruled out other causes such as lightning, power-line failure, or a fresh ignition on January 7. Yet the central forensic claimthat a holdover underground smolder persisted unseen for six days before resurfacingis far from scientifically demonstrated. The complaint describes photos, site visits, and investigative judgment, but it offers no continuous thermal data proving combustion through the interval. No heat-signature time series, soil-temperature logs, or repeated infrared imagery have been releasedonly conclusions. Smoldering in roots and duff is a real physical phenomenon. Fire scientists have long shown that organic matter can glow underground for days under the right conditions. The hypothesis is plausible, but plausibility is not proof. The prosecutions case rests on a mosaic of inferences, scene patterns and exclusions, rather than a transparent sequence of public laboratory measurements. That distinction matters when one person is being blamed for a disaster with vast social and economic consequences. The official narrative does more than point a finger at an alleged arsonist. It also implicitly blames the fire department for failing to detect or mop up smoldering hotspots. In statements released alongside the arrest, the Los Angeles Fire Department emphasized the traumatic toll of the blaze and released an after-action review of the initial response. Critics quoted in the press have said the affidavit could just as easily be read as pointing to gaps in post-suppression monitoring, shortages of staff and resources, and a decayed emergency infrastructure during the wind event that followed. The fixation on a lone culprit serves to divert attention from political responsibility. Both major parties share it. For decades, Democratic and Republican administrations alike have gutted public prevention budgets while shielding private utilities and insurers. In California, where Democrats dominate every lever of government, this responsibility is especially stark. State leaders repeatedly blocked or diluted oversight of Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison, whose neglected equipment has caused repeated infernos. They allowed insurance giants like State Farm to profit from the crisischarging higher premiums, denying claims, and then withdrawing coveragewhile presenting these decisions as market corrections. Private equity firms have been facilitated and allowed to monopolize the supply of fire trucks. The decay of the fire department, the neglect of grid infrastructure, and the absence of affordable insurance are all political outcomes, not natural accidents. The blame the arsonist story criminalizes an individual while obscuring the bipartisan dismantling of public safety capacity. If the catastrophe can be reduced to the actions of one man, then litigation stays narrow and the structural causesaging utilities, deregulated insurance, climate change, and state negligenceare removed from scrutiny. The January fires across the Los Angeles region have exposed exactly those causes. Investigations into the Eaton-Altadena complex found evidence of malfunctioning distribution lines and dispatch failures. Utility corporations, backed by state regulators and their Democratic patrons, will fight hard to keep their negligence out of the official story. The economic angle is blunt and real. When a wildfire becomes framed as arson it gives insurers legal room to delay and contest claims. Californias insurance system has already been roiled by mass withdrawals from private insurers, a swollen FAIR Plan, and litigation over denials and restrictive interpretations for smoke and contamination claims. Lawsuits filed against insurers and investigations by regulators show how the post-disaster legal architecture is fertile ground for denial, delay and reduced payouts, even as reconstruction contracts flow to contractors and developers who profit from the disaster economy. In that sense a scapegoat arson narrative protects corporate balance sheets and preserves the social conditions under which private profit from catastrophe continues apace. There is a political face to this operation too. The federal arrest was announced by Trump loyalist Bill Essayli, the acting U.S. attorney for the Central District of California, installed by Attorney General Pam Bondi and kept in power by Trump through a maneuver that circumvented Senate confirmation. Essaylis tenure has been marked by a highly politicized posture: his office has aggressively pursued protest cases tied to immigration raids, even as countless indictments faltered or were dismissed and several career prosecutors resigned in protest after Essayli intervened to offer an unusually lenient post-trial plea to a convicted sheriffs deputy. Before taking office as a federal prosecutor, Essayli served as private counsel to figures associated with the January 6 events, including Alan Hostetter, a former police chief convicted of four felonies, including conspiring to obstruct Congress, in connection with the attempted coup. Hostetter breached the Capitol with a hatchet in his backpack and later posted on social media from the upper west terrace of the building, This was the shot heard round the world!...the 2021 version of 1776. That war lasted 8 years. We are just getting started. In court filings and interviews Essayli disputed the governments narrative of organized violence and tried to frame defendants actions as protected First Amendment activity. Even if Rinderknecht were found guilty, it would change nothing about the states scapegoating operation or the political function it serves: diverting attention from systemic responsibility. More broadly, disasters are never the work of one individual. They are produced by social relations and political priorities. Wildfires in California expose class inequality: who can afford insurance, who can evacuate, who profits afterward. In West Altadena, those who died lived in neighborhoods long deprived of emergency resources. The Democrats who govern California are primarily responsible for that reality through deregulation and their alliance with corporate energy and finance. To focus public anger on one supposed arsonist is to perform the oldest function of capitalist politics: scapegoating to conceal social crime. It protects the ruling class, diverts rage from the corporations and bureaucracies that profit from catastrophe, and legitimizes further repression. The only genuine safeguard against such tragedies is not sensational prosecution but massive public investment and democratic control: publicly owned, modernized utilities; a universal, non-profit insurance system; fully staffed fire departments; and internationally coordinated planning for a warming climate. In a word, socialist measures, grounded in human need, not private accumulation. Robert Roberson waits to be interviewed in a locked visitation cell at the Allan B. Polunsky Unit prison in Livingston, Texas, Wednesday, Oct. 1, 2025. [AP Photo/Annie Mulligan] The machinery of the Texas state killing apparatus, overseen by Republican Governor Greg Abbott and his attorney general, Ken Paxton, has suffered a setback in its campaign to execute Robert Roberson, an innocent and disabled man. Just days before his scheduled execution on October 16, 2025, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) granted Roberson a stay, sending his case back to the district court for further review. Robert Roberson was convicted and sentenced to death in the 2002 death of his two-year-old daughter Nikki, based on medical testimony diagnosing Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS). The CCA granted Roberson a stay of execution and remanded his case to the trial court to consider his request for relief based on the precedent set in Ex parte Roark. Roberson must try to demonstrate that the new scientific evidence warrants relief, which could ultimately lead to a new trial and possible exoneration. Roberson is seeking relief under Texas junk science statute, Article 11.073, which allows prisoners to challenge convictions based on scientific evidence that is now outdated, debunked or has evolved. The evidence in question leading to Robersons conviction involved charges by prosecutors that Nikki died of SBS. Texas death row inmate Andrew Roark was convicted in 2000 of child injury based on an SBS diagnosis. In 2024, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) overturned his conviction under Article 11.073, concluding that new scientific evidence had discredited the shaken baby syndrome theory used at his original trial. Andrew Roark was granted a new trial and subsequently exonerated, creating a significant legal precedent that now influences ongoing reconsideration of similar convictions, including Robert Robersons. The CCAs reasoning for halting Robersons execution centered on the fact that the governments original case was inseparably intertwined with Shaken Baby Syndrome as it was medically understood more than 20 years ago. Given the deeper understanding of this junk science, the court acknowledged that previous assumptions might no longer be true. Stating that A death sentence is clearly final and requires the highest standards of accuracy, the court found Roberson deserves a new hearing to present evidence regarding the discredited SBS diagnosis. There is a clear parallel between the Roberson and Roark cases. Both involved convictions based on the now-discredited SBS hypothesis. Robersons attorney, Gretchen Sween, is confident that an objective review of the medical evidence in his case will show there was no crime. The next step is for the case to return to the trial court level, where Roberson must try to demonstrate that the new scientific evidence warrants relief, which could ultimately lead to a new trial. The outcome depends on whether the relief granted to Roark requires the same for Roberson. The discredited science of SBS and AHT Robersons conviction was based on medical testimony diagnosing SBS as the cause of his daughters death based on a triad of symptoms: subdural hemorrhages (SDH), retinal hemorrhages (RH) and encephalopathy (brain swelling). However, the scientific understanding of SBS has evolved dramatically over that last two decades. Robersons defense argues that Nikkis death was the tragic result of undiagnosed severe pneumonia both bacterial and viral that progressed to sepsis, a condition likely exacerbated by inappropriate medications prescribed to her: promethazine, a first-generation antihistamine, and codeine, an opioid. These drugs are no longer recommended for young children due to respiratory complications. Additionally, modern research shows that the injury triad can result from non-abusive causes, including accidental short falls or other medical conditions. Roberson reported that Nikki had fallen out of bed the night before he rushed her to the emergency room. The term Abusive Head Trauma (AHT) is now commonly used to describe what was previously referred to as SBS. While AHT is a broader diagnosis defined as injury resulting from blunt force, forceful shaking, or a combination of both, the older term SBS specifically referred to injuries caused primarily by violent shaking, often identified solely by the presence of the triad of symptoms. At least 41 people have been exonerated in the US after being wrongfully convicted based on the SBS hypothesis, according to the National Registry of Exonerations. If Texas succeeds in executing Roberson, he would be the first person in the US executed for a conviction based on SBS. Further mitigating factors underscore Robersons innocence. Roberson suffers from autism spectrum disorder. His observed lack of emotional reaction and flat affect at the hospital, which was used by prosecutors to paint him as a callous liar, is now understood by experts and advocates as behavior symptomatic of his condition. Even Brian Wharton, the former lead detective who initially investigated the case, now believes Roberson is innocent, admitting, We got it wrong due to misinterpreting Robersons behavior and being fed incomplete and bad information. Additionally, Robersons trial was corrupted by judicial misconduct that only recently came to light in the NBC News podcast The Last Appeal, released in October 2025. Judge Bascom Bentley, who presided over Robersons 2003 capital murder trial, had previously authorized Nikkis maternal grandparents to remove her from life support. Under Texas law, Roberson, as Nikkis sole managing conservator, was the only one with the legal authority to make that decision. Robersons attorneys argue that Judge Bentleys failure to disclose this conflict of interest and recuse himself constitutes structural error requiring a new trial. As his lawyer noted, this is glaring, undisclosed evidence of bias discovered only days before his scheduled execution. Adding to the travesty at trial, psychologist Thomas Allen testified that Roberson was a psychopath, listing Adolf Hitler and serial killer Ted Bundy as examples with the same condition. This label relied on a controversial checklist and unsubstantiated sexual assault accusations, creating an impossible-to-remove prejudice against him in the eyes of the jury. The World Socialist Web Site has repeatedly denounced the death penalty as a barbaric institution used to shore up ruling class power under conditions of burgeoning social inequality and the drive to dictatorship. The systems callous indifference to Robersons innocenceand its relentless pursuit of his deathis the domestic expression of the same ruling class that oversees imperialist wars and genocidal violence abroad, including the slaughter of Palestinians in Gaza. The drive to execute Roberson further demonstrates Texas authorities disdain for due process and use of capital punishment as a terrorizing bludgeon against the population based on retribution and revenge. Gloria Rubac, left, an anti-death penalty activist, speaks during a protest outside the prison where Robert Roberson is scheduled for execution at the Huntsville Unit of the Texas State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. [AP Photo/Michael Wyke] Grim figures on state killings The delayed execution of Roberson comes amid a boom in state-sponsored killings. So far in 2025, the US has carried out 35 executions across 10 states, with 11 more scheduled for the remainder of the year, marking the highest number in more than a decade. States carrying out executions so far in 2025 include: Florida (13, lethal injection) Texas (5, lethal injection) Alabama (3, nitrogen gas hypoxia; 1, lethal injection) Indiana (2 by lethal injection) Tennessee (2, lethal injection) South Carolina (2, lethal injection; 2 firing squad) Oklahoma (2, lethal injection) Arizona (1, lethal injection) Louisiana (1, nitrogen gas hypoxia) Mississippi (1, lethal injection) Governor Abbott has personally overseen 77 executions. Since the US Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 the US has sent 1,642 people to their deaths, with Texas accounting for a staggering 596 of these. Like many defendants sentenced to death, Robert Roberson has faced multiple execution dates in his more than two decades on death row: October 17, 2024, October 16, 2024, and October 16, 2025. This perpetual confrontation with death amounts to psychological torture, which constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, banned by the Eighth Amendment to the US Constitution. Neither of the two major big business parties opposes this assembly line of state killings. Notably, the Democratic Party removed its previous reference to opposition to the death penalty from its 2024 election platform, lending tacit support to this barbaric practice. Donald Trump presided over the executions of an unprecedented 13 federal death row inmates during his first administration, including three executions carried out between his January 6, 2021, coup attempt and his departure from office. On Inauguration Day of his second term Trump signed a sweeping executive order on executions aimed at restoring and expanding the federal death penalty. As the US section of the Socialist Equality Party wrote on October 17, 2024, after Roberson received his second eleventh-hour reprieve: The World Socialist Web Site has a long record of covering and opposing the more than 1,600 executions which have taken place since the death penalty was reinstated by the US Supreme Court in 1976. We have published more than 300 articles opposing and exposing the plight of those who have paid the ultimate price at the hands of this oppressive system of class rule. The continued existence of the death penalty in the United States exposes the criminality and violence of the entire capitalist political and economic system. Robert Roberson must be set free and this long-outmoded punishment, meted out overwhelming against the working class and the poor, must be abolished. This is the first part of the lecture The Wohlforth-Fields violation of party security and the response of the International Committee, delivered by Kathleen Martin and David Rye to the 2025 Summer School of the Socialist Equality Party (US) on the history of the Security and the Fourth International investigation. To accompany this and upcoming lectures, the WSWS is publishing How the GPU Murdered Trotsky, first published in 1981, which contains documents from the first year of the Security and Fourth International investigation. We also encourage readers to review the essay by David North, The case of Nancy Wohlforth, a.k.a. Fields, and the origins of Security and the Fourth International. Weve begun this years Summer School with reports reviewing a historical timeline and context leading up to the assassination of Leon Trotsky in 1940. The specific origins of the Security and the Fourth International investigation lie in the renegacy of Tim Wohlforth and the response of the ICFI and the Socialist Workers Party. The first part of this lecture will review the role of Wohlforth, Nancy Fields, the security issues that arose in the Workers League Summer School of 1974, and the response of the ICFI to this. The emphasis by our movement on the importance of security stood in stark contrast to the response of Hansen and the SWP, who dismissed these entirely appropriate concerns as paranoia. This precipitated the events which led to the launching of the Security and the Fourth International investigation. Certain characteristics of this period are necessary to understand: There was massive state infiltration and operations against left-wing politics throughout the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. The extraordinary response of Joseph Hansen to the security investigation can only be understood in this context. At the time of the crisis in the Workers League in the early to mid-1970s, relatively little was known surrounding the assassination of Leon Trotsky. The material that comrades have read in preparation for this school is the direct product of the intervention of our movement for historical truth and the fight to expose Stalinist agents in the Trotskyist movement. Comrade David North made some of these points in opening the school, but comrades should keep in mind that Trotskys assassination had only occurred 34 years before the August 1974 Summer School in which the crisis in the Workers League came to a head. In other words, about as much time has passed between our Summer School today and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 as between the 1974 Summer School and Trotskys assassination in August 1940. To the younger comrades in attendance who were born after 2000, even the dissolution of the Soviet Union can seem very far removed from the present, especially given the rapid pace and vast amount of developments of the last half decade alone. To the generation of comrades who lived through the experiences in the Workers League that well discuss today, the assassination of Trotsky was not at all an event in the distant past. It had happened just 34 years earlier. For the sake of time, it is not possible to go over in great detail all of the major political events of the period between 1940 and the early 1970s. Much of this will be covered to a certain extent in the upcoming lectures, which deal with security issues as they were arising throughout the course of the Gelfand case, weaving together the exposure of agents within the Socialist Workers Party as that case was developing, and the struggle for the continuity of Trotskyism in the fight against Pabloite revisionism. The Cold War and McCarthyism In order to understand the significance of the massive breach of party security involved in the non-disclosure of Fields family CIA ties, it is necessary to understand the political environment in which these issues arose. It is no secret that the socialist movement has long been targeted for surveillance, infiltration and repression by the state. The Trotskyist movement has had to contend with threats to its security not just from the capitalist state, but also from the Stalinist bureaucracy which sought and successfully achieved the death of its principal opponent in the most consequential political assassination of the century. The last report reviewed the details of the assassination of Trotsky in 1940, and we skip ahead to the early 1970s. Comrade David said in his opening report: The Security and Fourth International investigation transformed the historical narrative of Trotskys assassination. This is certainly the case, and little had been done in the period between 1940 and 1974 to investigate the underlying causes of his death. In the interim, and of course prior to Trotskys assassination, the state had heavily infiltrated left-wing movements in the United States during and after the Cold War. This was the period of McCarthyism, the HUAC testimonies, blacklisting and terrorizing workers and socialists, driving them out of the trade unions through intimidation and threats, and creating an overall climate of state-sponsored anti-communist hysteria. Julius and Ethel Rosenberg, perhaps the most famous victims of the Red Scare, were executed in June 1953. Establishment of COINTELPRO The Counter Intelligence Program, or COINTELPRO, began its formal operations in 1956 under FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, although illegal government spying on subversive groups deemed a threat to national security (or, to capitalism and American imperialism) had been functioning well before the program had an official name and long before the general public was aware of its existence and the extent to which the government was conducting mass spying operations on virtually every left-wing political group. As was later revealed, some of the documents indicated that infiltration started as early as 1941. The subjects of government spying included the Communist Party; the Socialist Workers Party; the NAACP and the Black Panthers, as the civil rights movement also began in this period, gaining mass popularity throughout the course of the 1960s; anti-Vietnam War organizers and protesters; the National Lawyers Guild; the United Auto Workers, the Teamsters, and many other trade unions. Students who were involved in the anti-war demonstrations were also targeted and spied on even if they had no formal affiliation with a specific organization or group. COINTELPRO was established with the explicit intent of going after communists. The American ruling class was concerned above all else with the growing radicalization of the working class and of students and youth in the postwar era, and that this radicalization would lead to revolution. It is critical for comrades to understand this because, as we will get into shortly and also in other lectures in this school, to be security conscious in the Trotskyist movement was a matter of principle. To have close family connections to the CIA, as Nancy Fields did, and not to disclose that information to the party was a massive breach of security. Tim Wohlforth had a political obligation to raise this information about his partner as soon as he became aware of it, and he didnt. The party had a right, really a duty, to investigate these ties. To prioritize ones personal affairs over political responsibilities compromised the security of the international movement. In a speech to an SWP plenum on September 28, 1940, six weeks after Trotskys death, James P. Cannon made the following point on the need to pay much closer attention to security. Comrade Andrea Peters read this in the previous lecture: [T]here is a certain carelessness in the movement as a hangover from the past. We havent probed deeply enough into the past of people even in leading positionswhere they came from, how they live, whom they are married to, etc. Whenever in the past such questionselementary for a revolutionary organizationwere raised, the petty-bourgeois opposition would cry, My God, you are invading the private lives of comrades! Yes, that is precisely what we were doing, or more correctly, threatening to donothing ever came of it in the past. If we had checked up on such matters a little more carefully we might have prevented some bad things in the days gone by. (The Socialist Workers Party in World War II: James P. Cannon, Writings and Speeches, 1940-43) Exposure of COINTELPRO COINTELPRO remained a government secret until March 1971, when a group called the Citizens Commission to Investigate the FBI broke into an FBI office in Pennsylvania and leaked documents and secret dossiers to the media. The exposure of the existence of COINTELPRO revealed the breadth and depth of state-sponsored infiltration, spying, harassment and disruption campaigns targeting individuals and left-wing groups. It was eventually revealed that the FBI sent hundreds of agents into the SWP alone through this program and had around 1,300 informants on its payroll. Leaders of the civil rights movement were targeted and viciously slandered and harassed. One of the more infamous cases is Martin Luther King Jr., to whom the FBI mailed a letter encouraging him to commit suicide along with recordings of illegal wiretappings obtained from his home and personal phone lines which had been bugged. Three months after the COINTELPRO leak, in June 1971, Daniel Ellsberg began publishing the Pentagon Papers in the New York Times, revealing the extent to which the public had been lied to by the government on the war in Vietnam. This further contributed to a deepening political crisis in the Nixon administration, which had attempted to block the publishing of the papers. A year after that the Watergate scandal broke, intensifying mass disillusionment with the existing political establishment and ultimately leading to Nixons resignation in 1974. While the government claimed to have ended COINTELPRO after the 1971 exposure, it continued functioning, just without that name. The same practices were continually employed by the FBI, CIA and other branches of the state security apparatus. The NSA (National Student Association, not to be confused with the National Security Agency), which was monitored and funded by the CIA, was also heavily involved. The Senate Select Committee, chaired by US Senator Frank Church, investigated the illegal activities of the US government in 1975-76, in the aftermath of the Watergate scandal. Many of the records remain classified but the COINTELPRO findings included revelations with massive security implications for the Trotskyist movement in particular. This is the context in which the crisis in the Workers League began to unfold. At the 1973 Summer School in Canada, party members discovered that the camp had been bugged with a listening device. Questions of security were no small matter. Radicalization of workers, students and youth in the 1960s and 1970s The period of the 1960s and 1970s can be characterized above all as one of crisis for world capitalism. The struggle of Trotskyism versus revisionism developed against the backdrop of escalating economic and political instability and conflict. The position of the United States as the supreme economic and military leader of the world in the postwar period began to weaken. This was expressed sharply in the eruption of the massive student protest movement against the Vietnam War, the civil rights movement and its violent repression by the state, the urban uprisings in major cities in the US such as Los Angeles (1965) and Detroit (1967), and a major upsurge in the struggle of the international working class. In 1969, about 5,700 strikes were recorded in the US. In 1970, 10 million man-days were lost to strike action. In 1974, it is estimated that approximately 16 million man-days were lost due to strikes in the United States. This figure reflects the significant labor unrest across various industries, including transportation, manufacturing and public services like the postal service. Efforts of the ruling class to resolve the crisis of American imperialism failed, culminating in the ending of the Bretton Woods system, ending dollar-gold convertibility, on August 15, 1971. The Socialist Labor League correctly recognized that the collapse of Bretton Woods would produce major political and economic convulsions internationally. The political environment was contradictory. On the one hand, with the end of the Vietnam War, the protest movement had significantly waned. On the other, it was a period of explosive class battles. These issues were reflected in the political developments within the IC and the Workers League itself. The Third World Congress of the ICFI and the development of the Workers League Tim Wohlforth was politically disoriented by the collapse of the anti-war protest movement and resorted to frenetic activism instead of deepening the political and theoretical struggle against Pabloite revisionism, which played a major role in radical politics. He turned away from the battle of Trotskyism against Pabloite revisionism out of which the Workers League itself had emerged. The ICFI had held its Third World Congress in April 1966 to consolidate existing support for genuine Trotskyism in its sections throughout the world, and to lay the groundwork for the expansion of this work, in opposition to Pabloite revisionism. The continuity of Trotskyism and the Fourth International was at stake. Based on that Congress, the American Committee for the Fourth International founded the Workers League in November 1966. Wohlforth himself had played an important role in the fight against the SWP in this period and along with eight others had been expelled from the SWP for demanding discussion of the Lanka Sama Samaja Partys (LSSP) betrayal in Ceylon. Working with the IC, Wohlforth co-founded the American Committee for the Fourth International in 1964 and, in 1966, he became the first national secretary of the Workers League. Comrade Fred Mazelis became the assistant national secretary. It is worth noting at this point that many comrades who joined the Workers League in the early 1970s, who remained in the movement and are here at this school today, were won to the program of the party based on the principles that had been defended in this period. They had strong convictions about the program of the ICFI and strong connections to the history of Trotskyism in the US. This was a generation of young people coming into politics in the postwar era. The Second World War and its consequences left a major impression on and shaped the political consciousness of this generation. Wohlforth was one of the main political figures in this struggle. He had taken up the fight in the SWP against revisionism. He was a senior leader in a movement with relatively young and inexperienced cadre operating during times of great economic and political crisis. In a November 1966 letter to the First National Conference of the Workers League, Gerry Healy sent warm international greetings and encouraged the ACFI to continue the fight against the revisionists and to turn to the working class. He wrote: The working class in the United States are the most powerful in the world and it is within this class that you must build your party. This is a basic principle of Marxism and one which applies with particular urgency to the conditions existing inside the United States. It is not Black power or the dozens of peace and civil rights movements which extend throughout the country which will resolve the basic questions of our time but the working class led by a revolutionary party. It is at this point that we separate ourselves completely from the revisionists. We emphatically reject their idea that the negroes by themselves as well as middle class movements can settle accounts with American imperialism. Whatever critical support we are called upon from time to time to extend to such movements the essence of our support must be based upon making clear our criticism of their shortcomings. The growth of the Workers League The Workers League experienced significant growth throughout this period of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Workers like Jim Lawrence, who joined in 1972, were won to the program of Trotskyist internationalism. In May 1970, the National Guard opened fire at a protest against the Vietnam War at Kent State University in Ohio, killing four students and wounding nine others. The main concern of the US government at that point was preventing the kind of situation that had developed in 1968 in France, where workers and students joined forces and paralyzed the country in May-June. The OCI in France, which had supported the position of the Socialist Labor League at the 1966 Congress, was changing its line by 1967, arguing for reconstruction of the Fourth International. By 1968, it played a significant role, along with the Pabloites, in blocking the potentially revolutionary situation that had emerged in France from further development. Wohlforth comes under criticism The Attica Prison riot took place in September 1971. As we recount in The Heritage We Defend: No one in the Workers League would deny the contribution made by Wohlforth in the early years of the organization. However, the breakup of the middle-class anti-war protest movement in the early 1970s, to which much of the practical activity of the Workers League during its early years had been oriented, threw Wohlforth into a deep political crisis. In 1972 Wohlforth came under sharp and correct criticism within the International Committee for weakening the Workers Leagues long-standing programmatic orientation to the working class, through the fight for the formation of a Labor Party based on the trade unions. Looking for something to replace the waning anti-war movement, and reacting impressionistically to the events surrounding the September 1971 uprising at Attica prison, Wohlforth decided to focus the partys work on the political radicalization of prison inmates. For weeks on end, the pages of the partys press were turned over to publishing letters from prisoners, and Wohlforth developed the theory that the penitentiaries were becoming the main centers for the development of Marxism! He came under heavy and correct political criticism from the IC for this at the Fourth Congress held in April 1972. However, the political instability of Wohlforth was made worse by the lack of political clarification of the reasons for the split with the OCI. Wohlforth initially adapted himself to these criticisms but ultimately did not break with an orientation to petty-bourgeois politics. This deepened over the course of the next year. In early 1973, Wohlforth proposed inviting the Spartacist League to an open and public debate on the history of the Fourth International. This was in spite of opposition within the Workers League and without consultation or discussion with the International Committee. To publicly invite this group, seven years later, to engage in debates on the history of the Fourth International, could only mean, as Wohlforths subsequent evolution proved, to call the finality of that break into question, David North wrote in The Heritage We Defend. Wohlforth traveled to England in the summer of 1973 where he faced further criticism for his adaptation to the Spartacists. It was evident to Healy that there were serious political problems arising within the Workers League, and he warned Wohlforth and members of the leadership to avoid factionalism and subjectivism like the plague, in a July 18, 1973 letter. He wrote: Let us start from the present political situation. Watergate represents the high point of the political crisis within the US ruling class. It represents their reactions to the insoluble nature of the economic crisis. In essence it means that the most powerful group believe if anything that Nixon is too weak to deal with the coming working class upsurge in the USA. This situation reflects the great movement that is coming within the working class, and that is the root of the crisis within the Workers League. The theoretical preparations of the International Committee to meet this crisis is contained in the 20-year-old break from Pabloism and our continuous struggle to fight it out against the way in which this brand of revisionism emerges within the working class movement. The wrecking operation of Wohlforth and Fields The radical student movement was winding down drastically in the lead-up to the Paris Peace Accords of January 1973. The military draft ended that June. Responding to pressures in the objective political situation and incapable of dealing with the correct criticisms from Healy on the Spartacist League debate, Wohlforth lost whatever was left of his political equilibrium and initiated a political wrecking operation inside the Workers League, which, within the space of one year, nearly destroyed the entire organization, North wrote in The Heritage We Defend. Wohlforth had just begun his personal relationship with Fields before his trip to England in the summer of 1973. She volunteered to work as a proofreader in the partys central office in New York City, citing experience at Time magazine. Fields presented herself as an organizer of exceptional talent and boasted of her ability to sell subscriptions to the Bulletin. In spite of her lack of knowledge of Marxism and history of the Trotskyist movement, she was elevated into a position of leadership based on her personal relationship with Wohlforth. She became Wohlforths right-hand organizational hatchetman, traveling to branches throughout the country, making impossible demands of members, breaking up branches and treating the cadre of the movement terribly. Fields abusive and erratic behavior was a manifestation of objective problems that existed in the Workers League in this period. She employed subjective administrative methods to deal with these political challenges and issues. To give a taste of the disdain Fields had for the cadre of the party and the history of the movement, and of how she dealt with political pressures, Id like to relay a couple of anecdotes from comrades I spoke with in preparing this lecture. At one point Fields demanded that a party member get an abortion while five months pregnant. Other women in the party who wanted to start families either left or felt the need to lie about their pregnancies in order to stay out of Fields crosshairs. Another example: The Young Socialists held a conference in May of 1974 and Jean Brust was asked to participate. Comrade Jean was a founding member of the Workers League with vast political experience who had joined the Trotskyist-led Young Peoples Socialist League as a teenager in 1937. She planned to travel from Minneapolis to be able to attend the conference. Comrade North asked Fields who would pick up Jean when she arrived and Fields replied: Let the old bag find her way to New York. This is not the attitude or language keeping with tradition in the Trotskyist movement. I cite these examples not to expose salacious details on the personal lives of members, but to paint a portrait of the very toxic atmosphere that was beginning to dominate the Workers League. The impact of the wrecking operation The wrecking operation on the Workers League by Wohlforth and Fields could have destroyed the American section. By the summer of 1974, the Workers League was decimated. They had driven out approximately half of the party membership. In discussions with members of the generation who lived through this, a common sentiment was that members could sense that something was terribly wrong, but it was not totally clear what was happeningand would not become clear until the Summer School of August 1974. Comrades resented the brutal treatment doled out by Wohlforth and Fields, who, as described in The Fourth International and the Renegade Wohlforth, jetted around the country to the tune of thousands of dollars in a wrecking operation the likes of which had never been seen in the Workers League. The so-called national tours of Wohlforth and Fields had more the character of a honeymoon than a political intervention. Comrades must keep in mind that in this period, there was no Signal. There was no social media, no cell phones, no internet, no texting or email. I think it is easy to take for granted the communications available to us today that were not accessible even 20 years ago, let alone in the early 1970s. Today, sections of the IC can correspond with one another instantaneously. Comrades working in various branches can collaborate with one another and be in touch on a regular basis. We hold party aggregates where we take reports from branches and hear from members everywhere. We publish material on the World Socialist Web Site six days a week from our sections throughout the world. This was simply not possible in the 1970s. It took much longer to receive correspondence from international members, and it was costly to make international phone calls. All of this is to raise that it was not easy for the IC, and even for members of different branches in the American section, to have a sense of the scope of destruction that was taking place throughout the party. In the space of one year, between the summers of 1973 and 1974, virtually the entire youth leadership resigned. Most of the intellectuals and academics left the movement. The Central Committee and Political Committee were reduced by half, severely impacting the staff of the Bulletin, as mentioned earlier on Freemans resignation. The work in the trade unions suffered immensely, although the party continued to cover the struggles in the working class, including the Harlan County coal miners strike of 1973-74, in spite of reprimands from Wohlforth who discouraged the trips to Kentucky. In a letter from Wohlforth to Healy in July 1974, he reported: some 100 people have left the League. This figure refers only to people in the party for some time and playing important roles, not those who drift in and out, the usual sorting out of membership We are virtually wiped out as far as intellectuals are concernedone big bastardly desertion. What is done on this front I have to do along with Nancy. We have nothing more in the universitiesand I mean nothing. Wohlforth gives his own account of this episode in his 1994 book, The Prophets Children, an incredibly subjective gossip-filled telling of his travels on the American left. By the time this book was published, nine years after the 1985-86 split with the WRP, Mike Banda and Cliff Slaughter had long abandoned principled revolutionary politics and had been engaged in mud-slinging campaigns against Healy after expelling him from the WRP when Healys abuse of cadre came to light. Wohlforth asks in his book (referring to the British section): How is it possible that intelligent and talented people with personal strength and courage allowed themselves to be verbally and physically abused in this manner? This, of course, did not apply to himself or to his companion Fields, as he categorically rejected any responsibility for the atmosphere he helped to create and allowed to flourish in the Workers League. He writes: The losses in late 1973 and early 1974 came from the central leadership of the Workers League, people who had been with us for years. They included my former wife, Karen, Dennis, Lucy (St. John), Jeff, and Danny (Freeman). No wonder I was sick with worry. I had struggled for years in difficult times alongside these comrades, these friends, and none of them could or would explain why they were dropping out. Perhaps they did not know themselves. Still accepting the perspectives of the Workers League, they may have seen their own resignations as personal failures rather than as the result of too much frenetic activity in the service of a false perspective (emphasis added). In other words, the problem was the false perspective of Permanent Revolution, of Trotskyism, which Wohlforth would soon enough denounce after deserting the movement to which he had dedicated a significant portion14 yearsof his own life. The Fifth World Congress of the ICFI In May 1974, the ICFI held its Fifth World Congress in London. The Congress included international delegates from countries that were conducting their political work and operations under conditions of illegality and military dictatorship, including Peru, Greece and Spain, where Franco was still in power. Wohlforth decided to bring Fields with him to this Congress even though she had zero qualifications for this assignment. This decision was made on the basis of their relationship only. Healy had been aware of the great losses in the Workers League leading up to the Congress, but Wohlforths own account gave personal rather than political reasons for this. Keerthi Balasuriya, the general secretary of the Revolutionary Communist League (RCL) and Sri Lankan delegate to the IC Congress, expressed concern that the Workers Leagues previous co-delegate had apparently resigned, but again, this was brushed aside by Wohforth. Fields was not known to any of the international delegates. Fields exposure and Wohlforths trip to England Healy traveled to Canada in May of 1974 to attend a National Committee meeting and had been made aware in general terms of the organizational crisis in the Workers League, although in mostly apolitical terms. Fields was also in attendance at the NC meeting. A few months later, Healy was contacted by Jacques Vielot, who was on a trip to England on his own after having resigned from the Workers League. Vielot described in great detail the devastating impact of the chaos wreaked on the movement. Vielots account raised serious alarm bells with Healy, who had been concerned about Fields attendance at the IC Congress and quick elevation into the party leadership while being not very well known among the members and completely unknown to the IC. He also noted that her rise into leadership coincided directly with the timing of her personal relationship with Wohlforth the previous year, after leaving her first husband Neil Freudenwho had also resigned from membershipand she herself having joined the Workers League only a couple years prior. It was not outside the realm of possibility to suspect that it was possible, even probable, that the Workers League had been the subject of government infiltration. After all, the 1973 Summer School had been bugged. It was becoming clear that the 1971 COINTELPRO exposure, shocking as it was, was just the tip of the iceberg. Many unanswered questions still surrounded the assassination of Trotsky. There was nothing paranoid or bizarre about Healys concern. Healy immediately contacted Wohlforth and asked him to travel to England to discuss the state of the Workers League. At a meeting of the Political Committee of the WRP on August 18, Healy directly asked whether Wohlforth had any reason at all to believe it was possible that Fields could be connected to police or intelligence agencies. Wohlforth insisted that he did not. Healy moved forward with an inquiry into Fields background regardless and Wohlforth traveled back to the US with less than a week until the Workers League Summer School. In the meantime, Vielot contacted Freuden, Fields first husband, who stated that she had basically been raised by her uncle, Albert Morris, a high-level official in the government who worked for the CIAs IBM computer division. Wohlforth himself knew this and did not disclose it, even when asked directly by Healy. The August 1974 Summer School The leadership of the Workers League, still unaware of the international discussions and Fields family connection to the CIA, had less than a week upon Wohlforths return before the Summer School in Canada, which had essentially been unprepared in terms of its content and lectures. The leadership of the WRP, primarily Healy, Banda and Slaughter, intervened and insisted that everyone who had resigned over the course of the last year be contacted and asked to attend the school. The WRP would assist in preparing and delivering lectures since nothing had been planned. Half of the membership was gone. Members who managed to hang on through the disorientation of the wrecking operation had been instructed to recruit among inner-city youth, mostly to bring attendees to the school, many of whom were not really clear what they had signed up for when they agreed to attend. There was hardly any food at the camp. Fights were breaking out. It became clear very quickly that the situation was going to become unmanageable. Some members had been assigned multiple shifts of 24-hour guard duty just to try to keep things in order. Slaughter arrived first and picked Healy up from the airport to bring him to the camp. Upon his arrival, Healy found Wohlforth and gave him a copy of an initial report produced by Vielot and others which proved Fields background and connections to the CIA. The Central Committee meeting and the establishment of a Commission of Inquiry Healy, just an international guest who ignored proper procedure, according to Wohlforth (again from his 1994 book), called and chaired a meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers League on August 30-31 to discuss the breach of security during the Summer Camp, which had so far shaped up to be a disaster. Healy began the meeting by asking what was going on in the Workers League and one by one, Central Committee members began to report the chaos and mass exodus from the movement over the course of the previous year. To this point, none of the issues had been discussed out in the open. Its Christmas time, comrades, Healy said. Everyone can speak. Notably, in spite of the poor treatment of members, there was no expression of subjectivism toward Wohlforth, who still maintained a certain reputation in the movement because of his role in founding the Workers League and in the fight against Pabloism. On August 31, the second night of the Central Committee meetings, Healy asked whether anyone was aware of Fields connection to the CIA. It is important to note that there was no accusation that Fields herself was an agent. The central issue was whether anyone had been made aware, and why there was no declaration of this connection. We have stated many times in the past that members are not themselves responsible for the lives of their family members. But members are obligated to report such connections upon joining the party. This was a major violation of party security and the Central Committee acted on it accordingly. They voted to temporarily remove Wohlforth from his position as national secretary and to suspend Fields from membership pending a further investigation into her background. Wohlforth and Fields both voted in favor of this resolution. A Commission of Inquiry was set up to conduct the investigation which would proceed as promptly and thoroughly as possible. Comrade Fred Mazelis, working with Banda and Slaughter, began the investigation. The resignation of Wohlforth and Fields The Commission of Inquiry was conducted in accordance with the vote and proceedings of the Central Committee meeting of August 30 and 31. However, before the results of the commission were produced, and before the commission could even formally meet, Fields disappeared and Wohlforth had resigned within a month, in spite of the fact that they themselves had both voted for the resolution. Wohlforth submitted a letter of resignation to the Political Committee of the Workers League on September 29, 1974, citing among other issues his opposition to his removal as national secretary and to the suspension of Fields on the basis of interference by the IC. In his letter he also stated that he would not cooperate with an inquisition, i.e., with the Commission of Inquiry. Upon receiving the letter of resignation, Slaughter wrote to Wohlforth on October 6 urging him to reconsider. In this letter, Slaughter corrects the historical record and the subjective, dishonest mischaracterization of the August 30 and 31 meetings of the Workers League CC. He responded objectively and methodically to the points in Wohlforths cited reasons for resignation, including the accusation that the IC set out to change the leadership of the Workers League and that the Commission of Inquiry was an inquisition, which Wohlforth maintained post-desertion, including in his later books. You choose to ignore the security questions, which can be cleared only by the most detailed and responsible investigation, and condemn the inquiry as an inquisition set up to dig up evidence to justify the August 31 decisions. This you must withdraw. [W]e must finally draw your attention, as a comrade who has been in the forefront of the struggles of the IC, to the political and theoretical implications of your letter. [Y]ou refer to the CCs decision on NF: taken only because of the intervention of the IC. As a comrade who has had to fight against the anti-internationalism of Cannon and Hansen, then Robertson, you must surely pull up sharp when you re-read these words. With this phrase you lower yourself to the level of that narrow national American pragmatism, which sees the International only as an appendage to your own immediate purposes. With such an appeal, you deny your own past struggles and appeal to the worst elements around the movement, and particularly to hostile groups waiting to attack and destroy it. Every rotten petty-bourgeois revisionist concentrates his attack on the alleged authoritarianism of the IC and defends his national independence. Slaughter ended the letter with an appeal to Wohlforth to reconsider and change his position to collaborate in the work of the commission. Findings of the Commission of Inquiry, November 9, 1974 On September 15, 1974, the IC held a meeting to discuss the security breach and to begin the commission investigation, even though Wohlforth and Fields refused to participate. The commission met in New York from October 24 until November 2 and took statements from 22 members and former members. The inquiry concluded and reported its findings on November 9. It stated: The inquiry established that from the age of 12 until the completion of her university education, NF was brought up, educated and financially supported by her aunt and uncle, Albert and Gigs Morris. Albert Morris is the head of the CIAs IBM computer operation in Washington as well as being a large stockholder in IBM. He was a member of the OSS, forerunner of the CIA, and worked in Poland as an agent of imperialism. During the 1960s a frequent house guest at their home in Maine was Richard Helms, ex-director of the CIA and now US Ambassador in Iran. The report states that there was no evidence to suggest that NF or TW is in any way connected with the work of the CIA or any other government agency, while maintaining that the conditions in the Workers League were fundamentally a product of the failure of Wohlforth, as the national secretary, to break from pragmatism: This obstructed and eventually collided with the political foundations of the Workers League, which is its relationship with the IC. The report recommended that Wohlforth withdraw his resignation and maintained that he had the right to run for the position of national secretary at the partys upcoming 1975 conference. It also found that, while Fields herself was a highly unstable person who never broke from the opportunist method of middle-class radicalism, her suspension was lifted with the condition that she not hold any position in the Workers League for two years. It also stated that Wohlforth bore ultimate political responsibility for creating conditions in which Fields could carry on as she did, as he himself had brought her into a position of leadership and turned to this relationship as a solution to the difficulties facing the Workers League at a time of major economic and political crisis. The commission concluded: The inquiry urgently draws the attention of all sections to the necessity of constant vigilance on matters of security. Our movement has great opportunities for growth in every country because of the unprecedented class struggles which must erupt from the world capitalist crisis. This situation also means that the counterrevolutionary activities of the CIA and all imperialist agencies against us will be intensified. It is a basic revolutionary duty to pay constant and detailed attention to these security matters as part of the turn to the masses for the building of revolutionary parties. This emphasis on the importance of security stood in stark contrast to the response of Hansen and the SWP, who dismissed these entirely appropriate points as paranoia. Wohlforths own dismissal of political security and investigation as a form of madness was followed up by Hansens publication in Intercontinental Press of The Secret of Healys Dialectics, which precipitated the events which led to the ICFIs investigation into Security and the Fourth International. This we will review in the next section of this lecture, by comrade David Rye. New York Attorney General Leticia James, back, sits in the courtroom before the start of closing arguments in Donald Trump's civil business fraud trial at New York Supreme Court, Thursday, Jan. 11, 2024, in New York. [AP Photo/Seth Wenig] The indictment of New York Attorney General Letitia James by the US Justice Department represents an escalation of President Donald Trumps ongoing campaign to subvert the rule of law for the purposes of personal and political vendetta against his enemies. Announced with fanfare by Trumps handpicked prosecutor, the charges against James are part of the broader assault on democratic government in the US. A critical component of this assault is the implementation of the Fuhrer principle in the White House, where everything and everyone is subordinated to the personal wishes of Trump. On Thursday, a federal grand jury in Alexandria, Virginia, handed down indictments against James, charging her with one count of bank fraud and one count of making false statements to a financial institution. According to the indictment, James is accused of misrepresenting her second residence on mortgage documents for a property purchased in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2020 and allegedly securing preferential loan terms by stating she would personally use the home, when it was instead rented to another family. The maximum penalties in this case are severe, carrying up to 30 years in prison and $1 million in fines per count. Lindsey Halligan, the acting US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and a personal legal protege of the president, presided over the announcement with a level of hypocrisy that is a hallmark of Trumps rule. No one is above the law. The charges as alleged in this case represent intentional, criminal acts and tremendous breaches of the publics trust, Halligan proclaimed in the Department of Justice press release. The department further asserted: The facts and the law surrounding this matter are evident, and we will persist in adhering to them to guarantee that justice is achieved. James swiftly rejected these claims, calling the charges unfounded, and the presidents own public remarks clearly indicate that his sole intention is political vengeance at any cost. This presidents behavior constitutes a serious breach of our Constitutional framework and has attracted significant criticism from both sides of the aisle. James added in her video statement, This is nothing more than a continuation of the presidents desperate weaponization of our justice system. He is forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General. This indictment cannot be understood apart from the context of Trumps direct and public threat to prosecute James. Trump has repeatedly urged criminal action against her in posts on X (formerly Twitter). His social media messages show that the case against James is the product of Trumps revenge and political retribution rather than a prosecutorial matter. On September 20, 2025, Trump intended to privately message Attorney General Pam Bondi but mistakenly posted it publicly, urging her to take legal action against James and others. The message addressed Bondi by name (Pam) and expressed frustration that nothing is being done to prosecute his opponents, stating: They all guilty hell, nothing is to be done We cant delay any longer, its killing our reputation and credibility JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!! This post is direct evidence of Trumps illegal intervention to pressure the Justice Department to target political adversaries, an unprecedented act by a sitting president. Letitia James has been targeted for her successful summary judgment against Trump and his business associates on charges of large-scale financial fraud in 2024. The original civil fraud case found Trump and his business partners guilty of artificially inflating the value of their holdings to secure loans and evade taxes. Although the penalty for ill-gotten gains was overturned on appeal, the criminal judgment itself stands, and the facts of rampant corruption within the Trump business empire are a matter of court record. Since regaining the presidency, Trump has made no secret of his desire for retribution, openly demanding that the Justice Department be used to his to pursue criminal cases against his enemies with the full might of federal power. The campaign included public calls for prosecution and back-channel threats to prosecutors who failed to comply, leading to resignations and a drastic reshuffling of DOJ staff. The appointment of Halligan as the US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia is a case in point. Trump appointed her in September after she previously served as his personal attorney and as a White House legal aide. Halligan had not worked as a prosecutor before this role and was handpicked by Trump, who praised her as a tough, smart, and loyal attorney. That is, she is personally loyal to Trump and is willing to do whatever he tells her to do, including violating the longstanding practice of the separation of the White House from the actions of the DOJ that goes back to the Watergate crisis of the Nixon administration. Richard Nixons use of the Justice Department as a political weapon was exposed in the so-called Saturday Night Massacre of October 1973, when he attempted to force the firing of the special prosecutor investigating Watergate and then replaced top DOJ officials who resisted with assistants who were nothing more than toadies. This sequence culminated in the firing of Archibald Cox, the resignation of Attorney General Elliott Richardson, and the firing of Deputy Attorney General William Ruckelshaus. Legal experts have denounced the merits of Halligans charges against James. Former US Attorney Erik Siebert, who previously refused to bring charges against James, has said repeatedly that the evidence was pathetically weak, a sentiment shared by career prosecutors who found no basis for federal fraud. The response of the Democratic Party to Trumps dictatorial intervention in the operations of the DOJ has been entirely predictable. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, who was appointed in 2021 by Democratic Party Governor Gavin Newsom, called on the DOJ leadership to reassert the long-standing independence of the US Department of Justice and immediately end all politically-motivated criminal prosecutions, and demanding impartiality and adherence to constitutional norms. This plea to the fascists now in charge of the DOJ received the following response from spokesperson Chad Gilmartin, As a matter of law, we will not comment on any grand jury proceedings but this Justice Department stands united as one team in our mission to enhance safety in America. The attorney general, deputy attorney general, and the entire team at Main Justice remain committed to empowering our US attorneys to pursue justice in every case. Exposing the atmosphere of panic operating within the Trump administration, however, were the reports that Justice Department officials, including AG Bondi and Deputy AG Todd Blanche, were blindsided by Halligans presentation to the grand jury. This lack of coordination, which is also historically unprecedented, exposes both the lawlessness of Donald Trump and the chaos that prevails within the administration. Jamess indictment is the latest in a series of legal charges brought against Trumps political opponents. Last month, former FBI Director James Comey was indicted by Halligan for making a false statement and obstruction in connection with his congressional testimony about the Russia investigation. Comey pleaded not guilty and demanded a speedy trial during his arraignment on Wednesday in the same court. The Trump administration is expected to pursue criminal cases against his own former National Security Advisor John Bolton and Democratic Senator Adam Schiff of California, who have both been targeted by Trump for their criticism of the president. Trump has also publicly threatened the arrest and prosecution of Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson, who have opposed the deployment of federal troops in that city. Trump has centralized executive power in ways that mirror the authoritarian leadership principlethe Fuhrerprinzipwhere the will of the leader overrides law, precedent and constitutional checks. The plan by the White House for a unitary executiveunchecked presidential poweris well documented. In an interview with CNN on Monday, White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller claimed that Trump has plenary authoritya term meaning complete or absolute powerover decisions to deploy the National Guard in US cities. Miller paused abruptly after making this statement, which raised speculation about the implications of his blatantly stating the scope of presidential power that contradicts the US separation of powers principle. The indictment of the New York attorney general is part of the larger, systematic attack on both political opponents and constitutional government. The transparently political charges against James are being used as an instrument of Trumps personal revenge and a further escalation of dictatorial rule in the US. Russell Vought, Office of Management and Budget director, speaks alongside House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana., from left, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-South Dakota, and Vice President JD Vance as they address members of the media outside the West Wing at the White House in Washington, Monday, Sept. 29, 2025, in Washington. [AP Photo/Evan Vucci] The Trump administration has begun issuing reductions-in-force (RIF) notices to federal employees, marking a decisive escalation in its use of the shutdown to impose structural cuts on government services and seize personal control over the government. Office of Management and Budget Director Russell Vought declared on X, The RIFs have begun, and an OMB spokesperson confirmed that the layoffs would be substantial. Over 4,000 workers are impacted by the initial firings. According to a court filing Friday in response to a lawsuit by federal unions, these include: Department of Commerce: 315 workers Department of Education: 466 workers Department of Energy: 187 workers Department of Health and Human Services: between 1,100 and 1,200 workers Department of Housing and Urban Development: 442 workers Department of Homeland Security: 176 workers Department of the Treasury: 1,446 workers In addition, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced Thursday that civilian, non-law enforcement employees would see the second straight year of double-digit healthcare premium rate hikes in 2026. The government is also proposing a 1 percent pay increase next year for the same employee category. The mass firings demonstrate that the target of Trumps bid for dictatorship is the working class. As this is occurring, he has sent National Guard troops to occupy Chicago and Portland and support ICE operations. The White House is reportedly in very advanced talks to invoke the Insurrection Act, a move which would abolish civilian rule in the parts of the country to which the Act is applied. Federal judges have temporarily blocked his deployments. The White House has responded by threatening to ignore the rulings and threatening the arrest of mayors in cities targeted with occupation. Stephen Miller, the fascist architect of Trumps pseudo-legal attacks on the Constitution, said during an interview with CNN that the president had plenary authority to militarily occupy US cities. Millers invocation of the Fuhrer principle seeks to place Trump above constitutional constraints. Under these conditions, federal workers and the entire working class are facing an unprecedented assault on jobs, working conditions, and democratic rightsone that can only be met by mass mobilization of the working class to halt the destruction of social services and block the moves to dictatorship. These firings go beyond typical shutdown protocol, in which federal employees are furloughed with an expectation of being recalled once funding returns. At the start of the shutdown, Trump posted on social media that he would cut Democrat Agenciesi.e., Medicaid, Social Security and other entitlement and welfare programs on which tens of millions of working class Americans rely. At the same time, threats are being made against federal workers who protest or withhold labor. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy warned that air traffic controllers who repeatedly call in sick could be fired. Flight delays have already surged. Some airports report staffing shortages amounting to 50 percent in certain facilities during the shutdown. President Trump has even floated denying back pay to some federal workers that have been forced to work without pay during the shutdown, stating that there are some people that really dont deserve to be taken care of, and that they would take care of them in a different way. These are ominous turns of phrase that suggest not only firings but even worse. Under the extralegal Department of Government Efficiency under neo-Nazi billionaire Elon Musk, Trump has already cut 300,000 jobs from the federal workforce this year, or around 13 percent of the federal workforce. The firings during the shutdown are expected to be smaller, at no more than 16,000 according to the Washington Post. But even if this figure proves to be accurate (and there is no reason to assume it will be), the implications go far beyond numbers, because the Trump administration is using the shutdown as a cover to usurp control over the budget from Congress. Moreover, it will be used to cut or render non-functional key social programs. The role of Vought, one of the co-authors of The Heritage Foundations Project 2025 platform, makes this clear. This ultra-right document declares as its aim the destruction of what it calls The Administrative State and is based in the unitary executive theory of unlimited presidential authority over the executive branch. Such authoritarian pseudo-legal theories are behind Trumps deployment of the military to US cities. Faced with this crisis, the union apparatus has done virtually nothing to oppose the administrations illegal actions and is instead attempting to chloroform workers to the danger. The AFL-CIO union federation responded to the announcement by tweeting: Americas unions will see you in court. This is absurd given that Trump, who is deliberately seeking to overthrow the Constitution, is not playing within any legal framework. Indeed, the reductions-in-force began Friday even though a federal judge is currently considering the unions filing for a temporary restraining order against them. The American Federation of Government Employees has encouraged members to stage isolated rallies calling on Congress to do their job and fund the government. This not only diverts from the more fundamental issue of fascism but essentially amounts to demanding the Democrats reach a deal giving Trump virtually everything he wants under the guise of bipartisanship, something they are already eager to do. AFGE issued a statement that it was time for Congress to stop the political theater and end this shutdown, quoting Local 1237 President Aaron McGlothin as saying, Its on both sides of the aisle. They need to come together and find common ground. National Federation of Federal Employees President Randy Erwin went further, calling on Congress to Do your damn job, and pass a budget thats going to require a little compromise. During a webinar for NFFE members on Friday, the union leadership repeated the same tired phrases. The Democrats demands for the partial restoration of Medicaid cuts is entirely performative, aimed at corralling a developing movement against Trump that might grow out of their control. At the end of the day, the Democrats are content with Trumps cuts so long as he continues to wage war in Ukraine. Meanwhile, the unions counsel workers to do nothing. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association issued a statement disclaiming any support for sick-out campaigns as airports closed temporarily due to staffing shortages, encouraging members to avoid any actions that could reflect poorly on you, our union or our professions. NATCA President Nick Daniels described the shutdown as a distraction that must be resolved so that controllers can focus completely on their vital work. NATCA has origins as the scab union created after the Reagan administration destroyed the earlier PATCO union by firing 11,000 striking air traffic controllers in 1981. The refusal of the AFL-CIO to launch a general strike to defend PATCO was a major episode in the transformation of the union apparatus from conservative, pro-capitalist bureaucrats into open agents of management and the government. The bureaucrats cannot be permitted to immobilize the working class. Trumps coup cannot be blocked by lawsuits and phone calls. It can only be stopped through the independent action of the working class. Such a mobilization must be built independently of the Democrats and the trade union bureaucracy, which either refuse to act or increasingly defend elements of Trumps agenda. Rank-and-file committees, controlled by workers themselves, must be formed in every workplace. Federally employed and contracted workers must unite in a common struggle to demand: halt all firings, suspend and reverse all cuts to social services, preserve democratic rights, and stop Trumps coup in its tracks. Only with this program can federal workers and the entire working class fight to defend social services and block the drive toward fascism. Italian actress Claudia Cardinale died September 23 at her home in France. Cardinale was one of the most prominent performers of the 1960s and 1970s, in Italian and European cinema above all. For her beauty, intelligence and personal strength, she was sought out by many directors. Claudia Cardinale A varied bunch, the latter include Mario Monicelli, Pietro Germi, Mauro Bolognini, Abel Gance, Luchino Visconti, Valerio Zurlini, Philippe de Broca, Federico Fellini, Blake Edwards, Henry Hathaway, Philip Dunne, Richard Brooks, Franco Rossi, Alexander Mackendrick, Sergio Leone, Jerzy Skolimowski, Werner Herzog and Marco Bellocchio. Born in Tunisia in 1938, the daughter of a Sicilian-born railway worker and his wife, Cardinale spoke French and the Sicilian dialect at home. She was not fluent in Italian until she began making films in the late 1950s. Famously, she got her start in cinema accidentally, winning a beauty pageant in 1957 (as the most beautiful Italian girl in Tunisia) whose first prize was a trip to the Venice film festival. Producers saw her there and she was invited to attend a film school in Rome, where she didnt stay long. Her own plan at the time was to become a school teacher. Cardinale writes in her autobiography Mes etoiles [My Stars], that the chance to meet extraordinary people, who leave such an impression on you that they change your life, your ambitions, your dreams, people you admirethats something. I dont deserve any credit. Fate has often decided for me. It wasnt fate, in any mystical sense. And, of course, shes being too modest, she does deserve some credit. But it is true that it was not merely Cardinales undeniable personal appeal that helped her to become a central figure in a number of important, insightful films. The point is, first of all, that there were important, insightful films in which to act. Cardinale joined the Italian and European film industry in the late 1950s, less than 15 years after the end of World War II and the defeat of Italian and German fascism. A general hostility to the ruling classes prevailed, ruling classes that had either openly or tacitly embraced brutal dictatorship and war. Socialism, humanism, anti-authoritarianism and various forms of critique of the existing society permeated the cinema world. Along with that, inevitably, the presence of the working class or the lower orders in general in films was far more pronounced than it is today. Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958) In Italy in particular. In her memoir, the actress herself notes that in that epoch when Christian Democracy reigned over Italythe entire intelligentsia was left-wing or far-left. She comments on her participation in the Italian film industry at the time: Between 1958 and 1973, I made some fifty films, on average three per year, more than half of which were with the greatest Italian directors. Italian cinema was then at the height of its power. It was the second largest in the world after Hollywood, producing between 250 and 300 films per year. Each year, some 800 million tickets were sold: a record for a population of some 50 million. If we subtracted babies, children, and the elderly, this meant that every adult Italian, in the city and the countryside, went to the cinema at least once a week. A small role in Monicellis classic comedy, Big Deal on Madonna Street (1958), as the sister of one of the hopelessly unsuccessful small-time criminals, made an impression, as did a part in Bologninis BellAntonio (1960), with Marcello Mastroianni. She also appeared briefly in Viscontis Rocco and His Brothers (1960) about a family from southern Italy living and coming apart in the industrial north. Interestingly, at the time of her appearance in Pietro Germis The Facts of Murder (1959), one observant commentator noted her abilities. Out of all the reviews, she writes, that ignored who I was, that despised my work as an apprentice actress, growing up, maturing in front of the cameras, there was a flash, a miracle: my first gift in this profession. A real review by Pier Paolo Pasolini, a young avant-garde writer and director of thirty-six. His entire review of Germis film was based on an analysis of my gaze. I had a way of observing, he said, that belonged only to me, three-quarters turned, from the corner of her eye. The Facts of Murder (1959) Cardinales first major role, which had a deep, endearing effect on audiences, came in Girl With a Suitcase (1961), about a young woman, Aida, pursuing a wealthy man who seduced and abandoned her. She intrigues his younger brother instead, with ultimately unhappy and degrading results. In her autobiography, the actress explains that left-wing director Valerio Zurlini had to fight to get me on board. Aida was a very complex character, and people in the industry still didnt consider me a real actress. Why did he insist so much? Because, he replied, I didnt need to play Aida. I was Aida. What could have made him think that? Aida is a little prostitute from Parma, a working class girl who suffers, lost, tormented, with a tragic destiny, and who talks, who talks incessantly. Cardinale further explains: Aida is in love with a boy from a good family. Between them, the meeting of two worlds plays out: the rich and the poor. Aida believes she will be saved by the love of this pure young man, but she is persuaded to leave, so as not to jeopardize the boys future. She finally opens the envelope he gave her before she left him. With the excitement of a young girl, she rushes to grab a love letter. Inside, there is only money. She has lost everything. Cardinale remained friends with Zurlini until his untimely death at 56 in 1982. Girl With a Suitcase (1961) Visconti, the scion of an aristocratic Italian family who joined the Communist Party, had an immense impact on Cardinales life and career. She said of him, He was mad about history, literature, and music. She describes the famed director as an absolute master, tyrannical, cruel, but also generous, passionate, tender, and astonishingly intelligent. Visconti, the greatest director of actors of the twentieth century. She may well be right. The most important role she played for Visconti was Angelica, the daughter of the nouveau riche Don Calogero Sedara (Paolo Stoppa), a wealthy businessman and landowner, in The Leopard. The film traces the process by which the old Italian aristocracy allies itself with the bourgeoisie during the period of Italian unification in the 1860s, strangling the movement of the oppressed in the process. As we wrote in the WSWS: The Leopard is the tale of Don Fabrizio Corbera, the charismatic Prince of Salina (Burt Lancaster), who witnesses with philosophical resignation the passing of the feudal era as the Italian peninsula is united for the first time since the fall of the Roman Empire. The prince soon learns that his beloved nephew Tancredi (Alain Delon) [whom Cardinales character marries] is fighting with Garibaldis forces. If the nobility refuses to accept the Kingdom of Italy, insists the young man, They will foist a republic on us. He goes on, If we want things to stay as they are, things will have to change. This is a central concern of the film, highlighting the aborted, ultimately anti-popular nature of Italian unification, with all sorts of implications for subsequent Italian history. Luchino Visconti Cardinale, Lancaster and Delon were brilliant in the film. In her memoir, she explains that the intense, historically insightful work had a powerful personal impact. Delon, Lancaster, and I were so influenced by The Leopard that a bond was formed between us, only interrupted by Burts death in 1994, and which continues to this day between Alain and me. No one can guess why we only need to look at each other to understand each other, why we are of the same mind, why we cry sometimes too. Visconti said this about Cardinale: Claudia looks like a feline letting itself be petted on the living room sofa. But be careful, the cat can turn into a tigress. Shell tear the tamers hand to shreds. The same year that Cardinale appeared in The Leopard, remarkable year!, she also featured in Fellinis 8 , about a renowned film director (Mastroianni, standing in for Fellini) in crisis. Guido Anselmi suffers from writers block, his involvements with various women, including fantasy ones, are complex and generally painful, and no one seems able to help. How does he go on? At one point, he considers suicide, before he becomes more accepting of his life and its contradictions. Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale in The Leopard (1963) Cardinale explains that Fellinis methods were the opposite of Viscontis: Visconti filmed according to a script in which every detail was mastered, Fellini filmed without a script. He took little scraps of paper out of his pockets and gave them to us at the last second. The actors who, to calm their anxiety, had worked on a text obtained with great difficulty the day before, were the most unhappy. In the morning, everything had to be redone. So, Fellini began by improvising. To show me how to play a scene, he would sit opposite me, in Mastroiannis place, who at the time of filming would in turn be Fellini. 8 1/2 (1963) She recalls further: Fellini randomly proposed associations and slips of the tongue. Like the surrealists, he enjoyed working with the most bizarre, the most inappropriate images, the raw material of the unconscious. Events followed one another according to a logic that escaped us. He filmed, threw it away, and started again. What was he looking for? No one could say. Its a work that oscillates between a psychoanalysis session and an examination of conscience, he said one day. In his pocket, however, he kept a small piece of paper: Remember that youre making a comedy film. Summarizing, she writes about the directors and others she met as a developing actress: I was lucky enough to meet brilliant men, but also attentive, full of intuition, and who knew how to find the right words to help me understand roles too subtle for my age. A director cannot be reduced to a mere technician; he must demonstrate great human depth. We actors use our emotions like a muscle, and just as an overused muscle weakens, this emotionality weakens us. The director is the only one who can give us strength, help us take risks. The telling and semi-tragic feature of Cardinales career is that after the 1960s and early 1970s, which also included her performances in Edwards The Pink Panther (1963), a fascinating pairing with Rita Hayworth (and John Wayne) in Hathaways Circus World, two more Visconti filmsSandra (1965) and Conversation Piece (1974), Brooks The Professionals (1966), Mackendricks Dont Make Waves (1967) and, of course, Leones memorable Once Upon a Time in the West (1968), alongside Henry Fonda, Jason Robards and Charles Bronsonthere is almost nothing, unless one wants to make something perhaps out of Werner Herzogs Fitzcarraldo (1982) or Marco Bellocchios Henry IV (1984). Once Upon a Time in the West (1968) The falling off in the European cinema generally and in Italy in particular has been seismic. The historic betrayals of the Italian Communist Party and its broken-off fragments are primarily responsible. The discouragement and disorientation of the artists and intelligentsia, the turn away from social problems and the conditions of the working class, has been intense. Cardinale was not especially left-wing, but she was the beneficiary of a tide of anti-establishment sentiment and artistic expression. The current mass movements in Italy against the Gaza genocide and the fascists in power must produce a cultural renewal, along with everything else. In any event, Claudia Cardinale remains a great presence in world cinema. She rejected the slightest nostalgia in her memoir and claimed to love, as she should have, the present more than any other time, but she could not help remarking that I would have many reasons to look back; the past has been glorious. I still receive letters from young people, dazzled by a role, a character, and who ask for my address, as if I were the young actress who moved them. I take their tribute for what it is, an expression of their admiration for a cinema that is no more and that they miss. German General Major Christian Freuding, left, who is in charge of the German Bundeswehrs (army) Situation Command Ukraine photographed on May 9 shaking hands with the Ukrainian Neo-Nazi commander Oleg Romanov With the appointment of Lieutenant General Christian Freuding as the new Inspector of the Army, the highest-ranking officer of the military brass, the German government has taken another step in its aggressive rearmament and war preparations. Defence Minister Boris Pistorius (Social Democratic Party, SPD) praised Freuding as the general of the new era and the head of German Ukraine policy. Freuding represents a new generation of officers who are not merely ready but eager to wage war. His appointment comes at a time when the German and European bourgeoisie are rapidly preparing for a major conflictagainst Russia abroad and against their own population at home. This development parallels that in the United States. At the end of September, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth assembled hundreds of generals at a military base near Washington D.C. to invoke the so-called warrior ethosan open call to arms against Russia, China and ultimately any domestic opposition. Germanys ruling class is moving along the same lines. The German cabinet recently adopted the Military Security Act, granting the army sweeping powers for deployment at home. It authorises not only the use of armed drones but also expands soldiers authority to carry out searches, arrests and other measures against civilians. Recent exercises, such as those held in Hamburg, show that the Bundeswehr (Armed Forces) are already training for operations inside the countrya development that like the preparations for war against Russia recalls the darkest chapters of German history. Freuding himself personifies this new, aggressive course. His first order of the day reads like a document from Hitlers Wehrmacht command before 1939: Demanding tasks lie ahead of us. We must further improve our operational readiness. We want to finally achieve full materiel equipment. We must also grow in personnel. We will establish new units and major formationsfirst and foremost our 45th Armoured Brigade in Lithuania. We will immediately develop and expand urgently needed capabilities, such as combat with and against drones. The enemy will not wait for our ready report. He continues, I want to work for an army that is ready to fight, that prevails, that wins. This militaristic language is no accident. It reflects the mentality of an officer corps that openly speaks of an enemy and aims to transform the Bundeswehr into a combat-ready army. Freudings task is the practical implementation of Germanys war strategy against Russiaincluding the deployment of an armoured brigade in Lithuania, directly on Russias border. Previously, Freuding headed the Ukraine Situation Centre in the Defence Ministry and is regarded as an architect of Germanys military support for Kiev. On May 9Victory Day marking the Red Armys defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945he was photographed shaking hands with Ukrainian neo-Nazi commander Oleg Romanov, who leads the fascist Paskuda unit within the Ukrainian armed forces. That Freuding chose this day to associate himself with such forces was a deliberate provocation, symbolising the continuity of German militarismthe ideological and political link to those who fought alongside Hitlers Wehrmacht against the Soviet Union. Freudings talk of combat and victory ties directly to the worst traditions of German imperialism. In both world wars, Berlins central aims were the domination of Eastern Europe, control over resource-rich Ukraine, and the subjugation of Russia. Today, this same geopolitical madness is being pursued under the slogans of freedom and deterrence. The resurgence of German militarism is not accidental but the product of capitalisms deep crisis. The ruling class is responding to growing great-power conflicts, extreme social inequality and working class resistance by turning to war abroad and repression at home. Driven by these objective forces, it can only move faster down this path. A commentary published October 7 on the Bundeswehr Associations website by former Bundestag Armed Forces Commissioner Hans-Peter Bartels (SPD) titled Operation Eastern Flank 2029or sooner? speculates whether Germany might be seriously challenged by Russia before 2029. The time factor, he argues, was therefore crucial. Bartels bases his confidence on the reality of the governments official financial planthat is, the 1 trillion in war credits backed by all parties in the Bundestag (parliament). These will raise the regular defence budget to 3.5 percent of GDP (153 billion) by 2029 and later to 5 percent (over 220 billion). This constitutes the largest rearmament and war offensive since Hitler. Even the mere announcements of orders send a signal to Moscow, Bartels enthuses, before listing: 1,000 Leopard tanks, 5,000 Boxers, 600 Skyrangers, additional Pumas, wheeled howitzers, loitering munitions, drones, satellites, digital radios and combat-cloud systems, stealth bombers and Eurofighters, 14 new frigates, a doubling of the submarine fleet, a tripling of ground-based air defence, land-and sea-based missile defence, and deep-precision-strike weapons. It almost looks, Bartels concludes, as if the Bundeswehr is being re-founded these daysstronger, more modernand it must happen quickly! At a Defence Ministry conference on Tuesday, Pistorius announced plans to build new barracks like on a production line to accommodate the planned expansion of the army. For the new military service alone, we will need around 40,000 additional beds for recruits and for soldiers in active units in the coming years, he declared. According to current plans, that initially means around 270 new buildingsand not at some point, but by 2031, within the next five and a half years. The militarisation extends beyond Earth into outer space. By 2030, the Defence Ministry intends to establish a 35 billion military space architectureincluding satellites, radar systems, ground stations and even a spaceplane. Such a craft, designed to take off and land from conventional runways, is no longer science fiction, Pistorius recently proclaimed. It is to be built not by European partners or US firms but by the German start-up Polaris, which is developing a new propulsion system that could revolutionise space travel. If successful, Germany would join the United States and China as the only nations capable of high-altitude operationsflights at between 20 and 180 kilometres. Major General Michael Traut, head of the Bundeswehrs Space Command, already sees Germany at the forefront: Technologically, we dont have to trail the Americans by 10 yearswere back on equal footing, he boasted to finance daily Handelsblatt. With these new space capabilities, the Bundeswehr could conduct reconnaissance flights at great altitudes unhindered since space officially begins at 101 kilometres. That means you could fly over Russia at that altitude, and no one would actually be allowed to shoot you down, Traut said. Such statements expose all the propaganda about Russian drones and alleged spy flights as pure war hysteriacreated to prepare public opinion for conflict. Pistoriuss praise that the next chapters of the Army will bear Freudings signature amounts to an open declaration of warnot only on Russia but also on working people. The massive rearmament, the militarisation of public life, the curtailment of democratic rights, and the preparation for domestic deployment of the Bundeswehr are inseparably linked. The ruling classs war offensive is already being met with growing resistancestrikes and mass protests against the genocide in Gaza, against militarisation and war, and against the resulting assault on social and democratic rights spreading throughout Europe. What is required is an independent political orientation and perspective. The struggle against war demands the conscious political mobilisation of the international working class. It is inseparable from the fight against the capitalist system, which in its crisis is once again resorting to barbaric methods. Only by building a socialist mass movement directed against war and capitalism can a new catastrophe be prevented. Members of the National Guard patrol along a street in Memphis, Tenn. Friday, Oct. 10, 2025. [AP Photo/George Walker IV] Encouraged by the silence of the Democratic Party, aspiring dictator Donald Trump escalated his war on the American people on Friday. In Memphis, Tennessee, armed National Guard soldiers began deploying on the streets with police. In Chicago, federal immigration Gestapo were filmed assaulting and kidnapping residents and journalists. In Memphis, at least nine armed National Guard members, wearing body armor with the label military police, were recorded visibly patrolling near a tourist center near the Mississippi River, which flows alongside the second largest city in Tennessee. Republican Governor Bill Lee is cooperating with the Trump administration in deploying 150 members of the Tennessee National Guard alongside local and federal police agencies under the Memphis Safe Task Force. In Chicago, Illinois, federal immigration agents with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) were recorded violently assaulting residents, including a worker from news outlet WGN. In a video taken by a bystander, Debbie Brockman is shown being handcuffed on the ground by masked CBP thugs. Near the end of the video, Brockman yells out in pain as the agents cuff her. Not only is Brockman a WGN employee, she is also a US citizen. After Brockman was detained, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) propagandist Tricia McLaughlin claimed Brockman was arrested for throwing objects at law enforcement. McLaughlin refused to elaborate on what objects were allegedly thrown. Nothing uttered by the immigration Gestapo or the Trump administration as a whole should ever be taken at face value. Shortly after McLaughlin posted her statement, WGN and other outlets reported that Brockman was released and had not been charged with a crime. If there was any evidence that Brockman actually assaulted police thugs in some way, she would have been charged with a crime. In addition to Brockman, at least six other people have been seized by immigration police in the last 48 hours. One person was taken while at a Home Depot. A custodian for an apartment complex was also kidnapped. In another video recorded on Friday, a vehicle driven by masked CBP agents is shown ramming an SUV driven by a woman. After CBP agents rammed the SUV, they got out with their guns drawn and pulled the screaming woman from her car as angry residents yelled at the masked thugs, Shes trying to go to work! You guys hit her, now you are trying to arrest her?! Mass anger is bubbling up throughout the city. To counter ICE kidnapping operations outside schools, community members have started forming rings around entrances to protect children and parents. Roving anti-ICE patrols that beep and video ICE thugs have sprung up in North Side neighborhoods. In response to ICE activity near schools, several were forced into lockdowns for hours. A Chicago Uber driver reported to the WSWS that ICE hit the rideshare staging lot today. Thank God I missed it. This is the ugliest fucking thing. In my worst nightmare I would never come up with this. A Chicago resident posted on X, I live a block from Cicero. ICE visited my home yesterday. ICE didnt knock. ICE tried to forcefully open my window. ICE opened my screen and asked me to sign papers. I AM an American Citizen. Born on US soil. ICE forcefully tried to enter my home! WAKE UP AMERICA! The Democrats, while posturing as opponents of Trumps coming dictatorship, are doing everything in their power to assist Trump and tamp down popular anger. Illinois Governor JB Pritzker, after filming a bit with Jimmy Kimmel on Thursday in which he downplayed the federal occupation of the city, ordered Illinois State Police under his command to again attack anti-ICE protesters outside the Broadview ICE facility on Friday. Speaking outside the same facility later in the day, Democratic Illinois Senator Dick Durbin revealed that ICE has refused him entry into the facility on four separate occasions. Yet Durbin made clear that the Democrats were not actually trying to stop wanton ICE and CBP violence. We just want to be briefed on what they are doing. Whats happening on the streets. They have refused to tell us this information. Something is going on in there that they dont want us to see. While Democrats do nothing to actually stop Trumps attacks on the democratic rights of the entire working class, Trump again threatened on Friday to invoke martial law. The oldest person ever sworn in as president claimed that every time he looks at Portland, its burning down, there are fires all over the place. Trump added, Thats almost an insurrection, that place. Trumps drive towards dictatorship and attempts to brand all opposition to his Nazi-inspired policies as antifascist terrorism are being taken up by the Republican Party leadership. Majority Whip Tom Emmer (Republican-Minnesota) said on Friday that Democrats refusal to provide votes to end the government shutdown was aimed at scoring political points with the terrorist wing of their party, which is set to hold a hate America rally in DC next week. Speaker Mike Johnson (Republican-Louisiana) echoed Emmer in an interview on Fox News. Ive had it with these people, he said. They have a hate America rally thats scheduled for October 18 on the National Mall. Its all the pro-Hamas wing and the antifa people this is serious business hurting real people. October 18 is the next iteration of the No Kings rallies, which have been organized by Democratic Party groups as well as individuals opposed to Trumps attacks on the Constitution and democratic rights. Like the June 14 protest, which drew millions of people in over 2,000 cities, the October 18 demonstration is shaping up to be a massive outpouring of anger against the Trump regime. The October 18 demonstrations, as the World Socialist Web Site analyzed in a recent perspective, should mark the beginning of a counteroffensive against Trumps dictatorial and fascistic rampage. The same government that is sending troops into cities, kidnapping workers and family members and eviscerating what remains of the social safety net cannot be reasoned or bargained with. The only social force that can stop the social counterrevolution and defend democratic rights is the working class, united on a socialist program independently of the Democratic Party, which is a party of capital and the police no less than the Republicans. The strike by over 700 nurses at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc Township near Flint, Michigan, is entering its sixth week. Talks this week between the company and the Teamsters union reportedly produced no settlement on the key issue of safe nurse-to-patient staffing ratios. Henry Ford Health acquired the operations of what was Grand Blanc Genesys Hospital through a joint venture with Ascension Michigan in 2024. Henry Ford Health is seeking to implement a single policy across all of its facilities, including drastically increasing existing staffing ratios at Genesys. Management has stepped up its strikebreaking efforts in recent days, filing a court injunction to remove strikers tents, chairs, burn barrels and other gear from what it claims is company property along Holly and Baldwin roads. The Teamsters union bureaucracy readily agreed to these demands. Nurses also report receiving notices from Henry Ford management offering them 5 percent raises if they cross picket lines and return to work on an individual basis. Meanwhile, strikebreakers are being paid $8,500 weekly plus stipends. These provocative actions by management take place as 46,000 Kaiser Permanente nurses and other healthcare professionals across California, Oregon and Hawaii are set to strike October 14. Among their key issues are unsafe staffing levels and substandard pay. The coming together of the two strikes underscores the need for Genesys nurses to break the isolation of their strike and mobilize the broadest support from healthcare workers, autoworkers and other sections of the working class in the area and across the country. The fight by Genesys nurses is taking place as nearly 10,000 nurses at nine Corewell Health facilities in southeast Michigan continue negotiations for a first contract. The nurses voted last year to join the Teamsters. Colleen, a striking Genesys Health nurse, told reporters for the World Socialist Web Site, I dont think people realize how really bad healthcare is right now. It is not going to change until people stand up and say, We pay a lot of money for our healthcare, we deserve the best care as a patient. We did not become nurses to give substandard care. Thats not why we are out here. It is heartbreaking. Nurses on the picket line at Henry Ford Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc (Colleen on left) Nurses said that while the union had agreed to take down strikers tents on what Henry Ford claimed was its property, a homeowner along Holly Road near the hospital had agreed to let the strikers keep their tents. A family member was a coal miner, Colleen explained. So they knew all about the strikes. Angela, another nurse, said, The community has been very supportive, but there is a lack of knowledge. They know we are here, but they dont really know the reasons why we are striking. The news has been out here, but Henry Ford has been putting out a lot of lies. Talking about our excess call-ins, which wasnt accurate. They included FMLA [Family Medical Leave Act] in the call-ins. That is always going to be an issue no matter what hospital you are at. Facing a news blackout and misrepresentation of their cause in the corporate media, striking nurses have sought to leaflet other, nonunion Henry Ford hospitals in the area to raise awareness of their struggle. It was reported that management in at least one case responded by summoning police to remove strikers attempting to leaflet Henry Ford Providence Novi Hospital. The WSWS explained the need for rank-and-file committees and for the strike to be expanded across the Henry Ford Health System, a multibillion-dollar healthcare nonprofit with assets of around $1.5 billion. It also owns Health Alliance Plan (HAP), which strikers point out is another massive source of revenue. Henry Ford Health CEO Bob Riney received some $4.5 million in total compensation in 2023, according to public filings. Angela said she was glad to see the Kaiser Permanente nurses taking a stand. She said that this could strengthen the fight at Genesys and that management understood this. They see Kaiser is going out. They are going to have a harder time getting scabs in there. So they are taking desperate measures against us now. This community needs all three hospitals, Hurley, McLaren and us. When flu season hits, every hospital bed is full. Everyones ER wait is six to eight to 15 hours. Angela pointed out that Henry Ford Genesys paid starting nurses less than at other area hospitals, making it difficult to hire and retain sufficient staff. There are two other hospitals in the surrounding area. Why would you come here when you can make $3 to $5 more an hour down the road? You are not going to get a new nurse to come here when they can go elsewhere. We have to at least be competitive to retain staff. Another nurse added, You get one critical patient, with all other patients you have, it is going to eat up your time. The other patients are not going to get the care they need. Angela said, You cant really critically think. You are just tasking. You are not able plan ahead, call a doctor. Some of us dont work just one 12-hour shift. We work two or three in a row. Several nurses said they were familiar with the prosecution of Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) nurse RaDonda Vaught for criminally negligent homicide and abuse in the death of an elderly patient accidentally given the wrong medication. Vaught had been scapegoated for the chronic understaffing of the health system. Angela said, We are tired of being put in those bad situations. We want to take care of people, but we need to be able to take care of them safely and effectively. At the end of the day, that is not happening. These are peoples lives. They are human beings. And they need to be treated like that. Corporate greed needs to stop. Big pharma needs to be stopped. The culture needs to change. Its all about the money, which is heartbreaking when it comes to healthcare because that should not be the case. Asked what she thought about the sending of National Guard to cities like Portland and Chicago by President Trump, one veteran nurse said she supported it, citing the need to fight crime. WSWS reporters explained that troops would be used to repress the working class. They pointed to the history of the area, where federal troops had been mobilized in the 1930s in an unsuccessful attempt to crush the Flint sit-down strike at General Motors that gave birth to the United Auto Workers. Nurses on the picket line in Grand Blanc, Michigan Several other workers said that they were reluctant to talk about politics, feeling it was divisive. Angela confessed, You cant have those kinds of conversations anymore because of people being so opinionated. People get so heated. If I dont share your views, some people get upset. WSWS reporters explained that life-and-death political questions are facing the working class, which cannot be avoided. At one point, Teamsters Local 332 President Dan Glass approached WSWS reporters to say he objected to the report posted on the WSWS stating the union leadership had immediately buckled to the hospitals demands to remove strike tents. The company threatened to take the union to court on the absurd grounds that tents and chairs posed a threat to public safety. Glass attempted to defend the decision not to fight the companys demands, stating that the union chose not fight because it was a secondary issue. He also suggested that the WSWS was undermining the fight of nurses by introducing the question of politics. The WSWS warned that caving in to the demand to remove strike tents, a clear attack on workers First Amendment rights, undermined the fight of nurses, especially as cold weather and longer nights approach. Reporters pointed out that the Teamsters President Sean OBrien openly supported President Trump, a fascist, who was seeking to crush the democratic rights of the working class by force. Several nurses nodded in agreement. The fact that the Teamster leadership supports Trump demonstrates that the union bureaucracy is not concerned with defending the interests of workers. Trump has slashed funding for healthcare and declared war on public health, appointing right-wing anti-vaccine quack Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to head the Department of Health and Human Services. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has launched a frontal attack on the Constitution, attempting to set up a presidential dictatorship based on the police, military and fascist thugs. The fight of Genesys nurses can only be successful to the extent that it is linked as part of the fight of all healthcare workers and the working class more broadly. The issues at Genesys are not local but national and international. Healthcare is being systematically dismantled to further enrich the billionaires and fund war. To widen the fight, nurses must build a rank-and-file strike committee, democratically controlled by the nurses themselves and independent of the pro-corporate Teamsters officials. Such a committee would formulate nurses non-negotiable demands, starting with mandatory nurse-to-patient ratios, and a fight to expand the strike by appealing to healthcare workers at other Henry Ford hospitals and Corewell across the area and nationally. For more information on how to get involved contact the WSWS using the form below. Neo Performance Materials recently opened its Narva traction motor magnet plant in Estonia, becoming the only Western-based producer of rare earth sintered permanent magnets for traction motors. This development enhances Western supply chains for electric vehicle manufacturing by providing OEMs with a fully Western source for critical magnet components amid ongoing geopolitical tensions. We will examine how Narva's launch cements Neo's role in Western supply chains and influences its investment outlook. These 10 companies survived and thrived after COVID and have the right ingredients to survive Trump's tariffs. Discover why before your portfolio feels the trade war pinch. Neo Performance Materials Investment Narrative Recap To be a shareholder in Neo Performance Materials, you need to believe in the companys role as a secure, fully Western source of rare earth magnets serving critical sectors such as electric vehicles, especially as supply chains decouple from China. While the new Narva plant may be a key catalyst by enabling Neo to capture orders from European OEMs, the biggest near-term risk is still normalization in shipment patterns or commodity pricing, which could reduce margin momentum in coming quarters. Among recent announcements, Neos multi-year Memorandum of Understanding with Robert Bosch GmbH to reserve magnet production capacity stands out, aligning closely with the Narva plants strategy to cement customer relationships and support long-term order growth. Such alliances are crucial for translating new production capacity into stable revenue streams that support the company's investment case. But looking past factory openings, investors should be aware that potential margin shocks may arise if rare earth market prices or shipment volumes revert more quickly than expected... Read the full narrative on Neo Performance Materials (it's free!) Neo Performance Materials' narrative projects $444.0 million revenue and $50.5 million earnings by 2028. This requires a -2.7% yearly revenue decline and a $60.9 million earnings increase from -$10.4 million earnings today. Uncover how Neo Performance Materials' forecasts yield a CA$25.54 fair value, a 25% upside to its current price. Exploring Other Perspectives TSX:NEO Community Fair Values as at Oct 2025 Six members of the Simply Wall St Community peg Neos fair value estimates from CA$11.80 up to CA$147.24, suggesting widely different views. While some see big upside, competitive government incentives for other magnet suppliers could affect Neos ability to lock in margins and growth; review these viewpoints to see how opinions differ on resilient supply chains and future returns. SeongJoon Cho / Bloomberg / Getty Images Thursday's gains for companies in the mining sector marked a bright spot in an otherwise down day for U.S. stocks Key Takeaways Shares of companies outside of China that produce rare earths and minerals surged Thursday as the country moved to tighten exports. The sector has been on a tear recently, as the Trump administration has taken stakes in several strategically significant companies to shore up access for the United States. Rare earths and mineral miner stocks took off Thursday, adding to their recent gains after China moved to tighten restrictions on related exports from the country. China's Ministry of Commerce on Thursday expanded licensing requirements for foreign companies to export products containing rare earths critical to producing a wide range of technological products, citing national security reasons. Shares of USA Rare Earth (USAR) soared 15% and MP Materials (MP) advanced close to 3%. Albemarle (ALB), the world's largest producer of lithiumwhich is used in electric vehiclesled gains on the S&P 500 Thursday, as shares jumped 5%, and Lithium Americas (LAC) added 2%. The gains for companies in the mining sector marked a bright spot in an otherwise down day for U.S. stocks, with the major indexes losing ground amid widespread losses as a federal government shutdown continued. (See here to read more reporting from Investopedia on the day's market moves.) Why This Is Significant China is a leading producer for many rare earths, which are critical components in a range of products, affecting many industries. When China restricts exports, producers of rare earth minerals elsewhere, and their stock prices, can benefit. Rare earths and mineral stocks have been on a tear recently, as the Trump administration has taken stakes in several strategically significant companies including Lithium Americas and MP Materials, as part of an effort to shore up America's access and reduce reliance on China, which is a leading producer. President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are set to meet for the first time in nearly a year at a summit in South Korea later this month, raising speculation China's move Thursday could be setting the stage for later negotiations. With Thursday's gains, Lithium Americas shares have gone up over 40% since the start of October alone, while MP Materials has added close to 10%. Albemarle has gained nearly 20% over the same period. Read the original article on Investopedia When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Credit: Gearbox Randy Pitchford wants to channel his inner Hideo Kojima (famous for scanning real life people, and maybe even a ghost, into his games) by putting a real-life fan into Borderlands 4. The Gearbox Software boss recently took to social media to share the story of when he was "in Australia going through security at the airport" and "the guy at the body scanner stopped me and said, 'Has anyone ever told you that you look like Randy Pitchford?'" Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He then asked online peeps for help in tracking the worker: "It was at Cairnes airport at around 8:20am on October 10 Australia time at the body scanner. If anyone can find the guy and prompt him to reach out to me." Why? Because he wants "to make an NPC or a gun or a side quest after him" since he "made my day." "I wish I was quicker on my feet and said something like, 'Look at my shirt!?!' But I just said, 'I am Randy Pitchford,'" he continued. "He asked to shake my hand, then made me walk through the scanner again because it didn't like my shirt." Borderlands 4 is of course littered with references and deep cuts and Easter eggs - one might even be throwing shade at Gearbox's former corporate owners - but having a real person involved with the creation of their in-game counterpart is a Kojima-brained move, since he frequently puts his favorite celebs, game makers, and VTubers into his own games. Borderlands 4 lead gives fans "7 days notice" as Gearbox aims the nerf cannon at broken builds with fixes to "unintended interactions in certain Vault Hunter skills" arriving next week Darius McCrary was arrested near the US-Mexico border in California on Sunday on an out-of-state felony charge, Page Six confirmed. The Family Matters star is currently being held in a San Diego jail and is not eligible for bail at this time. The actor was taken into custody by the US Border Patrol and online booking information lists the incident as a fugitive arrest, which applies to people who are wanted in another state. Darius McCrary was arrested near the US-Mexico border in California on Sunday on an out-of-state felony charge. Getty Images The Family Matters star is currently being held in a San Diego jail and is not eligible for bail at this time. ABC/Courtesy Everett Collection / Everett Collection His rep tells Page Six that the warrant came out of Michigan due to a missed court appearance regarding his failure to pay child support. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement She also claims that her client was given an improper serve because the court notice was sent to his PO Box and he was only given three days to appear in court. She says McCrary had COVID-19 at the time and therefore did not check his PO Box until the day after his court date. McCrary has been arrested for unpaid child support in the past. In November 2023, he was reportedly taken into police custody on a felony count of failure to pay child support because he owed $52,788.04 as of March 12, 2019. The actor was taken into custody by the US Border Patrol and online booking information lists the incident as a fugitive arrest. Getty Images His rep tells Page Six that the warrant came out of Michigan due to a missed court appearance regarding his failure to pay child support. Getty Images He was reportedly first arrested for his failure to keep up with child support payments in 2015, and told a judge two years later that he wasnt making any money. Less than a year later, McCrary was accused of dislocating his then-2-year-old daughters arm. He denied the allegation and claimed his ex-wife Tammy Brawner faked the story. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The former couple were married for three years. She filed for divorce in 2017. The former sitcom stars rep tells us that this time, her client doesnt owe any child support because the complaint comes from the mom of his eldest child, Zecheriah, who is now 18 years old and has a trust fund set to kick in. He was previously arrested for unpaid child support in 2023 and 2015. Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection His rep tells us that this time, her client doesnt owe any child support because the complaint comes from the mom of his eldest child, Zecheriah, who is now 18 years old and has a trust fund. Getty Images for BET His son is a trust fund baby and the only beneficiary but his mom wants the money, she claimed. According to her, the reason the actor was by the US-Mexico border was because he partnered with someone in Tijuana, Mexico, who is a real estate investor and developer to build shelter for the homeless community there. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Darius was doing a good deed when he discovered he had a felony warrant at the border of Mexico for a missed court appearance, she told us. The father of three, who also has two daughters, is set to appear before a judge at the San Diego Court on Wednesday. When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Krasznahorkais compelling and visionary oeuvre, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art. | Credit: Narciso Contreras / Anadolu via Getty Images What happened Laszlo Krasznahorkai, the author of acclaimed novels including The Melancholy of Resistance and Satantango, was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature Thursday. The Swedish Academy said it had bestowed one of literatures most prestigious honors on the 71-year-old Hungarian for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art. Who said what Krasznahorkai, hailed by critic Susan Sontag as the contemporary master of the Apocalypse, had been a perennial favorite for the Nobel, The New York Times said. Fellow writers have long revered him for his idiosyncratic style and bleak narratives that can often be slyly humorous. His novels probe the utter hopelessness of human existence in near-endless sentences, Hungarian literature expert Zsuzsanna Varga told The Associated Press, but theyre also incredibly funny. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Krasznahorkai said in a statement he was deeply glad to have won the Nobel because this award proves that literature exists in itself and is still being read. Literature, he added, offers a certain hope that beauty, nobility and the sublime still exist for their own sake. It may offer hope even to those in whom life itself only barely flickers. What next? Krasznahorkai will collect his Nobel Prize and $1.2 million award at a Dec. 10 ceremony in Stockholm, along with all other laureates except this years peace prize winner, Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who will accept her award in Oslo. SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) Utah World Fashion Week is coming to Salt Lake City this Oct., showcasing top designers, emerging talent, and innovative collections. The event will host designers, photographers, models, and fashion students from all across the country. It is the only event in Utah that offers a full fashion week, twice a year. The Feb. event is in Park City, and the Oct. event is in Salt Lake City. We are trying to give a platform to designers, students, and emerging designers to showcase their work, said General Manager for Utah World Fashion Week, Stefany De Rei. Utah World Fashion Week event. Courtesy: Utah World Fashion Week Utah World Fashion Week model in Park City. Courtesy: Utah World Fashion Week Utah World Fashion Week event. Courtesy: Utah World Fashion Week Utah World Fashion Week event. Courtesy: Utah World Fashion Week Utah World Fashion Week runway. Courtesy: Utah World Fashion Week While a handful of the creatives are from Utah, the event welcomes in people from all across the country. De Rei said that approximately 120 creatives will be at the Oct. event. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rose Park neighborhood moving forward together after flood We are proud to present collections of local and international designers, generate unique experiences for the media and the public, and consolidate Utah as a benchmark in the fashion industry, said De Rei. New concepts and shows The concept for this seasons show is the elements air, water, fuego, and earth. Each of the four runway designs, music, LED screens, and lighting will interpret the element of the day. Additionally, this Oct. will be the first time Utah World Fashion Week has a runway for kids. The air show, on Oct. 22, will showcase young models as well as brands that inspire children. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We are making something new in Utah. We are helping grow the [fashion] industry, said De Rei. Utah World Fashion Week will take place on Oct. 22 through 25. Tickets can be purchased online. Latest headlines: Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Former Imagineer and Disney Legend Joe Rohde made incredible contributions to Disney Parks and Experiences during his 40 years at Walt Disney Imagineering. He served as the overall creative executive and supervising designer for Disney's Animal Kingdom, and some of his other major projects include Aulani, A Disney Resort & Spa in Hawaii, Guardians of the Galaxy Mission: BREAKOUT! at Disney California Adventure, and the Adventurers Club that was formerly part of Pleasure Island at Disney World. Rohde is known for his trademark collection of earrings, which he collected in his travels around the globe. Previously, during a rare podcast interview, Mickey Visit founder Gavin Doyle talked with Joe Rohde while he was still the Creative Director of Animal Kingdom. Rohde shared some insights about his career and the creation of Animal Kingdom and Aulani, but one of the most interesting parts of the interview was his stories about his earring. He talked about how the earring collection started and some of his favorite earrings from his travels. READ MORE This Is The Coolest Moment of the Day at Disney California Adventure You Won't Want to Miss How Joe Rohde's Earring Collection Began Photo via Disney Parks Blog We asked about Joe Rohde's famous earring that has earned him the reputation of the "Imagineer with the Earring." He explained the origins of when this started and how it evolved over time as he collected earrings from around the world in his travels. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rohde reflected, "Oh, you know I started this a long time ago; right about the time I started the Adventurers Club, as a matter of fact. And I started actually wearing my Disney five-year pin through my ear. Now I had a hole in my ear. I didn't push my lapel pin through my ear. I already have a little earring hole, but just a normal little 1980s earring hole like anybody would have. And I started wearing my five-year pin through my ear, because it was a really cool little pin. And that made the hole bigger. And so then I thought, oh I'm going to wear like two gold hoops like a pirate. So then, I started wearing two gold hoops and that made the hole bigger. And so, somewhere around 1987, I made this decision that I was going to cultivate this National Geographic ear. Whenever I went some place I hadn't been before, I would find an earring and stick it through my ear, and I would end up with this ear that was like a National Geographic ear. I did not know that starting that year, my life would change, and I would end up traveling so much that by 1989, I already had this ear. It did not take long once I started to end up with this ear. And now, people would just give me earrings. Ive had tribal people give me earrings, and I receive earrings, you know. But usually, if I'm wearing it in my ear, it's some kind of indigenous tribal earring that comes from a specific journey to a specific place, usually the first time I've been there. Otherwise, I would have like 700 earrings. So, I try to restrict myself in some way for the [Disney] rules. And I do have like a cereal bowl full of earrings at home." Joe Talks About His Favorite Earrings Photo via D23 When asked about his favorite earrings, Rohde had a few interesting ones he mentioned. He pointed out a little beaded earring from Rajasthan. "So almost every shop has a little box or a little ballthis is true all over the worldor a little package or a little thing full of junk. It's like the junk bowl. And you go, "Can I see the junk bowl?" And you go through the junk ball, and that's where the earring is. It's in the junk bowl, almost always. Like this happened in Mongolia, Rajasthan, Zambia, all over the world. I find the earring in the junk ball. So this one came from the junk ball in Rajasthan." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He then pointed out a gold Nepalese earring that he's had for a long time. "I got on my first trip to Nepal. In Nepal, it would be worn by a married person. And when I first went to Nepal, I was in a really remote area. Everybody had this earring in their ear. I thought that is a cool earring. I got to find it somewhere. So Ive had that one for a really long time." READ MORE 10 Secrets Of Disney's Peter Pan's Flight Ride That Will Change the Way You Look at It Then he mentioned his beaded Maasai earring. "That's one of those things where not many people have an ear like this. So when you go someplace where people do have an ear like this, like the Maasaithey have these giant holes in therethen everybody's like, Oh you got to have this earring, you know. You got to stick this through your ear, you know.'" "So I get this kind of, Oh you got to have this; you got to have that.' So that one's kind of like a gift earring from some Maasai person who I'm sure is hoping that I'll buy like more earrings. That happens a lot too. People would just hand me earrings. I've had Thai hill tribe people hand me earrings. Tibetans hand me earrings. I was on a doorstep of some hunting lodge in South Africa and some giant hunter lady hands me a leopard knuckleon a leather string. "This is for your ear" you know. So I get a lot of that too." Photo via Disney Rohde commented how this is "a simple easy thing to do, and it gives you a little mission each time you go somewhere. Because I do kind of like the idea when you go somewhere that you have a sense, even a simple sense of mission, because it pushes you into areas you wouldn't otherwise go, right, which is something a creative person needs to always do." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While I don't think I'll be collecting earrings like Joe Rohde, I do appreciate the sentiment of having something driving you to explore. Don't Miss the Latest Disney News Don't miss the latest Disneyland and Disney World news from Mickey Visit. Join the FREE Mickey Visit newsletter that over 100k readers receive every single week. Mickey Visit is here to help you save money and experience more during your Disney and Universal vacation. See the Mickey Visit guide to Disneyland and the Mickey Visit guide to Disney World for tips. The post I asked Disney Imagineer Joe Rohde About His Legendary Earring, He Revealed Wonderful Stories appeared first on Mickey Visit - Disney News & Planning Tips. NEED TO KNOW Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi moved to the English countryside in November An insider tells PEOPLE that locals know who DeGeneres is, but they dont bother her" It's a small village so of course everyone gossips, but I haven't heard a single bad thing, the insider adds Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are embracing life away from the spotlight. Nearly a year after the couple moved to England, sources tell PEOPLE that the former talk show host, 67, and the Arrested Development alum, 52, are thriving after moving to their new home in the Cotswolds. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They come in regularly, they are really chilled and very polite, a local pub source near Wigginton tells PEOPLE. They come in with their dogs, sometimes on their own and sometimes with other people. One time, they asked to sit at the corner table presumably as its a bit more private," the insider recalls, adding of DeGeneres, Everyone knows who she is, but they dont bother her. Dave Benett/Getty for RH From left: Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi attend the unveiling of RH England, The Gallery at the Historic Aynho Park on June 3, 2023 in Banbury, England. From left: Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi attend the unveiling of RH England, The Gallery at the Historic Aynho Park on June 3, 2023 in Banbury, England. While their move made headlines, the source tells PEOPLE locals "all just respect their privacy." "[Ellen's] so nice and very down to earth," adds the source. "It's a small village so of course everyone gossips, but I haven't heard a single bad thing." Kelly Sullivan/Getty From left: Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are seen as RH Celebrates The Unveiling of RH San Francisco, The Gallery at the Historic Bethlehem Steel Building on March 17, 2022 in San Francisco, California. From left: Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are seen as RH Celebrates The Unveiling of RH San Francisco, The Gallery at the Historic Bethlehem Steel Building on March 17, 2022 in San Francisco, California. Echoes another local insider: They were [at our pub] for about an hour or so last year and were discreet. They had a drink and left, no fuss." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! In August, the television personality who revealed on Friday, Oct. 10 that they had welcomed another puppy into their home shared a glimpse into her new life in the English countryside with de Rossi. Portias living her dream riding her horse through the English countryside and into the village," she wrote alongside a clip of the actress riding her horse, before joking, "Gosh I hope she comes home soon." The comedian then teased her wife, Are you going to a photo shoot? to which de Rossi replied, No with a laugh as she continued to guide her horse down a path. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The video set to Taylor Swifts "August" cuts to the actress smiling while riding the horse down a dirt trail before passing by cottages in the English countryside. The post came one month after DeGeneres revealed the couples move was due to the 2024 presidential election results. On July 20, English broadcaster Richard Bacon asked her whether Donald Trumps victory played a role in their relocation, to which she replied, Yes, per the BBC. VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Ellen DeGeneres arrives for the 77th annual Golden Globe Awards on January 5, 2020, at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California. Ellen DeGeneres arrives for the 77th annual Golden Globe Awards on January 5, 2020, at The Beverly Hilton hotel in Beverly Hills, California. DeGeneres also shared how life has improved since the move to the U.K. The couple got here the day before the election, she added, and woke up to lots of texts from our friends with crying emojis, and I was like, He got in. And were like, Were staying here. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "We moved here in November, which was not the ideal time, but I saw snow for the first time in my life, the California native continued. We love it here. Portia flew her horses here, and I have chickens, and we had sheep for about two weeks. She also noted that the English countryside is absolutely beautiful, and that she and de Rossi are enjoying just a simpler way of life. 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. The same month, DeGeneres revealed to The Wall Street Journal that the pair decided to list their Cotswolds estate for $30 million, not because theyre leaving England, but because they need more space for their animals. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When we decided to live here full time, we knew that Portia couldn't live without her horses, she told the outlet in a statement. We needed a home that had a horse facility and pastures for them. Listing agent Andrew Barnes of Sothebys International Realty confirmed to the outlet that the couple had moved into a bigger, more modern home in the area to accommodate de Rossis animals. Read the original article on People The post Love Island star Olandria dives in on HBCU journey appeared first on ClutchPoints. She may not have won Love Island USA Season 7, but she won the hearts of fans everywhere. Tuskegee University alumna Olandria Carthen became a fan favorite on the show, and after leaving the villa, she continues to be adored by many. In a recent article written by AFROTECH, Carthen talked about her journey to Tuskegee University and how she is building her brand. During her recent appearance during the Her Conference Butterfly Tour at Texas A&M University, Carthen spoke about how her friends held her down while she was at the villa by taking over her social media accounts and creating a business email. This led to her receiving thousands of brand partnership offers when she returned home. The true villa bombshell has partnerships with major brands including Microsoft, NYX Cosmetics, Aveeno, Vaseline, and Sweetgreen. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement My friends even made a professional email for me for brands to contact me while I was in the villa. They were emailing them back Handling all of that, Carthen said during the Her Conference event. I came back to an inbox with over thousands and thousands of brand partnerships. So as soon as I got my manager, I was like, Heres my inbox. She continued, My friends literally set me up for success. All of these brand partnerships you see, like getting out of the gate, they did that. Not only is she well on her way to becoming the next it girl, but she is also finally achieving her longtimedream of having financial freedom. The same work ethic that has helped her land major brand deals is the work ethic that she used to fund her education at Tuskegee. The Decatur, Alabama native is a proud Tuskegee University alumna. During the first episode, she gave Tuskegee a shoutout during her introduction. Carthen is the first person in her family to attend college. Like many HBCU students, she came from a single-parent household, so paying for college wasnt easy. To pay for college, she cleaned rentals for $200 and spent her summers working 12-hour shifts at a plant alongside her mother, Felicia. These experiences taught her the true meaning of hard work and pushed her even further to get her degree. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In addition to working hard, Carthen wrote letters to receive financial help. She also received financial aid from Tuskegee. They helped her apply for unclaimed scholarships at the school and from the community and alumni. Back then its like, How am I supposed to come up with this? I would like to write letters, she mentioned on the panel. I would print out my transcript, I would print out my balance, and Id write a note like, Hey, Im Olandria Carthen. Im from Alabama first-generation college student. Heres my grades. Heres my student ID number. Heres the number to the bursar (the office that collected tuition at her college). All I need is a chance. I want to get my degree. No one in my family is able to do this. Can you help me? You dont have to give the money to me I kid you not, yall. I would check my account every single day. Balance is cleared, paid. In August, Olandria returned to her HBCU for the Back 2 School Kickoff in partnership with Amazon. Carthen graduated from Tuskegee in 2022 with a bachelors degree in logistics, materials, and supply chain management. Related: Florida A&M appoints interim athletic director Related: Kehlani reacts to Jackson State bands Folded performance NEED TO KNOW Meghan Markle offered one of her most personal looks at daughter Princess Lilibet through an Oct. 11 Instagram post The Duchess of Sussex marked International Day of the Girl by sharing a photo of herself and her 4-year-old daughter, whom she shares with Prince Harry, as well as a video of Lilibet "To all the girls - this world is yours," Meghan wrote in the caption of her post Meghan Markle is a proud mama! The Duchess of Sussex, 44, shared an Instagram post on Saturday, Oct. 11, offering one of her most personal looks at daughter Princess Lilibet. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Marking International Day of the Girl which was established by the United Nations in 2011 to celebrate women across the globe Meghan shared a photo of herself and her 4-year-old daughter, as well as a video of Lilibet. "To all the girls - this world is yours. Do everything you can to protect your rights, use your voice, support each other," Meghan wrote in the caption of her post. "We will do the same for you. Its your right and our responsibility. Go get em girl! Happy International Day of the Girl," she added. Can't get enough of PEOPLE's Royals coverage? Sign up for our free Royals newsletter to get the latest updates on Kate Middleton, Meghan Markle and more! meghan/Instagram Princess Lilibet (left) and Meghan Markle (right). Princess Lilibet (left) and Meghan Markle (right). In the mother-daughter photograph shared, Meghan could be seen holding Lilibet's hand as they stood outdoors together. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Duchess of Sussex, wearing a light-colored ensemble, looked down and smiled at her little one, who was dressed in all pink attire with a purse to match. The PEOPLE Puzzler crossword is here! How quickly can you solve it? Play now! The accompanying video Meghan shared of her daughter showed Lilibet running around outdoors on a sunny day. Along with Lilibet, Meghan is also a mom to son Prince Archie, 6, with husband Prince Harry. meghan/Instagram Princess Lilibet. Princess Lilibet. Meghan has marked International Day of the Girl in various ways in years past. Last year, the Duchess of Sussex talked about "being one of the most bullied people in the world" while attending an event that marked the day for #HalfTheStory, a nonprofit focused on improving young people's relationship with technology. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Larissa May, founder of the organization, told Vanity Fair at the time, "We had girls wave these little emoji signs and talk about how each one of these scenarios would have impacted them emotionally." While accepting the Humanitarians of the Year award at Project Healthy Minds annual gala in New York City on Thursday, Oct. 9, Meghan and Harry, 41, made a rare statement about their kids. Our children, Archie and Lilibet, are just 6 and 4 years old, Meghan said, taking the stage alongside Harry. Can you believe it? Then reflecting on the challenges parents face in the digital age, the mom of two continued, "Luckily, theyre still too young for social media, but we know that day is coming." (The remarks highlighted the personal connection behind the couple's advocacy for protecting children online, a key part of their commitment to Project Healthy Minds mission.) Read the original article on People Wendy Osefo, who was arrested for fraud Thursday, was allegedly seen wearing her anniversary band after she and her husband, Eddie, reported the ring was missing. Page Six confirmed that police became suspicious after the Real Housewives of Potomac star and Eddie received insurance money for the ring after their home was allegedly burglarized. In April 2024, Wendy and Eddie claimed that their home had been broken into while they were on vacation in Jamaica. They claimed that several pricey items had been stolen, including designer bags and jewelry. Wendy Osefo was allegedly wearing her anniversary ring in social media photos after her husband Eddie reported that the ring was missing following an alleged burglary. Carroll County Sheriff's Office/TMZ Eddie and Wendy were arrested on fraud charges Thursday. Carroll County Sheriff's Office/TMZ Per documents initially obtained by Us Weekly, authorities investigating their home noticed that there was a screen with damage laying on the roof, and the window was not locked and to go in or out of that window, one has to step on the toilet. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The toilet lid was down and had no debris on it, the documents read. When Sheriffs office personnel stepped onto the roof and back into the home, they tracked roof grit back inside. Additionally, the filing claims that the Osefos had activated their home alarm system when they left for the trip and that no motion [was] detected inside the residence while they were gone. There was activity, such as package deliveries, on the ring camera that was monitored remotely by the Osefos, the filing states. The couple claimed in April 2024 that their home was broken into while they were on vacation in Jamaica. Getty Images for Springhill They filed insurance claims stating that several designer handbags and pieces of jewelry were missing. wendyosefo/Instagram Eddie allegedly went on to give statements to two different insurance companies to report missing items. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He was asked whether any of the items on the list had been returned, which he denied. He was asked if he had other insurance but failed to disclose to Homesite and Jewelers that he was also making a claim with Travelers Insurance, the documents state. Both Eddie and Wendy, 41, signed statements claiming $2,500 for the building and $450,000 in property. An attorney claimed that they were both wearing their anniversary bands when the loss occurred. However, Eddie later called one of the insurance companies to report that his wifes gold diamond anniversary band was allegedly missing. Police grew suspicious upon investigating their home. Getty Images Eddie called one of his insurance companies to claim that Wendys gold and diamond ring was missing shortly before the claim was settled. Variety via Getty Images That same day, the claim was settled for $25,380 which included the replacement price of $4,500 for Wendys anniversary band. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A police investigation later discovered that Wendy was seen in photos allegedly wearing the ring and also found that the pair was burdened by substantial debt. Deputies determined that several items allegedly stolen had actually been purchased before being returned to the store, where a full refund was provided prior to the alleged burglary. They were arrested and taken into custody by the Carroll County Sheriffs Office Thursday after being charged with insurance fraud, conspiracy to commit insurance fraud and false statement to a police officer. Cops found photos of Wendy allegedly wearing the ring after the alleged burglary. Wendy Osefo/Instagram The duo is being accused of insurance fraud, conspiracy to commit insurance fraud and false statement to a police officer. wendyosefo/Instagram By Friday, a rep for the couple told Page Six that they were back home safely with their family and in good spirits. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They are grateful for the outpouring of concern and support from friends, fans and colleagues, the statement read. The Osefos, alongside their legal team, look forward to their day in court. At this time, they respectfully ask for privacy as they focus on their family and the legal process ahead. Prince William and Gisele Bundchen are uniting for a good cause. The supermodel, 45, and Prince of Wales, 43, are joining forces on the Earthshot Prize council. Prince William first created The Earthshot Prize in 2020, which highlights innovative ideas addressing the planets biggest issues. Prince William attends the launch of the Global Humanitarian Memorial. AP This years awards will take place in Rio de Janeiro on Nov. 5. Bundchen is the first Brazilian to have a seat on the the council. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The cover star will be accompanied by conservationist Sir David Attenborough, actress Cate Blanchett, chef Jose Andres and World Trade Organization director-general Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Following the ceremony, Prince William will make his way over to the UN climate conference in Belem, Brazil, on Nov. 6. Gisele Bundchen attends the IWC Schaffhausen Live Talk. Getty Images IWC Schaffhausen Bundchen noted that she is honored to join forces with the royal. Protecting nature has always been close to my heart, and Ive seen the power of the global communities coming together and supporting innovation to create real change, she shared in a statement. Every action matters big or small and together we can nurture change to protect the planet we call home. The Earthshot Prize shines a light on solutions that inspire hope and transformation, and Im proud to represent Brazil in sharing these stories with the world. Gisele Bundchen enjoying nature on her birthday with her baby boy. gisele/Instagram Bundchen is no stranger to advocating for the environment. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The philanthropist started the Clean Water Project in her home country of southern Brazil alongside her family. Bundchen has also worked tirelessly to raise awareness for the UN Environment Program, which focuses on climate, nature, pollution, and sustainable development. Jason Knauf, CEO of The Earthshot Prize, gushed over the Miami residents unique record of leadership and environmental progress. Her passion and commitment to the environmental movement in Brazil and beyond, and her dedication to amplifying solutions will be invaluable to our mission. Gisele Bundchen plays beach tennis with her boyfriend Joaquim Valente. MEGA He added: Her voice, leadership and dedication, will inspire everyone to keep building the future we all want for people and the planet. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Along with advocating for the environment, Bundchen welcomed her third child, a baby boy, with boyfriend Joaquim Valente in February. Bundchen and her ex-husband Tom Brady are co-parents to daughter Vivian, 12, and son Benjamin 15. Prince William, meanwhile, opened up about his past year while sitting down with Eugene Levy for the actors Apple TV+ series, The Reluctant Traveler. Gisele Bundchen and Joaquim Valente are spotted starting their Sunday with a relaxing bike ride. MiamiPIXX/VAEM / BACKGRID In the episode titled Living the Royal Life in the UK, the future king and the Schitts Creek star, 78, discussed how life can change in the blink of an eye. Weve been very lucky; we hadnt had many illnesses in the family for a very long time. My grandparents lived until they were in the high 90s, William said, referencing the late Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They were the vision of fitness, and stoicism, and resilience, if you like. So weve been very lucky as a family, he added. But I think, when you suddenly realize that the rug, if you were, the metaphorical rug, can be pulled from under your feet quite quick at any point. You maybe think to yourself, It wont happen to us, well be OK. Because I think everyone has a positive outlook, youve got to be positive, William said. But when it does happen to you, then it takes you into some pretty not great places. The Prince and Princess of Wales during a visit to Farnborough Road Infant and Junior School. ZUMAPRESS.com While sitting down for a pint at a local pub, Levy and William also touched on the last few years. In addition to Middleton, 43, his father, King Charles, was also diagnosed with cancer. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Id say 23-24 was the hardest year Ive ever had, the prince shared. You know, life is sent to test us and being able to overcome that is what makes us who we are. Prince William and Kate Middleton at the Earthshot Prize 2021. Getty Images In March 2024, the Princess of Wales revealed she was being treated for cancer. By September 2024, the princess announced she was cancer-free. As the summer comes to an end, I cannot tell you what a relief it is to have finally completed my chemotherapy treatment, Middleton said. The last nine months have been incredibly tough for us as a family. Life as you know it can change in an instant and we have had to find a way to navigate the stormy waters and road unknown. Prince William and Kate Middleton smile and chat as they walk through a school in Southport. AP King Charles, 76, meanwhile, was diagnosed with cancer in February 2024 and has continued to undergo treatment. In November 2024, while in South Africa, William made a rare comment to reporters following his annual Earthshot Prize Ceremony and revealed: Its been dreadful. Its probably been the hardest year in my life. Hot Lithuanian producer Marija Razgute of M-Films, credited for the award-winning films Slow in Sundance 2023 and The Visitor in Karlovy Vary this year, has unveiled a teaser trailer of the absurdist drama Hunger Strike Breakfast, by Karolis Kaupinis. The helmers sophomore pic after his signature debut Nova Lituania, Lithuanias choice for the 2021 Oscars, will screen at Tallinns Black Nights Film Festivals Baltic film competition, following its Warsaw world premiere. It will have its national roll out in January 2026 via CinemaAds. In the clip, one of the characters, Sigitas Bickus (Paulius Pinigis), cites U.S. alternative food guru Paul Braggs book The Miracle of Fasting, saying that hunger cures all ills to a small group of TV journalists, on the verge of embarking on a hunger strike to protest against the occupation of their TV building by Russian troops. As in Nova Lituania, the helmer twists real events and tense geo-politics to convey a deeply humanistic tale with warmth and humor. The film is inspired by a little-known protest during Lithuanias independence struggle in 1991, when three TV employees launched a hunger strike to reclaim the national TV building from the Soviet army. Advertisement Advertisement In the pic, we follow Lithuanian TV star Daiva (Ineta Stasiulyte) who loses her job when the TV studios are taken over by Russian soldiers. Together with a few colleagues-including her TV boss (Arvydas Dapsys) and a compassionate local dweller (Paulius Pinigis), Daiva starts a hunger strike in a small trailer facing the TV station. Beyond political motives, the group yearn for human warmth and connection. Kaupinis, who came up with the characters after conducting multiple interviews with the real strikers says: On the surface it was a political fight, but the motivation for it was long-surpressed feelings of loneliness, guilt, desire for something big, important, beautiful and warm. Himself a former TV presenter and editor of a weekly program dedicated to current political affairs, the helmer explains that conversations at the time with elder TV colleagues about those events triggered his interest. During the pandemia and Russian war in Ukraine, it felt like a proper metaphor for my own current Lithuanian society a tiny makeshift trailer, people on hunger strike, aggressive enemy on one side and indifferent neighbors on the other side. Terrible loneliness in times of chaos and a hunger strike as an opportunity to get closer to people sharing a fellow fate. Although he was only five years old in 1991, Kaupinis still has vivid memories of the temporarily occupation of the TV building in Vilnius which ended up with the death of 14 civilians. These are my first visual memories. My family lived on the same street where the main Soviet army base, the so-called Northern Town (Siaures miestelis) was located. I used to watch the tanks manouvering inside the base from my friends appartment window on the fifth floor. Advertisement Advertisement He goes on: I remember my father leaving to defend the Parliament, fear at home, my mother and grandparents in front of TV and the trembling voice of the presenter that they are already inside the building. Then TV going off-air. I also remember the next morning, when we went for groceries with my grandma and the sidewalks on the street were shattered due to the movement of tank columns. I asked her why the sidewalks are like that and she replied with Russkies, kid. Russkies, using a Lithuanian derogatory term for Russians. Connecting the constant threat from Russia during Lithuanias struggle for independence with current times, Kaupinis says: Lithuanians have to resist by all means. And never let it happen again. An active political commentator at home, the helmer believes in a two-way resistance: In our current situation [resisting] outside means military force and inside means black political technologies covering as political movements. At this very moment, Lithuanian cultural field is beginning this fight, he observes. A pro-Russian political project covering itself as an ethno-centrist populist party is torpedoing our democratic foundation and has just been assigned to rule the Ministry of Culture by the ruling coalition that thinks you can tame the Trojan horse by letting it inside the city. We treat it as a gravest mistake and will resist it by all means available! Advertisement Advertisement Going back to his movie, Kaupinis hopes that his work, depicting the frailty of democracy, will help audiences to reflect. People must come to conclusions themselves. I hate art as a political tool, but I like when art causes political shifts. He also wishes that after watching the pic, audiences will come out with a feeling of warmth and hope, a desire to talk to another human being and listen in this time of divisiveness. Producer Razgute who teamed up with Kaupinis on two of his shorts and the acclaimed Nova Lituania, says their intention was to craft a film that adds a touch of humor to the somewhat absurd scenarios surrounding Lithuanias fight for independence, while still acknowledging the serious personal dilemmas and historical events involved. In the current surroundings, we feel that the film is getting more relevant every day. Razgute also underlined the directors visual talent, expressed through the lens of Nova Lituania cinematographer Simonas Glinskis. While Nova Lituania was very stylised, as it captured the interwar years, here Karolis and Simonas decided to portray this world through colors and grain, as the 1990s were greyish times. Fully shot in Lithuania in five weeks, the film was co-produced with the Czech Republics Background Films and Latvias Tasse Film, with support from the Lithuanian Film Centre, Eurimages, Creative Europe MEDIA, the Czech Film Centre, Latvian Film Centre, and Lithuanian pubcaster LRT. Advertisement Advertisement Pilot Film will handle the national roll out in the Czech Republic and Baltic Content Media in Latvia. At press time, Razgute was in discussions for sales in remaining territories. Best of Variety Sign up for Variety's Newsletter. For the latest news, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Oct. 11 (UPI) -- On this date in history: In 1811, the first steam-powered ferry in the world, the Juliana, started its run between New York City and Hoboken, N.J. In 1868, Thomas Alva Edison filed papers for his first invention: an electrical vote recorder to rapidly tabulate floor votes in the U.S. Congress. Edison's device was issued U.S. Patent 90,646 on June 1, 1869. Members of Congress rejected the apparatus and it was never utilized. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 1906, the San Francisco Board of Education banned Japanese-American students from attending public schools, ordering that instead they were to be taught in racially segregated schools. A compromise was reached in February 1907, allowing the students back into the schools with the Japanese government accepting new immigration restrictions for its citizens wishing to travel to the United States. In 1910, President Theodore Roosevelt became the first U.S. president to take flight in an airplane. Piloted by Arch Hoxsey, Roosevelt would stay aloft for 4 minutes in a Wright brothers-built plane at Kinloch Field in St. Louis, Mo. On October 11, 1984, Kathryn Sullivan, flying into orbit aboard the space shuttle Challenger, became the first American woman to walk in space. File Photo courtesy NASA In 1947, the United States agreed to the United Nations Partition Plan of Palestine, which recommended the creation of independent Arab and Jewish States with the city of Jerusalem placed under direct trusteeship of the United Nations. The resolution was adopted by the General Assembly on Nov. 29, 1947, though a civil war, which would last nearly six months, erupted the next day between Arabs and Jews, resulting in the partition plan failing to be implemented. File Photo by Stephen Shaver/UPI An advance team of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and the United Nations arrives in Damascus, Syria. On October 11, 2013, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons won the Nobel Peace Prize. UPI File Photo In 1950, the Federal Communications Commission gave CBS the first license to broadcast color television. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 1975, Saturday Night Live premiered on NBC with George Carlin as host and musicians Janis Ian and Billy Preston on the bill. In this October 11, 1910, file photo Col. Theodore Roosevelt takes off from Aviation Field in St. Louis with pilot Arch Hoxsey. Roosevelt described the trip as, "the bulliest experience I ever had." UPI File Photo In 1984, Kathryn Sullivan, flying into orbit aboard the space shuttle Challenger, became the first American woman to walk in space. In 1986, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev met in Reykjavik, Iceland, to discuss arms control and human rights. While the talks collapsed at the last minute, work would continue, resulting in the 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty between the two nations. Thomas Edison holds a replica of his first lamp, which had the power of 16 candles. On October 11, 1868, Edison filed papers for his first invention: an electrical vote recorder to rapidly tabulate floor votes in the U.S. Congress. UPI File Photo In 2000, Congress designated Cuyahoga Valley National Recreation Area as a national park, making it the first national recreation area to receive the upgrade in the United States. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 2002, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to former U.S. President Jimmy Carter "for his decades of untiring effort to find peaceful solutions to international conflicts, to advance democracy and human rights, and to promote economic and social development." In 2002, Congress gave U.S. President George W. Bush its backing for using military force against Iraq. Surrounded by members of Congress, President George W. Bush signs the congressional resolution authorizing U.S. use of force against Iraq if needed, during a ceremony in the East Room of the White House on October 16, 2002. File Photo by Chris Corder/UPI In 2008, the U.S. State Department removed North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism. In return, North Korea agreed to give international inspectors access to its nuclear facilities and to continue disabling its plutonium processing project. In 2013, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons won the Nobel Peace Prize. The United Nations-backed OPCW, which has headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands, was overseeing the destruction of Syria's chemical weapons stockpile at the time it won the prize. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 2024, the Norwegian Nobel Committee awarded the Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo, an organization made up of atomic bomb survivors in Japan for their actions opposing the use of nuclear weapons. Nicole Kidman is currently in North Texas shooting a television show and has already lined up her next project set in the region. Kidman is one of the stars of Taylor Sheridans Lioness, which was renewed for a third season by Paramount+ last week and began filming in Fort Worth this week. The series is already closing roads in Cowtown near the TCU area. Earlier this week, Deadline reported that Kidman had signed on to star in the legal thriller series Discretion. The show, which comes from A24 and Paramount+, is based on author Chandler Bakers yet-to-be-released short story of the same name. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Elle Fanning has also come on board to star. Heres the shows logline: Lenny (Fanning), a summer associate at a prestigious Dallas law firm, uncovers a web of NDAs masking a dark truth. When she realizes she signed the same agreement, her discoveries put her in the crosshairs of the firms most powerful female partner Sharon (Kidman) upending their mentor-protege dynamic and raising the question: who gets to keep secrets, and at what cost? More service stories from our newsroom: Major blast of arctic air possible this winter A new TX law cracks down on spam texts Black and pink molds, live roaches found in DFW health inspections Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Top 5 most popular restaurants in Texas right now, Yelp says Nicole Kidman to star in Dallas-set show Its unclear whether Discretion will film in Dallas, but it will be set in Big D. The story comes from Baker, who grew up in Dallas, and is based on her time as a corporate lawyer negotiating hundreds of NDAs a year. Baker said she wrote the story in two days this summer. This is my dream project with a dream team and dream partners, Baker wrote on Facebook. And thank you to everyone in my corner who didnt take their eye off the ball on this one for even a second. Discretion will be Kidmans latest project with Texas ties, after the past two seasons of Lioness. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The spy series filmed Season 1 in Maryland, Delaware, Washington, D.C., Paris and Mallorca, Spain. For Season 2, the series primarily filmed in and around North Texas, including in Fort Worth, Weatherford, Strawn, Stephenville and Glen Rose. Kidman was also recently seen in Dallas at an event for amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research. It was her first public appearance since filing for divorce from Keith Urban. Its unclear when Lioness will finish shooting in North Texas and when or whether Discretion will start. A Wheel of Fortune contestant was at a loss for words on Thursdays (October 9) episode after nailing the Bonus Round puzzle and walking away with over $65,000. The contestant in question was Kristyn Lyerly, a pickleball and softball player from Woodridge, Illinois, who was up against Dan Brumbacher, a newlywed from Studio City, Los Angeles, and Brittanie Ramsey, a former kindergarten teacher from Auburndale, Florida. Lyerly took an early lead after solving the Round 1 puzzle, giving her $5,700, though Brumbacher and Ramsey werent too far behind. Heading into the Express Round, Brumbacher followed closely with $3,000, while Ramsey had $1,950. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement However, Lyerly increased her lead after nailing the Event puzzle in the Express Round, earning her $1,900 and a wine tasting trip to Greece worth $11,198. Brumbacher fired back with a couple of correct solves in the Triple Tossup, but it wasnt enough to stop Lyerly, who went on to win the episode with a total of $25,648 in cash and prizes. Heading into the Bonus Round, Lyerly selected the Event category and introduced host Ryan Seacrest to her husband, John, who was there to support her at the side of the stage. Faced with a two-word puzzle, Lyerly picked the additional letters C, D, H, and A to go with the already given R, S, T, L, N, and E. The C and H proved helpful as they provided the first letter of each word, giving her a puzzle board that read: H E A _ _ / D _ _ N _ _ _ R. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It didnt take long for Lyerly to shout out the correct answer, Heavy Downpour. Seacrest then opened the prize envelope to reveal Lyerly won an extra $40,000, giving her a total of $65,648, plus a trip to Greece. Im I Im speechless, Lyerly said. Thank you so much! Fans jumped onto social media to share their reactions to Lyerlys big win, with one YouTube commenter writing, Way to go, Kristyn! You got that right! Kristyn what a night and here is a cherry on top! $40,000 congratulations! said another. Another quipped, Kristyn, here comes a downpour of cash: $40,000. Kristyn, ca-ching ca-ching, you just won $40,000!!!!!! said another. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Great job, Kristyn! wrote one fan. Did you figure out this Bonus Puzzle? What did you think of Thursdays episode? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below. Wheel of Fortune, Weeknights, check local listings Read the latest entertainment news on TV Insider. Haunted hotels. Ghostly encounters. Eerie legends. These may not be everyone's idea of a great vacation, but if you're the kind of person who embraces the kooky and the creepy in all its ghoulish glory, you already know that spooky season is your time. What you may not know is that all across the country, some of America's favorite destinations boast chilling histories and spirited secrets just waiting to be uncovered. Here are some of my favorite haunted destinations in the US, along with how they earned their reputation. FALL-O-WEEN: Spooky Halloween reads that tweens and teens are raving about 1. Hudson Valley, New York Ask for table 24 at Silvio's Villa for a frightfully good meal. When you think about haunts in the Hudson Valley, Sleepy Hollow likely comes to mind. The setting for Washington Irvings tale of the Headless Horseman pays homage to its literary fame with the annual Headless Horseman Hayrides and Haunted Attractions event. (It proudly proclaims to have frightened well over one million guests in its 30 years.) Lantern tours of Sleepy Hollow Cemetery are offered throughout the year, spotlighting the final resting places of folks like Andrew Carnegie and Irving himself. Advertisement Advertisement EMPIRE STATE: 13 best New York family vacations beyond the Big Apple The circa-1885 Tarrytown Music Hall has been said to be the site of paranormal activity, and each fall, storyteller Jonathan Kruk leads ghost tours of the venue. And for a spooky meal, request table 24 at Silvios Villa in Warwick. Where to stay: Resident ghost Sybil Harris is said to walk the halls of the King House Mansion at the Tarrytown House Estate, lingering near room 293, where she died in 1959. Guests at The Borland House Bed & Breakfast in Montgomery have reported footsteps, flickering TVs, and shadowy figures while staying at the 1780s home. 2. Key West, Florida Say the words Key West and a tropical getaway might come to mind. But the Florida island is also one of the most haunted places in America. Its home, after all, to the ultra-creepy Robert the Doll, a supernatural legend of sorts whos on display at the Fort East Martello Museum. Advertisement Advertisement GET OUTSIDE: 10 best Florida state parks to visit on your family vacation Take a tour to learn more about him and other island intrigue from outfitters like Ghosts & Gravestones of Key West and Island Tales. Lots of sites are said to be haunted in the city, including the Hemingway Home, Key West Lighthouse, Alex Vega Key West Firehouse Museum (where you can become a paranormal investigator for a night), and Harry S. Truman Little White House. Where to stay: You can sleep in the former home of Robert the Doll at The Artist House if youre brave enough. Ridley House, La Concha Key West, and Curry Mansion Inn are also good options if youre looking for a spirited stay. 3. Macon, Georgia Hay House is known for its beauty and its creepiness. This city, 85 miles southeast of Atlanta, has plenty of spooky spots to visit. The circa-1859 Hay House has been called one of the 13 Most Beautiful Haunted Destinations Around the World by Architectural Digest, thanks to mysterious sightings like an elderly woman dressed in mid-1800s attire wandering through the hallways. During spooky season, the Legends and Lore Tour delves into those ghostly sightings and unexplained noises at the site. Advertisement Advertisement AUTUMN ESCAPES: From long weekends to full-fledged vacations, these are the best family getaways for fall Rose Hill Cemetery is the resting place of rockers Duane and Gregg Allman. But the 182-year-old spot is also said to be haunted by the ghosts of Civil War soldiers. The Piedmont Grand Opera House has also been the site of spooky activity, including apparitions of a lady in white whose soprano vocals have been heard echoing through the halls. Playing up its spooky rep, the city hosts an annual Witches Float on the Ocmulgee River and Thriller Parade of zombie dancers through the downtown, which is also the site of Rock Candy Tours Macon Macabre Walking Tour every Friday in October. Where to stay: Past guests at Burke Mansion have reported seeing the spirits of former employees roaming the halls at the circa-1887 bed-and-breakfast. The 1842 Inn is said to be haunted by the ghost of John Gresham, a mayor of Macon who built the house, as well as the spirits of a woman and a little girl. 4. Crystal Coast, North Carolina Beaufort's Old Burial Ground is one of the oldest cemeteries in North Carolina. Also known as the Southern Outer Banks, North Carolinas Crystal Coast is located along the Graveyard of the Atlantic. More than 2,000 vessels have been lost in this stretch, including Blackbeards Queen Annes Revenge just off the coast of Beaufort. Divers have told tales of muffled voices, phantom lights and shadows, and other eerie encounters during their time beneath the sea. Advertisement Advertisement BY THE SHORE: 10 best family beaches in North Carolina The Old Burying Ground is one of the oldest cemeteries in North Carolina, and guides lead tours amid the historic gravestones under live oaks. (Dont miss the gravesite of a girl buried in a rum barrel by her father after her death sailing from England, which is often adorned with toys and flowers.) The cemetery is a stop on Port City Tours Beaufort Ghost Walk, which includes stories about Blackbeard, ghosts of the Civil War, and haunted houses in the area. Fort Macon State Park is also said to be haunted by Civil War soldiers. Where to stay: A ghost of a heartbroken young woman is said to wander around the Langdon House Bed & Breakfast. Inn on Turner is located near the Old Burying Ground in Beauforts Historic Waterfront District. 5. Alton, Illinois McPike Mansion is unoccupied by living residents but is said to have ghostly inhabitants. Considered one of the most haunted small towns in America, Alton is an ideal destination for spooky season. More than a dozen spirits are said to inhabit McPike Mansion, built in the 1800s but unoccupied by any living people since the 1950s. Monthly tours held throughout the year include a dark room session in the basement wine cellar, and additional tours are added for the month of October. Advertisement Advertisement MIDDLE GROUND: These 13 Midwest vacations are the perfect way to bring the whole family together The towns First Unitarian Church and Milton School House are also said to be haunted, and tours offered by Alton Hauntings and Alton Odyssey Tours take participants to these and other sites. Keep the creepy vibe going by navigating the Great Godfrey Maze or the Demange Farm Corn Maze by flashlight. Where to stay: Beall Mansion has a rich history and is open for tours (which are free with a stay). Or stay at the Alton Cracker Factory for a unique twist on local history. 6. Oklahoma City, Oklahoma defaultHaunted History Cruises offer a different look at Oklahoma City's Bricktown Canal. Oklahoma City might be associated with cattle and cowboys, but its a lot creepier than you realize. Two sisters with a tragic story are said to linger upstairs at Langstons Western Wear, and unexplained voices and rattling glassware have been heard at Gabriellas Italian Grill, a Prohibition-era building with a gangsters and gambling history. At Kitchen Lake Bridge, drivers have told stories about headlights flickering and cars stalling. Advertisement Advertisement SCARY STAYS: 10 spooky Halloween vacations in the U.S. for families You can learn more about stories like these on a Haunted History Cruise along the Bricktown Canal or an Oklahoma City Ghost Tour that uncovers spooky tales from the citys past. Lean into the Halloween season even more at Oklahoma City Zoos kid-friendly Haunt the Zoo event or at Fright Fest at Six Flags Frontier City. Where to stay: Located in a circa-1911 building, The Skirvin Hilton Oklahoma is said to be haunted by a Prohibition-era chambermaid. 7. Newport, Rhode Island This coastal New England city, known for sailing and Gilded Age mansions, has plenty of ghost stories to tell. Like the tales of the elderly man in colonial dress said to haunt White Horse Tavern, which dates from 1673. Or the spirits said to inhabit Belcourt of Newport, which you can try to experience for yourself on a candlelight tour of the Louis XIII-style mansion. Advertisement Advertisement CRISP AIR, COZY NIGHTS: This years best fall foliage getaways in New England Other sites around the city are rumored to be haunted, like Rose Island Lighthouse, where a former lighthouse keeper is said to still walk the grounds. Learn more about Newports centuries-old spooky side on a lantern-lit stroll around the city with Ghost Tours of Newport. Where to stay: Guests and staff at Hotel Viking have reported strange experiences like noises from a party at odd hours of the night. Castle Hill Inn is said to be haunted by a female ghost, and whispers have been heard and presences have been felt at The Jailhouse Inn, which served its namesake purpose from 1772 to 1986. 8. Savannah, Georgia Ghost tours are easy to find in Savannah. Savannah is known as Americas Most Haunted City, and its got hundreds of years of history filled with eerie stories. Ghost tours are a popular way to search for specters and spirits, and they range from walking and trolley tours to a ride in a hearse. Or you can roam spots like Bonaventure and Colonial Park Cemeteries and Wright Square yourself and see if anything supernatural occurs. Advertisement Advertisement COOL SPOTS: 10 family vacation ideas that will actually excite your teenagers A number of the citys restaurants are also said to be haunted, including The Olde Pink House, The Pirates House, and Vics on the River. So if youre lucky, you could get dinner and a spirited show. Where to stay: Haunted hotels abound in Savannah, like The Marshall House (said to be inhabited by Civil Warera ghosts) and Kehoe House (rumored to be haunted by children who once got trapped in the chimney!). And at least three ghosts are believed to be in residence at The 17hundred90 Inn and Restaurant. 9. Washington, D.C. The nations capital might be known for its halls of power. But if those halls could talk, theyd likely have tales to tell. After all, ghosts of presidents past have been said to appear at the White House, and former First Lady Dolley Madison is rumored to host ghostly receptions at the Octagon House. There are even tales of a demon cat among the spirits haunting the U.S. Capitol Building. Advertisement Advertisement AUTUMN FUN: The 5 best Mid-Atlantic fall getaways for families with kids So it should be no surprise that the city is home to an abundance of ghost tours led by outfits like D.C. Ghosts and National Nightmares. Take the Ghosts of Georgetown walking tour and youll end at the Exorcist Steps featured in the 1973 film. When its time to eat head to Old Ebbitt Grill, the citys oldest saloon that just might have a spirited side. Where to stay: The teenage son of President Calvin Coolidge is said to be responsible for the paranormal occurrences that occur at The Mayflower Hotel, and a female spirit is said to haunt The Hay-Adams. At the Omni Shoreham Hotel, the presidential suite is also known as the ghost suite for the rooms spooky past. 10. New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans' St. Louis Cathedral is one of the city's haunted spots. You cant have a list of haunted destinations in the U.S. without including New Orleans. In the French Quarter alone, spooky spots include Le Petit Theatre, Faulkner House Books, and St. Louis Cathedral. The founder of Antonies Restaurant is said to return to check up on things, and the Seance Lounge at Muriels Jackson Square is a truly spirited spot for a cocktail. Advertisement Advertisement SEE THE BIG EASY: 11 best things to do in New Orleans with kids There are lots of options for both ghost tours and cemetery tours sharing eerie stories from the citys more than 300 years of history. Strange True Tours also offers an Anne Ricethemed tour around Halloween time. Where to stay: A Confederate soldier, children and nuns from the former convent and orphanage, and a lonely ghost dancer are among the spirits roaming the halls at the Bourbon Orleans. The footsteps of child ghost Maurice Begere have been heard at Hotel Monteleone, and guests have been woken up with laughter or had items in their rooms moved around by the spirits at the Andrew Jackson Hotel. 11. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania A man carrying a lantern leading a ghost tour in Gettysburg, Penn. The site of a seminal Civil War battle in July 1863, Gettysburg is a destination with a rich history and a reputation as one of the most haunted places in the country. The Jennie Wade House is said to be haunted by the only civilian killed during the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Soldiers Orphans Homestead has a dark history that can be explored on tours. Advertisement Advertisement MAKE A PLAN: 101 fresh vacation ideas for the best trip ever Creepy happenings have also taken place at Sachs Covered Bridge, so be warned if you venture there at night. If you want to take a ghost tour of the destination, you have lots of options, from Gettysburg Ghost Tours and Civil War Ghosts to the Haunted Cellar Tour at Farnsworth House. Where to stay: Haunted lodging options abound in Gettysburg. Former hospital Balderry Inn, onetime school Federal Pointe Inn, and former field hospital Battlefield Bed & Breakfast are all said to offer highly spirited stays. 12. Eureka Springs, Arkansas You can hunt for ghosts at Basin Park Hotel. This Arkansas city is known for its preserved Victorian buildingsand its creepy side. Spots said to be haunted include Melonlight Theater, and Haunted Eureka Springs leads guided walking tours of downtown, including a visit to the citys underground tunnels. Haunted Grounds Coffee leans into the spooky vibe by serving hauntingly good coffee. Advertisement Advertisement Where to stay: Crescent Hotel & Spa is considered Americas Most Haunted Hotel and offers regular ghost tours (including one geared for kids). Not to be outdone, Basin Park Hotels Paranormal Investigation explores the sites most haunted spaces. 13. Atchison, Kansas Are you brave enough to stay the night at the Sallie House. Atchison is known as the most haunted place in Kansas. The northeastern Kansas city about 60 miles northwest of Kansas City was a major transportation hub and launching point for westward migration in the late 1800s, and it seems some of those folks traveling through never left. The Sallie House is the citys most well-known spooky spot, and you can book a self-guided tour or overnight stay if you dare. BACK TO NATURE: We love national parks, but these 12 state parks are just as awesome The 1889 McInteer Villa and Dilgert House are two other creepy sites that are sometimes open for tours. Learn about all of these spine-tingling tales on Haunted Trolley Tours of the city, or go ghost hunting at Atchisons haunted locales. Atchison also has ties to another kind of mystery as the birthplace of Amelia Earhart, and you can visit the house the aviation pioneer grew up in. Where to stay: If you dont want to brave an overnight at Sallie House, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Atchison is a safe choice. If you want a haunted hotel, both the Hotel Savoy Kansas City and The Elms Hotel & Spa are said to be home to resident ghosts. Dont believe in ghosts? You just might after visiting these haunted destinations around the US originally appeared on FamilyVacationist.com. More from FamilyVacationist: The views and opinions expressed in this column are the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of USA TODAY. FamilyVacationist.com and TourScoop.com are owned and operated by Vacationist Media LLC. Using the FamilyVacationist travel recommendation methodology, we review and select family vacation ideas, family vacation spots, all-inclusive family resorts, and classic family vacations for all ages. TourScoop covers guided group tours and tour operators, tour operator reviews, tour itinerary reviews and travel gear recommendations. If you buy an item through a link in our content, we may earn a commission. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Haunted hotels and ghostly getaways for a spooky fall escape Looking for a fun fall activity that isn't apple or pumpkin picking? A corn maze might be the perfect fit. With twisted pathways and intricate designs, a corn maze offers the perfect challenge for the whole family. Luckily, New Hampshire has plenty of mazes, often accompanied by attractions like hayrides, playgrounds, petting zoos and lots of seasonal sweet treats. Here are seven must-visit corn mazes to check out in New Hampshire this fall. Coppal House Farm is known for its labyrinth. This year, the farm unveiled Brown Bat Corn Maze, a 5-acre professionally designed bat-shaped labyrinth. Washburn's Windy Hill Orchard A family tradition for over 25 years, Washburn's Windy Hill Orchard is home to one of the first corn mazes in New Hampshire, complete with a new design across its five acres each year. Tickets to the maze are $5 per person, and children ages 3 and under enter for free. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Besides the corn maze, Windy Hill has thousands of pumpkins to pick from, a large apple orchard, hayrides and a gift shop. Be sure to end the day with a sweet treat from the bakery, where options include warm apple crisp, hot mulled cider, frozen apple cider, apple cider donuts and a cider donut ice cream sundae. When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday through Halloween Where: 66 Mason Road, Greenville Beans & Greens Farm Located in the Lakes region, this farm has a petting zoo, an award-winning farm stand, a deli and of course, one of the state's most difficult corn mazes, filled with challenging pathways, dead ends and loops. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This year, admission to the maze costs just $9 per person. For admission to the day maze, hay rides and the fun park, guests can pay $30 per person for the "fun on the farm" package. Fans of all things spooky can stay after hours on weekends for the special Fear Farm event, a maze of twisting dark rooms and halls in an abandoned greenhouse full of shocks and screams. Fear Farm tickets cost $30 per person. When: Corn maze open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily. Fear Farm open every Friday and Saturday in october from 7-10 p.m. Where: 245 Intervale Road, Gilford Moulton Farm Moulton Farm, a farm focused on sustainable agriculture just north of Lake Winnipesaukee, is home to a corn maze that has a different fun design each year, with this year's design looking like the cornucopia from the farm's logo. This year, Moulton has also added a new smaller maze perfect for children. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The cost to get lost in the maze is $12 for adults or $6 for children ages 3-6, with free admission for children under 3. When you get hungry from pumpkin picking, food options at the farm include a food truck with seasonal dishes, a farm-market with fresh goods and ready-to-eat meals, hot cider donuts from the Cider Bellies stand and pastries from the bakery. Moulton Farm also has pumpkins of all shapes and colors that can be picked from the patch or stand. When: 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily Where: 18 Quarry Road, Meredith Pumpkin picking season is here. Here are 7 must-visit patches in New Hampshire Sherman Farm Calling all trivia experts the corn maze at Sherman Farm is full of riddles, or as the farm calls them, cornundrums. Answer the questions correctly for clues to guide you in the right direction as you navigate the "Eat Local and Play Local" themed maze, with the paths outlining two cows. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Ticket prices for Sherman Farm's maze cost $15 per person over the age of two. Admission includes attractions like mini games, hayrides, a playground, a four-acre pumpkin patch and a petting zoo. Concession stands have food and fall favorites, including cider donuts, available for purchase. When: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday from Sept. 20 through Oct. 26 Where: 2679 E. Conway Road, Center Conway Coppal House Farm This year, Coppal House Farm has a butterfly-themed corn maze, complete with designs of Monarch butterflies and cocoons. Like Sherman Farm, this maze has trivia questions to guide you on the right path. However, answer the question wrong and you'll be sent the wrong way. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If cracking the trivia isn't enough of a challenge, Coppal House also offers nighttime mazes where visitors can try to find their way in the dark. On weekends, the farm accompanies the maze with horse-drawn wagon rides, live music, food trucks and more fun activities. Regular admission to the corn maze costs $10 for ages 13 and over or $8 for ages 5-12, and admission to the night maze costs $15 for ages 13 and older or $12 for ages 5-12. Those ages 4 and under always enter for free. When: Maze open from noon to 5 p.m. on Monday, Thursday and Friday or 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday. Night maze open from 6:30-9 p.m. on Sept. 27, Oct. 11 and Oct. 25. Where: 118 North River Road, Rt. 155, Lee Collins Farm The 13-acre fantasy-themed corn maze at Collins Farm is filled with dragons and castles, as well as hidden checkpoints and trivia questions sure to entertain all ages. Visitors can try their luck at navigating the maze during the day or in the dark during one of the farm's flashlight mazes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For an extra challenge full of spooky surprises, try Collin Farm's haunted maze. In their most popular attraction, participants must try to find all the hidden checkpoints in the maze while live actors and animations line the pathways ready to terrify anyone who passes. The maze costs $5 for ages 3-12 or $10-12 for ages 13 and older; the flashlight maze costs $6 for ages 3-12 or $12-14 for ages 13 and older; and the haunted maze costs $25-30 per person, depending on the chosen level. On-site concessions include corn dogs, mozzarella sticks, fried dough and deep-fried Oreos. When: Corn maze open from noon to sunset on Friday or 10 a.m. to sunset on Saturday and Sunday through Nov. 1. Flashlight maze open from sunset to 10 p.m. on Oct. 11-12, and haunted maze open from 6-10 p.m. on Oct. 17-18, Oct. 24-25, Oct. 31 and Nov. 1. Where: 285 Lisbon Road, Bath Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement NH fall foliage: New Hampshire has one of the best places to see fall colors, per USA TODAY. Here's where Beech Hill Farm Beech Hill Farm has not one, but two themed corn mazes. This year, the mazes' themes are "Yellowstone A National Park Scavenger Hunt" and "Where in the World?". These mazes are styled like a scavenger hunt, meaning participants must search for clues and complete puzzles to find their way. Entry to both mazes costs just $7 per person, and children ages 3 and under enter for free. After completing the maze, treat yourself to some ice cream from the ice cream barn, stocked with over 75 flavors of New England-made ice cream. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When: Noon until a half hour from dusk daily through Oct. 31 Where: 107 Beech Hill Road, Hopkinton This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Corn mazes in New Hampshire: 7 must-visit mazes for this fall From charming, underrated towns to breathtaking mountain views, Virginia has lots of fascinating pockets to explore. But anyone seeking culture with a side of ice-cold beer shouldn't skip Virginia's capital city Richmond. Located in the east-central part of the state, it's a must-visit. Not only has it earned itself a reputation as a diverse city, but it's also Virginia's beer capital, with several popular craft breweries calling the city home. Beyond beer, Richmond boasts a diverse culture, offering a wealth of festivals, local eateries, and historic landmarks worth exploring. To get here, fly into Richmond International Airport, or opt for public transportation with Amtrak or Greyhound, both of which operate in downtown Richmond. If driving, Richmond is at the intersection of I-95 and I-64, making it easily accessible from other U.S. cities like Washington, D.C. (around two hours by car), and Philadelphia (just over four hours by car). You'll find lots of accommodation options in Virginia's state capital. But the Quirk Hotel, a high-design hotel with its own art gallery, is an unbeatable option for style and comfort. Read more: How To Pack Just One Carry-On For A Week-Long Vacation A rich culture in Richmond, VA Vendors at Richmond Folk Festival - Imageforge/Shutterstock Richmond's multi-cultural community makes this city stand out, from its over 100 Black-owned businesses, to its cultural institutions like the historic Hippodrome Theater which has hosted legendary performers like Billie Holiday, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington. Richmond's culinary scene reflects this diversity, and you can find everything from Ethiopian to Salvadoran fare. If you're looking for Greek cuisine, Stella's is one of Richmond's top-rated restaurants on Tripadvisor, and has been around since the early '80s. Advertisement Advertisement And when it comes to soul food, you can't skip Mama J's Kitchen, a beloved Black-owned restaurant in the historic Jackson Ward neighborhood, known as the "Harlem of the South." One Tripadvisor reviewer said, "A great place for an authentic, home-cooked meal. The fried chicken is terrific, and the mac-and-cheese is the best I've ever had." If you can, don't miss a chance to celebrate Richmond's cultural fabric at one of its events, such as the Armenian Food Festival, the RVA Latino Festival, or the Richmond Folk Festival, a free event that celebrates the diversity of the United States through food, dance, music, crafts, and more. You'll also find Virginia's largest LGBTQ+ Pride event here, VA Pridefest. Richmond's celebrated beer scene Draft beer on a bar - Anton Vierietin/Shutterstock Much like Indianapolis, an overlooked Midwest city with plenty of craft beer, Richmond is a great destination for beer aficionados. With over 30 different acclaimed breweries in the region, Richmond gives you plenty of spots to kick back with a cold one. Hardywood was one of the city's only craft breweries when it first opened back in 2011, and it has since picked up accolades at the Great American Beer Festival, the World Beer Cup, and the Australian International Beer Awards. It was also selected as Virginia's top brewery by users of RateBeer.com in 2014, 2015, and 2016. On its menu, you'll find an array of year-round offerings, brews with locally-sourced ingredients like Virginia honey and blackberries, stouts, IPAs, and more. Triple Crossing is another local favorite, serving a rotating array of craft beers alongside Neapolitan pizzas and small plates in their Downtown location. "Triple Crossing is possibly my favorite brewery in the country, definitely don't miss it," said a Redditor in r/CraftBeer. "Lagers and IPAs are incredible there, very good pizza, too." And although not a brewery, the Vietnamese eatery Mekong was awarded America's Best Beer Bar by CraftBeer.com in 2012 and 2013, thanks to its extensive lineup of premium beverages. "Beer selection is one of the best I've ever seen (my wife and I travel for beer)," said one Yelp reviewer. Ready to discover more hidden gems and expert travel tips? Subscribe to our free newsletter for access to the world's best-kept travel secrets. Read the original article on Islands. Boston is one of the world's greenest cities, and nowhere is this more apparent than when you slip through the iron gates of the Arnold Arboretum in Jamaica Plain. You'd never guess that a 281-acre sanctuary lies just beyond that entrance. With its rolling hills, winding paths, and some of the most spectacular autumn displays in New England, the arboretum feels worlds away from city life. Frederick Law Olmsted the same landscape architect who designed Central Park planned the Arnold Arboretum as part of his ambitious Emerald Necklace. The "necklace" is a magnificent 7-mile chain of parks stretching from Boston Common (home to America's oldest public park), all the way through Brookline and Jamaica Plain. It's a shame that so many people overlook this remarkable collection of over 15,000 plants right in Boston's backyard, collected from temperate zones across the globe and curated by Harvard University for over 150 years. The Arboretum hosts about 70 different maple species alone, along with rare specimens like ginkgo trees that don't exist anywhere else in the wild. There are also Franklin trees, which bloom with delicate white flowers just as their leaves turn fire red. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Read more: The 5 Best Parks Where You Can See Bison Roam (Other Than Yellowstone), According To Visitors Appreciate fall colors at their peak in Boston's Arnold Arboretum Autumn view from Peters Hill with the Boston skyline - Monika Salvan/Shutterstock While wandering around without a plan still makes for a wonderful time in Arnold Arboretum especially when fall is in full swing it probably means you'll miss the best trails. For the perfect warm-up loop, start at the Forest Hills gate in Jamaica Plain and head for Bussey Hill. Being at the heart of the arboretum, you get a sense of the incredible scope you're dealing with. From there, make your way to Peters Hill for the best vistas. This is the highest point in the entire Emerald Necklace system, and the view over the foliage canopy with Boston's skyline peeking through is breathtaking. The climb up Peters Hill Road takes you through hawthorns and crabapples that show off brilliant reds and oranges during fall. When you reach the summit area, you'll find one of the world's most important ginkgo collections, which turn a lovely shade of yellow when the temperature drops. Along Meadow Road, you'll pass through the katsura trees, which release a distinctly sweet scent when their leaves age that's reminiscent of passing by a bakery. It's also here where you'll encounter the iconic maple trees, all 70 different species of them side by side. You can compare how dramatically leaf shape, color timing, and intensity vary across this well-known genus. Michael Dosmann, who holds the rather enchanting title of "Keeper of the Living Collections," points out in an interview with The Boston Globe that most people only know sugar maples. This is why it's so impressive that the arboretum's international maple collection shows fall colors in every conceivable hue and pattern. And if you return in spring, the arboretum's six different cherry varieties also make it one of the country's top cherry-blossom viewing spots, with the trees blooming at staggered intervals throughout April. Ready to discover more hidden gems and expert travel tips? Subscribe to our free newsletter for access to the world's best-kept travel secrets. Read the original article on Islands. DONA ANA COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE) In southern New Mexico, theres a small town with a lot of history. Mesilla is home to a variety of local shops and restaurants, all just ten minutes away from Las Cruces. If youre looking for a day trip in New Mexico, its a town worth considering. Stop by the farmers market Mobile Farmer's Market_608196 According to the Town of Mesilla, this is one of the oldest mercados in the US. It started back in 1857. It boasts hand-crafted jewelry, original artwork, and local produce. The market is held weekly at the Mesilla plaza from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Fridays and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sundays. More information is available on the towns website. Check out the Billy the Kid Gift Shop Historian seeks death certificate to end Billy the Kid dispute The history of Billy the Kid is scattered throughout the southwest, and specifically, New Mexico. Mesilla also has its fair share of history involving the outlaw. In fact, the small town is where Billy the Kid was tried for murder in April of 1881. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Cut to today, and the building once holding that courtroom is now known as the Billy the Kid Gift Shop. You can find souvenirs, fine art, espresso, fudge, and more. The shop located at 2385 Calle De is open every day from 11 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Catch a film (AdobeStock) On Calle De Guadalup, theres a historic arthouse cinema where you can check out movies for young and old alike. For October, the Fountain Theatre has some Halloween flicks to choose from. You can find the showings online. Support local Mesilla has a variety of local cafes, restaurants, and breweries/wineries to choose from. You can find some of those options below: Andele Restaurant Andeles Dog House Cafe de Mesilla Cafe Don Felix de Mesilla Chalas Wood Fire Grill Double Eagle Dry Point Distillers Hacienda de Mesilla La Posta Restaurant and Cantina Luna Rossa Winery New Mexico Pecan DCompany NM Vintage Wines Peppers Cafe Salud! de Mesilla Spotted Dog Brewery The Bean Take a tour To better see the town, you can take part in one of the tours offered in the area: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Frontier Adventures Horse-drawn vehicles available for any size group La Morena Walking Tours A fifth-generation native historian holds a walking tour including historic battle sites Southwest Expeditions Custom tours with professional guides If a museum is more your style, then Mesilla offers the Gadsden Museum and Reynolds Store Visitor Center. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Rising life expectancies and improved options to move abroad are fuelling so-called "retirement migration". Unsure of where to spend your 'golden years'? According to the 2025 Global Retirement Report, the best countries to relocate to are Portugal, Mauritius, and Spain, followed by Uruguay and Austria. Compiled by Global Citizen Solutions, the report lists 44 destinations, only including those with official retirement visa programmes. "International retirement migration is shifting from a niche choice to a mainstream one for people prioritising quality of life, safety, affordability, and stability," Dr. Laura Madrid, lead researcher of the study, told Euronews Business. When it comes to retirement visa programmes, more than 36% of all opportunities are available in the Americas and nearly 32% in Europe, according to the report. However, it found that these programmes have also started to appear in Asia and Africa. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The countries offering visa schemes were scored out of 100, based on factors like ease of relocation, cost of living, and tax benefits for retirees. Most nations featured in the report have implemented several measures to boost the comfort of their citizens, with over 70% of them boasting above-average healthcare, top-level environmental standards, as well as ranking highly for wellbeing. The majority, 93%, also offer clear pathways to citizenship, with half of the countries allowing applicants to acquire citizenship in five years or less. In an effort to attract high-net-worth individuals, nearly two-thirds of the countries, 61%, offer tailored tax benefits for retirees, including Greece, Malta and Cyprus. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Application costs and safety are also priorities in approximately two-thirds of these programmes, with European countries, including France, Portugal, Spain, and Austria, scoring highly here. Related Which countries are the best to retire in and why? Overall, European countries stand out in the ranking thanks to their high quality of life, good healthcare, and environmental standards. Added to this, if you have a residence visa for a Schengen country, you can travel freely across all 27 Schengen countries for short stays. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Within the bloc, Southern Europe appears to have won the race with its special tax regimes coupled with a Mediterranean lifestyle. Illustration: Cliff over Benagil Beach in Portugal - Canva With 32% of global retirement visa options, Europe leads on healthcare, safety, and integration, while southern hubs like Portugal, Spain, and Greece add mild climates, manageable costs, and retiree-friendly passive income visas," Madrid said. According to the report, Portugal tops the overall list of the most favourable retirement visa schemes across the globe. "Portugal tops our 2025 Global Retirement Index as the D7 visa is one of Europe's most sought-after passive income visas," said Adalberto Pucca, head of global mobility services at Global Citizen Solutions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Its appeal stems from a combination of accessible entry requirements and a clear pathway to Portuguese permanent residency and citizenship," he added. "Beyond the visa itself, Portugal offers compelling fundamentals that matter most to retirees: a significantly lower cost of living compared to other Western European countries, excellent healthcare infrastructure, credible tax planning... a mild climate with strong environmental scores, one of Europes safest societies and an exceptional quality of life." Another highly-ranked country is Spain, named the third-best destination for retirees, while Austria is considered the fifth-best option across the globe. Western European countries are often preferred for their world-class public healthcare systems, with countries like France, Austria, and Spain, standing out. Destinations on the other side of the Atlantic are also considered good choices due to their tax efficiency and lower cost of living for foreigners. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Countries in the Americas offer generous tax exemptions for foreign-sourced income, while the cost of living is generally lower than in Europe. Latin American destinations such as Paraguay, Uruguay, and Argentina are known for granting permanent residency either immediately or after short periods, whereas places in the Caribbean and Central America like Panama, Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador and Nicaragua often provide immediate tax relief for retirees and broad exemptions on foreign-sourced income. Asian programmes, including those in Thailand, Malaysia, and the Philippines, offer a mix of warm weather all year round and relatively low income requirements coupled with easy visa renewals. At African destinations like Mauritius and Cape Verde, simple tax systems and explicit exemptions on foreign pensions are coupled with a multicultural environment. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Many countries are eager to welcome international retirees as these individuals can boost consumer spending, even though locals may suffer if living costs are pushed higher by wealthy expats. Portugals Golden Visa and D7 programmes have collectively generated over 7 billion in foreign direct investment since their inception, much of it channelled directly into the real estate sector. In Spain, similar programmes have attracted more than 4.5bn between 2014 and 2023, although Madrid has now stopped its golden visa programme for real estate investors. Who among us hasn't imagined taking a leisurely gondola ride along the Canal Grande in Venice? Inching along at a walker's pace under stone bridges and past ancient architecture to the tune of Italian ballads is everyone's dream. Luckily, you don't have to book tickets to Europe to experience this classic Venetian experience. La Gondola in Providence, Rhode Island has the perfect dose of Italy on the water that you're looking for, plus it doesn't break the bank like the not exactly budget-friendly gondola rides in Venice might. Offering 40-minute, personalized gondola rides along the Providence and Woonasquatucket Rivers, the rides cost just upwards of $40 per person. La Gondola's beautiful, sleek boats are guided by expert gondoliers who are well-versed in Venetian history and culture, and unique inclusions like Italian wine biscuits also enhance the journey as you glide along. A gondola ride in Rhode Island isn't as incongruous as you may think, as Providence is known as the "Renaissance City" due in part to its preserved historical buildings. The Rhode Island city is also famous for its edgy art school and has vintage shopping, and has its own Little Italy neighborhood. Read more: The American Habit That Screams Tourist And Baffles Europeans, According To Rick Steves' Protege La Gondola has a variety of tour packages Two gondolas glide on the river in Providence, Rhode Island - only_in_rhode_island/Instagram How extravagant you want to feel is up to you when you book a tour with La Gondola. The Viaggio dei Sogni (dream trip) starts at $89 for two passengers and comes with an ice bucket, glasses, and a bottle opener. You're allowed to BYOB, but Prosecco pairs well with snacks like the Italian wine biscuits that are included. As you cruise, sip, and nibble, your gondolier points out key Providence sights and also sings a song or two in Italian (requests welcome). Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If you love music, book the Viaggio da Rapsodia (rhapsody journey) tour. Starting at $139 for two people, you'll get everything included in the Viaggio dei Sogni, plus your choice of a mandolin, guitar, violin, accordion, or saxophone musician. They'll play as you pass by historical landmarks, public parks, and under bridges, making it a unique date for a couple or a small gathering of friends. One boat can hold up to six people, and if you divide $299 by that, the price is reasonable. La Gondola also offers the Viaggio di Fantasme (ghost trip) tour, a spooky ride in October that's perfect for ghost-story lovers. Get ready to clutch each other while getting told spooky tales about Providence's riverwalk, a 2.4-mile stretch of waterfront mainstays that date back to the late 1800s. Blankets and umbrellas are provided, and if weather dictates, you may want change your BYOB to flasks of hot tea or apple cider. Whatever tour you choose with La Gondola, you'll be glad you skipped the tourist traps in Italy and came to Providence instead. La Gondola tours are popular, and although it's possible to do walk-ins if a gondola is available, it's best to make a reservation. Ready to discover more hidden gems and expert travel tips? Subscribe to our free newsletter for access to the world's best-kept travel secrets. Read the original article on Islands. Are you into dark and shocking stories? Subscribe to the That Got Dark newsletter to get your weekly dopamine fix of the macabre delivered RIGHT to your inbox! BuzzFeed Recently, Reddit user nichtwarum posed the question , "What has been clearly proven to be a government cover-up?," to the good folks over at r/AskReddit . And their responses will shock you (or maybe not). Check it out: 1. "The forced sterilizations of Native American women on reservations in the 1960s, etc, were covered up so well that most people don't know it happened." MEC Collection / Alamy BookLuvr7 What happened: In the late 1960s and 1970s, the US Indian Health Service (IHS) a federal agency responsible for providing medical care to Native American and Alaska Native communities sterilized thousands of Native American women, often without their full consent. Many women were misled, pressured, or not properly informed about the procedure, which was sometimes described as reversible. A 1976 US Government Accountability Office (GAO) investigation confirmed widespread violations of consent rules, estimating that at least 3,400 women were sterilized in just a few years with later research suggesting the real number may have been much higher. 2. "Marijuana was made a Schedule I drug under President Nixon as part of a broader political strategy to criminalize anti-war 'hippies' and Black communities, who were portrayed as the main users of the drug. Members of Nixon's staff confirmed this decades later." Denver Post / Denver Post via Getty Images Briaaanz Related: People Are Spilling Their Juiciest, Dirty Little Secrets, And Honestly, Some Of Them Are Shockingly Bold What happened: In 1970, President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act, which classified marijuana as a Schedule I drug supposedly the most dangerous category alongside heroin. That decision wasnt based on science: Nixons own Shafer Commission later recommended decriminalizing marijuana, but he ignored it. Instead, as Nixon aide John Ehrlichman later admitted, the administration used drug laws to target its political enemies linking marijuana to antiwar hippies and heroin to Black communities. By criminalizing both, they could disrupt and discredit those groups. The result was the start of the modern "war on drugs," built not on evidence but on politics and racism. 3. "Operation Condor CIA staging coups and disrupting elections in order to install dictatorships in Latin and South America." NORBERTO DUARTE / AFP via Getty Images Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement EffectSubject2676 What happened: Operation Condor was a secret plan created in the 1970s by several South American military governments including Chile, Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay, and Brazil to track down and eliminate people they saw as political threats. Under the banner of fighting communism, these regimes worked together to kidnap, torture, and disappear thousands of activists, journalists, students, and ordinary citizens. The operation was carried out in total secrecy: officials destroyed records, lied to families, and denied that the missing people had ever existed. Declassified documents later revealed that the CIA and other US agencies were aware of Condors activities and even shared intelligence with the participating governments, viewing them as allies in the Cold War. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The truth didnt fully come to light until 1992, when the Archives of Terror were discovered in Paraguay, exposing how multiple governments backed by covert US involvement had hidden one of the largest state-run terror campaigns in modern history. 4. "During the Bush administration, there was a conspiracy that the government had warrantless wiretapping on everyone's cell phones and was listening to anyone they wanted to at any time. Of course, this was illegal. It turned out to be true, and AT&T and Verizon, who helped with it, were sued. Bush/Congress basically 'bailed them out' by passing a new law." Bloomberg / Bloomberg via Getty Images Brilliant-Noise1518 What happened: The NSAs warrantless surveillance program, also known as the Terrorist Surveillance Program, began after 9/11 when the Bush administration secretly authorized the NSA to monitor Americans phone calls, emails, and internet activity without court warrants. The government claimed it was meant to track terrorists, but the program ended up sweeping up data from millions of ordinary people. Companies like AT&T and Verizon helped by giving the NSA access to their networks. When the program was exposed in 2005, it caused a massive public backlash and several lawsuits over privacy violations. But, instead of ending it, Congress passed the FISA Amendments Act of 2008, which made the surveillance legal after the fact and granted the phone companies immunity all justified under the banner of national security. 5. "Surprised to not have seen Watergate here. Its now just accepted as a cold-hard fact, but before that it was widely just considered conspiratorial." Bettmann / Bettmann Archive AintGoingtoGoa Related: "I've Never Said A Word About It In Real Life": 19 Juicy, Hilarious, And Devastating Secrets That People Only Revealed Under The Condition Of Anonymity What happened: The Watergate scandal began in 1972, when men connected to President Richard Nixons re-election campaign were caught breaking into the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate office complex in Washington, D.C. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement What started as a small burglary quickly exploded into a massive political scandal when it was revealed that top White House officials had organized and funded the break-in and then tried to cover it up by bribing witnesses, destroying evidence, and misusing government agencies like the FBI and CIA to obstruct the investigation. The Nixon administration repeatedly denied involvement, but secret tape recordings from the Oval Office later proved the president had been directly involved in the cover-up. Facing certain impeachment, Nixon resigned in 1974, becoming the first US president to do so. 6. "The Tuskegee Experiment." Gado Images / Alamy Subject_Owl_2500 What happened: The Tuskegee Syphilis Study was a racist and unethical 40-year medical experiment carried out by the US government, where Black men with syphilis were deliberately left untreated. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement From 1932 to 1972, the study involved hundreds of poor Black men in Alabama who had syphilis but were never told they had the disease. Instead of treating them, doctors studied how the illness would progress if left untreated even after penicillin became the standard cure in the 1940s. The men were misled and denied proper care for decades, which caused serious harm and death. The study only ended after a news report exposed it, leading to public outrage and a formal government apology in 1997. 7. "MKUltra." Everett Collection Historical / Alamy phoenixxl What happened: MKUltra was a highly secretive human CIA experimentation program that tested mind control techniques, often without subjects consent. It began in 1953 and ran through the 1960s. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The program consisted of a series of projects that experimented with mind control techniques often without peoples knowledge or consent. They tested drugs like LSD, hypnosis, and other methods on prisoners, hospital patients, and even regular citizens, hoping to learn how to control thoughts or extract secrets. Many people were harmed, and some were permanently affected or died. The project was kept hidden until the 1970s, when it was exposed by journalists and government investigations. 8. "The US Department of the Treasury poisoned alcohol during Prohibition and people died." Buyenlarge / Getty Images KTPChannel Related: "My Alarm Bells Were Going Off": People Are Sharing Their Wildest "I Fing Knew It" Moments That Prove You Should ALWAYS Trust Your Gut What happened: During Prohibition, when alcohol was banned in the US from 1920 to 1933, the Treasury Department tried to stop bootleggers from using stolen industrial alcohol to make illegal liquor by poisoning it with chemicals like methanol, benzene, and kerosene. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The idea was to make the alcohol undrinkable and scare people away from drinking. But bootleggers kept selling it anyway, and thousands of unsuspecting Americans were poisoned or killed after consuming tainted liquor. Even after officials knew people were dying, the government basically "shrugged it off" and kept the poisoning program in place for years until Prohibition ended. It's estimated that at least 10,000 people were killed as a result. 9. "COINTELPRO. But it's not that well-known today, sadly." Bettmann / Bettmann Archive blueredscreen What happened: COINTELPRO (short for Counter-Intelligence Program) was a secret FBI operation that ran from the 1950s to the early 1970s, aimed at spying on, infiltrating, and sabotaging American political and activist groups. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Under FBI Director J. Edgar Hoover, the agency targeted civil rights leaders, antiVietnam War protesters, feminists, socialists, and especially the Black Panthers even trying to discredit Martin Luther King Jr. through blackmail and fake letters. Agents wiretapped phones, spread false rumors, and used undercover informants to sow distrust within movements. The programs existence was completely hidden from the public until 1971, when activists broke into an FBI office in Pennsylvania and leaked documents to the press. The files exposed years of illegal government surveillance and harassment, making COINTELPRO one of the most notorious government cover-ups in US history. 10. "Flint Water Crisis. The first class action was led by three people who died in mysterious ways. We were lied to about whether the water was tainted for a long time. Millions of dollars were never used for the water. There were cases and cases of water just stuck inside abandoned schools. And no one went to jail despite everyone acknowledging that they knew the water was tainted." Mark Wilson / Getty Images ExistingHurtsALilBit What happened: The Flint Water Crisis began in 2014, when the city of Flint, Michigan, switched its water supply from Detroits treated system to the Flint River to cut costs. The new water was highly corrosive, and because officials failed to add proper anti-corrosion treatment, lead from aging pipes leached into the citys drinking water. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For more than a year, government officials insisted the water was safe, even as residents complained of rashes, hair loss, and brown, foul-smelling tap water. Independent scientists and doctors later proved Flints water contained dangerously high levels of lead, especially in children. Internal emails showed that state and federal agencies knew about the contamination long before they admitted it, and they tried to downplay or hide the truth to avoid responsibility. The crisis became one of the worst examples of environmental injustice and government cover-ups in modern US history. 11. "Rocketdyne Nuclear Meltdown in Simi Valley. Truly a wild story. Essentially, they tested a sodium reactor here, it melted down, and they told no one all right on the edge of Los Angeles." Anacleto Rapping / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images echoparkshark What happened: The Rocketdyne Nuclear Meltdown happened in 1959 at the Santa Susana Field Laboratory near Simi Valley, California, where the company Rocketdyne was testing a small nuclear reactor for the US government. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A cooling failure caused part of the reactors core to melt down, releasing radioactive gases into the air. Instead of warning the public, officials from Rocketdyne and the Atomic Energy Commission kept the accident secret, claiming nothing dangerous had happened. In reality, later reports showed the meltdown may have released a massive amount of radiation estimated at hundreds of times the level considered safe for human exposure. Nearby residents were never told or evacuated, and the site remained contaminated for years. The truth only came out decades later through whistleblowers and investigations, revealing a massive government and corporate cover-up that put thousands of people at risk while pretending everything was fine. 12. "Operation Paperclip. The US Army and Office of Strategic Services (predecessor to the CIA) brought Nazi scientists, including those involved in war crimes, to the US to work on aerospace and weapons programs." Donaldson Collection / Getty Images Jumpy_Childhood7548 Related: These 25 Tweets Made Me Laugh So Hard I Almost Forgot About All The Terrible Things Happening Right Now What happened: Operation Paperclip was a secret US government program launched after World War II to recruit German scientists, engineers, and technicians many of whom had worked for the Nazi regime and bring them to America. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The goal was to use their expertise in rocketry, weapons, and aerospace technology before the Soviet Union could capture them. More than 1,600 Germans were secretly relocated to the US, including Wernher von Braun, who later helped develop the rockets that took astronauts to the Moon. To avoid public outrage, US officials covered up these scientists Nazi ties, altered immigration records, and claimed theyd been cleared of wrongdoing. The program stayed secret until the 1980s, when declassified government documents and investigative journalists revealed its details to the public, exposing how the US had quietly brought former Nazi scientists to America and covered up their pasts. 13. "The Gulf of Tonkin Incident When the US government falsely claimed that North Vietnamese forces attacked US Navy ships in 1964 in order to justify escalating the Vietnam War." Universal History Archive / Universal History Archive/Universal Images Group via Getty Images, Bettmann / Bettmann Archive Jumpy_Childhood7548 What happened: In 1964, the US government claimed that North Vietnamese patrol boats had attacked American Navy ships in the Gulf of Tonkin. President Lyndon B. Johnson and the Department of Defense used this claim to convince Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, which gave him broad authority to escalate the Vietnam War. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While one minor skirmish did occur, later investigations revealed that the second reported attack never happened. Declassified documents and the Pentagon Papers later proved that US officials knew the evidence was false or uncertain, but used it anyway to justify entering the war. 14. Finally, the Franklin Credit Union Scandal (which technically isn't proven, but is still highly sus) "This happened in the late '80s, Omaha, Nebraska. It was a national child sex ring involving prominent politicians, business leaders, etc. I lived in Omaha at the time, and as I recall, one of the accusers went to jail for perjury, but it was all swept under the rug. If Epstein infuriates you, this will infuriate you even more. The private investigator who had info on all of this died in a plane crash with his 8-year-old son as this was all coming to a head. The Discovery Channel was supposed to put out a documentary on it that got axed at the last minute. It can still be seen online ." Discovery Channel / Via youtube.com Red_Stripe1229 What happened: In the late 1980s, the Franklin Community Federal Credit Union in Omaha, Nebraska, collapsed amid evidence that its manager, Lawrence E. Larry King Jr., had embezzled nearly $40 million. As investigators and legislators probed the missing funds, allegations emerged that King had used or was connected to a network of child sexual abuse involving minors from foster care, hosting parties, providing gifts, money, trips, etc. Some alleged that powerful local and national figures were involved. The allegations, emerging amid the national Satanic Panic, soon became entangled with the financial scandal and drew widespread media attention. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 1990, both a Nebraska state grand jury and a federal grand jury concluded that the abuse/sex trafficking allegations were unfounded, calling them a carefully crafted hoax. Some accusers (notably Alisha Owens) were indicted for perjury, and Owens was convicted. King, meanwhile, pleaded guilty to financial fraud in 1991 and was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Still, questions lingered. Investigators and journalists have noted missing or sealed records related to the case, conflicting witness testimony, and parts of the investigation suddenly being cut short. These inconsistencies, combined with the sudden cancellation of the 1994 documentary Conspiracy of Silence, which was about the scandal, have fueled decades of speculation that the full truth behind the Franklin case was never revealed. Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity. Love this kind of content? Subscribe to the That Got Dark newsletter to get more like it delivered RIGHT to your inbox! BuzzFeed Also in Internet Finds: 19 True Crime Cases That Were So Wild And Upsetting, The Truth Was Almost Unguessable Also in Internet Finds: These 17 Disturbing Images Are Giving Me The Physical Creeps, And Now You Have To Look At Them Too Also in Internet Finds: My Extremely Naive And Innocent Brain Wept After Learning About These Dark True Crime Cases Read it on BuzzFeed.com HICKMAN COUNTY, Tenn. (WKRN) Fatalities have been reported after an explosion Friday morning at a military explosives manufacturing plant in Tennessee, officials said. Eighteen people were still unaccounted for Friday afternoon after the explosion earlier that morning at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said. Though he didnt specify a number, he confirmed fatalities. Accurate Energetic Systems plant explosion: A look at past safety violations at the Tennessee facility Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Theres nothing to describe, Davis said, when asked to describe what the facility looked like. The buildings gone. The explosion took place around 7:45 a.m. at the plant located in Bucksnort, a territory along the Hickman/Humphreys county line. Accurate Energetic Systems, per its website, makes and tests explosives at the eight-building facility, which sprawls across wooded hills near Bucksnort, a town about 60 miles southwest of Nashville. The blast reportedly encompassed an entire building that was on the facility grounds. Davis said the families of those involved were a major priority, though he said at a later press conference that the sheriffs office had so far been unable to update affected families on the status of their loved ones. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a statement, AES said: At approximately 7:45am this morning, there was a tragic accident at our facility. Emergency response teams and investigative agencies remain on scene, and the situation is under active investigation. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, coworkers, and community members affected by this incident. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions. We will provide updates as more verified information becomes available. Though some survivors were taken to a local hospital for treatment, it appeared there would be few major updates about the others into Friday evening. Do I see a short-term explanation? No, said Sheriff Davis on Friday. Do I see us being here for many days? Yes, I do see that. The incident is now being investigated by Tennessees Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), in addition to local authorities. Troops will miss paychecks next week without action on the government shutdown Public records show that Accurate Energetic Systems sold numerous types of weapons to the U.S. military and has been awarded numerous military contracts to manufacture a variety of munitions and explosives. The contracts, which were awarded largely by the Army and Navy, were for a variety of products that ranged from bulk explosives to landmines and small breaching charges used to get through doors. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The company also uses the sprawling campus to test explosives, according to its website, measuring the velocity of explosions as well as their impact on surrounding areas under varying environmental conditions. The website says that facilities can safely accommodate explosives with up to 35 pounds of net explosive weight, and conducts daily tests. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) The New Mexico Environment Department is warning visitors to use caution at Quemado and Snow lakes in the Gila National Forest because of the formation of harmful algae blooms. Harmful algae blooms, or HABs, occur when certain types of algae grow excessively in water, posing potential health risks to people and animals. HABs can appear blue, bright green, brown or red and may resemble scum or floating grass clippings on the waters surface, NMED said. These blooms can produce toxins that are harmful to humans and animals, NMED said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement NMED is urging visitors to take the following precautions: Do not drink untreated surface water. Do not swim in algae blooms. Rinse fish with clean water prior to cooking thoroughly and eat only the fillet portion. Keep pets and livestock out of the water and rinse them with clean water if contact occurs. Avoid algae on the shoreline and do not let animals eat it. Supervise children and pets and do not let them ingest water and algae. If you suspect an algae-related illness, call the New Mexico Poison Information Center at (800) 222-1222. For illness in animals, call (888) 426-4435 or the Pet Poison Helpline at (855) 764-7661. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement NMED continues to actively monitor lake conditions as resources allow. The department reminds the public: If the water smells bad or looks scummy like grass clippings floating on the surface, thick like paint, or pea-green, blue-green or brownish red in color its best to stay out. You can learn more about harmful algae blooms by clicking here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) Shots were reportedly fired Wednesday afternoon on a north Columbus interstate, leading to the road being shut down. About 1:25 p.m., Columbus police ordered the closure of Interstate 270 East between Worthington Galena Road and the Interstate 71 interchange after officers responded to reports of shots fired in the area. Former Ohio State receiver faces homicide charges after Pennsylvania ATV crash Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Traffic was backed up all the way to Dublin Road. Police were seen turning around traffic to go west on the eastbound shoulder of I-270 and then exit the roadway using the U.S. 23 entrance ramps. As of about 4:45 p.m., the highway had reopened, according to the Ohio Department of Transportation. Traffic is at a standstill on I-270 East after a reported shooting. (NBC4/Gregory OLeary) All exit ramps onto I-270 East from U.S. 23 and State Route 315 were also closed during the investigation. Columbus police said there were reports of a business that was struck. NBC4 spoke with a driver who said she was on the highway when she saw dozens of police cruisers fly by. Traffic came to an abrupt stop. I was just thankful that my husband had the foresight to have our kids get picked up from carpool, because Im like I should be at school right now, so Im just hoping they get this figured out quickly, Rita Bullock said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Find live traffic conditions at this link. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. EAST LONGMEADOW The next time East Longmeadow Fire Department Engine 2 answers an emergency call, it will be blaring down the dusty streets of Salinas a poor town on the coast of Ecuador. The truck was auctioned off by the Fire Department and bought by a nonprofit organization that is donating the firefighting apparatus to the South American nation. It has never left this town, other than mutual aid, so the fact that its going to another country and providing for fire protection, thats pretty impressive, East Longmeadow Fire Chief Christopher Beecher told The Republican. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement East Longmeadow purchased Engine 2 for about $200,000 as a new vehicle in 1994. It was the towns front-line engine for 15 years. It was the first engine out the door and first to respond on scene, said Beecher. Then in 2009, it was replaced and became our backup engine, which we used for additional response in town or mutual aid in another town. Engine 2 has been replaced by a modern, million-dollar engine with state-of-the-art computers, cameras, sensors and safety features. The old truck had logged 42,640 miles, and while it has passed all recent state and federal inspections, it was old and had to be sold. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The truck runs fine, and it passed its pump testing with no issues. Its just based on age. Its a 30-plus-year-old vehicle, not that the miles are high, but it doesnt have a lot of safety features the newer engines have, the chief explained. Going twice, three times The truck sold for $5,000 on Municibid, an online auction site that allows schools and governments to sell used or surplus items. Engine911Fund, based in Brooklyn, New York, was the only bidder and won the truck. The organization raises money to purchase fire apparatus and ambulances that it gives for free to poor nations, including the Dominican Republic, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and the Galapagos Islands. The groups president said hes been to Salinas to see for himself the claims of desperation and now knows how much the local Fire Department could use East Longmeadows truck. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They sent me an email that they need trucks, ambulances, whatever they can get, said Wilton Taveras. I went on an inspection there and saw they have old engines and old ambulances, and were trying to help them. Taveras said East Longmeadows old Engine 2 will replace a truck in Salinas that is nearly 50 years old, unreliable and cant be counted on to work in an emergency. Check under the hood Bidders were allowed to see the truck at the East Longmeadow fire station, kick the tires, test the lights and siren, and take it for a spin around town but Taveras bought it sight unseen. I called the chief, and he told me its in good shape and working properly. I trust him, said Taveras. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement East Longmeadow bought its new truck using a $700,000 federal grant, with the town paying the balance of the million-dollar sticker price. By getting funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the town promised not to sell its old engine to a fire department in the U.S. The town might have hoped to generate more than five grand, but there is a flurry of used fire trucks for sale these days, said Greg Berry, CEO of Municibid. There are a lot of departments selling fire trucks, and the market is not huge for it, so its a supply and demand issue. The prices are all over the place, so it comes down to who the buyer is and what they need it for, along with the condition and quality of the truck. Old fire trucks can serve a lot of purposes, according to the fire chief and Municibid CEO. Ladder trucks can be used by landscaping companies to trim high branches on trees; collectors buy and show the trucks in parades; off-road racing organizations use pumpers to wet the tracks; and entrepreneurs turn fire trucks into roadside food trucks. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Chief Beecher joked that he and some of his crew thought about using the truck to cook and sell pizza. Engine911 President Taveras expects the truck to land in Ecuador by January, when he and other firefighters in his organization will train Ecuadoran first-responders on how to use it. I travel to a lot of different countries. I know the people dont have anything, and they need our help, he said. When Beecher put the truck on the auction block, he had no idea where it would end up and never imagined it will be helping poor people a world away. Its still a very useful truck; theres a lot of life left in it, he said. For it to go somewhere and do some good, Im all for it. Read the original article on MassLive. Add MassLive as a Preferred Source by clicking here. Officials from three different African nations have said they wont let the US deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia to their countries, potentially frustrating the Trump administrations plans to keep him in custody. The rejections two of which were revealed by a senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement official in a Maryland courtroom on Friday could lead a federal judge to order the administration to release Abrego Garcia from immigration custody for now, if she decides that his deportation does not appear imminent. The countries Uganda, Eswatini and Ghana have said at various points in recent weeks that they would not allow Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man unlawfully deported to El Salvador in mid-March and later brought back to the US to face human smuggling charges, to be put on a plane and sent to their territories. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Under a 2019 court order, US officials are barred from sending Abrego Garcia to El Salvador, his home country, which he fled years earlier amid threats of gang violence. US District Judge Paula Xinis did not rule Friday on the request from Abrego Garcia to be released from the detention facility hes being held at in Pennsylvania. But in a lengthy hearing, she appeared at times to be unconvinced that the government had shown a compelling reason to keep him detained. The hearing was the latest episode in Abrego Garcias ongoing attempt to get courts to intervene in his immigration case to ensure the Trump administration doesnt run roughshod over his due process rights months after he was wrongly deported. Several states away on Friday, another set of attorneys for Abrego Garcia went before a federal judge in Nashville to sort out how much they can pry into the Trump administrations innerworkings as they seek to have his criminal charges thrown out based on their claim that hes being unfairly prosecuted. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement His team told US District Judge Waverly Crenshaw that they will ask him in the coming days to force federal prosecutors to hand over communications from senior Justice Department officials, including Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, as part of the court-ordered fact-finding process that will help buttress their bid to get the case dismissed. Prosecutors say the decision to indict Abrego Garcia rested with Tennessees acting US Attorney Robert McGuire and that McGuire was not influenced by Trump administration officials. Any communications between senior government actors themselves about this case, but which did not influence the Acting United States Attorney because they did not reach him or were not communicated to him (i.e. not tied to the actual decisionmaker), would not be discoverable, the government wrote in court papers this week. Judge unhappy with ICEs testimony In Greenbelt, Maryland, ICE official John Schultz spent hours testifying about what steps the Trump administration has taken or will soon take to re-deport Abrego Garcia. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But while Xinis appeared to view his testimony as largely unhelpful, Schultzs revelations about what officials from Uganda and Eswatini have told the Trump administration showed that the government has run into major issues with finding a third country that will accept Abrego Garcia. After he was released from pre-trial custody in Tennessee this summer, immigration officials notified Abrego Garcia of their intention to deport him to Uganda. He quickly said that he feared being sent there due to a fear of facing torture or persecution, and officials later told him they were planning to send him to Eswatini. How did it change from Uganda to Eswatini? Sascha Rand, an attorney for Abrego Garcia, asked at one point. My understanding is that Uganda ultimately said no, Schultz replied. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At another point during his testimony, Schultz said that he was told that US officials first asked Eswatini if they would be willing to accept Abrego Garcia this week and that as of Friday morning, the country had said they wouldnt allow for his removal there. But, Schultz added, discussions with Eswatini are ongoing. At times, Xinis, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, appeared annoyed by Schultzs inability to provide answers to some basic questions about what the administration is doing to remove Abrego Garcia a second time from the US. She compared his testimony to some that was given earlier this year. We have the same problem today, Xinis said. Three strikes and youre out. What about Costa Rica? This summer, after Abrego Garcia objected to being sent to Uganda, he designated Costa Rica as the country hed prefer to be deported to. The Central American country has said that it would accept him and give him some form of legal status. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement That decision featured prominently in Fridays hearing, with Xinis repeatedly questioning why the officials hadnt committed to sending him there. On Thursday, officials noted their intention to send Abrego Garcia to Ghana, but quickly disavowed that plan the same day. Hours before the hearing started Friday, an official from the African nation said on social media that it, too, would not accept a US plan to send him there. Those three rejections, an attorney for Abrego Garcia told Xinis, made clear that there was no good reason for the governments continued detention of their client. This game that theyre effectively playing of naming one country after another, having them say, No thank you, I think that what that shows is the real aim of the government and an improper one is just to keep him incarcerated, the attorney, Andrew Rossman, said. Miranda rights issue In Nashville, attorneys for Abrego Garcia told Crenshaw its possible federal agents failed to properly read their client his Miranda rights after his arrest in March, when he was taken into custody and sent days later on a plane to El Salvador. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They said they plan to file several motions including over possible coercion from the agents to suppress statements Abrego Garcia made when he was detained. They also told Crenshaw they plan to file motions to remove language from the indictment they say is unrelated to the human smuggling charges, including claims their client is part of the notorious MS-13 gang. Agents with Homeland Security stopped our client, detained him, and conducted a custodial interview, defense attorney Jenna Dabbs told the judge Friday. They did so, Dabbs said, without probable cause and may have coerced Abrego Garcia and never warned him of his rights to remain silent or be represented by an attorney before interviewing him. Accusations that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13 have been touted by Homeland Security, Justice Department and White House officials, including President Donald Trump, who once showed an image of Abrego Garcias hand tattoos, arguing they represented the letters and numbers MS-13. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a major ruling last week, Crenshaw said that Abrego Garcia had sufficiently presented some evidence that the Government had a stake in retaliating against him after he successfully challenged his unlawful deportation earlier this year. CNNs Holmes Lybrand reported from Nashville; Devan Cole and Angelica Franganillo Diaz reported from Greenbelt, Maryland. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com Thirty people were charged Wednesday in connection to a nearly two-year drug and gang investigation in Warner Robins, according to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and Warner Robins Police Department. Local and state law enforcement agencies searched seven locations Wednesday in Warner Robins, where they found the suspects, and seized drugs, guns and cash, according to Mandy Stella, public information officer for the city. Officers conducted this investigation to make an impact on the current street level drug distribution within Warner Robins and promote a safer place for productive citizens, the GBI said in a news release Friday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The 30 suspects range from 17 to 53 years old, according to the GBI. Six of the 30 people were already incarcerated, and faced new charges Wednesday connected to this investigation, the GBI said. Twenty-four of them were found and taken into custody when officers executed the seven search warrants throughout the city. All suspects were booked in the Houston County Jail, according to the state investigative bureau. There are ongoing efforts to disrupt organized criminal activity in Warner Robins, Stella said. GBI Special Agent Klay Kilcrease handled the investigation. The GBI urged anyone with details related to drug activity to call the agencys Middle Georgia Gang Task Force at 478-207-1301, or report anonymously at 1-800-597-8477. At least eight people were shot and killed at two separate shootings in Mississippi, authorities said Saturday. Six people were killed and at least 12 others were injured in a shooting early Saturday morning in Leland, Mississippi, local officials said. Two other people were killed, including an expectant mother, at a high school in Heidelberg, located about 200 miles away, Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves said. "Our state is praying for the victims and their families, as well as the entire Heidelberg and Leland communities," Reeves said. "Those responsible will be brought to justice." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement 6 dead, 12 injured in Leland shooting Leland Mayor John Lee told CBS News the shooting happened around midnight, and four of the injured people were airlifted to local hospitals. There was no immediate information about their condition. Four people have been arrested, the FBI said Monday. Morgan Lattimore, 25; Teviyon L. Powell, 29, and William Bryant, 29, were each arrested on capital murder charges. Latoya A. Powell, 44, was arrested on an attempted murder charge. The FBI said other arrests were "pending as this investigation continues." The shooting happened on a main street, Lee said. People were in town for Leland High School's homecoming game, he said. The Leland School District website shows that Leland High School was set to play a homecoming game against Charleston High School. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement FBI Director Kash Patel said in a social media post on Saturday afternoon that the shooting occurred at a nightclub but didn't provide additional details. 2 shot and killed at Heidelberg homecoming game Gov. Reeves said authorities are also investigating a separate shooting in Heidelberg, where two people were killed. CBS affiliate WHLT reported that the shooting at Heidelberg High School also occurred during a homecoming game. A suspect was identified and taken into custody by law enforcement officials, according to Reeves. Leland is a small city in Washington County. It had a population of about 4,000, according to 2020 census data. Heidelberg is a small town in Jasper County with a population of just over 700 people. SpaceX launches Starship megarocket's 11th test flight Videos show Israeli hostages' joyful reunions Remembering Diane Keaton and her legacy on and off-screen NEED TO KNOW Human remains found in Japan in 2023 have now been identified as a young girl missing since the country's 8.9-magnitude earthquake and tsunami in 2011 DNA testing identified the remains as belonging to 6-year-old Natsuse Yamane, who was swept away from her family home The remains were found in Miyagi, over 60 miles from the girl's home Authorities have identified human remains found in Japan as belonging to a 6-year-old girl missing since the 2011 earthquake and tsunami. The remains, which were found in 2023, have now been identified as Natsuse Yamane, a 6-year-old kindergartener from Yamada, Iwate Prefecture, according to The Japan Times, Asahi Shimbun and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Natsuse was at home with her family when the huge earthquake and subsequent tsunami struck and swept her away, according to the reports. Several teeth and part of the girls jaw were discovered in February 2023 after a construction company volunteered to clean the sidewalks and beaches in the coastal town of Miyagi, and an employee located the remains, Asahi Shimbun and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. The remains were found over 60 miles away from Natsuses home. TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP via Getty Fishing boats lie among debris in Yamada in Japan following the earthquake and subsequent tsunami Fishing boats lie among debris in Yamada in Japan following the earthquake and subsequent tsunami They were identified using mitochondrial DNA analysis and an analysis of proteins on the teeth, according to Asahi Shimbun and The Japan Times. The DNA testing showed the remains were related to Natsuses mother. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a statement to Asahi Shimbun, her family said, We are grateful to those who volunteered to clean the area where the remains were found, to those who discovered them while sorting the collected items, and to the police officers who continued the investigation without giving up. We were surprised to be contacted after losing hope, but we are truly happy, they added. According to the outlet, police plan to return Natsuse's remains to her family over the coming days. Satoshi Takahashi/LightRocket via Getty Yamada Town in Iwate Prefecture, Japan Yamada Town in Iwate Prefecture, Japan The March 2011 natural disaster killed 15,900 people, according to Japan's National Police Agency, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported. Over 2,500 people were still listed as missing at the end of February this year. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The 8.9-magnitude earthquake that triggered the deadly tsunami is one of the most powerful earthquakes on record, according to The Guardian. The disaster also triggered reactor meltdowns at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Plant in Fukushima Prefecture, making the areas affected by the tsunami too dangerous to search in the days after, according to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The last time human remains were identified in the three areas hardest hit by the disaster was August 2023 in Iwate Prefecture, Asahi Shimbun reported. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. PEOPLE has contacted the Miyagi Prefectural Police for comment. Read the original article on People KALAMAZOO, Mich. (WOOD) As AI continues to reshape industries, professors are rethinking how they prepare students for the future. On Wednesday, Acrisure, a Grand Rapids-based brokerage company, announced it is laying off hundreds of accounting employees, replacing those roles with artificial intelligence. Report: Acrisure to fire nearly 400 in move to AI Integrating AI into the workplace is becoming more common. While some worry about what that means for workers, others say the technology can be a tool for growth if used responsibly. Dave Watson, Ph.D., an assistant professor of accountancy at Western Michigan University, said the key is learning to evolve with it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its kind of like a paradigm shift, he said. We see a lot of shifting around and companies trying to figure out what its place is. And it really reinforced for me the importance we have at the Haworth College of Business to teach our students how to use AI. Watson focuses much of his research on artificial intelligence and how it can be used to make work more efficient. He said AI can help automate tedious tasks, freeing up time for deeper, critical and more creative thinking. To me, its neat, its a really cool opportunity to help us achieve things that we havent been able to do before, he said. We can spend less time doing the things that arent as much value added and more time where we can use our creativity. But with that opportunity comes uncertainty. A Senate report released this week says AI and automation could replace nearly 100 million jobs over the next decade. That includes here in West Michigan, where Acrisure is cutting accounting positions as it turns to automation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I mean, with every paradigm shift with technology, we see the shifting in jobs, Watson said. There will be jobs lost, there will be jobs gained, and were trying to figure out what we can do to prepare them for those jobs that are coming up. Is there an AI bubble? Financial institutions sound a warning Watson said his classroom is shifting to include AI alongside traditional accounting skills to prepare students for both the tools and the ethics that come with them. However, students and those looking for jobs are feeling the impact of rising layoffs and shifts in the job market. There is a growing body of research pointing to college graduates struggling to find jobs due to AI-related workforce reductions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I feel like students are worried, he said. When you look at the news, look at the landscape, thats a reality, but what we try to do here is prepare them. Were going to teach the traditional or the normal skill set that you would have had but now were incorporating AI. He emphasized using AI to refine work, not replace human judgment, and encouraged students to use their critical thinking skills where the technology still falls short. Watson believes learning how to work with AI, not against it, is what will keep future graduates competitive in the job market. We want our students to be successful, and thats what were trying to do, he said. Are there ethical issues? Are there nuances that we need to be concerned about and talk about and consider? Absolutely. We cant just fully go for it. But as were doing it conscientiously, as were thinking about it intentionally, I think theres a lot of opportunities to practice, play with it, see kind of what it can do, and then figure out how we can implement it in the classroom for our students in the professional world as we do research or whatever it might be. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WOODTV.com. (WHNT) The Alabama Attorney Generals Office has officially replied to former Decatur Police Officer Mac Marquettes appeal to the Alabama Supreme Court. In August, Marquette asked the states high court to consider that he acted in self-defense when he killed Stephen Perkins, nearly two years ago, in an on-duty shooting during a botched truck repossession. That request through Marquettes lawyers came after the trial court and the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals both said there wasnt sufficient evidence in his court filings to support a self-defense claim. Both courts found that questions about Marquettes role that night, if he was acting in a law enforcement capacity, would be best resolved in front of a jury. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In its filing on Wednesday, the Alabama AGs office once again argued that same point. The prosecution was required to file a reply to Marquettes petition by October 8, and they did file their response on Wednesday afternoon. While Marquettes attorneys have long argued he was acting in line with his duties that night, prosecutors said he had no legal right to help in the vehicle repossession that led to the shooting. The filing also points to testimony during Marquettes original immunity hearing, where an investigator described some behaviors taken by Marquette and other officers that night as unusual. Specifically, the AGs office pointed to the officers choosing to conceal themselves during the second repossession attempt instead of identifying themselves. Though Marquette argued that they concealed their presence to avoid assisting with the repossession, the court questioned this strategy in the light of the police departments deescalation policywhich requires interaction with the subjectand the contrast between their actions the night of the shooting versus Officer [Christopher] Mukadams actions in July 2023, when he attended a second repossession attempt during the day and made his presence known, the filing said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This appeal to the Alabama Supreme Court is essentially Marquettes last chance to avoid going to trial in Decatur for murder. His murder trial is currently set for Nov. 17. The defense will have a week to respond. Marquettes lawyers have already requested that the court give them more time to respond. The defense also asked to present oral arguments to the Supreme Court, but the AGs office argued against the need for those. There is no timetable for a decision on that request or on a ruling overall. The trial date could be moved back if the Supreme Courts decision on Marquettes appeal is drawn out over the next several weeks. If the court does find Marquette acted in self-defense, the murder case would be over. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHNT.com. A school bus is seen parked outside of Xoots Elementary School in Sitka on Oct. 6, 2025 (Photo by Corinne Smith/Alaska Beacon) Officials with the Alaska Department of Education and Early Development have walked back a proposal to limit local governments funding for public schools, instead asking the State Board of Education to take no action on the item this week. The State Board of Education was set to vote this week on a controversial measure that many school officials and education advocates say would bar local municipalities from providing much-needed funding and support services to local schools. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Instead the board voted unanimously on Thursday, at a DEED officials request, to take no action and return the proposal to the department for further development. A screenshot of the Alaska State Board of Education during their quarterly meeting, where Education Commissioner Deena Bishop addresses the proposed regulation change to local contributions on Oct. 8, 2025 (Screenshot) As a result of the feedback we received, the department will be recommending that the state board take no action on this item, return the proposed regulation to the board or to the department for further collaboration and input with key stakeholders, said Heather Heineken, the division director for finance and support services for the department, to the board Wednesday, the first day of a two-day meeting. The proposal came under sharp criticism and public alarm beginning in June, when DEED introduced the measure as an emergency regulation change. Officials said the move was intended to redefine the amount local municipalities provide for schools called the local contribution to include services provided at no charge to a district by the city or borough. At the time, DEED officials said it was a way to address the balance of funding for schools in Alaskas complex school funding formula which includes local, state and federal funding and avoid failing a federal disparity test. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The disparity test is required by the U.S. Department of Education to regulate the spread between the highest and lowest funded districts, because of the way the state uses some federal funding, called impact aid. The state failed the test earlier this year, but is in the process of appealing the ruling. Education Commissioner Deena Bishop, however, reversed that argument and told board members further discussion was needed with districts and financial offices to clarify what in-kind contributions are being made and how they were accounted for. She said that was needed to align with state law and standards for equity between districts. Were not reacting to the federal government. What we are (doing) is trying to meet the state statute that calls for that equitable funding, Bishop told the board on Wednesday. Public raises alarm at unclear change to local contributions State board members received more than 600 public comments, mostly opposing the measure, in June and July when the regulation was introduced, calling the proposed change vague and potentially limiting vital municipal funding for schools. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement During public comment on Thursday, several district officials expressed opposition and concern. Valdez School District Superintendent Jason Weber said the change could jeopardize essential city funding, including for transportation and school meals. Our Food Service Program is also at a breaking point. Even after raising lunch prices by $1 per meal last year, were still operating at a deficit. Every dollar cut from food service funding is $1 taken away from the plates of kids, these regulations would directly reduce the food we can provide for our students, something no community should have to accept, he said. Each Alaskan community has unique needs and challenges the decisions about how to support and operate schools should be made by those who live and work closest to them, not through a one size fits all mandate from the state level, undermining local authority threatens the very foundation of community supported education in Alaska, Weber said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Juneau School District Superintendent Frank Hauser pointed to the states own appeal of the federal disparity test as evidence the change is unnecessary. According to DEEDs July 14 letter, the state would meet the disparity standard, not with a regulation change, which isnt even mentioned, but by a different accounting method, Hauser said. Hauser asked board members to vote the regulation down. I am terrified of version 3.0 of this regulation. Each subsequent attempt at this regulation change has had exponentially more negative impacts, impacts beyond what the department realizes, even to REAAS, home school and correspondence students, instead of enacting the oft quoted definition of insanity, doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results, I ask you today to take a different direction and ask the department to stop with this effort altogether, he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement During public comment, district officials also raised concerns at a recent DEED Facebook post, which shared a statement over an image of a burning dumpster fire, calling several Anchorage officials out by name, saying that their information was inaccurate and saying DEED no longer was pushing the proposal. Commenters called the social media post unprofessional and not positive or proactive communication. Anchorage officials had penned an op-ed in the Anchorage Daily News, opposing the regulation change, saying it could gut the district and strip $15 million in municipal funding, including for school buses and school resource officers. State board members vote to return proposal to DEED Before the vote, several state board members questioned whether the proposal should come back to the board. I guess Im questioning now, is it really an issue, or is that needs to be addressed, or does it just need to go away? asked board member Pamela Dupras on Thursday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Bishop responded that DEED will gather more feedback, and work with districts to adhere to state law and requirements for equitability. She also pointed to the new Legislative Task Force on Education Funding that may take up the issue and recommend new legislation to define local contributions. Bishop said DEED would work with district officials and finance departments to further clarify the requirements. Im glad that youre pulling this back, she said. She also acknowledged the frustration of districts. Every two weeks from August until now, Ive been sharing the same message that, yes, we do not want to put this forward. So I understand the frustration with what was in writing, certainly superintendents that attended all those meetings knew the intent, she said. I think just the stress about school funding, a lot of trust isnt there, Bishop added. The Department wants to earn that trust back and continue with the work. A Chinook salmon is seen in an undated photo. (Photo by Ryan Hagerty/USFWS) Alaska judges will not hear a lawsuit alleging that the Alaska Department of Fish and Game has mishandled the states valuable salmon returns. On Friday, the Alaska Supreme Court upheld a lower-court decision that dismissed a case brought by Juneau resident Eric Forrer in 2022. Forrer had argued that years of declining salmon returns in the Yukon and Kuskokwim Rivers clearly showed that the department was violating a section of the Alaska Constitution that requires fish be managed for sustained yield. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Forrer, a long-time Alaska resident, has a history of personal-use and commercial fishing, including on the Yukon River. In his suit, he sought a declaration confirming that the Fish and Game was violating the constitution and sought an injunction directing the department to fulfill the sustained yield mandate. Bethel Superior Court Judge Nathaniel Peters dismissed the case in 2023, but Forrer appealed to the Alaska Supreme Court. In an 18-page order published Friday, the five-member court said unanimously that because Forrer didnt challenge a specific policy, law or regulation, Peters was correct and the case should be dismissed. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement If the court had allowed the suit, wrote Justice Dario Borghesan, it would have amounted to judicial management of the fisheries at issue and would be contrary to constitutional design and practically untenable. Borghesan wrote that if the court were to eventually issue an injunction, Fish and Game would almost be required to guess what solution would be acceptable to the court. Forrer was represented by attorney Joe Geldhof, who frequently participates in public-interest lawsuits in front of the Alaska Supreme Court. By phone, Geldhof said he was disappointed by the decision and begs the question of what Alaskans are supposed to do when a state agency isnt fulfilling its mandate. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Where do you go when theres a systemic failure? he asked. Fridays Supreme Court order implies that if thats the case, elected officials need to fix the issue. The Yukon and Kuskokwim rivers have seen severe declines in salmon returns despite restrictions on fishing that are intended to increase the number of fish that return to local rivers to breed. The separation of powers doctrine prohibits Alaska courts from reviewing nonjusticiable political questions, Borghesan wrote on behalf of the court. A claim is not justiciable if deciding the claim would require us to answer questions that are better directed to the legislative or executive branches of government. Within about two weeks, the first command post will be established in the Strip, with 200 American troops assisting in its construction, the official said. Hamas agreed to release the hostages after being convinced that continuing to hold them captive would be a laibility to the organization, a senior US official with knowledge of the negotiations told Walla. Negotiations advanced swiftly after a series of meetings in New York and Sharm el-Sheikh, where the Trump team brought Egypt, Qatar, and Turkey together to help end the crisis and lay the foundations for an international stabilization force to oversee Gazas postwar phase. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Within about two weeks, the first command post will be established in the Strip, with 200 American troops assisting in its construction, the official said. The first phase of US President Donald Trumps Gaza peace plan, approved by the Israeli government late Thursday, began by consolidating principles from earlier rounds of talks. The American team compiled these into a document presented to Qatari officials during meetings in New York with US Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner. It was later shared with other governments, who were asked to provide feedback and help the US gauge whether were on the right track, according to the senior official. Consultations were also held with Turkey, Egypt, Qatar, and other Arab and Muslim governments. Nitzan Alon shakes Qatari PM al-Thani's hand, reportedly after negotiations ended early Thursday morning. (credit: SECTION 27A COPYRIGHT ACT) The plan was then shown to Trump, who offered his remarks before a key weekend marked by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus UN address. The American negotiating team met Netanyahu at his hotel, and by Monday, during his meeting with Trump, it was time to build the defining moments of the plan, as the senior official described, when Netanyahu apologized to the Qatari prime minister. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At that moment, the US official told Walla, we realized we could move to the field and coordinate decisive talks in Sharm el-Sheikh. The Americans then enlisted three intermediaries: Turkeys intelligence chief, Qatars prime minister, and Egypts intelligence chief. The official recounted that Kushner and Witkoff arrived in Egypt after understanding that the technical teams had gone as far as they could, and in just 20 hours, they sewed the deal together. They landed Wednesday morning and, within hours, sensed a breakthrough." "They realized Hamas saw the hostages as a liability rather than an asset, allowing the issue to be divided into two phases: the release of hostages first, and the postwar arrangements later. By 2 a.m., the American team understood they were close enough to announce a deal. After the Israeli government approved the first stage of the agreement, Witkoff and Kushner met Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, urging him to take responsibility for implementing the deal. They then traveled to Israel, met with President Isaac Herzog in his sukkah, and continued to the Prime Ministers Office, where they surprised ministers by joining the cabinet meeting. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Israeli ministers were surprised but broke into applause, the senior official said. Kushner and Witkoff tried to ease their concerns. While distrust between Hamas and Israel was expected, Hamas also hesitated to trust the United States, Israels close ally. The Americans conveyed through Qatar and Turkey that Trump personally stood behind every clause of his peace plan and guaranteed that all sides were acting in good faith. Trump reportedly spoke on speakerphone with Arab leaders to assure Hamas that his commitments would be upheld. 200 American troops to assist in Gaza stabilization According to the senior official, the next major task is stabilizing Gaza. The US is laying the groundwork for an international stabilization force led by CENTCOM commander Gen. Bradley Cooper, who will set up the first command post within two weeks. Two hundred American troops will assist in its construction, the official said, clarifying that they will not be deployed throughout Gaza, only to help build and oversee the force to ensure there are no violations. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Coopers team will include Egyptian, Qatari, Turkish, and possibly Emirati officers. The goal is for this to be collegial, with Israelis cooperating alongside them, the official said. Coopers presence at the talks reassured Arab states, which in turn assured Hamas that real guarantees were in place. The Americans attribute the breakthrough to a rare consensus among all sides on the need to free the hostages. They credit the success of the Sharm el-Sheikh talks to the physical presence of Kushner and Witkoff. Arab leaders saw how committed we were to the deal, and that we would stand by it, the senior official said. The goal now, the official added, is to expedite implementation so that when the 72-hour period ends late Sunday night, we will finally see the hostages, and the one remaining female hostage, home among us. KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) -Myanmar's junta has invited the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to send observers for planned year-end elections, and the bloc will discuss the request during a regional summit later this month, Malaysia's foreign ministry has said. The invitation to send election observers was extended to all ASEAN member states, the ministry said in a statement on Friday night. "The foreign minister noted the invitation extended to ASEAN member states to send election observers. For Malaysia, the invitation was addressed to Malaysia's Election Commission," the ministry said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The statement did not refer to reports in Myanmar's state media on Friday that Malaysia will send observer teams for the contentious general election, set to be held in phases starting December 28. The announcement came after talks were held between Myanmar's junta chief Min Aung Hlaing and Malaysia's Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan in Myanmar's capital of Naypyitaw on Thursday. Critics and many Western nations view the election as a sham exercise designed to legitimise the military's rule via proxy political parties. Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 military coup that overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi and triggered an armed rebellion that has led to large parts of the country slipping out of the junta's control. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Malaysia and Myanmar are both members of ASEAN, which has barred the latter's military leaders from its meetings since 2022, citing their failure to adopt a five-point peace roadmap the top general had agreed to. Malaysia is the current chair of ASEAN, which also includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam. Myanmar's ballot will be held amid a bitter civil war, with key opposition groups banned and new electoral laws that favour parties backed by the military. In the fray will be 57 political parties that have registered for the polls, six of which plan to compete nationwide, state media have said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In remarks after a January ASEAN meeting on Malaysia's island of Langkawi, Mohamad had said the grouping told Myanmar's junta that an election should not be its priority, and urged instead for dialogue and an end to fighting. (Reporting by Naw Betty Han; Additional reporting by Rozanna Latiff and Ashley Tang; Editing by Devjyot Ghoshal, Clarence Fernandez and Raju Gopalakrishnan) By Andrius Sytas KAUNAS, Lithuania (Reuters) -Alarmed by Russia's vast military spending since its 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the three Baltic states are drawing up contingency plans to deal with the possibility of hundreds of thousands of people fleeing a Russian troop buildup or attack. Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have long voiced fears to fellow NATO states about possible Russian aggression, citing Russian cyber attacks, disinformation campaigns and incursions over the past few months by Russian fighter jets and drones. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Russia says it has no plans to attack NATO. But the three countries, which were annexed by Moscow during World War Two, have doubled defence spending since the all-out attack on Ukraine that followed repeated Russian denials of any such plan. "Threats could vary," said Renatas Pozela, who as head of Lithuania's firefighting service is involved in the contingency planning, which has been stepped up since the three countries agreed to cooperate on civil protection in May. Details of the numbers of potential evacuees officials are preparing for are being reported here for the first time. WHAT ARE THE SCENARIOS? "It's possible we will see a mighty army along the borders of the Baltics, with the apparent goal of taking all three countries in three days to a week," Pozela said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Sabotage of communications or transport links, a mass influx of migrants, civil unrest among Russian-speaking minorities or fake news sparking mass flight are other scenarios discussed in local media and beyond. "We talk about this every month, every week - at work, everywhere," said Arminas Raudys, 31, a volunteer playing the role of an evacuee in an exercise in Lithuania this week. The role-play involved the evacuation of just a hundred people from the capital Vilnius, but officials interviewed by Reuters said contingency planning - still largely under wraps - was being made for much larger numbers. Half of those living within 40 km (25 miles) of the borders of Russia and Belarus about 400,000 people - are among them, Pozela said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The western town of Kaunas has plans to house 300,000 people in schools, universities, Catholic churches and the arena where Robbie Williams and Roger Waters performed recently. Similar efforts are underway in other towns. Assembly points, including in Vilnius, have been selected, trains and buses designated and supplies such as toilet paper and hiking beds stockpiled in warehouses, an official at the firefighting service said. Those fleeing by car would be directed to secondary roads, to clear others for the incoming army, with a map already available showing the towns where they can seek refuge. "It's a very reassuring message to our society that we are ready and we are planning," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys told Reuters. "We have done our homework." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement ARE PEOPLE EXPECTED TO MOVE BEYOND THE BALTICS? None of the three Baltic countries have detailed plans to move anyone beyond their borders. Two paved roads and several forest paths connect them to Poland through the Suwalki Gap - a narrow wooded part of Poland between Russia and Belarus, and incoming military vehicles would be given priority over those trying to escape to Poland. "We have to take account of the risk (of the Suwalki Gap)," said Ivar Mai, mass evacuation advisor to the Estonian Rescue Board, referring to the possibility Russian forces could seek to cut the Baltics off from their only border with a fellow-NATO state. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Estonia is preparing plans to rehouse a tenth of its 1.4 million people in makeshift shelters, with many others seen as likely to move in with relatives, said Mai. Two thirds of the Russian-speaking town of Narva, population 50,000, are among those who could be expected to move, with the government assisting at least half of them. "It's only for those who don't have other places to go," he said. Latvia estimates that a third of its 1.9 million people might leave their homes, said Ivars Nakurts, the deputy head of Latvia's State Fire and Rescue Service. "You plan for everything," he said. (Reporting by Andrius Sytas in the Baltics, Essi Lehto and Anne Kauranen in Finland, Johan Ahlander and Simon Johnson in Sweden, Barbara Erling in Poland; editing by Philippa Fletcher) At a Friday press conference in Tampa, Florida, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced the arrest of a California man who allegedly threatened conservative commentator Benny Johnson's life. George Isbell Jr. was reportedly arrested in San Diego Tuesday this week and was charged with mailing a threatening communication, according to Fox News. Getty Isbell, 69, allegedly mailed a letter to Johnson sometime around September 18. Bondi said ... "The author of this letter made it very clear that he hated Benny because of his views, and he wanted Benny dead." Getty Isbell allegedly made other violent statements and referenced the death of Charlie Kirk, who was killed just a few days before letter was sent, authorities said. Politicians React To Charlie Kirk Shooting - Click image to open gallery Johnson contacted the Tampa Police Department after receiving the letter, and the FBI helped out with the subsequent investigation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida Gregory Kehoe said fingerprints found on the letter implicated Isbell, Fox News reports. Isbell could face up to five years in prison if he's convicted. Getty Johnson appeared alongside Bondi at Friday's conference and said he only wanted "peace" in the U.S. Celebrity Cruises has canceled stops to Haiti on its upcoming 2025 and 2026 trips. Citing safety concerns, the cruise line has updated itineraries and replaced stops to Haiti with other destinations in the Caribbean. Labadee, Haiti, is Royal Caribbeans private destination on Haitis north coast, and its only accessible by ship. At the popular stop, passengers can disembark and speed along ziplines, snorkel along the reefs, or spend the day relaxing in a hidden cove. Cruises from Key West, Florida, to the Bahamas included one or two full days at this location. Stops to Haiti have now been replaced with visits to Turks and Caicos, Grand Cayman, or Cozumel, Mexico. Travel to Haiti is under a Level Four advisory, the highest level issued by the U.S. Department of State, warning U.S. residents not to travel to the country due to increasing violent crime and terrorist activity. Haiti has been under a State of Emergency since 2024 and the advisory was reissued in July, warning travelers, Do not travel to Haiti due to kidnapping, crime, terrorist activity, civil unrest, and limited health care. Do not travel to Haiti for any reason. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While the 250-acre private destination is surrounded by fencing and separate from the rest of the country, port security is a concern and emergency response is limited. Eleven cruises on Celebrity Apex and Celebrity Beyond are affected by the changes. Passengers on these trips have been notified about itinerary updates for their cruises. To provide you with a better guest experience, we have made the decision to cancel our visit to Labadee, Haiti, the companys announcement to guests states. The full list of changes can be found on the companys website. Celebrity Cruises and Royal Caribbean are both owned by Royal Caribbean Group. Previously, Royal Caribbean suspended off-shore excursions that went outside the cruise port in Haiti to keep guests safe. In September, Royal Caribbean also canceled stops to Labadee through 2026. There is no news as to when visits to Haiti will resume. Read the original article on Southern Living If you have a cruise booked with Celebrity Cruises in the coming months, double-check your itinerary. The premium line has followed parent company Royal Caribbean in canceling stops at Labadee, Haiti. Once lauded for its security and pristine conditions, the private peninsula is now considered one of the most dangerous cruise ports in the Caribbean. Labadee, roughly 100 miles off Haiti's north coast, is leased by Royal Caribbean and serves as an exclusive port for its cruise brands. Guests can reach it only by boat, spending the day on the 260-acre beachfront, or exploring zip lines, roller coasters, a water park, snorkeling, and other resort-style amenities. Celebrity previously offered 28 various shore excursions to Labadee, and frequently included it on itineraries to Key West and the Bahamas. The line now states that tours scheduled to stop in Labadee through the rest of 2025 and into 2026 will be rerouted to destinations such as Turks and Caicos, Grand Cayman, or Cozumel. At least 12 itineraries have been altered, mostly impacting two of its 15-deep fleet: Celebrity Apex and Celebrity Beyond. Celebrity has notified affected guests, but it's always smart to double-check if you think your cruise plans might be impacted. The cancellations come amid growing safety concerns in Haiti. The country's been under a state of emergency since March 2024, and the U.S. Department of State maintains a Level 4 "Do Not Travel" advisory. Armed crimes including kidnappings, carjackings, robbery, and sexual assault have surged as political instability and poverty escalate into what Amnesty International calls "a severe humanitarian and human rights crisis." Many areas, including the capital, Port-au-Prince, are primarily controlled by gangs. Although Celebrity has updated some of its itineraries, the line has not cited safety or security concerns as the reason for the decision. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Read more: The Most Dangerous Caribbean Destinations, According To Research This isn't the first cruise suspension for Labadee View of a Royal Caribbean cruise ship from the shore of Labadee - EWY Media/Shutterstock Royal Caribbean initially suspended visits to Labadee in March 2024 after Haiti declared a state of emergency. While the company did not explicitly cite safety, Celebrity canceled shore excursions to Labadee in June 2024 aboard Celebrity Apex, replacing them with visits to Nassau and Grand Turk, as well as Perfect Day at CocoCay, another Royal Caribbean private island in the Bahamas. Royal Caribbean resumed stops at Labadee in October 2024. However, in April 2025, the cruise line again canceled all stops to Labadee "out of an abundance of caution." The company has since indicated that cancellation will extend until at least April 2026. Although neither Royal Caribbean nor Celebrity has made claims about the future of the private Haitian port, speculation has circulated online. On Reddit, one user wrote, "I predict that Royal Caribbean will eventually pull out of Labadee altogether." Another added, "My wife thinks once Perfect Day Mexico is up and running they'll ditch Labadee," referencing Royal Caribbean's under-construction private port and resort slated to open in the fall of 2027. "It's a shame, from the human rights perspective to the island being gorgeous," commented another. According to Travel and Tour World, the suspension is expected to have an adverse economic effect on the local community that relies on the tourism industry. Vendors, local staff, and businesses that rely on cruise tourism for income will be particularly impacted, exacerbating an already fragile economic ecosystem. In September 2025, the U.N. Security Council approved a "gang suppression force" to help support humanitarian efforts and suppress gang violence in Haiti. Ready to discover more hidden gems and expert travel tips? Subscribe to our free newsletter for access to the world's best-kept travel secrets. Read the original article on Islands. German prosecutors are seeking a change of court for a possible new rape trial of the man suspected of involvement in the disappearance of British girl Madeleine McCann in 2007, a spokesman told dpa on Saturday. In addition to overturning the acquittal, the public prosecutor's office has requested a new trial of the suspect, identified as Christian B in line with German privacy rules, at the Gottingen Regional Court in northern Germany. The aim is to ensure that the trial material is handled as impartially as possible, said spokesman Hans Christian Wolters. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In October 2024, the Braunschweig Regional Court acquitted the 48-year-old man of several serious sexual offences. At the time, the presiding judge cited insufficient evidence to convict him of the five offences in Portugal, where the 3-year-old British girl disappeared in 2007 from an apartment complex in Praia da Luz. The public prosecutor's office has appealed against the ruling, and the Federal Court of Justice is therefore reviewing the verdict for legal errors. The defence had described the acquittal as the only correct outcome of the proceedings. The Gottingen Regional Court has not been involved in the proceedings in any way, Wolters said, which is why the prosecutors believe that the case should no longer be heard in Braunschweig, also known as Brunswick in English. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It is still unclear when the Federal Court of Justice in Leipzig will decide on the appeal. After the Braunschweig trial for three rapes and two cases of child sexual abuse, the public prosecutor's office had demanded a prison sentence of 15 years followed by preventive detention. By Renee Hickman and Lizbeth Diaz CHICAGO/MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -When Silverio Villegas Gonzalez was 12 minutes late for his shift at Tom & Jerry's Gyros, a diner on Chicago's northwest side, his manager knew something was wrong. The short order cook always let someone know if he was running late, even by just 5 minutes. Earlier that morning, Villegas Gonzalez, 38, had been fatally shot by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent shortly after dropping his children off at a school and daycare in the suburb of Franklin Park. The agents were attempting to arrest him as part of a massive immigration sweep launched by U.S. President Donald Trump. Villegas Gonzalez was the Chicago crackdown's first casualty. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Department of Homeland Security said in a statement after the Sept. 12 incident that Villegas Gonzalez was a criminal illegal alien with a history of reckless driving who steered his car at agents, causing one to fear for his life and fire his weapon, killing Villegas Gonzalez. DHS told Reuters on Friday that they would conduct their own investigation into the incident after the first agency that responded had finished its review. Both Franklin Park police and the FBI responded to the shooting incident, but it wasn't clear which agency was investigating. The FBI declined to comment citing a lack of staff to respond to media inquiries due to the government shutdown. Franklin Park police did not respond to Reuters' request for comment. A RESERVED BOY FROM IRIMBO Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Reuters interviews with family and coworkers, and a review of public records, present a more nuanced picture of a man who left his quiet village years ago for economic opportunity and worked long hours to support his children. A man who had gotten sober after heavy drinking resulted in liver disease, and who had become one woman's steadfast partner. "He was so soft-spoken," said Ashley Alekna, manager of the diner, describing him as a kind, dependable presence during his 11-hour shifts in a kitchen full of boisterous personalities, making food for the crowds that spilled in from the community college across the street. Villegas Gonzalez made a similar impression on Blanca Mora, his partner, when they were growing up in Irimbo, a small town in Michoacan, Mexico. Mora says they were in their early teens when they started greeting each other around town, meeting to chat on the corner near her grandparents' house. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement People often leave Irimbo for opportunities beyond the tiny town, including Villegas Gonzalez's older brother, Jorge. Jorge, who first went to the U.S. in 1998, remembers his little brother watching him walk away. He was a kid, said Jorge. He hid so I wouldnt see him crying. FATHER OF TWO In 2007, Silverio followed his brother north, part of a wave of more than 348,000 Mexican emigrants to the U.S. that year, U.S. Census data showed, as President Felipe Calderon's violent war against drug cartels deepened. Villegas Gonzalez found employment in the restaurant kitchens where, according to recent National Restaurant Association data, 46% of the nation's chefs and 31% of its cooks are foreign-born. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He met a woman, and they had two sons. Jorge Villegas Gonzalez said his younger brother often struggled to cover the bills. Between 2011 and 2019, Villegas Gonzalez was cited for a handful of traffic offenses, one for driving more than 30 miles per hour over the speed limit. He was also ticketed for driving an uninsured vehicle and having a broken tail light. He had no criminal record. His abuse of alcohol during those years led to a diagnosis of liver disease, he told Alekna later. A doctor told him if he kept drinking, it would kill him. He had been sober for more than a year when he died, co-workers and Mora said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mora and Villegas Gonzalez fell out of touch when he moved to the U.S. But she eventually moved there too, looking for her mother who had left Mexico to better support her three children years before. She never found her mother, she said, but she found love with the reserved boy from home. She visited him when he was sick and later, the two became a couple. Villegas Gonzalez, his two sons, Mora and her 13-year-old daughter eventually all lived together in Franklin Park. A FAMILY IN FRANKLIN PARK Mora said Villegas Gonzalez took his sons to the library three times a week, played with Lego and banned phones at the dinner table so the newly blended family could focus on each other. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He began to open up to his co-workers, said Alekna, cracking little jokes throughout the day. When his younger son celebrated his birthday, they helped him bake a Minecraft video game-themed cake, with green icing. The morning he was killed, Villegas Gonzalez dropped his older son off at Passow Elementary School in Franklin Park, and then his younger son at Small World Learning Center, just around the corner. Minutes later, surveillance video from a nail salon showed ICE agents pulling him over, each leaning into his front car windows. Villegas Gonzalez backed up and tried to drive away as the agent on the passenger side chased on foot. The agent on the driver's side was not visible as Villegas Gonzalez drove forward. In separate surveillance footage from another nearby business, what sounds like two gunshots can be heard around the same time. Police records and bodycam footage indicated that Villegas Gonzalez quickly crashed into a parked delivery truck. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A few hours later, Jorge Villegas Gonzalez was driving a minibus through the streets of Irimbo when he got the call that his brother was dead. Villegas Gonzalez's two boys were taken to foster care, Mora said. When he closed his eyes at night," she said, "he was thinking about the children. (Reporting by Renee Hickman in Chicago and Lizbeth Diaz in Mexico City; Editing by Emily Schmall and Michael Learmonth) Don't miss out on our latest stories. Add PCMag as a preferred source on Google. China appears to be retaliating against a Canadian research firm for revealing that Huawei still uses foreign components in its processors. On Thursday, Chinas Ministry of Commerce issued an order, effectively blacklisting Canadian research firm TechInsights by designating it as an Unreliable Entity. The order bans Chinese citizens and companies from any transactions with TechInsights, including sharing sensitive information with the Canadian company, which specializes in analysis of the semiconductor industry and advanced chips. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Chinese government didnt explain what drove the order, except to say itll safeguard national sovereignty, security and development interests. But the blacklisting comes a week after TechInsights discovered evidence that Huaweis AI chip, the Ascend 910C, contains components from Taiwans TSMC, Samsung Electronics, and SK Hynix. TechInsights conducted a teardown of the Ascend 910C, which is Huaweis response to Nvidias AI training chips. The discovery highlights how China continues to find ways to source foreign chips, despite US efforts to cut off Huaweis sourcing. The tactics have allegedly included sourcing chips through intermediaries and stockpiling them, prompting the US to consider tighter restrictions and penalties. In 2023, TechInsights conducted a separate teardown that revealed a Huawei smartphone relied on memory chips from South Koreas SK Hynix undermining claims that the device was entirely made with Chinese technology. As a result, Chinas blacklisting might prevent the Canadian research firm from conducting future teardowns of Huawei products. TechInsights didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. In the meantime, the order from Chinas Ministry of Commerce also blacklists US cybersecurity provider Recorded Future and BAE Systems, Inc, a US defense and aerospace company. A federal appeals court on Saturday temporarily lifted a judge's order blocking White House efforts to federalize National Guard troops for use in Chicago, but left her block on their deployment in the city. The troops can now remain at their base, the U.S. Army Reserve Center in Elwood, Illinois, about an hour outside Chicago. Members of the National Guard do not need to return to their home states unless further ordered by a court to do so, the one-page order from the Chicago-based 7th Circuit Court of Appeals said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The appeals court reversed part of a ruling by U.S. District Judge April Perry, who on Thursday barred the White House from federalizing and deploying National Guard troops from Illinois and Texas in the city, rejecting the administrations argument that they were needed to quell protests and unrest that President Donald Trump has complained is interfering with federal immigration enforcement. Perry, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, was skeptical that National Guard troops could calm the protests, and indicated it was actually the immigration agents who were at fault for the discord in the city. The appeals court's move resembles one by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals last week, which indicated it may soon overturn a judges decision holding that Trumps push to federalize 200 National Guard troops to Portland was illegal. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have consistently opposed Trumps efforts to send National Guard troops to Chicago as part of his nationwide crackdown on crime. On Saturday, Pritzker lashed out specifically at Trumps call-up of National Guard troops from Texas. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Texas is preparing emergency resources for wildfires and floods, Pritzker wrote in a post on X, referencing deadly natural disaster threats in the Lone Star State. The Texas National Guard should be THERE not in Illinois. We stand ready to support their return home so they are best positioned for helping Texans respond to any natural disasters. The 7th Circuit did not identify the judge or judges who issued the order Saturday. Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets," White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said. "President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court. The offices of Pritzker and Johnson also did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Coastal flooding is the main concern from a significant nor'easter crawling up the East Coast this weekend. A strong coastal storm will affect all of Delaware this weekend and into early next week, bringing high seas, steady rain and high winds. National Weather Service meteorologist Amanda Lee is most concerned about coastal flooding, and not just in Sussex County. Lee said it could be a top-five flooding event there, however. A coastal flood warning has been issued for Oct. 12 at 8 a.m. to Oct. 13 at 8 p.m. in Kent and Sussex counties. The same warning is in effect from 11 a.m. on Oct. 12 to 9 p.m. on Oct. 13 in New Castle County. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Lee said tidal piling in Kent and Sussex counties could create a major coastal flooding problem. Tidal piling happens when strong onshore winds and swell create high water levels that do not properly drain out through multiple tide cycles. "That will be particularly an issue in the back phase in Sussex County, where water will not be able to drain out of the inlets in Sussex County," Lee said. Coastal flooding forecast from the National Weather Service on Oct. 11, 2025. The swell is anticipated to build to more than 15 feet high off of Delaware's ocean beaches, and could approach 10 feet in the Delaware Bay. Coastal flooding risk is high all the way up through Wilmington around high tides. ATLANTIC COAST FORECAST: Coastal flooding, gusty winds and rain follow full moon Delaware high tides High tides in Rehoboth Beach: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Oct. 11: 11:30 a.m. Oct. 12: 12:17 a.m., 12:36 p.m. Oct. 13: 1:21 a.m., 1:40 p.m. Storm preparation Lee said people should prepare by clearing sensitive areas to these kinads of floods and know which roads may be impassable on the river, bay and seashores. Have a way to stay updated with information from local and state authorities. "Property owners should prepare now by relocating vehicles from low-lying and flood-prone areas, removing or securing loose objects, and clearing storm drains and gutters," a statement from Sussex County said on Oct. 10. Gusty winds, steady rain in Delaware weather forecast Besides the coastal flooding, damaging winds is a concern for the entire First State. The highest winds will be felt along the Atlantic coast with gusts of up to 60 miles per hour. Wilmington and Dover could have wind gusts of around 40 miles per hour. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Steady rain also will impact the region, with coastal Sussex being forecast to have up to 2 inches of rain before the night of Oct 13. Rain totals are lighter farther north and west, but Wilmington could have an inch of rain in the same time period. Lee said the rain is forecasted over a long period of time, so flooding from rain is less of a concern. Shane Brennan covers Wilmington and other Delaware issues. Reach out with ideas, tips or feedback at slbrennan@delawareonline.com. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Coastal flood warning issued for Delaware. High winds also on the way from nor'easter A convicted murderer who spent months on the run after escaping from a New Orleans prison is back in custody in Louisiana. Derrick Groves was arrested on Wednesday afternoon inside an Atlanta home after a standoff with police. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Channel 2s Tom Jones was the only reporter to capture video of a handcuffed Groves being placed in the back of a police car and taken away. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As he passed, he looked at a Channel 2 Action News camera and said he was sorry and didnt want to go back to prison. Groves appeared before a Fulton County judge on Thursday where he waived his right to fight extradition and opted to be taken back to Louisiana. RELATED STORIES: Louisiana State Police said on Friday that the FBI and U.S. Marshals Service transported Groves from Atlanta to Baton Rouge, La. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement State police then flew him by helicopter to a secure correctional facility. Groves and nine others escaped from the Orleans Parish Prison. By July, all nine of the other escapees were back in custody. [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter] American diplomats are dusting off plans for Donald Trump to make a surprise visit to the demilitarised zone (DMZ) that separates North and South Korea. In 2019, Mr Trump became the first sitting American president to set foot in North Korea after crossing the demarcation line that divides the Korean peninsula. The line, which exists because the 1950 war between the two countries ended in an armistice rather than a peace treaty, is roughly 155 miles long and is the worlds most heavily armed border. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The US president is due to revisit South Korea for an international summit at the end of October, and although there is no meeting scheduled with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean dictator, American officials are readying themselves for all eventualities. The US embassy in Seoul is revisiting its plans for a Potus DMZ visit in the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum (Apec), said a senior diplomatic source. It is just a contingency at the moment. Such a move would be a classic piece of presidential showmanship by Mr Trump. In 2019, Mr Trump had been due to visit the DMZ but surprised the world with an 11th-hour Twitter message inviting Kim to shake hands and say hello. Mr Trump surprised the world with an 11th-hour impromptu meeting with Kim Jong-un on the border in 2019 - Dong-A Ilbo/Getty Mr Trump stepped across a low concrete barrier before walking about 20 paces inside hostile territory with the North Korean leader. They then crossed back into South Korea to address journalists. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The impromptu change of plans seemed to take his own staff by surprise. Journalists were manhandled by North Korean security guards, and Stephanie Grisham, the presidents then press secretary, scuffled with officials as she tried to ensure reporters could document the moment. Mr Trump will depart Washington DC later this month for the three-country trip through Asia. The visit ends in South Korea, where he is now unlikely to hold talks with Xi Jinping, his Chinese counterpart, on the sidelines of the Apec summit, after a furious outburst on Friday. Mr Trump accused China of holding the world to ransom by announcing fresh restrictions on the export of materials which are essential for the production of semiconductors and crucial modern technology. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In turn, Mr Trump threatened a massive increase in tariffs as he signalled a resumption of the USs costly trade war with China. I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at Apec, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so, he said on Truth Social. Later in the evening, Mr Trump suggested there would be a meeting. Speaking in the Oval Office, he said: Id assume we might have [a meeting]. Ahead of the trip, officials are leaving nothing to chance, including a potential meeting with Kim. You just never know with this guy, said a second source. b' ' Just as he did six years ago, Mr Trump has floated the idea of a meeting ahead of time. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Id like to meet him this year, Mr Trump told reporters in the Oval Office in August when he welcomed South Koreas new president to the White House. He added that he would see the North Korean leader in the appropriate future. It fits Mr Trumps pattern of using high-profile meetings to kick-start difficult or stalled negotiations. A senior administration official told The Telegraph: President Trump in his first term held three historic summits with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un that stabilised the Korean Peninsula. US policy on North Korea has not changed. President Trump remains open to talking with Kim Jong-un, without any preconditions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The surprise 2019 gathering came during a year of rapid diplomacy. Mr Trump kept up a correspondence with Kim and the two met three times the photo op in the DMZ, and at two summits. Talks eventually unravelled over North Koreas reluctance to give up its nuclear weapons, and Mr Trump was left with a handful of flattering letters praising his great decisiveness and excellent leadership, but no breakthrough. The DMZ is roughly 155 miles long and is the worlds most heavily armed border - Jung Yeon-je/AFP North Korea watchers are sceptical that Kim would agree to such a stunt this time around. I think its a low probability, high impact scenario, said Bruce Klingner, senior fellow at the Mansfield Foundation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 2018, he said, North Korea was looking to diversify away from its reliance on China and Russia. But now the war in Ukraine, where North Korean troops are fighting alongside Russian forces, has changed the calculus. Perhaps the biggest factor is that North Korea is getting so many benefits with very few, to no, conditions from Russia, said Mr Klingner. Far more benefits than they could get from Washington. Earlier this year, Kims sister rejected signals from Mr Trump, saying Washington would have to accept North Korea as a nuclear weapons state. In a statement carried by state media, Kim Yo-jong said the relationship between her brother and the American president was not bad. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But she added that if Mr Trump tried to use that relationship to push North Korea towards denuclearisation then Pyongyang would consider it nothing but a mockery. Gi-Wook Shin, a professor of contemporary Korea at Stanford University, said anything could happen. I wouldnt rule out the possibility of a meeting, he said. And its prudent for the US embassy to prepare for any contingency. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. Most major Connecticut universities saw an overall decrease in reported crime in 2024, according to recently released campus security reports. CT Insider collected crime statistics across multiple Connecticut colleges and universities from the 2025 annual campus security and fire safety reports, which schools are required to publish every Oct. 1 under the Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "The fundamental point of having the crime statistics is so that people know that crimes do happen on college and university campuses," said S. Daniel Carter, president of the consulting group SAFE Campuses LLC. The Clery Act, named after Jeanne Clery, a Lehigh University student who was raped and killed on campus in 1986, requires colleges and universities that receive federal funding to report campus crime data and safety policies. Here's what the data shows at major Connecticut higher education institutions: { "__type": "devHubFreeformEmbed", "__id": "Datawrapper", "__fallbackImage": "https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/sCPO1/mobile.png", "__data": { "datawrapper_id": "sCPO1" } } State's largest universities saw slight decrease in crime between 2024 and 2023 Yale University, the University of Connecticut and multiple other major Connecticut schools saw a decline in overall crime in 2024 compared to 2023, according to the reports. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement { "__type": "devHubFreeformEmbed", "__id": "Datawrapper", "__fallbackImage": "https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/puAQO/mobile.png", "__data": { "datawrapper_id": "puAQO" } } At Yale, the university saw around a 19% decrease in reported crimes in 2024, said Duane Lovello, head of Yale Public Safety in a statement to CT Insider. The university also saw decreases in reported sexual assault, domestic violence and aggravated assault, he said. "However, any crime committed has a profound impact on those affected, and the safety and security of the community continues to be Yale's top priority," Lovello said. Reported criminal offenses, which include murder, manslaughter by negligence, rape, fondling, incest, statutory rape, robbery, aggravated assault, burglary, motor vehicle theft and arson, also slightly decreased at UConn in 2024 compared to 2023, according to the report. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Both Yale and UConn reported the highest number of criminal offenses in 2024 out of the state's major four-year higher education institutions, but they also have the biggest student population. So, while the crime statistics are important indicators, Carter said it's critical to contextualize them. "You have to take into consideration the size, geographically, population of each institution, and they are different," he said. Considering the number of students living on campus is also important, Carter added. Both Yale and UConn have high percentages of resident students. "All of these things are factors," Carter said. Motor vehicle thefts, burglary high at some CT schools While many schools saw an overall decline in crime last year, some types of crime increased. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At Central Connecticut State University, overall crime was slightly up in 2024, a rise that can largely be traced to a spike in motor vehicle thefts. There were six motor vehicle thefts reported at CCSU in 2024 compared to one in 2023 and none in 2022, according to the report. At Yale, the most common crimes in 2024 were motor vehicle theft and burglary. There were 50 burglaries reported at Yale in 2024, the majority of which occurred on campus, compared to 29 in 2023 and 14 in 2022. There were also slightly more reported robberies in 2024. In addition, there were 149 motor vehicle thefts at and around Yale in 2024 and 169 in 2023 - high numbers compared to only 35 in 2022. Motor vehicle thefts also include electric scooters and electric bicycles, the report notes. Most of the 2024 motor vehicle thefts occurred off campus and on public property, according to the report. The Clery reports detail crimes and incidents that occur on campus and around campus, like off-campus locations owned and used by schools, and on public property adjacent to the campus, such as streets and sidewalks. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement That was another reason it was important to consider the location of the university when examining the crime data, including whether it was urban, like Yale is, or suburban or rural, Carter said. Although motor vehicle theft was down at UConn in 2024, the university saw a major spike in burglaries in 2024 the most significant crime increase that year. UConn police received 27 reports of burglaries in 2024 compared to 12 in 2023 and 3 in 2022, according to the report. "The large majority of the 2024 reports were attributable to one individual, and occurred when that now-former student entered unlocked dorm rooms and took items from desks and other areas in plain sight, police say," according to the university news release on the report. "Nonetheless, the spike in numbers is prompting renewed reminders to students to always lock their residence hall and apartment doors, never to leave the room unattended when the door is unlocked, and not to leave valuable items in plain sight while the door is unsecured." Wesleyan University and the University of New Haven also reported a spike in burglaries in 2024. Hate crimes up in 2024, reflecting statewide and national trends { "__type": "devHubFreeformEmbed", "__id": "Datawrapper", "__fallbackImage": "https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/RDdJd/mobile.png", "__data": { "datawrapper_id": "RDdJd" } } Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Some Connecticut universities saw a spike in hate crimes in 2024, the reports show. The trend on campuses reflects a broader rise statewide, as Connecticut overall saw a 21% uptick in hate crimes in 2024, according to recently released state figures. While the nationwide campus crime data for 2024 wasn't out yet, Carter said college campuses across the country have seen significant increases in hate crimes over the past two years. "And I would suspect the trend will probably continue in 2024," he said. He said the increase was being driven by two things: increased strife that has occurred on many campuses over political situations and a greater recognition about identifying hate crimes. In 2024, Yale University saw the sharpest increase in hate crimes, with 11 hate crimes compared to three in 2023 and five in 2022. Hate crimes include any criminal offenses or incident of larceny-theft, simple assault, intimidation, or destruction/damage/vandalism of property that were motivated by bias, according to Yale's report. Six of the 11 hate crimes at Yale in 2024 were classified in the report as anti-Jewish. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The U.S. Department of Education opened an investigation into Yale in March over a complaint filed last spring alleging that some Jewish students at Yale have been subject to ongoing threats and harassment. Across the country, many college campuses, including Yale, became hotspots last spring for protests against Israel and the war in Gaza. Organizations like the Anti-Defamation League also reported a steep rise in antisemitic incidents on campuses in 2024. In addition, Sacred Heart, which reported no hate crimes in 2022 and 2023, saw three in 2024. Those include one religion-related hate crime and two sexual orientation-related hate crimes, according to the report. The University of New Haven also saw three hate crimes reported in 2024, compared with one in 2023 and none in 2022. Despite the overall increase, several schools reported zero hate crime offenses in 2024. Reported rapes hit three-year low at multiple CT colleges { "__type": "devHubFreeformEmbed", "__id": "Datawrapper", "__fallbackImage": "https://datawrapper.dwcdn.net/qTb0I/mobile.png", "__data": { "datawrapper_id": "qTb0I" } } Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At most major Connecticut universities, the number of reported rapes declined in 2024 compared to the year before, with several reporting a three-year low, according to the reports. However, Carter said it's important to note that for some offenses in particular, the numbers dramatically understate the number of incidents. The sexual assault offenses in the reports are based on the number of people who come forward and make a report, not the number of incidents that actually occurred, he said. "I would say for sexual assault in particular you're probably looking, at most, about 20% of the incidents that's actually occurred. It's probably a lot less than that," Carter said. College-age victims of sexual violence rarely report to law enforcement, according to widely cited statistics. In addition, the Clery reporting is limited to geographical constraints, so incidents that occur at other nearby areas like an off-campus bar or apartment aren't included in the statistics, he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yale was one of the universities where the number of reported rapes hit a three-year low, with 19 in 2024 compared to 56 in 2023 and 41 in 2022, according to the report. The number of reported Violence Against Women Act offenses, which include domestic violence, dating violence and stalking, also significantly decreased in 2024 compared to 2023. The University of Hartford, Connecticut College, Sacred Heart University, Quinnipiac University and Southern Connecticut State University also saw a three-year low in reported rapes. At UConn, the number of reported rapes did not increase or decrease, as there were eight in 2024, 2023 and in 2022, according to the report. "Of the eight sexual assaults reported at Storrs in calendar year 2024 the same number as in 2023 police received two reports directly from individuals. The rest were reported by campus security authorities, including Residential Life and Student Affairs, to be included in the Clery report," according to a university news release. "In the case of sexual violence crimes, UConn's Clery numbers reflect a large amount of input from campus security authorities, along with significant outreach services university-wide to encourage reporting of this traditionally underreported crime." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement UConn's news release cites a university policy, in which most UConn employees are required to report sexual assault. "Because that policy is specific to UConn and other institutions might take different approaches, comparisons are difficult to make against other universities whose policies are not as robust and whose reporting requirements are not as stringent," according to the news release. This article originally published at What crimes occurred at Connecticut universities in 2024? Data shows fewer reported rapes, more burglaries. SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) Continuing the coverage of the Kyren Lacy story, after Louisiana state police released dash camera footage of the hit-and-run crash, many are questioning the court of public opinion. Families and friends remain frustrated but not swayed from seeking justice for K2. Kyren Lacy, former LSU receiver and NFL draft hopeful dies Attorney at law, Shaunte Wells, says when it comes to the court of public opinion, social media and conversation circles often shape the public narrative way before the facts do. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The court of public opinion really comes from social media, barbershop conversations, beauty shop conversations, and church conversations. I think it goes a long way in shaping how people think about it, said Shaunte Wells. He says evidence of wrongdoing is often slow to surface, and sometimes even buried for months. Proof of officer wrongdoing or some type of misconduct is often buried. Sometimes it doesnt come to light unless the attorneys involved have been diligent in going through every piece of evidence. You can tell that just by how long it took for that to come out, said Shaunte Wells. As this new footage finally comes to light, therapist Natasha Fields it, which lacks transparency, which adds to the emotional toll of this case, for those who want justice for K2. Fields says race and status cannot be ignored in this case. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The stress that this young man encountered as a result of the bashing and cruelty that weve all seen on social media contributed to his death. When you go from that high high to that low low, the fall is more extreme, said licensed therapist Natasha Fields. Were in Louisiana, in the deep south. Wed be crazy not to think that the color of this young mans skin and his success didnt contribute to how officers perceived him, said Natasha Fields. In response to the outrage, the Louisiana Democratic Party is urging state lawmakers to draft what they are calling the Lacy Law, which would prevent false reporting and wrongful accusations by law enforcement officers. State representative Joy Walters released a statement saying in part: We must commit ourselves to the truth, fairness, and protection of every Louisianans rights to be seen as fully human. Full statement from Rep. Joy Walters regarding the Kyren Lacy investigation: Once its brought to the public, once some type of complaint is filed, then a higher authority will look into it. Theres a bunch of information, a bunch of evidence, and it all doesnt come through at the same time, said Shaunte Wells. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Both Well and Fields say Lacys story shows why transparency matters. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Disruptive passengers forced an American Airlines flight to return to Charlotte. The plane took off for Jamaica Friday afternoon. ALSO READ: Unbelievable rates: Travel experts tips to score luxury flights for less While onboard, two passengers refused to follow orders from flight attendants, according to the Charlotte Observer. That is when the flight turned back to Charlotte Douglas Airport, and those passengers were removed. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The flight eventually made it to its destination four hours late. American Airlines released a statement addressing the incident, saying: Safety is our top priority, and we expect our customers to comply with federal regulations while on board our aircraft. We thank our team members for their professionalism and our customers for their understanding." VIDEO: Unbelievable rates: Travel experts tips to score luxury flights for less WASHINGTON President Donald Trump's dream of becoming a Nobel laureate did not come true this year, although the prizewinner dedicated the honor to him, in part, for supporting her cause. The Norwegian committee that determines the winner of the prestigious awards passed Trump over for the peace prize he coveted, in the hope that he might win for normalizing diplomatic relations between a handful of nations. The award went to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for promoting democratic rights in her country and her struggle to achieve a transition to democracy, the committee said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Machado dedicated her prize to the Venezuelan people and Trump "for his decisive support of our cause!" "We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy," Machado wrote on social media. More: Nobel Peace Prize goes to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado Trump brokered a historic agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates to formalize ties between the countries during his first term in office. Bahrain, Morocco and Sudan signed the accords, which Trump hoped to expand to include other nations. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The American president was also nominated for the Peace Prize for various agreements he struck to resolve crises and conflicts this year but the submissions from the leaders of Cambodia, Pakistan and other nations came after the committee's Jan. 31 deadline. Russian President Vladimir Putin said, "I don't know whether he's worthy of it or not," Reuters reported. The White House responded to the Nobel committee snub by declaring it was playing politics. "The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace," White House Communications Director Steven Cheung wrote on social media. The committee's decision not to award Trump the prize came as no surprise. He mused earlier in the year that he would "never" win the esteemed recognition, which has only been awarded to four previous U.S. presidents, Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement More: Trump says he deserves a Nobel peace prize. Does he? They will never give me a Nobel Peace Prize, Trump said during a Feb. 4 meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in the Oval Office. It's too bad. I deserve it, but they will never give it to me. Asked by a reporter if he thought he would win the prize on Oct. 8, Trump said during a roundtable: "I have no idea." Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hands over a nomination letter as he tells President Donald Trump he has nominated him for the Nobel Peace Prize, during a bilateral dinner, at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., July 7, 2025. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque Trump, who said he'd resolved "seven wars" throughout his presidency and was working to end the war in Gaza, said, "Perhaps they'll find a reason not to give it to me, you know. Perhaps they will." Former U.S. Presidents Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Jimmy Carter and Barack Obama previously won the prestigious award. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump groused on Oct. 9 that "Obama got a prize for doing nothing" during an Oval Office meeting on the eve of the citation. The Nobel Committee does not disclose the names of nominees who were not chosen, but it said before the announcement that there were 338 candidates, 244 of whom were individuals and 94 others that were organizations. New York Rep. Claudia Tenney, a Republican, publicly disclosed that she nominated Trump for the Nobel Prize for the Abraham Accords. Netanyahu also said he would nominate Trump for his role in the accords during a White House visit in July. Trump hopes to expand the agreement to include countries such as Saudi Arabia. Contributing: Zac Anderson This story has been updated. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Donald Trump does not win the Nobel Peace Prize While hundreds of thousands of American service members brace for missed paychecks , Donald Trump just handed $20 billion to Argentina during a government shutdown. And to top it off, his wealthy billionaire cronies are set to make a bundle off the investment. While Trump is rushing to give billions away to a foreign entity, hes in no hurry to help soldiers . Late Friday, The Trump administration temporarily ruled out pursuing a short-term legislative measure to guarantee pay for military members at risk of missing paychecks next week, opting instead to consider other possible solutions. Pay will be frozen soon for the troops and is now frozen for most federal workers. And on Friday, Trump began laying off government workers. The White House Office of Management and Budget told NBC News the layoffs would be "substantial." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trumps Treasury is wiring billions abroad, which amounts to a foreign bailout for bankers and investors, not soldiers and citizens. It just proves whats really important to Trump and his administration: to hell with the poor, and lets line the pockets of the rich. Related: Bishop William Barber: Ignoring the poor means ignoring the Jesus factor and defying Christianity Whats so galling about this giveaway is who benefits from the deal. While the military goes unpaid and government workers are laid off, Wall Street jumps for joy. Hedge funds and private investors who hold Argentine debt stand to make windfall profits from Trumps loan, effectively using American taxpayer dollars to enrich the ultra-wealthy. Earlier this month, Trumps Treasury secretary, Scott Bessent, told CNBC , This trope that we're helping out wealthy Americans with interests down there [Argentina] couldn't be more false," Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yeah, right, Scott. Your friends and former colleagues are going to cash in. That includes American billionaire hedge fund manager Rob Citrone. Citrone has made substantial bets on Argentinas economic future, according to Mother Jones. Citrone, cofounder of Discovery Capital Management, is also a friend and former colleague of Bessent, a connection that has not previously been reported in U.S. media. By Citrones own account, he played a key role in making Bessent extremely wealthy. Maybe Scott should explain how he got so rich to the families of soldiers and civil servants now skipping mortgage payments and grocery runs and facing stiff medical bills. Or worse, getting a pink slip while this economy heads for disaster . Related: Trusting Trump on tariffs and hanging tough with him are as ridiculous as taxing penguins Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Further, the Argentinian bailout is a direct transfer of risk from rich investors to ordinary Americans. Its a reminder that this administrations economic priorities are dictated less by strategy and more by capitalism by cronyism. At home, the shutdown is gloomingly going into its third week, and the fallout is growing more grim with each passing day, as federal workers sink deeper into worry, debt, and desperation. Meanwhile, the U.S. military, the institution Trump loves to pretend hes devoted to but pays no attention to, suffers. He paraded service members humiliatingly in front of him on his birthday, and has dissed generals, the wounded, and prisoners of war. He appears to have no urgency to make sure they are taken care of as the shutdown marches on unabated. He said a bill guaranteeing military pay during the shutdown probably will happen . Notice, he did not say, It should happen. And then came Fridays announcement, underlining his nonchalant attitude. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement And when one soldiers wife confronted House Speaker Mike Johnson, pleading, Our kids are going to die if you dont pass this bill, the one Trump said probably should happen. Johnson responded by saying, The Democrats are the ones that are preventing you from getting a check. Related: I n the wake of Kerrville, how so-called Christian Mike Johnson is leading a satanic cycle of suffering This shutdown is 100 percent the fault of Trump and the GOP-controlled Congress, because they are the ones in charge. They are the ones who have the responsibility to run the government. You cant blame the Democrats when you control the executive and legislative branches. For all intents and purposes its completely Trumps government, since the Republican Congress is totally beholden to him and doesnt make a move without him. Therefore, its Trump who is leaving the families of enlisted men and women rationing gas, skipping day care, and living off credit cards. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Johnson, meanwhile, could call the House back tomorrow and send a clean military funding bill to the Senate. But he wont, not without Trumps permission. Because once J ohnson calls the House back , he would have to swear in Arizona Democratic Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, whose signature on the discharge petition to release the Epstein files would cross the threshold to pass the House. So of course, Trump doesnt want Johnson to call back the House because he doesnt want those files to see the light of day. And that means no money for the troops. So Johnson must decide whether he wants to help end the shutdown or continue to protect Trump. I think we all know what the answer to that question is. As for those in power who might use their platforms to demand that troops get paid? Well, one man in particular is too wrapped up in his own ego to give a damn about the troops. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has mandated that every service member view or read his September 30 speech to senior commanders at Marine Corps Base Quantico, The Advocate learned this week. Yep, instead of working to ensure soldiers are paid, hes more concerned with ensuring they see what a big deal he is. Related: Pete Hegseth mandates that all military service members watch his fratty Virginia speech to generals Trump campaigned on America First, but when you peel back the onion, his pattern is always the same, and that is wealth first, loyalty first, image first. Its a three-way tie. He doesnt care about the people at all. The shutdown could end tomorrow if Trump and Johnson wanted it to. They could pay the troops. They could reopen the government. But that would require something they both refuse to show, a bit of humility and admitting they were wrong. Fat chance of that. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Every day this shutdown drags on, the priorities of this administration become more disgustingly clear. The only checks Trump is willing to write are to foreign banks, not to the soldiers. The only rescue plans being hatched are for Trumps investors and billionaire buddies, not the American people. Voices is dedicated to featuring a wide range of inspiring personal stories and impactful opinions from the LGBTQ+ community and its allies. Visit Advocate.com/submit to learn more about submission guidelines. Views expressed in Voices stories are those of the guest writers, columnists, and editors, and do not directly represent the views of The Advocate or our parent company, equalpride. This article originally appeared on Advocate: During Trumps shutdown, Argentina gets $20 billion while our service members get ... $0 Education Foundation president honored at statewide conference Jennifer Vigne, president and CEO of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County, was recently honored for leadership at the ConnectED statewide conference for the Consortium of Florida Education Foundations in Orlando. Jennifer Vigne is president and CEO of the Education Foundation of Sarasota County. Vigne received the Jim McKenzie Consortium Champion Award, which is presented annually to an education foundation leader who exemplifies the Consortiums values of collaboration, connection, leadership and excellence. We know how tirelessly our local education foundation leaders work to lead their organization, so when they also commit themselves to helping their peers grow and improve it is particularly meaningful, Consortium president Amity Schuyler said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Vigne was selected for her consistent engagement with the Consortium over 10 years as leader of the Education Foundation, including board chair from 2021-23. Most recently she led the Consortiums CEO Transition Task Force, conducting a 10-month search to select the Consortiums next leader. As the only nonprofit solely dedicated to students and teachers in Sarasota County, the Education Foundation offers a full range of programs, driving innovation and strength for the community. Visit EdFoundationSRQ.org. ASALH's Freedom School program ready to launch fourth season The Association for the Study of African American Life and History (ASALH), Manasota Branch, will launch the fourth season of its Freedom School program on Oct. 18, inviting students and families to explore the full story of Black history. Jada Wright-Greene is executive director of Manasota ASALH. Freedom School gives students the opportunity to explore history thats too often left out of textbooks and to see themselves reflected in powerful stories of resilience and achievement, said Jada Wright-Greene, executive director of Manasota ASALH. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Led by program director Edna Sherrell, the curriculum centers on African and African American history, weaving in themes of civic engagement and the arts. The program is free thanks to support from the Hartwell Fund at the Community Foundation of Sarasota, the Masala Giving Circle, and individual donors. Freedom School meets for 12 Saturday sessions from noon-2 p.m. at Girls Inc. in Sarasota. The program is expanding to include afterschool sessions at the Palmetto Youth Center, the 13th AV Dream Center, and the Sarasota Housing Authority. To register, volunteer, or learn more, email ProgramDirector@ASALH-ManasotaFL.org or visit ASALH-ManasotaFl.org. Fifth annual Climate Conference features top biodiversity expert The fifth annual Florida Climate Conference: Climate & Biodiversity featuring Dr. Pam Soltis, director of the University of Florida Biodiversity Institute, will be held on Nov. 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at USF Sarasota-Manatee. Soltis is a leading voice in understanding and conserving biodiversity in a changing climate. An internationally recognized botanist and evolutionary biologist, she has spent her career studying plant diversity, genomic evolution, and the connection between ecosystems. Soltis also is a past president of the American Institute of Biological Sciences and has been elected to the National Academy of Sciences. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For information and tickets, visit theclimateadaptationcenter.org/events. For sponsorships, contact CAC chairman Bob Bunting at bob.bunting@theclimateadaptioncenter.org. Sponsors include Tommy Express Car Wash, the Barancik Foundation, Sarasota Magazine, WUSF Public Media, CSA Group, and USF Sarasota-Manatee. Around and about The Bradenton Beach Merchants Association's Sundown Get Down street party series kicks off with Rock the Block: Celebrating Our First Responders & Cornhole Tournament on Oct. 11 on Historic Bridge Street. Info: Sundown Get Down on Facebook; HistoricBridgeStreet.net. The YMCA of Southwest Florida will host a Mental Health First Aid program for youth on Oct. 11 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Forum Theatre at Grand Living Wellen Park, 19985 Market Way, North Port. The goal is to train 60 students in grades 912 to recognize signs of mental health and substance use challenges. Registration/info: 844-630-5295, HCAFloridaHealthcare.com. The Wellen Park Wine Festival showcasing nearly 40 winemakers and the culinary talents of Downtown Wellen restaurants returns on Nov. 14-15. The festival includes a five-course Silver Oak wine dinner and an introductory wine class. Tickets/schedule: wellenpark.com/wine. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trinity Presbyterian Church of Venice (4365 Englewood Road) will host a benefit concert on Nov. 16 to support CAM (Community Assistance Ministry). The one-hour program will showcase internationally acclaimed violinist Andrii Padkovskyi, 15, and clarinetist Yurii Padkovskyi, 21, brothers from Ukraine who will be joined by pianist Jesse Martins. Admission is $10 at the door. Donations: CAministry.org. Info: musicdirector@trinitypc.org. Submissions by Helen Leon, Sarah Glendening, Su Byron, Bob Bunting, Jill McGarry, Liz Nason, Emily Ford, and Julie Magnifico. This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Education Foundation president honored at statewide conference Egypt plans to host an international summit on Gaza after a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas came into force under a US peace plan. The summit, to take place in Egypt's Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh, will be co-chaired by US President Donald Trump and Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said on Saturday. Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdel-Atti and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed in a phone call arrangements of the summit and international participation, the ministry added in a statement. No specific date of the meeting or further details were given. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Several European and Arab leaders are expected to attend the summit, according to media reports. Al-Sissi has invited German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to attend a ceremony in Egypt for a signing ceremony on the Gaza agreement. Trump has already signalled interest in travelling to Egypt for the signing ceremony after a visit to Israel. But the president, who had indicated that he may travel to the Middle East as early as Sunday, did not specify dates for the individual stops on his trip. The ceasefire - marking the first step in a wider US plan for a complete end to two years of devastating war - took effect on Friday. The deal includes the release of all hostages kept in the Gaza Strip and the withdrawal of Israeli forces to a mutually agreed line in the coastal territory. It's fall, which means you really have to keep an eye out for deer in the road, but depending on where you're driving, you also have to keep an eye out for elk, moose, bison, bear and the occasional cow that got loose. But as much damage as those animals can do, at least in the U.S. we don't have to worry about elephants. As the BBC reports, on Friday, five Zimbabwean members of parliament found out the hard way that hitting an elephant is seriously bad news, with one MP, Desire Moyo, ultimately dying from his injuries. According to the BBC, Moyo was traveling in a truck (that appears to be a Toyota Hilux) with four other MPs on the Bulawayo-Gweru highway when they hit an elephant. Initial reports claim Moyo died instantly, while the other MPs were injured, but based on one MP's account, it wasn't the damage from the initial crash that took his life. Instead, it was the damage from the elephant attack that followed. As MP Discent Bajila told ZimLive: I spoke to Honourable Ndebele, who was in the front passenger seat. His recollection is that they hit the elephant on its backside. After the impact, he remembers the elephant turning round and fighting the vehicle. This, he believes, is what did the most damage on the top right side of the vehicle and ultimately led to Honourable Moyo's fatal injuries. Read more: Ford Once Made A Mile-Long Factory To Build Bombers Faster Than Anyone Thought Possible Wildlife deaths in Zimbabwe A selfie that Desire Moyo posted to Facebook prior to his death - Desire Moyo/Facebook Since the crash just happened this morning, we don't really know what led to their collision with the elephant, but the BBC reports the crash took place in an area with a known elephant presence. Zimbabwe also has a high population of elephants in general, and a fully grown male African elephant can easily weigh more than a GMC Hummer EV. Zimbabwe has also been working hard to reduce the number of humans killed by wildlife, including elephants, and does appear to have made significant progress in recent years. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In September of last year, ZimParks director-general Dr. Fulton Mangwanya announced that 31 people had been killed by wildlife in 2024, which is still less than ideal, but it marked an improvement over the 50 deaths through the same period in 2023 and less than half of the 67 people killed in 2022. "Human, crop and livestock destruction not only reduces incomes but also affects livelihoods and our people's abilities to feed their families," Dr. Mangwanya told Zimbabwe's Herald Online. "Our shared goal is to find pathways that mitigate conflicts while promoting the conservation of wildlife and the well-being of human communities." Moyo was a member of Zimbabwe's center-left Citizens Coalition for Change party representing the Nkulumane Constituency in the city of Bulawayo. Until his death, he served on the parliament's sport, recreation, arts and culture committee. He was also an "award-winning poet, educator and arts administrator," with Bulawayo Mayor David Coltart telling the BBC that Moyo would be "remembered as an 'iconic leader ... and creative' who 'strove to champion the arts' in the city and beyond." Moyo's death also came the day before his 46th birthday. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik. Estonia has temporarily closed the Saatse border crossing due to heightened Russian military activity in the area, the Estonian public broadcaster ERR reported on Oct. 10. The decision comes amid rising concerns over regional security, including repeated violations of NATO airspace by Russian drones and fighter jets, as well as an increase in sightings of unidentified aircraft near critical infrastructure sites across Europe. According to Kunter Pedoski, operational commander of Estonia's Southern Prefecture, border guards observed an unusually large presence of Russian military personnel near the crossing on the evening of Oct. 9. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Russian border guards routinely patrol the area near Saatse, as it lies within their territory. However, today we noticed significantly more movement than usual," Pedoski told ERR. Initially, Estonian patrols were stationed on both sides of the road to inform drivers and advise them to avoid the area due to the increased Russian military presence. Despite the warnings, some individuals still attempted to proceed through the zone. Pedoski emphasized that the road in question crosses Russian territory and therefore always carries a certain level of risk, but the current situation has made it more dangerous than usual. "We've made the decision to temporarily close the crossing to prevent any escalation," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets briefly entered Estonian airspace on Sept. 19, remaining there for 12 minutes before being intercepted by NATO forces. In early September, Polish forces shot down several Russian drones that had entered their airspace. A Russian drone was also detected over Romanian territory a few days later, though Bucharest opted not to engage it. Read also: Russia-Ukraine peace talks are dead, for now. But were they ever alive? Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna has praised the German government's new determination in security policy and the positive knock-on effect among its allies. "We see that now the German new government has really changed the dynamics in Europe," Tsahkna told dpa on Friday on the sidelines of the Tallinn Digital Summit. For too long, too many countries had been able to hide behind Germany's back, said Tsakhna. But with Berlin increasing its military spending and investment in defence, there was now no excuse for them to do so, he underscored. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Tsahkna also praised the work of Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who he said has taken on a clear leadership role, and Germany's support for Ukraine, which is under attack from Russia. The aid packages, investments and political rhetoric are "very strong," he said. The minister also welcomed Germany's efforts to mobilize Russian assets frozen in the EU and noted the change in political will inside the bloc. "Estonia has been leading and pushing this already [for] more then three years, and now we are moving," he said of Merz's latest initiative. "I see that the political will is changing." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Merz had proposed using the Russian central bank's assets to provide 140 billion ($162 billion) in loans to arm Ukraine. There are serious concerns about the plans, particularly in Belgium, where most of the money is stored. In May 2024, Estonia became the first European country to officially pass a law allowing the use of frozen Russian assets for reparations payments to Ukraine. NATO reacted appropriately to Russia's recent violations of Estonia's airspace but should expect further disruptive actions from Moscow, according to the Baltic country's foreign minister. "I'm really sure that Russia will continue these provocations. It's not about Estonia, it's about NATO unity, as well as testing our capabilities, to also trans-Atlantic unity," Margus Tsahkna told dpa on Friday on the sidelines of the Tallinn Digital Summit. In September, three Russian fighter jets entered the airspace of the EU and NATO member state for about 12 minutes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The government in Tallinn requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council and consultations with its allies under Article 4 of the NATO Treaty. In a subsequent statement, the military alliance warned Russia against further border violations, threatening the use of force. "We reacted, I think, in a very solid way," said Tsahkna, adding that NATO had shown that it functions well, including through the immediate interception of the Russian aircraft. "Everything was under control. There was no immediate direct military threat." Even after the incident, the alliance showed political unity and determination, he noted. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Estonia's foreign minister joined Latvia and Lithuania in calling for NATO's mission to monitor Baltic airspace to be converted into a genuine defence operation. "We are supporting this idea," said Tsahkna, while stressing that it is not enough to simply change the mission's name. Rather, it must be upgraded with improved air-defence capabilities, according to the minister. The governments in Riga and Vilnius had previously spoken out in favour of transforming NATO's Baltic Air Policing Mission into an Air Defence Mission. Under the joint mission implemented in 2004, NATO allies take turns providing fighter jets and personnel for armed protection flights. The three Baltic States of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, which border Russia, do not have suitable aircraft of their own for the task. CHARLESTON, S.C. (WCBD) For the past 20 years, the Medical University of South Carolina has celebrated four-pawed, tail-wagging, furry-eared K-9 physicians of hope. A program at MUSC that has helped thousands of people in so many different ways. The healing power of a wagging tail and the kisses dont hurt either. A celebration of a program with profound effects and a chance for a round of a-paws Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The 20th anniversary of the therapy animal program at MUSC. Just a few of the many ways therapy dogs have helped, as told by the people who are truly grateful for their support. At this event, every dog, big and small, is blessed. Its a way to express gratitude to the therapy dogs and their handlers who provide comfort and support to patients and staff. And as much as the dogs can help others, its also fulfilling to the ones providing the relief. A genuine enhancement to patient care. Its hard not to feel better with a furry friend like this at your side. This program, in its 20 years, has become a model of excellence. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Charleston Mayor William Cogswell is also offering a proclamation recognizing the programs impact. October 4 is now the blessing of the therapy dogs day If you have an Everyday Hero, email bclark@wcbd.com or submit it here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WCBD News 2. President Donald Trump has repeatedly claimed he has secured $17 trillion in investment this year or even more than that. We have over $17 trillion being invested now in the United States, Trump told reporters at the White House on Tuesday. He added moments later, We have more than $17 trillion in eight months. On Friday, he said he thought the figure had just cracked $18 trillion. But even the $17 trillion figure is fictional. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trumps own White House website values the major investment announcements this term at $8.8 trillion, around half the $17 trillion and $18 trillion numbers Trump used out loud this week. And an item-by-item CNN review of the top 10 items on the White Houses list shows that even the $8.8 trillion number is itself a big exaggeration. The White House list doesnt show that $8.8 trillion is being invested now in the United States or even that there have been $8.8 trillion in credible Trump-era commitments to make eventual investments in the US. Rather, the White House list includes: $600 billion from EU firms even though the European Union has made clear that this is merely an estimate of potential private investment, not an actual commitment $600 billion from Saudi Arabia even though the Saudis vague $600 billion pledge encompasses both investments and trade, not simply Saudi investment in the US $500 billion from India even though the two countries have said the $500 billion is a goal for bilateral trade, not Indian investment in the US $1.2 trillion from Qatar even though the White House previously announced that Trumps agreement with Qatar is to generate $1.2 trillion in economic exchange between the US and Qatar, not for Qatar to invest $1.2 trillion in the US $1.4 trillion from the United Arab Emirates even though this is a vague pledge more than double the size of the UAEs gross domestic product $1 trillion from Japan even though Japans actual pledge is $550 billion (and Japan insists that even this smaller amount will overwhelmingly be made up of loans and loan guarantees, not equity investment) $450 billion from South Korea even though South Korea made a $350 billion pledge that is in limbo amid tensions with the US (South Korea also promised to increase its US energy purchases to $100 billion, not to add $100 billion in additional energy purchases) More than $1 trillion in vague corporate pledges that analysts say likely include normal operational spending and previously planned investments The White House declined to comment on why the president keeps saying he has gotten $17 trillion in investment instead of the White Houses own $8.8 trillion figure, and it would not comment on the record to address CNNs specific questions about the many holes in the $8.8 trillion figure. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Instead, White House spokesperson Kush Desai said in an email that the media is doing pointless and pedantic nitpicking and said, The President is right: industry leaders have committed to investing trillions to make and hire in America, with trillions more to come. He added that the media would be beclowned when Trumps policies take effect and investment commitments materialize into new factories and facilities. Heres a fact check about what the top 10 countries or entities on the White House list have actually committed to or, more to the point, what they have not. The European Union: No actual commitment to invest $600 billion The White Houses list of supposed investment announcements attributes $600 billion to EU Firms. But firms in the European Union havent invested $600 billion in the US during this Trump presidency or even made promises to invest $600 billion in the US. Rather, the EU has vaguely signaled that unidentified companies in the EU are interested in investing this much in the US during Trumps second term. The EU agreed in August to the following language in a joint statement with the Trump administration: European companies are expected to invest an additional $600 billion across strategic sectors in the United States through 2028. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The $600 billion in expected private investment may never materialize. Justin Wolfers, a University of Michigan economics professor, noted in an August interview that there is no commitment; expected to is not a commitment. Trump has wrongly described the $600 billion as a gift the EU gave me to do anything I want, but the money has not been handed to him to control, nor handed to anybody at this point. The European Commission cannot order or decide how private companies invest in the US, Cecilia Malmstrom, a Peterson Institute for International Economics nonresident senior fellow who formerly served as European commissioner for trade, said in an email. The figure given was an estimation of what companies have said they planned to do and invest in the coming years. It is not a legal commitment, and it would be a bit risky to include the figure in a budget or a forecast. Saudi Arabia: Lots of reasons for skepticism of a vague $600 billion investments and trade pledge The White Houses announcements list attributes $600 billion in supposed foreign investment to Saudi Arabia. But Saudi Arabia has publicly described the $600 billion not as investment but as an intention to engage in some unspecified combination of investments and trade over four years. Experts say a $600 billion Saudi investment in the US over four years appears unlikely. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The economic and financial relationship between the United States and Saudi Arabia will deepen under the Trump presidency, but the numbers given for potential future Saudi trade and investment with the United States look too high, Tim Callen, a former International Monetary Fund official who is now a visiting fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute think tank, said in an email. If it is to occur during this presidency, the $150 billion per year average this implies is equivalent to 14% of Saudi Arabias annual gross domestic product, 40% of its annual export revenue, and just over 50% of its annual imports of goods and services, Callen said. Referring to Saudi Arabias sovereign wealth fund, he added, It is also equivalent to about two-thirds of the assets held by the Public Investment Fund, but the PIF has recently said that it aims to have 80% of its portfolio invested in Saudi Arabia. Maya Senussi, lead economist at advisory firm Oxford Economics, wrote in May that if global energy prices dont increase, the Saudi commitment to making domestic investments could restrict its ability to fulfil pledges of overseas investment within the next four years. Callen also noted that Saudi Arabia did not come close to fulfilling what Trump has claimed was a Saudi pledge during his first term to buy $450 billion in American goods. India: Its $500 billion figure is about bilateral trade, not Indian investment in the US The White Houses announcements list includes $500 billion in supposed foreign investment from India. But India has not actually made any promise to invest $500 billion in the US. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rather, an official joint statement from Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in February confirmed that the $500 billion figure is a goal aiming to more than double total bilateral trade to $500 billion by 2030. In other words, the goal would be met in part by Indian companies exporting more to Americans. And even if it was largely met by American companies exporting more to Indians, that would not be the same as India making an investment in the US. The White Houses online list does say the focus of the $500 billion Indian investment is mutual trade expansion. Still, its inaccurate to describe the $500 billion figure as an Indian investment pledge at all. I would not include $500 billion on an investment chart, Richard Rossow, the chair on India and emerging Asia economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank, said in an email. Rossow said it is hard to imagine a jump to $500 billion from the current level of Indian investment in the US. (A non-comprehensive 2023 survey from an Indian industry group found about $40 billion in cumulative investment in the US from the Indian companies that responded.) Qatar: The announcement was a $1.2 trillion economic exchange, not a $1.2 trillion investment The second-biggest item on the White Houses announcements list is $1.2 trillion in foreign investment from Qatar. But when the White House announced its deal with Qatar in May, it said, President Donald J. Trump signed an agreement with Qatar to generate an economic exchange worth at least $1.2 trillion. The phrase economic exchange is vague enough to include two-way trade and US investment in Qatar rather than only Qatari investment in the US. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The chief executive of Qatars sovereign wealth fund told Bloomberg in May that the fund planned to make $500 billion in additional US investments over the next decade. But Diego Lopez, managing director of Global SWF, which researches sovereign wealth funds, said that figure is unrealistic based on his organizations estimates of the Qatari funds current investments ($524 billion in assets under management, with about $105 billion of that invested in the US). Even if the fund did manage to invest $500 billion in the US, its unclear where the other $700 billion in Qatari investments needed to get to the $1.2 trillion figure would come from; Lopez said that most of the sovereign wealth and firepower in Qatar is held by the fund. United Arab Emirates: Few details about the massive $1.4 trillion pledge The biggest item on the White Houses announcements list is $1.4 trillion in foreign investment from the United Arab Emirates. While UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan did say in May that the country had a plan to invest $1.4 trillion in key sectors over the next 10 years, neither the UAE nor the Trump administration have explained how the UAE would invest that much in the US. The $1.4 trillion figure is well over double the UAEs 2024 gross domestic product, and a document published by the White House in May notes the UAE had just $35 billion in total foreign direct investment in the US as of 2023. That May document claimed that Trump announced over $200 billion in commercial deals during a visit to Abu Dhabi that month, but the list includes UAE product purchases and American companies investments in the UAE rather than only UAE investments in the US. Even if they were all investments, there would still be a massive leap needed to reach $1.4 trillion. Japan: The commitment is $550 billion, not $1 trillion, and question marks remain The White Houses announcements list credits Japan with $1 trillion in foreign investment. But the Japanese government hasnt pledged nearly that much new investment. Rather, Japans prime minister at the time told Trump in February that Japanese companies would bring their level of investment in the US up to $1 trillion from an existing level of more than $800 billion. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In July, Japan agreed to invest $550 billion in the US by the end of Trumps term in early 2029. The money is supposed to be invested in specific key industries, including semiconductors, shipbuilding, energy, pharmaceuticals, metals and minerals. A memorandum of understanding between the US and Japan says Japan has the right to decline to invest in an opportunity that was selected by Trump after a recommendation from a US investment committee, but if Japan doesnt quickly provide the funding, Trump has the right to impose tariffs. Thats a lot more detail than the statements from other countries and entities on the White House list, but there are still a bunch of key details left to be worked out. Mireya Solis, director of the Center for Asia Policy Studies at the Brookings Institution think tank, noted that Japans top trade negotiator has said Japans position is that just 1% to 2% of the $550 billion will be actual equity investment, with the rest in loans and loan guarantees. And Solis said many Japanese companies are in a wait-and-see attitude, wondering how the US-led investment initiative will operate. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Regardless, Solis said, the $1 trillion figure listed by the White House seems extremely high to me, adding, Im scratching my head, let me put it that way. South Korea: Uncertainty over the status of a $350 billion (not $450 billion) investment pledge The White Houses announcements list includes $450 billion in foreign investment from South Korea. But South Korea has actually pledged to invest $350 billion, in some form still to be determined, and negotiations over that smaller sum have run into difficulties. The White Houses $450 billion figure appears to include a South Korean pledge to purchase $100 billion in US energy products during Trumps tenure. But aside from the fact that product purchases are not investments, a South Korean official told The Chosun Daily newspaper that this commitment is not to buy an additional $100 billion in US energy products but to get to a total of $100 billion so a total of roughly $25 billion a year, up incrementally from a 2024 figure the nonprofit Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis put at more than $19 billion. Other analysts use higher or lower 2024 figures, but they agree that the South Korean commitment is for an incremental increase. In addition, the specifics of the $350 billion in supposed investment have not yet been hammered out. Following an August meeting between Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, the United States added a few demands that we found difficult to accept, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun told the JoongAng Daily newspaper in early October. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump said in September that the $350 billion from South Korea would be up front, but a senior South Korean official responded on domestic television that this is objectively and realistically not a level we are able to handle, Reuters reported. The Korea Herald reported this week that South Korea is pushing to make heavy use of loans and guarantees from state-run financial institutions in the package, while the US is pushing for a higher proportion of direct cash investment and wants control over project selection. Negotiations are ongoing, but they have been complicated by a strain in political and economic relations caused by a US immigration raid in September that ensnared hundreds of South Korean workers at a Georgia factory being built for two South Korean corporate titans, Hyundai and LG. Lee said in September that current US immigration policies affecting Korean workers will make his countrys companies very hesitant to make direct investments in the United States. Victor Cha, Korea chair and president of the geopolitics and foreign policy department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, wrote in a forthcoming article he provided to CNN that the promised $350 billion investment fund is in trouble, citing the immigration raid and financial sticking points. Koreans, already angered over the images of their countrymen in shackles in ICE detention facilities, may play hard ball and continue to withhold their massive investment commitments, Cha wrote. He noted its also possible the two sides find creative workarounds in the negotiations, but its clear there is, at least, considerable uncertainty about the future of the promised $350 billion sum. Corporate pledges: Hefty but vague totals that analysts say likely include companies regular spending The White House list includes numerous investment pledges from corporations. The biggest is $600 billion from Apple. Tied for the second-biggest are $500 billion in artificial intelligence spending from Nvidia and a $500 billion joint artificial intelligence initiative from Softbank, OpenAI and Oracle. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement There is an AI investment boom underway, and there is no telling how big it will be. But there is also a long history of splashy corporate investment announcements not coming to fruition, including during the first Trump administration. Expert observers have expressed caution about the pledges made this year saying its likely the figures include normal spending and previously approved investments. Even the largest companies like Apple and Nvidia cant realistically commit to an incremental spend of $500 billion over any reasonable timeframe, Gil Luria, managing director and head of technology research at D.A. Davidson, said in an email. What they would most likely count in those numbers is their current spend in the US, as well as other spend they expect from their vendors, partners and customers. Even then, these numbers are more likely a statement of support for the administration more than a firm commitment of capital. Similarly, John Belton, portfolio manager at investment firm Gabelli, wrote in emailed commentary about Apples announcement: The $600 billion will be spread out over several years and includes multiple areas of investment, from facilities to personnel to input costs, most of which was already reflected in Apples long-range financial planning. Belton added: For context, they unveiled a $430 billion five-year plan in 2021, so a program of this magnitude is not out of the ordinary. For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com An active-duty airman assigned to the 90th Missile Wing was found dead on F.E. Warren Air Force Base on Wednesday, the unit said. It was the fourth death in as many months involving personnel from the Wyoming base. The deceased was not identified by the 90th Missile Wing in its release, in accordance with Department of Defense policy to notify next of kin first. F.E. Warren Air Force Base is one of the militarys three strategic nuclear missile facilities. It is with deep sadness that we face the loss of a member of the Mighty Ninety and on behalf of our entire team, I offer my deepest condolences to the family and friends of the lost individual, Col. Terrance Holmes, 90th Missile Wing Commander, said in a statement. Please know that the 90th Missile Wing provides several support services to families and Airmen in need. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Air Force Office of Special Investigations is investigating the death. Wednesdays death is the latest in a series of incidents involving airmen on the base or assigned to F.E. Warren Air Force Base. On July 20, Airman Brayden Lovan was shot and killed on the base. Two weeks later an airman was arrested for involuntary manslaughter, suspicion of making a false official statement and obstruction of justice. In the initial aftermath of Lovans death, Air Force Global Strike Command, which oversees F.E. Warren Air Force Base, suspended the use of the M18 pistol. On Aug. 16, Senior Airman Joshua Aragon with the 790th Missile Security Forces Squadron was shot and killed in an off-base apartment in Cheyenne, Wyoming. Another service member, Airman 1st Class Jadan Orr, with the 90th Missile Security Forces Squadron, was charged with involuntary manslaughter. According to authorities, Orr fired an AK-47 through an apartment wall, hitting Aragon. On Sept. 30, Airman 1st Class Marcus Evan Jackson, assigned to 90th Missile Security Forces Squadron at F.E. Warren Air Force Base, while at Fort Collins, Colorado. Local police are still investigating the deaths but have determined it to be a murder-suicide, with Jackson having shot and killed Alyssa Reardon before killing himself. Fort Collins authorities are investigating that incident. French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu on Saturday explained his surprise reappointment by French President Emmanuel Macron, just days after he announced his resignation. Lecornu, a close ally of Macron, took office as prime minister just four weeks ago but resigned on Monday amid government tensions, plunging France into a further political crisis. But his return was confirmed on Friday after he was tasked by Macron with holding last-ditch talks with political opponents to find a path forward after months of instability in Paris. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Under the French constitution, a new budget for the coming year must be submitted to parliament by a prime minister by Monday at the latest. "I have no other ambition than to get us out of this situation, which is objectively very difficult for everyone," said Lecornu in the Paris suburb of L'Hay-les-Roses on Saturday. "So I give myself a pretty clear task," he said, referring to the budget deadline. "And then either the political forces help me with it and we work together - or they don't." France has been mired in political deadlock since a snap election in mid-2024, which left no camp with a majority. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While a left-wing alliance emerged with the most seats, Macron has steadfastly refused to work with the left, nominating a series of centrist and conservative prime ministers that have proven unable to build parliamentary majorities. Lecornu must now put together a Cabinet quickly over the weekend and has hinted that he could turn to the left. Illinois manufacturers Makers on the Move bus tour made their final stop in the Quad Cities on Friday. This week, the bus traveled to more than 30 manufacturing facilities across the state, highlighting its top companies. In the Quad Cities, manufacturers play a crucial role in the global industry and offer local job opportunities. If the American manufacturing sector was its own nation, it would be the eight largest economy in the world, says Mark Denzler, Illinois Manufacturers Association President and CEO. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Illinois Manufacturers Association (IMA) is the oldest state manufacturing association in the country. In Illinois, manufactures employ 650,000 workers and contribute to the single largest share to our states economy, says Denzler. The industrys influence is pretty big. Nationally, about a $3 trillion impact, says Denzler. With the growing prevalence of technology, IMA leaders say manufacturing will look different within the decade. Manufacturers are not only using the technology; theyre creating the technology, says Denzler, It is moving so fast, so quickly, but manufacturers are leading the way. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Chris Caves with Grow QC says the future presents opportunity. But theres immediate opportunity within the QCA. This year, the Quad Cities Chamber published the top 100 priority jobs report. Manufacturing jobs are well represented within that report, says Chris Caves, Vice President of Business Retention, Expansion, and Workforce for the chamber. The area is home to some of the industrys most essential companies. John Deere, local to the Quad Cities, has held multiple leadership positions for the IMA over the years. Whether its global iconic companies like John Deere, or ALM [Positioners] here today, again, the amazing women and men who work on the factory floors are makers and creators and dreamers and doers. That really drive America forward, says Denzler. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Industry leaders want to keep the talent local. Generations of families have been makers in the Quad Cities, says Caves. Its a very important part of our economy. The manufacturing legacy in the Quad Cities is why the IMAs Makers on the Move closed its annual week-long tour at ALM Positioners on Friday. Literally, best in class manufactures in this community, says Denzler. Its really the salt of the earth and home base for great American and Illinois manufacturing. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WHBF - OurQuadCities.com. Pressure is mounting on Ghanas President John Dramani Mahama to declare a state of emergency as environmental degradation caused by illegal mining reaches critical levels. Vast stretches of the country's forest reserves have been stripped bare and water bodies have been contaminated. Activists are warning that without immediate, decisive action the damage could become irreversible. Illegal mining locally known as galamsey is also threatening livelihoods and fuelling political and social unrest. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Civil society groups, environmental advocates and the Catholic Bishops Conference are among those now calling on the president to declare a state of emergency to combat the crisis. Matthew Kwasi Gyamfi, president of the Catholic Bishops Conference, said: "Such a declaration would empower extraordinary interventions: curfews in volatile areas, the securing of devastated lands, the dismantling of entrenched criminal syndicates and the halting of corrupt administrative complicities." Civil society demands Darly Bosu, deputy director of environmental NGO A Rocha Ghana, has echoed this call, saying the time for political debate has passed. The devastation caused by illegal mining has gone far beyond control, he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Our rivers are poisoned, farmlands destroyed, and communities displaced. The survival of millions of Ghanaians is at stake. A Rocha Ghana is calling on [the president] to declare a national state of emergency on galamsey. This is no longer a political issue. It is about the very soul of Ghana its water, its food and life itself. The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey has also demanded that the government declare a state of emergency in those areas most affected by illegal mining as justification for urgent intervention. Kenneth Ashigbey, the Coalitions convenor, stressed the need for security forces to be empowered through such a declaration to tackle illegal mining head-on. The Ghana Coalition Against Galamsey has called for a declaration of a state of emergency in areas prone to galamsey, he said. Illegal mining activities continue to devastate the environment, posing threats to lives. A state of emergency is needed to address this issue directly. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Illegal logging threatens livelihoods of hundreds of Ghanaian women Government reaction President Mahama, however, says the National Security Council does not currently recommend declaring a state of emergency in response to the ongoing crisis. Speaking at a stakeholders' meeting on illegal mining in Accra, he explained that while he has the constitutional authority to make such a declaration, the decision must be informed by the counsel of the National Security Council. At this point, the Council believes we can overcome the galamsey challenge without resorting to emergency powers," he said. Human impact The consequences of illegal mining are being felt across the country. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Forensic histopathologist Professor Paul Poku Sampene Ossei says his research has linked at least 500 cases of spontaneous abortion in Ghana to high levels of heavy metals in the placenta caused by illegal mining activities. His research involved more than 4,000 placentas examined from different regions across Ghana, with results showing dangerous levels of contamination on both the maternal and foetal sides. I have about 500 cases where women [lose their babies] because of the concentration of these heavy metals in their placenta, he said. The placentas are all contaminated and polluted with heavy metals." Ghana unveils West Africa's largest floating solar project, boosting renewable energy ambitions Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Many communities have also been left without water as a consequence of illegal mining. The Ghana Water Company has shut down its treatment plant at Kwanyako in the Central Region, and the government minister responsible for the area, Ekow Panyin Okyere Eduamoah, disclosed that around 10 of the 22 Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies in the region are facing an acute water shortage as a result. I visited the plant myself, and I realised that even if they were forced at gunpoint to provide water, you could not be sure of its quality, he said. I therefore asked that they stop. Farms destroyed Meanwhile, Bismark Owusu Nortey, executive director of the Peasant Farmers Association of Ghana, told RFI that illegal small-scale mining has devastated farmland across the country. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A report that weve worked on shows that close to 1.2 million hectares of farmlands have already been destroyed due to galamsey," he said. "Behind these farmlands are over 500,000 individual farmers and their dependants who have been denied the opportunity to use farming as an economic tool to improve their livelihoods." Cleaner kitchens, healthier lives: Ghanas cookstove revolution gains ground The destruction of farmlands and the pollution of water bodies have drastically reduced farmers productivity, with some who had farmed all year round now restricted to seasonal cultivation. Illegal mining has also claimed lives. On 1 October, seven illegal miners died after a pit collapsed at an unauthorised mining site at Kasotie in the Atwima Mponua District of the Ashanti Region. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In response to the escalating crisis, the minister for lands and natural resources, Emmanuel Amarh Kofi-Buah, has issued a directive to security forces tasked with fighting illegal mining, urging them to be firm, resolute and ruthless in their operations. Environmental groups, however, insist that extraordinary measures are needed before the damage becomes permanent. The activist was fined 10,000 shekels and given a suspended fine of 5,000 shekels for three years. Seven detainees from the flotilla remain in Israel as of Friday. The Beersheba Magistrates Court convicted Spanish citizen Rais Rigo Servia, an activist from the Global Sumud Flotilla, of aggravated assault of a prison guard at Ketziot Prison, with the intent of obstructing the guards duties. She admitted to the offenses detailed in a revised indictment as part of a plea bargain. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Deputy Court President Judge Avishai Cohen sentenced her to 10 days in imprisonment, a 10,000-shekel fine, and a 5,000-shekel suspended fine for three years. Servia, a 56-year-old acupuncturist from Palma de Mallorca, pleaded guilty under the revised indictment as part of a plea deal between her attorney, Adv. Hael Abu Gharara (representing her on behalf of Adalah), and representatives of the Southern Negev Police Prosecution Unit, Adv. Sharon Levy and Adv. Hila Eliyahu Pitusi. In a separate hearing, Cohen had ordered her detained until the end of proceedings, clarifying that after deducting the days she had already spent in custody, she would effectively complete her sentence upon her sentencing. Any continued detention under any condition is subject to the Detention Review Tribunal decision, the judge noted. According to the revised indictment, during her stay at Ketziot Prison, Servia refused a guards order to enter her cell. Together with another detainee, she laid on the floor, held onto the other detainee, and tied their hands and feet to nearby poles to make it difficult for the guards to move them into the cell. Later, when another guard arrived to assist in moving her, Servia attacked the guard, holding her with her left hand, digging her nails into the guards skin, and causing injury, according to the indictment. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators protest during a nationwide strike called by the USB union to condemn the Israeli forces' interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla vessels aiming to reach Gaza and break Israel's naval blockade, in Rome, Italy, October 3, 2025. (credit: REUTERS) As a result of the assault, the guard suffered a deep cut and redness to her left hand and required medical treatment, including disinfection and a tetanus shot. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The hearing was attended by the Spanish Consul in Israel, Lopez de Castro Garrido, and Adalah representative Lubna Touma, who translated between Spanish and Hebrew during the detention hearing. Servia complained about the conditions and treatment of detainees at the facility. I want to say that from the first day I was there against my will, she said. They put me in a prison where conditions were worse than for animals. They beat me, pushed us a lot, and on the fifth day, it wasnt as they said, they attacked my friend, and I tried to defend her. When I held onto her, they grabbed my head downwards, and my glasses fell off. After being pushed from different directions, I got up from the floor with my friends. On other days, I couldnt go outside; we were 14 women in a cell meant for five. They didnt give us water, the food was disgusting, I was pushed and beaten, and I didnt get what I needed. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In total, seven detainees from the Sumud Flotilla remain in custody in Israel and are expected to be deported on Saturday. Meanwhile, an American flotilla activist reportedly attacked a prison officer at Givon Prison during her intake process under unclear circumstances. A police complaint has been filed. Criminal record of flotilla activist Omar Sharir The Tel Aviv Magistrates Court released Omar Sharir, an activist from the Freedom Flotilla, one of three Israeli passport holders who was aboard. He had agreed to release conditions, including a 45-day ban from Gaza and a 4,000-shekel financial guarantee. However, upon his release, he was immediately re-arrested and brought before the Tel Aviv court, where he had previously been convicted in 2024 of assaulting activist Shafi Paz in 2021, allegedly telling her: Nazi, Im waiting for you to die so I can piss on your grave. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Sharir, 38, an English teacher at a Jerusalem high school, had traveled to India and had been absent from court for a year and a half. He also faces a drug case pending at the Jerusalem Magistrates Court. Two other Israelis refuse to sign release conditions The two remaining Israeli passport holders from the flotilla continue to refuse to sign the release forms. The Ashkelon Magistrates Court has upheld its decision, and yesterday, the Beersheba District Court rejected an appeal against it. The first is Huwaida Arraf, a 49-year-old Palestinian human rights lawyer from Detroit, former head of the Freedom Flotilla, who participated in the Mavi Marmara and Handala voyages. She was previously released along with other Israelis, including activist Bob Suberi, immediately after being brought to shore in Ashdod. This time, however, police have taken a tougher stance toward the Israeli participants. The second is Zohar Regev, 55, born and raised at Kibbutz Kfar HaHoresh, now living in Germany after 14 years in Spain. She was the owner of the womens boat to Gaza called Zaytouna-Oliva, which sailed towards Gaza and was seized in 2016. Regev had served for many years on the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Unfortunately, for political reasons, the court chooses to side with the police, said Adv. Dile Abu Salah, representing the two on behalf of Adalah. What other explanation can there be for the District Court ruling that theres reasonable suspicion of infiltration, when these are citizens who have the right to enter the country and were brought to Ashdod by the army, while the Magistrates Court claims the offense of infiltration applies to Gaza, which isnt even under Israeli sovereignty?" said Salah. Judge Orit Salahov rebuked the attorney, adding a note to the record that although not due to lack of importance, she found it necessary to clarify that "it is inappropriate to make baseless remarks suggesting political motives on the part of the court by an attorney representing clients. Such comments are serious, and if she genuinely believed them, she should have sought the judges disqualification or stated so on record at the time. Since these claims are unfounded, such remarks should be avoided. If the two continue to refuse to sign, they will be brought again before a judge on Sunday, unless released by police earlier. BAY COUNTY, Fla. (WMBB) The Global War on Terror Wall of Remembrance honors veterans and victims of the Global War on Terror from 1983 to the present day. The wall is 120 feet long and includes the names of over 11,000 men and women who died while serving. Its just truly remarkable to be able to see those emotions pull out, because then its the one thing that weve always said since 9/11 is dont forget. But unfortunately, people forget, Romans Warrior Foundation Founder & CEO Brian Romans said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The wall arrived at the Veteran of Foreign Wars Post 2185 in Panama City on Friday. Its one of the last stops on this years Roman Warrior Foundations tour of the United States. I think a lot of people get out of the military and they dont know whats available to them. And I want them to know that theres a whole community out here for mental health, physical health, VA health, disability health, and just understanding that you have comrades and brothers and sisters that know what youve been through and were here to listen, VFW Post 2185 Event Coordinator Alex Butler said. Post 2185 will be open for visitors from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. until Monday. Visitors who were serving with one of the victims when they were killed can place a quarter by their name. Here at the wall, it has a mystique to it to where if theres someone on the wall that you didnt have to get to have that last conversation, or maybe youve been carrying survivors guilt, they pull you to them at the wall as if to say its okay, Romans said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The foundations goal is to raise enough money to build a new updated wall. This wall again its been traveling for 12 years. Its beaten, its battered, much like most of our combat veterans. Were not perfect, were a little rough around the edges. Most of us are broken. So therefore this wall is equally broken but its still able to heal, Romans said. The last stop of this years memorial tour is Andalusia, Alabama on Veterans Day. For more information on how to donate to the War on Terror Wall of Remembrance, click here. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Business communities in Hong Kong to explore opportunities in Xinjiang Xinhua) 11:21, October 11, 2025 HONG KONG, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- A delegation of consular corps and business communities based in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) began a tour of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Friday to explore potential business opportunities. Addressing the launch ceremony in Hong Kong, Cui Jianchun, commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the HKSAR, said that strengthening cooperation between Xinjiang and Hong Kong will help combine Xinjiang's advantages brought by its geographic location, resources and industries with Hong Kong's capability of providing funding, services and innovation. David Whitwam, chairman of the New Zealand Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, told Xinhua about his hopes to learn more about the technologies involved in breeding dairy cattle and processing dairy products in Xinjiang and to broker cooperation. The delegation will visit Urumqi, Kashgar and Yining during their trip slated through Thursday, including stops at cooperation zones built under the Belt and Road Initiative, as well as fruit processing firms and dairy companies. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) GULF SHORES, Ala. (WKRG) A Gulf Shores businessman has announced he is running for the Alabama House of Representatives District 95 seat. Four accused of solicitation in Daphne Joe Freeman is a republican businessman who is a seasoned financial professional and community-minded leader whose career bridges public service and private-sector success, according to his campaign news release. I am excited to announce my candidacy for State Representative for District 95, Freeman said. I am committed to serving our community with dedication, integrity, and a passion for representing the values and interests of our neighbors. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Freeman said he hopes to bring a common-sense, accountability-driven approach to the public office. Being conservative means valuing tradition, personal responsibility, and limited government, Freeman added. I believe in strong families, free markets, individual liberty, and the rule of law. New details released during bond hearing for alleged Tillmans Corner killer More information can be found on Freemans website. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Haitis transitional government has officially put an end to efforts to draft a new constitution, as leaders returned to the National Palace for the first time since armed gangs forced the government to abandon downtown Port-au-Prince. The decision by the Transitional Presidential Council came Thursday during a Council of Ministers meeting at the National Palace. The government last held such a gathering there in January 2024 under then-prime minister Ariel Henry, who was forced to resign a month later by Washington as gangs launched coordinated attacks across the capital. As leaders of the presidential panel and current Prime Minister Alix Didier Fils-Aime met inside Thursday, automatic gunfire could be heard on the Champ-de-Mars, the sprawling public square bordering the palace grounds. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They have finally come to their senses and realized they could not embark themselves and the country on an illegal and hazardous path. All that money spent in vain, said Bernard Gousse, a lawyer and former justice minister who chaired a Port-au-Prince Bar Association committee that recently issued a scathing report on the draft constitution. The proposal had been spearheaded by a steering committee of the National Conference. The lawyers committee argued the process was illegal because it violated the provisions of the 1987 Constitution for how it can be amended, and because the steering committee had failed to meet with various social, political and professional groups to get public input and buy-in, even though that was supposed to be part of their procedures. The lawyers and others also pointed out that on the day the nine members of the transitional presidential council took office in April 2024, rather than declare the Constitution to be void and declare the country to be in a transition, they took an oath on the Constitution and vowed to uphold it. On Thursday, the mandate of the steering committee was terminated. The mandate of the Provisional Electoral Council also was amended to remove the need for the agency to organize a referendum to vote on a new constitution. The Council of Ministers also adopted a delayed 2025-26 budget for the country. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For months, the initiative to draft a new constitution had been mired in controversy, with political leaders, legal experts and constitutional scholars questioning the legitimacy of the process and the contents of the proposed draft. Among the most contentious issues: The draft reduced the power of Parliament, introduced a new office of vice president and created regional governors with open-ended terms, potentially making them more powerful than the president, who would be limited to two five-year terms.. Haitians living in the U.S. also objected because they were they left out of the process. They also argued that if the measure was pursued, Haiti would find itself in a new constitutional crisis. In January, a group spearheaded by former parliamentarian Jerry Tardieu, and charged by the steering committee to get public input, stated it faced numerous challenges doing so due to Haitis gang crisis. The closure of Port-au-Prince airport, the isolation of the capital and the continued deterioration of security prevented the group from traveling to the provinces for important departmental meetings and consultations abroad with the diaspora as originally anticipated, the Working Group on the Constitution said after submitting its report, recommending a constituent assembly be put in place ahead of any referendum. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The group also noted that mounting political tensions and the widespread growing violence created a heavy atmosphere not conducive to a serene and constructive dialogue on the constitution. Foreign diplomats and Haitian leaders have all laid blame for the countrys instability on its 1987 Constitution, which was drafted after the fall of the Duvalier family dictatorship and which failed to respond to the crisis Haiti found itself in when President Jovenel Moise was assassinated on July 7, 2021. Moise had failed to hold timely elections, leaving Haiti with only 10 elected officials, all members of the Senate, throughout the country at the time of his death. Others have argued that while some constitutional provisions like a burdensome governance structure and staggered elections need amending, the cause of Haitis instability is not the document but the failure of politicians to enforce it. Members of the transitional government had little to say publicly after receiving copies of the draft constitution from the steering committee. Privately, they had concerns and debated how they would discard the project. It wasnt until the U.S. Embassys Charge dAffaires Henry Wooster earlier this month posted a pointed message in a video on X that Haitian leaders decided to finally make a decision. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In the message, Wooster called on Haitis transitional council and government to fully fulfill their role by proposing a concrete plan, with a timetable for elections and political transition. Henry Wooster, the charge daffaires at the U.S. Embassy in Haiti. His failure to mention the constitutional referendum, which some countries just last month has referred to in public comments at the Organization of American States, was widely interpreted as a quiet endorsement by Washington to abandon the controversial push. During a press conference ahead of the United Nations Security Council vote for a new Gang Suppression Force for Haiti, Wooster said Haitians need to have elections to choose a new president. Questions about security, elections and the constitution must not be allowed to be a red herring for taking action, he said. In other words, you cant stay in those jobs for life, Wooster said, referring to the Transitional Presidential Council as well as members of the current government. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Wooster acknowledged that there have been obstacles to holding elections in Haiti, which increasingly looks like it will not have a newly elected president in office before the mandate of the presidential council expires on Feb. 7, 2026. The obstacles have ranged the spectrum from security crisis or crises, a refusal on the part of some members of the Transitional Presidential Council to act, to move, and a nettlesome matter of the Constitution, he said during the Sept. 24 press conference on advancing U.S. foreign policies priorities in Haiti. The question is do Haitians have to fix the Haitian Constitution before they can have a legitimate election? Or, do they have to fix the Constitution to have a credible... elected head of state, or can it wait? The U.S. diplomat emphasized that Haiti, which last held general elections in 2016 and last had an elected president in July 2021, needs to have a democratically elected head of state. That must happen, said Wooster. The question on whether or not, how, the particulars of the Constitution, thats a matter for Haiti to decide. The setting for the horrors perpetrated by killer Ed Gein was a dilapidated farmhouse on an isolated plot of land in rural Wisconsin. Authorities made a grisly discovery there in the small town of Plainfield in 1957, when the body of a local missing woman was found along with human remains and objects like lampshades and masks made out of human skin. Charlie Hunnam plays the murderer in the hit Netflix series "Monster: The Ed Gein Story," which dramatizes the horrific events of his crimes and their reverberation through pop culture. Elements of Gein's story have inspired horror classics like "Psycho" and "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Gein became known as "The Butcher of Plainfield," making the town of about 700 people at the time a curiosity after his crimes made national headlines. The fate of his home then later became the subject of speculation about its destruction. Here's what to know about the farmhouse in Plainfield. What Was Found in Ed Gein's House? A local sheriff and a captain from a nearby sheriff department searched the house in 1957 and discovered a scene that left them reeling. The home was littered with garbage and had roaches and rodents scurrying about in a filthy kitchen. A police officer examines the trash-strewn kitchen of Ed Gein in 1957. Authorities made several grisly discoveries in the home. (Bettmann / Bettmann Archive) They then discovered the decapitated and gutted body of a missing local woman, Bernice Worden, hanging in the home, which they initially thought was a deer carcass, according to the book "Unhinged: The Shocking True Story of Ed Gein," by Robert Keller. Gein later confessed to killing Worden. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They also found a soup bowl that was made out of the top half of a human skull, as well as skulls hanging from the posts of Gein's bed. Gein later told investigators he exhumed the corpses of women from a local cemetery. Another horrifying discovering was a chair upholstered with human skin, as well as items like lampshades, a drum and a knife sheath made from human skin. They also found a collection of female genitalia, a box of human noses and death masks of skin pulled from victims' skulls and stuffed with paper and sawdust. One of them belonged to local innkeeper Mary Hogan, whom Gein confessed to killing after she had gone missing three years earlier. There also were odd discoveries like a coffee can filled with used chewing gum, a collection of old dentures and a washbasin filled with sand, according to Keller's book. Gein kept one area of the house sealed off and pristine the bedroom of his late mother, Augusta Gein. His deep attachment to the severe and domineering Augusta, who died in 1945, is a persistent theme in "Monster" and Gein's life. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Her room was filled with dust but otherwise was perfectly neat because it was left in the same state as the day she died from a stroke. Where Was Ed Gein's House? The isolated farmhouse was located on a 195-acre plot of land in Plainfield, Wisconsin, which was six miles from the nearest village via a dirt road. A man boarding up the former home of killer Ed Gein in Plainfield in 1957. (Bettmann / Bettmann Archive) Plainfield's population at the time of his arrest was about 700 people. The town is located 155 miles northwest of Milwaukee and about 90 miles north of Madison. How Long Did Ed Gein Live in the Farmhouse? The Gein family initially lived in La Crosse, Wisconsin, before moving to a small dairy farm. In 1914, they purchased the 195-acre farmland that included a modest, two-story house that became more dilapidated as time went by due to the family's struggles with money. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Ed and his older brother, Henry Gein, lived there with Augusta and their father, George Gein. George struggled with alcohol and was routinely berated and belittled by Augusta. George died in 1940 and then Ed's brother, Henry, died in 1944 under mysterious circumstances surrounding a wildfire on property near their home. There was suspicion that Henry Gein was Ed Gein's first victim. Gein continued to live in the Plainfield house with his mother, nursing her to health after she had a stroke following his brother's death. She then had another stroke and died in 1945. Gein then lived in the farmhouse alone, descending into madness while working odd jobs for money, until he was arrested in 1957. He was 51 years old at the time and had lived in the home for nearly his entire life. What Happened to the Home after Ed Gein Was Arrested? Following the news reports about Gein's crimes, the home became a tourist attraction. Morbidly curious people were driving from all over Wisconsin to see the crumbling old home, according to "Unhinged." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After Gein was found to be insane and committed to the former Central State Hospital for the Criminally Insane in Wisconsin, an auction was scheduled to sell his belongings as well as the farm. The smoldering ruins of Ed Gein's farmhouse on March 20, 1958. (Bettmann / Bettmann Archive) Before the auction took place, the Plainfield fire department was called to the site of the farmhouse on March 20, 1958, to find it burning. "The firemen stood impassively by as the building burned to the ground," Keller wrote in "Unhinged." It was believed to be arson, but the fire warden, who was the son of Gein's victim Bernice Worden, did not launch an inquiry. Gein was told while in the hospital about the destruction of a home that his family had owned for 44 years. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Just as well," he said with little emotion, according to "Unhinged." The property containing the destroyed home was sold for $3,000, and the 1949 Ford he used to transport bodies he had exhumed from the cemetery sold for $760 to a sideshow operator named Bunny Gibbons. He toured the Midwest with the vehicle, charging 25 cents for people to sit in the "ghoul car," according to Keller. This article was originally published on TODAY.com EAST LANSING More than 50 people gathered Oct. 10 on Michigan State University's campus to support Eli Folts, a student facing disciplinary charges for his student activism and confrontation with President Kevin Guskiewicz at an activities fair. Folts is a member of the Hurriya Coalition, a collective of various student organizations in support of Palestine that organized Friday's gathering on and around the stairs of the Hannah Administration Building. Coalition members held signs in support of Palestine and shouted "Shame" at the event that included speakers upset with MSU and Folts' tale of learning last month the university issued him three disciplinary charges after he attended the Aug. 24 Sparticipation activities fair at IM East Field. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Folts said the university's charges include two for intimidating and harassing an individual, and another saying he disrupted university functions. One of the harassment charges was recently dropped, he said. "It's astonishing that the university is coming after only me, and not other students that were doing the same thing," Folts told the Lansing State Journal. Folts said he was among a group of around 12 student protesters who approached a stage where Guskiewicz was giving a speech. The student protesters chanted support for Palestinians. Folts, a social relations and policy major at the university, said after they chanted from the crowd, the group approached Guskiewicz, leaving three to four feet between them and the president and "asked him about his complicity in the genocide." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Hurriya Coalition has been appearing at MSU trustee meetings asking that the school divest from Israel and weapons manufacturers after becoming upset with the toll of the Israel-Hamas War that broke out in fall 2023. Folts said Guskiewicz pointed into his face in response to being questioned and told him the event was the wrong place for the display. Folts said Guskiewicz moved away and did not address the group again. Guskiewicz returned to the stage, and protesters continued chanting, Folts said. A barrier of campus police protected Guskiewicz from other students and the protesters, who were told by the officers not to push closer. Folts said he and his fellow protesters complied, and Guskiewicz eventually left. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Amber McCann, university spokesperson, said that the university is unable to disclose information regarding any specific individual. She did say when the Office of Student Support and Accountability receives a complaint, it is reviewed for credibility. If found to be credible, a staff member will have a meeting with the student, who is then able to respond by denying or accepting responsibilty. Folts said he denied the claim, both on principle and in his own belief of the situation. If a student denies the claim, like Folts did, McCann said a hearing will be held. If the student is found responsible, sanctions will be issued against the student. Sanctions could include a written statement expressing disapproval in the action, have different university privileges revoked or face having to participate in a specific program, for example. Subscribe: Get unlimited acces to our local coverage During Hurriya Coalition's Friday event, 10 different speakers spoke in support of Folts, including his girlfriend, student representatives of the coalition, members from the Palestine Interfaith Network and a James Madison College professor. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Nasim Barghouti, a student representative from the Hurriya Coalition, said Folts is being wrongly charged by the university for using his right to free speech. "Eli's voice represents what every student should be able to do," he said. "Question power. Hold their institutions accountable, and stand for human life without fear of punishment. What Eli did wasn't extreme, it was a core principle of the county's belief. It was American, it was moral and it was human." Christine Root, who works at MSU and is a part of the Palestine Interfaith Network, said that she helped complete an archive of the decade of advocacy and support for the liberation of South Africa. The Hurriya Coalition calling for the divestment from all Israeli fundinding sources echoes what students were calling for in the 1970s, she said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "MSU was proud of the tradition created by activists who stood for the right thing, who understood that standing with the oppressed, and trying to actually do things that support people who are struggling is what we need to do as human beings, and MSU has taken advantage of the fact that it has that history on South Africa," Root said. "We see many of the same tactics being used today, but there is a dangerous difference now in how the university is responding." Contact Karly Graham at kgraham@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @KarlyGrahamJrn. This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Pro-Palestinian group rallies at Michigan State to support student protester By Marc Frank HAVANA (Reuters) -Cuba's Foreign Ministry on Saturday said U.S. claims that its troops were fighting in Ukraine were unfounded, and released for the first time information on legal proceedings against Cubans for mercenary activity in the war in Eastern Europe. Communist Cuba has openly sided with its ally Russia in the conflict in Ukraine while also calling for peace talks. Reports of Cubans on the battlefield first surfaced in 2023, resulting in an investigation in Cuba. Havana later stated that these Cubans were mercenaries. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "In the period from 2023 to 2025, nine criminal proceedings have been presented to the Cuban courts for the crime of mercenarism, against 40 defendants," Saturday's statement said. "Trials have been held in eight cases, of which five resulted in convictions against 26 defendants, with sentences ranging from five to 14 years' imprisonment. Three processes are pending the Court's ruling, and one case is pending trial," the foreign ministry said in the statement. The United Nations is preparing to vote this month on a non-binding resolution calling on Washington to lift its decades-long embargo on Cuba. The resolution has been passed in the General Assembly with wide margins year after year since 1992. The General Assembly adopted the resolution last year, with 187 countries voting in favor. The U.S. and Israel were the only countries that voted against it, while Moldova abstained. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A U.S. State Department cable to diplomatic missions lobbying against the resolution states that Cuban soldiers are fighting alongside Russia in Ukraine. "After North Korea, Cuba is the largest contributor of foreign troops to Russia's aggression, with an estimated 1,000-5,000 Cubans fighting in Ukraine," said the cable, which was first reported by Reuters on Monday. The Cuban foreign ministry statement said "Cuba is not part of the armed conflict in Ukraine, nor does it participate with military personnel there, or in any other country." The ministry admitted it did not know how many nationals were involved on either side of the conflict, but said it had "a practice of zero tolerance for mercenarism, trafficking in persons and the participation of its nationals in any armed confrontation in another country." (Reporting by Marc Frank; Editing by Paul Simao) Defense Secretary Pete Hegseths Friday announcement that the U.S. will host a new Qatari air force facility in Idaho has drawn the ire of the Trump administrations closest allies, including Laura Loomer, who said she felt betrayed over the matter. In a flurry of social media posts Friday afternoon, Loomer unleashed on the administrations announcement that it had signed the letter greenlighting the building of a Qatar Emiri air force contingent at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in southwestern Idaho. The air arm of Qatars armed forces, Qatar Emiri air force pilots would train to fly F-15s in the U.S. There isnt a single Trump supporter who supports allowing Qatar to have a military base on US soil, Loomer posted to the social platform X. I dont know who told President Trump this was a good idea, but it has made people not want to vote. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement She also wrote that no foreign country should have a military base on US soil. Especially Islamic countries. In another post about Hegseth, she admonished him as he should know how bad of an idea it is to allow Terror financing Qataris who fund HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood to have an AIR FORCE BASE ON US SOIL. I dont think Ill be voting in 2026 over the issue, she added. Loomer, a staunch supporter of Trump, has made no secret of her disdain for Qatar and other countries with a majority Muslim population. Earlier this year, she called out Trump over his acceptance of a luxury Boeing jet from the Qatari government. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement I love President Trump. I would take a bullet for him, Loomer wrote on X at the time. But, I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400 million gift from jihadists in suits. But the Trump administrations relationship with Qatar continues to grow. Earlier this month, the commander in chief penned an executive order to increase U.S. protection of Qatar following an Israeli strike targeting Hamas leaders in Doha that killed six people, including a Qatari security officer. For Fridays announcement, Hegseth sat alongside Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the Qatari defense minister who met him at the Pentagon. Hegseth said the agreement showcases the strength of the partnership between Qatar and the U.S. and added that Dohas officials played a key role in securing the Gaza peace deal. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mountain Home Air Force Base, located in Elmore County, already hosts Singapores air force F-15SG fighter jets. Loomer is not the only MAGA Republican to express displeasure at the development. Steve Bannon, former White House chief strategist during Trumps first term, told Newsweek there should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America. And conservative commentator Amy Malek wrote on X that Qatar has spent $100 billion buying influence in the U.S., and its paying off. I am in shock that Washington would approve a deal letting Qatar, Hamass #1 financier, open a Qatari Air Force facility on U.S. soil, she wrote. Qatar bankrolls Hamas, ISIS, the Taliban, al-Nusra, and the Muslim Brotherhood. It plays both sides the arsonist and the firefighter funding jihad, then posing as a mediator. This isnt shared defense goals. Its a shared delusion. Were not building peace. Were building a launchpad for the Islamic disaster. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Pages of history features excerpts from The News Journal archives including The Morning News and The Evening Journal. See the archives at delawareonline.com. Oct. 12, 1975, Sunday News Journal Both sides claim win as Wilmington teachers return from 40-day strike By Bob Leary Wilmingtons 14,200 public school children head back to fully staffed classrooms tomorrow 40 tumultuous days after the Wilmington Federation of Teachers walked off the job. The teachers ended their illegal strike, longest in Delaware history, by unanimously ratifying a new 3-year contract Friday night. Front page of the Sunday News Journal from Oct. 12, 1975. Although it was clear that the biggest losers in the long, tough test of wills between the teachers and the Wilmington School Board were the children, the teachers last night were looking forward to laughing all the way to the bank. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Union president I. James Warnick Jr. said he was greatly amused by the boasts of school board president Wendell Howell that we basically bought one hell of a package. Said Warnick: Im sitting here laughing at Howells bragging He can talk all he wants, but we got the money, and its one of the highest contracts in the country. Howell and other spokesmen for the board were not available for comment last night. Warnick said teachers with bachelors degrees will get pay increases averaging from $1,875 to $1,950 over the next three years, and that those with masters degrees plus 30 hours of additional advanced credits will get raises ranging from $2,187 to $3,516. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The union leader said teachers with bachelors degrees earned from $9,816 to $14,956 under the old contract, depending on experience. Those with masters degrees plus 30 hours of credits were earning from $11,452 to $19,404. The board is also obligated to pay an additional $15 per month in health and welfare benefits during this school year, and that figure escalates to $30 and $45 per month in the following two years. Warnick was unshaken by the stiff fines that the union and its leaders face $35,000 from the union and another $9,650 from its leaders which he says will be paid through dues assessments. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As to criminal charges lodged against some of the union members for disobeying court orders to return to work and for alleged violations while picketing, Warnick said, Theyll have to be processed in court. Our lawyers are working on that. Recent teacher contract news: 0% and 0%? Smyrna educators protest loss of local pay increases over next 2 years Warnicks reaction to the settlement was somewhat surprising in view of what the union did not get. For example, a demand that pay scales be compressed to give additional automatic raises to teachers with 10 to 14 years experience was rejected. The board refused to guarantee a limit on the number of students in a class and insisted on retaining its teacher evaluation program. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement One important concession to the union was the inclusion of a no-reprisal clause which cancels firings, disciplinary action and the Court of Chancery suit against the union and its members. Oct. 16, 1985, The Morning News Tractor-trailer driver fined in accident with propane truck that closed Summit Bridge A New Jersey truck driver was fined $10 and court costs for a traffic violation that police believed was the cause of the propane truck accident that closed Summit Bridge and parts of two highways for nearly eight hours Monday. Eugene Downing, 59, of Newark, N.J., pleaded no contest to a charge of failing to remain stopped at a stop sign and was fined Monday night by Magistrate Court 10 Judge William S. Rowe. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Police said Downing pulled his tractor-trailer left onto southbound Delaware 896 from westbound Delaware 71 and into the path of the Schagrin Gas Co. truck about 7:40 a.m. Page B4 of The Morning News from Oct. 16, 1985. A heavy fog that blanketed most of New Castle County on Monday had reduced visibility to less than one-tenth of a mile, police said. The gas truck, which was driven by James A. Smith, clipped the back end of the trailer, skidded out of control and rolled into a ditch, where a valve broke open and jetting gas started a fire that burned out of control for more than three hours. After firefighters from a dozen companies in New Castle County and nearby Maryland arrived, it took more than four hours to extinguish the fire and pull the truck from the 15-foot-deep ditch. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Delaware 896, which had been closed on both sides of Summit Bridge, and Delaware 71, which had been closed for several miles on either side of the accident, were reopened and residents from about 20 homes that had been evacuated were allowed to return home at 3:30 p.m. Smith, 44, of Elkton, Md., who was rescued from his burning truck by an off-duty New Castle County paramedic and dump truck driver who came on the accident minutes after it happened, was in satisfactory condition Monday in Union Hospital, Elkton. Downing, who was driving for Captainer Plastics of New Jersey, was not injured in the accident, police said, and his vehicle sustained only minor damage to the back of the trailer. Police did not know his cargo or destination. Milton Levinson, vice president of Schragrin Gas, said insurance would cover the approximately $52,000 in damage to his companys truck and the loss of about 1,800 gallons of propane that burned in the accident. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Levinson said the charred remains of the truck had been taken to the companys Elkton plant, where workers were purging any remaining gas from the tank Tuesday. Recent first-responder news: Delaware Gov. Matt Meyer signs 2 fire company support bills into law Oct. 17, 2000, The News Journal Suburban sprawl threat is called a crisis Delaware politicians have neglected suburban sprawl as an important issue despite clear threats from unchecked growth, one of Delawares largest environmental groups said Monday. In a 17-page report, The Costs of Sprawl in Delaware, the state chapter of the Sierra Club warned that poorly planned development has eroded the quality of life for residents and reached the crisis stage for habitats and wildlife. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Were going to have to take a very proactive stance to save what remains, said James Steffens, state Sierra Club chapter president. Small steps will not suffice anymore. Front page of The News Journal from Oct. 17, 2000. Sprawl has erased huge tracts of woods and farmland, jeopardized plants and wildlife, polluted the air, strained water supplies and increased tax burdens to pay for roads, sewers and schools, the report said. Sprawl will get worse without policy changes, the study said, pointing to Delaware Population Consortium projections. The consortium expects the states population to grow by 28% by 2020, with the number of households swelling in the same period by 47%. The Sierra Club report focused on scattered, large-tract residential building that forces residents to rely on cars to get to jobs, shopping and services. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Steffens said attempts at growth management in the late 1980s and in the 1990s have produced disappointing results. All three counties developed new comprehensive plans, and the state overhauled its growth policies. But planning gaps and code loopholes remain. The Sierra Club report calls on the next governor to make land-use planning and reform a top administration priority, pointing out a core problem of a lack of coordination among state, county and local land use agencies. Republican candidate John Burris has said he is confident that counties can with state support contain sprawl without giving the governor a veto over land-use plans. Democratic candidate, Lt. Gov. Ruth Ann Minner, has emphasized balancing growth and environmental needs. She has stressed the need for local participation in state decisions, and adding seats for county and local governments on a state land use Cabinet committee. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement (This column has been updated with new information.) Reach reporter Ben Mace at rmace@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: History in News Journal. Teachers' strike ends; suburban sprawl crisis TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) Their faces stare down from every street corner in Israel on posters now sun-faded and ripped. Their stories, told by anguished family members, are almost as well-known as celebrities. They are civilians and soldiers, fathers and sons. Some were at the Nova music festival, where almost 400 people were killed and dozens kidnapped. On Monday, Hamas released 20 hostages into the custody of the Red Cross, which then brought them to Israel as part of a new ceasefire deal that many hope will signal an end to two years of war in the devastated Gaza Strip. Under the agreement, all living hostages were to be released, as well as the bodies of the deceased. Two hostages previously thought to be living were confirmed dead: Tamir Nimrodi and Bipin Joshi. Israel had previously expressed grave concern over their status. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The war was triggered by Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel, when some 1,200 people were killed and 251 kidnapped. The fighting has killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which doesnt differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the deaths were women and children, and displaced around 90% of the Gaza population of some 2 million. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government, and the United Nations and many independent experts consider its figures to be the most reliable estimate of wartime casualties in Gaza. Prior to Monday's release, there were 48 hostages held in Gaza, including the body of one soldier from a previous war. Israel had determined that at least 25 of the hostages were killed on Oct. 7, 2023, or died while in captivity. Under the ceasefire agreement that took effect last Friday, the remaining hostages were to be released within 72 hours. Israel released around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners in exchange. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Here is a look at the 20 hostages released Monday: Gali Berman & Ziv Berman, 28 The fraternal twins were taken from their homes in Kibbutz Kfar Aza, on the border with Gaza, during the Oct. 7 attack. Seventeen others were also abducted from Kfar Aza, but the Berman twins were the only hostages from the kibbutz who remained in captivity. The family had heard from hostages who returned in a previous deal that, as of February, the brothers were alive but being held separately. Liran Berman, their older brother, said its the longest the two have ever spent apart. In Kfar Aza, the twins lived in apartments across from each other. Gali is more outgoing, while Ziv is more reserved and shy with a sharp sense of humor, their brother said. Omri Miran, 48 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Omri Miran was kidnapped from the Nahal Oz Kibbutz. During the attack, militants held his family, including his two daughters, ages 2 and 6 months, hostage in the kitchen of a neighbors house and then broadcast it on Facebook Live. Miran and the father of the other family, Tsachi Idan, were kidnapped. Idans body was released during the last hostage exchange after he was killed in captivity. Lishay Miran Lavi, Mirans wife, said their younger daughter knew daddy Omri only through photos and videos, and didn't really understand what a father is. Matan Angrest, 22 Matan Angrest, an Israeli soldier, was taken from his military tank in southern Israel. He is the oldest of four children from Kiryat Bialik, outside of Haifa. His family has been among the most vocal protesters and very critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On Tuesday's two-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 attack, his mother, Anat Angrest, addressed her son at a rally. I know youre in pain, and I cant hug you. I hear you whisper, Come for me, Mom, and I cant protect you," she said. Eitan Mor, 25 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Eitan Mor was working as a security guard at the Nova music festival, where he helped evacuate people injured in the attack. Mors parents helped found the Tikva Forum, a loosely organized group of hostage families. They advocated for military pressure, not an immediate ceasefire or hostage release deal, as the best chance for bringing the hostages home. That stance has put Mors father at odds with many of the other families of hostages. Alon Ohel, 24 Alon Ohel, who also has German and Serbian citizenship, was kidnapped at the Nova music festival from a mobile bomb shelter along with Hersh Goldberg-Polin, an American-Israeli who was killed in captivity in August 2024. A talented pianist, his family has placed pianos across Israel and several sites around the world to raise awareness of his plight. Three other hostages who had been held with Ohel for more than a year were released during the previous ceasefire, including Eli Sharabi, who said Ohel was like his adopted son. Sharabi said they were kept chained for the entire period of their captivity and subsisted on a moldy pita per day. Ohel has shrapnel in his eye from the attack on the bomb shelter and his family is worried he may be partially blind. Guy Gilboa-Dalal, 24 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Guy Gilboa-Dalal was among those abducted from the Nova music festival, while his brother managed to escape. In the past year, hes appeared in two videos released by Hamas. In one, he appears alongside his childhood friend, David, with militants filming them pleading for their freedom in a vehicle while they watch three other hostages on stage being released to the Red Cross. Elkana Bohbot, 36 Elkana Bohbot was kidnapped from the Nova music festival. In the past year, Hamas has published multiple videos of Bohbot, filmed under duress, including one where he has a fake telephone conversation with his wife, Rivka; their son, Reem; his mother and his brother pleading with them to help him get out of Gaza. His son made binoculars in kindergarten which he often used to go out and look for his father, according to Bohbots mother, Ruhama. Rom Braslavski, 21 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Braslavski was working as a security guard at the Nova festival. He attempted to help festival goers evacuate and was wounded in both hands before being kidnapped, witnesses said. In August, the Islamic Jihad militant group released a video of a skeletal Braslavski sobbing and pleading for his life, adding that injuries to his foot prevent him from standing. The videos of Braslavski and Evyatar David digging his own grave horrified Israelis, sparking some of the largest attendance in months at weekly protests. His father, Ofir, said Rom is usually a strong, happy-go-lucky kid, and that video is the first time hes seen his son cry. Nimrod Cohen, 21 Nimrod Cohen was taken from a tank where he was stationed as a soldier in southern Israel. Cohen is obsessed with Rubik's cubes, his family said, and a burned Rubik's cube was found in the tank he was abducted from. This year, his mother, Viki Cohen, illustrated a Passover haggadah, the text laying out the rituals and story recited during the Passover holiday, in honor of hostages, partly because her family stopped celebrating holidays after the attack. We dont gather as a family, because it reminds us how much he is missing, Cohen said. The only time the extended family would gather is at protests, she said. Ariel Cunio, 28 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The youngest of four Cunio brothers, Ariel was kidnapped from the Nir Oz Kibbutz with his girlfriend, Arbel Yehoud, and her brother, Dolev, a married father of four who was later killed in captivity. According to news reports, Cunio and Yehoud had returned from an extended trip to South America weeks before the attack and had just adopted a puppy. Yehoud was released during the ceasefire in January. David Cunio, 35 David Cunio, brother of Ariel Cunio, was kidnapped with his wife, Sharon, and their 3-year-old twins from the Nir Oz Kibbutz. Sharons sister Danielle and her 5-year-old daughter, who were visiting, also were kidnapped. All were released in November, except for David Cunio. In July, Sharon shared a photo of the twins marking their fifth birthday, their second without their father, writing on Facebook that the girls have changed so much while hes been in captivity that theyre not the same little girls he knew. Evyatar David, 24 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Evyatar David was taken hostage at the Nova music festival along with his childhood friend, Guy Gilboa-Dalal. In August, Hamas released a video of David, gaunt and pale, who said he was digging his own grave. The condition of the hostages in the videos horrified Israelis and led tens of thousands of protesters to take to the streets and demand a ceasefire deal, in one of the largest turnouts for the weekly hostage protests in months. Maksym Harkin, 37 Maksym Harkin was abducted from Nova, which was the first festival he had ever attended, according to his family. Harkin was born in Ukraine and moved to Israel with his family, where he lived in Tirat HaCarmel in the north. He has a 3-year-old daughter and was the primary provider for his mother and 11-year-old brother. Just before he was taken, his mother said he sent a final text message that said, I love you. In July, Hamas released a video of him filmed under duress several months prior. Eitan Horn, 38 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Eitan Horn, originally from Kfar Saba, was visiting his brother Iair at the Nir Oz Kibbutz on Oct. 7. Both were kidnapped. For most of the war, the two were held with three other hostages in a filthy cell underground. In early February, militants filmed the emotional interaction between the brothers as they were told that Iair would be released and Eitan would stay in Gaza. Since his release, Iair Horn has campaigned for his brother and the other hostages, flying frequently to the United States and meeting with politicians. Segev Kalfon, 27 Segev Kalfon was kidnapped from the Nova music festival, where he was last seen attempting to flee militants along the highway. Before the attack, he worked at his familys bakery in Dimona, in southern Israel. The middle child of three, Kalfon had recently been diagnosed with an anxiety disorder, a condition his family has highlighted in urging his release. Kalfons family received a sign of life from him after the last ceasefire, when some of the hostages said they were held with him for months. Kalfons family has focused on religious rituals in their fight for his release, including traveling to the grave of prominent rabbis and dedicating a Torah scroll in his honor. Bar Kupershtein, 23 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Bar Kupershtein was working at the Nova festival as a security guard when he was abducted. Witnesses said Kupershtein stayed at the festival to try to provide first aid to people who had been shot and injured. Kupershtein was the main financial support for his family after his father was severely injured in an accident several years ago, his aunt, Ora Rubinstein, told reporters. She said that his father worked with a physical therapist to regain the ability to speak, so he could meet with politicians to advocate for his sons release. He has told the family that he would walk again when his son came home, she said. Yosef-Chaim Ohana, 25 Yosef-Chaim Ohana was kidnapped from the Nova music festival, where he was working as a bartender. Witnesses saw him attempting to help others escape before he was kidnapped. He is the oldest of three brothers, one of whom previously died from an illness. Avinatan Or, 32 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Avinatan Or was kidnapped from the Nova music festival along with his girlfriend, Noa Argamani, who was rescued by Israeli forces in June 2024. On Oct. 7, Hamas released a video of the pair that has become one of the most well-known videos from that day. It showed Argamani on an all-terrain vehicle crying, Dont kill me! and reaching out her arms to Or, who is being marched away from her by militants. Or worked in hi-tech in Tel Aviv before his abduction. Matan Zangauker, 25 Matan Zangauker was kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz along with his girlfriend, Ilana Gritzewsky. The two met while working on a medical cannabis farm there. Gritzewsky was released after 55 days and has since advocated tirelessly for his release, wearing a hat of Zangaukers she rescued from their burned home. His mother, Einav, has been a constant presence at protests, giving impassioned speeches and even being hoisted in a cage above the crowd to draw attention to the hostages plight. Zangauker, who said she was previously a Netanyahu supporter, has emerged as one of his harshest critics. Two hostages determined to be dead: Bipin Joshi, 24 Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Bipin Joshi arrived in Israel from his native Nepal a month before the attack. He had been the only non-Israeli hostage believed to be alive in Gaza. He came to Israel on a student exchange to work and study agriculture at Kibbutz Alumim on the Gaza border. Ten of the 17 Nepali students in the program were killed during the attack. Joshi, who was able to throw a number of live grenades out of the bomb shelter where they were hiding, was injured and kidnapped. Joshis sister, 17-year-old Pushpa Joshi, regularly travels eight hours each direction on buses to Kathmandu from her home in western Nepal to lobby officials to secure her brothers release. In August, his family traveled to Israel to meet with President Isaac Herzog and join families demonstrating in Tel Avivs Hostage Square. Last week, Joshis family released footage of him in captivity filmed under duress from around November 2023. Tamir Nimrodi, 20 Tamir Nimrodi was taken from Erez, a crossing on the northern border of Gaza that had been the main route for people entering and leaving the territory. He had been serving with the Israeli defense body overseeing humanitarian aid in Gaza. Nimrodi was taken with two other soldiers by militants who walked them to the Gaza gate and forced them to cross. Israel confirmed the deaths of the two soldiers who were taken with Nimrodi. There had been no sign of life from Nimrodi in the two years since he was seen in footage walking into Gaza in shorts and a T-shirt without his glasses. Herut Nimrodi, his mother, said she didn't know what was worse: to think he has been killed in captivity, or that he was alive but being held in terrible conditions. Im scared to even imagine, she said. ___ Associated Press writer Sam Metz in Jerusalem contributed to this report. India has announced that it will join a small group of countries in reopening its embassy in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan, as part of a rapid and controversial upgrade in its dealings with the Islamist groups regime. India is hosting the Talibans de facto foreign minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, for a landmark visit to New Delhi, and Muttaqi held meetings with his Indian counterpart Subrahmanyam Jaishankar on Friday. Mr Jaishankar announced that Indias embassy, closed after the group seized power in Kabul in August 2021, would reopen. India had launched a downgraded technical mission in Kabul earlier in June 2022. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan, Mr Jaishankar said in his opening remarks in New Delhi as he hosted the senior Taliban leader. Closer cooperation between us contributes to your national development, as well as regional stability and resilience. Mr Muttaqi is one of a number of Taliban leaders facing UN sanctions, including travel bans and asset freezes, and his visit to Delhi had to be specially approved by the UN Security Council. That process delayed his six-day visit to India, which was originally scheduled for August this year. He was first sanctioned by the UN in 2001 over the abuses committed by the Taliban in Afghanistan during the hardline Islamist groups previous rule in the 1990s. The UN General Assembly has not recognised the legitimacy of the Talibans administration in Afghanistan, but around a dozen countries have embassies operating in Kabul, including China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey. Only Russia has formally recognised the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Western diplomats have said the main roadblock on the Talibans path to recognition is its misogynistic policies towards Afghan women, barring them from secondary schools, higher education and most workplaces, and severely limiting their freedoms in public. Such policies were reflected even during events on Friday in India, with female journalists high-profile Indian TV correspondents and a reporter for The Independent among them barred from a press conference given by Mr Muttaqi. In his opening remarks, Mr Muttaqi referred to ongoing counter-terrorism efforts and said the Taliban administration would not allow anyone to use Afghanistan's territory for targeting other nations. "We hope that Afghanistan and India, on an official level and in different areas, increase their engagement," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Analysts have suggested Indias engagement with the Taliban reflects a pragmatic approach to dealing with an important regional player, rather than an endorsement of the Islamist groups policies, as well as a concern that New Delhi could be left behind by Pakistan and China in building new ties with Kabul. Jayant Prasad, a former Indian ambassador to Afghanistan told The Independent that reopening the embassy would allow India to operate better on a number of fronts. This is a welcome step in the direction of India-Afghanistan ties for regional cooperation and was overdue. Given the traditional ties between India and Afghanistan, India has rightly decided to review its social and economic partnership, he said. Harsh Pant, foreign policy head at India's Observer Research Foundation think-tank, told Reuters: "Engagement does not mean endorsement. There are many things that India is uncomfortable about (under Taliban rule) - minority rights, gender rights, and the human rights landscape in Afghanistan. But there is a pragmatism inherent in India's engagement with the Taliban ... And this visit is, in some ways, continuing that tradition. It certainly can be considered the beginning of a new phase in India-Afghanistan relations under the Taliban government, which have been one-directional so far. Israeli air attacks on a southern Lebanese village have killed one person and wounded seven others, temporarily severing a key route connecting Beirut to the countrys south, in the latest near-daily violation by Israel of the November 2024 ceasefire it signed with Hezbollah. The strikes hit Msayleh village in the early hours of Saturday morning, targeting a site that sold heavy machinery and destroying numerous vehicles. Al Jazeera verified video and images of the strikes. pic.twitter.com/qotvXtnNKX Annahar (@Annahar) October 11, 2025 Translation: A series of Israeli raids targeted Wadi Al-Najariya near Al-Masailh in southern Lebanon. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A Syrian national was killed and seven others were wounded when a passing vegetable truck was caught in the attack, the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health said. Separately, Israeli drones were reported flying over the capital, Beirut, and southern suburbs since early on Saturday, according to Lebanons National News Agency. A man walks at a site that sold heavy machinery, where a large number of vehicles were destroyed in Israeli air strikes, in the southern village of Msayleh, Lebanon, on Saturday, October 11, 2025 [Mohammed Zaatari/AP] Lebanons President Joseph Aoun condemned the attack, describing it as an assault on civilian infrastructure. Once again, southern Lebanon is under fire from a blatant Israeli aggression against civilian facilities, without any justification or pretext, he said, adding that the strike was particularly alarming given it came after the Gaza ceasefire agreement. Israels military said the strike targeted equipment intended to rebuild infrastructure for Hezbollah. The Israeli military has claimed that such operations are necessary to prevent Hezbollah from restoring its military capabilities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The United Nations human rights chief, Volker Turk, said at the start of October that Israeli strikes had killed 103 verified civilians in Lebanon since the ceasefire took effect. Israeli forces remain stationed at several positions inside Lebanese territory. The incident marks the latest in an almost daily pattern of Israeli strikes on Lebanese territory since the United States brokered a ceasefire. Days earlier, Israeli drone strikes killed two men it claimed were Hezbollah operatives. Lebanese authorities said on Friday they had foiled an Israeli plot to carry out bombings and assassinations at a commemoration for late former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated by Israel, arresting several suspects. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hezbollah has rejected mounting pressure to disarm. Speaking at the tomb of Hassan Nasrallah, current secretary-general Naim Qassem told thousands of supporters that Hezbollah would never relinquish its weapons. US special envoy Tom Barrack told Al Jazeera last month that convincing Hezbollah to disarm is the job of the Lebanese government, though he acknowledged the groups legitimacy as a political party complicates the issue. The Lebanese government, under intense US and Israeli pressure, tasked the army in early September with preparing a plan to disarm the group. The original war killed at least 4,000 people in Lebanon and caused an estimated $11bn in damage. In Israel, 127 people died, including 80 soldiers. Fighting erupted when Hezbollah began launching rockets into northern Israel on October 8, 2023, one day after a Hamas-led assault on southern Israel triggered the war in Gaza. The continuing strikes in Lebanon come as a separate ceasefire in Gaza has allowed thousands of Palestinians to return to destroyed homes, while the UN outlined plans to deliver vital humanitarian aid across the devastated territory. An international flight headed to London was reportedly forced to reroute and make an emergency landing in Romania on Thursday, October 9. A British Airways flight from Istanbul to London, carrying 142 passengers, diverted from its original flight path to land at Bucharest Henri Coanda International Airport in Romania at 6:14 p.m. local time. Four people were reported to have suffered from smoke inhalation and were met by medical staff upon arrival, who boarded the aircraft. On the airline's flight page, they changed the status of Flight BA603 with a message saying, "Were very sorry, this flight scheduled from Istanbul to London, has been diverted to Bucharest." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement According to the Associated Press, there are conflicting reports on whether smoke was detected or not. The airline claims they hadn't received any reports of smoke, while Romania's Health Ministry stated, "the presence of smoke was confirmed." "Four people are in poor health, possibly being smoke-intoxicated, and are receiving medical assistance on site," the ministry told the outlet, as well as ecavuating the passengers from the plane. The ministry later added that none of the passengers required medical assistance. British Airways stated to AP that the safety of its travelers and staff is their top priortiy. The crew on board made "the decision to divert as a precaution due to a suspected technical issue." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "The aircraft landed safely, customers disembarked normally, and we received no reports of smoke on board or hospitalisations," the airline added. "Were sorry to our customers for the disruption to their journeys and our teams are working to get them on their way again as quickly as possible." There are no further details on whether an investigation into the cause of the reported smoke is underway. This story was originally reported by Men's Journal on Oct 10, 2025, where it first appeared in the Travel section. Add Men's Journal as a Preferred Source by clicking here. Iran claimed that a social media account affiliated with Israels Mossad intelligence was linked to the rumor. Iran denied rumors that Iranian Quds Force Commander Esmail Qaani was assassinated on Friday, according to IRGC media site Tasnim News Agency. The agency claimed that a social media account affiliated with Israels Mossad intelligence was linked to the rumor. The Zionist regime is publishing news of my assassination so that my friends will be worried and contact me so that they can find my exact location, Qaani reportedly told the agency. Past assassination rumors An Iranian source told theNew York Times in June, during the two week war between Israel and Iran, that Qaani had been assassinated. BRIGADIER-GENERAL Esmail Qaani, head of the IRGC Quds Force, attends the opening ceremony of Irans 12th parliament in Tehran, in May. Recent events show the deep deterioration of Irans internal security apparatus, says the writer. (credit: West Asian News Agency/Reuters) Videos posted after the New York Times report suggested the information was incorrect and Qaani survived the rounds of targeted airstrikes across Iran. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Qaani succeeded Qasem Soleimani as commander after the latter was killed in a targeted operation by the United States in 2020. He went missing during strikes on Lebanon in 2024 but was later spotted at an airport in Iran. By Matt Spetalnick, Nidal al-Mughrabi and Alexander Cornwell WASHINGTON/CAIRO (Reuters) -Israelis and Palestinians rejoiced on Thursday after a ceasefire and hostage deal was reached under the first phase of U.S. President Donald Trump's plan to end a war in Gaza that has killed more than 67,000 people and reshaped the Middle East. Just a day after the second anniversary of Hamas militants' cross-border attack that triggered Israel's devastating assault on Gaza, indirect talks in Egypt yielded an agreement on the initial stage of Trumps 20-point framework to bring peace to the Palestinian enclave. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The accord, if fully implemented, would bring the two sides closer than any previous effort to halt a war that had evolved into a regional conflict, drawing in countries such as Iran, Yemen and Lebanon. News of the deal prompted celebrations in Israel, Gaza and beyond, with Israeli families of hostages letting off fireworks, while Palestinians clapped and cheered in hopes of an end to the bloodshed. Thank God for the ceasefire, the end of bloodshed and killing," said Abdul Majeed abd Rabbo, a man in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. "I am not the only one happy, all of the Gaza Strip is happy, all the Arab people, all of the world is happy with the ceasefire and the end of bloodshed." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But the agreement announced by Trump late on Wednesday was short on detail and left many unresolved questions that could yet lead to its collapse, as has happened with previous peace efforts. "I am very proud to announce that Israel and Hamas have both signed off on the first Phase of our Peace Plan," Trump said on Truth Social. "This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line as the first steps toward a Strong, Durable, and Everlasting Peace," Trump added. Successful completion of the deal would mark a significant foreign policy achievement for the Republican president, who had campaigned on bringing peace to major world conflicts but has struggled to swiftly deliver, both in Gaza and on Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would convene his government on Thursday to approve the agreement. "With the approval of the first phase of the plan, ALL our hostages will be brought home," he said in a statement. "This is a diplomatic success and a national and moral victory for the State of Israel." The conflict upended the Middle East in Israel's favour after it assassinated the leaders of Tehran-backed Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah and killed top Iranian commanders and pounded Yemen's Houthis. But global outrage has mounted against Israel's assault. Multiple rights experts, scholars and a U.N. inquiry say it amounts to genocide. Israel calls its actions self-defence after the 2023 Hamas attack. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hamas confirmed it had reached an agreement to end the war, saying the deal includes an Israeli withdrawal from the enclave and a hostage-prisoner exchange. "We affirm that the sacrifices of our people will not be in vain, and that we will remain true to our pledge - never abandoning our peoples national rights until freedom, independence, and self-determination are achieved," Hamas said. Gaza authorities say more than 67,000 people have been killed and much of the enclave has been flattened since Israel began its military response to the Hamas cross-border attack on October 7, 2023. Around 1,200 people were killed and 251 were taken hostage back to Gaza, according to Israeli officials, with 20 of the 48 hostages still held believed to be alive. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "These are moments that are considered historic moments, long awaited by Palestinian citizens after two years of killing and genocide that was committed with arrogance against the Palestinian people," said Palestinian Khaled Shaat in the city of Khan Younis in Gaza. Despite the hopes raised for ending the war, crucial details are yet to be spelled out, including the timing, a post-war administration for the Gaza Strip and the fate of Hamas. HOSTAGE RELEASE EXPECTED IN DAYS Families of Israelis held hostage in Gaza gathered in what has come to be known as Hostages Square in Tel Aviv after the announcement. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "President Trump, thank you very much. We thank him, our children will not have returned home without him," said Hatan Angrest, whose son Matan is among the hostages. A Hamas source said the living hostages would be handed over within 72 hours of the Israeli government approving the deal. Hamas officials have insisted it will take longer to recover the bodies of dead hostages, believed to number about 28, from Gazas rubble. Trump told Fox News' 'Hannity' program on Wednesday that the hostages will probably be released on Monday. Netanyahu and Trump spoke by phone and congratulated each other on an "historic achievement," and the Israeli prime minister invited the U.S. president to address Israels parliament, according to Netanyahu's office. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hamas said earlier on Wednesday it had handed over its lists of the hostages it held and the Palestinian prisoners held by Israel that it wanted to be exchanged. The Islamist group has so far refused to discuss Israel's demand that Hamas give up its arms, which the Palestinian source said Hamas would reject as long as Israeli troops occupy Palestinian land. ARAB COUNTRIES SAY PLAN MUST LEAD TO PALESTINIAN STATE Oil prices fell as the prospects of a ceasefire lessened one potential disruption to world supplies. The next phase of Trump's plan calls for an international body led by Trump and including former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to play a role in Gaza's post-war administration. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Arab countries which back the plan say it must lead to eventual independence for a Palestinian state, which Netanyahu says will never happen. There is no clear indication who will rule Gaza when the war ends. Netanyahu, Trump, Western and Arab states have ruled out a role for Hamas, which has run Gaza since driving out Palestinian rivals in 2007. Hamas has said it would relinquish Gaza governance only to a Palestinian technocrat government supervised by the Palestinian Authority and backed by Arab and Muslim countries. It rejects any role for Blair or foreign rule of Gaza. (Reporting by Dawoud Abu Elkas, Tuvan Gumrukcu and Daren Butler in Ankara, Jana Choukeir and Tala Ramadan in Dubai, Maayan Lubell and Alexander Cornwell in Jerusalem, John Irish in Paris, Angelo Amante in Rome, Trevor Hunnicutt, Steve Holland and David Morgan in Washington; Writing by Lincoln Feast and Michael Georgy; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan) In We Bought a Zoo, author Benjamin Mee wrote, Sometimes, all you need is twenty seconds of insane courage. Just literally twenty seconds of just embarrassing bravery. And I promise you, something great will come of it. The story of Franceska Mann, the 26-year-old ballerina who started a riot when fighting for her life at the hands of Nazi guards, is a perfect testament to this quote. On the night of Oct. 23, 1943, in the midst of the Second World War, Mann showed her insane courage by deciding to stick it to her Nazi guards instead of silently enduring their tyranny. She ended up killing one and severely injuring two othersnot to mention the riot she started. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Though the riot did not last long, and most of the rioters ended up being killed, even generations later, her story is still passed down as a symbol of epic bravery and resistance. A Celebrated Dancer Born in 1917 to wealthy Jewish parents in Warsaw, Poland, Franceska Manheimer-Rosenberg was a talented young woman with a promising future. Her ballet education began at the schools of prominent dancers who taught her both classical and modern ballet. Among the various schools she attended, the most notable was Irena Prusickas School of Gymnastics and Artistic Dance, which was one of the top three dance schools in Warsaw at that time. It was there that she learned ballet, free dance, and tap dance. Manns talent and determination soon became clear to everyone around her. In 1939, she took part in an international dance competition held in Brussels and bagged 4th place, defeating 120 other dancers for this coveted spot. She had proven herself as a force to be reckoned withthough everyone would soon come to know just how much this applied to the world outside of dance. She soon started performing in public, and people came to know her by her stage name of Lola Horowitz. She gave recitals at the Great Theatre in Warsaw, performed at opera and cabaret stages, and put on shows in cafes, private parties, and revues. She was considered a Polish treasureone of the most talented dancers of her generation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But it all changed when the Germans invaded Poland. Liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto During the German occupation of Poland, Mann, like all the other Polish Jews, became a prisoner of the Warsaw Ghetto. The living conditions were atrocious, which isnt all that surprising considering the fact that the ghettos were nothing more than waiting rooms for the concentration camps and extermination centers. The Jews in the ghetto had to live in very close quarters, packed together like sardines in a tin can. Its said that as many as 10 people often had to share a single room. There was barely enough food for everyone. Many met their deaths at the hands of starvation or disease. German troops sweeping through the Warsaw ghetto, May 1943. During this time, the dancer continued performing at places such as the Melody Palace nightclub, Femina Theatre, and Cafe Bagatela. In April and May of 1943, the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto began fighting back in what is now known as the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising. Unfortunately, they were no match for Nazi Germanys SS and police units, and a majority of them ended up losing their lives. The Warsaw Ghetto was liquidated. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement However, a few Jews survived the liquidation by hiding on the Aryan side of the ghetto. Franceska Mann was one of the survivors. The Affair of Hotel Polski After the liquidation of the Warsaw Ghetto, the few Jews who had managed to survive began hoping that, maybe, they could make it out alive. Around this time, news spread that passports and visas to enter Latin America were available for purchase at a hotel on Rua Dluga, 29, known as Hotel Polski, at very high costs. Surprisingly enough, the Gestapo promised that, with the documents, the Jews could leave Poland unharmed, for they were going to be exchanged with German prisoners of war in Switzerland. The Germans said that, till the exchange was made, the Jews could find safe refuge in the hotel. For those who had somehow escaped death and deportation during the Warsaw Ghetto uprising, this seemed like the only way to escape their fate. Little did they know that something far sinister was afoot. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement More than 2,500 Jews, including Franceska Mann, came forward to purchase the passports at Hotel Polski. They stayed at the hotel till the Gestapo began transferring them in groups to transfer camps. They were told that this would be their last transit point before they were taken to Switzerland for the final exchange. On Oct. 23, 1943, around 1,700 Jews, including Franceska, were shipped off in a passenger train. Their promised destination? A transit camp in Dresden called Bergau. But when they left the train, the Jews realized that they had been tricked; they had been brought to the Auschwitz-Birkenau death camp, instead. There were to be no more travels for them. Franceskas Last Dance When Mann and the other women at the womens camp were instructed to undress to get themselves disinfected as part of the Swiss officials orders, a few, including the Jewish dancer, began having doubts about the legitimacy of these claims. Those who had undressed had already been sent through to the gas chambers. Sensing the skepticism of the remaining women, the Nazi guards started being aggressive towards them, forcing them to strip. In those few moments, Franceska, who had sniffed out the ruse, formulated a plan of attack. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement From this point on, historical accounts vary. Some say she put on a show while undressing to distract the guards, while others say she struck a languid pose while sensually removing one of her high-heeled shoes. But the thing that everyone agrees on is this: when she had their attention, Mann hurled her shoe at one of the guards foreheads. When his pistol dropped to the floor, she picked it up, quick as a whip, and fired two shots, aiming at SS Maj. Joseph Schillingers stomach. After the events ended, Schillinger was taken to the hospital, where he died the following day. A sculpture of Franceska Mann in her brave final moments, attacking a Nazi officer with her shoe, by Alex Palkovich. (Alex Palkovich) Mann fired a third shot at another SS guard, Wilhelm Emmerich, injuring his leg. The sound of the final bullet fired by the dancer incited all the other women to act. Emmerich went in search of reinforcements. The women locked the door of the room from the inside and began attacking the other guards. Some say that one of the guards was scalped, while the other had his nose torn off. The riot that had started due to one womans act of bravery was in full swing. Unfortunately, the fight did not last very long. Just a few minutes later, Commander Rudolf Hoss arrived at the scene, flanked by his men, each of whom was armed with a machine gun. Cutting off all routes of escape, the Nazi guards opened fire. Most of the women were caught in the crosshairs of the bullets and were killed instantly. The others, who had believed the Gestapos lies and had gone to the disinfection room, died in the gas chambers. A few accounts say that Franceska Mann committed suicide as a final act of rebellion instead of dying at the hands of the SS guards. Rudolf Hosss official account, on the other hand, claims that she was captured and gassed to death after suffering injuries during the riot. But its not clear which of these claims holds more weight. What is clear, though, is that she did die, for none of the Jewish women escaped the locker room that day. Franceska, the Legend There have, no doubt, been countless people who fought against the Nazis. Why, then, is Franceskas story so epic? Simple: because it gave the prisoners hope and ignited a small spark of rebellion within them at a time when they needed it the most. It showed the prisoners that, if not today, then at least one day, they may be freed from Nazi rule. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Franceska Manns acts became a symbol, Auschwitz survivor Wieslaw Kieler wrote in his memoir. They began to be told and retold and embellished in various ways until they became a legend. Without a doubt, that heroic act, on the part of a fragile woman on the way to her death, gave support and moral courage to all the prisoners. Suddenly, we realized that if we dared to raise our fist against them, that fist could kill, for they, also, were mortal. mcpherson americas last world war II fighter ace World War II Donald McPherson, Americas last World War II fighter ace, dies at 103 By Miguel Ortiz Alan Magee WWI Airman World War II World War II airman Alan Magee survived a 22,000-foot fall without a parachute By Friedrich Seiltgen Kilroy was here World War II Kilroy Was Here was the World War II-era viral meme By Blake Stilwell This World War II veteran played a song for the sniper trying to kill him Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement World War II This World War II veteran played a song for the sniper trying to kill him By Blake Stilwell new jimmy stewart movie Movies A new Jimmy Stewart biopic in the works recreates the legendary actors World War II service By Jos Joseph When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Chicago protests against President Donald Trump's National Guard deployment. | Credit: Scott Olson / Getty Images What happened A federal judge in Chicago Thursday temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from federalizing the Illinois National Guard or deploying any Guard units in the state, saying there was growing evidence that the administrations perceptions of events are simply unreliable and the addition of troops to anti-ICE protests would only add fuel to the fire that Trump officials themselves have started. Who said what At Thrusday's hearing, U.S. District Judge April Perry pressed Justice Department lawyer Eric Hamilton on the scope of Trumps Guard mission in Illinois. I am very much struggling to figure out where this would ever stop, she said after he would not commit to the deployment remaining aimed at protecting federal property and federal agents. Hamilton argued that Trump has an expansive, non-reviewable right to send in the National Guard in times of rebellion or unmanaged lawlessness. Perry, appointed by President Joe Biden, said she had seen no credible evidence that there is a danger of a rebellion in Illinois. State and local officials cheered the decision. Donald Trump is not a king and his administration is not above the law, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker (D) said on X. Perrys bench ruling was the latest pushback from federal courts to Trumps use of federal forces against immigrants and protesters. Last weekend, a Trump-appointed judge in Portland blocked his Guard deployment to Portland. But a three-judge panel of the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday seemed poised to permit Trump to deploy the guard in Oregon, Politico said. The dueling court hearings vividly illustrated the different approaches from judges to Trumps domestic use of the military over the objections of local authorities, and this 9th Circuit panel especially its two Trump appointees maintained that the president deserves extremely broad latitude in this area. What next? Perry said her temporary restraining order would last at least 14 days and she would issue a written ruling this afternoon. It was not immediately clear what would happen with the roughly 200 Texas National Guard members and 300 Illinois troops already mobilized and deployed outside Chicago, said The New York Times. The Trump administration was expected to appeal. UPDATE 10/11: The Adams County Department of Emergency Services posted on Facebook that the issues have been resolved. JUNIATA COUNTY, Pa. (WHTM) An outage is impacting some Brightspeed customers Friday evening in Pennsylvania. Multiple counties, including Juniata and Adams, are dealing with issues because of a wide spread telephone outage, Adams County Department of Emergency Services posted on Facebook around 7:45 p.m. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Juniata County 911 also posted around 6 p.m. about outages for Brightspeed customers, but they can still use one of the 911 center cellphones in case of an emergency. Those numbers are 717-513-3362 or 717-513-3392. The Juniata County communications center also can not make any outgoing calls, the post states. The non-emergency number for Juniata County is 1-717-436-2066. Mifflin County also reported having outages for Brightspeed customers. They are urged to contact 717-248-9607 if they cant reach 911. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now WHTM Daily Digest This is a developing story. Stay with abc27 News as more information becomes available Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC27. The US said it is sending 200 troops to monitor the ceasefire deal in Gaza, which is widely believed to be the first step in building an International Stabilisation Force (ISF) to bring calm to the besieged Palestinian territory. The ISF is part of clause 15 of Donald Trumps 20-point plan, which stipulates the United States will collaborate with Arab and international partners to establish a temporary force in Gaza to train Palestinian police, secure borders and support reconstruction, while serving as a long-term internal security solution. But there are conflicting reports on where the troops will be deployed, with suggestions they will be sent to Egypt or Israel, while experts have cast doubt over how they will oversee the implementation of the deal. A truck transports an Israeli armoured personnel carrier near the Israel-Gaza border (Reuters) As is often the case with the Trump White House, the details are somewhat vague, Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu) and an expert in Middle East affairs, told The Independent. What exactly will these 200 US troops be deployed for? Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement US officials told American media that the US Central Command, led by Admiral Brad Cooper, will establish a civil-military coordination centre in Israel to provide security and humanitarian support. The US troops who have expertise in transportation, planning, security, logistics and engineering will join soldiers from nations in the region, including Egypt, Qatar, Turkey and the UAE. Israeli media, citing US officials, reported that the troops are intended to help create the joint control centre and then integrate all the other security forces that will be going in there to deconflict with the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces). A source familiar with the matter told The Times of Israel that they will likely be stationed in Egypt. One statement that has stayed consistent in the reports is that no US troops will be sent into Gaza. This is NOT true and taken out of context. To be clear: up to 200 U.S. personnel, who are already stationed at CENTCOM, will be tasked with monitoring the peace agreement in Israel, and they will work with other international forces on the ground. https://t.co/V8UoUSrjA5 Karoline Leavitt (@PressSec) October 9, 2025 The Israeli-based centre will coordinate humanitarian aid, logistics and communication among countries and organisations involved in Gazas reconstruction and security, according to reports. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But it remains unclear how the centre would operate given that Israel has no formal diplomatic ties with Qatar and relations with Turkey, Egypt and the UAE are complex. The US has been criticised over its previous attempts to get aid into Gaza, with high-profile announcements and costly initiatives that aid agencies argue have done little to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians. This includes the $230m floating pier in Gaza, established under the previous Biden administration, which fell apart in rough seas and storms. It was a huge endeavour that took about 1,000 US troops to execute, but it was dismantled in July last year after just 20 days in operation. US soldiers stand at the floating pier off the coast of Gaza, which was dismantled after 20 days in operation last year (AP) Aid groups also criticised the US military and others for airdropping aid into Gaza, saying it was insufficient to meet the scale of need and was a mere symbolic gesture at best. They also warned that airdrops posed a danger to civilians on the ground, who would often rush toward the falling packages. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an organisation created by Israel in February with US support to distribute aid in Gaza, was accused of causing mass casualties, as desperate Palestinians were killed by gunfire, overcrowding and stampedes at its distribution centres. The GHF was described by UN experts as an utterly disturbing example of how humanitarian relief can be exploited for covert military and geopolitical agendas in serious breach of international law. The entanglement of Israeli intelligence, US contractors and ambiguous non-governmental entities underlines the urgent need for robust international oversight and action under UN auspices, the UN experts warned in August. Humanitarian aid airdropped over Gaza City in July (AP) Mr Doyle described these attempts to get aid into Gaza as fig leaf operations, saying: The Israelis should have had the borders open, that was the only way to deliver aid at scale, not via a dangerous pier and dangerous airdrops. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He was equally critical of the ceasefire plan declared this week, and the subsequent announcement that 200 US troops will be sent to oversee it. When asked whether the plan offered any guarantees of stability in Gaza, he responded: No, none, nothing. US troops are not neutral actors, he added. The US is a party to this conflict, given that it has contributed so much military aid to Israel. I think aid agencies will have an issue as they had an issue with the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation with anything that would look like it would compromise their neutrality and independence. I think theres going to be an aversion to anything that looks like militarised, securitised aid. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Aid organisations have cautiously welcomed the news that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of the Gaza peace plan. Since October 2023, access to humanitarian aid has been a major challenge, with the process remaining slow and bureaucratic. It does not mark the end of the suffering, a spokesperson from Medecins Sans Frontieres (Doctors Without Borders) said of the ceasefire agreement. While access to humanitarian assistance must never be contingent on a peace agreement, any ceasefire must be followed by an urgent and massive scale up of humanitarian aid to address the overwhelming medical, psychological, and material needs across a devastated Gaza. Columbus Day and Indigenous Peoples Day are coming up soon. Some state and cities celebrate both holidays. is Mississippi one of them? President Donald Trump has said repeatedly that Columbus is getting a bad rap as people reconsider the explorer's legacy. Some think honoring the Italian includes all his actions, such as enslaving and killing native people. "Outrageously, in recent years, Christopher Columbus has been a prime target of a vicious and merciless campaign to erase our history, slander our heroes, and attack our heritage," reads the proclamation that Trump signed Oct. 9. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement What is Columbus Day, and why do we celebrate it? Is it a state holiday in Mississippi? Why is it controversial? Here's what we know about Columbus Day and Native American tribes in the Magnolia State. When is Columbus Day 2025? Columbus Day falls on the second Monday in October each year. Some prefer to celebrate Indigenous Peoples Day. This year, it will be on Monday, Oct. 13, 2025. Is Columbus Day a federal holiday? Yes. Columbus Day has been a federal holiday since it was created in 1892 and has never been canceled. Some cities and states swapped to honoring Native Americans on the day with Indigenous Peoples Day, and some still celebrate both. Will mail be delivered on Oct. 13? According to the U.S. Postal Service website, all post offices will be closed and no residential routes will get mail deliveries. Do FedEx, UPS deliver packages on Columbus Day? UPS and FedEx are private companies and don't have to close. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement FedEx stores will be open, and pickup and delivery will be available on Oct. 13. All UPS locations and services also will be open on Columbus day. Will banks be open on Columbus Day? Banks close on Columbus Day. Check with your location to see if all ATM services will be available. Deposits made on federal holidays won't process until the next business day. Why do we celebrate Columbus Day? What's the history of the holiday? The holiday was created in 1892 by President Benjamin Harrison to honor the contributions of Italian Americans to society. According to the Italian Sons and Daughters of America, the day was made to promote accepting immigrants in the U.S. On March 14, 1891, 11 Italian American immigrants were killed in a New Orleans lynching. They were accused of killing Police Chief David Hennessey, but those who were murdered had not been found guilty in court. It was the largest lynch mob in the U.S. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Italy broke off diplomatic ties with the U.S. Harrison launched the holiday via proclamation on Oct. 12, 1892 400 years after Columbus found the New World. More than 40,000 were in the parade in New York City. (It also helped the spread of the then-new Pledge of Allegiance.) The next day, the statue at Columbus Circle in NYC was unveiled. Civic groups around the country raised statues to Columbus over many decades to celebrate his role in bringing Italians to the U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt proclaimed the national holiday in 1937, mostly because of lobbying from the Knights of Columbus. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At first, it was on Oct. 12 each year, but that changed to the second Monday in October in 1971. The NYC Columbus statue was considered among the movement to remove Confederate and other controversial statues and monuments across the U.S. But in 2018, the New York State Board of Historic Preservation added it to the state register. Later that year, it was added to the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places. In 2023, the Italian prime minister visited it and laid a wreath to honor the explorer. Who discovered the New World? Columbus gets credit, but researchers think Vikings, including Leif Eriksson, found Newfoundland abou t 500 years before Columbus sailed, according to Britannica. Why do we honor Christopher Columbus? Kids learn the rhyme "In 1492, Columbus sailed the ocean blue..." in elementary school. (In fact, there's a whole poem.) Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Italian explorer famously was looking for a new route from Spain to India. Instead, he landed in the Bahamas. In a series of four trips, he explored the Caribbean and parts of Central and South America. 149293. 149396. 14981500. 150204. He never set foot on the mainland of North America or what is now the United States of America. But his initial voyages opened up the western hemisphere to European exploration. In European-centered historic accounts, Columbus was hailed as a hero for opening up so much land for settling and raw materials for countries to profit from, Britannica said. Looking at the same events from the perspective of people who were already living here, the explorers founded the slave trade and brought disease and destruction. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He lost governance of Hispaniola after colonists said his and his brothers' methods were inappropriate and violent, according to The History Channel. A royal commissioner arrested him in 1500, and he lost his title and role. But he was later freed, and King Ferdinand II funded a fourth voyage to the New World. He'd convinced them of his navigation skills and told them he thought the world was pear-shaped and he was close to Earthly Paradise or Eden. Is Indigenous Peoples Day a federal holiday? Indigenous Peoples Day started after an anti-discrimination conference sponsored by the United Nations. In 1990, South Dakota was the first state to celebrate Native American Day. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The International Conference on Discrimination Against Indigenous Populations in the Americas, sponsored by the UN, talked about replacing Columbus Day with Indigenous Peoples Day in 1990. Since then, states and cities honoring the day have been spread across the U.S. It is not a federal holiday. Biden was the first president to issue a proclamation for Indigenous Peoples Day in a 2021. He acknowledged it and Columbus Day throughout his presidency. Is Indigenous Peoples Day or Columbus Day a state holiday in Mississippi? No. Neither are on the state calendar. Are there Native American tribes in Mississippi? Yes. According to Visit Mississippi, the largest group in the state is the Choctaw. The tribe has the Chahta Immi Cultural Center, 101 Choctaw Town Center, Choctaw. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Other tribes that made Mississippi home include: Acolapissa. Bayougoula. Biloxi. Chakchiuma. Houma. Koroa. lbitoupa. Natchez. Ofogoula. Pascagoula. Taposa. Tiou. Tunica. Yazoo. What are Mississippi state holidays in 2025? According to the Mississippi Department of Finance and Administration, there are 10 state holidays. New Year's Day: Jan. 1. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.'s and Robert E. Lee's Birthdays: Jan. 20. Washington's Birthday: Feb. 17. Confederate Memorial Day: April 28. National Memorial Day and Jefferson Davis' Birthday: May 26. Independence Day: July 4. Labor Day: Sept. 1. Armistice or Veterans Day: Nov. 11. Thanksgiving Day: Nov. 27. Christmas Day: Dec. 25. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Contributing: USA Today Network reporting, Zac Anderson, Mary Walrath-Holdridge, Gabe Huari Bonnie Bolden is the Deep South Connect reporter for Mississippi with Gannett/USA Today. Email her at bbolden@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: What to know about mail, banks on Columbus Day. Is it a MS state holiday? Columbus police continue to search for an unidentified person wanted in an Oct. 8 shooting in broad daylight on Interstate 270 that left several vehicles damaged and one person with injuries. The shooting happened just after 1 p.m. near the I-270/Interstate 71 interchange on Columbus' North Side. One person was struck by broken glass and transported to a local hospital in stable condition, but the situation could have been worse since Sgt. James Fuqua said there were more than a dozen people in the vehicles involved. Related I-270 shooter article: Columbus police release photo, video asking public's help to identify I-270 shooter Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Columbus police have released minimal details about the shooting, beyond requesting the public's help in solving the crime. Here's what we know based on their statements and records, and 911 calls obtained by The Dispatch via a public records request: What we know about the suspect in the I-270 shooting Police have not released any details about whether they have an idea who the suspect is or why they opened fire on the freeway. On Oct. 10, Columbus police spokeswoman Caitlyn McIntosh said police had no updates and are still asking the public for "any information they might have." A batch of 911 calls obtained by The Dispatch under a public records request includes one caller who described someone in a black four-door sedan firing at vehicles as they drove. Columbus police are asking for the public's help to find a suspect and vehicle wanted in connection with a shooting on Interstate 270 on the city's North Side Is there a motive in the I-270 shooting? Given that police have not named a suspect or taken anyone into custody related to the shooting, police have not speculated on why someone opened fire on other motorists in the middle of the day. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Asked whether road rage may have been involved, McIntosh said police were still investigating. An incident report states that officers were dispatched on a report of "an individual shooting a gun atrandom vehicles." It describes the shooter as a "stranger" to the victims. Gray sedan stopped on interstate after shooting Columbus police released photos of a dark gray sedan with open doors that it was looking for in connection with the shooting. Several people called 911 to report the stopped car, but did not know why the vehicle was stopped. Many seemed unaware of the shooting. One caller told police that vehicles had crashed because of the car stopped in the middle of the interstate. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Another caller said he saw a gray sedan stopped on the interstate with two people inside. He said the vehicle's brake lights were engaged, but the hazards weren't activated. "It was very weird," the man said to a police dispatcher. A second caller told police he saw the car stopped, straddling two lanes, with all four doors open. Two said they saw a man in the driver's seat possibly passed out or "laying back." Columbus police respond to a report of a shooting on Interstate 270 near the 71 interchange on Oct. 8. What 911 callers told police about the shooting on I-270 Most callers who heard gunfire said they did not know who was firing or weren't sure what they heard was gunshots. None of them told police dispatch about any interactions they had with the shooter, and none mentioned any road rage activity. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement One 911 call came from a female who was in her friend's car. She told police two of her friends were injured and would need an ambulance. She said they saw a black car firing on other cars as it drove. One caller told police she heard gunfire, and one of her windows was blown out. She continued off the interstate "in case someone really was shooting." "We just heard 'bang, bang,' and our window was blown out," the woman told police dispatch. "So we weren't sure whether someone was shooting or what was going on, and then there were a few cars that stopped ahead of us." Video footage obtained from the Ohio Department of Transportation showed the four-door sedan sought by police coming to a stop on the interstate and opening its doors. Building also takes damage from gunfire A building by the interstate was struck by gunfire. A 911 caller said the building struck was at 7001 Buffalo Parkway, the adress of SEA Limited, a forensic consulting and testing company. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "A couple rounds were just fired into our building off of 270," the caller said. The man told police no one was injured, and employees did not see the shooter. He said there were "three or four rounds." Public Safety and Breaking News Reporter can be reached at bagallion@dispatch.com. This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Suspect, motive unclear in I-270 shooting in Columbus that injured one The Latvian government has ordered 841 Russian citizens to leave the country by Oct. 13, citing their failure to meet legal requirements, including proof of Latvian language proficiency and passing a national security screening, Politico reported on Oct. 10. Latvia first amended its immigration laws following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. In 2024, the government introduced stricter rules governing the legal stay of Russian nationals. Under the updated regulations, Russian citizens must obtain EU long-term resident status, demonstrate Latvian language proficiency at the A2 level, and pass a national security check by June 30, 2025. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Roughly 30,000 Russian nationals were affected by the changes. While most have either complied with the new requirements or left voluntarily around 2,600 in total 841 individuals failed to submit the necessary documentation on time. According to Madara Puke, head of public relations at Latvia's Office of Citizenship and Migration Affairs (OCMA), those who have not met the requirements must leave the country by Oct. 13. Puke told Politico some Russian residents claimed they were unaware of the changes until their access to social benefits was revoked. After the deadline, these individuals will be considered to be residing in Latvia illegally. Their access to public services will be terminated, and those who continue to defy the law may face forced deportation by the Latvian State Border Guard. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Latvia has intensified its national security policies in response to rising tensions with Moscow. In May, Latvian Foreign Minister Baiba Braze urged EU member states to halt visa issuance to Russian citizens. In June, Latvia's parliament passed legislation banning Russian and Belarusian nationals from working in strategic sectors or purchasing real estate in the country. Read also: Russia is erasing our memories of a peaceful life Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. At least 37 people have died and others are missing in Mexico after flooding set off by heavy rainfall caused landslides and damaged homes and highways, authorities say. Downpours in central and southeastern parts of the country led to overflowing rivers, road collapses and power cuts in some municipalities, the national coordinator for civil defence, Laura Velazquez, said on Friday. Civil defence authorities reported intense rainfall in 31 of 32 states with the worst affected areas being Veracruz in the east, Queretaro and Hidalgo in the centre, and the north-central state of San Luis Potosi. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Authorities in Hidalgo reported at least 22 people dead, 1,000 homes damaged and 90 communities inaccessible to rescuers, the federal security secretariat said. It said at least nine people died in neighbouring Puebla state. About 80,000 people have been affected by the extreme weather in Puebla alone, the state government said. In the state of Veracruz on the Gulf of Mexico, five people died, including a police officer, according to its state governor. About 5,000 homes were damaged, and the navy evacuated nearly 900 people to shelters. Earlier, authorities in Queretaro confirmed that a child had died after being caught in a landslide. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The heavy rainfall also caused power outages affecting more than 320,000 users and damage to almost 1,000km (621 miles) of roads in six states, authorities said. Tras las fuertes lluvias, la Secretaria de Marina (@SEMAR_mx ) desplego tres mil 300 elementos en Puebla, Veracruz y San Luis Potosi. Tambien puso a disposicion 18 embarcaciones, seis helicopteros, tres plantas potabilizadoras, tres aviones, tres cocinetas y cuatro mil pic.twitter.com/O7ES5XBoKC Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo (@Claudiashein) October 11, 2025 Translation: After the heavy rains, the Secretariat of the Navy (@SEMAR_mx ) deployed 300 personnel in Puebla, Veracruz and San Luis Potosi. It also made available 18 vessels, six helicopters, three water purification plants, three aircraft, three mobile kitchens and 4,000 food baskets ready to be distributed. We are working to support the population, open roads and restore electrical services, President Claudia Sheinbaum said after a meeting with local officials and cabinet members. She shared photos of emergency responders carrying supplies as they waded knee-deep in flooded streets. The country has deployed more than 8,700 military personnel to help monitor, evacuate and clean up affected areas. Shelters were open for those displaced from their homes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The main disaster area has been Sierra Madre Oriental, a mountain range that runs parallel to the Gulf of Mexico coast. It is dotted by small communities, many of which were blocked off on Friday. Mexico has been hit by particularly heavy rains throughout 2025, and a rainfall record was set in the capital, Mexico City. Tropical Storm Raymond is currently off the countrys Pacific coast, dumping heavy rains as it moves northwards. It is projected to make landfall in Mexico on Sunday. Raymond was announced on Thursday by the United States National Hurricane Center, making it the third system this week off the western coast of Mexico. It joined Tropical Storm Priscilla and post-Tropical Cyclone Octave, which threatened heavy rains and flooding in their paths. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Authorities in areas on the Pacific coast on Saturday were continuing to keep a close eye on Raymond and remnants of Priscilla. Both storms dumped heavy rains on western Mexico, causing damage in Chiapas, Guerrero, Oaxaca and Michoacan states. Meteorologists have warned that the Pacific Ocean cooling pattern called La Nina, which can warp weather worldwide and turbocharge hurricanes, has returned. It may be too late in the hurricane season to impact tropical weather in the Atlantic, but this La Nina may have other impacts from heavy rains to drought across the globe. Raymond is expected to hit the southern part of Baja California over the weekend, according to the US National Hurricane Center, and is forecast to weaken to a tropical depression by Sunday. Recreational weed is still illegal in New Hampshire after multiple attempts to legalize it in recent years have failed. But Granite Staters who want to get their hands on the drug can just hop over the border to Maine, where marijuana has been legal since 2016. However, you should still be careful where you consume it over the border: its illegal in public places. JAR Consulting is seeking to convert its business in Wells into an adult recreational use cannabis store. Is it legal to smoke pot in public in Maine? No. Maine law prohibits cannabis use in any form, including smoking, eating or vaping, in public places. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement You also cannot smoke cannabis in a place where smoking is prohibited, which includes theaters, churches and motel or hotel rooms among other places listed under the law. It is only permitted in private residences or on private property where the owner explicitly permits the consumption of cannabis or cannabis products. What is the punishment for smoking pot in public in Maine? A person who violates this law has committed a civil violation and may be subject to a fine of up to $100. What are other restrictions on marijuana use in Maine? Like alcohol, marijuana use is only legal for adults age 21 and older. You cannot consume cannabis in a vehicle, whether you are the driver or a passenger. The law stipulates that, for recreational use, adults may possess, use or transport up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis at one time. Up to six mature and 12 immature plants may be grown in ones home. This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Is it legal to smoke pot in public places in Maine? See the law Belarus began checking the combat readiness of its army on 11 October. Source: Belarusian Ministry of Defence Quote: "As part of the combat readiness check, on the orders of the commander-in-chief of the armed forces the president of the Republic of Belarus [this is how they refer to Alexander Lukashenko ed.] a series of measures is being carried out to bring the army to the highest level of combat readiness for the purpose of verification. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A number of units will carry out a series of measures to bring them to combat readiness, will depart for designated areas and will carry out the measures specified in the order." Details: The inspection is being supervised by the secretariat of the Security Council of Belarus. Background: On 12 September, joint strategic exercises of the Armed Forces of Belarus and Russia, Zapad-2025, began in Belarus. The exercises lasted until 16 September. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon! The Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado serves as a powerful symbol of hope for those fighting for democracy at a time when many countries in Latin America are grappling with the entrenchment of authoritarianism and corruption, and regional leaders have failed to respond to one of the worlds gravest humanitarian crises, prompted by Nicolas Maduros rule. Machado is receiving the Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy, the Norwegian Nobel Committee said Friday. They praised her as one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times. Despite Maduros fierce crackdown on dissent, the largest exodus ever recorded in the region and a traditionally divided opposition, Machado managed to mobilize the population in a presidential election in July 2024 that is widely believed to have been won by the opposition candidate she backed, Edmundo Gonzalez. Maduro, however, refused to leave power, and Machado remains in the country, in hiding. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At a time when democracy in the region is being challenged, an award to somebody for their selfless fight for democracy is a powerful symbol about what the hemisphere can aspire to, said Eric Farnsworth, a senior associate at the Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. Shes shown that leadership and commitment to democracy matter, but it also costs. Its costly to fight for democracy, and I think this is an acknowledgment of that. While she continues calling out the regimes abuses and regularly makes public appearances, Machado found herself speechless early Monday when she received the call from the Nobel Committee. I hope you understand this is a movement. I am just one person, she said, after digesting the news. This is certainly the biggest recognition of our people, who certainly deserve it. The prestigious award put the spotlight on Machado at a time of great uncertainty, amid U.S. military operations near Venezuela that might morph from a counternarcotics effort to regime change, providing her with another layer of protection against the constant threats by the regimes number two, Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello. But it also sends a larger message to Venezuelans, who have endured years of political repression and spiraling poverty and still manage to fight back against the regime. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Maria Corina Machado being awarded the Nobel Peace Prize exemplifies her courage and bravery against an authoritarian regime, said Eddy Acevedo, a Latin America foreign policy expert. This recognition is not only for Maria Corina herself but a symbol for the Venezuelan people who are fighting against Maduros dictatorial rule but yearn for a free, democratic, and peaceful future. Machado is the first Venezuelan and the seventh Latin American to receive the prize. Most recently, former Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos received it in 2016 for his resolute efforts to bring the countrys more than 50-year-long civil war to an end. The prize once again focuses on a region that has often struggled to draw international attention to the tremendous challenges it faces, and where countries have failed to use diplomatic tools to tackle them effectively. Even though the opposition providing material evidence that Gonzalez won the presidential vote, regional organizations like the Organization of American States have failed to take any significant steps to address Maduros power grab. Democratically elected leaders in Brazil, Colombia and Mexico have largely ignored the issue to rest after short-lived efforts to try to open up talks between the opposition and Maduro. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The crisis has revealed the limits of regional and international diplomacy and foreign policy tools to deliver a solution to the Venezuelan people. What are the tools anymore? People have been ineffective in changing the scenario, Farnsworth said. And even when you have elections, and they have a result, then countries like Brazil and Colombia turn and go the other direction. So, even when you have those tools, theyre not effectively deployed. While the Venezuelan crisis has had ripple effects throughout the region because of the exodus of over seven million people, Venezuelas descent into a full dictatorship without much pushback from other Latin American leaders comes as little surprise. After years of violence, corruption and poverty, governments are increasingly using authoritarian tactics, and the defense of democracy has taken a backseat to pressing domestic issues and economic agendas. Several countries in the region including Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua. Paraguay, Peru, Guatemala, El Salvador and Mexico have passed or are debating laws to clamp down on independent journalists and civil organizations fighting corruption who are labeled foreign agents if they accept foreign aid. Like Venezuela under the late Hugo Chavez, several democratically elected governments and leaders have been trying to change the rules of the democratic system to benefit their parties like a successful bid to change how judges are appointed in Mexico or remaining in power, such as reforms in El Salvador to allow its current president, Nayid Bukele, to be reelected indefinitely. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In places like Haiti, ravaged by gang violence, governance has almost all but collapsed. And like Venezuela, the region has been scrambling to respond in any significant way. Regimes in Cuba and Nicaragua continue with decades of political repression unchallenged. In this context, Machados Nobel Peace Prize sends a strong political message in support of those fighting for democracy in Latin America. What the Nobel Committee is saying is, first of all, we see you, this is an important and worthy effort, and its worth fighting, Farnsworth said. What I think the most powerful aspect of this is that it gives hope to the Venezuelan people that they havent been forgotten. Already, Cubas top diplomats have been sharing propaganda content discrediting Machado as a warmonger. But the Nobel Prize pokes a big hole in that narrative, especially because the committee highlighted that Machado has shown that the tools of democracy are also the tools of peace. Maduro constantly and wrongly tries to portray Machado as a warmonger, but let this moment be a warning to Maduro that the international community will not be fooled by his lies and repression, Acevedo said. Maduro and his cronies are the only side that have used violence, arrests, kidnappings, and killings in this struggle, and the world has the evidence. Donald Trumps plans to allow Qatar to build an air force facility in the US have been criticised by his Maga supporters. Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, said Washington had finalised an agreement with Qatar to establish the facility at the US Mountain Home Airbase in Idaho. The facility is not a separate base, but a group of buildings constructed to allow pilots from the Gulf state to fly F-15QA fighter jets. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The agreement in the works as part of a $12bn (9bn) deal made in 2017 for Qatar to purchase 36 F-15s has taken on renewed significance after Israel bombed Doha in an attack on Hamas officials. The attack shocked the Gulf region, where many countries host US forces in return for a security guarantee one that was broken when Israel, whose most staunch ally is the US, launched those strikes in Doha last month. Since then, the US has been trying to shore up confidence with its Gulf allies, including Qatar. Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, left, the Qatari defence minister, and Pete Hegseth, his US counterpart, signed an agreement to build an air force facility in Idaho - Alex Wroblewski/AFP The announcement drew criticism within Maga, with influential figures outraged over the idea of a foreign military base on American soil. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Laura Loomer, a Maga firebrand, wrote on X: No foreign country should have a military base on US soil. Especially Islamic countries. I have never felt more betrayed by the GOP. Im not voting in 2026! Steve Bannon, the former White House chief strategist and key ally of Mr Trump, told Newsweek: There should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America. Noah Rothman, a writer for the National Review, said: Whats the strategic rationale for this? Either ours or Qatars? You could rattle off all the problems/risks were inviting easily. But I have no idea what the steelman case for this would be. Im sure we dont need to import any more Qatari covert assets into this country. Donald Trumps administration has been criticised over the perceived hypocrisy of the US-Qatar deal - Robert Perry/Getty Images Some pointed to what they perceived as the hypocrisy of the Trump administration. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mike Madrid, a Republican consultant, said: Joe Biden was criticised for a Chinese balloon flying over our airspace. Theyre giving Qatar an entire f------ air base. The confusion forced Mr Hegseth to clarify the announcement. He said on X: The US military has a long-standing partnership with Qatar, including todays announced cooperation with F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States nor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners. Ann Stefanek, a US air force spokesman, said: What we expect is it to be squadron operations and hangars for the F-15QA, because thats the Qatari version of the jet that they bought through foreign military sales. It is definitely still a US air force base. The miliary base will allow pilots from the Gulf state to fly F-15QA fighter jets - MI News/NurPhoto The US has a long history of training side-by-side with other militaries as part of broader defence preparedness plans well-trained allies can help support American security interests and keep US troops abroad safe. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its also a key part of US defence sales agreements. When the US government approves sensitive purchases of American defence equipment to foreign countries whether thats jets or missile systems those foreign troops must be trained on how to operate the hardware, and only US forces can provide such training. On-site training agreements exist at several US military bases. Nato pilots, for instance, are trained at Sheppard Air Force Base in Texas. A Singaporean squadron has trained for years at Idahos Mountain Air Force Base, where the Qataris will also soon set up. But the agreements have drawn criticism before, especially in 2019, when a Saudi air force officer training at a US base in Florida killed three US service members and wounded several others in a mass shooting. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. A Carver veteran who served in both the U.S. Army and Air Force will soon be buried at the Massachusetts National Cemetery in Bourne without any family or friends expected to attend. Veterans groups are calling on the public to attend to ensure he receives a proper farewell. According to his obituary, Francis M. Frank Dobrynski, 92, was a Korean War veteran who earned the National Defense Service Medal and Good Conduct Medal, died Feb. 11 at Royal Cape Cod Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Buzzards Bay. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Jay Beauregard of the Plymouth American Legion and Marine Corps League, Plymouth Detachment #1306 recently urged the public on a Facebook page to be present so that he doesnt leave alone. Since that post, the veteran community has organized a strong show of support. According to updates from the Marine Corps League, Plymouth Detachment, on Facebook, groups confirmed to attend include the Patriot Guard Riders, American Legion Riders Post 40, Ride22: Prevention of Veteran Suicide and Taps for Veterans. A procession will depart Cartmell-Davis Funeral Home, 619 State Road, Plymouth, at 10:30 a.m. on Oct. 17, with participants asked to arrive by 10 a.m. before continuing to the national cemetery. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Plymouth Marine Corps League and Post 40 Color Guard never expected such a response, organizers wrote in an update. We thank you. The service will include military honors and a firing party from the American Legion. Members of the public are welcome to attend. The Massachusetts National Cemetery is at 1 Connery Ave., Bourne. For information, call 508-563-7113 or visit cem.va.gov. This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: How to attend funeral for Carver, MA, veteran with no known family When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Credit: Microsoft Microsoft has cancelled its initial plan of building a data center in Caledonia, Wisconsin, after residents and elected officials objected to the plan. According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Redmond is cancelling its application for the current site, although its still looking at building one in a different location in Caledonia or in another part of Racine County. Based on the community feedback we heard, we have chosen not to move forward with this site, Microsoft said to the publication. We remain committed to investing in Southeast Wisconsin and look forward to working with the Village of Caledonia and Racine County leaders to identify a site that aligns with community priorities and our long-term development goals. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Microsofts plan for the original Caledonia site, called Project Nova, was to build a 244-acre facility containing three data center structures and a 15-acre electrical substation. Data Center Dynamics reports that the company planned to construct it a little over a mile west of the We Energies Oak Creek Power Plant. This makes it a convenient location, especially as data centers consume a ton of electricity. The residents' complaints were not listed in the news report, but its not hard to imagine their concerns. Data centers are notorious for causing spikes in power bills. Even if the affected community can afford to pay more in electricity bills, theyre also known to reduce the power quality in the area, affecting the lifespan of appliances and other electrical equipment in surrounding homes. I commend Microsoft for listening to the community, Village Trustee Fran Martin told Data Center Dynamics. And for also addressing the concerns that the community had and that I had about that particular site. While Redmond is no longer pushing forward with the current location, it seems to still be looking to build Project Nova in Southeast Wisconsin, particularly within the general area of Racine County. Microsoft is already moving forward with another data center project just south of Caledonia in Mount Pleasant. The company dubbed it the worlds most powerful AI data center, set to go online next year. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that it will have more performance than the current fastest supercomputer, which is likely a dig at Musks Colossus. Given that the xAI site in Memphis, Tennessee, already uses 300 MW of power, with plans to hit 1 GW in the near future, its safe to say that Microsofts Wisconsin data centers could use even more electricity. Google Preferred Source Follow Tom's Hardware on Google News, or add us as a preferred source, to get our latest news, analysis, & reviews in your feeds. A former North Carolina middle school teacher serving time for repeatedly raping a teenage girl was found dead inside a state prison last weekend allegedly killed by another inmate who was already serving time for murder. Officials with the North Carolina Department of Adult Correction said Ernest Nichols, 60, was discovered lying on the floor beside his bunk at Greene Correctional Institution Sunday morning. Wilbert Baldwin, 41, has been charged with Nichols murder, officials said. Baldwin, who was serving a 20-year sentence for second-degree murder in Richmond County that happened in 2007. He has now been moved to Maury Correctional Institution and is being held without bond. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement According to WBTV, Nichols was teaching physical education at Ranson Middle School in Charlotte, North Carolina, when he was convicted in 2011 of statutory rape. He had been set for release in September 2027. Wilbert Baldwin (pictured), is accused of killing fellow inmate Ernest Nichols, in a North Carolina prison (NCDAC) After 14 years with the school district, Nichols was suspended without pay and banned from school grounds when administrators learned of the accusations, WBTV reported, referring to court documents the outlet obtained detailing his crimes. According to the court documents, Nichols raped a 15-year-old girl multiple times over a six-month period beginning in the fall of 2008. Investigators said Nichols also watched the teenager have sex with another boy. The former teacher reportedly used a fake Facebook account posing as his teenage son to contact the victim, asking her to create sexually explicit stories and to message him whenever she entered the shower, according to an arrest warrant cited by the outlet. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Nichols also allegedly told the girl to tell people she wanted to have sex if anyone asked about what happened. The victim was not a student at Ranson Middle School, where Nichols worked. Nichols, 60, was discovered lying on the floor beside his bunk at Greene Correctional Institution Sunday (NCDAC) At the time of Nichols arrest in October 2009 , he was married with two children. He faced a long list of charges, including five counts of second-degree rape, five counts of statutory rape of a person 13, 14, or 15, six counts of second-degree kidnapping, four counts of second-degree forcible sex offense, three counts of crime against nature and six counts of indecent liberties. The Department of Adult Correction said the investigation into Nichols death remains ongoing. By Alexander Villegas BOGOTA (Reuters) -Mariluz Palma, the head of Maria Corina Machado's Vente Venezuela political movement in Colombia, does not sleep much these days. She says she was up before dawn on Friday, browsing social media, when she saw the news that Machado had won the Nobel Peace Prize. "I was filled with tears, filled with strength to keep calling on all Venezuelans, to keep fighting for Venezuela's freedom," Palma told Reuters, adding that Venezuelans would be gathering on Sunday in Bogota to celebrate Machado's win. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Maria Corina deserves this prize and every prize she can get because she's a woman who risked her life, businesses, family, everything for millions of Venezuelans," Palma said. Palma, 48, has spent the last five years as the national director of Vente Venezuela in Colombia, one among nearly 3 million Venezuelans who are living in the neighboring country after fleeing economic and social collapse at home. Alejandro Mendez, another of the Venezuelan diaspora in Colombia, said the prize "feels like a vindication of the struggle we've been carrying out, for liberation, the recovery of democracy and a change of government in Venezuela." Popular opposition figure Machado was barred from running in Venezuela's 2024 election and threw her support behind the now-exiled Edmundo Gonzalez. President Nicolas Maduro, in power since 2013, claimed he won the election but the opposition and independent election monitors say Gonzalez won in a landslide. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Machado has been in hiding in Venezuela since last year. "(Machado) is sort of the president in exile, despite not being a president and despite not being in exile," said Daniel Lansberg-Rodriguez, a lecturer at the Kellogg School of Management who specializes in Venezuela. He added that the Peace Prize will cement her role as the leader of Venezuela's opposition, despite her holding no formal title. As well as strengthening Machado's position and thrusting her back into the spotlight, Lansberg-Rodriguez says the award's prestige and global consensus will deepen Maduro's international isolation and widen fissures within his government. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "The Venezuelan government is more rattled than I've ever seen it," Lansberg-Rodriguez said, citing recent U.S. strikes on alleged drug boats in the southern Caribbean as well as internal divisions. He added that the scope of the prize could also reach people within Venezuela who don't always have access to unfiltered information. "In a country like Venezuela, where you have very little free media, but you have a lot of social networking, I think (it) will dig much deeper," he said. "I think that it's just so unusual for a country like Venezuela that it's going to permeate." The Maduro government has so far made no public comment on the prize. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Christopher Sabatini, senior research fellow for Latin America at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, said the award could re-energize citizens demoralized by the 2024 election and ensuing crackdown on protests. "While this is a much-needed recognition of the situation in Venezuela, the question now will be how the Maduro government and the international community reacts," Sabatini said. (Reporting by Alexander Villegas in Bogota; Additional reporting by Reuters TV and Gwladys Fouche in Oslo; Editing by Rosalba O'Brien) The phrase non-white is offensive and should be avoided, civil servants have been told. The Northern Ireland Civil Service (NICS) has released an inclusive language guide which advises public sector workers to use from a minority ethnic background as an alternative to avoid reinforcing negative stereotypes. The term non-white is the latest to be condemned for creating misconceptions that all minority ethnic communities are the same. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The acronym BAME (Black, Asian and minority ethnic) was previously widely accepted for use. However, the guide suggests it should now be avoided as it masks disparities between different minority ethnic groups. It is one of dozens of suggestions issued by the taxpayer funded body designed to avoid incorrect assumptions or stereotypes, helping to foster a culture of respect, and belonging in [the] workplace. The term illegal immigrants is one term discouraged in the guide. However in its justification it suggests this is because you should not use migrant to refer to all minority ethnic people, as some will have been born here. Critics of the guide called it magical thinking and a waste of time and resources. The Northern Ireland Civil Service inclusive language guide The Northern Ireland Civil Service employs over 24,500 members of staff who will have access to the guide. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In the 26-page documents foreword, Dr Caoimhe Archibald, minister for the economy of Northern Ireland said: By taking the time to become more aware of the language we use and by consciously adopting inclusive language practices, together we can ensure that differences within our workplaces and society are positively recognised, valued and respected, making us a better Civil Service for all. The guide recommends avoiding the phrase English native and suggests speaks English as a first language because it implies that to be fluent in the language you must be a native of the country. It also advises against saying ladies and gentleman, suggesting folks or team as a suitable alternative. as well as discouraging good morning guys in favour of good morning everyone. Other phrases that the guide advises against under the guise of being gender inclusive include chairman, man-made and policeman. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The recommended alternatives are chairperson, artificial/synthetic, human-kind and police officer. The guide also suggests that veganism is a spiritual belief placing it alongside humanism, pacifism and spiritualism. The document tells civil servants that ex-con or ex-offender is also offensive, advising them to use people with/who have had convictions in order to stop apportioning blame for the situation on the individual. The paper includes many suggestions surrounding the discussion of age and warns against the use of the phrases Generation X, Baby Boomers, and Millennials instructing employees to use people born during years/decade instead. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Phrases such as the elderly, old people and the young are also frowned upon. Instead the NICS advises terms such as an older person or an experienced person be used. Civil servants are also told not to use the common phrases they are old-school or shes young at heart as it may imply that people of certain ages are good or bad at particular things because of their age. In the guides disability section, civil servants are also told not to say blind drunk or fell on deaf ears. Instead, they are encouraged to say very drunk and not listening to our concerns. The NICS guide promotes gender inclusive language Another phrase warned against the guide is Christian name as it may be disrespectful of others beliefs. As an alternative, the public sector workers are told to use first name, forename or given name. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Mum and dad are also advised against, with parents, adult, or caregiver suggested as better options. Lord Young of Acton, director of the Free Speech Union, said: The amount of time and resources wasted on this nonsense is criminal. How about instead of focusing on protecting peoples feelings, Civil Servants paid more attention to protecting the public finances? Alka Sehgal Cuthbert, director of campaign group Dont Divide Us, added: Civil servants have a job to do which is serving the public, not indulging in magical thinking that by policing everyday language they can remake people according to their wishes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Last week, The Telegraph revealed that insurers were being told that the phrase man the phones is offensive. In a similar guide issued by the Chartered Insurance Institute, members were told to use attend the phones as a gender-neutral alternative. An NICS spokesman said: The NICS is committed to building a diverse and inclusive Civil Service that reflects the society we serve. The Inclusive Language guide supports this commitment. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. North Korea showcased its latest military hardware during a parade marking the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, North Korean state news agency KCNA reported on Oct. 10. The parade, attended by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang, United Russia party leader Dmitry Medvedev, and representatives from several Asian countries, featured a display of advanced weaponry. Among the systems presented were hypersonic medium-range ballistic missiles, missiles equipped with hypersonic glide warheads, and Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), described by KCNA as North Korea's "strongest nuclear strategic weapon system." North Korea unveils the Hwasong-20, a new solid-fueled ICBM, hailed as its most powerful nuclear weapon yet. The three-stage missile can allegedly reach the entire U.S. mainland (up to 15,000 km) and carry multiple nuclear warheads (MIRVs). It uses a new high-thrust solid-fuel pic.twitter.com/NElr66b1KQ Clash Report (@clashreport) October 11, 2025 The new Chonma-20 main battle tanks and North Korea's unique 600 mm multiple launch rocket systems (MLRS), which Western analysts classify as short-range ballistic missiles, were also on display. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement During the military parade, North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un delivered a speech praising North Korean troops involved in operations abroad, offering what state media KCNA described as "warm encouragement." North Korea has become a key ally to Russia during the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, deploying thousands of troops in combat and providing artillery and ballistic missiles. "Our army should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats," Kim said. Kim also met with Medvedev and expressed hope for deeper military and political cooperation between the two countries. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Medvedev, in turn, praised the "courage" of North Korean troops fighting alongside Russian forces in the war in Ukraine. The former Russian president added that their participation demonstrated the strength of the "brotherly ties" between Pyongyang and Moscow, as well as the "invincibility" of their strategic alliance. Russian President Vladimir Putin previously met Kim while he was visiting Pyongyang in June 2024 to sign the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Agreement, a deal that stipulated mutual support if one country is attacked and preceded the dispatch of North Korean troops to Russia. Kim initially dispatched around 11,000-12,000 troops to Russia in late 2024 to help fend off a Ukrainian incursion in Kursk Oblast. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A senior Western diplomat told the Kyiv Independent that North Korea could have sent even more troops, with Ukrainian officials estimating Pyongyang's contribution to be between 20,000 and 30,000 soldiers. South Korea's National Intelligence Service estimates that some 2,000 North Korean soldiers have been killed in the war. Read also: Russia is ramping up Shahed-type drone strikes on the front line in Ukraine Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent. By Joyce Lee and Josh Smith SEOUL (Reuters) -North Korean leader Kim Jong Un oversaw a large military parade displaying its new intercontinental ballistic missile in front of visiting international dignitaries, state media KCNA said on Saturday. The parade, which began late on Friday, marked the 80th anniversary of the foundation of its ruling Workers' Party and followed celebrations on Thursday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Chinese Premier Li Qiang, a delegation from Russia led by former President Dmitry Medvedev, as well as Vietnam's Communist Party chief To Lam were among the foreign dignitaries in Pyongyang for the anniversary. In the military parade, nuclear-armed North Korea displayed its most advanced Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile, described by KCNA as the country's "strongest nuclear strategic weapon system." The Hwasong series of ICBMs has given North Korea the capacity to target anywhere on the U.S. mainland, but questions remain over the sophistication of its guidance system to reach a target, and the ability of a warhead it carries to withstand atmospheric re-entry. "The Hwasong-20 represents, for the moment, the apotheosis of North Korea's ambitions for long-range nuclear delivery capabilities. We should expect to see the system tested before the end of this year," said Ankit Panda of the U.S.-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "The system is likely designed for the delivery of multiple warheads... Multiple warheads will increase stresses on existing U.S. missile defence systems and augment what Kim sees as necessary to achieve meaningful deterrence effects against Washington. At the military parade, Kim gave a speech in which he expressed "warm encouragement" for North Korean troops in overseas operations, adding its military's heroism will not only be seen in the defence of North Korea but also in "outposts of socialist construction," KCNA said. "Our army should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats," Kim said. Kim also held talks on Friday with Medvedev, who said the sacrifice of North Korean soldiers fighting for Russia in its military campaign in Ukraine proved the trust in relations between the two countries. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kim told Medvedev he hopes to continue strengthening cooperation with Russia and to closely engage in diverse exchanges to achieve common goals, KCNA said. (Reporting by Joyce Lee and Josh Smith; Editing by Chris Reese) North Korea unveiled its latest and most powerful intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) at a military parade presided over by the countrys leader Kim Jong Un, the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reports. The parade on Friday in the capital Pyongyang featured some of North Koreas most advanced weapons, including long-range strategic cruise missiles and drone launch vehicles, but special prominence was given to the Hwasong-20 ICBM, which KCNA described as the militarys most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system. Mounted on an 11-axle launcher truck for its debut at the parade on Friday, the very existence of the massive Hwasong-20 was only revealed in recent weeks as North Korea tested a new solid-fuel rocket engine that it said was intended for a future generation of ICBMs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement State media said the engine, built with carbon fibre, is capable of producing 1,971 kilonewtons of thrust a measure of propulsive force which is more powerful than earlier North Korean rocket engines. The Hwasong-20 represents, for the moment, the apotheosis of North Koreas ambitions for long-range nuclear delivery capabilities. We should expect to see the system tested before the end of this year, said Ankit Panda of the US-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. The Hwasong-20 at the military parade celebrating the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers Party of Korea (WPK), in Pyongyang, North Korea [KCNA via Reuters] The Hwasong series of ICBMs has given North Korea the capacity to strike long-range targets, but questions remain over the sophistication of its guidance system and the ability of the missiles warhead payload to withstand atmospheric re-entry. Experts believe the Hwasong-20 could be designed to carry multiple nuclear warheads, a capability that Kim has called on his military to develop in order to give his arsenal of missiles a better chance at penetrating enemy defences. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The system is likely designed for the delivery of multiple warheads, Panda said. Multiple warheads will increase stresses on existing US missile defence systems and augment what Kim sees as necessary to achieve meaningful deterrence effects against Washington, he said. Following the parade marking the 80th anniversary of the foundation of North Koreas ruling Workers Party, Kim delivered a speech in which he called North Korea a faithful member of socialist forces and a bulwark for independence against the threat of the Wests global hegemony, according to KCNA. Today, we stand before the world as a mighty people with no obstacles we cannot overcome and no great achievement we cannot accomplish, Kim said. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, second from right, inspects the missile production process at a newly opened military manufacturing facility at an undisclosed location in North Korea [File: AFP] Among foreign dignitaries in Pyongyang to attend the event was Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russias Security Council and a key ally of President Vladimir Putin. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Meeting with Kim, Medvedev expressed gratitude for North Koreas support for the Russian military campaign in Ukraine, Russian state news agencies reported on Friday. The nature of relations between people and between countries is revealed during times of trial, Medvedev said on the Russian social media platform Max. This fully applies to the alliance between our countries, he said. We are grateful to the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea for its steadfast support of the special military operation. Our soldiers stood shoulder to shoulder to liberate the Kursk region. This feat will forever remain in our hearts, he added. In response, Kim told Medvedev of hoping to strengthen cooperation with Russia and to closely engage in diverse exchanges to achieve common goals, KCNA said. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) North Korean leader Kim Jong Un lauded what he called his country's fight against a U.S.-led military threat and vowed to turn North Korea into the best socialist paradise in the world," as he addressed state anniversary celebrations in the presence of Chinese, Russian and other foreign dignitaries. Kim's speech on the eve of Friday's 80th founding anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party comes as he's trying to bolster an anti-West partnership with other countries, even as he signaled interest in resuming diplomacy with the U.S. The pinnacle of the North Korean anniversary events would be a military parade expected later Friday at a Pyongyang plaza, where Kim will likely stand alongside Chinese, Russian and other leaders to watch together the display of some of his newest and most advanced weapons targeting the U.S. and its allies. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kim's diplomatic credentials have been bolstered recently. He took center stage with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladmir Putin at a Beijing military parade last month. U.S. President Donald Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung have also repeatedly expressed hopes to meet Kim as he flaunts a provocative nuclear program. Kim talks tough on US and promises to build a socialist paradise In a Thursday speech at Pyongyang's May Day Stadium packed with tens of thousands of spectators, Kim said that North Korea has been pushing for the simultaneous development of nuclear weapons and the economy to cope with growing nuclear war threats by the U.S. imperialists," according to state media. Our party and government are still coping with our adversaries ferocious political and military moves of pressure by pursuing harder-line policies, holding fast to firm principles and employing brave, unflinching countermeasures, Kim said. This is powerfully propelling the growth of the progressive camp against war and hegemony. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kim also expressed confidence in overcoming difficulties and drastically improving the economy in the near future. I will surely turn this country into a more affluent and beautiful land and into the best socialist paradise in the world, Kim said. Foreign dignitaries attending the celebration included Chinese Premier Li Qiang, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary To Lam. State media photos showed Kim waving between Li and To Lam, as the central section of the stands used cards to spell out the words Celebrating the 80th Anniversary of the Workers Party of Korea" and fireworks lit up the sky. Kim separately met Li and To Lam for talks on strengthening ties, and one of his top deputies, Jo Yong Won, met Medvedev. Military parade will likely roll out big missiles targeting US Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The exact timing for the military parade is unclear, with rain expected in Pyongyang throughout the day on Friday. South Korea's military said North Korea will likely hold the parade on Friday night. The parade could feature some of the weapons systems North Korea has tested or unveiled in past years, including intercontinental ballistic missiles potentially capable of reaching the U.S. mainland and shorter-range weapons the North claims can deliver nuclear strikes against rival South Korea. Keen outside attention is on whether North Korea will disclose what it called the next-generation Hwasong-20 ICBM, whose solid-fuel engine was tested last month. Foreign experts say the newest version of North Korea's advancing lineup of ICBMs is aimed at carrying multiple nuclear warheads capable of defeating U.S missile defense systems. Kim has been accelerating the expansion of his nuclear-armed military since his high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Trump fell apart in 2019 due to wrangling over U.S.-led economic sanctions on North Korea. But last month, Kim suggested he could return to talks if the U.S. drops its demand for a complete denuclearization of North Korea, after Trump repeatedly expressed his hopes for a new round of diplomacy. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Since Russias invasion of Ukraine, Kim has made Russia the priority of his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large shipments of conventional weapons to help fuel Putins warfighting. Kim also visited China last month, and stood next to Xi and Putin at a massive military parade in a show of potential trilateral solidarity against the U.S. Outsiders are in the dark about developments in North Korea As part of its efforts to support Kim's authoritarian rule, North Korea maintains a tight information blockade, making it almost impossible for outsiders to confirm what exactly is happening in North Korea. Foreign governments and experts usually find preparations for a military parade in North Korea if satellite photos show thousands of people being assembled in formation near Pyongyangs Kim Il Sung Square and rehearsing for a parade-like event. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement North Korea's state TV sometimes conducts live broadcasts of military parades but more often airs recorded programs hours or even a day after they happened. North Korean military parades have become larger in scale under Kim and provided a rare glimpse into the country's secretive nuclear and missile programs under development. North Korea calls for unity behind Kim North Korea's three major state-run newspapers including the main Rodong Sinmun issued a rare joint editorial urging loyalty to Kim and supporting his nuclear weapons program. Kim is the great representative of the Party and the nations dignity and bright future, the editorial said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It was the first time that they ran a joint editorial since January 2012, in a New Years statement weeks after Kim inherited power following the death of his father, Kim Jong Il. Earlier this week, Kim called for eliminating acts that undermine the ruling party's leadership as he urged his people to unite behind the spirit of patriotism to transform all sectors of the society. Daniella Santoro, a PhD candidate at Tulane University, never expected to find an ancient Roman gravestone in her backyard, but thats exactly what happened one day in March as her husband was doing yardwork. Initially, Santoro thought the artifact mightve signaled the burial place of a loved one or pet. It definitely looked different from anything wed ever seen, she told USA TODAY in a phone interview. I never once really considered with any seriousness that it was actually an authentic artifact. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Santoro immediately went to Facebook and posted a photo of the marble tablet, which had noticeable Latin etchings, hoping someone in her network might know where it came from. One of her contacts connected her with Susann S. Lusnia, associate professor of classical studies at Tulane University. Through her own research, Lusnia determined the tablet was authentic. When I saw the inscription, I was floored, Lusnia told USA TODAY. It just kind of sent a shiver down my spine. A Roman tablet believed to be roughly 2,000 years old was discovered in New Orleans in March How old is the tablet? The inscription on the tablet, which dates back to the second century AD, detailed the death of a Roman sailor who served in the Imperial Navy, said Lusnia. She also discovered through documentation that the artifact had first been found as part of an excavation in Civitavecchia, a coastal town northwest of Rome, in the 1860s. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement That's when Lusnia knew she needed to contact the authorities. My first reaction after the shock and amazement that we had a Roman inscription here in New Orleans was to say, Well, it needs to go back to Civitavecchia. The piece was formerly part of the collection of the Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Civitavecchia, founded in the early 20th century. The museum was heavily damaged following a bombing that occurred on May 14, 1943. Lusnia believes the tablet ended up in the United States after the war because someone took it and either sold it or a soldier nabbed it and brought it home. Who had the tablet before Daniella Santoro? TV station 4WWL, a CBS affiliate, reported that the tablet had previously been in the possession of Erin Scott OBriens family. OBrien told the outlet that it belonged to her grandparents, who passed away in the 1980s. Her grandfather served in World War II and was stationed in Italy. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its not unheard of for artifacts like these to end up in the United States. In 2022, a woman bought a genuine Roman bust at a Goodwill store for just under $35. These sorts of items would wander off in the chaos of things, said Lusnia. For now, the artifact is in the possession of the FBIs art crime unit as its in the process of being repatriated to Italy. A 1970 UNESCO treaty encourages countries to return cultural property to its country of origin when it has been removed illegally. Though Santoro says its bittersweet to have to part with the rare object, she hopes to see it again one day in Italy. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We want to have a family trip to Civitavecchia to meet the people in the museum, she said. Michelle Del Rey is a trending news reporter at USA TODAY. Reach her at mdelrey@usatoday.com This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Old marble tablet found in backyard is actually a Roman gravestone One person was killed and seven others were injured in renewed Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon, the Ministry of Health in Beirut said on Saturday. The deceased person is reportedly a Syrian citizen, while two women are among the injured, officials said. The state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported earlier that one civilian died and another was injured while attempting to pass through a street that came under fire. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Several bulldozers were hit, causing some to burst into flames, the report said. According to eyewitnesses, there were at least 15 airstrikes. The Israeli military said it attacked Hezbollah infrastructure in southern Lebanon, including militia equipment allegedly being used to rebuild its facilities. Hezbollah did not initially comment. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun strongly condemned the renewed attacks. The question arises as to whether the attacks in Lebanon are intended to compensate for the failure of the attacks in Gaza, Aoun wrote on X. It would only be logical and fair to grant Lebanon a ceasefire similar to that just reached in Gaza, he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A nominal ceasefire has existed between Israel and Hezbollah since the end of last November. However, both sides accuse each other of violations. Israel, which says Hezbollah is trying to rebuild its military capabilities in southern Lebanon, launches attacks on the Iranian-backed militia on an almost daily basis, causing frequent casualties. SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has returned a 177-year-old bell to the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City after the bell was stolen and ended up in the hands of the LDS Church through misidentification and a rich history of twists and turns. Mistaken for the Nauvoo Illinois Temple bell, Hummer Bell was displayed on Temple Square in Salt Lake City for decades. Historians recently discovered its true identity, the Hummer Bell, which was taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848 and deceptively sold to the LDS Church. This is one of the most remarkable stories youll ever hear, said Elder Kirt L. Hodges, an Area Seventy for the Church of Jesus Christ. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The story of the 33-inch wide, 800-pound bell begins with Michael Hummer, a pastor of the newly founded First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in Iowa Territory in Dec. 1842. Over the following years, Hummer reportedly raised funds for a building for the congregation and bought a bell for the church from the Meneely Bell Foundry in Troy, New York. By 1848, several concerns about Hummer, including claims that he mishandled funds, caused the congregation and church trustees to expel him from his position, according to the LDS Church. Hummer reportedly requested back pay, which he claimed he never received. After not receiving the pay, he decided to take the bell from the church. After decades of research, historians discovered the bell hanging in the campanile on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more than 60 years, was not from the Nauvoo Temple; instead, it was the Hummer Bell taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848. The bell was removed in 2023 during the Temple Square renovation project and returned to its rightful owners. After decades of research, historians discovered the bell hanging in the campanile on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more than 60 years, was not from the Nauvoo Temple; instead, it was the Hummer Bell taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848. The bell was removed in 2023 during the Temple Square renovation project and returned to its rightful owners. Mistaken for the Nauvoo Illinois Temple bell, it was displayed on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for decades. Historians recently discovered its true identity, the Hummer Bell, which was taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848 and deceptively sold to the Church of Jesus Christ. It was returned to the FPC and installed in a special campanile on September 10, 2025 Mistaken for the Nauvoo Illinois Temple bell, it was displayed on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for decades. Historians recently discovered its true identity, the Hummer Bell, which was taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848 and deceptively sold to the Church of Jesus Christ. It was returned to the FPC and installed in a special campanile on September 10, 2025 The Hummer Bell of the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City, Iowa. The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints possessed the bell for decades, mistaking it for the Nauvoo Bell. Church historians discovered the true identity of the bell, and it was returned to its rightful home and rededicated at a special interfaith celebration between the two faiths on October 5, 2025 Mistaken for the Nauvoo Illinois Temple bell, it was displayed on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for decades. Historians recently discovered its true identity, the Hummer Bell, which was taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848 and deceptively sold to the Church of Jesus Christ. It was returned to the FPC and installed in a special campanile on September 10, 2025. After decades of research, historians discovered the bell hanging in the campanile on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more than 60 years, was not from the Nauvoo Temple; instead, it was the Hummer Bell taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848. The campanile was dismantled and stored in 2023 as part of the Temple Square renovation project, and the bell returned to its rightful home. After decades of research, historians discovered the bell hanging in the campanile on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more than 60 years, was not from the Nauvoo Temple; instead, it was the Hummer Bell taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848. The campanile was dismantled and stored in 2023 as part of the Temple Square renovation project, and the bell returned to its rightful home. After decades of research, historians discovered the bell hanging in the campanile on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah, for more than 60 years, was not from the Nauvoo Temple; instead, it was the Hummer Bell taken from the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City in 1848. The campanile was dismantled and stored in 2023 as part of the Temple Square renovation project, and the bell returned to its rightful home. Its a pretty crazy story, Pastor Nathan Willard of the First Presbyterian Church said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Pastor Willard said he looks mercifully, even gratefully, on Hummers actions. Ironically, the original church was later destroyed by fire, and the bell would have been destroyed with it had it not been taken. Willard added that Hummer may have had every right to take the bell. He was underpaid and given permission to take things, Willard said. Perhaps it was just a debt owed [and] we shouldnt be too hard on [him]. But when Hummer went to take the bell, things took a turn. After Hummer lowered the bell from the belfry, Iowa City residents intervened. They took his ladder, according to the church, whisked away the bell by wagon, and submerged it in Rapid Creek for temporary safekeeping. While this was happening, Hummer remained perched in the tower. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement According to the church, while the bell was hidden, four men who knew of its whereabouts and who were likely involved in sinking it in the creek, secretly loaded it on a wagon and took it with them as they traveled west toward California in early 1850. After arriving in Salt Lake, the men sold the bell to the LDS Churchs tithing office. The Saints needed bells, said Keith Erekson, director of historical research and outreach for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They used bells. In the 19th century, bells were hung in churches; they were hung on schoolhouses; they were used to wake people up; they were used to call people to meetings. Years later, after learning that the bell had been sold to the LDS Church, representatives from the First Presbyterian Church and Michael Hummer both wrote to Brigham Young. Young responded, saying that if they could provide clear proof of ownership of the bell and pay for its return, he would happily return it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hummer never responded, church officials said, and the First Presbyterian Church was unable to raise the funds needed for its return. As a result, the bell remained in Salt Lake City. After some time, the bell was placed in storage with a really vague note that just said, old bell,' Erekson said. It wasnt until 1939, when a new generation was rummaging through church items, that the bell came back into light. They find this old bell, as its labeled, and I think its as much wishful thinking as anything they really wished it was the Nauvoo Bell. And so it was, Erekson said. They published the news that it had been discovered, and that got people excited. Eventually, it got installed on Temple Square. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Thus, the Hummer Bell, misidentified as the Nauvoo Bell, was placed in the Relief Society campanile on Temple Square in 1966. Around 30 years later, in the late 1990s, LDS Church staff began to investigate the bell, and over the next couple of decades, the truth of the bells origins emerged. This culminated in a 2019 BYU Studies article on the topic. In 2023, the bell and campanile were taken down as part of a larger renovation project of the Salt Lake Temple and the surrounding square. When the option came up, we said, You know, the best thing to do would be to send this back to the church where it came from,' Erekson said. We reached out, and they were excited. Were thrilled to be able to make that restoration of the bell to its home. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The bell was restored to its 1840s appearance and now hangs in a campanile at the First Presbyterian Church of Iowa City. A dedication was held in Iowa City on Sunday, Oct. 5, 2025, to mark the return of the nearly 200-year-old bell to its rightful owners. Latest headlines: Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. After a last-minute invitation in February to meet with the staff of Utah Sen. John Curtis, we sprinted down Salt Lake City sidewalks to get to the Federal Building. We were there to ask for help with the asylum case of Su Htuns family. We entered the building and headed toward security. When the hardware in her knee kept tripping the alarm, Htun was serene and matter-of-fact as she quietly explained to the workers that she had had polio as a child. She told me later thats actually what prompted her to study good governance since her early illness was a direct result of poor health care and bad policy under the closed door policy of Burmas Ne Win dictatorship in 1980. Since 2005, Htun has taught international human rights law to Burmese students, taking her course online after the COVID-19 pandemic and political upheaval in her home country. A mere glance at the voluminous comments section of her Facebook updates shows how beloved Htun is to the students she teaches around the world. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In early 2024, she made it to Utah and secured a post as a research associate at the University of Utah connected with DEI initiatives. In Curtis conference room, with Htuns calm, kind demeanor and law professor perspective and expertise, she explained to us in perfect English the violent takeover in Myanmar in 2021 by the military junta, their quelling of all opposition, and the familys forced decision to escape from Myanmar with her mothers close relatives, themselves police officers, after they were listed as wanted by those in power. If found, Htuns family would be imprisoned or shot. For several months in 2021, Htun herself had to stay out of sight, moving between small villages for safety as her face was broadcast on the TV and in wanted posters by the military junta in power. I knew the basic outline of their story from her written account that because of well-founded threats to their safety from the military dictatorship, they had escaped to Thailand as refugees but to hear her tell it in her own words was another thing entirely. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Htun made it to the U.S. and then to Utah with her mother, but they had to leave her aunt, uncle and cousin in Thailand under urban refugee status. She has been working to bring them to America. That day in February, the liking I had for Htun morphed into awed admiration. This capable and grateful woman no doubt thinks she is an ordinary person, but she is not. I wondered as I saw Sen. Curtiss attentive staffer nodding her head as she took notes were her thoughts my thoughts? Yes, we want to help this remarkable woman help her entire family, to get here and stay here to help make the U.S. a better place. We went to Sen. Curtis office for help in February because Welcome Corp, the State Department program that brought us together, had been suspended by the Trump administration. While we were waiting to hear back from the senators office, Htun learned that her research associate position would not be renewed, as colleges and universities like the University of Utah faced federal and state funding freezes if inefficient programs werent downsized. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We were still looking for another avenue by which we could help her familys asylum case when we learned in June that foreign nationals from several countries including Burma were restricted from coming to the U.S. to protect from foreign terrorists and other national security and public safety threats. August comes, and Htun and her mom and her family will create a better life for themselves because that is who they are, but unfortunately, I wont see it happen. They have to leave Salt Lake City. Htuns family is now barred from coming to America, and she was forced to look for a position with another university, while maintaining her long-time online international human rights law class. She has secured a research fellow position at Cornell University. I read an article with the most recent Gallup poll showing that 79% of those Americans polled a record high say immigration is good for the country, with only 17% saying it is bad. It seems that anti-immigrant sentiment in this country is softening. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As I absorbed the results of this poll, I wondered if we are finally seeing that immigration is not a simple issue but is a complex and multi-faceted one. That there are other stories about immigrants than the violent, threatening ones our cable news and social media are feeding us. What if we could ignore these algorithm-driven, biased sources on this topic and base our opinion primarily on our own daily experiences with the immigrants we know and see every day? Immigrants and refugees are likely all around us, no matter where we live. They are our neighbors. They are workers in our communities. They worship at our churches. I am not the only person who knows someone like Htun, who has recently come here from another country. Once we come to know our immigrant friends, it becomes more difficult to dismiss, blame and demonize them as an enemy, as the other. Once mass deportation has a face, our feelings begin to change. What story could we hear or tell about an immigrant or refugee we know who is an important part of our local community? How does the community benefit by their presence? How has this person made a positive difference in our lives? Could we tell others about that person? Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Thats a better, truer story than the terrifying, dark one so many media outlets tell us. And if we dont know any immigrants or refugees, there are easy ways to fix that. As just one example, the Utah Refugee Connection hosts a Refugee Cultural Night every other month so people in this state can learn more about those who have emigrated to our towns and cities. A recent event highlighted the Afghan refugee community. As I sat in at this event with five young women from my churchs youth program, the room filled with a sea of teenagers youth groups, adults, and leaders. There are remarkable people and so many stories whove come to America for new opportunities while hoping to make their own contribution. It might not be enough to just feel troubled by negative portrayals of immigrants in the media or to simply be friendly to a refugee neighbor. In the name of balance and fairness on this issue of immigration, we must speak up. Lets share these better stories. LIMA, Peru (AP) In one of his first acts as interim president of Peru, Jose Jeri on Saturday led a series of raids on prisons holding gang leaders nationwide, the presidency said, a day after the ouster of his deeply unpopular predecessor over her failure to curb rising crime. Flanked by elite officers and wearing a crisp white shirt with the sleeves rolled up, the 38-year-old Jeri signaled a tough-on-crime message as he strode into the maximum-security Ancon I prison in Perus capital of Lima on Saturday to oversee cell-to-cell searches for contraband. The prison sweep turned up smuggled cellphones, drugs and sharp objects used as weapons, authorities said. Jeri's visit to Ancon I coincided with raids at three other prisons across Peru, the president's office reported, including Lima's overcrowded Lurigancho prison, Challapalca maximum-security prison in the high Andes and El Milagro prison in the country's north. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The pre-dawn prison crackdown follows the lightning impeachment of former President Dina Boluarte, just hours after a shooting at a concert in Lima on Friday inflamed public outrage over a wave of gang violence washing over the South American nation. Boluartes tenure was also plagued by frequent protests and corruption scandals. As president of Congress, Jeri was next in line to assume power after lawmakers removed Boluarte. The conservative lawyer is expected to hold the top job until July 2026, after the country chooses a new president in general elections scheduled for April 12. He quickly declared his priority was tackling Peru's rampant lawlessness. The evil that afflicts us at this moment is public insecurity, Jeri told lawmakers after his swearing-in Friday. The main enemy is out on the streets. Criminal gangs, criminal organizations, they are our enemies today." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Killings in Peru have surged recently, from 2,082 homicides recorded last year half of them contract killings up from just 676 in 2017, the previous record high. Extortion cases have skyrocketed from 16,333 in 2022 to 22,348 last year as criminal gangs increasingly extract protection fees from a growing number of businesses, from music bands to transport firms. Peru's insecurity crisis has been exacerbated by political turmoil gripping the country since 2018. In the past seven years, the nation has seen seven presidents. Three were impeached including Boluarte and two others resigned to avoid removal. Taking a page from the private insurance industry's playbook, the Trump administration will launch a program next year to find out how much money an artificial intelligence algorithm could save the federal government by denying care to Medicare patients. The pilot program, designed to weed out wasteful, "low-value" services, amounts to a federal expansion of an unpopular process called prior authorization, which requires patients or someone on their medical team to seek insurance approval before proceeding with certain procedures, tests, and prescriptions. It will affect Medicare patients, and the doctors and hospitals who care for them, in Texas, Arizona, Ohio, Oklahoma, New Jersey and Washington, starting Jan. 1 and running through 2031. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The move has raised eyebrows among politicians and policy experts. The traditional version of Medicare, which covers adults 65 and older and some people with disabilities, has mostly eschewed prior authorization. Still, it is widely used by private insurers, especially in the Medicare Advantage market. Mixed messages And the timing was surprising: The pilot was announced in late June, just days after the Trump administration unveiled a voluntary effort by private health insurers to revamp and reduce their own use of prior authorization, which causes care to be "significantly delayed," said Mehmet Oz, administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. "It erodes public trust in the health care system," Oz told the media. "It's something that we can't tolerate in this administration." But some critics, like Vinay Rathi, an Ohio State University doctor and policy researcher, have accused the Trump administration of sending mixed messages. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement On one hand, the federal government wants to borrow cost-cutting measures used by private insurance, he said. "On the other, it slaps them on the wrist." Administration officials are "talking out of both sides of their mouth," said Rep. Suzan DelBene, a Washington Democrat. "It's hugely concerning." Critics of prior authorization Patients, doctors and other lawmakers also have been critical of what they see as delay-or-deny tactics, which can slow down or block access to care, causing irreparable harm and even death. "Insurance companies have put it in their mantra that they will take patients' money and then do their damnedest to deny giving it to the people who deliver care," said Rep. Greg Murphy, a North Carolina Republican and a urologist. "That goes on in every insurance company boardroom." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Insurers have long argued that prior authorization reduces fraud and wasteful spending, as well as prevents potential harm. Public displeasure with insurance denials dominated the news in December, when the shooting death of UnitedHealthcare's CEO led many to anoint his alleged killer as a folk hero. And the public broadly dislikes the practice: Nearly three-quarters of respondents thought prior authorization was a "major" problem in a July poll published by KFF, a health information nonprofit that includes KFF Health News. Medicare and Medicaid Administrator Mehmet Oz, second from left, listens to Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speak during a June news conference at which they announced a plan to reform prior authorization for health procedures by health insurance providers. (Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images) Indeed, Oz said during his June news conference that "violence in the streets" prompted the Trump administration to take on the issue of prior authorization reform in the private insurance industry. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Still, the administration is expanding the use of prior authorization in Medicare. CMS spokesperson Alexx Pons said both initiatives "serve the same goal of protecting patients and Medicare dollars." Tackling fraud, waste The pilot program, WISeR - short for "Wasteful and Inappropriate Service Reduction" - will test the use of an AI algorithm in making prior authorization decisions for some Medicare services, including skin and tissue substitutes, electrical nerve stimulator implants, and knee arthroscopy. The federal government says such procedures are particularly vulnerable to "fraud, waste, and abuse" and could be held in check by prior authorization. Other procedures may be added to the list. But services that are done on an inpatient-only or emergency basis or "would pose a substantial risk to patients if significantly delayed" would not be subject to the AI model's assessment, according to the federal announcement. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While the use of AI in health insurance isn't new, Medicare has been slow to adopt the private-sector tools. Medicare historically has used prior authorization in a limited way, with contractors who aren't incentivized to deny services. But experts who have studied the plan believe the federal pilot could change that. Pons said no Medicare request will be denied before being reviewed by a "qualified human clinician," and that vendors "are prohibited from compensation arrangements tied to denial rates." While the government says vendors will be rewarded for savings, Pons said multiple safeguards will "remove any incentive to deny medically appropriate care." But "shared savings arrangements mean that vendors financially benefit when less care is delivered," a structure that can create a powerful incentive for companies to deny medically necessary care, said Jennifer Brackeen, senior director of government affairs for the Washington State Hospital Association. Unanswered questions And doctors and policy experts say that's only one concern. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rathi said the plan "is not fully fleshed out" and relies on "messy and subjective" measures. The model, he said, ultimately depends on contractors to assess their own results, a choice that makes the results potentially suspect. "I'm not sure they know, even, how they're going to figure out whether this is helping or hurting patients," he said. Pons said the use of AI in the Medicare pilot will be "subject to strict oversight to ensure transparency, accountability, and alignment with Medicare rules and patient protection." "CMS remains committed to ensuring that automated tools support, not replace, clinically sound decision-making," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Experts agree that AI is theoretically capable of expediting what has been a cumbersome process marked by delays and denials that can harm patients' health. Health insurers have argued that AI eliminates human error and bias and will save the health care system money. These companies also have said humans, not computers, are ultimately reviewing coverage decisions. But some scholars are doubtful that's routinely happening. Human review "I think that there's also probably a little bit of ambiguity over what constitutes meaningful human review,'" said Amy Killelea, an assistant research professor at the Center on Health Insurance Reforms at Georgetown University. A 2023 report published by ProPublica found that, over a two-month period, doctors at Cigna who reviewed requests for payment spent an average of only 1.2 seconds on each case. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Cigna spokesperson Justine Sessions told KFF Health News that the company does not use AI to deny care or claims. The ProPublica investigation referenced a "simple software-driven process that helped accelerate payments to clinicians for common, relatively low-cost tests and treatments, and it is not powered by AI," Sessions said. "It was not used for prior authorizations." And yet class-action lawsuits filed against major health insurers have alleged that flawed AI models undermine doctor recommendations and fail to take patients' unique needs into account, forcing some people to shoulder the financial burden of their care. Meanwhile, a survey of physicians published by the American Medical Association in February found that 61% think AI is "increasing prior authorization denials, exacerbating avoidable patient harms and escalating unnecessary waste now and into the future." Chris Bond, a spokesperson for the insurers' trade group AHIP, said the organization is "zeroed in" on implementing the commitments made to the government. Those include reducing the scope of prior authorization and making sure that communications with patients about denials and appeals are easy to understand. Regulatory blind spot' The Medicare pilot program not only underscores ongoing concerns about prior authorization but also raises new ones. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement While private health insurers have been opaque about how they use AI and the extent to which they use prior authorization, policy researchers believe these algorithms are often programmed to automatically deny high-cost care. "The more expensive it is, the more likely it is to be denied," said Jennifer Oliva, a professor at the Maurer School of Law at Indiana University-Bloomington, whose work focuses on AI regulation and health coverage. Oliva explained in a recent paper for the Indiana Law Journal that when a patient is expected to die within a few years, health insurers are "motivated to rely on the algorithm." As time passes and the patient or their provider is forced to appeal a denial, the chance of the patient dying during that process increases. The longer an appeal, the less likely the health insurer is to pay the claim, Oliva said. "The No. 1 thing to do is make it very, very difficult for people to get high-cost services," she said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As the use of AI by health insurers is poised to grow, insurance company algorithms amount to a "regulatory blind spot" and demand more scrutiny, said Carmel Shachar, a faculty director at Harvard Law School's Center for Health Law and Policy Innovation. This is a pilot' The pilot program is "an interesting step" toward using AI to ensure that Medicare dollars are purchasing high-quality health care, she said. But the lack of details makes it difficult to determine whether it will work. Politicians are grappling with some of the same questions. "How is this being tested in the first place? How are you going to make sure that it is working and not denying care or producing higher rates of care denial?" asked DelBene, who signed an August letter to Oz with other Democrats demanding answers about the AI program. But Democrats aren't the only ones worried. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Murphy, who co-chairs the House GOP Doctors Caucus, acknowledged that many physicians are concerned the pilot could overreach into their practice of medicine if the AI algorithm denies doctor-recommended care. Meanwhile, House members of both parties recently supported a measure proposed by Rep. Lois Frankel, a Florida Democrat, to block funding for the pilot in the fiscal 2026 budget of the Department of Health and Human Services. AI in health care is here to stay, Murphy said, but it remains to be seen whether the AI pilot will save Medicare money or contribute to the problems already posed by prior authorization. "This is a pilot, and I'm open to see what's going to happen with this," Murphy said, "but I will always, always err on the side that doctors know what's best for their patients." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF - an independent source of health policy research, polling, and journalism. Learn more about KFF. This article originally published at Pilot Medicare program gives AI a say in approving or denying treatment. PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. (WMBB) Calling out all swashbuckling fellows to don their best pirate garb or Renaissance gear and join the annual Pirates of the High Seas and Renaissance Fest in Panama City Beach creating free family friendly fun for all ages this weekend, October 10 through October 12. For three days, Panama City Beach will come to life with fireworks, live mermaid shows, a fire circus, parades, and more high seas mischief. New this year, the sea pillagers are boosting the crew with the expanded Kids Zone: The Lil Swashbucklers Playdeck; bringing an immersive adventure to the little buccaneers experience with caricature artists, foam hats and swords, coloring stations, and friendship bracelet making. Through storytelling, lively performances, and high-spirited adventures, this festival is telling the tales of the legendary pirates that docked their boats and raided the Emerald Coast. Sharing the story of the Krewe of Dominique Youx, the loyal buccaneers who defended Panama City Beach from the rabblerousers seeking to seize its treasures in the early 1800s. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Adding to the buccaneer experience, Captain Ransom (Del) Mayhem (McRae) and the Pirates of the White Sands, the official pirates of Panama City Beach, are rejoining the festivities bringing a living history to life, complete with photo opportunities, music, interactions with pirates and games. The Renaissance portion of the fest will transport guests back in time to the days where knights and gentry fill the streets with merriment and time-traveling thrills. To see the full schedule of events, click here . Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. TWIN MOUNTAIN, N.H. (WWLP) A Pittsfield man was arrested in connection with sexually assaulting a minor in New Hampshire on Thursday. Former UMass student charged with recording women in the shower New Hampshire State Police stated that on Thursday, 47-year-old Eric Isaac of Pittsfield and Hillsdale, N.Y., was arrested in Twin Mountain. An investigation had determined that Isaac reportedly sexually assaulted a minor in Coos County. The victim and Isaac knew each other. (New Hampshire State Police) Isaac was charged with two counts of felonious sexual assault. He was arraigned in Lancaster District Court on Friday. 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. Download the 22News Plus app on your TV to watch live-streaming newscasts and video on demand. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. CLEARWATER Daiso, the popular Japanese retailer known for a variety of affordable and ever-changing products, has officially opened its doors at Countryside Centre, directly across from Countryside Mall. Inside the new 5,500-square-foot location, aisles are stocked with a wide range of products, from colorful stationery and unique kitchenware to Japanese snacks and beauty items. The store, which celebrated its grand opening Sept. 13, is the third in Florida and part of a broader, rapid expansion across the state. Japanese bargain-bin store Daiso opens Tampa location, its first in Florida Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The stores extensive product selection and affordable pricing are what set it apart, said Southeast area manager Michael Roman. We are unique because were straight from Japan, were a value-driven store, said Roman, explaining that the companys goal is to introduce their values to America. The store offers items with prices ranging anywhere from $2.25 all the way to $18, Roman said. The commitment to value is central to the companys business model, which Roman says is what makes it stand out from competitors. You go to any other retailer right now, and for the most part, they keep raising prices across the board, Roman said, while Daiso has been pretty steady on our prices. The business began in 1972 as a mobile street vending shop started by founder Hirotake Yano, according to the companys official history. Yano chose to sell all products for a flat 100 yen to streamline sales. This pricing strategy proved to be so successful that it became the foundation of the business, which was formally established as Daiso Industries in 1977. Since then, the company has expanded globally. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The main categories of products are food, stationery, makeup and kitchenwares, explained Roman. A significant part of the shopping experience is the constantly changing inventory, a key factor in keeping customers engaged. Roman said the store receives anywhere from 1,000 to 2,000 new SKUs each month. This consistent influx of new products ensures that customers encounter fresh and often unexpected items on every visit. The rapid rotation is what Roman believes differentiates Daiso from other big-box and dollar stores. He specifically pointed to the current Halloween collection as an example of the unique product line. You go to retailers across America, its usually the same stuff every single year, Roman said. The cool thing about Daiso is were introducing their line from Japan, including items like figurines and decorations. Its a lot of unique stuff that most people wont see. While the store does not offer returns or exchanges unless a product is severely defective, Roman highlighted that the store does offer regular promotions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We run monthly promos, so, yes, we do sales, he said, citing past promotions like buy two, get 50% off on certain items. Roman believes that the sheer value of the products is what will most surprise a first-time shopper. Roman enthusiastically spoke about the stores reception in the community, sharing that the mayor attended the grand opening and that turnout from the community was huge. The new Clearwater store is a critical piece of Daisos accelerated growth in Florida. Everybody loves Daiso in Florida, Roman said. The first store in the state opened in Tampa in February, followed by a Miami location on Sept. 6, just one week before the Clearwater opening. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The company has no plans to slow down, with Roman confirming that two more stores are set to open in Miami in January and February. He noted that while the Tampa store is nearly double the size of the one in Clearwater, both locations receive a high volume of similar products. The new Daiso will hold a special promotion where, for a limited time only, the first 200 customers will receive an exclusive tote bag with a $20 purchase starting at 9 a.m. each day on Saturday and Sunday. The new store is located at Countryside Centre, 26583 U.S. Highway 19 N. Store hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Sundays. By Yuliia Dysa KYIV (Reuters) -Emergency crews restored power to many parts of Ukraine on Friday after a Russian drone and missile attack struck energy facilities, plunging large parts of Kyiv and other areas into darkness and cutting water supplies. In the latest mass attack targeting the energy system as winter approaches, electricity was interrupted in nine regions and over a million households and businesses were temporarily without power across the country. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In southeastern Ukraine, a seven-year-old was killed when his home was hit and at least 20 people were injured. Officials reported Russian attacks in different parts of the country throughout Friday. An official near the Russian border in Chernihiv region said one person was killed when a car belonging to the local energy utility was hit by a drone. In Kyiv, an apartment block in the city centre was damaged by a projectile, while on the left bank of the Dnipro that divides the capital, crowds waited at bus stops with the metro out of action. People filled water bottles at distribution points. "We didn't sleep at all," said Liuba, a pensioner, as she collected water. "From 2:30 a.m. there was so much noise. By 3:30 we had no electricity, no gas, no water. Nothing." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement By evening, the private power company DTEK said electricity had been restored to all Kyiv residents. It said power had also been restored in areas outside the capital and in Dnipropetrovsk region in the southeast. Ukraine's energy ministry said more than 800,000 customers had at one point suffered power cuts in Kyiv. CALLS FOR AIR DEFENCES, SANCTIONS ENFORCEMENT Ukrainians are bracing for a tough winter, as the full-scale war launched by Russia's February 2022 invasion nears its fourth anniversary. Russia has intensified attacks on the energy system in recent weeks, striking power plants and gas production facilities, and local authorities are struggling with the scale of repairs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "They can't demonstrate anything real on the battlefield... so they will attack our energy sector," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy told reporters in Kyiv. Calling for more support from allies, he said that 203 main energy facilities in the country needed air-defence protection. Energy Minister Svitlana Hrynchuk met G7 ambassadors and representatives of some of Ukraine's biggest energy companies to discuss how allies could help protect the country against further attacks and repair the damage. "The blow is strong, but it is definitely not fatal," Zelenskiy said. Speaking later in his nightly video address, Zelenskiy said Putin had deliberately launched the overnight attacks when world attention was focused on the "valuable opportunity" to move towards Middle East peace after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "This marks a new record of Russian depravity, to intensify terrorist strikes and target civilian lives at such a moment," he said. Ukraine's air force said it had downed 405 of 465 drones and 15 of 32 missiles in this attack. Ukraine's stretched air defences are no match for regular barrages on such a scale. According to Zelenskiy, Russia deliberately waited for bad weather to attack and the inclement conditions reduced the efficiency of Ukraine's air defences by between 20% and 30%. Russia said its overnight strikes were in response to Ukraine's attacks on Russian civilian facilities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Ukraine regularly launches drone strikes against Russia's military and oil installations, although they are generally on a far smaller scale. Kyiv says it wants to force Moscow to negotiate a peace deal in good faith. COMMUTERS STRANDED AMID TRANSPORT DISRUPTIONS For many Kyiv residents, the day started with power cuts, disruptions in the water supply and transport delays. "We had no power or water when I left my house. I can't get to work because the subway is not operating and buses are overflowing," Anatoliy, a 23-year-old student, told Reuters. Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko said the assault was among the heaviest concentrated strikes on energy infrastructure and reported significant damage. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Her deputy, Oleksiy Kuleba, said two million customers in Kyiv temporarily faced problems with water supplies. DTEK said its thermal power plants had suffered significant damage without providing details. (Reporting by Vladyslav Smilianets, Anastasiia Malenko, Yuliia Dysa, Gleb Garanich and Ron Popeski; Writing by Mike Collett-White; Editing by Kim Coghill, Michael Perry, Timothy Heritage, Aidan Lewis, Sharon Singleton, Deepa Babington and Ron Popeski) The Pride Center of Vermont, one of the state's largest LGBTQ+ organizations, has paused operations due to "critical funding shortfalls." The center, which has operated for 26 years, offers HIV prevention and testing, LGBTQ+ resources, peer-led support groups, crisis response and community-building events to thousands of Vermonters annually. The state Commission on Women calls it "New Englands most comprehensive community center" for LGBTQ+ people. The organization's pause was announced in an Oct. 9 press release by the board of directors, just one day before its effective date. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Like many 2STLGBQIA+ organizations across the country, we have been hit had by a wave of funding losses and shifting priorities at the state and local level," the board said. "These changes have made it increasingly difficult for community-based nonprofits like ours to keep doing the work we love, even as more people than ever are turning to us for support." Pride flags adored Burlington's Church Street Market Place on Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018. The Pride Center will need to raise $350,000 to resume full services and employment, according to the board, and an emergency fund has been set up for people to donate to. "It would be a tragedy for the Pride Center of Vermont to close indefinitely," the board said. Services the Pride Center won't be able to provide during the operational pause include its programming for transgender people, an anti-violence hotline, an HIV testing program and harm-reduction services. The board said it was exploring ways to continue supporting people in those programs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "These programs are not optional; they are life-saving," the board said. The news follows multiple attempts over the past year to keep the Pride Center of Vermont afloat including seeking new money sources, changing leadership and restructuring staff and programming the board of directors said. "This was not a decision anyone wanted to make," the board said. "It comes after months of difficult conversations and a shared realization that we cannot adequately serve our community without first restructuring and assessing long-term sustainability." Board members said they take full responsibility for the shutdown and that it did not reflect on the good work of center staff. They also apologized for the "speeding and timing" of the decision staff members were given a one day notice which they said "has caused real harm to our employees, program participants, and the broader 2STLGBQIA+ communities we serve." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "We are deeply sorry for the fear, disruption and pain this has caused," the board said. "Our community deserves better." If you want to donate, you can do so at pridecentervt.org/#donate. The center plans to post updates online and through its newsletter. Megan Stewart is a government accountability reporter for the Burlington Free Press. Contact her at mstewartyounger@gannett.com. This article originally appeared on Burlington Free Press: Pride Center of Vermont pauses operations amid budget problems When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Credit: Kensington Palace Prince William and Prince Harry have long been part of the conversation surrounding mental health, and on Friday, October 10, the brothers are both addressing the devastatingand growingmental health crisis around the world. During their visit to NYC, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle attended the Project Healthy Minds Gala and World Mental Health Day Festival, while Prince William teared up in an emotional film announcing a new suicide prevention initiative from The Royal Foundation. On October 9, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex were honored for their work with the Humanitarian of the Year Award at the Project Healthy Minds Gala. Through their Archewell Foundation Parents' Network, the couple works with families whose children have died by suicide or otherwise suffered from the negative effects of social media and online bullying. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In honor of World Mental Health Day, the couple announced a new partnership with ParentsTogether, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to family advocacy and online safety. In particular, the two groups will work on confronting AI-related harms, with new research from ParentsTogether showing kids using chatbots encountered harmful interactions every five minutes. The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are pictured at the Project Healthy Minds Gala on October 9. | Credit: Getty Images Prince Harry spoke on stage during the Project Healthy Minds World Mental Health Day Festival on October 10. | Credit: Getty Images "This is a pivotal moment in our collective mission to protect children and support families in the digital age," Prince Harry said during a speech at the Project Healthy Minds Gala. "We knew this movement needed to grow," he added. "These families are not only up against corporations and lobbyists, many of whom spend tens of millions of dollars every year in suppressing the truth, but also algorithms designed to maximize data collection at any cost." Meanwhile, the Prince of Wales released a new short film announcing the launch of The Royal Foundation's National Suicide Prevention Network. The film features Rhian Mannings MBE, whose husband died by suicide just five days after they lost their 1-year-old son, George, in 2012. Prince William teared up during their conversation, during which Mannings told the royal that she wished her husband had spoken to her and told her that he was suffering. After Mannings asked if he was "okay," the Prince of Wales replied, "I'm sorry. It's just it's hard to ask these questions that I..." Prince William hugged Rhian Mannings in the emotional short film The Royal Foundation released on World Mental Health Day. | Credit: Kensington Palace Mannings and the Prince of Wales discussed suicide prevention in a new short film. | Credit: Kensington Palace Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "No, its fine. Its just youve got children," Mannings said. The Prince of Wales, who fought back tears, replied, "I know, I know...It is..." with Mannings adding, "Its hard...And youve experienced loss yourself." Backed by more than 1 million in funding from The Royal Foundation, over an initial three-year period, the new National Suicide Prevention Network aims to deliver lasting change in how suicide is understood and prevented across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Per Kensington Palace, the network aims to "improve universal pathways for suicide prevention to ensure that they are evidence-based, effective and accessible to all." MOSCOW (Reuters) -President Vladimir Putin said on Friday that Russia was developing new strategic weapons and it would not be critical for Moscow if the United States declined to extend the warhead limits set out in a nuclear arms treaty that expires next year. He said it would, however, be a shame if nothing remained of the arms control framework between the two countries, which have by far the world's biggest nuclear arsenals. Speaking to reporters at a summit in Tajikistan, Putin said an arms race was already in progress. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Russia has said it is willing to voluntarily extend the warhead limits defined in the New START treaty, which expires in February, if the United States is willing to do the same. Washington has not yet formally agreed to the proposal. "Will these few months be enough to make a decision on an extension? I think it will be enough if there is goodwill to extend these agreements. And if the Americans decide they don't need it, that's not a big deal for us," Putin said. He added that Russia was continuing to develop and test new-generation nuclear weapons. "We're ready to negotiate if it's acceptable and useful for the Americans. If not, then no, but that would be a shame, because then there would be nothing left in terms of deterrence in the area of strategic offensive weapons." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For the second time in a week, Putin referred to the possibility that other countries, which he did not name, might carry out a nuclear test - something only North Korea has done this century. He has said that Russia would also perform a test if this happens. Security experts say a test by one country would have a knock-on effect, prompting other nuclear powers to do the same, raiing geopolitical tensions further from their current, already high, levels. "There's always a temptation to test the effectiveness of the same fuel that's been in missiles for many, many years. All of this is being simulated on computers, and experts believe that is sufficient, but some of these same experts believe repeat tests are necessary," Putin said. "So some countries are thinking about it; as far as I know, they're even preparing, and that's why I said that if they do it, we'll do the same." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement That would be good from a security perspective, but bad from the point of view of curbing the arms race, he said. "But in this same context, extending the New START Treaty for at least a year is a good idea." (Reporting by Darya Korsunskaya, Olesya Astakhova, Maxim Rodionov, Anastasia Teterevleva, Filipp Lebedev and Lucy Papachristou; Writing by Mark TrevelyanEditing by Andrew Osborn) This is a breaking news story. Check back to idahostatesman.com for updates. To sign up for breaking news alerts delivered to your inbox, click here.Or you can download our app for the latest news here. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced Friday that a facility for a branch of Qatars armed forces will be built at the Mountain Home Air Force Base south of Boise. Today, were signing a letter of acceptance to build a Qatar Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, he told reporters at the Pentagon. The location will host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots to enhance our combined training, increase lethality, interoperability. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hegseth added that its just another example of our partnership, while seated next to Qatari Minister of Defense Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani. The announcement came during a news conference addressing the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, where he thanked Qatar for the substantial role they played. I want to thank you for that historic peace, Hegseth told Al Thani. The city of Mountain Home is home to an Air Force base, where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a facility for the Qatar Emiri Air Force will be built. Pilots from the Qatar Emiri Air Force, and their F-15s, will join a base that already houses members of the Republic of Singapore Air Force, who have trained and lived in the quiet town outside of Boise since 2009. The possibility of Fridays move was announced years ago, and in 2022 the Air Force homed in on Mountain Home as the location to house 300 personnel, including 170 Qatari trainees and 130 U.S. Air Force active duty personnel and contractors, the Idaho Statesman reported. The project was part of a $12 billion deal the U.S. signed five years earlier to provide Qatar with aircraft, U.S.-based training, maintenance support equipment and logistics support, according to The Air Force Times. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its unclear whether the specifics from that contract remain the same. The Statesman reached out to the Mountain Home Air Force Base, the Governors Office and the White House for more information. In an automated response, the White House said there could be delays in responding to inquiries because of the government shutdown, which it blamed on Democrats. The U.S. executed the facilitys construction through a foreign military sale, and the facility is expected to create an enduring location for Qatari F-15 aircraft at the military base, a Pentagon official told the Statesman in a statement. It will enable combined training opportunities between Qatar and the United States, fostering stronger defense partnerships and enhancing joint operational capabilities, the statement read. This effort will increase the lethality of our warfighters and improve interoperability among allied and partner nations. U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, praised the news on social media. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This development is beneficial for training, enhances our partnership with Americas allies, and strengthens national security, Simpson wrote on X. U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, in a statement said hed continue to work with the Air Force and base leadership in Mountain Home to ensure they have the necessary support to fulfill goals of global military readiness and protect the countrys long-term national security interests. Terri Pickens, a Democratic candidate in Idahos 2026 gubernatorial election, urged Gov. Brad Little in a statement to tell President Donald Trump to pause the deal. She called the planned facility a direct threat to Idahos sovereignty, our security and the rights of Idahoans. Letting outsiders build our military infrastructure poses serious security and intelligence risks, she said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Pickens also referenced the $400 million plane, a luxury Boeing 747 jet, that Qatar gifted Trump earlier this year to be used as Air Force One. The unprecedented gift has received a steady stream of pushback from the Democratic Party some of whom have called accepting the gift wildly illegal. Senate Republicans voted down a Democratic-led effort to block funding for Trump to convert the jetliner into Air Force One. By Leila Miller MAR DEL PLATA, Argentina (Reuters) -Dutch systems specialist Paul Post had glimpsed the notebooks that contained his fathers Nazi-era diaries before, but when he rediscovered them in an attic 15 years ago, the recent retiree finally had time to closely examine them. Post, 74, had no idea that they would ultimately lead to Argentina, where in September the daughter of a high-ranking Nazi official was charged with concealing an 18th-century painting looted during the Holocaust. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In his diaries, Posts father described working in the Netherlands' diamond bureau when it was taken over by the Nazis. As Post began researching the events, one name jumped out: the Nazi official Friedrich Kadgien. Kadgien oversaw the Nazi looting of diamonds and gold from occupied countries. Post began to follow Kadgiens wanderings after the war, hoping to solve the mystery of the diamonds that historians say are still missing. He learned by chance that Kadgien was believed to have also possessed looted art. The hunt led him and Dutch journalists to the peaceful residential neighborhood home of Patricia Kadgien, 60, in the seaside town of Mar del Plata in Buenos Aires province, where Portrait of a Lady had been hanging prominently in her living room. The reporters spotted it in a real estate listing in August. Her attorney, Carlos Murias, told Reuters that she did not know about claims the painting had been looted from the collection of Jewish art dealer Jacques Goudstikker and she has denied having hidden it. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Nazi-related discoveries like this occasionally pop up in Argentina, which after the war received both Holocaust survivors and dozens of Nazi war criminals, including Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele. In February, President Javier Milei met with representatives of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, who asked for help accessing materials to investigate Nazi banking activities in Argentina. And last May, the Supreme Court announced it had found thousands of Nazi labor organization membership booklets in its basement archive. Posts unlikely role in the painting's discovery underscores the complexities of finding Nazi-looted art today. An estimated 600,000 pieces were stolen from Jewish families, and more than 100,000 have never been returned. Im just an amateur, Im not a historian, nothing at all, said Post. I knew I was right on Kadgien. A FATHERS WAR DIARIES RESURFACE Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In 2010, Posts family was cleaning out his mothers house in Driehuis, a town just outside of Amsterdam. In the attic, they found three diaries written by his father, who died in 1976 at age 60. In the diaries, Wim Post recounted how in 1942 the Nazis ordered the countrys diamond traders to turn over their precious stones, confiscating about 71,000 carats at the Amsterdam Diamond Exchange. Paul Post, then recently retired from Hewlett-Packard, began visiting the Netherlands national archives to research the diamond confiscation. There he came across Kadgiens name. Shortly before Germanys surrender in May 1945, Kadgien fled to Switzerland, where officials received a tip that he had carried out large transfers of diamonds, according to Regula Bochsler, a historian in Zurich. But in 1950, Kadgien received a visa to travel to Brazil, ultimately making his way to Buenos Aires. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Post reached out to the Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad to share his father's account of the diamond raid, and in 2015, investigative reporter Cyril Rosman published a piece about the diaries. Post later published "The Diamond Heist, a book on the subject. In 2020, Post noticed that the Cultural Heritage Agency of the Netherlands listed Kadgien online as possibly having possessed Portrait of a Lady by the Italian artist Giuseppe Ghislandi -- although art historians have said the painter was likely his contemporary Giacomo Ceruti -- as well as an Abraham Mignon still life. He met with the agencys researcher Perry Schrier, and told him he had tracked Kadgiens family to Mar del Plata. But Schrier, who confirmed he had met with Post, couldnt help him. I said, I think I know the location, where it could be, and that is in Argentina, recalled Post. But he said, Yeah, ok, it could be possible, but how can we know that it is on the wall in their homes? In June 2024, Post contacted Yael Weitz, an attorney for Goudstikkers family. In an email exchange seen by Reuters, he offered to provide leads on the two missing paintings if she could provide him with information on Kadgien. She ultimately said that her team didnt have anything to share. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Post then turned to journalists again. Last April, he reached out to Rosman with more information on Kadgien's post-war travels. They had tried to contact Kadgiens daughters in Argentina through the years and Rosman asked Peter Schouten, a freelance journalist in Buenos Aires, to try again. We were not looking for the paintings in particular, said Rosman. At that time we were mostly thinking about the diamonds that were looted, so we wanted to know what happened to that. When Schouten rang the bell at Patricia Kadgiens home in August, there was no answer. But he saw a for-sale sign in her yard. The reporters checked the real-estate listing and spotted the painting in one of the photos of the property. They could barely believe their luck. I thought, ok, is it really this simple, a picture thats missing for 80 years is here above a couch in the living room? said Rosman. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The day after they published a story on the paintings discovery, police raided the home. But in the paintings place was a tapestry of horses. Eight days later, Kadgiens attorney handed the painting over to authorities. Federal prosecutors have charged Patricia Kadgien, who runs a small clothing business, and her husband, Juan Carlos Cortegoso, a go-kart mechanic, with aggravated concealment and are investigating more than 20 drawings and prints, as well as two portraits, also seized from their home and from the home of Patricias sister in Mar del Plata. The attitude was to hide the painting, the cases prosecutor, Carlos Martinez, told Reuters. We think that isnt indicative of someone that doesnt know what they have. COMPETING CLAIMS TO THE PAINTING Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Goudstikkers family have fought for decades to get his paintings back. The art collector died when he fell into the hold of a boat as he was fleeing the advancing Nazis with his family in May 1940. But in a small black book, he had listed Portrait of a Lady along with more than 1,000 pieces in his collection. In what historians describe as a forced sale after his death, top Nazi official Hermann Goering purchased about 800 of Goudstikker's paintings. Weitz, the attorney who represents Goudstikkers family, said that Goerings associate, Alois Miedl, sold Portrait of a Lady to Kadgien in 1944. The family has recovered 300 to 350 works of art, including 200 that had been mostly hanging in museums that the Netherlands agreed to return in 2006. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Charlene von Saher, Goudstikkers granddaughter who lives in Greenwich, Connecticut, said her family informed the Kadgiens of their claim to "Portrait of a Lady after the journalists published their story. Paolo Plebani, curator at the Accademia Carrara in Bergamo, said it is worth upwards of $100,000, but attorneys for the Goudstikker family said it is impossible to determine the value before examining the condition and confirming the artists identity. I just hope that they would be people who would feel like doing the right thing and correcting a historical injustice," von Saher told Reuters, saying that the discovery was like a movie. But Patricia Kadgien hasnt relented. She has filed a claim in civil court that says her fathers sister-in-law bought the painting from the Wallraf-Richartz Museum in Cologne in 1943. It said the painting was legitimately possessed by her father and that she inherited it after he died. The museum told Reuters the painting was never part of its collection. The claim said that she removed the painting from her home for security reasons, thinking she was the victim of a virtual scam when she started receiving calls from a journalist in August. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement As for Post, he still wants to know what happened to the diamonds that were tied to Kadgien. Martinez, the prosecutor, said authorities did not find jewels of value or from the war-period in the Mar del Plata home. Saskia Coenen Snyder, a Dutch professor of modern Jewish history at the University of South Carolina, said it is very hard to prove that Nazis took diamonds with them to South America. "Ill give him credit for at least spending years of his time pursuing, uncovering stories and truths that not everybody wants to do or has been able to, she said of Post. Hes a bit of a pit bull. (Reporting by Leila Miller; editing by Claudia Parsons) PARIS (Reuters) -President Emmanuel Macron re-appointed Sebastien Lecornu as prime minister on Friday, just four days after he had resigned from the role, searching for a way out of France's worst political crisis in decades. Here are reactions to Lecornu's appointment: SEBASTIEN LECORNU, PRIME MINISTER "It is my duty to accept the mission entrusted to me by the President to do everything in my power to give France a budget for the end of the year and to respond to the everyday problems of our compatriots. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "We need to put an end to this political crisis, which is exasperating the French people, and to this instability, which is bad for France's image and its interests." JORDAN BARDELLA, PRESIDENT OF THE FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL RALLY PARTY "The Lecornu II government, appointed by Emmanuel Macron who is more isolated and out of touch than ever at the Elysee Palace, is a bad joke, a democratic disgrace and a humiliation for the French people." FRANCOIS KALFON, SOCIALIST PARTY LAWMAKER "Our scepticism grows by the day. "We want something concrete on the pension reform. We are not afraid to return to the polls." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement YAEL BRAUN-PIVET, NATIONAL ASSEMBLY PRESIDENT "I note the reappointment of Sebastien Lecornu as Matignon. For weeks now, the National Assembly has been in full working order, ready to play its role to the full: debating, scrutinising and voting. Now it's time to get down to work. It's about time!" MATHILDE PANOT, HARDLEFT FRANCE UNBOWED PARTY "Never before has a President wanted so much to govern by disgust and anger. Lecornu, who resigned on Monday, was reappointed by Macron on Friday. Macron miserably postpones the inevitable: his departure." ERIC CIOTTI, CONSERVATIVE ALIGNED WITH FAR-RIGHT NATIONAL RALLY "Vote the government down." (Reporting by Alban Kacher and Alessandro Parodi ; Editing by Richard Lough) PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WPRI) If the eastbound side of the Washington Bridge takes on any damage, Rhode Island Department of Transportation (RIDOT) officials say they will know immediately, thanks to the bridges new structural health monitoring technology. Itll send us an automatic alert saying, Hey, you might want to look at span one,' the departments chief engineer, Robert Rocchio, explained. RIDOT said the bridge that stands today was replaced in 2008 and is expected to last 75 years. But the structural health monitoring system, which tracks how the bridge reacts to traffic, weather, or overweight trucks, was just installed. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Concerns had been raised about how a bridge that was only designed to carry eastbound traffic would handle vehicles moving in both directions. We can see every ache and pain that the bridge is experiencing, Rocchio said. So far, its doing great. And RIDOT plans to post these metrics weekly, along with each weeks weigh-in-motion data, so Rhode Islanders can see for themselves. Structural Health Monitoring Report Washington Bridge 9/28/25-10/4/25 Span 1 (Courtesy: Rhode Island Department of Transportation) The structural health monitoring system tracks how much the bridge moves, including how much it contracts and expands. You dont want it too rigid, Rocchio explained. Each chart provided by DOT shows the fluctuations each of the bridges 14 spans has over the course of the week. Any movement that surpasses the red line labeled threshold alerts RIDOT to check a part of the bridge. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But Rocchio said in the weeks RIDOT has been collecting the data, none of the metrics have surpassed that threshold. Rocchio said the real-time system is practically the first of its kind in the country, and added that the metrics will also provide information RIDOT can use in the future. Having all these systems, and visual inspections, and people in the field together, I think were going to learn about the characteristics, about how the bridges work, he said. Download the WPRI 12 and Pinpoint Weather 12 apps to get breaking news and weather alerts. Watch 12 News Now on WPRI.com or with the free WPRI 12+ TV app. Follow us on social media: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now Daily Roundup Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. At least 57 people, including 22 women and 17 children, were killed when Sudans paramilitary Rapid Support Forces attacked a displacement shelter in the besieged city of El Fasher in North Darfur state, according to a Sudanese medical advocacy group. The Sudan Doctors Network said on Saturday that the RSF, which has been at war with the Sudanese army, attacked the Dar al-Arqam displacement centre at the Omdurman Islamic University. Most of the victims sustained serious injuries as a result of deliberate missile and artillery shelling by drones and heavy weapons, the group said in a statement posted on X, adding that three infants were also among the fatalities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The shelling and drone attack late on Friday wounded another 21 people, including five children and seven women, said the Sudan Doctors Network, a group of medical professionals tracking the Sudanese civil war. Most of the wounded suffered serious injuries, it said. The El Fasher Resistance Committee, a local activists organisation, said at least 60 people were killed in what it called a massacre. Children, women and the elderly were killed in cold blood, and many were completely burned, said the committee, as it called for an international intervention. The situation has gone beyond disaster and genocide inside the city, and the world remains silent. The attack represents the latest in an intensifying pattern of strikes on civilian areas in the city, with the brutal civil war now well into its third year. The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights documented at least 53 civilians killed between October 5-8 alone in attacks across el-Fasher locality, with women and children among the dead. El-Fasher is the last major city held by the government-aligned Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) in the vast western Darfur region, and has faced intensified attacks from the paramilitary RSF since the army recaptured the capital, Khartoum, in March this year. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The RSF has been fighting SAF for control of the country since April 2023, when two generals leading both forces fell out. The war has triggered what humanitarian organisations have said is the worlds largest humanitarian emergency. Tens of thousands of people have been killed, and millions have been externally and internally displaced due to the fighting. Approximately 260,000 people remain trapped inside, but el-Fashers overall population has now shrunk by 62 percent from its pre-war level of 1.11 million to just 413,454 people, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). An individual in the city, who requested anonymity, told Al Jazeera that people had spent much of the day living underground in shelters built around their homes to avoid heavy shelling. The situation is extremely bad, he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Generally, the RSF have relied on air strikes to force civilians out of the city so they can take it over, said Mohamed Badawi, a human rights activist with the Uganda-based African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies, which monitors the conflict in Sudan. Under the months-long blockade, el-Fasher faces catastrophic humanitarian conditions. A UN Development Programme report published this week said: El Fasher faces collapsed markets, a complete collapse of food availability and affordability, and no road access for aid, forcing residents to survive on animal feed and food waste. Satellite imagery analysed by the Yale Humanitarian Research Lab reveals a systematic campaign of destruction surrounding el-Fasher. Researchers documented widespread burning of villages and displacement camps in a 57-kilometre radius around the city, with evidence of ethnic targeting primarily affecting non-Arab communities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yale researchers identified a 57-kilometre earthen berm encircling el-Fasher that restricts civilian movement and humanitarian access. Last week, El Fashers only functioning hospital, the Saudi Maternity Hospital, came under attack three times, killing six people, including a child. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO chief, called for the immediate protection of health facilities, whilst Hadja Lahbib, the EU crisis management commissioner, said the attacks were mindless. The International Committee of the Red Cross said health facilities across Sudan are routinely attacked and looted, with ambulances blocked at checkpoints or destroyed. In Khartoum, 70-80 percent of health facilities have closed or barely remain operational, according to the World Health Organization. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The magnitude of humanitarian need in Sudan is quite staggering, said Samuel Sileshi, emergency coordinator for Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres). Unfortunately, cuts to international aid are adding insult to injury. Through all the years that the family spoke of him, Franklyn Hall Stratton Hall as everyone knew him was mythic. A Navy and Marine fighter pilot in World War II and Korea, he was tall and handsome. His eyes, hazel. His hair, light brown. A joking University of Missouri college man, a fraternity brother. Girls wanted to date him. Guys wanted to be his best pal. So when, on June 16, 1951, Capt. Hall Stratton, at age 26 a hero who had already been presented with the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with two gold stars went down in combat, having parachuted over North Korea and been dragged away by the enemy, his parents and younger brother, Bill, in Kansas City would mourn him the rest of their lives. After 74 years, the remains of Capt. Hall Srtatton, killed in Korea in 1951, were identified in May 2025 and are being interred at the family plot in Kansas City. It was devastating, his now 70-year-old nephew and namesake, Hall Stratton of Oak View, California, said Thursday in Kansas City. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Marine Corps declared Stratton killed in action in 1954. His nephew said that, for decades, his grandparents had kept alive a faint hope that maybe their hero son had just been captured and would one day come gamboling through the front door to the familys Brookside home. But as years passed, that hope turned into quiet acceptance. He was the favorite son, Stratton said. But now Capt. Hall Stratton has returned home. WWII and Korean War hero On Friday, the warriors remains having been identified after 74 years were interred at Forest Hill Cemetery, 6901 Troost Ave., in a ceremony that included full military honors: a buglers taps, an honor guard and rifle salute, and the presentation of the American flag. A military flyover had been scheduled, but was canceled due to the government shutdown. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When Halls casket was lowered, it was into a family plot, alongside his parents, and beneath a headstone that was put there more than 50 years ago and which has waited for him since. Were just glad that this is finally happening, Stratton, the nephew, said, his voice choking. The mystery has been solved after all these years. This is a deeply, moving time for our family, to celebrate this homecoming, neice Sheryl Stratton, said. A water salute at Kansas City International Airport honors the arrival of the remains of Capt. Hall Stratton, a fighter pilot who died in Korea in 1951. The Strattons and their siblings grew up with tales of their Uncle Hall, a man they never met. All of them, with their spouses and children, have traveled to attend the funeral: Stratton from Oak View, sister Anna Stratton from Washington, D.C., Sheryl Stratton from Arlington, Virginia, Shelby Stratton, a retired U.S. Navy Captain, from Wielerbach, Germany. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In June, when Hall Stratton received a call from the military saying that his uncles remains had been identified, I thought it was a scam, he said. Remains were unknown for 74 years The Korean War lasted from 1950 to July 27, 1953. In 1954, under an effort known as Operation Glory, the remains of some 4,000 soldiers, most belonging to Americans, were recovered and repatriated to the United States. Of that number, some 400 remains were interred as unknown at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. From 1990 on, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, under the motto Fulfilling our nations promise, has continued the effort to identify those remains. Strattons, the agencys website shows, was identified on May 29, 2025. American Airlines flew Strattons flag-draped casket from Hawaii to Dallas. Hall Stratton and his sister, Sheryl Stratton, met the plane there. They accompanied the casket to the Kansas City International Airport, where it was met with an honor guard. Emergency pumper trucks greeted the aircraft with an arching shower of water known as a water salute. The flag-draped casket of Capt. Hall Stratton, killed in Korea in 1951, arrives at Kansas City International Airport. It was beautiful, Sheryl Stratton said. When we landed in KC and looked out the window and saw all the police cars, Marines, and the rest of our family all lined up, it was breathtaking. It was so awe-inspiring. World War II and Korean War pilot Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton of Kansas City. Franklyn Hall Stratton was born on Sept. 30, 1924, to Al F. Stratton and Delta Hall Stratton. He graduated from Southwest High School and attended the University of Missouri before enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve on March 1, 1944. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement His younger brother, William Robert Stratton, also served in Korea. When his brother was killed, he was placed in a non-combat unit. For all these years, the Strattons said, it was their father who kept their uncles legacy alive. You know, Sheryl Stratton said, it would have meant so much to my dad to be here. Wishing he could have seen it. It would have been life-changing. Just all the angst for my dad, all those years just wondering. U.S. Marines carry the casket of Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton during a graveside service Friday at Forest Hill Cemetery in Kansas City. U.S. Marines hold their rifles during a graveside service honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. A 21-gun salute is fired by U.S. Marines in honor of Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton during a graveside service at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. A flower display honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton, including a photo of him in a plane, is seen during a graveside service at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Photographs of Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton, including images from his service overseas, are displayed in an album during a graveside service at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. A letter written by Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton on June 15, 1951, the day before he died, is seen on display during a graveside service at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. A display honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton, including family photos and his checkered scarf, is seen during a graveside service at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. Family members of Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton sit under a tent as the graveside service begins at the Stratton family burial site at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A U.S. Marine bugler plays Taps during a graveside service honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Kansas City. A U.S. Marine folds the American flag draping the coffin during a graveside service honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. A U.S. Marine salutes the American flag during a graveside service honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Kansas City. Stratton, a Navy and Marine fighter pilot who died in the Korean War in 1951, was recently identified and returned home after decades of being listed as unknown." A U.S. Marine presents the American flag to a family member during a graveside service honoring Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton at Forest Hill Cemetery on Friday. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The U.S. Senate has approved $5 billion to support advance procurement for new Columbia-class "boomer" submarines that can launch ballistic and cruise missiles, a boon for General Dynamics Electric Boat and suppliers of the Groton shipyard. The new funding was included in the National Defense Authorization Act which was introduced in the Senate in mid-July. The U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of the NDAA bill last month, with work still ahead to work out a compromise bill for final passage on Capitol Hill and President Donald Trump's signature. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Senate bill includes additional billions of dollars for Connecticut to fund submarine construction at Electric Boat, jet engine assembly at Pratt & Whitney with facilities in East Hartford and Middletown, and helicopters built by Sikorsky in Stratford and Bridgeport. The Columbia-class sub represents the largest single Pentagon program today, with the latest Congressional estimate at $126.4 billion to purchase a dozen subs to replace aging Ohio-class subs that were built from 1976 to 1989. The Congressional Research Service recently noted the possibility of the Navy pushing for more Columbia subs beyond the initial dozen, given the strategic value they offer with "no known, near-term credible threats to the survivability" as cited in a review of the Columbia program last month. Among other advances, Columbia subs are being installed with electric-drive propulsion systems that are quieter than mechanical-drive propulsion on Ohio subs. General Dynamics declined to comment on the defense spending bill. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Electric Boat is aiming to deliver the first sub in the fleet by early 2029, about 17 months behind schedule according to the Congressional Research Service, with the second sub on schedule as of last spring. Construction of the first three subs are spaced apart by multiple years to allow Electric Boat and its contractors extra time to fix any issues they may discover in the assembly process. Sections for subs are barged to Groton for final assembly after being fabricated at an auxiliary shipyard Electric Boat operates in Rhode Island, and at the Newport News Shipbuilding yard in Virginia operated by Huntington Ingalls Industries. In addition to the $5 billion earmarked to purchase parts for future Columbia-class subs, the Senate bill provides $3.9 billion to assemble the third sub in the dozen planned for the fleet, to be named the USS Groton on the heels of the USS District of Columbia and the USS Wisconsin. The USS District of Columbia carries a price tag of $16.1 billion, with the USS Wisconsin at just over $10.7 billion and the USS Groton at $10.5 billion. Starting with the USS Groton, the Navy wants Electric Boat to hit a pace of one new Columbia sub annually with the goal of completing production by 2036. It is a mammoth task for Electric Boat and Newport News Shipbuilding - both yards face a production goal of two Virginia-class subs annually with each manufacturer tasked with building sections for final assembly in both Connecticut and Virginia. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At last report, Electric Boat had more than 15,000 employees in Connecticut, with plans to hire more than 3,000 people this year to replace workers hitting retirement and keep up with Navy demand for Virginia-class attack subs and the Columbia program. To free up more space at its Groton yard, Electric Boat is building a new warehouse in North Stonington to supply both its Connecticut and Rhode Island shipyards. And Electric Boat purchased a portion of the Crystal Mall to build office space there for engineers. In a statement, U.S. Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-CT called the bill "a serious, long-term commitment to our national security" and to the thousands of workers at Electric Boat, Pratt & Whitney, Sikorsky and other defense contractors and suppliers in Connecticut. In a CT Insider interview last week, Blumenthal said the Trump administration must adhere to schedules for submarine construction that Congress has funded in previous defense spending bills. "The question is whether they are going to make the kind of investments and continue the timetables that have been set in the past," said Blumenthal, who sits on the Senate Armed Services committee. "We have to hold them to what they're saying." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Sen. Chris Murphy, D-CT, voted against the bill. In a Friday statement, Murphy indicated his vote was driven in part by Trump's use of military personnel to support law enforcement in U.S. cities; the president's invocation of the Insurrection Act "to crush his political opposition" in Murphy's words; and approving military actions in the Caribbean region without congressional authorization. "It is wildly irresponsible for the Senate to act like it's business as usual and green light President Trump's Department of War' while he is militarizing our cities," Murphy stated. "I do not take this vote lightly, but this president views the United States military as his own personal police force. I will not support his efforts to use our men and women in uniform to consolidate power and transform our democracy into an authoritarian regime." Other spending in the Senate defense bill includes: Includes prior reporting by Paul Schott. This article originally published at Senate approves $5 billion to advance Columbia subs, boosting Connecticut defense work. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer's badge is seen as federal agents patrol the halls of immigration court in New York City on June 10, 2025. (Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images) OMAHA The Douglas County sheriffs proposal to rent Omaha-based jail space to the federal government for use as migrant detention appears to have hit a dead end. A majority of the Douglas County Board, which oversees the county jail as the Board of Corrections, issued a statement Friday objecting to the idea announced Thursday by Sheriff Aaron Hanson. Douglas County Sheriff Aaron Hanson. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) The statement by Commissioners Chris Rodgers, Jim Cavanaugh, Brian Fahey and Board Chair Roger Garcia offered several reasons for the rationale of the majority on the seven-member elected board. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Garcia previously rebuffed the idea of contracting jail space to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to hold detainees. If put to a vote, that majority would douse the possibility of such a county contract. We will not support any expansion of immigration detention at the Douglas County Jail, the commissioners said in a statement urging instead the states federal delegation to work toward comprehensive immigration reform. Financial benefit? The four said their preferred approach requires coalition-building and advocacy at the federal level, not contracts that perpetuate harm. They said that true humanitarian choice is not to detain mothers, fathers and workers whom they described as essential to the local economy. Roger Garcia, Douglas County Commissioner (Courtesy of Douglas County) While the commissioners said they fully support holding violent and drug-trafficking criminals accountable, they said 72% of ICE detainees nationally have no criminal history. Detaining hardworking and law-abiding residents who have built lives and families here does not make us safer; it only deepens fear, trauma and economic loss across our communities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement They also questioned any financial benefit, saying the cost to house an inmate at the county jail is $220 per day, an amount they said exceeds the $175 per diem contract ICE currently pays nearby counties. Hanson, in response, told the Nebraska Examiner that the county is in an enviable position to negotiate a better deal. He said the new revenue stream could be reinvested back into his departments own trimmed budget, offer tax relief and enhanced public safety measures for county residents and potentially create a national model that could direct money to local immigrant communities. Hes urged the County Board to put the idea to a public vote. This should be on an agenda in which people can come and voice their opinion pro or con, and ultimately elected leaders can do what we are supposed to do, make tough choices, Hanson said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A county agreement with ICE for detention, the sheriff said, would allow individuals arrested in the Omaha area to stay close to their families and the areas premier healthcare system, legal and support services. He cited the June 10 Omaha Glenn Valley Foods raid in which most of the nearly 80 undocumented workers detained were transported roughly four hours away to a North Platte jail in Lincoln County, which has a contract with ICE. In an Oct. 7 memo to County Board members, Hanson said the county jail had space and was operating at a historic low capacity. Deeply troubling But according to the director of Douglas County Corrections, Michael Myers, the county jail population has steadily increased since late last year. The total incarcerated population as of today is 1,101, up from 914 in December, Myers said in a statement from a county spokesperson. Projections, Myers said, show the county on pace to process roughly 1,500 more inmates this year compared to last year, when it booked 15,500 individuals. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Two legal centers that advocated for workers detained in the Omaha Glenn Valley immigration raid weighed in Friday on the ICE-Douglas County proposal, one calling it deeply troubling. Immigration detention should never be a business model, said Roxana Cortes-Mills, legal director of the Center for Immigrant and Refugee Advancement. The Douglas County sheriffs proposal to profit from detaining immigrants is deeply troubling, especially at a time when fear and uncertainty are already at an all-time high. Said Cortes-Mills, Lets be honest, this isnt about access to health care or staying close to family and legal support. Its about expanding detention in Nebraska and profiting from an administration intent on dehumanizing immigrants. She said CIRA attorneys would continue serving communities across the state to uphold due process and dignity for all. Promote dialogue American Civil Liberties Union of Nebraska, which also represents several Glenn Valley detainees, objected to what it called the illusion that closer ICE detention facilities would benefit immigrant families. Mindy Rush Chipman, executive director of ACLU of Nebraska, at a rally in Lincoln. (Zach Wendling/Nebraska Examiner) ACLU executive director Mindy Rush Chipman said that trying to sprinkle in incentives of money and geographic closeness is an effort to hide the ball, so to speak, about what this would actually mean for our communities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement She said if one asked ACLUs Omaha clients, theyd likely say it would have been easier to have loved one detained closer than North Platte. She, however, doubts those families would support increased ICE detention space in their community. ACLU believes heavier ICE presence and jail capacity would lead to increased likelihood of unlawful detentions and liability to the county itself. We all need to push back against the concept that this is happening anyway, so we might as well get paid for it, Rush Chipman said. This is not good for our communities, no matter how you try to disguise it. Hanson sees his proposal as humane for families and a lucrative opportunity for the county. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The biggest thing Im trying to promote here is dialogue, he said. Can we find a way to mitigate the thing that we cannot control federal detention? SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The 1,700 Gaza detainees who will be released will not be terrorists who raided on October 7, 2023, and the release of Hamas operatives has been limited as much as possible. The number of Palestinian security prisoners being released by Israel in exchange for the return of 48 hostages, 20 still alive, is the lowest ratio agreed upon in decades, Walla reported on Friday night. Walla learned that the final list of security prisoners includes 195 prisoners serving life sentences and only 60 of them are Hamas operatives. Just for comparison, in the Shalit deal, 450 Hamas operatives were released, including prisoners who led significant terrorism against the State of Israel. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The 1,700 Gaza detainees who will be released will not be terrorists who raided on October 7, 2023, and the release of Hamas operatives has been limited as much as possible. The Shin Bet managed to uphold the principles it had established at the beginning of the negotiations with Hamas regarding who would not be included in the list of those to be released: Hamas's 25 most senior prisoners were not included in the list despite Hamas's initial demand to include them in the deal. This includes the bodies of Yahya Sinwar and Muhammad Sinwar. Illustrative image of former Hamas leaders Yahya and Mohammed Sinwar. (credit: Abed Rahim Khatib/Shutterstock, IDF SPOKESPERSON'S UNIT, REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa) Walla learned that the Shin Bet's veto list included a total of around 100 security prisoners. In addition to Hamas senior officials and sergeants, it also included Hamas operatives who were heads of infrastructure, experts in sabotage and explosives, and child murderers. For example, the terrorists who murdered the Fogel family were not included in the list. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yoav, 11, Elad, 4, their three-month-old baby sister and parents Ehud and Ruth were murdered by PFLP terrorists in March 2011. Only the 12-year-old eldest daughter Tamar, eight-year-old son Roi and 2-year-old son, Shay survived the attack on the Fogel family home. Excluded from the deal Senior officials and sergeants that Hamas demanded were also on the Shin Bet's veto list and constituted a red line throughout the negotiations. Israel will not release: Ibrahim Hamed - was the head of Hamas' military wing in the West Bank during the Second Intifada. Considered the mastermind behind several serious suicide attacks, in which dozens of Israelis were murdered (the attack at Cafe Moment in Jerusalem, the attack at the Sheffield Club in Rishon LeZion). Ahmed Saadat - Secretary-General of the Hamas in the West Bank, who is a symbol for planning the murder of the late Minister Rehavam Ze'evi. A figure that Hamas has been trying to release since the Shalit deal and in all the deals throughout the current war. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Marwan Barghouti - is a leadership symbol in the Palestinian public, from the days of the First Intifada he led the Tanzim in the West Bank. He was convicted due to his involvement in attacks in which Israelis were murdered. Hassan Salameh - a senior Hamas figure, was one of the planners of serious bomb attacks in which dozens of Israelis were murdered. Abbas al-Sayed - Head of Hamas in Tul During the Second Intifada, Kerem was responsible for planning the attack on the hotel in the park in which dozens of Israelis were murdered. The list also did not include security prisoners who are Israeli citizens - another clause in the negotiations on the lists that the Shin Bet insisted on. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Walla learned from sources involved in the negotiations for the release of the hostages that pressure was exerted by Hamas to release prisoners who had committed murder and had not yet been sentenced, or extremely dangerous former prisoners who were recently arrested (for example, the heads of Hamas's infrastructure in Hebron who were recently thwarted by the Shin Bet). The Shin Bet repelled these attempts and refused to release these Hamas prisoners. In practice, they are not being released. A look at past deals It is important to note that the Shin Bet negotiating team, led by two current and former Shin Bet deputy heads, S. and M., succeeded in bending the Hamas negotiating team, and the analysis of the data shows that the prisoner release ratio is low compared to past deals: Jibril Deal (1985) - three living IDF soldiers were traded for 1,151 prisoners, of which 380 were life prisoners. Deal with Hezbollah (2004) - Three bodies of IDF soldier and a living civilian (Elhanan Tenenbaum) were exchanged for 436 prisoners. Shalit deal (2011) - For a living IDF soldier, 1,027 prisoners were released (including 450 Hamas members), of whom 279 were life prisoners. HONOLULU (KHON2) Today marks day 10 of the federal government shutdown and the first partial paycheck for those guiding planes safely in and out of Hawaiis airports. There were only two days that they were short on this paycheck, so nothing that was too detrimental. But come the next paycheck on Oct. 28, when they get zero dollars, thats what its going to start to weigh heavy on some of those people, said Joel Ortiz, National Air Traffic Controllers Association Vice President West Pacific. Local businesses brace for uncertain future as federal government shutdown continues Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement There are about 150 controllers here in Hawaii. The National Air Traffic Controllers Association says its members are working despite not being paid. The shutdown only highlights the nationwide shortage of controllers that has existed for years. We have 10,800 certified controllers, or supposed to have around 14,000 or 3,800 certified controllers short. So this staffing short existed long before the government shutdown began, said Ortiz. He assured Hawaii travelers that, despite rumors, there are no organized sick-outs causing the staffing shortages at other airports on the mainland. They will ensure that they get to point A to point B safely and efficiently. They are not in the business of deliberately calling in sick, deliberately causing delays, deliberately causing cancellations. That is not what theyre doing, said Ortiz. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Meanwhile, on the ground, another part of Hawaiis tourism industry is in limbo. The Pearl Harbor National Memorial site remains open, with non-profit partners funding costs for now. We dont know how long it will go. We hope its settled soon, but as long as were able to, were going to try to keep Pearl Harbor open, said Jim McCoy, Pacific Historic Parks Communications Director. Non-profit partner, Pacific Historic Parks, uses money from kiosks that sell souvenirs at Diamond Head State Park and Pearl Harbor, to help support the five national parks and one state park. McCoy said he wasnt sure how long funding would last. Firings of federal workers begin as White House seeks to pressure Democrats in government shutdown Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The last shutdown was 35 days. We managed that, so hopefully we can do it within that, said McCoy. The situation is the same at Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, which remains open with non-profit partners keeping the park safe and clean. So for now, in the air and on the ground, its business as usual, but with no deal in sight, many are hoping for the best, but preparing for the worst. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. As the fate of Logan Federicos alleged killer Alexander Dickey continues to stir conversation in national and state politics, South Carolina Law Enforcement Division Chief Mark Keel has responded to Congressman Ralph Norman, after the legislator suggested SLED failed to accurately maintain Dickeys criminal record. In a scathing letter dated Oct. 9, Norman challenged Keel to explain why some of Dickeys former crimes were missing from his criminal record, as maintaining rap sheets is a SLED function. The congressman further insinuated that the states top law enforcement agency was responsible for Dickey having the opportunity to kill Federico while burglarizing a Columbia home in May. An incomplete rap sheet is not a clerical error; it is a public safety failure with deadly consequences, Norman said in the letter. Logan Federico is dead because a violent repeat offenders record was full of holes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a letter Friday, Keel shot back and said while his agency is charged with maintaining criminal records, to do so accurately requires local law enforcement agents to promptly submit a defendants fingerprints to the agency each time theyre charged with a new crime, even if theyre already incarcerated, which did not happen in Dickeys case. Moreover, Keel said he refused to engage in a game of politics in the wake of Federicos death. What I will not do is stand by while politicians play politics where a young, innocent girl was tragically killed, Keel wrote. I will not allow the integrity of SLED and our hardworking employees to be unduly tarnished in exchange for political talking points. Dickey had more than three dozen prior arrests, including 25 felony charges, but still was free when he killed Federico. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement At issue in Normans letter were charges filed against Dickey in 2014 that were never attached to his criminal record. Specifically, following Dickys arrest for grand larceny on Aug. 14, 2014, he was charged, while still incarcerated at the Lexington County Detention Center, with seven additional counts of burglary and larceny, none of which were ever attached to his rap sheet. In acknowledging this error, Keel pointed to the detention center. For criminal charges to attach to a criminal history when a subject is served with additional charges while already incarcerated, the subject MUST be reprinted on the new charges and the fingerprints sent to SLED, Keel wrote. This is absolutely known by every detention center and prison. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Lexington County Sheriffs Department, which operates the countys detention center, didnt immediately respond to a request for comment. Current Lexington Sheriff Jay Koon assumed the post in 2015, after the alleged error would have taken place. Keel added in the letter that he previously told Norman that in August 2024, SLED provided a training video on fingerprinting procedures to the South Carolina Criminal Justice Academy to distribute to the law enforcement community. The training was assigned to 16,878 individuals, of which 15,701 viewed it, Keel said. In response to Norman appearing to blame SLED for the holes in Dickeys criminal record, Keel said the criminal justice system as a whole needs to addressed. Alexander Dickey, a career criminal, consistently received little punishment for his long list of felonies in Lexington County, Keel wrote. His incomplete criminal history at the time Logan Federico was tragically murdered is a direct result of a systemic problem that still exists today. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The back and forth between Keel and Norman isnt the only tension to arise around the killing of Federico. South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson sent a letter urging Fifth Circuit Solicitor Byron Gibson to seek the death penalty against Dickey. Gipson held firm that he wouldnt make such a determination before reviewing all the evidence, and Wilsons office, faced with pushback from lawyers in the state who saw the letter as a demand that overstepped his authority, said they were only seeking to find out whether Gipsons office would consider the death penalty. SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea on Friday summoned the Cambodian ambassador to protest at the death of a South Korean student in Cambodia and raised the travel alert for its capital Phnom Penh over online scam cases targeting Koreans. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun voiced concerns to Ambassador Khuon Phon Rattanak over the "continued occurrence of job scams and detention of South Korean citizens in Cambodia, and urged the Cambodian government to come up with swift and practical measures to eradicate online scams", his ministry said. Khuon said he understood the Korean government's concerns and position and would report this to his government, according to a Seoul foreign ministry statement. Cambodia's embassy did not answer Reuters' calls seeking comment. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement A South Korean college student was tortured to death in Cambodia in August in a case linked to an employment scam, according to South Korean media. In a separate statement, South Korea's foreign ministry raised the travel alert for Phnom Penh to a special travel advisory level, effective 9 p.m. Korean time (1200 GMT). (Reporting by Cynthia Kim; editing by Mark Heinrich) With Summit Carbon Solutions planned route effectively blocked by South Dakotas ban on the company's use of eminent domain, opponents question where it intends to sequester the carbon dioxide a $9 billion pipeline it proposes would collect from Iowa and other Midwestern ethanol plants. The sequestration site is supposed to be in North Dakota, but reaching that state is problematic without running the pipeline through South Dakota, where Ames-based Summit not only faces the eminent domain ban but has yet to obtain a permit. Attorneys at a Polk District Court hearing Friday, Oct. 10, puzzled over the pipelines route as they debated whether Judge Scott Beattie should move forward with a judicial review of Summits Iowa permit for pipeline construction or, as Summit requests, return the case to the Iowa Utilities Commission so the panel can consider the company's request to amend its permit. Iowa farmers gather to show their support of carbon pipelines on May 9, 2025, at the Iowa State Capitol. That would make it possible for the company to consider other possible sites for sequestering the carbon emissions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Bret Dublinske, a Summit attorney, said Friday that North Dakota used to be the only option. But now Tallgrass Energy is capturing carbon with its Trailblazer pipeline through Nebraska and sequestering it in Wyoming, and Colorado and Kansas, along with Nebraska, are seeking federal approval to store carbon, he said. Were asking for permission to explore all options, Dublinske said. Iowa regulators made approval of Summit's permit contingent on it getting a permit to build the pipeline through South Dakota. The state's regulators have twice rejected the companys application, most recently, because it lacked a viable route after the ban on allowing it to use eminent domain, which would have enabled it to obtain access to property for the project from unwilling landowners. People hold signs as pipeline opponents speak during a rally against eminent domain for carbon capture pipelines on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, in Des Moines. Christina Gruenhagen, the Iowa Farm Bureaus government relations counsel, said the project should go back to the state regulators to determine if its viable. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Its not clear whether this pipeline is still going to North Dakota, or will go around South Dakota, whether its going to stop in Nebraska, go to Wyoming, go to Kanas, we dont know, Gruenhagen said. She said it raises questions about the use of eminent domain in Iowa, which some lawmakers want to strike down, and if the pipeline serves a public purpose. "At this point, we don't know whether that pipeline can be completed to achieve the public purpose of sequestering carbon dioxide," she said. Heres what to know about the discussion at Fridays hearing. What is Summit saying about its route and sequestration plans? Summit spokesperson Sabrina Zenor said in a text Friday that the companys proposed permit amendment keeps open the option to transport CO2 west through Nebraska or north through South Dakota, which is part of our original permit. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Summit wants to remove North Dakota as the sequestration location, change the pipeline size in some areas and add a customer. Taking the pipeline through Nebraska could make Nebraska, Wyoming, Kansas and Colorado possible sequestration options. Summit announced plans four years ago to build the 2,000-mile pipeline to capture carbon dioxide from dozens of ethanol plants in Iowa, South Dakota, Minnesota and Nebraska, liquefy it under pressure, and sequester it deep underground in North Dakota. Despite the challenges that have emerged, the company has said it remains committed to the project. Proponents say the pipeline would significantly lower the carbon footprint of ethanol made in Iowa and other states it serves, expand markets and qualify the corn-derived fuel as low carbon, making it eligible for generous federal tax credits. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Our focus is on supporting as many ethanol partners as possible and building a strong foundation that helps farmers, ethanol plants, and rural communities access the markets theyll depend on for decades to come, Zenor said in her text Friday. Whats the issue before the Polk District Court? Nine Iowa counties, the Sierra Clubs state Chapter, landowners and others are challenging the Iowa Utilities Commissions decision last year to give Summit a permit to build nearly 700 miles of pipeline across the state. Wally Taylor, the Sierra Clubs attorney; Brian Jorde, an Omaha attorney representing dozens of landowners; and others argued that the issues Beattie will consider are broader than those included in Summits proposed permit amendment. Additionally, Jorde said that Summit should have known in 2023 that it would have difficulty getting a pipeline permit in South Dakota. The company lost its first permit request two years ago and legislative restrictions already were being proposed, he said. They have done this to themselves, Jorde said. They have charted their own course, and now they want a redo. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Dublinske said that argument doesn't hold up: North Dakota also initially rejected Summits pipeline permit request in 2023, but the company won approval a year later. Attorney: Summit seeks a 'wholesale reboot' of final order Jason Craig, an attorney for the Iowa counties, said Summit seeks to move the case back to the utilities commission to pursue an entirely new contested case proceedings to change the project, change the route, change the pipe engineering, change the conditions of the permit and consolidate the original pipeline with its proposed expanded route. That amendment will require full hearing procedures and will result in a separate final decision, he said. Thats not supplementing the record, your honor. Thats a wholesale reboot of the final order. But Beattie expressed concern that if he moves forward with the judicial review, yet the permit also is amended, appellate courts could have two independent and separate records that could result in conflicting matters." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Doesnt it make more sense to send it back, let the commission sort all that out, put it in one clear package, and then move forward? Beattie said. Craig said landowners deserved to have the judge review the case instead of sending it back to the commission for potentially years more delay. Beattie said he expects to issue a decision within a couple of weeks. Donnelle Eller covers agriculture, the environment and energy for the Register. Reach her at deller@registermedia.com. This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Summit says western states are destination options for pipeline Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa at a joint press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, on May 7, 2025. Credit - Stephanie LecocqAFP/Getty Images I recently met Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa with a small group of journalists and scholars at the Peoples Palace in Damascus. The conversation lasted more than two hours and spanned sectarian conflict and reconstruction, Israel and Turkey, Russia and the U.S., the Islamic State, and the restive northeast. But what stuck with me was much simpler. The most urgent question for Syrias stability after the toppling of Bashar al-Assad 10 months ago has shifted from who rules Damascus to how Syrians share power beyond it. Just this week, deadly clashes erupted between the Syrian government and Kurdish-led forces in Aleppos Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh. A ceasefire followed with quiet help from U.S. and Turkish interlocutors, but the clash is a warning of how fast Syria could slide back into war. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Kurds deserve credit as the bloc that first forced the conversation in Damascus toward decentralization and wider representation. They pushed Damascus to speak the language of devolved powers in an ethnically and religiously diverse country. But that change is now at risk because factions within the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) think time is on their side again. Many Kurds think that if the SDF holds the fort just a little longer, it can deliver a better bargain or even a new, friendlier regime in Damascus. The early promise of a Kurdish deal Things had been looking up until recently. On March 10, with a blend of American mediation and pressure, the SDFs leader Mazloum Abdi accepted a year-end deadline to fold SDF forces into Syrian state structures. A framework agreement, signed by both Abdi and Sharaa, was hailed by supporters on both sides as a workable formula to avoid what many saw as inevitable violence in the diverse eastern region. The deal was soon followed by Kurdish Nowruz cultural celebrations in the Syrian capital, unprecedented in more than half a century of Assad rule. During our meeting, Sharaa revealed that Turkey had planned to launch a military operation to expel the Kurds from the northeast after the Assad regime fell on Dec. 8. Turkey, a key backer of the operation that toppled Assad, views a Kurdish government in the northeast as a national security threat, as it could inspire similar demands by its own Kurds and fuel insurgency along the borders. Sharaa said he halted the operation and proposed achieving the same objective through dialogue. Read More: Erdogans War and Peace with the Kurds Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Sharaas thinking, his aides told me, is guided by a sense of both danger and opportunity. A forced takeover of the Kurdish-held zone, even if quick, could fuel a long insurgency Syria can do without. He has resisted that path when pressed by supporters demanding a decisive and rapid victory. He also sees Kurdish reintegration as a counterweight within his own system, where hardline Islamists may oppose his views. The two sides began negotiating specifics after the deal in March. Damascus insisted on rebranding the SDF, retraining, and integrating it under a national chain of command. Kurdish negotiators have presented practical questions, including what happens to the 12,000 female fighters currently within the SDF? How are they reintegrated into an army dominated by men long accused of abuses against Kurdish women? According to an informed Kurdish source, the only cultural concession Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani was willing to offer was a mere three hours of after-school Kurdish language instruction. Damascus offered the SDFs Deputy Defense Minister and cabinet seats. Kurdish negotiators countered that titles without real budgets and oversight are ceremonial unless enshrined in constitutional provisions. Damascus also accuses the Kurds of stalling by demanding lengthy engagements on every detail, an impossible task during a postwar transition. Sharaa has proposed the Assad-era Law 107 as a legal framework for decentralization, which he said would accomplish about 90% self-governance for the Kurds. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement There were other obstacles from the start. Damascus issued a constitutional declaration days after the March 10 deal that emboldened hard-liners and weakened Abdis position, reaffirming the states name as the Syrian Arab Republic and stipulating that the President must be Muslim and that Islamic jurisprudence is the principal source of legislationcore sticking points for the more secular Kurds. But the most serious blow to the talks came in July. Following a deadly and failed bid by Damascus to take over the Druze stronghold of Sweida in southern Syria, Abdi refused to go to Paris for talks planned that month, telling confidants he did not want to attach his name to a regime he thought might collapse. I was privy to multiple reports, circulating within prominent Syrian circles critical of Sharaa, that Israel and the UAE had information that Sharaa would not last beyond the end of the year or, at the latest, mid-2026. An independent Damascus source said Israel had communicated the same message to Druze and Kurdish factions in the summer. This forecast, he said, was seen as an invitation to wait. There was also a growing feeling that a few more mistakes in Sweida and in coastal Latakia, where Syrian forces massacred Alawites in early March, and the world could turn against the new President. Notable criticisms or calls for change from Sharaas Sunni base emerged such as Syrian tycoon Ayman al-Asfari, who was among dozens of signatories on a July 23 statement demanding an inclusive government and new constitution. In the northeast, the SDF chaired a conference on Aug. 8 that drew in Druze leader Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajari by video, Alawite figures, including members of the former Assad regime, and an array of Arab tribal figures. Damascus called it separatist theater and froze the Paris track. Around the same time, Israeli strikes on Damascus and continued clashes in Sweida hardened the idea, inside parts of the Kurdish movement, that the center could break. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Momentum for talks resumed after Sharaas historic visit to the U.S. in late September to address the U.N. General Assembly, with a renewed sense that he was here to stay, and amid chatter of a security pact between Syria and Israel. The SDF have since reaffirmed their seriousness about reintegrating with Damascus, a clear departure from their post-Sweida rhetoric. Ilham Ahmad, a senior SDF official, is prepared to relocate to the capital for daily talks, according to sources close to her. Read More: Why Ahmed al-Sharaa's U.N. Debut Matters Meanwhile, Ankara and Damascus have signaled their patience is running out, and that failure to reintegrate by the deadline will provide cover for military action. Already, according to a well-placed Turkish source, Ankara disliked the long, 10-month horizon in March. Sharaa was blunt in our meeting: The northeast is a national security issue for Turkey, he said. They wont accept the status quo. The only time I noticed he was irritated in the meeting was when he followed that sentence with urging the SDF to use the opening, as if to say their time was running out. He called the foot-dragging militia thinking, which he said he recognized from experience during his wartime days as the leader of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham. Militia leaders, he said, do not recognize the wider reality around them and struggle to take a decisive decision as they try to manage internal factionalism. What comes next? The SDF still has a choice to push the conversation forward. They can use the alliances they forged in the fight against Islamic State to press for decentralization, by codifying what was won in principle through an amended Law 107, a policy many Syrians beyond the Kurdish areas support. Or they can hold out to see if Sharaa remains in power. The latter course could lead to renewed violence and is counterproductive, as Turkey, Syria, and the U.S. for the first time now all agree that the northeast should return to Damascuss control. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The risks should not be understated. Eastern Syria is where risks of ethnic tension, tribal mobilization, and jihadist resurgence converge, if talks fail. In my conversations with Arab constituents there, it is clear many are itching for war and do not prefer a settlement that keeps Kurds in government, even if not in power. Only Sharaa is holding us back now, one tribal notable told me recently. War would also mean no deliberate, orderly transfer of some 12,000 Islamic State detainees from Kurdish to Syrian state prisons. A flawed but peaceful compromise spares the region new bloodshed and insurgency, and pushes Syria toward a less centralized form of governance. It hinges on inclusive thinking from Damascus, and, crucially, realistic adjustments from Kurdish leaders. Let us hope, for all involved, that cooler heads prevail. Contact us at letters@time.com. TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) Taiwan will accelerate the building of a Taiwan Shield or T-Dome air defense system in the face of the military threat from China, its leader said Friday. President Lai Ching-te also pledged to raise defense spending to more than 3% of GDP and to reach 5% by 2030. GDP, or gross domestic product, is a measure of the size of the overall economy. The increase in defense spending has a purpose, he said in an address to an outdoor crowd on Taiwan National Day. It is a clear necessity to counter enemy threats and a driving force for developing our defense industries. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Taiwan is a self-governing island off Chinas east coast that the Chinese government claims as part of its territory and says must come under its rule. The United States, while not recognizing Taiwan as a country, supplies its government with military equipment for its defense and opposes any use of military force by China to settle its dispute with Taiwan. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Friday criticized U.S. arms sales to Taiwan and military ties between Washington and Taipei. The Lai Ching-te authorities attempt to seek independence through military means and resist reunification with force will only drag Taiwan into a perilous situation of military conflict, said spokesperson Guo Jiakun. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Lai called Taiwan a beacon of democracy in Asia, drawing a distinction with Chinas one-party state. Democratic Taiwan ... will strive to maintain the status quo, protect peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait, and promote regional prosperity and development, he said from a large stage set up in front of the early 20th-century presidential office building. Most of his speech focused on economic issues, including Taiwan's response to the high tariffs that President Donald Trump has imposed on exports to the United States this year. The government has launched a 93 billion New Taiwan dollar ($3 billion) plan to help companies, workers and those in farming and fishing who are affected by the tariffs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We will also actively engage in reciprocal tariff negotiations with the U.S. to secure a reasonable rate, Lai said. Without mentioning Trump, he said America's tariffs have added to the challenges already facing the world namely the Russia-Ukraine war, the turmoil in the Middle East, and Chinas continued military expansion. The Chinese military regularly sends fighter jets and warships into the skies and waters off Taiwan and has staged major military exercises in the area in recent years. Lai said his government would establish a rigorous defense system with high-level detection and effective interception capabilities. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement His use of the phrase T-Dome, short for Taiwan Dome, was an apparent reference to the Iron Dome system that Israel has developed. It was not immediately clear if the T-Dome referred to a new defense system or if it was a new name for existing initiatives. A Defense Ministry spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for clarification. Taiwans Defense Ministry said in a report this week that it is training soldiers to shoot down drones and looking to procure anti-drone weapons systems in response to Chinas expanding development and use of military drones. Trump has pressured Taiwan to increase military spending to 10% of its GDP, an expectation reiterated on Tuesday by the nominee to be the Pentagons senior official for the Indo-Pacific region. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The T-Dome allows Taiwan to signal to the U.S. that it is increasing its defense spending rapidly, while keeping its military buildup defensive in nature, said Wen-Ti Sung, a fellow with the Atlantic Council. Lai clearly heard U.S. calls for Taiwan to increase its defense spending, which is why Lai spelled out very specific defense-budget-as-share-of-GDP targets and a specific timeline, Sung added. Taiwan, home to 23 million people, operates independently but has not declared formal independence, which would risk provoking a Chinese military response. China and Taiwan have been governed separately since 1949, when a civil war brought the Communist Party to power in Beijing. Defeated Nationalist Party forces fled to Taiwan, where they set up their own government. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Taiwan's Oct. 10 national day marks the anniversary of a 1911 uprising in China that led to the fall of its last imperial dynasty. It comes nine days after China's national day on Oct. 1, when communist revolutionary leader Mao Zedong declared the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949. ___ Moritsugu reported from Beijing. Associated Press journalists Johnson Lai in Taipei, Taiwan, and Huizhong Wu in Bangkok contributed to this report. PANAMA CITY FSU Panama City will host a free Click with Caution workshop. The event will be presented by Panama City Beach Police Chief J.R. Talamentez on Nov. 5 from 4 to 6 p.m. in the Holley Academic Center, 4750 Collegiate Drive. According to a news release, Talamantez will reveal the warning signs of predatory behavior online, how to report suspicious activity and what you can do to protect yourself and loved ones from online predators. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Laurie Lawrence, a member of the 14th Circuit Human Trafficking Task Force, noted that the Bay County Tax Collectors office posts public announcements advising residents to beware text scams. Bay County residents listen to Panama City Beach Police Chief J.R. Talamantez talk about apps and their possible uses to exploit children for sex. in January 2024 The online world changes faster than most people realize, and online predators are constantly adapting their methods, Lawrence said in the release. This is why this public event is more important than ever. The event is designed to help bring awareness to individuals and families so they can recognize and respond to these evolving digital threats. This event is free and open to the public. Refreshments will be provided. This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Think online predators are no threat to you? Free workshop is Nov. 5 Three people were injured in central Giessen on Saturday after shots were fired in a betting shop, a police spokesman said. The individual fled on foot and remains at large following the incident, which occurred shortly after 3 pm (1300 GMT) in the city in central Germany. Police are searching for the perpetrator. The public is not thought to be in danger, the police spokesman said earlier. The shop has been cordoned off and forensic investigators are on site. No information was available on the severity of the victims' injuries and further details have not been disclosed as the operation is ongoing. A Bengal tiger has escaped from a zoo amid severe flooding in Mexico. The animal escaped from its cage in the Animalia zoo near the municipality of Xicotepec in the central state of Puebla, said Mayor Carlos Barragan on Friday. The Mexican environmental authority urged residents to be careful and asked them to report any sightings of the tiger, which weighs around 130 kilograms. Xicotepec is a municipality with around 80,000 inhabitants in a mountainous region of Puebla that was badly affected by the heavy rainfall. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The San Marcos River burst its banks and flooded the surrounding area. Numerous houses were destroyed and people lost their lives, the mayor in a video. However, an exact number of victims is not available. The zoo was also affected. "A tiger whose cage collapsed is on the loose, and that worries me a lot," said the mayor. Heavy rainfall has caused flooding and landslides in several states in Mexico. Around 30 people have died as a result, according to media reports citing authorities. The states of Veracruz, Hidalgo, Puebla and San Luis Potosi are particularly affected. Entire areas are flooded and numerous communities are cut off from the outside world. A region typically accustomed to scorching temperatures rather than persistent rain is now bracing for severe downpours, significantly elevating the risk of flash floods that can emerge and turn deadly within minutes. Tropical Storm Priscilla, having been downgraded from a powerful hurricane, has diminished in strength over the eastern Pacific near Mexicos Baja California peninsula. However, the storms remnants still carry substantial moisture and are now advancing towards the southwestern United States, where flood warnings were issued on Thursday. Meteorologists anticipate that rain bands from Priscilla will drench parts of Arizona, Utah, New Mexico, and Colorado throughout the weekend. These areas could experience as much precipitation in a few hours as they typically receive over an entire year. The grave potential for such intense rainfall is highlighted by recent deadly flooding events in Texas and New Mexico. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement We dont want to see people caught up in the hazards we are going to be seeing, said meteorologist Robert Rickey with the National Weather Service in Flagstaff, Arizona. Arizona will be hit hardest Northern Arizona is most at risk, with 2 to 3 inches (5 to 8 centimeters) of rain likely in and around Flagstaff, the national park gateway city south of the Grand Canyon. Some areas could get even more, said Rickey, but where exactly that will happen is impossible to predict very long in advance. High-elevation Flagstaff gets ample rain, upward of 2 feet (60 centimeters) a year, though not often in such big doses. Southwestern and northeastern Arizona see far less, in some places as little as 5 inches (13 centimeters) or less a year; Phoenix gets just 7 or 8 inches (18 to 20 centimeters) a year. People gather at an overlook as a double rainbow appears over Dead Horse Point State Park, near Moab, Utah, after sunrise and a thunderstorm moved through (AP) In such deserts, downpours on paved, urban landscapes with minimal drainage infrastructure and in backcountry areas mazed with canyons can become deadly fast. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Worried folks headed outdoors have been calling the National Weather Service asking if they should cancel. The agency has been kept open during the government shutdown. I had to have that kind of frank conversation with them, Rickey said. Is the risk worth the reward? Never go here if heavy rain is possible After heat, flooding is the deadliest weather phenomenon in the U.S., killing 145 people in 2024. Many victims were in their cars, braving high water that can be deceptively dangerous. In Arizona, a stupid motorist law allows drivers to be billed up to $2,000 if they drive around a barricade or warning sign into a flooded area and have to be rescued. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement By encouraging smarter driving, the law attempts to reduce the states dozens of such rescues every year. Some, though, worry the law discourages people from seeking help right away, putting them in worse danger. The law isnt consistently enforced. The Southwests desert canyons and arroyos are notorious for flash flooding risk. Even a storm miles (kilometers) upstream can turn a dry wash into a raging torrent, churning debris downstream and blocking the way out for hikers and cars. That is what happened in southern Utah a couple weeks ago, when a desert canyon flood trapped at least 10 people, all of whom were eventually accounted for by officials. Mountains can also channel deadly flooding. In June, three people, including children ages 7 and 4, were killed in a flash flood at a riverside RV park. A car partially covered in water near the beach after rising waves flooded the area as Hurricane Priscilla strengthed in Nayarit, Mexico a few days ago (REUTERS) Forested areas can become worse for flash flooding if they have recently burned clear of vegetation that can hold back water and allow it to soak into the ground. This weekend, that includes the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, which burned in a massive wildfire last summer. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The National Weather Service had posted a flash flood watch for most of Arizona, as well as southern Utah and smaller portions of California, Nevada and Colorado. Strong storms already were moving north across Arizona and southern Utah, bringing up to an inch (2.5 centimeters) of rain in places. Scattered flash flood warnings were posted along the state line, including for Lake Powell and Glen Canyon National Recreation Area. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst Much of the Southwests rain comes during the summer monsoon season of scattered storms from mid-June through September. Rain from autumn tropical systems like this one might happen once a year, said Rickey, the meteorologist. In Flagstaff, heavy equipment was being positioned across the city, and staff were monitoring low water crossings and areas where wildfires have burned for potential flooding. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Self-serve sandbags were available to residents at a city park, and water was being released from a pond to make more room for runoff. The Havasupai Tribe, whose reservation is deep in a gorge off the Grand Canyon and is prone to flooding, advised tourists in a social media post not to hike to certain areas if it is raining or flooding, and to seek higher ground if they see water rushing through the area. The reservation is one of the most remote in the continental U.S. and is accessible only by mule or foot. Tourists worldwide visit for the blue-green waterfalls and creekside campground. Mike Rock with Junipine Resort in Sedona, which sits along Oak Creek, said staff were monitoring road and weather conditions, and letting guests know to take precautions. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Picnic tables closer to the creek will be moved if the water rises. If flooding or rock falls shut down nearby roads, staff can stay at the resort, as is typical with bad weather, he said. All signs are indicating were going to get pretty hard, he said. A federal appeals court in Chicago on Saturday denied the Trump administrations request for an emergency stay of a district judges order barring the president from deploying National Guard troops in the city and state. The 7th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals did, however, grant a temporary stay on a portion of U.S. District Judge April Perrys order involving the federalization of the National Guard within Illinois. Members of the National Guard do not need to return to their home states unless further ordered by a court to do so, the court order said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Gov. JB Pritzkers win on National Guard could be short-lived as Trump keeps pulling levers of power The ruling keeps in effect Perrys granting of a temporary restraining order Thursday halting President Donald Trumps plan to send federalized National Guard troops into the Chicago area to act as a security force during the administrations controversial immigration enforcement action known as Operation Midway Blitz. The Department of Justice argued in a filing Friday night that Perrys order improperly impinges on the Commander in Chiefs supervision of military operations, countermands a military directive to officers in the field, and endangers federal personnel and property. The 20-page motion asked the higher court to freeze Perrys order while an appeal is pending, saying the National Guard should be allowed to protect federal personnel and property while the litigation continues to play out. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In a response on Saturday, attorneys for Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul said Perry was correct in halting Trumps illegal and unconstitutional plan to dispatch federalized troops to Chicago with no clearly defined scope of the mission, its duration, or any provable factual underpinning. It was clear, the plaintiffs attorneys argued, that absent an injunction, the federal government could and would use the troops consistent with the unbounded scope of the federalization orders that is, to assist any federal agency on any federal mission that is occurring anywhere in Illinois. The dueling motions were a clear indication that the legal battle over Trumps National Guard plans is far from over. Perry on Thursday blocked Trump from deploying National Guard troops to the city and state, saying she had no faith in the governments claims of out-of-control violence and that it was federal agents who started it by aggressively targeting protesters with tear gas and militaristic tactics. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump has claimed ongoing violence and clashes between protesters and immigration agents in Chicago and other U.S. cities justified sending federalized troops onto the streets as security, even as local and state officials accused the president of manufacturing a crisis to justify unnecessary and unprecedented force. In her oral ruling from the bench, Perry, a Biden appointee, said National Guard troops are not trained in de-escalation or other extremely important law enforcement functions that would help to quell these problems, and that allowing troops to come into Chicago will only add fuel to the fire that the defendants themselves have started. The judge also said the Trump administrations attempts to cast protesters as violent rebels cannot be aligned with the view of local officials. Perry said she had no faith in the declarations of federal officials submitted to the court due in large part of a growing body of evidence that the U.S. Department of Homeland Securitys views are simply unreliable. Perry cited several assault cases that had been dismissed against protesters and other orders from federal judges in Chicago entered against DHS and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In the last 48 hours in four separate unrelated legal decisions from different neutral parties, they all cast significant doubt on DHS assessment of what is happening on the streets of Chicago, Perry said. Perry also said a rebellion is defined as a deliberate organized resistance openly opposing the laws and government as a whole by means of armed violence. I have found no credible evidence that there is a danger of rebellion in the state of Illinois. Gov. JB Pritzker cheered the ruling in a statement on social media, writing, Donald Trump is not a king and his administration is not above the law. A spokesperson for Trump, meanwhile, said the judge got it wrong. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Amidst ongoing violent riots and lawlessness, that local leaders like Pritzker have refused to step in to quell, President Trump has exercised his lawful authority to protect federal officers and assets, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson wrote in an emailed statement. President Trump will not turn a blind eye to the lawlessness plaguing American cities and we expect to be vindicated by a higher court. A notice of appeal was filed with the 7th Circuit hours after Perrys ruling, but the court has not yet set a briefing schedule. jmeisner@chicagotribune.com GREENBELT, Maryland The Trump administration has made haphazard and, so far, ineffectual attempts to find a country willing to accept Kilmar Abrego Garcia if hes deported again from the U.S., according to testimony and evidence presented in federal court here Friday. A senior Immigration and Customs Enforcement official testified that efforts to get the African countries of Uganda and Eswatini to accept the high-profile deportee have foundered in recent days. Another potential destination, Ghana, also seemed to fizzle Friday as that countrys foreign minister said unequivocally on X that Ghana would not agree to receive Abrego. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Abrego is originally from El Salvador. He entered the U.S. illegally and lived in Maryland for more than a decade before he was arrested in March and deported to a notorious Salvadoran prison. Courts declared that deportation illegal because it violated a 2019 order from an immigration judge who barred the U.S. from sending him there due to potential persecution by a local gang. The Trump administration returned Abrego to the U.S. in June under court order. Federal prosecutors simultaneously charged him with human smuggling in Tennessee charges Abrego denies. The administration, in the meantime, has said it wants to deport Abrego again, this time to some other country. But Abregos lawyers argued during Fridays hearing that the administration is dragging its feet in those deportation efforts in order to keep Abrego in immigration jail and pressure him to plead guilty. The meager and unsuccessful deportation efforts could lead to Abrego being released from immigration detention within days, if U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis concludes the government hasnt shown its making a sincere and substantial effort to find a destination for Abrego. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Abrego told the administration in August that he would accept deportation to Costa Rica. One of his lawyers, Andrew Rossman, said Friday that the administrations scattershot attempts to identify African countries instead show that the administration is intent on refusing the Costa Rica offer. We now know they are 0 for 3. Three strikes and youre out. They have spun the globe and picked various places to fail on purpose by selecting places that would be completely unpalatable for Mr. Abrego, Rossman told Xinis. What weve been getting in this courtroom is a lot of run-around. The appearance that arrangements for Abregos deportation were being intentionally or unintentionally fumbled by the administration was underscored by the testimony of Immigration and Customs Enforcement official John Schultz, who said lower-level personnel at his agency erred by formally notifying Abrego Thursday that the U.S. government intended to send him to Ghana. I understand a notice was prematurely sent to Mr. Abrego Garcia, Schultz said. I believe the field office was just trying to get ahead of things so that, if Ghana did say yes, removal would be quicker. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Xinis held the daylong hearing in connection with a lawsuit Abrego filed seeking his release from immigration detention. She ordered the government to produce one or more witnesses Friday with first-hand knowledge about the administrations efforts to find a country to send Abrego to. Schultz did provide some new details about the Abrego deportation efforts. He said the State Department reported that officials in Eswatini, formerly known as Swaziland, said no initially when they were asked just this week to accept Abrego. But, he said, discussions are ongoing. I dont know if theres a rank structure on the next country if Eswatini doesnt work, Schultz said. Schultz also appeared to confirm the White Houses involvement in selecting countries Abrego might be sent to. He said an official at the Homeland Security Council, Matt Ochoa, told him that Uganda was a place the administration wanted to send Abrego to, but that eventually fell through. Justice Department attorneys cut short that questioning with an executive privilege claim. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement However, Schultz acknowledged hed had no significant involvement in the Abrego matter before this week and said he was entirely unaware of discussions about sending Abrego to Costa Rica. That irritated the judge, who complained that aspects of her order were ignored by the government. You come today with a witness who knows nothing about Costa Rica I mean, less than nothing, said Xinis, an Obama appointee. That seems to be in contravention of this order. Under a 2001 Supreme Court case, immigrants cant typically be detained for more than six months unless their deportation is reasonably foreseeable. Abregos lawyers and the government disagree about when that six-month clock started. His attorneys say it was back in 2019 when Abrego was ordered deported by an immigration judge, albeit with the caveat he could not be sent to El Salvador. The Justice Department contends the clock didnt begin running until August. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Rossman argued that the time Abrego spent in prison in El Salvador from March to June should count as immigration detention, but regardless of the calculation the government failed to show it was making sincere efforts to find a country to take Abrego. The attorney said the administration is holding him for political purposes and to avoid going back on Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noems vow that Abrego will never walk the streets of America again. During a separate court session Friday in Nashville, the judge presiding over Abregos criminal case set a hearing for Nov. 3 to take evidence and possibly testimony about whether the charges should be dismissed on the grounds that the Trump administration instituted them to lash back at Abrego for defeating the government in court over his illegal deportation. U.S. President Donald Trump with leaders from several Arab and Muslim-majority countries at the 80th session of the U.N.s General Assembly on Sept. 23, 2025 in New York City. Credit - Chip SomodevillaGetty Images Donald Trump has always believed the art of the deal could solve anything. It was his creed in business, then in politics: the conviction that every conflict, no matter how intractable, can be negotiated into submission. So when he set his sights on one of his trickiest second-term goalsending the war in Gaza between Israel and Hamashe didn't turn to diplomats or generals. He enlisted two men who spoke his language: Steve Witkoff, a fellow real-estate developer turned special envoy, and Jared Kushner, his son-in-law and the family's bridge to the Middle East. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After painstaking efforts, Witkoff and Kushner emerged with the framework of an accord that promises, at least for now, to quiet one of the world's most destabilizing conflicts. Under the agreement, accepted by both parties this week, Hamas will return all living hostagesbelieved to be around 20in exchange for roughly 250 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences and about 1,700 detainees from Gaza. The bodies of the dead hostages held by Hamas will follow. In return, Israel will allow a surge of humanitarian aid into the ravaged coastal enclave. A ceasefire has already taken effect, and Israeli forces have withdrawn from parts of Gaza. With a fragile but historic peace within sight, Trump is expected to travel to the region on Sunday night to see the agreement through, White House officials said. If all goes according to plan, the President will participate in a signing ceremony on Monday. The deal could become a signature achievement of Trump's second termfulfilling his campaign vow to stop a war that has killed tens of thousands, while returning Israeli captives to their families and beginning the arduous work of rebuilding Gaza. It could also mark a strategic turning point for the Middle East. Israel, already emerging from a year of history-bending military operationscrippling Hamas in Gaza, decapitating Hezbollah's command structure, and setting back Iran's nuclear programnow stands at the threshold of something larger. If the peace holds, the region could enter a new era defined less by conflict than by the possibility of transformation, including the rebuilding of a post-Hamas Gaza and the normalization of Israeli relations with Saudi Arabia. Such an outcome is far from certain. While Israel and Hamas have accepted the two-phase agreement, there remains the chance it could unravel. Even if the first phase holds, the thornier issues awaiting resolution in the secondthe scope of Israel's military withdrawal and future deployment, the structure of a peacekeeping force, the question of who governs Gaza, and the dismantling of Hamas's terror infrastructurecould cause the process to collapse. Read More: Israel Pulls Back Troops As Gaza Ceasefire Takes Effect. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement That uncertainty is why Witkoff and Kushner raced to Israel as soon as the pact was struck, and why Trump himself is slated to head there next, leaving Washington on Sunday night for meetings in Israel and Egypt on Monday. "The reason we're here in Israel is just to make sure the implementation occurs," a senior Administration official told reporters. For decades, Israelis and Arabs alike have insisted on having the U.S. in the room to help broker security guarantees and offer political cover when the two sides needed to take risks for peace. But in recent years, America has often stopped looking like the global hegemon and started looking like a shrinking superpower. President Joe Biden struggled to stop wars in Europe and the Middle East. Trump, for all his bluster, couldn't move Russian President Vladimir Putin on Ukraine, nor stop Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from escalating the war in Gaza. The breakthrough in recent days offers a chance to reassert America's ability to shape events beyond its borders. Ending a war that has caused extraordinary suffering would be a victory on its own. But it represents a measure of redemption for Trump, whose critics have accused him of abdicating Americas leadership role abroad with an America First posture that upended global alliances. Read More: Ehud Barak: This Is Trump's Achievement. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The turning point in the negotiations came in New York a few weeks ago, during the U.N. General Assembly. For Trump's envoys, the global forum was an opportunity to convene a conversation with allies and mediators. Witkoff, who has labored on Middle East diplomacy since January alongside Secretary of State Marco Rubio, persuaded Kushner to lend a hand. The Presidents son-in-law shaped Trump's first-term Middle East policy, proposing an Israeli-Palestinian peace plan rejected by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and brokering the Abraham Accords, which normalized Israel's ties with several Arab states. Trump has long wanted to expand on its diplomatic momentum, most importantly with Saudi Arabia. After consultations with Israeli officials, Qatari negotiators, and regional mediators, Witkoff and Kushner assembled a 20-point peace plan calling for a ceasefire and hostage exchange, Israeli security guarantees, the demilitarization of Gaza, and a new civilian governing authority. On the UNGA sidelines, they shared the plan with Arab leaders from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey. Taking in their reactions, they went back to work, harmonizing the feedback and, as one senior Trump official put it, "wordsmithing the document." Soon after, they brought the plan to Trump, who assembled a meeting of world leaders to present it. The gathering, which included a number of Muslim-majority countries from around the world, was historic, Rubio said during a Cabinet meeting Thursday. The groups reaction surprised even the Trump team: less resistance than expected. Witkoff, Rubio, and Kushner then streamlined the proposal to a two-phase structurefirst, a ceasefire and exchange of hostages and prisoners to stop the fighting; second, a framework for Gaza's future, including disarmament and a technocratic transitional government. Trump played a role of his own in applying pressure. I spoke a little bit tough, he told reporters Friday in the Oval Office. By this week, both Netanyahu and Hamas leadership had accepted the plan, with the Israeli cabinet voting Thursday to approve it. For Netanyahu, the agreement offers both relief and risk. The Prime Ministers critics, even within his coalition, have long accused him of prolonging the war for political survival. When the fighting ends his government could unravel, triggering snap elections and a reckoning over the security failures that led to the Oct. 7 massacre. While Netanyahus military gains over the past year have steadied his standing, the two-phase structure of the deal gives him a measure of cover, allowing him to argue that Israel must be vigilant in forcing Hamas to honor its commitments, and that he is the right leader to make sure that happens. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For now, Trump's team is taking a cautious victory lap. I think itll hold. They're all tired of the fighting, the President told reporters Friday. His team sees the deal as a start, not an ending. Much depends on whether Arab governments are willing to take ownership of Gazato manage it, rebuild it, and ensure Hamas or any similar terrorist group can't rise again. "The Arab countries made a lot of commitments," a senior Trump aide told reporters. "They're going to commit a lot of resources, and they've committed to seeing Hamas demilitarized. Then we have a kind of trust-and-verify withdrawal mechanism with the Israelis, so the more those goals are met, the closer we get to a full withdrawal because there's a lot of stability in Gaza." That's the aspiration, at least. The situation on the ground is volatile. The Trump team has few illusions about how precarious the peace remains. As the senior Administration official said: "There's still a lot of ways this can go wrong." With reporting by Brian Bennett and Nik Popli Contact us at letters@time.com. Benny Johnson, a Conservative influencer, was targeted in a plot mirroring the assassination of Charlie Kirk, Pam Bondi has said. The attorney general announced that George Isbell Jr has been arrested as part of the White Houses crackdown on Left-wing political violence. Mr Isbell was charged with posting threatening communications to the home of Mr Johnson and his wife, Kate, which allegedly outlined plans to orphan their children and described his head being blown off. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement On Friday, Ms Bondi said the alleged threats against the influential conservative activist were part of an Antifa plot to wreak havoc on the streets of our cities. She linked them to the killing of Kirk, who was shot dead during a talk at Utah Valley University in September. This arrest will serve as a reminder, we will find you, Ms Bondi said, drawing comparison to a recent attack on an ICE facility in Dallas, Texas, and an antisemitic attack against Josh Shapiro, Pennsylvanias Democrat governor, in April. She added: Benny is a well-known media personality carrying a message very similar to Charlies, grounded in faith and love of country. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The author of this letter made it very clear that he hated Benny because of his views and he wanted Benny dead. Pam Bondi announced an arrest had been made in connection to the threats Mr Johnson said the suspect targeted him because I was a white, cis, Christian, Trump supporter. They described in great detail how Id be killed in an open field just like Charlie, how much blood would come out of my head and neck when it was blown off, he said. This individual described orphaning my four beautiful children and widowing my wife, with great joy. An individual has been arrested for threatening to kill my wife, my four children, and me. He sent a letter to my home saying he hated our views and wanted us dead. He is being charged federally and faces prison time. I want to thank President Trump, AG Pam Bondi, and the pic.twitter.com/yRAw53QGOg Benny Johnson (@bennyjohnson) October 10, 2025 Authorities shared an image of the letter Mr Johnson was sent, in which he was accused of being part of a group of white racists and paedophiles. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Here is hoping the American flag strangles the life out of you, it read, before calling for his followers to be exterminated. It continued: Love to see your head explode and your blood stain the concrete red. What a sight! Democrats have mainstreamed violence Referring to Kirks assassination, the ICE centre shooting, and a gunman who opened fire at a Michigan church service in Minnesota, Mr Johnson blamed the recent spate of political violence on the Democrats. He said: If its happening every single week, is it that extreme, or have the Democrats mainstreamed violence as a political tool? Kirks alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, is said to have written anti-fascist messages on bullets left at the scene of the killing. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The gunman who killed two migrants in Texas wrote anti-ICE on his ammunition. Robin Westman, the Minnesota church shooter, who was transgender, wrote Jew gas on his weapon. In 2021, Mr Johnson moved to Florida from Washington, DC after an arsonist almost burnt down his home while his family were inside. Addressing the ordeal during an August visit to the White House, he said: My house was set ablaze in an arson [attack] with my infant child inside. No parent should have to go through what my family went through - having the fire department rip open their door to save their infant child. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. By Steve Holland and Michael Erman WASHINGTON (Reuters) -President Donald Trump unveiled a deal with UK-based drugmaker AstraZeneca on Friday under which the company will sell some medicines at a discount to the government's Medicaid health plan, similar to a drug pricing pact reached last week with Pfizer. The deals suggest a framework the White House will use to try to reach its goal of lowering U.S. prescription medicine prices. The president sent letters to 17 leading drugmakers in July telling them to slash prices. Pfizer and Astra are the first two companies to reach a deal with the administration. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement AstraZeneca will also offer some of its drugs at a discount from their list price through the TrumpRx website planned for next year, CEO Pascal Soriot said at an event in the Oval Office. U.S. patients currently pay by far the most for prescription medicines, often nearly three times more than in other developed nations, and Trump has been pressuring drugmakers to lower their prices to what patients pay elsewhere or face stiff tariffs. Last month, Trump threatened 100% tariffs, ratcheting up pressure on the pharmaceutical industry to agree to price cuts and shift manufacturing to the U.S., after negotiations broke down earlier this year, lobbyists and executives told Reuters following the Pfizer deal. (Reporting by Steve Holland in Washington and Michael Erman in New Jersey; Additional reporting by Jarrett Renshaw in Washington, Maggie Fick in London, Patrick Wingrove in New York and Mariam E Sunny in Bengaluru; Editing by Caroline Humer and Bill Berkrot) President Donald Trump on Friday teased a truly monumental change to Washington, D.C. The former real estate tycoon has already launched construction on a massive new White House ballroom and redecorated the Oval Office in gold, but floated yet another idea in a wordless social media post shared shortly after midnight a colossal new landmark. Politics: Naked Cyclists In Portland Send Donald Trump A Stripped-Bare Rebuke Trump shared an artists rendering on his Truth Social platform depicting a triumphal arch across from the Lincoln Memorial, which shows the nonexistent monument built on a roundabout known as Memorial Circle with an expectedly golden angel statue perched on top. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The rendering appeared to be from the architecture firm Harrison Design. Nicolas Leo Charbonneau, a partner and principal at the company, shared the same rendering back in September. A proposal for a triumphal arch in DC for #America250, in the traffic circle in front of Arlington National Cemetery, Charbonneau wrote at the time on X. America needs a triumphal arch! Trump has indeed been preparing, in his own unorthodox way, to mark the countrys 250th anniversary next year. Along with the posted landmark, plans already include a mixed-martial arts fight on the White House lawn in June 2026. Politics: Trump Takes Aim At Corrupt Adam Schiff As Next Target In His Political Retribution Tour The plans for the landmark were on his desk Thursday, as captured in a photo from AFP White House correspondent Danny Kemp, who posted on X: On Trumps desk in the Oval Office today was a plan for a triumphal arch on the other side of the river from the Lincoln Memorial. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The photo showed a large satellite map of the D.C. area in question strewn across the Resolute Desk, with a miniature model of the Lincoln Memorial and another model of the proposed arch sitting across the Potomac River placed atop the printed map. A larger model of the arch mock-up (right), with one to apparent scale (left), on Trump's desk. Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images Justin Shubow, president of the National Civic Art Society, pitched the idea to Trump earlier this year, according to two people who spoke to The Washington Post on the condition of anonymity. Trump is reportedly eager to have the arch completed by 2026. Whether this will actually happen remains to be seen, though the president certainly seems to be taking the project seriously. On Tuesday, he was shown presenting the arch mock-up to Canadian officials including the countrys prime minister, Mark Carney. Related... Read the original on HuffPost President Donald Trump celebrated Italians after he signed a proclamation for Columbus Day 2025. Columbus Day were back, Italians," Trump said at the White House Oct. 9. "We love the Italians. At the surface level, Columbus Day honors the explorer Christopher Columbus. But the holiday has notable connections to the Italian American experience in 19th-century America. Columbus Day became a federal holiday in 1892 in the United States, in part, to honor Italian Americans after a xenophobic attack. When is Columbus Day 2025? The United States will celebrate Columbus Day on Oct. 13, 2025. The American government continues to honor Columbus Day on the second Monday in October. What is Columbus Day? Columbus Day's roots in Italian American history President Benjamin Harrison proclaimed Oct. 21, 1892, the first national Columbus Day to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Columbus' exploration of America. Columbus landed in the Bahamas in 1492 and explored the Caribbean and South America in future voyages. Harrison intended the holiday to be a one-time celebration. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For the president, Columbus Day was an opportunity to resolve a diplomatic crisis with Italy and gain favor with Italian American voters after rioters in New Orleans lynched 11 Italian Americans the year prior. The attack occurred after a police chief in New Orleans was killed by four men near his home. It was thought the chief had blamed the attack on Italian immigrants in his dying words, according to the BBC. Several Italian American men were put on trial and found not guilty for lack of evidence, according to the Library of Congress. A large mob then stormed the jail and dragged out 11 Italian Americans and killed them, including two men jailed on other offenses. People watch the 70th annual Columbus Day Parade in New York, Oct. 13, 2014. The attack infuriated Italy and Italians, who were upset that the United States didn't hold accountable those involved in the mob. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Many communities were already planning to celebrate the 400th anniversary of Italian-born Columbus's arrival in the Americas. So, Harrison issued a proclamation to make the anniversary a national holiday as a means to placate tensions. When did Columbus Day become a permanent national holiday? Columbus Day became a permanent national holiday in 1934. Congress authorized President Franklin D. Roosevelt to declare the holiday after lobbying by the Knights of Columbus, according to the Washington Post. The designated date was Oct. 12. In 1971, the holiday was made a federal holiday on the second Monday in October. Is Columbus Day controversial? Columbus Day has come under fire due to Columbus' legacy and brutal treatment of the indigenous people who lived in the Americas. He and his men enslaved the indigenous people, according to History.com. Critics say Columbus embodied colonialism. According to the Natural Resources Conservation Service, "During the colonialism era, human values were at an all-time low and class stratification led to a hierarchical oppression that is bewildering to us today." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement USA TODAY reporter Zac Anderson and Memphis Commercial Appeal reporter Jordan Green contributed to this report. This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What is Columbus Day? Holiday is rooted in Italian American heritage (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) Secretary of War Pete Hegseth sent out a clarification after major MAGA backlash over news that the U.S. will host a Qatari air force facility on U.S. soil. Today, were announcing a letter of acceptance in building a Qatari Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho, Hegseth announced Friday while sitting alongside Qatars Minister of Defense Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After outcry from MAGA supporters, Hegseth posted an important clarification to X, writing, The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including todays announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United Statesnor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners. Important clarification: The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including todays announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United Statesnor anything like a base. We control the existing base, Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) October 10, 2025 Even after the clarification, MAGA influencer Laura Loomer called the facility, a threat to our national security due to Qatars ties to Hamas and Iran. On Friday, Loomer seemingly handed in her MAGA badge, writing, Never thought Id see Republicans give terror financing Muslims from Qatar a MILITARY BASE on US soil so they can murder Americans. I dont think Ill be voting in 2026. I cannot in good conscience make any excuses for the harboring of jihadis. This is where I draw the line. Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon also told Newsweek there should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The MAGA-friendly Idaho Freedom Foundation unequivocally condemned the action. To unilaterally decide that Idaho will host a foreign nations Air Force facility, which would house and train foreign nationals whose loyalties dont align with our own national and state interests, is a completely unacceptable overreach, they said. In September, President Donald Trump signed an executive order committing the U.S. to defend Qatar in the event of an attack, and pushed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to apologize to the Kingdom for a missile strike that killed a serviceman. Earlier this year the Qatari royal family gifted Trump a $400 million luxury jet that for his official use that Trump claimed would later be donated to his presidential library. The post Trump War Chief Hegseth Pushes Back After MAGA Backlash To Foreign Base first appeared on Mediaite. Holding up a sign with an image depicting the U.S. President Donald Trump a woman takes part in a rally in support of hostages kidnapped by Hamas at a plaza known as hostages square, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, ahead of the expected release of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip. Credit - Francisco SecoAP Praise for what President Donald Trump accomplished in Gaza is coming from more than heads of state who have to worry about his feelings. Hamas, for instance. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The militant Palestinian group sparked the war by killing 1,200 people inside Israel and kidnapping 250 more on Oct. 7, 2023. But it credits the floridly pro-Israel U.S. President with coercingwith maximum pressure, in the words of a senior White House official Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into accepting the ceasefire, which went into effect Friday. Without the personal interference of President Trump in this case, I dont think that it would have happened, to have reached the end of the war, Dr. Basem Naim, a physician and senior Hamas official, told Sky News.Therefore, yes, we thank President Trump and his personal efforts to interfere and to pressure Netanyahu to bring an end to this massacre and slaughtering. Read more: How the Trump Administration Sealed the Gaza Ceasefire Deal Five years after the Abraham Accordshistoric agreements normalizing relations between Israel and several Arab statesmarked the signal diplomatic achievement of his first term, Trump was once again basking in acclaim for getting something unexpected done in Middle East diplomacy. Whiffs of bipartisanship rose from Capitol Hill. Sen. Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut termed the prospect of a ceasefire monumental, and acknowledged Trumps role in it. Trumps triumph is plain enough: Guns fell silent in a war that was sparked by the deaths of 1,200 people in Israel and over the next two years claimed the lives of 70,000 Palestinians (only 8,900 of them are named Hamas fighters, according to reports of data assembled by the Israel Defense Forces through May). Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But then, the deal front-loaded good feelings. Phase One of the multi-phased agreementthe only part signed so far by Hamas and Israelrequires the exchange of Israeli hostages for jailed Palestinians, and for Israeli forces to pull back their perimeter. Skeptics focus on what has not yet been hammered outincluding the crucial details of how Gaza will be governed, and the broader question of whether, even with outsider monitors that include U.S. officers, Israel can be restrained from resuming military action once it has its hostages back. But analysts are taking Trumps push seriously, parsing the presidents 20-point plan while struggling to get their arms around an approach that departs so dramatically from how the world has thought about the troubled Middle East. For 30 years, the solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestinians was thought to be the Oslo Accords, the 1993 agreements meant to produce a Palestinian state on the West Bank and Gaza, territory that Israel had conquered in 1967 and militarily occupied since. But Oslo was no match for Palestinian militancy and Israeli territorial ambitions; the West Bank is now home to more than 500,000 Jewish settlers. In time, negotiations nominally aimed at producing a Palestinian state became a shibboleth that gave Israel room to manage the conflict. That policy was among the casualties of Oct. 7, 2023. Diplomacy appeared to be anotherand not just in the metaphorical sense. After pulverizing Gaza so relentlessly that a country founded in the shadow of the Holocaust was judged by experts as complicit in genocide, Israels military and intelligence apparatus also struck out elsewhereLebanon, Yemen, Iran, Syria. Many of the attacks were in self-defense, but on Sept. 9, Israeli missiles struck a complex in Qatar, the Persian Gulf kingdom that had been acting as mediator between Israel and Hamas, and also a key American ally, hosting a huge U.S. air base. The target was Hamas chief negotiator on ending the Gaza war. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Yet the attack would provide the impetus for the peace pact. Trump, who has an affinity for the wealthy Gulf kingdoms, was also put out by the attack on a state nominally under U.S. protection. When Netanyahu visited the Oval Office, his host forced him to apologize to Qatars prime minister by phone as everyone looked on. Hamas officials later said the spectacle, along with Trumps earlier vociferous enforcement of a cease-fire between Iran and Israel, encouraged them to trust his vows that the peace pact would be enforced. "Though theatrical, he does what he says," Reuters quoted an unnamed Hamas official as saying. The Nobel committee may have been unmoved. But on MSNBC, a guest panel assayed Trumps remarkable successa segment that, in polarized America, Fox News Channel recognized as a kind of news in itself, and covered on its website. Contact us at letters@time.com. By Andrea Shalal DEARBORN, Michigan (Reuters) -Lifelong Democrat Samra'a Luqman became a vocal backer of Donald Trump in 2024, helping to rally support for him among the pivotal Arab American community in Dearborn, Michigan, in the hope that he could end the Gaza war. Now, after Trump helped to broker a ceasefire deal, Luqman feels thrilled and a bit vindicated after months of backlash from neighbors angry over Trump's support for Israel. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "It's almost an 'I told you so moment,'" said Luqman, who is Yemeni American. "No other president would have been able to force Bibi to approve the ceasefire," she said, referring to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Luqman and other Arab American Trump supporters who spoke to Reuters expressed guarded optimism about the recently announced agreement, but said they worried that Israel could violate the ceasefire, as it has done in the past in Gaza and Lebanon. "We're all holding our breath," said Mike Hacham, a Lebanese American political consultant and Dearborn resident who campaigned hard for Trump in 2024. "I gotta give credit where credit is due ... but this isn't a peace deal. It's just the end of a bloody war and those lives that were lost on the Israeli side and the Palestinian side aren't going to be brought back." GUARDED OPTIMISM OVER GAZA BUT MISTRUST OF ISRAEL Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Israeli airstrikes in Qatar and other Arab nations in recent months fueled deep mistrust of Israel among Michigan's more than 300,000 people of Arab heritage. But the agreement is the biggest step yet to end two years of war that Palestinian health authorities have said killed more than 67,000 people in Gaza. In addition to a ceasefire, the deal calls for releasing the last 20 of 250 hostages seized by Hamas when it started the war with the October 7, 2023, attacks that killed more than 1,200 people, according to the Israeli government. It comes after months of deepening frustration among Arab Americans over what they see as Trump's failure to rein in Netanyahu and end the war. Trump's renewed ban on travel from several majority-Muslim countries and crackdowns on freedom of speech targeting pro-Palestinian protesters have also unnerved many, according to more than a dozen Arab American voters who backed Trump in Michigan last year and spoke to Reuters in recent weeks. Many of those interviewed also felt disappointed that their community's support thousands of votes that helped to push Trump to victory in Michigan did not translate into more senior high-profile posts for Arab Americans and Muslims in his administration. It remains unclear whether the ceasefire deal will sway skeptical voters as Trump's Republicans face competitive congressional and gubernatorial elections in Michigan next year, as well as the 2028 presidential election. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Hacham said Trump would be hailed as a "champion of peace" after brokering the Gaza ceasefire, but added that Arab American voters could turn against him and other Republicans if it fails. "We are willing to abandon the Republicans and move back to the Democrats," Hacham said. "We've shown Donald Trump that we have the power to swing whichever way we want." ANGER OVER GAZA FUELED SWITCH TO TRUMP Trump won Michigan by more than 80,000 votes in 2024, reversing his 154,000-count loss to Democrat Joe Biden in 2020. An October 2024 Arab American Institute poll had shown Trump favored by 42% of Arab Americans nationwide versus 41% for Kamala Harris down 18 percentage points from Biden's share in 2020. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In addition to anger over the Gaza war, Trump's 2024 campaign tapped into concerns raised by some conservative community members about Democrats' defense of transgender rights, Luqman said. She expected those voters probably would stick with Republicans. But a larger group of Arab Americans voted for Trump in 2024 "out of spite" at Democrats, and their continued support for the Republican Party likely depends on what happens with Gaza, Luqman said. "I don't think they've found their political home with the Republicans just yet," she said, adding that Trump's pressure on Netanyahu could "solidify support for JD Vance in the next election and for the midterms for any Republicans that run." Imam Belal Alzuhairi joined Trump on stage in Michigan just days before the 2024 election, alongside 22 other clerics, convinced that he offered the best chance for peace, but he said many Yemeni Americans later grew disenchanted after Trump reimposed a travel ban on many Muslim countries. "Now, a lot of people are very upset. They are fearing for themselves and their families. There's a mistrust after the travel ban," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After facing personal backlash for his endorsement, the Yemeni American cleric says he is pulling out of "soul-consuming" politics to focus on religion and his family. TRUMP ADMINISTRATION MOVES TO TAMP DOWN FRUSTRATION Special envoy Richard Grenell, a Michigan native tapped by Trump to lead his outreach to Arab American and Muslim voters, returned to the Detroit area last month for his first in-person meetings with community leaders since November. His mission? To tamp down the mounting frustration and prevent Arab Americans from swinging to the Democratic Party, as they did after Republican President George W. Bush's invasion of Iraq in 2003. Alzuhairi, Luqman and a dozen others grilled Grenell at a coffeehouse in Dearborn over the travel ban and U.S. arms sales to Israel. At a separate session, he was asked why the administration is not doing more to help Christians in Iraq. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Grenell, former acting director of intelligence during Trump's first term, told Reuters the dialogue was important. "I continue to believe that the Arab and Muslim communities in Michigan are the key to winning the state," Grenell said. "I know these leaders well and they want and deserve access to political decision makers." Although Grenell faced tough questions from Arab American leaders during four events in the Detroit area, he said he would remain closely engaged, and emphasized Trump's commitment to peace around the world. "You can't show up right before an election and expect to be a credible voice for any community," he told Reuters. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Ali Aljahmi, a 20-year-old Yemeni American who helped to galvanize young Arab Americans for Trump with a video viewed nearly 1 million times on X, credited him for coming to Dearborn twice during the 2024 campaign. But it's too soon to predict the next election, said Aljahmi, whose family operates four restaurants in the Detroit area. "Trump promised a lot," he said. "Okay, you came and showed your face, but I still think it's a mixture. Three years from now, we'll see what they're doing." (Reporting by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Sergio Non and Edmund Klamann) LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Keir Starmer will travel to Egypt to attend the Sharm El Sheikh Peace Summit, where leaders are expected to sign a U.S.-brokered peace agreement aimed at ending the conflict in Gaza, his office said on Saturday. The first phase of the plan is set to begin with the release of hostages and Palestinian prisoners by Monday, marking what Britain called a "historic turning point" after two years of war. The British leader would pay tribute to the role of U.S. President Donald Trump and the diplomatic efforts of Egypt, Qatar and Turkey in brokering the deal, his office said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement He is expected to call for continued international coordination to implement the next phase, which includes deploying a ceasefire monitoring mission and establishing transitional governance in Gaza. Starmer will reiterate Britain's "steadfast support" to help secure the ceasefire and deliver humanitarian aid. (Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Alex Richardson) Ukraine and Japan have synchronised sanctions against the Russian Federation. The list includes leaders and companies that work for the Russian military machine, supply weapons, etc. Source: Zelenskyy on Telegram Quote from Zelenskyy: "We are coordinating with our partners on specific issues. We appreciate that our partners are taking Ukraine's proposals on sanctions into account when preparing their own packages. And we will definitely implement our partners' sanctions in the Ukrainian jurisdiction." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Details: He noted that sanctions against Russia for this war "have already become a global form of interaction that restores the real power of justice". Russia is feeling the effects of the world's sanctions. "We have synchronised sanctions with Japan I have signed the relevant decree. The sanctions list includes leaders and companies that supply the Russian military machine with weapons, critical components and equipment," Zelenskyy emphasised. He said that since June this year, Ukraine has adopted eight sanction packages and synchronised sanctions with the US, Canada, the UK, Japan and all EU sanction packages. "[We've sanctioned] a total of 281 individuals and 633 legal entities, and these are significant individuals. We are also working to ensure that new sanctions are imposed, in particular, we are counting on the 19th package of EU sanctions," Zelenskyy said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Background: Earlier it was reported that Japan would provide a loan of more than US$3 billion under the G7 ERA initiative. It will be backed by frozen Russian assets. Ukrainian Finance Minister Serhii Marchenko and Japanese Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Ukraine Masashi Nakagome signed an agreement to provide Ukraine with a loan of up to 471.9 billion Japanese yen (about US$3 billion). The Australian government has imposed targeted sanctions on 60 vessels linked to Russia's shadow fleet. Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon! In this week's air travel news, United Airlines said it will start flying to some unexpected new transatlantic cities next summer, and will revive seasonal routes to the unlikely destinations it added this year; Los Angeles could get nonstop flights to Egypt next spring; Southwest Airlines plans to add Alaska to its route map in May, and increase service on intra-California routes; new California routes are starting up in Santa Maria, Orange County and Burbank; U.S. flight delays increase as the government shutdown continues; American Airlines removes carry-on bag sizers from gate areas; consumer protection rules for airline passengers face new challenges; Frontier Airlines implements new boarding procedures; Spirit Airlines expects to remove more than half the aircraft in its fleet. United Airlines has revealed details of its international schedule for next summer, including plans to add some offbeat destinations across the Atlantic. Most of the new routes will operate nonstop from the airline's hub at Newark Liberty International Airport. On April 30, United plans to launch three flights a week from Newark to Split, Croatia, located northwest of Dubrovnik along the Adriatic Sea coast. Across the Adriatic, the airline plans to begin service from Newark to Bari in southern Italy's Puglia region on May 1 with four weekly flights. May 8 is the scheduled launch date for daily flights from Newark to Glasgow, Scotland. And on May 22, United plans to start flying from Newark to Santiago de Compostela in the northwest corner of Spain - its sixth destination in that country - three days a week. On May 21, United plans to supplement its existing service to Reykjavik, Iceland, from Newark and Chicago with new daily flights from Washington Dulles. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Elsewhere, United said it will introduce nonstop service from Newark to Seoul, South Korea, on Sept. 4 with daily 787-9 departures, adding to its existing twice-daily San Francisco-Seoul flights. And on March 28, the airline plans to add a third flight four days a week from Newark to Tel Aviv, Israel, a destination it also serves from Chicago and Washington Dulles. United's addition of new routes to smaller destinations in Europe follows a similar international expansion by the carrier in 2025, and United said it plans to resume summer seasonal service on all those routes, including Tokyo Narita to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, starting April 30; Newark to Nuuk, Greenland, on June 6; Newark to Palermo, Italy, on May 22; Newark to Bilbao, Spain, on May 30; and Newark to Faro and Madeira Island, Portugal, on May 15 and 16. BEST OF SFGATE History | Why a wealthy banker blasted a huge hole in a Bay Area cliff Local | There's a mansion hidden directly under the Bay Bridge Culture | Inside the Bay Area's cult-like obsession with Beanie Babies Local | The world's last lost tourist thought Maine was San Francisco Get SFGATE's top stories sent to your inbox by signing up for The Daily newsletter here. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In other international route news, Aviation Week reports that EgyptAir has asked the U.S. Transportation Department for permission to begin nonstop service from Cairo to Los Angeles International Airport and to Chicago O'Hare, starting in May and June 2026 respectively. The Egyptian carrier already flies to New York JFK, Washington Dulles and Newark. EgyptAir is a member of United's global Star Alliance. Air France is changing its Denver-Paris CDG service from year-round to summer seasonal and plans to suspend the route from Oct. 13 through April 27. On the domestic side, Southwest Airlines said that Alaska will become the 43rd U.S. state in its network next year when the carrier launches service to Anchorage. The airline provided no details, but according to the Anchorage Daily News, Southwest Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson said Southwest will offer daily Anchorage flights from Denver and Las Vegas starting in May, and that it hasn't decided yet whether they will operate seasonally or year-round. Meanwhile, other outlets in Alaska report that American Airlines will introduce seasonal daily service between Anchorage and its Phoenix hub from May 21 through Sept. 8. Southwest also said this week that it plans to increase its intra-California schedules on peak days next summer, boosting San Francisco-Los Angeles frequencies from four a day to six, San Jose-LAX from six a day to seven, and Sacramento-LAX from five a day to six. On Oct. 15, American plans to begin new year-round service between Santa Maria, California, and its Phoenix hub, operating two daily CRJ900 regional jet flights. JSX, the small-jet public charter operator, plans to begin year-round service Jan. 8 from Southern California's Orange County Airport in Santa Ana to Colorado's Centennial Airport just southeast of Denver, with a daily flight four days a week, according to Airline Geeks. But it plans to discontinue Hollywood Burbank-Centennial flights on Jan. 5. Starting Dec. 4, Frontier Airlines plans to revive Burbank-Las Vegas service with two flights a week. For a third straight day, as a plane takes off at San Francisco International Airport on Oct. 8, 2025, flight delays were seen across the country as the Federal Aviation Administration experienced continued air traffic control staffing shortages linked to the government shutdown. (Justin Sullivan/Getty Images) As the federal government shutdown continues with no end in sight, the impact on air travel grows. Air traffic controllers and Transportation Security Administration officers are expected to remain on the job even though they won't receive paychecks until Congress resolves the impasse. During the 2018-2019 shutdown, unpaid air traffic controllers started calling in sick or just not showing up after several days, and apparently the same thing is happening again. TSA has a more flexible workforce, so officers who don't report can more easily be replaced, but the same is not true of air traffic controllers. The Federal Aviation Administration was already suffering from a shortage of controllers, and a significant number of new absences is leading to flight delays across the nation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement According to FlightAware.com, there were nearly 20,000 U.S. flight delays from Monday (Oct. 6) through Thursday afternoon (Oct. 9), although not all of them were caused by a lack of staffing in control towers. The airports with the biggest staffing problems varied from day to day, but flight delays aren't limited to specific airports. Once an aircraft is delayed on one segment, its departures on subsequent flight segments that day will likely go out late as well. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said on CNN that from January through September, about 5% of U.S. flight delays could be attributed to staff shortages in control towers, but this week that rose to 53%. He noted that the specific airports affected by controller shortages, and how long they last, can't be predicted. "There's no rhyme or reason to what's happening with these controllers, but the truth is, we need to open up the government again," Duffy said. There were also concerns that scores of smaller airports could lose all commercial service this weekend because that's when the federal government's Essential Air Service program - which subsidizes airlines to keep flying to destinations that might otherwise be unprofitable - was due to run out of funds. But Duffy announced on Thursday that the Transportation Department had secured another $41 million to keep the subsidies in place at least through early November. Airlines' bag sizers are seen at Krakow Airport in Balice, Poland, on July 25, 2025. (NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images) American Airlines this week removed those carry-on bag sizers from gate areas in its airports, as first reported by View from the Wing's Gary Leff, and instead will allow gate agents to use their own judgment in deciding if a bag is too big. Leff said that according to an internal AA memo, gate agents will be urged to "err on the side of the customer" in sizing up a bag. He notes that American will still have bag sizers in airport lobbies and suggests that worried passengers should measure their carry-on there to see if it's small enough to meet the airline's size limit. "If it's not, you can check it in (of course at the gate you might not be charged to check it, especially once they start asking for volunteers to gate check bags)," Leff said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement United Airlines appears to be the first major carrier to start supporting the enhanced boarding pass features in the Apple Wallet app, now that Apple has rolled out iOS26. According to 9to5mac.com, a site that tracks Apple developments, the enhanced boarding pass feature allows users to track their flight with a Live Activity, call up a map of their airport, and keep track of their checked luggage with Apple's Find My app. Users reportedly have to click on a button in the Wallet app if they want to add the flight tracking feature to their lock screen. The 9to5mac.com report notes that some other major carriers, including American, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest, have also pledged to support the new boarding pass features in Apple Wallet but haven't started yet. The assault on airline passenger consumer protections continues under the Trump administration. Last month, the Transportation Department said it was withdrawing a proposed rule introduced in the last days of the Biden administration that would have required airlines to pay compensation of $200 or more to passengers when they endured lengthy flight delays that were under the airline's control. More recently, DOT said it will not enforce a Biden administration rule that protects the rights of the nation's 5.5 million wheelchair users when they fly. That rule would have required airlines to reimburse travelers if their wheelchair is damaged, delayed or lost during a trip, and to give wheelchair passengers written notification of their rights. Now a new consumer protection challenge is coming in the courts. Reuters reports that the full 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans - which includes 17 judges - will reconsider a decision earlier this year by a three-judge panel in a case about mandatory fee disclosures by airlines. In April 2024, DOT ordered that airlines disclose up front all optional ancillary fees that they charge customers before a booking is made - a rule that was quickly challenged by the airline industry, which argued that DOT had no statutory authority to issue such a rule. The rule was put on hold pending litigation, and early this year, the three-judge appeals court panel ruled that DOT did have the authority to impose the rule since it addressed "unfair or deceptive practices" by the airlines, but that it should have considered airline comments on a study addressing the potential impact of the rule. The appeals court panel sent the matter back to DOT for reconsideration, but now the full 5th Circuit court could decide that the agency overstepped its regulatory bounds. The court set no date for when it might take up the case. A Frontier Airlines Airbus A321 airplane taxis at Los Angeles International Airport on March 30, 2025. (Kevin Carter/Getty Images) Frontier Airlines has overhauled its boarding procedure effective immediately, increasing the number of boarding groups from four to seven (plus pre-boarding). Under the new system, pre-boarding will be available to customers with disabilities, active-duty military, Frontier Miles Elite Diamond members, and families with children under age 2. Group 1 boarding is offered to Frontier Miles Elite Platinum and Gold members and those who purchased Business or Premium fare bundles or who paid for Board First privileges. Passengers in boarding Group 2 include loyalty plan members who bought an Economy Bundle or a carry-on bag, while Group 3 is for all other customers who bought an Economy Bundle or a carry-on bag. Those boarding in Group 4 include Frontier Miles Elite Silver members, Frontier World Mastercard holders, customers who purchased priority boarding, and those assigned Premium or exit row seats. All other loyalty members board in Group 5, while Basic Fare customers sitting in the rear half of the cabin are in Group 6 and those in the front half constitute Group 7. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Apparently Spirit Airlines canceling the leases on 27 of its Airbus jets was only the beginning of a much larger downsizing for the troubled carrier. According to CNBC, Spirit's chief financial officer told creditors that the company is planning to cancel leases on another 87 aircraft, reducing the total size of the Spirit fleet by almost 50%. Spirit currently has 214 Airbus jets in its fleet. The plan is subject to bankruptcy court approval as Spirit goes through its second Chapter 11 reorganization in a year. The airline is laying off hundreds of pilots and flight attendants and expects to slash its operations by about 25% next month. This month, Spirit dropped 11 airports from its route map, including four in California - Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento and San Diego. It had no service at SFO. There's an old saying in the airline industry that "you can't shrink your way to profitability," but apparently Spirit will try to prove that you can. More Travel - 'Unprecedented': Trump order stuns pilot at SFO - Calif. theme park abruptly ends its 2025 season, angering fans - Once a quiet getaway for rich hippies, this Calif. town is booming - Teen arrested on suspicion of Vegas Strip attack that cost $100M For more travel news and features, sign up for our TravelSkills newsletter here. This article originally published at United Airlines adds unlikely European destinations to its 2026 summer schedule. Some packages sent to the US from abroad are getting held up at UPS facilities for weeks. New rules on imports led several international carriers to suspend higher-value shipments to the US. Now, unexpected information and fees are required to complete some shipments. UPS customers are finding their shipments stuck in package purgatory. Some customers of the shipping service say that packages sent to the US from abroad are getting held up at the carrier's facilities for weeks and, in some cases, are being subjected to higher-than-expected tariffs and customs brokerage fees, according to tracking information. Eight people whom Business Insider spoke to said that they received updates indicating they might never get their packages at all. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "The package is undeliverable and is in the process of being disposed of according to the local guidelines," reads one tracking update sent to several UPS customers Business Insider spoke with and posted widely on a subreddit for UPS users. For many of these UPS customers, the delayed packages marked their first encounter with international shipping in the era of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump's administration this year. At the end of August, the Trump administration ended the de minimis exemption, which allowed foreign imports worth less than $800 to enter the US without being subject to tariffs. Personal gifts worth less than $100 are still allowed through, but the complexity of the new rules led several international carriers to suspend higher-value shipments to the US. A UPS spokesperson said the company was seeing "a significant increase" in the number of shipments that require formal customs clearance. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement For some UPS customers, the changes have meant that additional information or payments are required to complete certain shipments. Kunal Sharma, an auto parts business owner in Canada, said he sent four car wheels, each in a separate box, to a customer in Texas in late August. He forgot to include the tariff codes for the wheels with the shipment information. UPS sent three of the four wheels back to him. The fourth still hasn't shown up, he said. Last week, its tracking page said the shipment was being disposed of, though it's since moved between UPS facilities in Ontario, Michigan, and Tennessee. "An entire set of wheels is worthless if one of them is missing," he said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement After Sharma emailed UPS CEO Carol Tome about the fourth wheel, a UPS customer relations employee apologized for the problem, in a message viewed by Business Insider. On Thursday, tracking indicated that the wheel was on its way to his customer in Texas. Sharma has started using FedEx to ship orders to his US customers. "Because of changes to US import regulations, we are seeing many packages that are unable to clear customs due to missing or incomplete information about the shipment required for customs clearance," a UPS spokesperson told Business Insider. The spokesperson said that "more than 90% of all imported packages" that move through UPS's network clear customs the first day that they arrive in the US. For packages that don't have complete customs information and when UPS cannot contact the shipper, the company either returns the package to the sender at their expense or disposes of it "consistent with US customs regulations." The spokesperson did not provide details on how the disposal process works. David Ordal, who lives in California's Bay Area, shared tracking information for his order of an annual supply of French sunscreen, which has been languishing for a month in Louisville, Kentucky. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "It's still not out of purgatory," he said. UPS customers receiving shipments are also getting hit with unexpected costs or delays Katie Golden, who resells vintage clothing on Depop, told Business Insider that she ordered $179 worth of used apparel from the UK. The package left that country and made its way to UPS's facility in Louisville, Kentucky, according to a screenshot of UPS tracking information seen by Business Insider. UPS notified her that she had to pay $769 in import fees, including tariffs, as well as a UPS broker fee. At over four times the cost of her order, that's more than she was expecting to pay for used clothes, she said. Golden is currently trying to dispute that tariff amount with UPS. In the meantime, she said she's worried about her shipment being disposed of. "I'm going to keep bothering UPS," she said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement And it's not just tariffs. Recent changes to the Food and Drug Administration's review process for imports could also be causing issues. A consultant in Los Angeles who is starting a coffee business told Business Insider she received two out of 12 boxes of inventory from Taiwan and was notified that the remaining 10 would be marked as abandoned and disposed of. She requested her name be withheld out of concern for her privacy. A tracking information page for one of 12 packages of coffee sent from Taiwan. The tracking number and US city have been redacted. UPS In a recording of a call with UPS that the customer provided to Business Insider, an agent tells her that the FDA and Border Protection "decided to approve only a percentage of the shipment." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "They are getting very strict now," the UPS agent said, adding that they had received about 10 calls from other customers about similar issues. Heather Elliott, who lives in Virginia, told Business Insider she ordered about $750 worth of French cosmetics in July, and was charged $165 when the shipment was processed at a UPS facility in Philadelphia. She paid that bill only to receive a second charge for roughly $289. In an email exchange shared with Business Insider, UPS representatives itemized the charges as "PGA disclaimer ($25), disbursement fee ($14), entry line charge ($45), and FDA processing ($111)," as well as a duty of $94. Elliott's package was delivered, and UPS later refunded the initial $165 payment. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement She said she has since ordered several shipments from a Korean retailer that have arrived via FedEx without any issues. A FedEx receipt Elliott shared with Business Insider shows a $180 order of personal care items that received a $27 duty charge and a $27.50 FDA clearance fee. Some UPS customers are turning to other delivery companies Alex Castellani, cofounder of Toronto-based coffee roaster Subtext, said that many of his shipments to the US since late August have sat for weeks at UPS facilities in Buffalo, New York, and Detroit, according to tracking information. That, plus higher-than-expected tariffs and broker fees, prompted him to switch to DHL for his US-bound shipments to cafes and individual consumers. "They're now paying more in brokerage and tariffs than the entire value of their package," Castellani told Business Insider. UPS has made changes this year in response to the Trump Administration's tariff policies. In April, the shipping service said that it would cut 20,000 jobs and shutter dozens of facilities in response to what CEO Tome called "a changing trade environment." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Last week, UPS suspended its service guarantee for international shipments and many within the US. The guarantee allowed customers to get a refund if their package arrived later than UPS projected. Some recipients say UPS has items that can't be easily replaced. Nicole Lobo, a graduate student in Philadelphia, said that she shipped 10 boxes of personal possessions, including clothing that belonged to her grandfather and rare books on art history, using UPS after a year studying in the UK. Lobo shipped the boxes from the UK in late August but hadn't received them when Business Insider spoke with her on Thursday. "It's my life's work," she said. "I'm probably one of only a few people in the world who have this sort of library." Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The LA consultant said this is her second time launching a business that depends on imports, though it is her first time dealing with food. Now, she says she's not sure if there's a path forward if other carriers have the same problems as UPS. "It impacts my decision whether or not to continue my business," she said. Do you work at UPS? Are you affected by international shipping issues? Reach out to these reporters via email abitter@businessinsider.com and dreuter@businessinsider.com or by phone or Signal at 646.768.4750. Read the original article on Business Insider UNITED NATIONS (AP) The United States clashed with Venezuela and its allies at an emergency meeting of the U.N. Security Council on Friday, with the Trump administration vowing to use its full might to eradicate drug cartels and the Maduro government saying it anticipates an armed attack. Venezuela asked for the meeting of the U.N.s most powerful body following deadly U.S. military strikes on four boats that Washington says were carrying drugs. Venezuela accused U.S. President Donald Trump of seeking to topple President Nicolas Maduro and threatening peace, security and stability regionally and internationally. The Trump administration has said three of the targeted boats set out to sea from Venezuela. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The strikes, which the U.S. said killed 21 people, followed a buildup of U.S. maritime forces in the Caribbean unlike any seen in recent times. The belligerent action and rhetoric of the U.S. government objectively point to the fact that we are facing a situation in which it is rational to anticipate that in the very short term, an armed attack is to be perpetrated against Venezuela, Venezuelas U.N. Ambassador Samuel Moncada said. While Venezuela got support from allies Russia and China, the rest of the 15-member council was cautious, calling for a de-escalation and adherence to the U.N. Charter, which requires all 193 member nations to respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all other countries and to settle disputes peacefully. Neither U.S. Ambassador Mike Waltz nor his deputy attended the meeting, leaving Political Counselor John Kelley to deliver the Trump administrations justification for the strikes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement President Trump has been very clear that he is going to use the full power of America, and the full might of the United States, to take on and eradicate these drug cartels, no matter where theyre operating from and no matter now long they have been able to act with impunity, Kelley said. He said the cartels are armed, well-organized and violent, and the United States has reached a point where we must use force in self-defense and defense of others. Trump has declared that the U.S. is in a non-international armed conflict with the cartels and his administration has said the military operations against them are consistent with the right to self-defense in the U.N. Charter. Kelley stressed that the United States does not recognize Maduro or his government, repeating Trump's claim that Maduro is a narcoterrorist. Maduro and the government have denied the accusation. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Moncada called on the council to determine the existence of a threat to international peace and security due to the U.S. military escalation, to adopt measures to avoid the worsening of the situation, and to approve a resolution in which all members, including the U.S., commit to respecting Venezuelas sovereignty and territorial integrity. The council is unlikely to take any of those actions because of the U.S. and its veto power. Frances deputy U.N. ambassador, Jay Dharmadhikari, said France supports multilateral initiatives aimed at curbing the sources of financing of traffickers, but the fight against drug trafficking must also respect international human rights law and states must refrain from any unilateral armed initiative action. Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia said Venezuela has been subjected to unprecedented pressure and threats of military invasion." Every day, he said, the situation is becoming more acute, with large-scale U.S. military activity just off Venezuela's coast threatening international peace and security. Venezuela's request for the emergency meeting came a day Republicans in the U.S. Senate voted down legislation that would have put a check on Trumps ability to use deadly military force against drug traffickers. The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded Friday to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who dedicated the award to the Venezuelan people and to US President Donald Trump. Machado, the democracy activist who fronted the campaign to end President Nicolas Maduro's authoritarian rule in last year's elections, has become a "unifying" figure in Venezuela, the jury said. She has refused to leave despite threats against her life. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement She dedicated her award to the "suffering people of Venezuela" and, in a surprise move, to Trump, who had long coveted it, citing his "decisive support of our cause". "More than ever we count on President Trump," she wrote on X, a month into a major US military buildup near Venezuela's shores and a campaign of deadly strikes on suspected drug boats. Machado, 58, told Nobel Institute director Kristian Berg Harpviken, who called her with news of her prize, she was confident of a peaceful transition to democracy in Venezuela. "I'm sure that we will prevail," she said in the call, which was filmed and posted to X. Example of civilian courage The trained engineer, in hiding for the past year, is "one of the most extraordinary examples of civilian courage in Latin America in recent times", said Nobel Committee chair Jorgen Watne Frydnes. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Venezuelan opposition figurehead, Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who lives in exile in Spain, hailed her win as "a well-deserved recognition of the long struggle of a woman and an entire people for freedom and democracy". EU refuses to recognise Maduro victory in disputed Venezuelan elections Within Venezuela, however, some people were openly critical of the award. "That woman has done nothing for peace in Venezuela," Pedro Gonzalez, a 68-year-old pensioner in Caracas grumbled. "All she has done is call for protests, call for riots, and all that sort of thing." Venezuela's ambassador to the United Nations joked that Machado was no more qualified to win a Peace Nobel than a Physics Nobel. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But in Argentina, home to some of the millions of Venezuelans who have fled the country's economic meltdown under Maduro, there were celebrations. Maria Angel Navas, a 31-year-old Venezuelan lawyer and activist, called the prize an "endorsement and recognition of a struggle that has been ongoing for years." Blocked candidacy Machado was the opposition's presidential candidate for Venezuela's 2024 elections, but Maduro's government blocked her candidacy. She then backed the reluctant, little-known ex-diplomat Gonzalez Urrutia as her stand-in, accompanying him on rallies where she was welcomed like a rock star. Maduro claimed electoral victory, but only a handful of countries recognised his win. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Caracas-born Machado entered politics in 2002 at the head of the association Sumate (Join us), pushing for a referendum to recall Maduro's mentor, the late socialist leader Hugo Chavez. The call led to treason accusations and death threats, prompting her to send her three children to live abroad. Seven Nobel laureates urge France to adopt tax on 'ultra-rich' The committee said it was aware Machado might not be able to attend the Oslo ceremony on 10 December. The award comes a month into a US campaign of military pressure on Maduro's government, including strikes on boats in waters near Venezuela alleged to be carrying drugs. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Washington accuses Maduro of leading a drug cartel, which he denies. Machado and Gonzalez Urrutia have backed the US pressure on his government as a "necessary measure" towards the "restoration of popular sovereignty". Machado was not among those mentioned as possible laureates in the run-up to Friday's announcement. Investigation into leak Yet, hours before the prize was awarded, the odds of her getting it soared from 3.75 to nearly 73 percent on the predictive betting platform Polymarket triggering an investigation by the Norwegian Nobel Institute into a possible leak. Once a relatively democratic and prosperous petro-state, Venezuela is now a "brutal authoritarian state that is now suffering a humanitarian and economic crisis", Frydnes said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Nobel prize-winning author Mario Vargas Llosa dies aged 89 Over seven million Venezuelans around one-quarter of the population have fled the country's economic meltdown under Maduro. Since returning to the White House for his second term in January, Trump has repeatedly insisted that he "deserves" the Nobel for his role in resolving numerous conflicts a claim observers say is broadly exaggerated. His office called the committee's decision a sign of "politics over peace". The committee had, however, made its choice days before the announcement of the deal he brokered to end the fighting in Gaza. (with AFP) MONTPELIER, Vt. (ABC22/FOX44) State treasurer Mike Pieciak says his office is giving out a record $2.6 million to help Vermonters pay for college. Its through the states Higher Education Endowment Trust Fund. Money will be sent to UVM, the Vermont State Colleges system, and the Vermont Student Assistance Corporation (VSAC). From there, it will be distributed to students in the form of non-loan tuition assistance. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement UVM alum named NASA astronaut candidate At a time when the cost of living is higher for everything, the Higher Education Endowment Trust Fund is strengthening Vermonts workforce and our economy by making higher education more affordable and accessible, said Treasurer Pieciak. Since its establishment in 1999, the fund has given out more than $30 million to Vermont students, with most scholarships going to first-generation students. Pieciak said that the fund is set to provide even more help in the future, with money coming from estate tax revenues. CCV to offer new project management certificate this fall semester Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement One UVM scholarship recipient highlighted the changes theyve seen. This past year I pursued research opportunities, internships, and even was able to fulfill my lifelong dream of studying abroad this spring. I am a first-generation low-income college student, and this funding has been incredibly important for myself and my family. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. 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. Editor's note: Scroll down for the poll. A month after slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk was shot and killed on Sept. 10 at a Utah university, different memorial proposals are popping up across the country to honor the 31-year-old. Two of the most prevalent memorial ideas are for cities and public colleges and universities to rename a roadway after Kirk and to erect statue memorials in his honor. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement On the Treasure Coast, both of these ideas have been proposed. At a Sept. 16 St. Lucie County Board of County Commissioners meeting, Commissioner James Clasby introduced renaming a major roadway after Kirk. The proposal resulted in pushback at an Oct. 7 meeting, where residents and some commissioners disagreed with the renaming, stalling the efforts. In Fort Pierce, Treasure Coast Baptist Church will unveil a granite boulder with his face etched in front on Oct. 14. It also wants to build a 31-foot flagpole on its property, which would have been Kirk's 32nd birthday. Follow up: County commissioners call for unity in response to Charlie Kirk road-naming criticism Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Obelisk memorial: Can a Baptist church in Florida lose its tax exemption for having a Charlie Kirk statue? Would you like to see a Kirk memorial on the Treasure Coast? Vote below. Can't vote below? Click the link here. Gianna Montesano is TCPalms trending reporter. You can contact her at gianna.montesano@tcpalm.com, 772-409-1429, or follow her on X @gonthescene. This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Charlie Kirk memorials in Florida include roadways, statues Through all the years that the family spoke of him, Franklyn Hall Stratton Hall as everyone knew him was mythic. A Navy and Marine fighter pilot in World War II and Korea, he was tall and handsome. His eyes, hazel. His hair, light brown. A joking University of Missouri college man, a fraternity brother. Girls wanted to date him. Guys wanted to be his best pal. So when, on June 16, 1951, Capt. Hall Stratton, at age 26 a hero who had already been presented with the Distinguished Flying Cross and the Air Medal with two gold stars went down in combat, having parachuted over North Korea and been dragged away by the enemy, his parents and younger brother, Bill, in Kansas City would mourn him the rest of their lives. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It was devastating, his now 70-year-old nephew and namesake, Hall Stratton of Oak View, California, said Thursday in Kansas City. The flag-draped casket of Capt. Hall Stratton, killed in Korea in 1951, arrives at Kansas City International Airport. The Marine Corps declared Stratton killed in action in 1954. His nephew said that, for decades, his grandparents had kept alive a faint hope that maybe their hero son had just been captured and would one day come gamboling through the front door to the familys Brookside home. But as years passed, that hope turned into quiet acceptance. He was the favorite son, Stratton said. But now Capt. Hall Stratton has returned home. WWII and Korean War hero On Friday at 1 p.m., the warriors remains having been identified after 74 years will be interred at Forest Hill Cemetery, 6901 Troost Ave., in a ceremony expected to include full military honors: a buglers taps, an honor guard and rifle salute, and the presentation of the American flag. A military flyover had been scheduled, but was canceled due to the government shutdown. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement When Halls casket is lowered, it will be into a family plot, alongside his parents, and beneath a headstone that was put there more than 50 years ago and which has waited for him since. Were just glad that this is finally happening, Stratton, the nephew, said, his voice choking. The mystery has been solved after all these years. This is a deeply, moving time for our family, to celebrate this homecoming, neice Sheryl Stratton, said. A water salute at Kansas City International Airport honors the arrival of the remains of Capt. Hall Stratton, a fighter pilot who died in Korea in 1951. The Strattons and their siblings grew up with tales of their Uncle Hall, a man they never met. All of them, with their spouses and children, have traveled to attend the funeral: Stratton from Oak View, sister Anna Stratton from Washington, D.C., Sheryl Stratton from Arlington, Virginia, Shelby Stratton, a retired U.S. Navy Captain, from Wielerbach, Germany. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In June, when Hall Stratton received a call from the military saying that his uncles remains had been identified, I thought it was a scam, he said. Remains were unknown for 74 years The Korean War lasted from 1950 to July 27, 1953. In 1954, under an effort known as Operation Glory, the remains of some 4,000 soldiers, most belonging to Americans, were recovered and repatriated to the United States. Of that number, some 400 remains were interred as unknown at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific in Honolulu, Hawaii. From 1990 on, the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, under the motto Fulfilling our nations promise, has continued the effort to identify those remains. Strattons, the agencys website shows, was identified on May 29, 2025. World War II and Korean War pilot Capt. Franklyn Hall Stratton of Kansas City. American Airlines flew Strattons flag-draped casket from Hawaii to Dallas. Hall Stratton and his sister, Sheryl Stratton, met the plane there. They accompanied the casket to the Kansas City International Airport, where it was met with an honor guard. Emergency pumper trucks greeted the aircraft with an arching shower of water known as a water salute. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement It was beautiful, Sheryl Stratton said. When we landed in KC and looked out the window and saw all the police cars, Marines, and the rest of our family all lined up, it was breathtaking. It was so awe-inspiring. Franklyn Hall Stratton was born on Sept. 30, 1924, to Al F. Stratton and Delta Hall Stratton. He graduated from Southwest High School and attended the University of Missouri before enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve on March 1, 1944. His younger brother, William Robert Stratton, also served in Korea. When his brother was killed, he was placed in a non-combat unit. For all these years, the Strattons said, it was their father who kept their uncles legacy alive. You know, Sheryl Stratton said, it would have meant so much to my dad to be here. Wishing he could have seen it. It would have been life-changing. Just all the angst for my dad, all those years just wondering. President Donald Trump has received updated flu and COVID-19 booster shots in preparation for upcoming travel, the presidents physician announced Oct. 10. Sean P. Barbabella, a U.S. Navy captain, shared the information in a letter submitted Friday to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. President Donald J. Trump successfully completed a scheduled follow-up evaluation today at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Barbabella wrote, saying the visit was part of the presidents ongoing health maintenance plan and included advanced imaging, lab testing and preventative assessments. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) questions Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, as he testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Sen. Mike Crapo (R-ID) (R) and Ranking Member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) preside over a hearing with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on September 4, 2025 in Washington, DC. The committee met to hear testimony on President Trump's 2026 health care agenda. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA) questions Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. during a Senate Finance Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on September 04, 2025 in Washington, DC. The committee met to hear testimony on President Trump's 2026 health care agenda. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Sen. Bill Cassidy, (R - LA), questions Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, as he testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Sen. Chuck Grassley, (R - IA) speaks as Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C.Y Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) questions Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. during a Senate Finance Committee at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on September 4, 2025 in Washington, DC. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. See Senators grill HHS Secretary RFK Jr. over vaccine rulings, CDC turmoil 1 of 13 Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., Secretary of Health and Human Services, testifies about the health care agenda for the Trump administration in front of the Senate Committee on Finance in Washington, D.C., on September 4, 2025. Last month, Trump demanded that COVID-19 vaccine makers provide proof of their effectiveness. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement "Many people think they are a miracle that saved Millions of lives. Others disagree!" he said of COVID-19 medications such as vaccines made by Pfizer, Moderna and other pharmaceutical firms. "With CDC being ripped apart over this question, I want the answer, and I want it NOW." Trump, 79, made the remarks in a Sept. 1 post on Truth Social following his dismissal of CDC director Susan Monarez a month into her tenure after a dispute with Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., a longtime skeptic of vaccines. In July, the president was diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency that has resulted in visible swelling in his lower legs near his ankles. On Friday, Barbabella said that in addition to Trump's flu and COVID booster shots, the president also received preventative health screenings, he said, adding that Trump continues to demonstrate excellent overall health. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Trump led the initiative to speed COVID vaccine development in his first term. But he has supported Kennedy's leadership of the Health and Human Services Department so far, including the Food and Drug Administration's decision to narrow COVID shot approval for Americans under 65, Kennedy's firing of the vaccine advisory panel, and his claims linking autism to Tylenol and childhood vaccines. A recent poll found that only 1 in 4 Americans believe Kennedys recommendations are based on scientific evidence. The Food and Drug Administration declared COVID-19 vaccine guidance changes in late August, ending emergency-use authorizations for COVID-19 vaccines and approving Moderna, Pfizer and Novavax immunizations only for people over 65 and those with existing health conditions make them high risk. NEW YORK, NEW YORK: A pharmacy advertises COVID-19 testing and vaccines on September 4, 2025 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. Five years after the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in the U.S, access to vaccines against the virus has come under scrutiny by the Donald Trump administration, causing concern among vulnerable groups, including children and those with pre-existing health conditions. (Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) The new guidelines represent the tightest restrictions on vaccine access since the immunizations have become available. Here's what was approved: Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Moderna , Pfizer and Novavax immunizations were approved only for "those at high risk" and people over 65. Moderna vaccine was approved for children 6 months and older with an underlying condition and people over 65. Pfizer was approved for those 5 and older with an underlying condition and people over 65. Novavax was approved for those 12 and older with an underlying condition and people over 65. Reuters contributed reporting to this story. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump gets COVID shot, doctor says president is in 'excellent' health The London borough of Hillingdon has applied for exceptional financial support from central government, partially as a result of housing costs caused by a surge of arrivals of people originating from the Chagos Islands. The Chagossian people themselves have not lived in their home islands for decades, as they were relocated, primarily to Mauritius, to make way for a UK-US military base. And it is from Mauritius that the Chagossians are turning up in Hillingdon, and presenting to the local authority as homeless. They claim they are fleeing persecution from the Mauritian authorities because of their political opinions; namely that the islands are not rightfully Mauritian, but instead belong to the Chagossian people as a UK Overseas Territory. Unlike others claiming persecution, the Chagossians do not need to go through the asylum system as they are British citizens. Providing they can afford the flight, they can simply arrive at a UK airport and, being British citizens, are entitled to the same assistance in case of homelessness as any other UK resident. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Readers will be aware that the Chagos Archipelago is the subject of an expensive and controversial deal with Mauritius to formally cede British sovereignty in return for a long term lease of the Diego Garcia military base. According to the Government, this protects the bases long term viability in the face of Mauritiuss claim that the archipelago is its rightful territory. Despite being several thousand kilometres away from the Chagos Islands and lacking an ocean-going navy, HM Government nevertheless regards the Mauritian claim as a threat, presumably just in case some future government is ever led by a cabal of former human rights lawyers who decide to take it seriously. Keir Starmer has been adamant that there is no alternative and that its a good deal. Its worth stopping to consider quite how tangled and contradictory this situation is. The British Government has returned a territory to a state from which it had never been taken, but will continue to retain practical control of it. Britain continues to recognise the original inhabitants of the territory as its own citizens, despite forfeiting sovereignty over their homeland, and despite their being residents of the country to whom we have ceded that sovereignty. Those who think of the islands as home are forced to flee to the UK in order that they can continue to recognise UK sovereignty over their islands without risk of oppression, even though Britain has formally disavowed it. This is not to belittle the position of the Chagossians. The Mauritian government has passed laws criminalising any statement of belief questioning the Mauritian right to sovereignty over the islands, and Chagossians have been harassed and imprisoned. Scant regard has been paid to their rights, either by Britain or Mauritius, since they were deported in 1968. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Chagossians are not a sizable population there are only about ten thousand of them worldwide, about 3,500 of whom live in Crawley in West Sussex. Five to six thousand Chagossians in total are believed to live in the UK overall, with most of the remainder living in Mauritius; a few in the Seychelles. Their experience in Mauritius has not been a happy one, and their reason for remaining there was in readiness to return home at some point in the future. Starmers deal with Mauritius ends that dream, as there is no desire to return to the islands under Mauritian rule. So it seems likely that much of the remaining Chagossian population will now leave Mauritius and exercise their rights as British citizens to come to the UK. As was the case following earlier departures from former colonies, an attempt to strike a more conciliatory posture on the global stage has resulted in a wave of people seeking security in Britain. In many ways, this is similar to the situation of Overseas British Nationals from Hong Kong. There are parallels too to the controversy over Afghan interpreters following the withdrawal and Taliban takeover in 2021. The Chagossians may be relatively few, but housing is in short supply in the areas around Heathrow Airport where they have already clustered and settled. And as for the Prime Ministers supposedly win-win deal with Mauritius, it seems a remarkable turn of events that such a good deal might result in an entire ethnic group relocating to Crawley. Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more. WASHINGTON (AP) A food aid program that supports millions of low-income mothers and their young children received a $300 million infusion from the Trump administration this week, alleviating some anxiety that it would run out of money during the government shutdown. The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children helps more than 6 million low-income mothers, young children and expectant parents to purchase nutritious staples like fruits and vegetables, low-fat milk and infant formula. The program, known as WIC, was at risk of running out of money this month because of the government shutdown, which occurred right before it was slated to receive its annual appropriation. This week, White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt posted on X the White House had found a creative solution to use tariff revenues to keep the program afloat. By Thursday, at least some states were receiving WIC money. Alaska and Washington said they received enough federal funds to keep their programs running until at least the end of October. The Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada, which had closed its office Thursday after running out of money, received money that allowed it to reopen Friday, radio station KUNR reported. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Officials from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which runs WIC, told congressional staffers they were using $300 million in unspent tariff revenue from the last fiscal year to keep the program afloat, two people briefed on the call told AP. The people declined to be named because they were not authorized to share details from the call. Tariff revenue supports many USDA programs. The law permits the administration to transfer money allocated for other programs to WIC. Without the additional money, state and local governments would have had to step in to pay for their WIC programs and later seek reimbursement from the federal government when funding was restored. Washington state, which is dealing with a massive budget shortfall, said it could not afford to use state money for the WIC program. In Alaska, the WIC program only had enough federal money to operate through Saturday, meaning the state would have had to step in with its own funding to keep the program running. But this week, officials learned they were receiving nearly $900,000, enough to fully fund the program through Nov. 8, according to Shirley Sakaye, a spokesperson with the states health department. About half a million of that came from leftover funds from other programs, she said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The government has been shut down since Oct. 1, after Republicans and Democrats in Congress failed to pass a bill to continue funding the government. Congressional Democrats want to reverse cuts to Medicaid that were passed earlier this year as part of President Donald Trump's mega-bill. They also want to extend subsidies that cut the cost of Affordable Care Act insurance plans, which cover more than 24 million Americans. The White House and Republicans in Congress have hammered Democrats for the shutdown, highlighting the potential damage it could do to WIC. The Democrats are so cruel in their continual votes to shut down the government that they forced the WIC program for the most vulnerable women and children to run out this week, Leavitt posted on X. But House Republicans and the White House have also sought to cut the program. Trump's budget proposal and a budget bill passed by House Republicans last month would not have fully funded the program, meaning it would have to turn away eligible applicants. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Since President Trump is now signaling he cares about the WIC program, he should finally get to the negotiating table to reopen the government, said Sen. Patty Murray, a Democrat from Washington state. And he should immediately disavow his budget request to significantly cut benefits for millions of moms and kids and tell House Republicans to back off their proposed cuts as well. ____ This story has been corrected to reflect that the Affordable Care Act covers 24 million Americans, not 25 million. ____ The Associated Press education coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find APs standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at AP.org. After nearly 80 years of being officially unaccounted for, 2nd Lt. Charles S. Atteberry is home in Idaho. The U.S. government said this week that it identified the remains of the Wilder native, who died as a prisoner of war in January 1945 after apparently surviving the sinking of two ships during World War II. He was being transported to Japan on another ship when he died at age 26, according to Japanese officials. The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency was able to piece together the mans story through DNA testing and anthropological analysis on June 4, the agency said in a press release. This newspaper report lists Charles Atteberry as one of three Idahoans who became prisoners of war during World War II. Atteberry was assigned to the 31st Infantry Regiment, Philippine Army on the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines, according to the release. He was reported missing in May 1942, according to news accounts, and reported as a prisoner in December that year. He was held prisoner in the Philippines by Japan until 1944, when the Japanese military set out to transport thousands of POWs to the Japanese mainland while the war in the Pacific was ongoing, the release said. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement In December 1944, Atteberry was put aboard the Oryoku Maru Japanese ship along with about 1,600 Allied POWs to head to Takao, Formosa, which is modern-day Taiwan. According to the National Archives, the Oryoku Maru didnt make it far from land before U.S. aircraft, unaware of the POWs presence, attacked the ship on Dec. 14, 1944, sinking it in Subic Bay. The archives stated that after the attack, more than 1,000 POWs ended up in the water as the ship sank, and many of them swam toward land, where Japanese military recaptured a lot. Atteberry was among those who survived and was recaptured. The Japanese military took the POWs, including Atteberry, onto the Enoura Maru, and that ship landed in Takao in early January 1945. While docked, it was attacked by U.S. forces and sank on Jan. 13, 1945. According to accounts from Japanese authorities, Atteberry survived that and was placed on the Brazil Maru headed for Moji, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, and he died at sea on Jan. 17, 1945. Gen. Douglas MacArthur recalled the treatment of POWs on the Enoura Maru and the Brazil Maru in a news clip. The archives research indicates that of the 1,619 POWs who boarded the Oryoku Maru on Dec. 14, 1944, only 497 arrived in Moji on Jan. 29, 1945. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency release said witness accounts and reports vary after the sinking of Enoura Maru. Surviving POWs from the Brazil Maru said casualties from that ship were committed to the sea, but reports from the Japanese government to the International Red Cross contained many errors, including five individuals who were marked as discrepancies. The American Graves Registration Service believed those five could have died aboard the Enoura Maru, and that Atteberry could have been one of them. Then after the war ended, the organization investigated missing American personnel, and in May 1946 its search and recovery team found a mass grave on a beach at Takao and recovered 311 bodies. This newspaper report shows a search and recovery team in 1946 finding a mass grave on a beach at Takao. After unsuccessful attempts to identify them, the bodies were declared unidentifiable. They were later sent to Honolulu and buried at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, also known as the Punchbowl. From October 2022 through July 2023, the MIA/POW agency found unknown remains at the Punchbowl from the Takao mass grave that they linked to the Enoura Maru. The agency used anthropological analysis and circumstantial evidence, along with Y-chromosome DNA analysis, to identify Atteberry among those remains. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Atteberrys name is recorded on the Walls of the Missing at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial in the Philippines. Now, a rosette will be placed next to his name to indicate his remains have been accounted for. KIVI-TV Channel 6 reported that Atteberrys remains were flown into the Boise Airport and escorted by an Idaho Army National Guard honor guard to a local funeral home, and his remains will be laid to rest at the Lower Boise Cemetery in Parma next to his parents. Authorities originally believed Charles Atteberry had died while on board the Enoura Maru in December 1944. According to the Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, he actually died while aboard the Brazil Maru in January 1945. Remains of Idaho sailor aboard USS Oklahoma at Pearl Harbor are identified, coming home Young Chinese couples embrace ancient wedding customs 13:37, October 11, 2025 By Ji Yuqiao ( Global Times It was the second day of the National Day holidays, and a typical rural household courtyard in Jinzhong, North China's Shanxi Province, had been newly adorned for celebration. Red festive decorations could be seen everywhere. In the center of the courtyard, a classical Chinese-style red ceremonial archway had been set up. On both sides of the red carpet stood golden fences and intricately carved wooden lanterns. At the end of the carpet, the large, red characters representing "Double Happiness" and blooming golden peonies decorated the backdrop, while at the center stood the traditional "Heaven and Earth Table" awaiting the soon-to-be newlyweds. Here, a traditional Chinese wedding ceremony was about to take place. The bride, Du Xiaolei, and groom, Dong Ming, were nervously preparing in a bedroom temporarily converted into a dressing room. The bride told the Global Times that she was drawn to the rituality of a traditional Chinese wedding. On the most important days of her own life, she hoped to begin her new chapter of happiness with a solemn, ancient tradition. The uniquely Chinese phoenix coronets, embroidered crimson robes, and festive decor are increasingly favored by the younger generation. Huang Kaixuan, a professional wedding host from Xi'an, Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, told the Global Times that in the past, fewer than 10 percent of the total weddings each year were held in the traditional Chinese style, but now, the number has risen to 20 or even 30 percent. Driven by growing demand, professional teams specializing in planning Chinese-style weddings have emerged. According to Huang, the number of professional Chinese wedding hosts and ritual staff in the industry has increased by 20 to 30 percent in recent years. "New couples tell me that through every part of the ceremony, they can feel the enduring charm of Chinese civilization. This feeling is passed on to more young people, leading them to choose Chinese-style weddings when they marry," Huang said. "This is a sign of our cultural confidence." Heaven, earth as witness As the host recited the ceremony in a clear, resonant voice, the elegant sounds of classical Chinese music filled the air. Under the host's guidance, the ceremonial matron offered incense in prayer. After the ritual, the groom, dressed in a red wedding suit, entered taking a deep bow. The bride, resplendent in ornate robes and with a fan hiding her face, walked down the red carpet. The matron combed her hair and straightened her crown, after which the bride and groom, holding a red silk ribbon symbolizing their union, stepped onto the stage together. Under the host's guidance, they completed a series of rites: hair-binding, worshipping Heaven and Earth, honoring their parents, and bowing to each other. Friends and family surrounded the stage, capturing every moment on their phones or cameras. Many guests remarked that the Chinese-style setting, clothing, and solemn rituals were especially beloved by older family members. Traditional elements such as red lanterns, stone bridges, pavilions, and corridors created a poetic and picturesque atmosphere, transporting everyone back in time. During the ceremony, all held their breath, quietly enjoying the visual feast, deeply moved by the unique charm of the Chinese wedding. Even couples who had not yet married expressed a deeper interest in having a Chinese-style wedding themselves. The bride's love for Chinese weddings had begun after attending such a ceremony. To prepare for her own, she started planning months in advance. The immersive experience began with makeup and choosing her wedding dress. Though the process was time-consuming and her elaborate headdress heavy, a joyful smile never left her face - Her happiness was unmistakable. "What other wedding dress can compare to the majesty of a phoenix coronet and embroidered robes? The moment I heard the host announce 'the ceremony is complete,' I knew this was the wedding I had always wanted," she said. The courtyard was filled with happiness, and just outside, even more excitement was in the air. To match the wedding's Chinese theme, the groom's parents invited members of the local folk performance troupe. Drums thundered in the courtyard, and performers entertained guests with traditional acts such as land boat rowing, drawing rounds of applause. Creativity beyond tradition Today, Chinese-style weddings are mainly divided into two categories: "new Chinese-style" weddings and weddings inspired by different dynasties. Dynasty weddings are further classified into subcategories according to the dynasty from which they draw inspiration. Each type blends ancient customs and rituals with adaptations for modern life and practical needs. In terms of props, costumes, and scenery, the wedding style is first determined by the couple, then personalized with favored motifs or themes - adding a creative touch to the traditional framework, Huang explained. Take Du and Dong as an example. They hired a wedding planner to help design the event and made adjustments based on family wishes. For months, they scoured online shops for unique props, prepared elegant traditional outfits for elders, and found a favorite photographer on social media to serve as the event's special guest photographer. The wedding procession to escort the bride, though typically done by car, included a lion dance troupe and drummers. Both families' elders were invited to give speeches, with classical Chinese written especially for the occasion. After the formal rites, friends and family performed, offered blessings, and interacted with the couple, adding laughter and warmth to the celebration. "The segments of a Chinese wedding can be adjusted according to the couple's wishes, but its essence remains unchanged. The grandeur and profound sense of ritual it conveys cannot be matched by any other wedding style," said Huang. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) A total of 19 people are missing and presumed dead following a massive explosion at a military munitions plant in Tennessee, according to authorities. The blast occurred on Friday morning at Accurate Energetic Systems near Bucksnort, Tenn., a town about 60 miles southwest of Nashville on the border of Hickman and Humphreys counties. We do have 19 souls that were looking for, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said during a press briefing on Friday afternoon. Davis said he could not share a specific count of the deceased at the time. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement This is probably one of the most devastating situations that Ive been on in my career, he said. He added that there was no clear indication of what caused the explosion and declined to answer whether he believed the blast was intentional or the result of an accident. It could be several days before theres clarity on the cause, given the state of the scene, Davis said. Do I see a short-term explanation? No, he said. At an earlier briefing, Davis said an investigation into the blast would likely be drawn out. We got a very big investigation, he said. This is not going to be something that were going to be like a car wreck or something like that, that were just going to clean up the debris and leave. Were going to probably be here for a few days. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement According to the companys website, Accurate Energetic Systems specializes in the development, manufacture, handling, and storage of a diverse array of energetic products and explosives for military, aerospace, and commercial demolition markets. Its facility in Tennessee sits on 1,300 acres and includes eight specialized production buildings and a quality lab. The company's customers include all branches of the U.S. military and several other departments within the federal government, according to the Association of the United States Army. The two counties will conduct a joint investigation into the blast, with the support of the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Homeland Security and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. There was a deadly explosion at the same site in 2014 when a facility operated by a different company, Rio Ammunition, exploded. One person was killed and three others were injured. Authorities eventually determined that the blast was accidental. Pakistan's Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, accused the TLP of exploiting issues for political purposes and warned that the government would not tolerate violence. New Delhi Railway Station Stampede: A stampede at New Delhi Railway Station on Saturday night claimed 18 lives and left several injured. The chaos erupted on platforms 14 and 15 due to overcrowding, possibly triggered by a wrong platform announcement. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh expressed grief, while a high-level committee was formed to investigate the incident. Indian Railways announced compensation of Rs 10 lakh for the deceaseds families, Rs 2.5 lakh for the seriously injured, and Rs 1 lakh for those with minor injuries. Authorities are reviewing CCTV footage and have arranged special trains to manage congestion. (Pictures by PTI) The press conference was organized at the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi on Friday, following bilateral talks between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Muttaqi. During the interaction, the Taliban minister addressed regional issues, including India-Afghanistan relations, humanitarian assistance, trade routes, and security cooperation. US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday met in Busan on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, where they held talks aimed at easing long-standing economic tensions between Washington and Beijing. Tired of the crowds? Embrace 'reverse tourism' and visit Hebei with this virtual tour guide! People's Daily Online) 14:20, October 11, 2025 Anyone who has traveled in China during a major national holiday knows how packed the popular sights can get. While must-see destinations like the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, or the Terracotta Warriors are worth visiting, the new trend of "reverse tourism" offers a refreshing alternative: exploring lesser-known but equally fascinating places across China. A perfect starting point is north China's Hebei Province. Not sure where to begin? Don't worry, virtual tour guide "Mark" is ready to lead you. This hidden treasure of a province is packed with wonders, from serene grasslands and vibrant wetlands to mountains boasting some of the most magnificent, lesser-known sections of the Great Wall. Sit back, follow "Mark," and unlock Hebei's condensed masterpiece of mountains and rivers. Your adventure into China's hidden gems starts here! (Web editor: Hongyu, Du Mingming) Egypt moves to deliver aid to Gaza after ceasefire: president Xinhua) 15:00, October 11, 2025 CAIRO, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Friday that Egypt has begun sending urgent food and medical aid to the Gaza Strip following a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Sisi made the remarks in a phone call with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, stressing the need to fully implement the ceasefire, the Egyptian presidency said. He reaffirmed Egypt's support for UN agencies operating in Gaza, particularly the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), and for efforts to assist Palestinian refugees in host countries. Guterres said the path forward must include the creation of a Palestinian state under international resolutions and the unity of Gaza and the West Bank. He also called for the deployment of international forces in Gaza and UN Security Council backing for the ceasefire agreement. The UN chief stressed the urgent need to begin Gaza's reconstruction and welcomed an international conference that Egypt plans to host for that purpose. Israel and Hamas reached the ceasefire deal on Thursday after three days of talks mediated by Egypt, Qatar, Turkiye, and the United States. The first phase of the plan includes Israeli troop withdrawals from Gaza City, Rafah, Khan Younis, and the north, the opening of five crossings for aid, and the release of hostages and prisoners. A Hamas source said the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt is expected to reopen in the middle of next week to allow limited movement of people, though details on operations have not been announced. More than two years of Israeli military operations have devastated Gaza, killing over 67,000 people and triggering famine, according to Gaza health authorities. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Hamas says Rafah crossing to reopen next week after truce as 200,000 return to northern Gaza Xinhua) 15:01, October 11, 2025 GAZA, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Mediators have informed Hamas that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt will reopen in both directions next week, the group said on Friday, following the start of a ceasefire with Israel. A Hamas source told the group's Al-Aqsa TV that the crossing is expected to reopen in the middle of next week to allow movement of people in and out of the enclave, though no details were provided on operations or which travelers would be allowed through. Mediators also said humanitarian aid and essential supplies, including fuel and gas, would begin entering Gaza freely from Saturday, the source said, adding that talks were under way to restore electricity in the territory of more than 2 million people. The announcement came after the Israeli army confirmed that a ceasefire with Hamas took effect at noon on Friday. The military said its forces had redeployed along new lines "in accordance with the ceasefire and hostage-release agreement," while troops in southern Israel would continue to respond to any immediate threats. Following the truce, about 200,000 Palestinians returned to northern Gaza, said Mahmud Bassal, spokesman for the Hamas-run Civil Defense Agency. He said displaced residents began moving north as Israeli forces pulled back from several areas, and that humanitarian teams were helping families and reopening main roads. Eyewitnesses reported heavy movement along Al-Rashid and Salah al-Din roads as thousands of people walked or drove toward their homes. The ceasefire followed days of negotiations in Egypt that included a prisoner exchange and plans to reopen border crossings and allow aid into Gaza. Under the agreement, Israel is expected to halt fighting and partially withdraw from the Gaza Strip, while Hamas will release all remaining hostages in exchange for the release of around 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Two years of Israeli military operations have left much of Gaza in ruins, killed more than 67,000 people, and created severe shortages of food and basic supplies, according to Gaza health authorities. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain Why should women in British Columbia, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island and the Yukon have access to free contraception while the rest of Canadians do not? Our new research, published in the British Medical Journal and JAMA Pediatrics, underscores the urgent need for universal prescription contraception coverage nationwide. Spoiler alert: cost matters. When B.C. launched universal coverage for prescription contraception in April 2023, more people used contraceptives, and importantly, more chose the most effective methods. When Ontario introduced universal coverage for those younger than age 25 in January 2017, we found a similar jump in the most effective contraceptive methods. In October 2024, the National Pharmacare Act received royal assent, establishing a framework for a national, universal, single-payer pharmacare program, beginning with free access to contraception and diabetes medications. Now, almost a year later, only four provinces and territories (B.C., Manitoba, P.E.I. and the Yukon) have bilateral agreements to implement this legislation on the ground. On Sept. 10, Prime Minister Mark Carney said the federal government is "committed to signing pharmacare deals with all provinces and territories." This is welcome news given previous statements in July by Health Minister Marjorie Michel indicating wavering commitment or that "all options are on the table" for implementing Bill C-64 nationally. Why affordable birth control is essential As reproductive health policy researchers (including two health-care providers), we know that universal coverage for contraception is essential to uphold reproductive population health and to achieve gender equity in Canada. We have recently published evidence demonstrating the effect of universal contraception funding policies on contraception use, which reaffirms how critical this policy is in the Canadian context. Everyone in Canada, regardless of income or postal code, deserves access to the contraception that is right for them, without cost standing in the way. As former Federal Health Minister Mark Holland stated when announcing national pharmacare on Feb. 29, 2024: "Waking up in a country where every single woman has access to the contraception she needs to control her future is an absolutely critical part of having a just society." He added, "This is about health equity." When women can't afford contraception, the risk of unplanned pregnancy increases. When contraception is accessible without financial or logistical barriers, women are more likely to plan pregnancies around their health, education, career and family goals. This benefits not only the individual but also children, families and society overall by improving gender equity in education and workforce participation, reducing poverty and supporting better health outcomes. Beyond this, free contraception is a cost-effective policy, expected to save our health systems money in the long term by reducing health-care costs linked with unplanned pregnancies. Private and public drug plans Some critics argue that many Canadians already have drug insurance and plans that cover contraceptive costs. But that doesn't tell the whole story. Most private and public plans do not cover 100% of prescription drug costs. Deductibles and co-pays leave patients paying at least a portion out-of-pocket, and some private plans exclude contraception altogether. The most effective contraceptives (intrauterine devices (IUDs) and subdermal implants) can cost up to $450 up front, even with coverage. Many young people or those working in seasonal or temporary jobs don't have drug insurance at all. Others choose to pay out-of-pocket to avoid having birth control charges show up on a shared plan with a partner, spouse or parentto preserve privacy. That is why first-dollar, universal coverage for contraceptionas outlined in federal pharmacareis essential. It guarantees access free from financial strain, coercion, loss of privacy or compromise. If Canada's pre-existing mix of public and private insurance provided sufficient access to contraception, we would have seen little or no change when contraception became free in B.C. But we did see change. Our research showed a 49% increase in the use of the most effective contraceptive methods when they were available at no cost. Clear evidence for pharmacare This provides clear evidence that cost has been a barrier for individuals in B.C. and highlights a critical point: without universal coverage, many Canadians simply cannot afford their preferred method of birth control. When costs are taken out of the equation, more people choose the most effective contraception methods. Similarly, when Ontario provided universal prescription coverage for youth 24 years old or younger in 2018, we found that prescriptions for IUDs and oral contraceptive pills jumped, with the greatest increases for those in low-income areas. When this coverage was revised to exclude those with private insurance, use declined. This shows us that private insurance is inadequate to cover gaps in contraception needs, especially for youth. All Canadians seeking to manage their reproductive futures deserve equitable access to safe, effective and affordable contraception. Our new findings show just how strongly cost influences these choices. The federal government has promised to implement national pharmacare, starting with contraception (and diabetes medication). On Sept. 2, Michel said "We are tracking those [agreements] that have already been done to see how it works." The evidence is now available and is clear: pharmacare works. Our analysis of B.C."s policy shows the clear public health benefits that could result from expanding pharmacare and making no-cost contraception a reality for all Canadians. Further, our analysis of Ontario's experience shows that a watered-down version of pharmacare policy (like Ontario's policy for youth since 2019) does not suffice. All Canadians, regardless of where they live, deserve access to the contraception that they need to control and plan their reproductive health futures. Now is the time to implement universal, first-payer coverage for contraception for all Canadians. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Distribution of agreement with the appropriateness of allocation by lottery and expert committee. Credit: CC BY For decades, ethicists have argued that lotteries could be the fairest way to decide who gets life-saving treatment when there isn't enough to go around. Yet our research suggests that most people would rather leave the choice to medical experts than to luck. Our recent study involving more than 15,000 people across 14 countries found that the public preferred allocation by expert medical committees over lotteries for scarce COVID vaccines. Respondents were presented with a scenario: a hospital wanted to vaccinate all 1,000 of its nurses but had only 500 doses of a COVID vaccine available. Some were asked whether they agreed that an expert committee was an appropriate way to make the decision; others were asked whether they agreed that a lottery was an appropriate way. Agreement with each method was measured on a scale from zero (strongly disagree) to 100 (strongly agree). On average, expert committees scored 61, compared with just 37 for lotteries. While expert allocation was more acceptable everywhere, support for lotteries varied sharply across countriesfrom strikingly low in France and Chile to relatively high in China, India and the US. In theory, lotteries are fair when used for people who would benefit equally from treatment. They treat people with equal need equally and avoid rewarding those who happen to live closer to hospitals or who are better connected. Many ethicists have proposed using them when it is hard to make decisions about life-saving treatments. For example, when kidney dialysis first became available in the 1960s, lotteries were discussed as a tie-breaker for equally eligible patients. While ethicists often focus on fairness in principle, our results suggest that fairness alone may not be enough to persuade the public if the process feels random or impersonal. During the early COVID pandemic, ethicists again argued for random allocation of potentially life-saving treatments. In the US, several National Academies even recommended lotteries for prioritizing vaccines when "no further identifiable risk-based differences" existed between groupsthat is, patients of the same age and health status. Despite these arguments, lotteries were rarely used in practice during the pandemic. Our study suggests that the public was not supportive. But cultural familiarity with lotteries also matters in terms of which nations will or won't accept them. In India, lotteries are used to allocate school places and public housing. In China, they decide who gets car license plates in crowded cities. And in the US, a green card lottery allocates immigration visas. In these countries, support for health care lotteries was noticeably higher. Luck of the draw It is difficult to know whether existing lotteries for public services create acceptance, or whether they were introduced because public attitudes were already favorable. Either way, familiarity seems to make lotteries more acceptable. Skepticism about health care lotteries is understandable. Yet committees are not perfect eitherthey can be slow, inconsistent, or swayed by politics or prejudice. Importantly, during the COVID pandemic, government expert committees in different countries came up with a wide variety of recommendations on who should be prioritized to receive the vaccine first. If used, lotteries should be implemented in conjunction with medical guidelines. For example, during the COVID pandemic, the UK government prioritized access to vaccines largely based on five-year age bands starting with the oldest groups. While allocating COVID vaccines based on age criteria was seen as appropriate medically, the order in which people should be vaccinated within an age group is less clear. For example, when rolling out the initial COVID vaccine, there were around 3 million people aged 65 to 69 in the same risk-based priority group, and vaccinating them all simultaneously was impossible. To avoid vaccinating on a "first-come, first-served" basis that could reward proximity or privilege, a lottery could have been used to decide when each person in this group would receive their vaccine. Such a vaccine lottery featured in the 2011 film "Contagion," but was hardly used during the actual pandemic. The COVID pandemic is over, but future disease outbreaks are inevitable. We should think now about whether lotteries should play a role in allocating scarce treatments or vaccines next time. For lotteries to be seen as a legitimate way to allocate health care, governments need to engage with the public and trial the approach. In 2008, the US state of Oregon used a lottery to select participants for limited Medicaid (a public health insurance program) slots. Lotteries remain one of the fairest tools we have when medical differences are otherwise equal. Next time, rather than treating lotteries as unthinkable, we should be ready to use them, with public understanding and trust already in place. More information: Rhys Llewellyn Thomas et al, Lottery or Triage? Controlled Experimental Evidence from the COVID-19 Pandemic on Public Preferences for Allocation of Scarce Medical Resources, Medical Decision Making (2025). DOI: 10.1177/0272989x251367777 This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Credit: Australian Catholic University We've long known that regular exercise builds muscle, strengthens the heart, and lifts our mood, but a new paper shows the benefits go even furtherphysical activity doesn't just improve the body, it rewires it on a molecular level, reshaping how our systems function from the inside out. In a piece published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology, leading ACU researchers Professor John Hawley and Dr. Nolan Hoffman unpacked two decades of progress in the field of human exercise metabolism. Shedding light on the intricate molecular networks that underpin the wide health benefits of physical activity, it offers a blueprint of landmark research over the past 20 years and key future research directions that could change how we understand and harness exercise for disease prevention and treatment. Professor John Hawley, a world-leading expert in exercise bioenergetics and the director of ACU's Mary MacKillop Institute for Health Research, said ongoing research shows exercise has the potential to be as effective as medicine in preventing and treating a range of disease. "Exercise is not just about physical performance, but a powerful biological intervention that affects our health at the deepest molecular level," Professor Hawley said. "For chronic conditions like heart disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes, these findings suggest a future where exercise is integrated into health care as a form of preventive medicine." In this paper, Professor Hawley and Dr. Hoffman discuss how molecular biology approaches and the new omics-based technologies have advanced understanding of exercise's impact at the molecular and cellular levels. Landmark studies in human exercise metabolism from the past two decades. Credit: Nature Reviews Endocrinology (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41574-025-01181-1 "Twenty years ago, we knew exercise was beneficial for metabolic health, but we didn't know much about the complex molecular networks underlying these health benefits," Dr. Hoffman said. "Research over the past two decades has started to map these molecular blueprints of exercise, identifying thousands of molecules that become activated during different modes of physical activity (endurance versus strength training) and increasing our understanding of how they interact and contribute to the health benefits of exercise." They highlight three key studies that have shaped the field, each revealing new layers of complexity on how skeletal muscle and molecules in the bloodstream respond to exercise. Dr. Hoffman said these studies are changing how we think about the molecular puzzle of exercise, why movement matters and how it can remodel molecular networks in not just our muscle but also our bloodstream. "They show that exercise triggers a specific timeline of genes and proteins in muscle, orchestrates metabolic and immune systems in the bloodstream, and releases molecular 'packages' into the circulation that communicate with various cells and organs around the body, showing that exercise's effects extend far beyond just muscle contraction." There is future potential to use molecular biomarkers identified to predict how well someone will respond to exercise based on their genetic and metabolic profiles to help delay, treat or prevent obesity and other cardiometabolic conditions. At ACU's Melbourne campus, this research is supported by cutting-edge instrumentation from molecular technologies to the human metabolic chamberthe only one of its kind in the southern hemisphere. The newly opened metabolic chamber allows researchers to conduct precise studies on energy expenditure and metabolic responses to add to the growing body of research on human exercise metabolism. More information: John A. Hawley et al, Twenty years of progress in human exercise metabolism research, Nature Reviews Endocrinology (2025). DOI: 10.1038/s41574-025-01181-1 Journal information: Nature Reviews: Endocrinology China-US biz travel shows signs of recovery China Daily) 15:08, October 11, 2025 International visitors and Chinese representatives gather at the China booth during IMEX America 2025 in Las Vegas, showing growing interest in China's MICE tourism and business opportunities. (RENA LI/CHINA DAILY) Conversations on the bustling show floor of IMEX America 2025 in Las Vegas, Nevada, revealed that business travel between China and the United States is recovering steadily, though not without challenges. After several years of pandemic disruptions and geopolitical headwinds, companies on both sides are eager to rebuild in-person communication and business exchange. Yet visa processing delays, limited flight capacity and high travel costs remain significant obstacles for many in the meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions, or MICE, industry. China, now the world's second-largest economy, continues to attract growing numbers of international visitors with business objectives. These visitors attend major exhibitions such as the China International Import Expo, visit technology companies, or explore the nation's expanding consumer market. More travelers are combining professional activities with cultural experiences, spending several days in meetings and trade events before touring major cities such as Beijing, Shanghai or Shenzhen, Guangdong province. The demand for this kind of business-oriented travel is rising rapidly, driven by China's improved infrastructure and upgraded hospitality standards. Alex Mortensen, sales director for North America at HiSEAS International, a global destination management company headquartered in Chengdu, Sichuan province, said the momentum for US outbound travel to China is increasing, supported by the country's steady modernization and expanding event capacity. "I see the trends for outbound US travel to China increasing. China has made tremendous improvements, not only in accommodation and meeting space, but also in the overall infrastructure, making it much easier for people in the MICE arena to conduct business in China," Mortensen told China Daily. Mortensen said streamlined visa policies are essential to maintaining this growth. "I think China has a lot to offer. There is still some concern about language barriers and visas, but things have gotten much better," he said. However, Mortensen noted that the situation remains more difficult for Chinese business travelers heading to the US. "For the US, we make it difficult for people to come here for business," Mortensen said. Linda Wang, country director of Asia Concierge in China, attended IMEX America for the first time since the pandemic and noted that the limited number of direct flights remains a major challenge. "The biggest challenge is the international flights, because there are not enough," Wang said after completing more than 30 appointments at the event. "There used to be around 300 flights between China and the US each week, but now there are only about 80, and most are operated by Chinese airlines. Compared with before the pandemic, it's much less, and airfare has at least doubled. That's one of the barriers affecting our industry." Patrick Sudlow, a leader in the planning and operations team at American Express Global Business Travel, shared similar concerns about US entry barriers for Chinese professionals. "We're seeing business increase, with more Chinese travelers coming to the US for meetings post-COVID," Sudlow said. "Sometimes we'll get a Chinese traveler that accepts to come to a meeting, but they unfortunately don't have a visa. They're invited three months out will they get their visa in a month? Can they go to the meeting? We're still trying to figure out how quickly visas are getting moved so travelers can go to the US." Visa efforts While visa difficulties remain a bottleneck, participants at IMEX America pointed out that China has taken concrete steps to make business visits easier. Aki Yang from WildChina Corporate Services, a travel agency specializing in corporate incentive programs, said China's facilitation measures are making a clear difference. "The Chinese government is making it easier for inbound travelers to China, including a lot of visa-free policies for more and more countries," Yang said. "China also offers a 240-hour visa-free transit policy for citizens of 55 eligible countries traveling through to a third destination." Despite lingering travel constraints, some US industry professionals remain optimistic about expanding cooperation. G.V. Schloss, manager of event operations at Maritz Global Events, said the perception of China among his clients has been positive. "China has been very welcoming," he told China Daily. "At this point, I haven't seen any major concerns about promoting travel there. It's more about creating the right incentives and customized itineraries based on clients' preferences. Chinese partners are very open and friendly. I'm optimistic we'll be able to organize tours to China again in the near future." David Fredericks, senior vice-president of sales and marketing at Century Cruises, said: "The best way to navigate the current geopolitical climate is with mutual respect and understanding, and I believe hospitality is the key." (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) Judges have stalled President Donald Trumps plans to deploy the National Guard in Chicago and in Portland, Oregon, but troops are now patrolling in Memphis, Tennessee, with the blessing of the states governor. The troops, dressed in Guard fatigues and protective vests, with guns in their holsters, patrolled at a Bass Pro Shops store and a nearby tourist welcome center beside the Mississippi River on Friday. It was unclear how many troops have been deployed to Memphis. Trump has sent or discussed sending troops to other cities as well, including Baltimore; the District of Columbia; New Orleans; and the California cities of Oakland, San Francisco and Los Angeles. The federal government says the troops support immigration agents and protect federal property. The Guard troops in Memphis remain under the command of Republican Gov. Bill Lee, who supports their use to further a federal crackdown on crime. By contrast, Trump has attempted to deploy National Guard troops including some from Texas and California in Portland and Chicago after taking control of them himself, over objections from state and local leaders who say such interference violates their sovereignty and federal law. Federal courts in Illinois and Oregon this week blocked Trumps efforts to send troops out in those cities. Heres where things stand: Whats happening in Memphis Trump announced Sept. 15 that he intended to deploy the Guard to Memphis, and Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican, embraced the plan to bolster law enforcement operations there. Mayor Paul Young, a Democrat who did not request the deployment, said he hopes the task force will target violent offenders rather than scare, harass or intimidate residents. Federal officials say agents from the FBI, Drug Enforcement Administration, Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the U.S. Marshals Service have made hundreds of arrests and issued more than 2,800 traffic citations since the task force began operating in Memphis on Sept. 29. Illinois senators denied entry to ICE building Illinois Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth said they were denied access Friday to the ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois, a site of confrontations between protesters and federal agents. It is appalling that two United States senators are not allowed to visit this facility, Duckworth said. What are you afraid of? The senators said they have congressional oversight authority. Something is going on in there they dont want us to see, Durbin said. I dont know what it is. Illinois judge blocks troop deployment An appeals court ruled Saturday that troops Trump sent to Illinois can remain there under federal control but cant be deployed, and granted a pause in the case until it hears further arguments. The ruling came two days after U.S. District Judge April Perry in Chicago blocked the deployment of troops in Chicago for at least two weeks. The Justice Department appealed the next day. The judge said the Trump administration violated the 10th Amendment, which grants certain powers to states, and the 14th Amendment, which assures due process and equal protection, when he ordered National Guard troops to the city. In a written order Friday explaining her rationale, Perry noted the nations long aversion to having military involvement in domestic policing. Not even the Founding Father most ardently in favor of a strong federal government Alexander Hamilton believed that one states militia could be sent to another state for the purposes of political retribution, Perry wrote. Hamilton called that notion preposterous. The court confirmed what we all know: There is no credible evidence of a rebellion in the state of Illinois. And no place for the National Guard in the streets of American cities like Chicago, Gov. JB Pritzker said. Oregon judge also blocks Trump efforts Another court battle in Oregon earlier delayed a similar troop deployment to Portland. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments in that case Thursday. Lt. Cmdr. Teresa Meadows, a spokesperson for U.S. Northern Command, said the troops sent to Portland and Chicago are not conducting any operational activities at this time. Troops patrol outside Chicago Five hundred guard members from Texas and Illinois arrived this week at a U.S. Army Reserve Center in Elwood, southwest of Chicago, and have been activated for 60 days. They started patrolling Thursday morning behind portable fences outside the ICE Broadview facility. A federal judge late Thursday ordered ICE to remove a separate 8-foot-tall (2.4-meter) fence outside the Broadview facility after the Village of Broadview said it illegally blocks a public street. Also Thursday, another federal judge in Illinois temporarily ordered federal agents to wear badges and banned them from using certain riot-control weapons against peaceful protesters and journalists outside the ICE facility, about 12 miles (19 kilometers) west of Chicago. In Chicago, federal prosecutors have obtained a grand jury indictment against a woman and man accused of using their vehicles to strike and box in a Border Patrol agents vehicle last Saturday. The agent exited his car and fired five shots at Marimar Martinez, 30, who was treated at a hospital. The indictment filed Thursday formalizes charges of assaulting a federal officer with a dangerous weapon a vehicle. Anthony Ruiz, 21, is also charged. ___ Associated Press reporters across the U.S. contributed, including Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee; Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon; Sophia Tareen and Christine Fernando in Chicago; and Josh Boak and Konstantin Toropin in Washington, D.C. By The Associated Press CAIRO (AP) As the Middle East broadly welcomes a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, Iran finds itself at one of its weakest moments since its 1979 Islamic Revolution. Tehran has operated its self-described Axis of Resistance over several decades, supporting militant groups and nations allied with it against Israel and the United States. But as Israel bombed the Gaza Strip, it also turned its crosshairs toward top leaders abroad in militant groups like Hamas, Lebanons Hezbollah and even the top echelon within Irans military and nuclear program killing many and disrupting their ability to fight back. As President Donald Trump prepares for a Middle East trip that likely will see him praised by Israel and Arab nations, Iran wont be at the table as it still struggles to recover from Junes 12-day war. How Tehrans theocracy responds in the weeks and months ahead, whether that means lashing out or trying to rebuild its hobbled economy at home, will be crucial. Undoubtedly this is a not a proud moment for Iran, said Ali Vaez, the Iran project director at the International Crisis Group. Its alliance system in the region is in ruins but it doesnt mean that the Axis of Resistance is no more. Like a bankrupt gambler Iranian state media has sought to describe the Gaza ceasefire as a victory for Hamas, despite the war destroying the Gaza Strip and killing over 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which doesnt differentiate between civilians and combatants but says around half the dead are women and children. Irans Foreign Ministry welcomed any decision that guarantees halting the genocide of Palestinians. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reiterated that on Saturday, telling state television that Hamas decided to accept the deal and that Tehran has always supported any plan, any action that led to the halt of crimes, genocide by Israel against the people of Gaza. But perhaps more tellingly, an adviser to Irans 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei suggested the ceasefire would only lead to conflict elsewhere in the region. The start of the ceasefire in Gaza may be the behind-the-scenes end of the ceasefire somewhere else! Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Khamenei, wrote on X, referencing Hezbollah, Yemens Iranian-backed Houthi rebels and Iraq. The fear of further Israeli strikes, particularly on Iran, remains acute in the publics mind as much of Iranian air defenses likely were destroyed by Israel in June. Khamenei has not resumed his usual routine of weekly speeches to audiences. Without explanation, Iran avoided holding a major military commemoration marking the end of the Iran-Iraq war in September, which typically sees top officials watch drones and missile launchers parade past them. Irans economy also has suffered under international sanctions and as global energy prices fall. Iran has always focused on its interests, we do not have resources anymore, our economy has weakened, said Tehran-based analyst Saeed Leilaz. Our support to Hamas was a reaction to U.S. to divert conflicts from our borders. Others are less optimistic. Iran is like a bankrupt gambler after winning some small money in the first rounds, said Amir Kazemi, a university student in Tehran. When Hamas attacked Israel, Iran was happy about it. But now, after the ceasefire, Iran finds nothing in its pocket. Mideast looks far different In the immediate years after Irans revolution, its theocratic government sought to export its Shiite revolutionary ideology more widely in the Middle East. That morphed following its devastating 1980s war with Iraq into more of an effort to provide a level of deterrence as Arab nations around it purchased sophisticated American bombs, warplanes and tanks that Tehran couldnt access due to sanctions. The U.S. militarys presence across the Persian Gulf also expanded following the 1991 Gulf War, with Arab nations granting basing rights to American forces to Tehrans constant anger. The peak of the Axis of Resistance came in the chaotic years after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq and Yemens subsequent collapse into a civil war. Then, it could count on Hezbollah, Syrian autocrat Bashar Assad, the Houthis, Iraqi militant groups and even Hamas a Sunni militant group. Today, the Mideast looks far different. In Syria, rebels overthrew Assad last year, Israeli strikes killed Hezbollah and Hamas top leaders, while Iraqi militant groups faded into the background. Yemens Houthis, while still capable of launching attacks on Israel and commercial shipping in the Red Sea corridor, find themselves now targeted by increasingly precise Israeli strikes. And the 12-day war in June left Iran likely no longer enriching uranium for its nuclear program, which the West long has worried could be weaponized. Collapsing regional clout Iran, meanwhile, has yet to receive any major support from either China or Russia, despite providing Beijing with likely discounted oil and Moscow with the drones it uses in its war on Ukraine. Tehran has also shied away from confronting women who are increasingly abandoning the hijab, or headscarf, instead executing prisoners it already holds at a rate unseen in decades. The ceasefire is reflective of Tehrans collapsing regional clout following the unraveling of its long-powerful Axis of Resistance since 2024, said Ali Fathollah-Nejad, the director of the Berlin-based Center for Middle East and Global Order. The ceasefire will free Israeli military capacities that would now be used against Iranian interests whether in Lebanon against Hezbollah or directly against Iran. For his part, Trump seized on Iran accepting the ceasefire as terrific news. However, theres been no move toward renewed public negotiations with Tehran over its nuclear program. Time is not on Irans side but their problem is no one is really giving them an exit ramp, Vaez said. But whether Tehran would take the ramp also remains in question as its leaders still debate what turn to now take. ___ Associated Press writer Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report. ___ EDITORS NOTE Jon Gambrell, the news director for the Gulf and Iran for The Associated Press, has reported from each of the Gulf Cooperation Council countries, Iran and other locations across the Mideast and the wider world since joining the AP in 2006. By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press "AI Plus" becomes China's new magnet for global capital Xinhua) 16:29, October 11, 2025 CHONGQING, Oct. 11 (Xinhua) -- Chongqing Municipality, an important industrial manufacturing base in southwest China, has recently turned into a showroom for the deepened integration of AI technology and traditional industries. As a leading Chinese new energy vehicle (NEV) maker whose market cap has topped 270 billion yuan (about 38 billion U.S. dollars), Seres Group is now steering into embodied intelligence through a new partnership with tech giant ByteDance, said the group on Friday. The collaboration, outlined in a framework agreement by its Chongqing-based subsidiary and ByteDance, will cover co-design and other end-to-end operations to build a new AI application ecosystem. This is just one example of how China's "AI Plus" initiative is winning favor among businesses and investors around the world. China is being increasingly recognized by global enterprises as a core base for AI research and development (R&D) and AI application, multiple global investors said during the 19th Meeting of the Chongqing Mayor's International Economic Advisory Council, which was held in Chongqing in late September. This August, China published a set of guidelines for the deep implementation of the AI Plus initiative, laying out a systematic approach to strengthening supportive AI infrastructure and accelerating the integration of AI technology across economic and social domains. "The integration of AI with sustainable manufacturing will unlock continued demand growth and open new spaces for collaboration in China," said Michael Mertin, CEO of AT&S AG, an Austrian manufacturing company. The meeting brought together representatives of 21 multinational corporations from 11 countries and regions to explore how AI-powered industrial development can drive new cooperative ventures. And they agreed on one message: If you want to scale AI, do it in China. China's vast market, rapid application iteration, comprehensive industrial ecosystem and maturing innovation environment are its key attractions, according to the multinational representatives. "We pilot many global technologies in China precisely because the speed of technological application and iteration here is the fastest," said Jerome Dorlack, president and CEO of Adient, a global leader in automotive seating. "One of our largest global tech centers is located here in Chongqing. The AI technology we developed to automate sewing processes on seat production lines, for instance, reduces manual intervention by 20 to 30 percent. Innovations from this center are deployed worldwide," Dorlack said. Bertrand Stoltz, executive vice president of STMicroelectronics, said that China's distinct cost advantages in AI innovation provide both the technical and economic foundation for large-scale smart application deployment in manufacturing. In February, STMicroelectronics and San'an Optoelectronics began operations at their joint 23-billion-yuan silicon carbide wafer plant in Chongqing, with mass production scheduled to begin within the year. The facility will supply high-performance chips for China's NEV and photovoltaics industries, according to Stoltz. "We are committed to leveraging our expertise in AI to collaborate with Chongqing in building a system of new quality productive forces centered on AI," said Xia Quan, global vice president of Qualcomm. Chinese AI firms are now providing intelligent infrastructure and business ecosystems globally through an "AI plus manufacturing" model. The open-source release of Chinese AI models like DeepSeek is fostering a global shift toward more open and collaborative AI development. "No single company holds a so-called master key. Achieving this requires an entire ecosystem," Dorlack said. "China is now a global innovation leader. It is crucial to strengthen cooperation and co-innovation with Chinese companies in technology, products and market integration," Mertin said in a speech delivered at the meeting. As China remains a core market for AT&S AG, the company also plans to increase the localization of its AI-related product R&D in the country, optimize local supply chains, and work collaboratively to build an industrial ecosystem. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Friday said that the Government of India has released the special commemorative coins and stamps to mark the 100th anniversary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). She said that the commemoratives honour a century of the RSS's service, unity, and dedication. In a post on X on Friday, the Finance Minister's office stated, "To commemorate 100 years of the foundation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Government of India has released special commemorative coins and stamps, honouring a century of service, unity and dedication." https://x.com/nsitharamanoffc/status/1976663705933775059 It added, "The special commemorative coins can be ordered online via Kolkata Mint at https://indiagovtmint.in/hi/product-category/kolkata-mint, while the commemorative stamps are available at Philately Bureaus across India." Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a specially designed commemorative postage stamp and coin on October 1, highlighting the RSS's contributions to the nation on the occasion of the organisation's centenary celebrations. During the centenary celebrations, the Prime Minister praised the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) for its long-standing commitment to nation-building. He said the RSS has helped nurture and strengthen countless lives over the years. PM Modi said, "Just as human civilisations flourish along the banks of mighty rivers, similarly, hundreds of lives have blossomed and thrived along the banks and in the flow of the RSS. Since its formation, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has pursued a grand objective. That objective has been nation-building." PM Modi said the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), founded 100 years ago on Vijayadashami, was no coincidence, highlighting the festival's symbolism of the victory of good over evil, truth over falsehood, and light over darkness. "... Tomorrow is Vijayadashmi, a festival which symbolises the victory of good over evil, victory of justice over injustice, victory of truth over falsehoods, and victory of light over darkness... The establishment of RSS as an organisation on this great day 100 years ago was no coincidence," PM said. Founded in 1925 in Nagpur, Maharashtra, by Dr. Keshav Baliram Hedgewar, the RSS was established as a volunteer-based organisation with the goal of fostering cultural awareness, discipline, service, and social responsibility among citizens. (ANI) The latest blockbuster IPO week in the domestic stock markets has highlighted that investors continue to show strong confidence in India's growth story, even during a challenging phase when the Nifty and Sensex have delivered no returns for the past 13 months. According to stock market experts, India has witnessed an unprecedented flow of funds into the primary market this year, highlighting the optimism and trust among investors in the country's economic potential. Ajay Bagga, Banking and Market Expert, told ANI, "This surge in Initial Public Offerings (IPOs), especially with the blockbuster issues of Tata Capital and LG Electronics India, unequivocally denotes a deep and unwavering confidence of domestic investors in the Indian growth story. It's a powerful signal that local capital is not just supporting but actively driving the primary market, offsetting global volatility and foreign capital outflows from the secondary market." India's primary market activity has remained strong in 2025. Excluding the recent large issues of Tata Capital (around Rs 15,512 crore) and LG Electronics India (around Rs 11,607 crore), as many as 74 Indian companies have already raised over Rs 85,241 crore through IPOs in the current calendar year. This has put 2025 on track to become one of the largest fundraising years in India's primary market history. The investor appetite has also been broad-based, with participation seen across multiple sectors, including non-banking financial companies (NBFCs), consumer durables, technology, and others. Aashish P Sommaiyaa, Executive Director & CEO of WhiteOak Capital, told ANI, "I think there is money on the sidelines to invest. If the secondary market looks like it has gone up a lot and has been flatlining or not rewarding people, and also with some news about Tata Capital IPO coming at a big discount to private market deals, there may be a perception that some IPOs are attractive relative to what is happening in the secondary markets -- so not surprised to see the subscription. Furthermore, there is a perceived tailwind for white goods and consumer sectors -- Tata NBFC and LG are both beneficiaries of this. Lastly, both are huge brands." As per the latest data, India has emerged as the fourth-largest IPO market globally in terms of funds raised, trailing only the US, Hong Kong, and China. In certain historical metrics and specific periods of high activity, India has even ranked as the third biggest primary market globally. The strong pipeline of companies planning to go public suggests that India's position will remain among the top globally. The overwhelming response to major IPOs is also reflected in their oversubscription numbers. LG Electronics India saw a phenomenal overall subscription of 54.02 times, while Tata Capital was subscribed 1.95 times overall. These figures demonstrate the high level of investor conviction despite volatility in the secondary markets. IPO Oversubscription occurs when the demand for shares in an Initial Public Offering exceeds the number of shares offered by the company. It is calculated by dividing the total number of shares bid for by the number of shares available. For example, if a company offers 1 crore shares but receives bids for 54 crore shares, the IPO is oversubscribed 54 times. In the Indian context, high oversubscription, particularly in the retail and Non-Institutional Investor (NII) categories, indicates strong investor confidence and a belief in the company's fundamentals and long-term growth prospects. Overall, the recent IPO rush highlights the resilience and optimism of domestic investors, reaffirming that India's growth story remains attractive to strong participation, even amid global uncertainties. (ANI) PNN Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], October 11: Vijayawada Utsav organised recently by Shreyas Media has not only entered Guinness World Records, but also attracted global attention as the world's largest carnival. Shreyas Media, which organised more than 3,500 events related to movie promotions and others across India, USA, Canada, and UAE, showcased its capability and calibre in organizing carnivals by bringing lakhs of people to the Vijayawada Utsav. Buoyed by the carnival's success, the company has decided to bring new charm to regional festivals like Bihu, Onam, Ganesh Chaturthi, Pongal, Lohri, Durga Puja, and Sankranti through similar carnivals across the country. Year-long celebrations.. Shreyas Media has decided to organize celebrations throughout the year at tourist hotspots like Araku and Gandikota in Andhra Pradesh with foreign artists. To take agriculture to new heights, it is planning to organize a farmers' festival with grandeur this Sankranti. It will celebrate New Year, Sankranti in Visakhapatnam and Tirupati on the lines of Vijayawada Utsav. It will also celebrate Diwali, New Year and Sankranti in Vijayawada. It will also hold 30 big concerts throughout the year in Andhra Pradesh, besides organizing Araku Coffee Festival on a grand scale. Fueling growth of local economy.. Shreyas Media founder Gandra Srinivas Rao said that his company organised Vijayawada Utsav as a pilot project and created intellectual property in the carnival space. "India, a dexterous blend of different cultures, is known for its festivities. By organizing carnivals like Vijayawada Utsav in different states, festivals can be transformed into sweet memories. People from India and abroad can be brought together on a single platform. We can instill patriotic feelings among people about our country, states and our festivals. Moreover, the local economy will get a booster shot as lakhs of people come to see and experience the carnival. Consequently, the concerned state government will get more income. So also will be numerous brands. Further, thousands of people get employment directly or indirectly," Srinivas Rao explained. He recalled that Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Nara Chandrababu Naidu expressed his happiness about Vijayawada Utsav as it entered Guinness World Records and found a place on the global tourism map as the crowning glory of Amaravati. The records galore.. Shreyas Media organised Vijayawada Utsav in association with the Society for Vibrant Vijayawada and Andhra Pradesh Tourism. Starting on September 22, the 11-day Utsav featured 284 events. More than 3,000 artists entertained visitors as Vijayawada's streets turned colourful. For the first time in the world, 11 concerts and 11 drone shows were organized in 11 days, bringing more charm to the Dasara festival. A scintillating crackers show dazzled the city and the visitors on four days. Srinivas said that this carnival attracted not only Telugu people but also people from other states. According to him, Vijayawada MP Kesineni Shivanath (Chinni) worked tirelessly to make the carnival a grand success. He said that the Society for Vibrant Vijayawada also played an important role. Rs. 1,000 crore business.. Usually, just 15 lakh people come to Vijayawada on the occasion of Dasara every year. "Thanks to the Vijayawada Utsav, almost 50 lakh people came to Vijayawada this year. It is estimated that a business of Rs.1,000 crore was done locally. More than 15 lakh people participated in the Vijayawada Utsav. As many as 25,000 people have been employed directly and indirectly. 600 stalls have been set up in the Vijayawada Expo," Srinivas said. We have set a target of Rs 5,000 crore in business through Vijayawada Utsav in the next five years. Shreyas Media is ready to organize such carnivals in all cities of the country if the state governments cooperate. Brands are also coming forward to support such carnivals, he said. We acquired the advertising rights of the Maha Kumbh Mela and brought thousands of brands closer to crores of people. We can replicate that success with carnivals, he added. (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.) PRNewswire Hanoi [Vietnam], October 11: On October 9, 2025, SUNHOUSE Group was honored with the Corporate Excellence Award at the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards (APEA) 2025, becoming the only home appliance brand to be recognized among the region's most outstanding enterprises. The APEA, a prestigious regional award organized by Enterprise Asia, celebrates exceptional companies across the Asia-Pacific region for their leadership, innovation, and sustainable growth. Under the theme "Showcasing Future-Ready Enterprises", the 2025 edition honors organizations that redefine business frontiers through technological innovation and sustainable development, values that have shaped SUNHOUSE's 25-year journey of advancement and transformation. A Vision to Become a Global Manufacturer SUNHOUSE's recognition marks a major milestone in its pursuit of technological excellence, operational standardization, and global expansion. The Group currently operates 10 state-of-the-art factories across more than 100,000 square meters, equipped with robotic automation systems and advanced production technologies. Each year, SUNHOUSE manufactures approximately 30 million products, with over 13 million units exported to more than 20 markets, including the United States, Canada, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Indonesia, and Malaysia. The Group has also built strong partnerships with leading global corporations such as Amazon, Alibaba, Coppel, Newsan, and Tospo, and targets VND 3,000 billion (USD 120 million) in export value by 2025. SUNHOUSE's products meet some of the world's most rigorous quality and safety standards: - United States: UL-certified for electrical safety, heavy metal inspection per FDA standards, and performance testing for a minimum of 5,000 operating hours. - Japan: LED products undergo nine layers of inspection for durability, luminous efficiency, color rendering index (CRI), and energy conservation. - South Korea: Compliance with RoHS, ISO, and KS certifications for environmental and manufacturing excellence. These achievements exemplify SUNHOUSE's technical mastery and its commitment to global manufacturing standards. Guided by three core values, health, durability, and convenience, the brand continues to strengthen its competitive edge both domestically and internationally. The region's Leading OEM Manufacturing Hub Beyond its dominant presence in Vietnam, SUNHOUSE has emerged as the leading OEM destination in the region, serving as a strategic manufacturing partner to over 100 multinational corporations. From microchip design and mechanical engineering to product assembly and completion, SUNHOUSE controls the entire production value chain, optimizing cost, quality, and supply chain efficiency for its partners. A key pillar of this ecosystem is Sunhouse Technologies, a core subsidiary that serves as a Tier-1 supplier for global technology leaders such as Samsung and LG. With 10 high-speed SMT production lines imported from South Korea and a capacity exceeding 2 million electronic circuits per month, Sunhouse Technologies embodies the Group's global manufacturing capability and commitment to technological excellence. SUNHOUSE's victory at the Asia Pacific Enterprise Awards 2025 is more than just an accolade, it is a declaration of Vietnam's growing manufacturing power on the global stage. The award highlights SUNHOUSE's two-decade journey of innovation and its transformation into a world-class OEM hub, ready to collaborate with international partners in the era of smart manufacturing. MANUFACTURING PARTNERSHIP INQUIRIES - Head Of International Sales: Vu Kim Tuan (Alex)- Email: overseas.sales@sunhouse.com.vn - Phone/Whatsapp: +84 98 468 5910 (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.) BusinessWire India New Delhi [India], October 11: CSRBOX, India's leading social impact platform, hosted the Doing Good for Bharat Awards 2025. The award recognises exceptional changemakers- individuals, organisations, and institutions, who are driving transformative change across Bharat through sustainability, innovation, and social impact initiatives. The prestigious ceremony was graced by eminent dignitaries, including Shri (Dr.) L. Murugan, Union Minister of State, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, and Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, Government of India; Smt. Vimala Ramesh, Resident Commissioner, Secretary, Government of Maharashtra, Mr. Deep Kalra, Chairman, IIMA-EF Board & Chairman, MakeMyTrip; and Mr. Prashant Agarwal, President, Narayan Seva Sansthan. The evaluation process was conducted through a structured and transparent approach to ensure fairness and credibility. All nominations were first reviewed for eligibility and relevance to the award categories. The qualified entries were then assessed by an esteemed jury panel, which shortlisted the most impactful and innovative initiatives. These shortlisted projects subsequently underwent detailed on-ground verification to validate their outcomes and authenticity. Based on the combined insights of the jury review and field evaluations, the final awardees were selected through a transparent and merit-driven process to embody the spirit of Doing Good for Bharat. The initiative highlights innovative solutions that effectively address social and environmental challenges through research, replicability, and long-term community impact. Award Categories The 2025 Awards encompassed a wide range of categories across business, innovation, academia, philanthropy, and governance. This year's awardees represented a cross-section of India's changemakers from corporate leaders advancing environmental stewardship to social innovators and public servants improving governance and community well-being. "The Doing Good for Bharat Awards celebrate the individuals and institutions who are not just achieving impact but redefining what it means to build a better India. These changemakers prove that purpose-driven action can create lasting systemic change," said Bhomik Shah, Founder & CEO, CSRBOX. The event reaffirmed sector commitment to nurturing a culture of collaboration and impact leadership across India's development ecosystem. By spotlighting exemplary initiatives and individuals, the Doing Good for Bharat Awards 2025 not only honoured those driving meaningful transformation but also inspired a broader movement of collective action with the way forward, together. (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) VMPL New Delhi [India], October 11: The much-awaited Grand Finale and award ceremony of the Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest 2025 took place on 8 October, marking a proud moment for India's growing cyber ecosystem. Hosted by the Territorial Army, Indian Army Research Cell, IIT Madras, CyberPeace and supported by MeitY, Cert-In, the nation's most promising young cyber innovators - the winners of the Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest 2025. The event has also been recognised as an official pre-summit event of the AI Impact Summit 2026 Close to 10,000 young cyberspace enthusiasts participated in the Cyber Quest 2025 to build stronger systems for the nation using Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning The competition, designed to identify and nurture the next generation of cybersecurity experts drew record participation this year with over 6,300 teams from 1,500 institutions from IITs, NITs, IISc and leading MNCs. 75 of the brightest minds were shortlisted for the finale, where the winners were announced in the presence of senior defence officials, technology leaders, and policymakers. Winners of each challenge category won an INR 1,00,000 cash prize. Meet the winners: * Bug Hunting: Vishal ML (a single-member team) * Drone Flight Anomaly Detection: Cdr Yatish Chaturvedi and Lt Col Arijeet Chandra Sen * Quantum Machine Learning / AI Threat Detection: Ashish Bajpai, Pankaj Kumar and Subodh The Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest 2025 featured two distinct tracks: * Track One: Bug Hunting Challenge: A high-stakes cybersecurity hackathon culminating in a 36-hour live bug hunt on the BOSS Linux system. Finalists uncovered OS-level vulnerabilities in a simulated Indian Army environment, helping to build stronger systems for the nation * Track Two: Datathon: A data-centric challenge designed to test participants' ability to build robust technological solutions for defence and national security. This year's focus was on Predictive Threat Intelligence and Drone flight Anomaly Detection using datasets "The Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest was not just a competition; it was a collaborative step toward a Cyber Secure Bharat. In today's world, every byte and every minute counts. Through such initiatives, we're strengthening India's cyber readiness and integrating modern technology into the core of the business of warfare", said Maj Gen S.S. Patil, VSM in his inaugural address. Sharing a brief about the Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest, Major Vineet Kumar, Founder & President, CyberPeace said, "The Indian Army Terrier Cyber Quest 2025 stands as a true reflection of how cybersecurity thrives on multi-stakeholder collaboration, from defence and government to academia and industry. As the official pre-summit event of the AI Impact Summit 2026, this gathering exemplifies how India is building a strong, collaborative foundation to secure its digital future." The event also witnessed a series of inspiring speaker sessions, Fire Side Chat and panel discussions featuring industry experts and leaders including Lt. Gen. (Dr.) Rajesh Pant, (PVSM, AVSM, VSM (Retd) Former National CyberSecurity, Coordinator, PMO, GoI & Member Global Advisory Council, CyberPeace); Dr. Subi Chaturvedi (Chief Corporate Affairs & Public Policy Officer SVP-Global, INMOBI), Mr. MAKP Singh (Former CISO, GoI), Dr. Shankar Raman (CEO, IITM Pravartak Technologies Foundation), Prof Dr GS Bajpai (Vice Chancellor, National Law University, Delhi), Prof Dr. Sitharaman (Chairman, AICTE, GoI), Dr. Anil Shahastrabuddhe (Chairman of NETF, Chairman of Exec Committee, NAAC and Chairman NBA); Brigadier Venkatesh on topics such as cybersecurity preparedness and ecosystem, legal frameworks for cyberspace, military-civil fusion, and evolving role of cybersecurity and AI in national security, by leaders With initiatives like the Terrier Cyber Quest, India is shaping the next frontier of national security, where innovation, collaboration, and cyber resilience define the nation's strength. For Media contacts: contact@amperaww.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.) Base metals are firmly positioned for continued strength, with bullish momentum expected to sustain across copper, zinc, and aluminium in the medium term, according to a report by Motilal Oswal. The convergence of tightening inventories, electrification-led demand, and supply disruptions across key producing nations supports a constructive outlook for the remainder of FY26. The report highlighted that the long-term outlook for copper remains strongly bullish, supported by structural shifts in the global economy toward decarbonization, electrification, and digitalisation, along with persistent risks of disruption. Domestic copper is trading about 27 per cent higher year-to-date, triggered by the US announcing tariffs on copper imports, which sent shockwaves through global markets. The report mentioned that rising EV sales and the growing use of copper in electrification, artificial intelligence, and the global energy transition have also driven the surge in demand. The electrification of transport and infrastructure continues to be a key driver of copper demand. Electric vehicles (EVs) require between 25 and 50 kilograms of copper per unit, compared to just 8 and 12 kilograms in conventional vehicles. The demand for EVs is expected to double to 2.2 million tonnes by 2030, compared to 1.2 million tonnes in 2025, the report noted. Zinc prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose above USD 3,000 per tonne in September 2025, posting a nearly 9 per cent rally year-to-date. The gains were supported by depleting inventories and a weaker U.S. dollar. The report also stated that the expectations of Chinese production cuts further boosted sentiments, even though broader demand trends remained uneven. Aluminium prices on the LME climbed to a six-month high above USD 2,700, largely driven by optimism following the U.S. Federal Reserve's 50-basis-point rate cut, which lifted overall commodity prices. The rally was also supported by China reaching its production cap of 45 million tonnes. LME aluminium inventories are now 50 per cent lower than the highs seen in June 2024, while inventories on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) are about 53 per cent lower. China's aluminium imports surged 40 per cent year-on-year to 317,549 tonnes in 2025, supported by higher inflows from Russia, Indonesia, and India. However, some concerns remain as China's industrial production dipped to 5.2 per cent, and fixed asset investments rose only 0.5 per cent year-on-year, indicating lingering weakness in its economy. The report added that while some optimism among metals may continue to support aluminium, a mix of fundamentals may keep prices hovering within a range in the near term. (ANI) PNN Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 11: What happens when food becomes a bridge between continents? Quicklly-- the largest Indian marketplace online in the U.S & Canada-- answers that question through its evocative new brand film starring Rakul Preet Singh and Jackky Bhagnani. The film, "Ghar Jaisa Pyaar", celebrates the sentiment that Indian food isn't just about flavor -- it's about comfort, memories, culture & belonging. Through Rakul and Jackky's real-life chemistry and their shared love for authentic Indian meals, the film beautifully captures the essence of home, culture, and togetherness that transcends borders. It reminds every Desi living abroad that home is never too far when you have access to authentic Desi flavors. https://youtu.be/k9Po_Wv7TMU "Whenever we're in the U.S., we miss home-cooked food," said Bollywood celebrity Rakul Preet Singh. "Quicklly brings that comfort and nostalgia back into our lives. We just wanted to share this with all the desis living abroad that Quicklly can bring you Ghar Jaisa Pyaar at the simple click of a button." Adding to this, Bollywood Producer & Celebrity, Jackky Bhagnani, "Quicklly brings flavor back in life. We eat abroad but miss the swaad of home cooked food. Quicklly ensures that comfortable feeling of ma ke haath ka khaana and her love, is what we get to experience. It's a brand that truly represents home for many." Speaking on the campaign, Keval Raj, Co-founder of Quicklly, said: "With this campaign, we're not just celebrating food -- we're celebrating identity, community, and the shared joy of being Desi, wherever you are in the world." Hanish Pahwa, Co-founder of Quicklly, added: "Our mission has always been to bring the taste of India to every Indian home in the U.S. -- not just through food, but through the feeling of connection and love that comes with it.'Ghar Jaisa Pyaar'perfectly captures that emotion." With"Ghar Jaisa Pyaar", Quicklly continues to strengthen its message: Think Indian. Think Quicklly. Also celebrating this festive season with $20 OFF code DIWALI20. About Quicklly: Quicklly is the #1 Indian super-app in the US and Canada, serving as the largest online marketplace for authentic Indian groceries, food, and cultural essentials. Our mission is to be the one-stop destination that connects the Indian diaspora to everything they need from home, delivering "Ghar Jaisa Pyaar" right to their doorstep. Quicklly does Nationwide doorstep delivery with access to 10000+ products, including Indian grocery ingredients, meal kits, and halal meat as well as same-day delivery in Chicago, Chicago Land, New York, New Jersey and Bay Area. You can also find your favorite Indian grocery brands listed on Quicklly. The platform seamlessly integrates a vast network of local businesses with our in-house brand, Just By Quicklly, ensuring a complete, convenient, and authentic cultural experience for the desi community for more information, please visit https://www.quicklly.com/ Quicklly Media Contact: vaibhavi@quicklly.com (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.) Samsung Biologics Co is accelerating its expansion in Japan, the world's third-largest pharmaceutical market. The South Korean company has signed contracts with half of Japan's top 10 pharmaceutical and biotech companies, rapidly strengthening its presence in the region, according to a report by Pulse, the English service of Maeil Business Newspaper Korea. "We have signed contracts with four of Japan's top 10 pharma companies and are in final talks with one more," the report quoted Samsung Biologics CEO John Rim at BioJapan 2025 held in Yokohama on Thursday. "BioJapan is a crucial event for us. To expand our client base from the global top 20 to the top 40 pharmaceutical companies, collaboration with Japanese firms is essential. That's why we established a Tokyo sales office and dispatched dedicated sales personnel," he added. Japan ranks third globally after the United States and Europe, with strong technological capabilities in antibody-drug conjugates (ADC) and cell and gene therapies (CGT). Citing Research and Markets, Japan's contract development and manufacturing organisation (CDMO) market is projected to grow at an annual rate of 6.8 per cent from USD 12.3 billion in 2023 to USD 19.5 billion by 2030. "The demand for CDMO services in Japan is rising, and our potential partnerships with major Japanese pharmaceutical firms are expanding," the report quoted Rim. "We are focusing on antibodies and ADC projects while building trust through face-to-face meetings." "The company recently raised its annual revenue growth forecast from 20-25 per cent to 25-30 per cent, suggesting that this year's revenue could reach around 6 trillion won (USD 4.23 billion), up from 4.55 trillion won in 2024," the report said. Regarding possible expansion into the United States, Rim maintained a cautious stance amid tariff uncertainties. "We are continuously reviewing potential entry into the US market, and the likelihood is higher than it was two to three years ago," the report quoted Rim. "However, since labor and construction costs in the U.S. are more than 70 per cent higher than in Korea, we will make decisions after carefully assessing demand, tariffs, and process efficiency." Samsung Biologics' recently launched Plant 5 integrates automation and artificial intelligence technologies, reinforcing its smart factory infrastructure. (ANI) SK Group is set to elevate the global standing of Korean artificial intelligence by hosting two major international AI events - the Future Tech Forum AI at the APEC CEO Summit in late October 2025 and the SK AI Summit 2025 in early November, according to a report by Pulse, the English service of Maeil Business Newspaper Korea. The report noted that the conglomerate stated on Friday that it will lead the Future Tech Forum AI, a side event of the APEC CEO Summit, in Gyeongju on October 28, followed by the SK AI Summit 2025 at COEX in Seoul from November 3 to 4. Both gatherings will bring together global tech leaders and scholars to discuss AI strategies, industry collaboration, and the development of national-level ecosystems. Attendees include Ha Jung-woo, senior presidential secretary for AI future planning; Chey Tae-won, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and SK Group; SK Telecom CEO Ryu Young-sang; Naver CEO Choi Soo-yeon; Amazon Web Services (AWS) CEO Matt Garman; Kim Kyoung-hoon, Head of OpenAI Korea; Choi Ye-jin, AI professor at Stanford University; and Nitin Mittal, Global AI Leader at Deloitte Consulting. Chey Tae-won, serving as Chair of the APEC CEO Summit, will deliver the keynote speech, sharing Korea's vision and progress in fostering an AI-driven economy. The Future Tech Forum AI will center on the theme of a "National AI Ecosystem," focusing on policy-level collaboration beyond individual corporate strategies. "The K-Tech Showcase, featuring SK Group's integrated AI data center solution uniting SK Hynix, SK telecom, SKC, and SK enmove's AI capabilities, will also be held at Gyeongju Expo Grand Park's Air Dome. The event will cover everything from semiconductors and cooling systems to operations and cybersecurity," the report said. The SK AI Summit 2025, themed "AI Now & Next," will highlight the group's achievements to date in 2025 and present its long-term strategy for AI-driven growth. The 2025 event will expand participation to include startups, academia, and global corporations. A side event, the SK AI Summit Cloud Code Builder Hackathon, will be co-hosted by SK telecom, Anthropic, and Coxwave. Quoting SK Group, the report stated that through APEC, the company aims to share Korea's AI ecosystem strategy with the world and demonstrate SK's value-creating AI infrastructure spanning semiconductors, energy, and digital services. It added that the events will mark a major step in positioning K-AI at the center of global cooperation. (ANI) VMPL Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 11: The Collective Pop's Festive Edit successfully brought together India's brightest fashion talent and tastemakers for two days of inspiration, collaboration and commerce at the Ralph Lauren Hall, NIF Global, Andheri West. Conceptualised and produced by Milestone Ventures under the leadership of Vivek Gautam, the Festive Edit was designed as a high-impact networking and style showcase that celebrates creativity, craftsmanship and purposeful partnerships. The event -- supported by NiF Centre Head Mamta Gautam -- ran from 11:00 AM to 8:00 PM and offered attendees a full-sensory experience of festive fashion, music, conversations and curated brand activations. Event highlights * Exclusive designer showcases unveiling trend-forward festive collections.* A thought-leadership seminar featuring Chirag Aggarwal, moderated by creative director Sagar Kadrekar.* Curated brand campaigns spotlighting both emerging and established labels.* An intimate meet-and-greet evening that provided organic networking opportunities for designers, buyers, stylists and influencers. Creative and marketing leadershipThe Festive Edit's immersive programming was led in marketing by Anushka Arjun and guided creatively by Sagar Kadrekar, with Srishti Shukla and Kripa Shukla supporting creative direction. Featured designers and brands 1. Tina Bindra -- SASSYKAUR (Instagram: @sassykaur13)2. Parul Khanna -- Studio6 Jewels (Instagram: @studio6jewels)3. Monica Shah -- MONICA SHAH (Instagram: @monicas_design_studio)4. Mrunal Mistry -- MRUNAL MISTRY (Instagram: @mrunalmistry)5. Aanchal Mahajan -- Gifting Joy (Instagram: @gifting_joy)6. Sukanya Naik -- SUKANYYA (Instagram: @sukanyya_the_label) Partners and supportersThe Collective Pop extends its gratitude to its partners and sponsors for their invaluable support: * Event partner: Milestone Ventures* Venue partner: NIF Andheri (Ralph Lauren Hall)* Celebration partner: Frizzano* Decor partner: The Event Cp* Fragrance partner: Florencia Paris* Media partner: Entity One Collaborations and mentorshipIn a special collaboration, The Collective Pop partnered with the Miss Maharashtra Pageant to provide grooming and mentorship to participating models. Former Miss India Pia Roy joined as mentor, adding a powerful layer of talent development to the event. Influencer participationThe Festive Edit saw strong participation from influencers and content creators, including: Anant Agrawal, Samira Furkan, Sihani Mendosa, Kajal Kothari, Ranjit Rodriques, Akshi Gala and Roopam Lakhanpal. Statement from the host"We designed The Collective Pop Festive Edit to be more than a marketplace -- it's a platform where creativity meets opportunity," said Vivek Gautam, Founder, Milestone Ventures. "The fashion industry is constantly evolving: tastes shift, technologies change and new voices rise. Events like this allow us to respond nimbly to those changes, foster meaningful collaborations and celebrate the talent that defines our community. I'm proud of what we've created and excited for the partnerships and stories that will grow from it." About The Collective PopThe Collective Pop is a curated fashion and lifestyle platform that brings together designers, brands, stylists, influencers and buyers to collaborate, create and showcase. Focused on curated experiences and purposeful networking, The Collective Pop aims to build lasting relationships that translate into impactful brand stories and commercial opportunities. For further information, images or interview requests, please connect Purti -Entity One PR (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.) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday met Cristiano R. Amon, President and CEO of Qualcomm, and discussed India's advancements in artificial intelligence, innovation, and skilling. The Prime Minister expressed appreciation for Qualcomm's commitment towards India's Semiconductor and AI Missions. He noted that India offers unmatched talent and scale to build technologies that will shape the collective future. Cristiano Amon thanked the Prime Minister for the enriching discussion on strengthening the partnership between Qualcomm and India in support of the IndiaAI and India Semiconductor Missions, as well as the transition to 6G. He highlighted the opportunities to develop an Indian ecosystem across AI smartphones, PCs, smart glasses, automotive, industrial sectors and more. "It was a wonderful meeting with Mr. Cristiano R. Amon and discussing India's strides in AI, innovation and skilling. Great to see Qualcomm's commitment towards India's semiconductor and AI missions. India offers unmatched talent and scale to build technologies that will shape our collective future," PM Modi said in a post on X. In his response to PM Modi's post, Cristiano Amon said they are encouraged by the opportunities to develop an Indian ecosystem across areas such as AI smartphones, PCs and smart glasses. "Thank you PM @narendramodi for the great conversation on fostering a broader partnership between @Qualcomm and India in support of the IndiaAI and India Semiconductor Missions, as well as the transition to 6G. We are encouraged by the opportunities to develop an Indian ecosystem across AI smartphones, PCs, smart glasses, auto, industrial and more," the Qualcomm CEO said. Earlier this week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi interacted with a visiting US delegation of thinkers and business leaders led by Walter Russell Mead, a distinguished fellow at the American think tank Hudson Institute. After the meeting, PM Modi said he valued their contribution in "strengthening India-US ties and advancing our partnership for global peace, progress and prosperity." (ANI) The Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) on X said, "The second meeting of the National Anti-Smuggling Coordination Centre (S-CORD) was held on October 10, 2025, at the DRI Headquarters." Officials from major border guarding forces such as Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), Border Security Force (BSF), Assam Rifles (AR), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), and the Indian Coast Guard attended the session. Representatives from financial and intelligence agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB), Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Intelligence Bureau (IB), and the Cabinet Secretariat, also participated. The meeting further saw participation from several other crucial departments such as the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT), Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT), Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO), Indian Railways, and the Division of Disarmament and International Security Affairs (D&ISA) under the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA). Constituted under the directions of the Union Finance Minister, the S-CORD platform first met in April 2019. The second S-CORD meeting marks a continued effort by the government to foster collaborartion among agencies and ensure that India's anti-smuggling measures remain robust and responsive to emerging threats. (ANI) NewsVoir Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], October 11: Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a Fortune Global 500 enterprise and one of the foremost oil and gas companies in India, has formed a strategic alliance with Reliance BP Mobility Limited (RBML) aimed at boosting the City Gas Distribution (CGD) and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) sales sectors. This landmark partnership highlights BPCL's ongoing commitment through Project Aspire--an innovative initiative designed to foster future growth and establish a sustainable energy framework for India. The official agreement was signed by Shri Rouf Khan (Chief General Manager - Projects & Marketing, Gas, BPCL) and Shri Sanjay Pandita (Head - Gaseous Fuels, RBML), with Shri Subhankar Sen (Director - Marketing, BPCL), Shri Rahul Tandon (Business Head - Gas, BPCL), Shri Sarthak Behuria (Chairman, RBML), and Shri Akshay Wadhwa (CEO, RBML) in attendance. Speaking on the occasion, Shri Rahul Tandon, Business Head - Gas, BPCL, stated, "It is crucial that the end customer receives our molecule, aligning with the broader vision of promoting a gas-based economy. This partnership will enhance our progress towards this national objective." Echoing this sentiment, Shri Akshay Wadhwa, CEO, RBML, remarked, "RBML outlets attract higher footfall, which will drive increased CNG sales in the area, thereby contributing to the overall goals of India's gas-based economy." This collaboration represents a significant advancement in providing access to cleaner and more affordable fuel alternatives throughout India. It supports the Government of India's ambition to raise the share of natural gas in the nation's energy mix from the current 6% to 15% by 2030--highlighting the joint dedication of both organizations to promote sustainable mobility and the adoption of cleaner energy. #TheGoodPrint Fortune Global 500 Company, Bharat Petroleum is the second largest Indian Oil Marketing Company and one of the integrated energy companies in India, engaged in refining of crude oil and marketing of petroleum products, with presence in the upstream and downstream sectors of the oil and gas industry. The company attained the coveted Maharatna status, joining the club of companies having greater operational & financial autonomy. Bharat Petroleum's Refineries at Mumbai, Kochi and Bina have a combined refining capacity of around 35.3 MMTPA. Its marketing infrastructure includes a network of installations, depots, fuel stations, aviation service stations and LPG distributors. Its distribution network comprises over 23,500+ Fuel Stations, over 6,200+ LPG distributorships, 500+ Lubes distributorships, 80 POL storage locations, 54 LPG Bottling Plants, 79 Aviation Service Stations, 5 Lube blending plants and 5 cross-country pipelines. Bharat Petroleum is integrating its strategy, investments, environmental and social ambitions to move towards a sustainable planet. The company has Electric vehicle charging stations at 6500+ Fuel Stations. With a focus on sustainable solutions, the company is developing an ecosystem and a road-map to become a Net Zero Energy Company by 2040, in Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions. Bharat Petroleum has been partnering communities by supporting several initiatives connected primarily in the areas of education, water conservation, skill development, health, community development, capacity building and employee volunteering. With 'Energising Lives' as its core purpose, Bharat Petroleum's vision is to be an admired global energy company leveraging talent, innovation & technology. Operating under the brand 'Jio-bp', Reliance BP Mobility Limited (RBML) is an Indian fuels and mobility joint venture between Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) and bp. The joint venture leverages Reliance's presence across the country and its millions of consumers through the Jio digital platform while bp brings its extensive global experience in high-quality differentiated fuels, lubricants, retail, and advanced low carbon mobility solutions. In addition to marketing conventional fuels, Jio-bp provides advanced mobility solutions and alternative fueling options to its customers such as Electric Vehicles (EV) charging, compressed biogas (CBG) and more. The company's aviation brand 'air bp-Jio' is a leading supplier of Aviation Turbine Fuel across India. The brand 'Jio-bp Fuel4U' caters to on-demand doorstep delivery of diesel and is a market leader in the segment. Jio-bp is also the India partner for popular UK fuel forecourt Cafe brand by bp, Wildbean Cafe (WBC), and have innovated to take WBC outside the fuel forecourt. Learn more about Jio-bp on www.jiobp.com / Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube: @Jiobpofficial/ For latest updates check out www.jiobp.com/news-room (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by NewsVoir. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same) PNN Vadodara (Gujarat) [India], October 11: Keimfarben GmbH (KEIM), a German multinational and global pioneer in silicate paint technology, will strengthen its engagement in the Indian market through a strategic license agreement with Zydex Industries, a leading Indian multinational specialising in innovative and sustainable solutions in the paints, waterproofing, roads, agro, and textiles sectors. This partnership marks a significant milestone in bringing world-renowned silicate paint technology to India, with local manufacturing and distribution powered by Zydex's deep market presence and technical capabilities. Silicate paints, known for their exceptional durability, sustainability, and longevity, have been a preferred choice of architects around the globe. Some silicate-painted buildings in Europe have stood the test of time for over 130 years without requiring repainting, setting a gold standard for architectural coatings. KEIM's paints are often specified by leading global architecture firms such as Zaha Hadid Architects, Foster + Partners, Rem Koolhaas, MVRDV, and Moshe Safdie. Iconic global structures such as the Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, the Hunters Point Library in New York, the Abu Dhabi F1 Circuit, and the Sydney Opera House have all used KEIM's cutting-edge solutions. Through this collaboration, Indian architects, developers, and public infrastructure projects will now have access to globally proven, mineral-based silicate paints that offer superior weather resistance, breathability, color stability, and environmental compatibility. With shared values of innovation, sustainability, and performance, Zydex and KEIM aim to redefine long-term durability in Indian construction and architectural coatings. Speaking on the collaboration, Dr Moulik Ranka, Director of Zydex Group, said:"Our vision has always been to provide sustainable and high-performance solutions. KEIM's silicate technology aligns perfectly with this mission, delivering beauty, durability, and environmental responsibility in one product." Mr. Rudiger Lugert, CEO of Keimfarben GmbH, underlines:"India is one of the fastest-growing construction markets, and we are excited to bring our legacy of silicate innovation directly on site here through our partnership with Zydex. Together, we aim to redefine expectations for paint longevity and sustainability." Highlighting the significance of this initiative, Mr. Amrendra Mishra, COO of Zydex Paints and Waterproofing, said:"With this cooperation, India's architectural community gains access to a proven technology with a legacy of more than 145 years that continues to inspire and protect some of the world's most iconic structures." About Zydex GroupZydex Group is a leading manufacturer of sustainable chemical technologies, offering innovative solutions across construction, textiles, roads, and agriculture. With a strong commitment to environmental stewardship, Zydex pioneers advancements that contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future. About KEIMFounded in 1878 in Germany, Keimfarben is the global pioneer and leader in mineral silicate paint technology. Known for unmatched durability, breathability, and sustainability, KEIM's paints have adorned iconic architecture across the globe. With a legacy of innovation and a deep commitment to environmental responsibility, KEIM continues to set the global standard in mineral-based, eco-friendly building solutions. For further information, please contact:Mr. Amrendra Mishra (COO of Zydex Paints and Waterproofing)Ph. No.: +91 99100 55795E-mail: amrendra@zydexgroup.com (ADVERTORIAL DISCLAIMER: The above press release has been provided by PNN. ANI will not be responsible in any way for the content of the same.) The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has appointed Sonali Sen Gupta as its new Executive Director (ED), with effect from October 9, 2025. The announcement was made through an official press release by the RBI. Earlier, Sen Gupta was serving as the Regional Director for Karnataka at the Bengaluru Regional Office. With a career spanning more than three decades at the central bank, she has worked in key departments such as Financial Inclusion, Human Resource Management, Banking Regulation, and Supervision. As Executive Director, Sen Gupta will now oversee three important departments "Consumer Education and Protection Department, Financial Inclusion and Development Department and Inspection Department. Sonali Sen Gupta is a post-graduate with an MBA in Banking and Finance. She is also a Certified Associate of IIBF," the release said. Throughout her tenure at the RBI, Sen Gupta has represented India on several international platforms. "She has represented the Reserve Bank in G20 - Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) and OECD - International Network on Financial Education (INFE) and has served as a Director on the board of National Centre for Financial Education (NCFE). She has also served as a member of various other internal and external Committees," the release said. In addition to her international work, she has been a member of various internal and external committees that help shape the Reserve Bank's policy and regulatory framework. Currently, she also serves as the RBI's Nominee Director on the Board of Indian Overseas Bank. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in a special Krishi programme at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute in New Delhi on Saturday, during which two major schemes in the agriculture sector, with an outlay of Rs 35,440 crore, were launched. As per a Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying press release, these were the PM Dhan Dhaanya Krishi Yojana and Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses. Additionally, the Prime Minister also inaugurated and dedicated to the nation projects valued at over Rs 5,450 crore in the agriculture, animal husbandry, fisheries, and food processing sectors, while laying the foundation stone for additional projects worth around Rs 815 crore. The Prime Minister stated that sectors like animal husbandry, fisheries, and beekeeping are being actively promoted to provide additional income sources, particularly for small and landless farmers. "16 Fisheries Projects worth over Rs 693 crore include: Foundation stone laid for 7 new projects worth Rs 572 crore and inauguration of 9 fisheries projects worth Rs 121 crore across India under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and the Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF). These projects have the potential to strengthen infrastructure, create employment, boost exports, and usher in a new era for India's Blue Economy," the release said. Some of the key projects are the Trout Fisheries project in Uttarakhand under FIDF. Worth Rs 170 crore, the project aims to increase trout fish production in the region and generate employment opportunities. The Smart & Integrated Fishing Harbour in Karaikal, Puducherry, is also being developed at a cost of Rs 119.94 crore for the safe docking of fish vessels, promoting hygienic fish handling, enhancing fish production, and marketing quality fish for both export and domestic consumption. Designed as a modern facility, a Smart & Integrated Fishing Harbour integrates advanced technologies, sustainable infrastructure, and comprehensive fisheries services to improve operational efficiency, safety, and livelihood opportunities for coastal communities, the release noted. The Integrated Aqua Park (IAP) at Hirakud, Sambalpur, Odisha, is a Rs 100 crore project under the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) aimed at transforming aquaculture through a comprehensive ecosystem that supports tilapia and pangasius production, cage farming, hatchery operations, and fish processing. The project includes key components such as a Fish Park, an Infrastructure Park, a Fish Process Park, a Packing & Net Accessories Park, a Knowledge Park, and an Effluent Treatment Plant. Once operational, it will support 1,600 cages, benefit 1,700 farmers, and train 700 individuals. "The Nutrition Hub of Sustainable Aquaculture, worth Rs 70 crore in Amethi, Uttar Pradesh, will promote eco-friendly fish feed manufacturing, boost fish production, and enhance farmer profitability. It will support capacity building, modern aquaculture practices, and advanced nutrition solutions," the release stated. (ANI) US-based artificial intelligence company Anthropic is setting up its first office in India, in Bengaluru, as part of its growing presence in the Indo-Pacific region. The announcement came after Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the company's plans for expansion and India's role in the future of AI. Sharing the update on X on Saturday, Amodei said, "Today I met with PM @narendramodi to discuss Anthropic's expansion to India--where Claude Code use is up 5x since June. How India deploys AI across critical sectors like education, healthcare, and agriculture for over a billion people will be essential in shaping the future of AI." The meeting highlights India's growing importance as a hub for artificial intelligence development and innovation. The company's new Bengaluru office will be its second in the Indo-Pacific region after Tokyo. Confirming the development on Wednesday, Karnataka's Minister for Electronics, IT/BT, Priyank Kharge, posted on X, "Anthropic, the US-based AI research company, has chosen Bengaluru for its first India office, its second in the Indo-Pacific region after Tokyo." He said that the decision reflects Bengaluru's position as one of the world's most dynamic technology centers. "Global technology leaders continue to choose this city for its unmatched innovation environment and deep talent base," Kharge stated. Highlighting the city's global standing, Kharge added, "Bengaluru is now a booming AI developer community, ranked #5 globally in AI and DeepTech ecosystems. With over 1 lakh AI professionals, Bengaluru boasts 50% of India's AI talent. Anthropic's arrival will further expand opportunities for local talent, R&D, and AI product development." Anthropic is an AI safety and research company. According to company information it builds reliable, interpretable, and steerable AI systems. On of its products is Claude, a next generation AI assistant. The opening of Anthropic's Bengaluru office aligns with the government's focus on promoting artificial intelligence as a key enabler for growth across industries. (ANI) Megastar Amitabh Bachchan turns 83 today, marking a day of celebration for his ardent followers. Fans of Big B gathered outside his bungalow, Jalsa, to catch a glimpse of their favourite movie star on the occasion of his birthday. One of his fans expressed excitement and shared how relevant Big B's birthday is for them, saying, "Today is the birthday of the Superstar of the century. For us, today is Diwali and Holi. We wait for October 11th every year, and may he always remain healthy..." His other fans also shared their best wishes. Another fan who came from Bikaner, Rajasthan said, "Happy Birthday gurudev..aap swasth rahe, mast rahe aur aapka aashirvaad hume milta rahe.. (Happy Birthday Gurudev..May you remain healthy, happy and may we continue to receive your blessings.)" Some of them also showed the tattoo of the 'Deewaar' actor on their hands, while others wore T-shirts with his image. One of the fans who came from Chhattisgarh expressed his happiness and said, "Hamari aan baan aur shaan Amitabh Bachchan ji ko janamdin ki hardik shubhkamna..(Happy Birthday to our pride and honour Amitabh Bachchan ji)" Amitabh Bachchan, one of India's most celebrated actors, has defined Hindi cinema for over five decades. With his diverse roles, he has created an indelible mark on Indian cinema. He gained popularity in the early 1970s with films such as 'Anand', 'Zanjeer' and later came a string of cinematic landmarks, including 'Deewaar', 'Sholay', and 'Don', each cementing his place as a cultural icon. Born on October 11, 1942, Bachchan never confined himself to one genre. His versatility shone through in lighter roles, such as 'Chupke Chupke' and 'Amar Akbar Anthony', where his impeccable comic timing added another dimension to his stardom. While in 'Silsila' and 'Kabhi Kabhie', the audience got a glimpse of his romantic side as an actor, which proved that he can go beyond his 'angry young man' image. From intense dramas to light-hearted comedies, Amitabh Bachchan has proved that talent has no limits and age is no barrier. With a filmography spanning more than 200 movies, he remains one of India's most respected and admired actors, a true legend whose influence continues to shape the world of cinema. (ANI) Hundreds of fans and admirers gathered outside the actor's Mumbai residence, Jalsa, with placards and posters as they celebrated his special day as a festival. In a special treat for his fans, Big B wasted no time before coming out to greet the crowd and express his gratitude. Dressed in a bright yellow sweatshirt paired with white trousers, Amitabh Bachchan appeared in a joyful mood as he thanked everyone for their wishes. He waved at his fans and thanked them with folded hands before distributing gifts among them. Since morning, there has been an outpouring of greetings and wishes from his fans as well as colleagues from the industry. While fans flooded social media platforms with tributary posts and recalled his old films, celebrities also shared their greetings for him. Stars like Farhan Akhtar, Kriti Sanon, Prabhas, Kajol, Shatrughan Sinha, Srijit Mukherji, and others sent heartfelt wishes on their respective handles. The actor's granddaughter, Navya Nanda, dropped an adorable post for her "Nana." Megastar Amitabh Bachchan is known for his performances in films such as 'Deewaar', 'Sholay', 'Kabhi Kabhie', 'Amar Akbar Anthony', 'Don', 'Trishul', 'Muqaddar Ka Sikandar', 'Coolie', 'Silsila', 'Yaarana', 'Kaalia', 'Satte Pe Satta', 'Shakti', 'Aakhree Raasta', 'Shahenshah' and 'Agneepath'. Big B also made his impact in regional cinema with films such as the Gujarati comedy drama. 'Fakt Purusho Mate', Telugu epic science-fiction, 'Kalki 2898 AD', and Tamil action drama, 'Vettaiyan', also starring Rajinikanth. He is a recipient of several accolades, including National Film Awards and sixteen Filmfare Awards. (ANI) Taking to her Instagram handle, Aishwarya shared an old picture of Big B with her daughter, Aaradhya, showing the duo posing for a cute picture. While the 'Goodbye' actor held onto the camera for a selfie, a younger Aaradhya could be seen snuggling upto her grandfather as she smiled for the picture. Not to miss a cute little crown on the actor's head. "Happy Birthday dearest Pa-Dadajiii. Love and God Bless Always," Aishwarya wrote in the caption. https://www.instagram.com/p/DPrRRZIEoNS/ The post came as a rare update after a long time since rumours of tension between Aishwarya and Abhishek Bachchan made headlines last year. Aishwarya and her daughter attended Anant Ambani's wedding without the Bachchan family. The rest of the family, including Amitabh, Jaya, Abhishek, Shweta, Agastya Nanda, and Navya Naveli, attended the event together, leading to speculation about their separation. However, the rumours were later put to rest after the two were spotted together at various events. Earlier in the day, Amitabh Bachchan received heartwarming wishes from his fans as well as celebrities from the industry. Celebrities Kajol, Vijay Varma, Ajay Devgn, Prabhas, Farhan Akhtar, Shilpa Shetty, and Kriti Sanon sent greetings on social media. His granddaughter, Navya Nanda, also dedicated a post for Big B and wrote, "Happy birthday, Nana." On the work front, Aishwarya Rai recently walked the ramp at Paris Fashion Week, captivating audiences with her stunning looks. (ANI) Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan celebrated Karva Chauth with his wife Sadhna Singh on Friday evening, performing the traditional rituals as she broke her fast after sighting the moon. Chouhan praised Indian culture, highlighting the remarkable sacrifice and tolerance shown by women. He expressed his happiness, noting that this year, both of his daughter-in-laws observed the Karwa Chauth fast for the first time. Speaking to the reporters on Friday, Shivraj Singh Chouhan said, "Indian culture is amazing...Women are an amazing form of tolerance and sacrifice. Keeping a fast and praying for the happiness, health and long life of the husband is truly amazing...It is overwhelming for me today because earlier my wife and I used to break fast, but today, my two daughter-in-laws, who are like my daughters, observed Karwa Chauth fast...So, this is historic and joyous for me..." His wife, Sadhna Singh, expressed her joy in celebrating her first Karwa Chauth with her daughters-in-law. "It is a big deal for me that this is my first Karwa Chauth with my daughters...I bless both my daughters," she said. Karwa Chauth takes place on Krishna Paksha Chaturthi in the Kartik month. The festival falls on October 10 this year, and on this occasion, as every year, Hindu women will fast throughout the day for the good health and longevity of their husbands. Before starting their fast, women eat from their 'sargi'. After the moonrise, they break their fast, gazing into their husbands' eyes and offering a special prayer to the moon. Items required for performing the Puja are Water, Milk, Kumkum, Honey, chandan, Sugar, Curd, Incense sticks, Camphor, Karwa, Kalawa, Maththi, roli, and an oil lamp. Karwa Chauth is one of the most significant festivals celebrated primarily by married Hindu women in India. It is a celebration of marriage, wherein the wife fasts for a long and healthy life for her husband. Women can break their fast after the sighting of the 'chandrama'. After watching the moon from a sieve, fasting women offer Arghaya to the moon and break the fast by eating a morsel of food and a sip of water from their husband's hands. (ANI) As Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut sharply criticised the Maharashtra government over its handling of the flood situation in Marathwada, Maharashtra Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Saturday said that the Chief Minister-led Devendra Fadnavis government has taken "care of Marathwada". He also accused Shiv Sena (UBT) chief and former Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray of "Nizam-like behaviour" while responding to Sanjay Raut's "Marathwada is still under the Nizam's rule" jibe. "Who is even listening to him? Chief Minister and our Government have taken care of Marathwada, and we are making decisions to extend help to every person. As far as Nizam-like behaviour is concerned, it was the Uddhav Thackeray government that did this. Our government renamed Aurangabad to Sambhajinagar and Ahmednagar to Ahilyanagar. Our Government renamed the Nizam-era names of the main capital area of Marathwada. It was the Congress party that meted out Nizam-like behaviour to Marathwada. BJP strengthened Marathwada...," Bawankule told reporters on Friday. Raut told reporters on Friday that the government appeared more focused on welcoming the visiting British Prime Minister than addressing the severe distress faced by flood-hit regions. "The flood situation in Marathwada is still a matter of concern, but the government is not serious. The government was busy welcoming the British Prime Minister. It was expected that Modi would come and make some announcements for the flood victims in Marathwada, but to prevent this burden from falling on Modi, Devendra Fadnavis has announced a package that will blow away the dust," Raut said. He demanded that the government provide compensation of Rs 50,000 per hectare to affected farmers, emphasising that the damage to farmland is so severe that "the next two generations cannot use the land for farming." Announcing Marathwada Morcha, Raut said, "Shiv Sena (UBT) is organising a Marathwada Morcha, and Uddhav Thackeray himself will lead it." Raut also urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to extend financial aid to the region's farmers from the PM Cares Fund. "We demanded that Narendra Modi should at least help the farmers of Marathwada from the PM Cares Fund. If the flood-affected farmers are not helped, then it should be known to whom this money is for?" he said, warning that the suicide rate among farmers could rise further if relief measures are not implemented urgently. "Marathwada is still under the Nizam's rule. Atrocities and exploitation continue in Marathwada," Raut added. (ANI) Indian Army's Chinar Corps paid tribute to 2 soldiers, Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh, who were killed during an anti-terror operation in Jammu and Kashmir's Kishtwar Range of Kokernag, while battling extreme weather conditions. "Chinar Corps honours the supreme sacrifice of Bravehearts Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh, while conducting relentless counter terror operations in the Kishtwar Range of Kokernag, battling extreme weather conditions", the Chinar Corps posted on X on Friday. Honouring their courage, the Army expressed solidarity with the affected families. "Their courage and dedication will forever inspire us. Chinar Warriors salute the valour and sacrifice of the Bravehearts. We stand in solidarity with the bereaved families and are committed to their well-being", the post added. Earlier, on the intervening night of October 6, Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh went missing while an operational team on Kishtwar range confronted a severe snow storm and white out conditions in the mountains of South Kashmir, the Army had said on Thursday. "On the intervening night of 6/7 Oct an operational team on Kishtwar range confronted a severe snow storm and white out conditions in the mountains of South Kashmir", Chinar corps said in an earlier post on X. Intense search and rescue operations were launched, but were "hampered due to prevailing adverse weather conditions", the army said. Meanwhile, On October 9, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed security forces to remain on high alert and ensure that terrorists do not exploit snowfall and adverse weather conditions to infiltrate across the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border in Jammu and Kashmir. The directive came during a high-level security review meeting chaired by Shah in the national capital to assess the ground situation in the Union Territory. Officials briefed the Home Minister about the recent pattern of infiltration attempts from across the LoC, where Pakistan-based terror groups often use fog, snow cover, and difficult terrain to push infiltrators into Indian territory. With winter approaching, several mountain passes in north Kashmir and the Pir Panjal range are expected to receive heavy snowfall, limiting visibility and complicating surveillance operations. Emphasising the need for coordinated vigilance, Shah also asked the Army, BSF, and Jammu and Kashmir Police to strengthen their presence along infiltration-prone routes and enhance intelligence-sharing mechanisms. (ANI) President Droupadi Murmu offered prayers at Somnath Temple, one of the 12 jyotirlingas dedicated to Lord Shiva, near Veraval town in Gujarat on Friday. President Murmu, who is on a three-day visit to Gujarat, paid floral tributes at the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel near the temple. https://x.com/rashtrapatibhvn/status/1976580666251976901 In a post on X, the President's Secretariat said, "President Droupadi Murmu performed Darshan and Puja at the Somnath temple in Gujarat. She also paid floral tributes at the statue of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel near the temple." She also visited Gir National Park and interacted with the local tribal people at Sasan Gir. During the interaction, the President said that tribal people have many avenues for progress in life. She told them to strive to provide the best possible education for their children. She was pleased to note that the Siddi tribal community, a traditionally marginalised group, has a literacy rate of over 72 per cent, according to the President's Secretariat. The President stated that the government of India has launched various initiatives for the welfare of tribal people. She urged all to get information about developmental and welfare schemes and not only benefit from them but also connect the people of their village and community with those schemes. President Murmu stated that the nature-friendly lifestyle of the tribal community serves as a source of inspiration for all. The President said, "With the active participation of our tribal brothers and sisters, we are working to build a society and country where there is an environment of equality, justice, and respect, where the culture and traditions of tribal society are preserved, and the rights of our tribal brothers and sisters are protected. This is crucial to making India a developed nation by the year 2047." The President will perform Darshan and aarti at the Dwarkadhish temple in Dwarka today, as per a release. She will also grace the 71st convocation ceremony of the Gujarat Vidyapith in Ahmedabad. (ANI) The 13th Battalion of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), with the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Mahila Disaster Management Committee (MDMC), conducted a school safety awareness programme demonstrating preventive measures and response techniques during disasters. The programme was held at the Government Model Higher Secondary School, Ramban. 13th Battalion n NDRF SI Kamta Thakur said that the programme will run for 15 days. He also expressed concern over the occurrence of landslides and cloudbursts during the monsoon. "During the monsoon season, there are a lot of cloudbursts and landslides. By going to each school in every district, we are conducting this awareness program for the students... This is a 15-day program..." The region has witnessed continuous heavy rainfall in recent days, resulting in swollen rivers and flash flood-like conditions across multiple districts of Jammu and Kashmir, including Ramban. Authorities are monitoring the situation closely to prevent further damage. Also, the region is prone to seismic activity, and the Kashmir Valley is a high-risk zone for earthquakes. Most of the Kashmir Valley falls within Seismic Zone 5, which is considered a very high-risk zone. This zone is characterised by a high potential for strong earthquakes. Meanwhile, farmers in Chanthal village of Udhampur have alleged that a crucial canal, maintained by the Jammu and Kashmir Power Development Corporation (JKPDC), becomes clogged with sewage and garbage from an overhead railway line, causing it to overflow into their farms, especially after heavy rains, and resulting in distress and financial losses. A farmer from Chanthal village, Ganesh Dutt, told ANI, "... The railway line's drain opens into our land. We ask them to extend it further, but they say they can't build beyond the boundary. The water from it damages our crops... We planted 1.5 kanals of paddy, and it was all ruined... This drain was built by the JKPDC. But it's not their water, it's the railway's that flows from here..." Another farmer from Chanthal village, Vikas Sharma, accused the administration of negligence while speaking with ANI on Saturday. "The JKPDC has built a canal here. All of its water, the railway's water, comes through this canal. All of the railway's waste is dumped here through it. When it rains, it overflows and ends up in our fields. We even requested their engineers to look at these drains, but no one from their department came... I request that the JKPDC and DC pay attention to this matter. With the amount of plastic that accumulates here, it doesn't seem that plastic has been banned..." (ANI) Several fire tenders have been rushed to the spot, and firefighting operations are currently underway. The incident occurred near the Morang Mandi in the Panki police station area. Visuals showed thick plumes of smoke coming out of the building. As soon as the news spread, locals also gathered at the spot. More details are awaited (ANI) "On the birth anniversary of Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan ji, the pioneer of democratic values, I pay my humble respects to him. Jayaprakash Narayan ji strengthened the country's democratic structure by placing equality, social harmony, and justice above all. During the Emergency, despite struggles and tortures, he protected democratic values and empowered the nation", the Union Home Minister posted on X in Hindi. The Union minister further urged the social workers to espouse the values of the socialist icon, calling for people to be "alert against dictatorial tendencies". "For the values for which Jayaprakash Narayan ji gave the call of 'Total Revolution', every social worker should lifelong alert the country against those dictatorial tendencies", his post read. Jayprakash Narayan was born on 11 October 1902 in the village of Sitabdiara, Ballia district, United Provinces, British India (present-day Saran district, Bihar, India). Sitabdiara is a large village, straddling two states and three districts -- Saran and Bhojpur in Bihar and Ballia in Uttar Pradesh. JP Narayan led the Janata Party, which formed the first non-Congress government in 1977 by uniting the entire Opposition against the corrupt and unjust rule that imposed the emergency. A socialist and political leader, he is remembered for leading the mid-1970s opposition parties against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, for whose overthrow he had called for a "total revolution" (Sampoorna Kranti). In 1999, he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in recognition of his social service. Other awards include the 1965 Magsaysay Award for Public Service. JP Narayan actively worked underground during the Independence struggle. While fighting against British rule, he organised an "Azaad Dasta" (freedom brigade) in Nepal. (ANI) He described him as a "great freedom fighter" who played a key role in awakening the "nation's democratic consciousness" during the emergency. https://x.com/JPNadda/status/1976837946126020747 In a post on X, Nadda said, "On the birth anniversary of the great freedom fighter, supreme devotee of democracy, 'Bharat Ratna', 'Loknayak' Jayaprakash Narayan ji, I pay my humble respects to him a hundred times" "During the Emergency imposed on the country by the then government, you played a pivotal role in awakening the nation's democratic consciousness and restoring democracy. The great personality and ideals of Loknayak, who dedicated his life to bringing positive change in the country and society, serve as an inspiration for all of us," Nadda noted in his post. Jaiprakash Narayan formed the first non-Congress government in the country by uniting the entire Opposition against the corrupt and unjust rule that imposed the emergency. Narayan was a socialist and political leader. He is remembered for leading the mid-1970s opposition parties against Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, for whose overthrow he had called for a "total revolution" (Sampoorna Kranti). In 1999, he was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian award, in recognition of his social service. Other awards include the Magsaysay Award for Public Service in 1965. Jayprakash Narayan was born on 11 October 1902 in the village of Sitabdiara, Ballia district, United Provinces, British India (present-day Saran district, Bihar, India). Sitabdiara is a large village, straddling two states and three districts -- Saran and Bhojpur in Bihar and Ballia in Uttar Pradesh. (ANI) The accused has been identified as Mangat Singh. Rajasthan Police stated that a surveillance operation was being carried out post Operation Sindoor in the state. During a surveillance operation in the cantonment area of Alwar, the activities of Mangat Singh were found to be suspicious. Mangat Singh was allegedly honey-trapped by a female Pakistani handler posing under the pseudonym Isha Sharma, who offered her money in exchange for cooperation, police said. He was in touch with Pakistani handlers for the past two years through social media platforms, they added. A case was registered against Mangat Singh under the Official Secrets Act 1923 at the Police Station, Special Police Station, Rajasthan, Jaipur, yesterday, and he was arrested by the CID Intelligence Rajasthan. Further investigation is underway. In August, a 30-year-old man suspected of spying for Pakistan was detained by the Military Intelligence (MI) in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer and later handed over to Kotwali police. According to officials, the accused, identified as Jivan Khan (30), a resident of the Sankada area, had earlier worked at a restaurant inside the military area in Jaisalmer. Sources said that Khan was trying to regain entry into the Army station on Tuesday (August 19) when he was stopped at the gate. After his mobile was checked for suspicious activity, Khan was detained by MI personnel and was later handed over to the police on Tuesday night, they said. During questioning, he reportedly admitted to having relatives in Pakistan. (ANI) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Friday attended the 3rd Convocation of National Law University and Judicial Academy Assam at the International Auditorium Panjabari in Guwahati, Assam. Speaking at the convocation, the CM said that National Law University and Judicial Academy Assam (NLUJAA) must strive to lead research and policy work, which enable the university to stay connected with the local issues and resolve them through national and global discussions. He also said that the university must never lose sight of its roots and regional responsibility. North-East faces unique legal challenges related to indigenous rights, environmental protection, migration, and identity. "Therefore, the university should find the answers of the local problems with cutting-edge research and policy," he said. Addressing the graduates, the Chief Minister said that internalization of law is one of the major frontiers, which is gaining ground. He said global trade, climate change, migration and cross-border disputes have made law a global discipline. "NLUJAA must therefore, prepare its students to think beyond borders to understand international legal systems while remaining firmly grounded in India's constitutional values and the socio-legal realities of the North-East. Collaborations with foreign universities, faculty exchanges and participation in global moot courts should become central to the university's academic culture," the Chief Minister said. The Chief Minister, moreover, observed that the massive backlog of cases in the country is a pressing issue. In view of this, the legal system must increasingly depend on faster and alternative forms of dispute resolution. He said that mediation, conciliation and arbitration are the essential tools for any lawyer. He, therefore, asked the university to ensure that its students are well trained in mediation, conciliation, and arbitration so that they can not only argue cases but also resolve conflicts in ways that heal relationships and strengthen social harmony. On the occasion, he called upon the graduating students on the need to uphold ethics and integrity in the legal profession. "In today's fast-paced world, where commercial interests often overshadow professional values, young lawyers must remember that law is not just a career, it is a calling to serve justice and society. NLUJAA should continue to nurture this spirit through strong emphasis on ethics, clinical legal training and reflective practices," he said. The Chief Minister also said that the university must aim to become a true Centre of legal research and innovation. He said that the coming decade should see its scholarship influencing judicial decisions, shaping legislative thinking, and guiding public policy. He said that to achieve that, research training should begin early, even at the undergraduate level, and the institution must create a strong ecosystem that supports both faculty and students in producing knowledge of lasting value. He, however, said that he feels a deep sense of optimism about the future. The Chief Minister added, "As graduates you represent a generation that will shape the justice system of new India that is faster, fairer and more inclusive. As you step out of the university, I urge you to carry three guiding principles with you: integrity in thought, empathy in action and courage in conviction. Use your knowledge not to dominate, but to uplift; not to divide, but to unite. The journey of NLUJAA itself is a proof that with determination and vision, great things can be achieved even from humble beginnings." Referring to Swami Vivekananda, who said the supreme value of youth is incalculable and beyond words, the Chief Minister asked the graduates to harness the unbridled energy, courage and infinite possibilities inherent in them to shape their future. A Judge of the Supreme Court of India, Justice Surya Kant, Supreme Court of India Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, Judge, Supreme Court of India Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court, Justice Ashutosh Kumar also spoke on the occasion. Chief Secretary Dr. Ravi Kota, Vice Chancellor NLUJAA Prof. KVS Sarma, legal luminaries, and a host of other dignitaries were present on the occasion. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday paid homage to Bharat Ranta, and an icon of the anti-emergency movement, Nanaji Deshmukh, remembering his contributions to nation-building through his advocacy for self-reliance and rural empowerment. "Paying homage to the great Nanaji Deshmukh on his birth anniversary. He was a visionary social reformer, nation builder and lifelong advocate of self-reliance and rural empowerment. His life was an embodiment of dedication, discipline and service to society", PM Modi posted on X, while also posting a video showing his pictures throughout his life. In another post, PM Modi remembered Nanaji Deshmukh being deeply inspired by JP Narayan, the one who led the anti-emergency movement and called for 'sampoorn kranti' (total revolution). Meanwhile, the press statement by the party in 1978 read, "India's political leadership must now wholeheartedly accept that in the past 30 years, it has made no concrete efforts to channel the energies of the young generation into constructive directions. We must also acknowledge that the young generation, along with the personality of Loknayak Jayaprakash, played the greatest role in hoisting the flag of democracy in the struggle against the Emergency dictatorship." While sharing a press statement released by Deshmukh while being General Secretary of the Janata Party, PM Modi wrote, "Nanaji Deshmukh was deeply inspired by Loknayak JP. His reverence to JP and his vision for youth development, service and nation building can be seen in this message he shared when he was the Mahamantri of the Janata Party." Born on October 11, 1916, in the small town of Hingoli in Maharashtra, Deshmukh represented Uttar Pradesh's Balrampur constituency in the Lok Sabha from 1977 to 1979. From 1999 to 2005, he also served as a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha. One of the founding members of Bharatiya Jan Sangh, precursor of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Deshmukh established a chain of RSS-inspired schools throughout India. He was associated with the RSS till his death at the age of 94 in 2010. When the Janata Party government was formed in 1977, Nanaji was requested to join the government as a minister, but he did not do so. Nanaji followed Jaiprakash Narayan and preferred to devote himself to rural development and making villages self-reliant, free from poverty. After quitting politics in 1980, Nanaji, through the Deendayal Research Institute (DRI), set up alternative rural development models based on traditional knowledge in the remote areas of Gonda and Chitrakoot in Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, respectively. Some were established in Maharashtra's Beed, too. In 2019, Nanaji was awarded the 'Bharat Ratna' posthumously. His contributions in the field of rural development and social transformation were carried forward by the DRI, which has now expanded its work to many more states. The veteran also played a key role in the Jai Prakash (JP) movement against the Emergency in 1974 and was instrumental in the formation of the Janata Party government in 1977. (ANI) Preparations are in full swing for the upcoming visit of Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi to the Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur on Saturday, where he will also address the students and the general public. The Afghan minister is set to reach the Darul Uloom Deoband around 10:30 AM, and will address a public function at 3 PM, media in charge of Darul Uloom Deoband, Ashraf Usmani said. "Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi is visiting here today. We are making arrangements accordingly. He will reach here around 10:30 AM or 11 AM. First he will take diksha, will get some 'taleem' (education),and will take hadith." After that we will show him Darul Uloom Deoband after he arrives and will be given food and drinks," Usmani told ANI. "Around 3 PM, a public program will be held where he will address students and the public," he said. "He is a guest of the country. We have to take care of him. In his program today, he will address the students and general public...Nothing special is being kept, many guests come here all the time, just this one program is organised. Deoband is an academic ideology; whoever is related to education, they will be introduced to Deoband, and want to come here, explore the place," Usmani mentioned. Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic seminary, has produced Islamic scholars from India and around the world. The seminary was established in the late 1800s by Sayyid Muhammad Abid, Fazlur Rahman Usmai, Mahtab Ali Deobandi and others. The foundation of the current campus was laid by Muhamad Qasim Nanautawi. The school mainly teaches manqulat. The Taliban minister is on a week-long visit to India, beginning from October 9 till October 16. This is the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021. (ANI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Saturday inspected the work of the service road in the Warje area along the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway and reviewed other development projects in Pune. In a post on X, Pawar said that a review was conducted regarding all aspects, including the quality of the road and the convenience of traffic during this inspection. https://x.com/AjitPawarSpeaks/status/1976831362104742388 "Inspected the work of the service road in the Warje area along the Pune-Bengaluru National Highway today. During this inspection, a review was conducted of all aspects, from the quality of the road to the convenience of traffic," Pawar said in X post. Maharashtra Deputy CM further stated that he addressed citizens' issues and discussed various development projects. Similarly, at the entrance of New Ahire Village (Warje Malwadi, Pune), I listened to the issues of the citizens and discussed various development works. Necessary instructions were given to the concerned officials," Pawar added. Meanwhile, Pawar said that the newly inaugurated Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) was a long-awaited project that would ease the heavy load on Mumbai's existing airports. He assured that the sentiments of the local people regarding the naming of the airport would be respected, and appropriate action would be taken after discussions. Speaking to media persons in Pune after a meeting and greeting programme with local party workers on Friday, Ajit Pawar said, "First of all, let the airport start functioning properly. The take-offs and landings will take around 45 more days. Once the inauguration has taken place after dignitaries have given their time to do so, the remaining works begin to progress rapidly." He added that the new airport was essential to build, given the growing air traffic in Mumbai. "There is already a heavy load on Mumbai's existing airports, so the Navi Mumbai airport was much needed. Mumbai is a very important city; people living there frequently travel within the country and abroad. The airport has been designed with the capacity to handle the movement of around 9 crore (90 million) passengers. The airport is almost fully ready; the few remaining works will also be completed on time," he said. Responding to the ongoing debate over the naming of the airport, the Deputy Chief Minister said that the government would take a decision keeping public sentiments in mind. (ANI) RJD leader Mrityunjay Tiwari on Saturday dismissed reports of internal conflicts within the Mahagathbandhan, stating that everything is fine within the alliance. He emphasised that seat-sharing decisions have been made and will be announced soon. Speaking with ANI, he said, "There is no problem anywhere in the 'Mahagathbandhan'. Everything is fine. The decision on seat-sharing has been made, and it will be announced very soon." Tiwari mocked the BJP, saying the party is struggling to save its existence in Bihar and holding meetings from Delhi to Patna to address its issues. "There is a tussle in the NDA, but everything is fine with us... The BJP claims to be the world's largest party, but in the Bihar elections, it is going from town to town, door to door, to save its existence. Meetings are being held from Delhi to Patna, yet things are not fine there..." Tiwari told ANI. The electoral battle in Bihar is shaping up to be a direct contest between the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Mahagathbandhan, spearheaded by the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The NDA holds 131 seats in the 243-member Bihar Assembly, while the Mahagathbandhan has 111 seats. The Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections. The 243 Assembly seats will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with counting scheduled for November 14. This upcoming electoral contest will be between the NDA, led by the BJP, and Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)), and the INDIA bloc, led by Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The INDIA bloc also includes the Congress party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP). Additionally, Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj has also staked claims on all 243 seats of the state. Meanwhile, in a major blow to the Janata Dal (United), the party's former lawmakers, Santosh Kumar Kushwaha and Rahul Sharma, joined the RJD ahead of the elections. Former Purnea MP Santosh Kushwaha reasoned that the party's unfair distribution of power and lack of touch with ground reality led to his decision. Speaking with ANI, Kushwaha further expressed his confidence in Tejashwi Yadav's leadership. "Right now, JDU is in the hands of a few people... Its leadership is handled by people who have no experience of ground reality. We said that there can be no compromise on self-respect. None of our concerns were heard... I am confident that under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav, Bihar will move forward, and on 14 November, a government will be formed under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav," he said. Santosh Kumar Kushwaha had won Purnea Lok Sabha constituency twice, in 2014 and 2019, but lost to the independent candidate Pappu Yadav in 2024. Former MLA from Ghosi assembly constituency, Rahul Kumar, expressed his disappointment with the government's representatives behind his decision to leave JDU. "Several incidents were happening in the area. The government's representatives paid no attention to it. Seeing all these things, we decided to leave the party and opt for a strong alternative. For that, we found Tejaswi Yadav's employment program effective and we joined it (RJD)," he said. Rahul Sharma served as an MLA from Ghosi assembly constituency in Jehanabad district from 2010 to 2015. (ANI) Delhi Health Minister Pankaj Singh announced stringent measures to address the recent cough syrup deaths case and instructed all the government and private hospitals against prescribing the Coldrif cough syrup, which is linked with the deaths of atleast 22 children in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara. "We have also issued the same advisory as the Government of India... Over the past six months, we have not given a single tender to that company. Instructions have been given to all the government and private hospitals and chemist shops not to prescribe or give this medicine," Singh told reporters on Friday. Meanwhile, a Parasia court on Friday sent Sresan Pharma owner Ranganathan to 10-day police custody in connection with the deaths of children allegedly caused by the consumption of Coldrif cough syrup. Ranganathan was produced before the Parasia court earlier on Friday. Earlier on Thursday, Chhindwara Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Pandey said, "The SIT that left from Chhindwara has arrested Sresan Pharma owner Ranganathan. He was rounded up late at night and then arrested. As part of the procedure, his medical examination will be done, and other proceedings will be undertaken in Chennai. Then, after that, he will be brought to Chhindwara." Meanwhile, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has issued a directive to all States and Union Territories, calling for strict compliance with the Drugs Rules, 1945, for the testing of raw materials and finished pharmaceutical formulations. In a letter dated October 7, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi emphasised the "critical importance of testing new materials, including the excipients, before their use in the manufacturing of pharmaceutical formulations." (ANI) The family of the IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, who allegedly died by suicide at his residence in Chandigarh on October 7, said on Saturday that they have not been given justice, although the incident took place five days ago., IPS Officer Y Puran Kumar's brother, Amit Rattan, told reporters, "... An ADGP-level officer has died. It has been five days and we have not been given justice..." Earlier in the day, a Congress delegation, including MP Deepender Singh Hooda and leader Randeep Singh Surjewala, visited the residence of IPS officer Puran Kumar to express their solidarity. Meanwhile, the Chandigarh Police announced the formation of a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to conduct a comprehensive and impartial probe into the matter in the wake of serious allegations surrounding the death of the senior IPS officer. The SIT, formed under the supervision of Inspector General of Police (IGP) UT Chandigarh Pushpendra Kumar, will investigate the case registered at Police Station Sector-11 (West) under Sections 108 and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 3(1)(r) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. The SIT comprises IGP Pushpendra Kumar as head, along with SSP Kanwardeep Kaur, SPICity KM Priyanka, DSP Traffic Charanyit Singh Vik, SOPO South Qujt Kaur, and SHO PS-11 (West) Jarveer Singh Rana. Officers may co-opt additional experts as required to expedite the collection of evidence, the examination of witnesses, and the preparation of the final report, according to a statement. Earlier, the Haryana IAS Officers' Association expressed deep sorrow over the sudden and tragic death of IPS Y Puran Kumar. The Association paid tribute to his integrity and dedication to public service, remembering his contribution to society. (ANI) After Kerala High Court directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the alleged Sabarimala gold theft incident, Devasom Board Minister VN Vasavan said that vigilance inquiry has found lapses at the official level and the government has faith in the judiciary. "The Vigilance inquiry has found lapses at the official level. Everyone responsible for this incident must be exposed, and no culprit should escape justice. The government has full faith in the judiciary. What has taken place is nothing short of theft, and there can be no justification for it," Vasavan told reporters. The court has directed that the investigation be completed and a report submitted within six weeks. The court said, the investigation should be kept strictly confidential. No information related to the investigation should be leaked. The division bench of the High Court has also directed, in an interim order, that the special investigation team submit a sealed cover directly to the court. The court directed that the special investigation team should only inform the court about the investigation. The investigation information should not be disclosed to anyone else. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader V Muraleedharan earlier launched a scathing attack on the Kerala government and said state administration of betraying the trust of devotees and demanded the immediate dismissal of the Devaswom Minister along with the dissolution of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). "It is a clear indication of the fact that the High Court doesn't trust the Devaswom board and the government, because the court has said that it will do a criminal investigation... It's a clear indictment of the state government, nothing beyond that, nothing less than that. I don't understand how the Devaswom minister is still clinging to his chair and the Devaswom board president is still in position. Why does the government not dismiss the minister and dissolve the board? This has been our demand. Now the court has very clearly mentioned that there has been a robbery... It's daylight robbery," he said. The controversy pertains to alleged irregularities in the gold plating work at the Sabarimala temple, which involved 30.3 kilograms of gold and 1,900 kilograms of copper donated by industrialist Vijay Mallya in 1998 for cladding the sanctum sanctorum and wooden carvings of the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple in Kerala. (ANI) A CRPF personnel lost his life while two personnel were injured in the two IED blasts in the Saranda forest area, police said on Saturday. Head Constable Mahendra Laskar, a resident of Assam, succumbed to his injuries. In the Saranda forest area under the Jaraikela police station in Chaibasa, CRPF personnel from the 60th Battalion, including an inspector, an ASI and a head constable, were injured in two IED blasts. The injured were taken to Rourkela for treatment. Head Constable Mahendra Laskar (a resident of Assam) lost his life in the incident, Jharkhand Police said. Police said that anti-naxal operations are underway. Earlier, last week in Bastar, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah made an appeal to the youth to "shun the path of violence" while advising against joining the Naxal movement. Stating that Naxalism didn't benefit anyone, Shah urged the youth to join the mainstream and assured development works worth Rs 1 crore for villages that become Naxal-free." I wanted to appeal to people to ask the youth, who are misled and join Naxalism, to shun the path of violence and join the mainstream. Once the village is free from the Naxal issue, Rs 1 crore will be allocated to them for developmental works," Shah said. He said that Naxalism has not benefited anyone, while informing that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government has introduced various schemes in honour of Adivasis. "On behalf of PM Modi, I want to assure that after March 31, 2026, Naxals will not be able to obstruct development," Shah added. Addressing the demands to hold talks with the Naxals, Shah said that there was nothing to discuss since the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government at the centre and in Chhattisgarh was dedicated to developing the entire Naxal-affected region, including Bastar. The Union Home Minister warned against "disrupting the peace" in Bastar and said that the state machinery will respond strongly. He added that March 31, 2026, has been fixed to bid farewell to Naxalism from the soil of this country." Some people talk about talks (with Naxals) but I want to make it clear once again: both our governments, the Chhattisgarh government and the central government, are dedicated to the development of Bastar and the entire Naxalite region. What is there to talk about? We have formulated a very lucrative surrender policy. Come, lay down your arms. If you take up arms and try to disrupt the peace of Bastar, our armed forces, the CRPF, and the Chhattisgarh police will respond. March 31, 2026, has been fixed to bid farewell to Naxalism from the soil of this country," Shah said. (ANI) Gujarat is celebrating a state-wide 'Vikas Saptah' from October 7 to 15, dedicated to the Panchayati Raj system and grassroots participation, a release from Gujarat CMO said. The 'Vikas Saptah' marks a glorious milestone of 24 years of public services by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. On October 7, 2001, PM Narendra Modi took oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat, embarking on an inspiring journey of public service through administration. During his 12-year tenure as Gujarat CM, he implemented several key initiatives, including the creation of a dedicated Climate Change Department to promote sustainable solutions. In 2014, Modi became the 14th Prime Minister of India, leading the country with a vision for progress and development. The release also explained what Gujarat's Samras Gram Yojana Model is and why it is special. According to Gujarat CMO's release, it is noteworthy that just a few days after Narendra Modi became the Chief Minister of Gujarat, on October 29, 2001, the Samras Gram Yojana was implemented in Gujarat, which today has played a significant role in transforming the state's rural and Panchayati Raj system. Gujarat's "Samras Gram Yojana" is a successful model of rural democracy, in which all ward members and the Sarpanch of a village are elected unanimously and without opposition. This saves time and resources in elections and accelerates development work. Such uncontested panchayats are called "Samras Gram Panchayats," and if all members are women, they are called "Mahila Samras Gram Panchayats." Samras Grams receive additional financial assistance from the state government for development works, exceeding the normal allocation, thereby improving basic facilities in these villages. Over the past 24 years, the state government has provided Samras Panchayats with an additional grant of 351.20 crore, which has recently been increased by 1.5 times. According to the Gujarat CMO's release, since 2001, 15,553 panchayats in Gujarat have turned 'Samras,' including 828 women panchayats. Additional Development Commissioner of the Panchayat Department and State Nodal Officer for Panchayat Department Day under Vikas Saptah, Dr. Gaurav Dahiya, said, "The Samras Gram Yojana, initiated by then Chief Minister Narendra Modi, has brought a revolutionary change in Gujarat's rural development and Panchayati Raj system. This scheme is extremely popular in the state today because it provides rural panchayats with additional funds for development projects beyond the normal allocation. So far, 15,553 Gram Panchayats have become Samras, including 828 Women Samras Panchayats." The release said that the statewide Vikas Saptah will feature 918 programmes across 34 districts. In the context of celebrating 24 years of work by the Panchayat Department during this Vikas Saptah, Dr. Gaurav Dahiya shared important information. He stated, "As part of Vikas Saptah, today the State Government will organise special events of the 'Vikas Rath' in three key villages, aimed at bringing transformative changes to rural life and directly delivering the benefits of government schemes. In addition, special programmes will be organised across the state's 34 districts over nine days, comprising a total of 918 programmes in three phases. These will include providing scheme benefits to beneficiaries of various departments, along with ground-breaking ceremonies and inaugurations of development works." Vikas Saptah to honour sakhi mandals and districts for outstanding excellence, the release added. According to Dr. Gaurav Dahiya, Additional Development Commissioner of the Panchayat Department, today, Gujarat Livelihood Promotion Company Limited (GLPC) will organise a special event to honour the outstanding work of Sakhi Mandals. At this event, two Sakhi Mandals from Rajkot and one each from Amreli, Morbi, and Junagadh will be awarded. Alongside this, stalls showcasing the products and work of various Sakhi Mandals from across Gujarat are also being exhibited. Additionally, on this day, districts making outstanding contributions to the Swachhata Hi Seva campaign will be honoured. Awards will be presented to Dang as the best tribal district category, Ahmedabad as the best non-tribal district category, Kheda as the best taluka category, Navsari as the best gram panchayat category, Bharuch as the best village category, Rajkot as the best school category, Sabarkantha as the best Sakhi Mandal category, and Bhavnagar as the best public toilet category. (ANI) A Delhi court has granted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) two-day custody of Ashok Kumar Pal, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) and Executive Director of Reliance Power, in connection with a case involving alleged fake bank guarantees and invoicing. Special Judge Kiran Gupta granted two days' custody of Ashok Kumar Pal to the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Pal is to be produced in the Patiala House court on Monday. He was produced at the residence of the special judge by the ED. Advocate Vijay Agarwal appeared for Ashok Kumar Pal. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashok Kumar Pal, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Reliance Power Limited (RPL), in connection with a case involving a fake bank guarantee and forged invoicing, allegedly linked to fund diversion. According to officials, Pal was taken into custody late on Friday night after several hours of questioning at the agency's Delhi office. According to sources, Pal, as the CFO of Reliance Power--a publicly listed company in which the public holds more than 75 per cent of the shares-- allegedly played a "crucial role" in the diversion of company funds and the submission of forged financial documents. The investigation pertains to a fraudulent Bank Guarantee (BG) of over Rs 68 crore submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) tender. Officials said Pal was empowered by a board resolution to finalise, approve, and execute documents on behalf of RPL for the SECI bid. In this capacity, he allegedly conspired to submit a fake bank guarantee with the intention of cheating the PSU. The ED's probe revealed that the bogus guarantee was issued in the name of "FirstRand Bank, Manila, Philippines -- a location where the bank has no operational branch." "The guarantee was arranged through Biswal Tradelink Pvt Ltd (BTPL), a small entity operating from a residential address with no credible record in providing such guarantees. BTPL director Partha Sarathi Biswal, already in judicial custody, is alleged to have assisted in executing the forged document," said the officials. Investigators further alleged that Pal approved fake transport invoices worth several crores to facilitate the diversion of funds. He reportedly cleared payments and managed paperwork through Telegram and WhatsApp -- bypassing Reliance Power's official SAP and vendor master systems. The ED also alleged that Pal used the services of a fake bank guarantee racket operating through spoofed email domains resembling those of major Indian banks, such as "s-bi.co.in" instead of the genuine "sbi.co.in". Similar lookalike domains were used to impersonate other banks, including Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, and Punjab National Bank. Officials alleged Pal's actions form part of a broader criminal conspiracy involving forged instruments and fraudulent communication channels aimed at deceiving public institutions and misappropriating funds from a listed company. (ANI) Madhya Pradesh Congress President Jitu Patwari demanded the resignation of the State health minister in connection with the deaths of at least 22 children allegedly linked to coldrif cough syrup in Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara. Patwari claimed that over "150 bottles of cough syrup have been sold in one month" and demanded the death penalty for the owner of the drug company. The Congress leader accused the BJP of raising "Hindu-Muslim issues" and said that the "clean chit" given by the State health minister to the owner hints at corruption. Patwari told reporters, "The owner of the company who has been arrested from Tamil Nadu should be given the death penalty. But why are you leaving the drug controller, who is the main culprit of the incident? Why did the health minister keep giving him the clean chit? This means there was corruption." State congress chief continued, "According to government records, in this one month, 157 bottles of the cough syrup have been sold. BJP takes votes from you by raising Hindu-Muslim issues and by saying different kinds of negative things about Congress." Demanding the arrest of the drug controller, Patwari said that a case of murder should be registered against him. He further said, "The state health minister should take responsibility and resign. If he is not resigning, then the CM should dismiss him." Meanwhile, a Parasia court on Friday sent Sresan Pharma owner Ranganathan to 10-day police custody in connection with the deaths of children allegedly caused by the consumption of Coldrif cough syrup. Ranganathan was produced before the Parasia court earlier on Friday. Earlier on Thursday, Chhindwara Superintendent of Police (SP) Ajay Pandey said, "The SIT that left from Chhindwara has arrested Sresan Pharma owner Ranganathan. He was rounded up late at night and then arrested. As part of the procedure, his medical examination will be done, and other proceedings will be undertaken in Chennai. Then, after that, he will be brought to Chhindwara." Also, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) has issued a directive to all States and Union Territories, calling for strict compliance with the Drugs Rules, 1945, for the testing of raw materials and finished pharmaceutical formulations. In a letter dated October 7, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) Dr Rajeev Singh Raghuvanshi emphasised the "critical importance of testing new materials, including the excipients, before their use in the manufacturing of pharmaceutical formulations." (ANI) Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar on Saturday dismissed reports of his bid for the CM's post, saying that the people are "trying to create confusion" as he expressed commitment to the party. Shivakumar clarified that he had not made any comments regarding the leadership issue in Karnataka, but only discussed the "good times" of the state. "I have not conversed about anything regarding the leadership issue. In this issue, there is some misunderstanding. Some residents spoke that good times are on the way. I said, just look at it. It is not that I don't know; Some media people are trying to create confusion. You need not be confused. I know when my time is. My time is to see that I bring back the Congress government here in Karnataka in 2028. That is my priority," he said. This comes after a person asked him several questions about the Karnataka government at a public outreach campaign at Lalbagh. However, there are reports of a cabinet reshuffle in the state government. CM Siddaramaiah has called for a dinner meeting of ministers on October 13 but dismissed any speculation about the cabinet reshuffle, saying it will be a casual gathering. "It's been a long time since I invited the ministers for a meal, so I've called them just for that. The dinner has no connection with the cabinet reshuffle", CM Siddaramaiah said. However, Shivakumar last week warned against his colleagues in Congress publicly discussing the change of guard in the Karnataka government. He said that he instructed the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Working President, GC Chandrashekar, to give notices to those who spoke on the change of Chief Minister. "We don't need to react to what the BJP says. Let them say what they want to say. I have instructed our working president, GC Chandrashekar, to give notice to them. No one should say anything related to the CM post," Shivakumar told reporters. "No need to discuss the CM post sharing. CM Siddaramaiah and I are working together. We are following the guidelines of the high command," he added. After Congress won the 2023 Assembly election in Karnataka, Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah reportedly contended for the Chief Ministrial post. After several rounds of discussions between the leaders and the party's central leadership, Siddaramaiah was chosen for the post. There were reports at the time that Shivakumar agreed after a rotational chief ministership arrangement was agreed upon. But the Congress high command never publicly said so. However, many central leaders and Siddaramaiah said that there was no such agreement. The Chief Minister had said that he would complete his five-year term. (ANI) RLD leader Malook Nagar on Saturday criticised former Union Home Minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram and accused him of raising questions that allegedly favour Pakistan and oppose Afghanistan and Balochistan, suggesting that such actions could lead to terrorist attacks. This comes after Chidambaram remarks on the absence of women journalists in Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi's press conference. Speaking with ANI, Nagar said, "He should think what question he is raising...Their foreign minister has visited and requested something, and a decision has been made in accordance with his request. INDIA alliance, P Chidambaram and big leaders of Congress ask questions that are in favour of Pakistan and oppose Afghanistan and Balochistan or our country. Do they want to throw our country into the fire of terrorist attacks, which Pakistan keeps carrying out?" Calling the issue a matter of diplomacy, he added that on the world stage, "Pakistan will remain surrounded on both sides by Afghanistan and Balochistan, and our country will continue to progress and move forward." Chidambaram had expressed shock and disappointment over the exclusion of women journalists from Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi's press conference in New Delhi. He felt that male journalists should have boycotted the event in solidarity with their female colleagues. "I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan. In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited)," he said in a post on X. Earlier today, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to "clarify his position" on the exclusion of women journalists from Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi's press conference in New Delhi. Priyanka Gandhi criticised the government for "allowing insult" of women journalists and questioned PM Modi whether his recognition of women's rights is "convenient posturing" from one election to another. In a post on X, Wayanad MP said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride." A controversy erupted in New Delhi over a press conference by the Taliban's acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, where Indian women journalists were allegedly barred from attending at the Afghanistan Embassy. The Taliban minister is on a week-long visit to India, beginning from October 9 till October 16. This is the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021. (ANI) Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Saturday received a warm welcome during his visit to Darul Uloom Deoband in Saharanpur, Uttar Pradesh. Speaking exclusively with ANI, he highlighted the bright future of India-Afghanistan relations, indicating a positive trajectory in bilateral ties. Muttaqi thanked the Ulema and people of the area for their warm welcome, appreciating the large turnout. "The journey has been very good so far. Not just the people of Darul Uloom, but all the people of the area have come here. I am grateful to them for the warm welcome they extended to me... I am thankful to the Ulema of Deoband and the people of the area for this warm welcome... The future of India-Afghanistan relations seems very bright," Muttaqi told ANI. Muttaqi's visit demonstrates the strengthening diplomatic relations between India and Afghanistan. Muttaqi's visit aims to strengthen India-Afghanistan relations, focusing on economic, security, and cultural cooperation. India has been a significant investor in Afghanistan's development, and the visit may explore ways to enhance economic ties, trade, and investment. India's engagement with Afghanistan is driven by strategic interests, including regional stability and security. The visit may also touch on regional dynamics, including Pakistan's role in the region and its impact on India-Afghanistan relations. The Afghan minister reached UP earlier today, and at around 3 PM he will address a public program where he will address students and the public, according to media in charge of Darul Uloom Deoband. Darul Uloom Deoband, an Islamic seminary, has produced Islamic scholars from India and around the world. The seminary was established in the late 1800s by Sayyid Muhammad Abid, Fazlur Rahman Usmai, Mahtab Ali Deobandi and others. Muhamad Qasim Nanautawi laid the foundation of the current campus. The school mainly teaches manqulat. The Afghan FM is also set to visit the Taj Mahal in Agra on Sunday. Earlier on October 10, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar held detailed discussions with the Afghan Foreign Minister, as both sides discussed a wide range of issues of mutual interest, as well as important regional developments. "External Affairs Minister reiterated India's long-standing friendship with the Afghan people and highlighted the deep-rooted cultural and historical ties binding the two nations. He conveyed India's continued commitment to support the aspirations and developmental needs of the Afghan people", the joint statement mentioned. He further expressed his deep appreciation to Afghanistan for its strong condemnation of the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, India, on 22 April 2025, as well as for the sincere condolences and solidarity expressed with the people and Government of India, the statement highlighted. Both sides emphasised respect for each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity. The EAM appreciated the Afghan side's understanding of India's security concerns. The Afghan Foreign Minister reiterated the commitment that the Afghan government will not allow any group or individual to use the territory of Afghanistan against India. Both sides have also agreed that India would further deepen its engagement in development cooperation projects, particularly in the sectors of healthcare, public infrastructure and capacity-building. As part of ongoing healthcare cooperation, several projects are being undertaken, including the establishment of a Thalassemia Centre, a Modern Diagnostic Centre, and the replacement of the heating system at the Indira Gandhi Institute of Child Health (IGICH) in Kabul. Notably, a 30-bed hospital in Kabul's Bagrami district, an Oncology Centre, and a Trauma Centre in Kabul, as well as five Maternity Health Clinics in the provinces of Paktika, Khost, and Paktia, are also set to be built by India. (ANI) Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha laid a wreath and paid homage to Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh, who laid down their lives for the nation on Saturday. "I salute the supreme sacrifice of our Army Bravehearts, Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh. The nation shall remain forever grateful to the exemplary valour and selfless service of our soldiers. We stand in solidarity with the families of our martyrs in this hour of grief," the Lieutenant Governor said. Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh died conducting counter-terror operations in the Kishtwar Range of Kokernag, battling extreme weather conditions, as mentioned in an official statement from the Raj Bhawan. Earlier, the Army's Chinar Corps also paid tribute to the two soldiers, who went missing on the intervening night of October 6 and 7 while confronting a severe snowstorm and whiteout conditions in the mountains of South Kashmir. "Chinar Corps honours the supreme sacrifice of Bravehearts Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh, while conducting relentless counter terror operations in the Kishtwar Range of Kokernag, battling extreme weather conditions", Chinar Corps posted on X on Friday. The Army also expressed solidarity with the affected families. "Their courage and dedication will forever inspire us. Chinar Warriors salute the valour and sacrifice of the Bravehearts. We stand in solidarity with the bereaved families and are committed to their well-being", the post added. Lance Havildar Palash Ghosh and Lance Naik Sujay Ghosh went missing while an operational team on the Kishtwar range confronted a severe snow storm and whiteout conditions in the mountains of South Kashmir, the Army had said on Thursday. Intense search and rescue operations were launched, but were "hampered due to prevailing adverse weather conditions", the army said. Meanwhile, on October 9, Union Home Minister Amit Shah directed security forces to remain on high alert and ensure that terrorists do not exploit snowfall and adverse weather conditions to infiltrate across the Line of Control (LoC) and International Border in Jammu and Kashmir. (ANI) Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav questioned the suspension of his Facebook account on Saturday, alleging that his posts regarding the death of a journalist and another on the suspicious death of a woman in Ballia were incorrectly flagged as "Adult Sexual Exploitation and Violence". Earlier today, the Facebook account of the SP Chief was restored. "I got to know later on that my account has been suspended because there were some objections. I was told that the objection was 'Adult Sexual Exploitation and Violence'. When I got the entire report, there were posts regarding a woman from Ballia, and there were posts regarding the murder of a journalist", Akhilesh told the media. Claiming that he was highlighting the pressure put on journalists by the BJP, Akhilesh Yadav said, "In the post I had written, that the death of a journalist, putting pressure on them...doing FIRs on them and putting undue pressure on them, all of the BJP's tricks are being used here." Questioning his account suspension, he reaffirmed his commitment to working on the ground and engaging with people in person to empower them, rather than solely relying on social media. "What was wrong with this? But we have understood that the more we work on the ground, our fight will become successful and that is why we will work on the ground itself, and do the work of enlightening the people", he said. Earlier, Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, said that the Central government "had no role" in the account suspension. "Facebook has taken action; the government has no role in this. There was a very abusive post on their account, which is why Facebook suspended the account according to their policy. There is no role of the government here", Vaishnaw told reporters while visiting the New Delhi Railway Station today. Earlier today Samajwadi Party alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party is suppressing the opposition's voice. Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Fakhrul Hasan Chaand shared a post on X, stating that the suspension of Yadav's account is an attack on democracy. National Secretary of Samajwadi Party, Rajeev Rai, also condemned this act, saying it's a blow to India's democratic system. Rai's X post read, "Blocking the account of the leader of the third largest party in the country's parliament, the former Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, @yadavakhilesh ji, by FACEBOOK is not only condemnable but also a blow to India's democratic system." (ANI) Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi strongly criticised the Modi government after the exclusion of women journalists from a press conference addressed by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi on Friday. He said that the exclusion of women scribes from a public forum, the prime minister is telling every woman in India that he is "too weak to stand up for them." https://x.com/RahulGandhi/status/1976887584350728246 In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi said, "Mr. Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them." "In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti," the post further reads. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi also addressed the issue, asking the prime minister to clarify the government's position. In a post on X, Wayanad MP said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride." A controversy erupted in New Delhi over a press conference by the Taliban's acting Foreign Minister, Amir Khan Muttaqi, where Indian women journalists were allegedly barred from attending at the Afghanistan Embassy. The Taliban minister is on a week-long visit to India, beginning from October 9 till October 16. This is the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021. (ANI) BJP MLA from Alinagar Assembly constituency, Mishirilal Yadav, on Saturday announced his resignation from the party, alleging that the party is "anti-backwards class" and has "insulted" him. The resignation comes ahead of the Bihar Assembly polls, the first phase of which is scheduled to take place on November 6. "Today, not only the backward Dalits but also I am being insulted; my self-respect as an MLA is also being hurt. It has become difficult for an MLA like me to maintain my self-respect within the BJP," Mishirilal Yadav said. "I am resigning today through a letter to the President of the Bihar BJP and also by visiting him... Because of me, the NDA won in two assembly constituencies... BJP is anti-backwards class," he added. Yadav won the Alinagar Assembly constituency on the ticket from Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) in the 2020 assembly election. Mishirilal Yadav, along with all the party MLAs, joined the BJP in 2022 after the VIP President, Mukesh Sahni, was expelled from the Nitish Kumar cabinet. Vikassheel Insaan Party is part of the Mahagathbandhan alliance, which comprises Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Congress and other left parties, including CPI, CPI (ML), in Bihar. Earlier, Janata Dal (United)'s former lawmakers, Santosh Kumar Kushwaha and Rahul Sharma, have joined the opposition Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) ahead of the Bihar Assembly elections Former Purnea MP Santosh Kushwaha reasoned that the party's unfair distribution of power and lack of touch with ground reality led to his decision. "Right now, JDU is in the hands of a few people... Its leadership is handled by people who have no experience of ground reality. We said that there can be no compromise on self-respect. None of our concerns were heard... I am confident that under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav, Bihar will move forward, and on 14 November, a government will be formed under the leadership of Tejashwi Yadav," he said. Former MLA from Ghosi assembly constituency, Rahul Sharma, expressed his disappointment with the government's representatives behind his decision to leave JDU. The Election Commission has announced the schedule for the Bihar Assembly elections. The 243 Assembly seats will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with counting scheduled for November 14. This upcoming electoral contest will be between the NDA, led by the BJP, and Janata Dal (United) (JD(U)), and the INDIA bloc, led by Tejashwi Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). The INDIA bloc also includes the Congress party, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) (CPI-ML) led by Deepankar Bhattacharya, the Communist Party of India (CPI), the Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPM), and Mukesh Sahani's Vikasheel Insaan Party (VIP). Additionally, Prashant Kishor's Jan Suraaj has also staked claims on all 243 seats of the state. (ANI) Bengaluru Police on Saturday took custody of six accused individuals and are being questioned by the police after two labourers, Amir Hussain and Mumtaz Ali Molla, lost their lives after falling from a 13th-floor balcony at the DNR Arista construction site. The incident occurred around 3:30 PM, sparking an immediate response from local authorities. A case has been registered against Imperial Build Tech Pvt Ltd, the contractor responsible for the construction, and the site engineers. "Yesterday, around 3.30 PM, two labourers from West Bengal, Amir Hussain and Mumtaz Ali Molla, working at the DNR Arista construction site, died after falling from the 13th-floor under-construction balcony. Imprial Build Tech Pvt Ltd is the contractor on behalf of DNR Arista. A case has been registered at Bellandur PS against Imperial Build Tech Pvt Ltd officials and site engineers. 6 accused have been secured and are being questioned," said DCP Whitefield, Bengaluru. The police are conducting a thorough investigation into the incident. More details are awaited. (ANI) The Chief Minister flagged off an awareness rally from his official residence, Oak Over, urging young people to stay away from tobacco and adopt a healthy lifestyle. During the programme, CM Sukhu administered the oath to the students to never indulge in any kind of intoxicating products and make the country tobacco-free. On the occasion, CM Sukhu also flagged off 26 Advanced Life Support (ALS) ambulances, which have been allotted to various Block Medical Officers (BMOs) across the state. Speaking to media persons after the flag-off ceremony, CM Sukhu said, "Health remains one of the top priorities of the state government. We are bringing major reforms in the healthcare sector. Today, advanced ambulances have been handed over to different BMOs, and wherever gaps remain, they will also be addressed soon." PWD Minister Vikramaditya Singh, Health Minister Dhani Ram Shandil, MLA Sanjay Awasthi, and Health Secretary were also present at the event. Meanwhile, reacting to the arrest of Ramkumar Bindal, brother of Himachal BJP president Dr. Rajeev Bindal, the Chief Minister said, "The state government has acted based on the complaint filed by the victim. Appropriate legal action has been taken," said Sukhu. The campaign, now in its third phase, aims to strengthen tobacco awareness initiatives and promote a healthier, addiction-free youth population across Himachal Pradesh. (ANI) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Tarun Chugh on Saturday launched a scathing attack on the Kerala government over the ongoing Sabarimala temple gold plating controversy, alleging large-scale corruption and misuse of temple resources, and stated that the Devaswom Board and the ministers involved in the alleged irregularities must be exposed. Speaking to ANI, Chugh claimed that the Left-led Kerala government had turned Hindu temples into "a hub of corruption" and demanded a thorough and impartial investigation into the matter. "...Kerala's leftist government has turned Hindu temples into a hub of corruption...The state government has influence on SIT investigations...Accountability and a thorough investigation are needed...Devaswom board and ministers involved in this corruption must be exposed....Kerala's left government has been looting temple gold for many years now..." Chugh told ANI. The BJP leader accused the state government of systematically mismanaging religious institutions under its control and called for transparency in the functioning of temple boards. Chugh also supported Union Home Minister Amit Shah's recent remarks on the rights of persecuted minorities from Pakistan and Bangladesh, stating that only Indian citizens had the constitutional right to vote and that illegal infiltration posed a threat to national sovereignty. Chugh lashed out at the INDIA alliance, alleging that they had been promoting the sheltering of outsiders for their vote bank. "...Only Indian citizens have the constitutional right to vote; infiltration of outsiders is an attack on India's sovereignty...INDIA alliance is promoting sheltering of outsiders for its vote bank...Refuge and illegal infiltration are two different things..." he said. Amit Shah, while addressing the 'Narendra Mohan Smriti Lecture' and 'Sahitya Srishti Samman' event organised by Hindi daily Dainik Jagran, had emphasised India's civilisational responsibility toward persecuted minorities in neighbouring countries. "Everyone does not have the right to come here. Those who have faced injustice are welcome... Hindus of Pakistan and Bangladesh have as much right over the soil of this country as I have over it.(Jitna mera adhikar iss desh ki mitti par hai, utna hi adhikar Pakistan aur Bangladesh ke Hinduon ka iss desh ki mitti par hai)," Shah had said. He also clarified the distinction between refugees and infiltrators, adding that indiscriminate entry would turn the country into a "Dharamshala". "They ask what the difference between a refugee and an infiltrator is. Those who come to India seeking refuge to save their religion are refugees -- Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs and Christians. But those who come here without any religious persecution and enter illegally are infiltrators. If everyone is allowed to come, our country will turn into a 'Dharamshala'," Shah added. The Home Minister further highlighted how infiltration has led to demographic changes over the years, calling for national awareness on the issue. "Today, infiltration, demographic change, and democracy; I want to say without hesitation that until every Indian understands these three issues, we cannot ensure our country, our culture, our languages, and our independence. These three topics are interconnected..." Shah said. (ANI) Congress leader Manoj Kumar on Saturday slammed the NDA government in Bihar, saying that the situation of the state has been "deplorable" over the past twenty years. While talking to reporters, Congress leader Manoj Kumar said, "There is a mess in the NDA... Bihar has been in a state of ruin for 20 years; the condition of health and education is deplorable..." He further alleged that a scam has taken place under the Public Distribution System where only 4 lakh litres of kerosene oil are distributed instead of the promised 48 lakh litres. "A massive scam has taken place under the Public Distribution System (PDS). According to the data here (in Bihar), 48 lakh litres of kerosene oil are provided every month, but only 4 lakh litres are distributed... I will write a letter to the central government regarding this and also raise the issue in Parliament... I would like to ask the Chief Minister and the Prime Minister, under whose regime does this scam fall? You always talk about 'jungle raj," he said. Highlighting the seat distribution in Mahagathbandhan for the upcoming Bihar Assembly election, he said, "...Discussions are ongoing regarding some seats in the Mahagathbandhan... Our candidates have been finalised for some seats, and where they have been finalised, we are fielding our candidates... There is no dispute of any kind in the INDIA alliance. We are standing together strongly..." Meanwhile, the Janshakti Janata Dal (JJD) will be announcing their candidates for the Bihar Assembly elections on October 13 (Monday), the party's founder and former Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tej Pratap Yadav said on Saturday. Yadav himself will be contesting from the Mahua assembly constituency, the same seat he had won during the 2015 elections while still being with the RJD. "I will declare my candidates the day after tomorrow. Parso jordaar ailaan hoga (Day after tomorrow big announcements will be made)... I will contest from Mahua," the JJD founder said. When asked about whether he is talking with other parties, he said, "Everyone is coming to meet me." Tej Pratap Yadav is the son of former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav. He was expelled from the party and the Yadav family for a serious breach of moral and social values after controversy broke out over a Facebook post of his claiming that he was in a long-term relationship with a woman, prompting netizens to recall his marital dispute that made headlines a few years ago. Tej Pratap had claimed that his account was hacked. (ANI) With the Bihar Election dates coming closer, former Jahanabad MP Arun Kumar rejoined the Janata Dal (United) (JDU) on October 11 after a period of being a vocal critic of Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. He was re-inducted into the party in the presence of JDU working president Sanjay Kumar Jha, Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan', and State unit chief Umesh Kushwaha. Former MLA Arun Kumar announced his joining and said, "I am happy to announce that under the leadership of Nitish Kumar ji, I have received the opportunity to serve the people of Bihar again. The state of Bihar is on the path of development, and I assure you all that we will form our government in Bihar again." Along with Arun Kumar, several of his supporters also joined the JDU on Saturday. Welcoming Arun Kumar, Union minister Rajiv Ranjan Singh 'Lalan' said, "Arun ji, we have been with you from the very beginning. You got separated somewhere along the way, but you have come back together, and we welcome you wholeheartedly. This is your old home. You can live comfortably in this house, and we will take care of providing whatever belongings you need. We welcome everyone to this JDU." He further stated that Arun Kumar and Chandeshwar Chandravanshi, the former MP from Jehanabad Lok Sabha constituency, will bring a storm to the land of Magadh. "We just saw Arun Kumar and Chandeshwar Chandravanshi share a warm hug. They will bring a storm in the Magadh region." Earlier, Union Minister Rajiv Ranjan (Lalan) Singh on Wednesday said the NDA is poised to return to power under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Speaking to reporters, Ranjan said, "It is very good that the election dates have been announced. We were waiting for this. On 14 November, the NDA government will be formed again in Bihar under the leadership of Nitish Kumar." The 243 Assembly seats will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and November 11, with counting of votes to be held on November 14. Taking a dig at Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav, Singh likened his repeated claims of becoming Chief Minister to Mungrilal ke sapne (Mungrilal's dreams)."Everyone has the right to dream, but the people of Bihar have already seen the rule of his parents and the 15 years that followed. They will not be misled again," he added. (ANI) Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan addressed a mega rally for ex-servicemen in Garhi Cantt, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, urging veterans to promote positive narratives about the armed forces on social media. The "Devbhoomi Mega Veterans Rally" was organised with great enthusiasm and patriotic fervour on October 11 at Jaswant Singh Ground, Garhi Cantt, Dehradun, under the aegis of Headquarters Uttarakhand Sub Area. Emphasising the need for strategic thinking, he said, "Whenever you express your views on social media, do not post something that insults the armed forces. In our country, there is a lack of strategic thinking, and if veterans play their part in this direction, they will help the country." Highlighting the importance of veterans' welfare, General Chauhan noted, "The quality of the next generation of soldiers that will join the Armed Forces is directly dependent on how we treat our veterans." He reflected on his contributions, stating, "In 2013, I initiated the Veteran Cell, which is now known as the Directorate of Indian Army Veterans (DIAV)." Praising Uttarakhand's unique blend of spirituality and military heritage, he described it as "Devbhoomi, a land where spiritualism and courage converge, home to sacred sites and a proud military heritage." General Chauhan announced a new economic initiative modelled on successful programmes in border states like Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, and Ladakh. "We are launching a program in Uttarakhand to source dairy, animal husbandry products, and, in the near future, fresh rations from local cooperatives through negotiated contracts, empowering and boosting the local economy," he said. He also shared that during a recent visit to Harshil, ex-servicemen had requested assistance in relocating to their ancestral homes, a matter now under consideration. On healthcare improvements, he stated, "We have operational ECHS polyclinics in Pauri, Raiwala, and Vikasnagar, with approval granted for three new ECHS polyclinics. Proposals to upgrade ECHS clinic facilities in Clement Town, Champawat, and nearby areas are under consideration by the Ministry of Defence, ensuring better healthcare access for our veterans." The CDS praised the unwavering spirit, selfless service, and deep sense of duty among the veterans, urging the youth to draw inspiration from their legacy. He also announced the upcoming establishment of an "Integrated Veterans Wellness and Seva Kendra" at Dehradun Military Station, a state-of-the-art, tech-enabled centre dedicated to the welfare of veterans. He expressed confidence in the project's timely completion by the Uttarakhand Sub Area Headquarters. The event witnessed the esteemed presence of the Hon'ble Governor of Uttarakhand, Lieutenant General Gurmit Singh (Retd), and the Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, along with several other dignitaries and senior military officials. Over 5,000 veterans participated in the rally, which featured a job fair hosted by 21 companies, as well as stalls promoting banking and government schemes, and free medical camps for the benefit of ex-servicemen and their families. The event concluded with personal interactions between the Governor, CDS and the veterans and Veer Naris. They reiterated the Central and State Governments' unwavering commitment to continue serving and supporting the veterans' community. (ANI) As part of the RSS's service initiatives, NGO Vivekananda Medical Trust inaugurated a hospital named Vivekananda Diagnostics & Research Centre, at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, on Saturday. The inauguration ceremony was attended by Dattatreya Hosabale, the Chief Guest and RSS Sarkaryavah, along with Dusi Ramakrishna, the Guest of Honour and RSS Sahakshtra Sangchalak. Professor Chilukuri Shanthamma, who donated the land for the hospital, was also present at the event. During the ceremony, RSS Sarkaryavah Dattatreya Hosabale praised the services provided by the medical trust over the past five decades. He emphasised that such services cannot be sustained without a higher purpose. While commending the trust, Hosabale stated that today's world needs organisations like the Vivekananda Trust, which can serve selflessly. "Vivekananda Medical Trust has been providing selfless services for five decades....."Such a long-lasting service is possible only when it is driven by a higher purpose..."What society needs today are organizations that serve selflessly," said Hosabale. Further, Hosabale added that the RSS's mission is not merely charity, but the creation of human resources capable of giving back to society. He said society must be rebuilt morally, spiritually, and culturally. The RSS Sarkaryavah emphasised that "Service and sacrifice are like twin siblings," and also paid tribute to late Chilukuri Subrahmanya Shastri, who was deeply committed to the RSS ideology. In the inauguration, Hosabale emphasised that the hospital should uphold Shastri's noble ideals and serve society. The RSS also mentioned that the organisation's volunteers are involved in one lakh (100,000) service projects across India, contributing to 128 different types of service activities. He urged beneficiaries of these services to give back to society in some manner. However, a significant concern was raised during the event. Hosbale pointed out that only 3,000 diagnostic centres have been accredited out of a total of 300,000. He emphasised the importance of providing accessible and high-quality healthcare to the public, asserting that it is a fundamental right. Highlighting a pressing concern, he stated, "There are approximately three lakh diagnostic centers in the country, but only 3,000 of them are accredited, which is worrisome." Later, Hosabale expressed confidence that the Vivekananda Medical Trust would accomplish this mission. In this event, Professor Chilukuri Shanthamm expressed her desire for the research division of the Vivekananda Medical Trust to reach a standard comparable to that of the Nobel Prize. She further emphasised the importance of a collaborative approach in research, highlighting that studies related to the Raman effect are currently being conducted in fields such as homoeopathy. Therefore, Shanthamm stated that research focused on cell-based studies would produce even more effective results. Meanwhile, the Government of India has released the special commemorative coins and stamps to mark the 100th anniversary of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), said Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. She said that the commemoratives honour a century of the RSS's service, unity, and dedication. In a post on X on Friday, the Finance Minister's office stated, "To commemorate 100 years of the foundation of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, the Government of India has released special commemorative coins and stamps, honouring a century of service, unity and dedication." During the centenary celebrations, the Prime Minister praised the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) for its long-standing commitment to nation-building. He said the RSS has helped nurture and strengthen countless lives over the years.PM Modi said, "Just as human civilisations flourish along the banks of mighty rivers, similarly, hundreds of lives have blossomed and thrived along the banks and in the flow of the RSS. Since its formation, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh has pursued a grand objective. That objective has been nation-building." (ANI) In a significant boost to passenger experience at one of the country's busiest terminals, the new Yatri Suvidha Kendra is strategically divided into three zones to streamline passenger movement: a Ticketing area spanning 2,860 sqm, a Post Ticketing area of 1,150 sqm, and a Pre Ticketing area covering 1,218 sqm. This spatial separation is designed to reduce congestion and improve passenger comfort across the terminal's main entrance. Union Minister for Railways, Information & Broadcasting, and Electronics & Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, on Saturday, inspected the newly constructed Yatri Suvidha Kendra (Permanent Holding Area) at New Delhi Railway Station (NDLS). The center is designed to accommodate approximately 7,000 passengers at any given time, dramatically enhancing pre-boarding comfort and flow. "The newly developed state-of-the-art Yatri Suvidha Kendra will provide comfort to passengers during the festival season, as there is a surge in passenger volume. Yatri Suvidha Kendra, like this, shall be developed at other stations in the country," Vaishnaw said in a statement. The Northern Railway has equipped the Kendra with comprehensive, modern amenities to ensure passenger convenience and security, featuring 22 modern ticketing counters and 25 Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVMs). The facility has a seating capacity for 200 passengers and features 18 High Volume Low Speed (HVLS) Fans for efficient cooling. Additionally, it includes a dedicated toilet block spanning 652 sqm, as well as an RO-based drinking water system. For information and safety, a robust passenger announcement system with 24 speakers, three LED electronic train information displays, and 7 units of a modern fire-fighting system will also be available. State-of-the-art security measures, including 18 CCTV cameras, five luggage scanners, and five Door Frame Metal Detectors (DFMD), are also part of the new station. "Northern Railway successfully navigated several complex challenges during the construction, including the necessary demolition and shifting of existing structures such as ATMs, a Delhi Police cabin, and hoarding boards. Furthermore, the sensitive relocation of essential utilities like water lines, drainage systems, and OFC cables was executed without disruption to daily operations," the Ministry of Railways said in an official release In parallel, an essential infrastructure upgrade was completed with the extension of Foot Over Bridge 1 (FOB 1). This extension ensures that passengers de-boarding trains at NDLS can now directly exit towards the Metro Station, significantly improving multimodal connectivity and reducing platform congestion. The Union Minister was accompanied by Satish Kumar, Chairman and CEO Railway Board; Ashok Kumar Verma, General Manager Northern Railway, and other senior Railway officials, who provided a detailed briefing on the facility's planning and execution. (ANI) Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Saturday announced a series of development initiatives for the Karsog Assembly Constituency, including the construction of a milk processing plant and a 66 KV substation, along with the upgradation of GSSS Karsog to be affiliated with the CBSE from the next financial year. The Chief Minister also announced the conversion of Tibban and Pangna schools into CBSE-affiliated institutions, the opening of new Patwar Circles at Sanarli, Mated and Baneda, and the improvement of the Tattapani-Bakhrout road. He said sufficient funds would be allocated to complete the ITI building, where AI and machine learning courses would be introduced soon. He also assured the appointment of a radiologist at Karsog Hospital in the near future. CM Sukhu stated that, in addition to the other parts of the State, the Karsog constituency also suffered significant losses during the recent monsoon disaster. He said that the State Government was conducting a study to determine the causes of such cloudbursts. The Chief Minister announced rupees seven lakh each for the rehabilitation of 94 completely damaged houses. Addressing a public meeting, the Chief Minister stated that State BJP leaders were creating hindrances in obtaining additional borrowing permissions from the Central Government, despite such permissions having been granted during the BJP's tenure. He stated that the Centre has withheld financial assistance to the State after the Government announced the introduction of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) and has also withheld Rs 1,600 crore, the loan limit, as financial assistance to the State. Accusing the BJP leaders of spreading rumours that the women were not being provided Rs. 1500 under the Indira Gandhi Pyari Behna Sukh Samman Nidhi Yojna, the Chief Minister stated that the amount was being distributed to the women in a phased manner and soon all the eligible women would be covered under the ambit of the scheme. He also lashed out at the BJP for opening institutions where they were not needed. He alleged that the previous government constructed buildings worth Rs 1,000 crore merely to benefit the contractors, adding that an ITI building worth Rs 40 crore was built in Chhatri and Siraj, which currently has just 18 students. Our government has also adopted a zero-tolerance approach towards corruption, he remarked. The Chief Minister accused the previous double-engine government of draining the state's treasury, stating that Himachal Pradesh received Rs 50,000 crore less compared to the previous BJP government, but there would be no constraint on funds for development and welfare purposes. "The BJP government squandered public money for political gains, whereas our government is spending every rupee for public welfare," he said. Highlighting the government's initiatives in the education sector, CM Sukhu said that due to the lack of vision of the previous BJP government, Himachal Pradesh slipped to 21st position in quality education in 2021. The BJP government had opened schools without adequate staff or facilities. However, as of today, due to a systematic approach, the State has been ranked in fifth place in the education sector. Our government has initiated recruitment for 6,000 teachers, out of which 3,000 have already been appointed in batches, so that children are not deprived of quality education. To strengthen the rural economy, the government has taken many measures to benefit the farming community. The Government was procuring wheat, maize, and raw turmeric produced through natural farming at Rs 60, Rs 40, and Rs 90 per kilogram, respectively. MNREGA wages have also been increased by Rs 80 over the past two years. Speaking on health reforms, the Chief Minister. Sukhu stated that medical colleges were operating with outdated machinery, and the BJP government had not paid heed to strengthening the state's health infrastructure. The present government has installed modern medical equipment and recruited 200 doctors during the last two years, with plans to recruit 200 more. He added that robotic surgeries are being performed at Chamiyana Hospital and Tanda Medical College. Health and Family Welfare Minister Colonel Dhani Ram Shandil said that model health institutions with six specialist doctors each are being established in every Assembly constituency, with 50 already operational. He stated that, in addition to filling the posts of doctors, recruitment of paramedical staff was also being conducted. The newly appointed doctors would soon be deployed to remote areas of the state to provide healthcare services to the people residing in these areas. Milkfed Chairman Buddhi Singh Thakur said that under the leadership of the Chief Minister, the income of animal farmers has increased due to a Rs. 21 per litre rise in milk prices in two years. He said that Milkfed now procures three lakh litres of milk daily, compared to only 90,000 litres during the previous government's tenure. Congress candidate Mahesh Raj expressed gratitude to the Chief Minister for the development initiatives in Karsog. Later, the Chief Minister distributed financial assistance of Rs 18 lakh to 12 beneficiaries under the 'Vidhwa and Ekal Nari Aawas Yojna' as the first instalment of Rs 1.50 lakh each. He also provided the second installment of Rs.1 lakh each to four children under the Chief Minister's Sukhashray Yojana and handed over land documents to an eligible landless child under the same scheme. Two meritorious students, Pragya Thakur and Himani Thakur, were also honoured. Earlier, on his arrival in Karsog, the Chief Minister was accorded a grand welcome in a mega road show. Karsog MLA Deep Raj welcomed the Chief Minister on his arrival and thanked him for dedicating development projects to his constituency. Former Minister Prakash Chaudhary, former CPS Sohan Lal Thakur, Chairman of APMC (Mandi) Sanjeev Guleria, Congress leaders Jagdish Reddy and Vijay Kanav, and district officers were also present on the occasion. (ANI) The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train project has successfully completed the launch of its 10th steel bridge in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The bridge, spanning 60 meters in length, was launched over a western railway facility (laundry) situated adjacent to the railway tracks. After months of meticulous planning and preparation, the bridge launching was executed with precision in just seven hours. This marks the first steel bridge launched in the Ahmedabad district as part of the project. For the transverse launching of the bridge, it was assembled at a height of 16.5 metres above the ground on temporary trestles. Subsequently, the structure was side-slewed into position using two semi-automatic jacks, each with a 200-ton capacity, supported by locking trolleys for enhanced stability. The bridge, which weighs 485 metric tons, measuring 12 metres in height and 11.4 metres in width, was fabricated at a dedicated workshop in Wardha (Nagpur, Maharashtra) and transported to Ahmedabad using specially designed trailers. The construction involved approximately 20,360 Tor-Shear Type High Strength (TTHS) bolts, coated with C5 system protective painting and equipped with elastomeric bearings to ensure durability and vibration control. A temporary platform measuring 35 by 60 metres was constructed for assembling the main structure. Additional temporary brackets were installed to strengthen the track beam during the transverse movement, improving its stability. In total, 14 skid arrangements were utilised, four of which were specifically dedicated to the transverse launching process. The Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train viaduct in Ahmedabad will pass through 31 crossings, including railway tracks, flyovers, a canal, a river bridge spanning the Sabarmati River, and six steel bridges. Across the entire corridor, a total of 28 steel bridges are planned, with 17 located in Gujarat and 11 in Maharashtra. Earlier on September 20, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw interacted with workers engaged in the construction of the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train tunnels, congratulating them on achieving a breakthrough using the New Austrian Tunnelling Method (NATM). "Today, an important milestone has been achieved in the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. An undersea tunnel is being constructed beneath the creek between Mumbai and Thane," Minister Vaishnaw told ANI. According to the minister, the bullet train project aims to reduce the travel time between Mumbai and Ahmedabad from two hours to just seven minutes. The project is also expected to boost the economies of other major cities along the route, including Thane, Vapi, Surat, Baroda, and Anand. Minister Vaishnaw further stated that the plan is to run trains every half an hour during peak hours in the morning and evening, with eventual plans to have trains available every ten minutes during peak times. "This means that if you want to travel from Mumbai to Ahmedabad, the system of pre-reserving tickets will be eliminated. Simply arrive at the station, catch a train in ten minutes, and reach your destination in two hours. This will create a new approach to the entire service," Vaishnaw said. A significant milestone was also achieved for the ambitious undersea tunnel project between BKC and Shillphata, where the NATM successfully completed a breakthrough for its five-kilometre tunnel stretch. This critical section, which runs 4.881 km, includes a challenging seven-kilometre segment beneath the Thane Creek. Tunnelling commenced in May 2024, and on July 9, engineers celebrated the first breakthrough for a continuous 2.7 km section connecting the ADIT to the Savali shaft. (ANI) All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaddudin Owaisi has said that there is "no question of being upset" over the opposition Mahagathbandhan not accepting his party's offer for alliance for the Bihar assembly polls, and his party will decide its own strategy. He said people of the state understand that "our intentions are right". In an interview with ANI, Owaisi also hit out at the opposition parties, which accuse AIMIM of being the 'B team of BJP and said that instead of introspecting on their own weaknesses, they falsely target his party. "There's no question of being upset. They will decide their party's strategy. We will decide our party's strategy. Bihar's prominent maulanas, scholars, intellectuals, doctors, and lawyers all said that Owaisi doesn't want to do this (alliance). I asked, who told you? Then I reminded them that the Vice Presidential election was held a month ago, and who did we vote for?... Now those same people are expressing regret and saying that your intentions are right," he said. Owaisi had said last month that Bihar AIMIM chief Akhtarul Iman, MLA, had written to RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav proposing an alliance for the Bihar polls. He said that his party was ready to contest six seats, but there has been no response. Owaisi had earlier this week taken digs at RJD over Mahagathbandhan parties spurning the party's offer of alliance, saying that their "arrogance" will harm them. Bihar will go to the polls in two phases on November 6 and 11 and counting will be held on November 14. The Election Commission announced the dates after the completion of SIR. Asked about the party's issues for the Bihar Elections, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi said the party will raise several issues, including "under-development" in the four Seemanchal districts. He alleged "misgovernance" and "corruption" in Bihar "Our political journey in Bihar began from the land of Seemanchal. We said that justice should be done to Seemanchal. Seemanchal is underdeveloped. Human development indicators are very poor. That's one thing. Secondly, there's misgovernance and corruption in Bihar; there are numerous issues. And then there's a sense of alienation within the Muslim community. Alienation means that every community, every caste has a leadership, but about 19% of Muslims in Bihar lack leadership," Owaisi said. Answering a query, he said there is no perception among people that his party is 'B' team of BJP but noted that attempts are made by some parties in the opposition in this direction. He took a dig at these parties and said if they think that "bringing Owaisi into everything will cure the disease" then he has no problem. "There is no such perception. ..If you (opposition) think that bringing Owaisi into everything will cure the disease, then I have no problem with that..." "There is no perception like this. People want to create that. But we have said it many times, and we are saying it again today, that if Narendra Modi has become the Prime Minister of this country three times, it's not the fault of Indian Muslims," he said. "PM Narendra Modi is getting about fifty per cent of the non-Muslim votes in the polls. He's getting 37-38%, so what's my role in that? If you want to crown me, I'll accept. I have no objection. If you think that bringing Owaisi into everything will cure the disease, then I have no problem with that. Do an introspection and see how weak you are," he added. (ANI) BJP leader Babulal Marandi criticised the government of West Bengal over the alleged gang rape of a medical student in Durgapur on Saturday. Speaking to ANI, the BJP leader alleged that law and order in the state has broken down and accused the government of allegedly suppressing the voice of the people. "The way the government in Bengal is indulging in thuggery, they do not want to hear any voice against the government. Incidents were happening, but they would suppress that voice. If anyone raises a voice, they attack them. A few days ago, there was an attack on our MP, a public representative, and the government there itself has resorted to thuggery... Law and order there is already in disarray.." said Babulal on the alleged gang rape of a medical student at a private college in Durgapur. Meanwhile, a second-year student of a private medical college was allegedly gangraped in Durgapur. The victim, a medical student, is from Jaleswar, Odisha. According to the victim's father, a medical student was taken by one of her classmates under the pretense of going to get something to eat. However, two or three other men arrived and raped her. The classmate abandoned her and fled. "At 10 PM, her friend called us and said that your daughter has been raped. We live in Jaleshwar. My daughter was studying here. Yesterday, one of her classmates took her out on the pretext of getting something to eat, but when two or three other men arrived, he abandoned her and fled. They raped her... This incident happened between 8 and 9 PM. The hostel was far away, and she had come here to eat. The security arrangements are not sufficient... Such a serious incident occurred, but no action has been taken. There is no system here, no response..." victim's father told reporters. Earlier, Bharatiya Janata Party National Spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra accused West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee of allegedly threatening riots following the SIR exercise. In a video posted on X, Patra alleged that the Chief Minister Banerjee stated that if SIR is conducted in the eastern state, riots will break out in Bengal and there will be horrifying consequences. "....Mamata Banerjee said that if SIR is done, riots will break out in Bengal and there will be horrifying consequences...The rioting will be done by you, because it is your government which is in power there, and it is your Police there. Mamata Banerjee you are issuing threats..," said Patra. The BJP MP alleged that the West Bengal Chief Minister warned she would not hesitate to shed blood for Bangladeshis and Rohingyas. "For Mamata Banerjee, she would not shy away even if she has to riot and shed blood in Bengal for Bangladeshis and Rohingyas. This is the warning she gave in Bengal yesterday..." claimed Patra. (ANI) The Special Judge granted two days' custody of Ashok Kumar Pal, CFO and Executive Director of Reliance Industries, to the ED. He has been arrested in a case involving a fake bank guarantee. He was produced at the residence of the Special Judge by the ED. Special Judge Kiran Gupta granted 2 days' custody of Ashok Kumar Pal to the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Pal is to be produced in the Patiala House Court on Monday. The ED had sought a 5-day ED custody of the accused, Ashok Kumar Pal. Advocate Vijay Agarwal appeared for Ashok Kumar Pal. During the hearing, an application was filed by Advocate Vijay Agarwal, Counsel for the accused, seeking directions declaring the arrest of the accused/applicant as illegal. The Defence Counsel submitted that the ED arrested the present accused without obtaining prior court permission, contrary to settled law, even after the complaint was filed before the present court. After perusing the application, the court stated that the Defence Counsel's submissions--that prior permission of the court was not obtained for further investigation prior to the arrest of the arrestee -- suggest to me that the trial of the case has not yet commenced, and even cognisance has yet to be taken. Without prejudice to the rights and contentions taken by the Defence Counsel during arguments and in the application, ED is granted 2 days' custody of the arrestee till October 13. The arrestee is to be produced before the court on October 13 at 12 noon. The court directed the ED to interrogate the accused at a place where CCTV cameras are installed. The arrestee shall also be permitted to meet his advocate for half an hour daily between 6:00 pm and 7:00 pm during the said period of ED custody in a manner that the ED officials are unable to hear their conversations. The Enforcement Directorate is also directed to provide the necessary medicines, if any, to the arrestee, as per his medical prescriptions. The court granted the ED time to file a reply to the application before the next date, October 13. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashok Kumar Pal, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Reliance Power Limited (RPL), in connection with a fake bank guarantee and forged invoicing case linked to alleged fund diversion. Officials said Pal was taken into custody late on Friday night after several hours of questioning at the agency's Delhi office. According to sources, Pal, as the CFO of Reliance Power--a publicly listed company in which more than 75 per cent of the shares are held by the public--played a "crucial role" in the diversion of company funds and the submission of forged financial documents. The investigation pertains to a fraudulent Bank Guarantee (BG) of over Rs 68 crore submitted to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) tender. Officials said Pal was empowered by a board resolution to finalise, approve, and execute documents on behalf of RPL for the SECI bid. In this capacity, he allegedly conspired to submit a fake bank guarantee with the intention of cheating the PSU. The ED's probe revealed that the bogus guarantee was issued in the name of "FirstRand Bank, Manila, Philippines"--a location where the bank has no operational branch. "The guarantee was arranged through Biswal Tradelink Pvt. Ltd (BTPL), a small entity operating from a residential address with no credible record in providing such guarantees. BTPL director Partha Sarathi Biswal, already in judicial custody, is alleged to have assisted in executing the forged document," said the officials. Investigators further alleged that Pal approved fake transport invoices worth several crores to facilitate fund diversion. He reportedly cleared payments and managed paperwork through Telegram and WhatsApp -- bypassing Reliance Power's official SAP and vendor master systems. The ED also found that Pal used the services of a fake bank guarantee racket operating through spoofed email domains resembling those of major Indian banks, such as "s-bi.co.in" instead of the genuine "sbi.co.in". Similar lookalike domains were used to impersonate other banks, including Indian Bank, IndusInd Bank, and Punjab National Bank. Officials said Pal's actions form part of a broader criminal conspiracy involving forged instruments and fraudulent communication channels aimed at deceiving public institutions and misappropriating funds from a listed company. (ANI) AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has welcomed the government's decision to upgrade the Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of an Embassy of India during Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi's visit to the country. In an interview with ANI, Owaisi said India's diplomatic presence in Afghanistan is crucial for the country's security and geopolitical interests. He said India should establish a full diplomatic relationship. Owaisi said he had been advocating ties with the Taliban for a long time, and the BJP had earlier slammed him for talking about the Taliban. "I welcome it. I stood in Parliament in 2016 and said that the Taliban would come. Talk to them. Many media people and BJP members abused me for talking about the Taliban. Chahbhar Port is of great importance to us. We'll go to Afghanistan from that. Now, how will we leave the influence of that area to China and Pakistan?... Their (Afghanistan) Foreign Minister is here, and the Pakistan Air Force bombed that place," he said. "Their (Afghanistan) Foreign Minister is here, and the Pakistan Air Force bombed that place. Do you see how it's going?... We should establish a full diplomatic relationship. Our presence there is crucial for the country's security and geopolitical interests. We should have a full-fledged diplomatic relationship," he added. Afghanistan's Foreign Minister, who is on a visit to India from October 9 to 16, met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Friday. He visited Darul Uloom Deoband in Uttar Pradesh on Saturday and met Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani. Muttaqi expressed his gratitude for being welcomed to Doband, and hoped that the relations between India and the Taliban continue to improve. "I am thankful to all of you for the warm welcome given to me by everyone in Deoband and the love showered upon me. I will pray to God that India-Afghanistan relations improve further. After the meeting I had in Delhi, I can say that our future is bright. I hope that our visits between Delhi and Kabul increase," he said. In his remarks on Friday, Jaishankar had said that as a contiguous neighbour and a well-wisher of the Afghan people, India has a deep interest in Afghanistan's development and progress. "We have a common commitment towards growth and prosperity. However, these are endangered by the shared threat of cross-border terrorism that both our nations face. We must coordinate efforts to combat terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. We appreciate your sensitivity towards India's security concerns. Your solidarity with us in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack was noteworthy," Jaishankar had said. He said that India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan. "Closer cooperation between us contributes to your national development, as well as regional stability and resilience. To enhance that, I am pleased to announce today the upgrading of India's Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of Embassy of India," he said. Answering a query on the Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal, Owaisi said there is no clarity about the peace plan. He cited media reports and said 65,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military operations and accused Israel of carrying out a genocide. "But tell me, what will Tony Blair, whose hands are stained with blood, do about it? What will Trump do in the board that will be formed? Where is the Palestinian Authority? There is no clarity on where the Israeli army committing genocide will stop, and what will happen to the Palestinian state? So, we feel they are operating there like a real estate project... But what about the perpetrators of genocide? Will they be punished or not?" he asked. He criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for praising Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. "And most disturbingly, how can the Prime Minister of India praise the leadership of Netanyahu, who has a warrant from the International Criminal Court (ICC) against him? Why is the Prime Minister praising him? This is a completely genocidal regime. The BJP is repeatedly propagating that Israel helps us, but no one helps. We pay them; no one does it for free...," Owaisi said. (ANI) by Xinhua writers Lu Youyi, Hu Xu and Li Qianwei CHENGDU, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- In the heart of Sichuan, an inland province in southwest China once synonymous with spicy hotpot, a new phrase -- "durian freedom" -- is catching on. Not long ago, the spiky, pungent "king of fruits" was considered a luxury, often costing over 200 yuan (about 28 U.S. dollars) per kilogram. Today, thanks to a cold-chain corridor along the China-Laos Railway, it sells for around 44 yuan per kilogram in supermarkets in the provincial capital, Chengdu. The journey begins in an orchard in eastern Thailand. There, freshly harvested Monthong durians are packed into refrigerated containers, transported by road into Laos, and loaded onto specialized cold-chain trains at Vientiane South Station. Inside the rail cars, temperatures are held steady at around 13 degrees Celsius, with humidity monitors ensuring the fruit stays fresh. These are no ordinary carriages. They have been retrofitted with underflow ventilation and insulation to withstand tropical heat on the long, bumpy ride. Clearing customs used to take days, but now the process runs in parallel, with documents pre-cleared while inspections are conducted swiftly at the border. At the Chengdu International Railway Port, where containers are unloaded amid a rich durian aroma, forklifts shuttle back and forth, moving the fruit to a dedicated distribution center. "Before, durian felt like a luxury, and the quality was unpredictable," said a local customer surnamed Yang. "Now, buying it right at the port means it's both fresh and affordable." Behind the cheaper price tag lies a sophisticated experiment in supply chain efficiency. By adopting a model combining direct procurement, dedicated shipment and port retail, Chengdu has cut the durian's travel time from tree to table to just three or four days. According to Wang Hao, general manager of Sichuan Langhao Import & Export Group Co., Ltd., rail transport is about 70 percent faster than sea freight and nearly 50 percent cheaper than traditional road haulage. Yet durian is more than just a fruit; it has become a catalyst for industrial transformation. The port is building an integrated system covering overseas sourcing, rail transport, cold-chain warehousing, wholesale and retail, as well as live-streamed e-commerce. Since launching durian imports this year, the port has recorded over 150 million yuan in trade value. A planned tropical fruit distribution center is currently under development. The strategy mirrors the approach Chengdu adopted years earlier with the China-Europe freight train service -- first build the corridor, then attract industry and finally cultivate an ecosystem. Where trains from Laos once carried stone, chemicals and machinery, they now transport tropical fruit, transforming this transportation mode into a driver of consumer affordability. Meanwhile, salmon is embarking on its own remarkable journey. Caught in the icy waters near the Arctic Circle, it can now reach a dinner plate in Chengdu -- a city far from the sea -- in as little as 36 hours. Airlifted from European hubs such as Brussels to Chengdu Tianfu International Airport, the fish clears customs in under three hours through a dedicated green channel for perishable goods. "More than 560 tonnes of salmon enter through Chengdu each month, over 90 percent of which is distributed across China," said Zhang Dongdong, project manager at the Western cold chain fresh food port under China Eastern Cold Chain, a second-tier subsidiary of China Eastern Airlines. According to him, Chengdu is not only a vibrant consumer market but a complete ecosystem of trade, air transport, processing and distribution. The Norwegian Seafood Council has taken notice. "Chengdu is becoming one of the most important salmon markets in China," said Sigmund Bjorgo, the council's country director for China. In the first half of 2025, China's salmon imports rose 39 percent year on year, making it Norway's third-largest seafood export market by August. With per capita consumption still at just 0.9 kilograms, the Chinese market remains far from saturated and is full of potential. The imports of salmon have also sparked local culinary creativity. At a recent food promotion, Sichuan chefs rolled out innovations like "chili salmon rolls" and "strawberry salmon jelly," hinting at a future where "Sichuan-style salmon" becomes its own genre. Sichuan is expanding its salmon industry chain to build a regional distribution hub, with eight culinary promotion bases and two processing centers now in operation. These facilities are producing value-added products like smoked and canned salmon, significantly boosting profitability, the provincial commerce department said. Not to be overlooked is a third, more modest import -- tapioca. Sourced largely from Laos, the starch forms the chewy balls in China's wildly popular bubble tea. According to data, China's new-style tea beverage market hit over 350 billion yuan in 2024 and is projected to reach nearly 375 billion yuan in 2025. "The China-Laos Railway has slashed shipping times and freed up capital for the tapioca trade, which previously relied on slower sea-river routes," said Zhu Qiurun, who works with the port and logistics office in Luzhou, Sichuan. Neijiang City, situated in the middle of the Chengdu-Chongqing economic zone, is also actively expanding its tapioca imports from Laos by leveraging the advantages of its bonded logistics center. One local firm in Neijiang has already imported about 1,590 tonnes of tapioca this year and plans further expansion. For Lao suppliers like trader Thieng Somsat, the efficient rail link has opened a vital gateway, allowing them to tap into the vast potential of the Chinese market. "It has brought tangible benefits to our people," he said. As tapioca is turned into starch balls and shipped to bubble tea shops, it completes a symbolic cycle, with a raw material from Southeast Asia refined in China and delivered to consumers through a seamless international supply chain. In Chengdu, globalization is no longer an abstract idea. It now has a smell, a taste and a bite, and arrives faster, fresher and closer than anyone could have imagined. Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for launching two major agricultural schemes, 'PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' and the 'Mission for Aatmanirbharta in Pulses,' calling them a historic milestone in the nation's agricultural journey and a significant step towards prosperity and dignity for farmers. In a post on the social media platform X, CM Dhami expressed his admiration for the initiatives and wrote, "Today has brought a historic achievement in the agricultural history of India. The Honourable Prime Minister Shri @narendramodi ji has launched the "PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana" and "Dahlan Aatmanirbharta Mission," thereby initiating a new chapter of prosperity and dignity in the lives of the country's food providers. Through these schemes, new opportunities will open up in the areas of agricultural infrastructure, irrigation, storage, and crop diversity, which will bring prosperity to every farmer's field." Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled the two flagship schemes aimed at strengthening agricultural self-reliance and boosting domestic pulses production. The schemes were launched with a combined outlay of Rs 35,440 crore. Addressing the special Krishi programme, PM Modi said that the schemes will transform the fortunes of millions of farmers in India, adding that the schemes focus on the country's self-reliance and the welfare of farmers. "Today, on this historic day, two important new schemes are being launched for the country's self-reliance and the welfare of farmers. First, the Pradhan Mantri Dhan Dhanya Krishi Yojana and the Dalhan Atmanirbharta Mission. These two schemes will transform the fortunes of millions of farmers in India. The government is going to spend more than Rs 35,000 crore on these schemes," the Prime Minister said. The announcement coincided with the birth anniversaries of Bharat Ratna awardees Jayaprakash Narayan and Nanaji Deshmukh. PM Modi paid tribute to both leaders and acknowledged their significant contributions to rural development and the promotion of democratic values. "Today, the 11th October, is a very historic day. Today is the birth anniversary of two great gems of Mother India who created history. Bharat Ratna Jayaprakash Narayan and Bharat Ratna Nanaji Deshmukh, both these great sons were the voice of rural India, the pioneers of democratic revolution," PM said. PM Modi also criticised the previous Congress-led governments for their "lack of vision" in the agriculture sector, saying their neglect led to the weakening of the country's agricultural system. "Agriculture and farming have always been a key part of our development journey. It is crucial that agriculture continues to receive government support as times change. Unfortunately, previous governments abandoned agriculture. The government lacked any vision or thought for agriculture. Different government departments related to agriculture operated in their own ways, leading to a continuous weakening of India's agricultural system," the Prime Minister added. PM emphasised that the BJP government implemented "countless" reforms, diverting from previous governments' "careless attitude" and said that the results of this policy change are evident today. (ANI) The Jammu and Kashmir Students Association delegation on Saturday met Advisor to Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Nasir Sogami, at the Chief Minister's Office in Srinagar. The delegation, led by Nasir Khuehami, National Convenor of the Association, called on the Advisor to apprise him of the ongoing hostel accommodation crisis faced by Kashmiri students at Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi. The delegation comprised the Chairman of the Disciplinary Committee, Danish Lone, National Spokesperson, Zubair Reshi and the Advisor of the Association, Peerzada Mahboob-ul-Haq. During the meeting, the delegation expressed grave concern that the hostel specifically meant for students from Jammu and Kashmir is being occupied by students from other states, leaving a large number of Kashmiri students without proper accommodation. They shared that due to the unavailability of hostel facilities, several Kashmiri students have been forced to abandon their degrees midway or seek expensive and unsafe private housing in Delhi, causing immense hardship. The delegation highlighted that this dedicated hostel for students from Jammu and Kashmir was envisioned in 2012, with an agreement signed between the Ministry of Home Affairs, the then Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Government led by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, and Jamia Millia Islamia University. The project, valued at Rs 16.22 crore, was designed to provide hostel accommodation for 700 students from Jammu and Kashmir. The accord was signed in the presence of the then Union Home Minister, P. Chidambaram, and the then Chief Minister, Omar Abdullah. However, despite the hostel being constructed specifically for Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) students, the majority of its residents today are from other states. As a result, Kashmiri students continue to face difficulties in securing accommodation on campus. "This is a bizarre and unfortunate situation," the delegation remarked, "where even after the hostel's construction, Kashmiri students are compelled to discontinue their studies or are unable to enrol due to the non-availability of hostel facilities; despite applying for them." The Association urged the Advisor to raise the matter with the concerned authorities and press the government to increase on-campus accommodation facilities for Kashmiri students. They also pointed out that those residing off-campus face daily challenges as tenants, including disputes over electricity and water usage, rent-related harassment, and other issues that disrupt their studies and mental well-being. In response, Advisor Nasir Sogami assured the delegation that the issue would be taken up immediately with the concerned authorities. He also conveyed that Chief Minister Omar Abdullah will personally visit Jamia Millia Islamia to review the situation and interact with the students. The Association expressed hope that urgent corrective action will be taken to ensure that the hostel serves its original purpose of providing safe, affordable, and dignified accommodation for students from Jammu and Kashmir at Jamia Millia Islamia. The delegation apprised the Advisor of the Association's plans to establish an independent RCA Academy for marginalised students from Jammu and Kashmir aspiring to appear for civil services and other competitive examinations. They sought support for the initiative, which will be implemented in collaboration with partner organisations from Delhi, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. Advisor Sogami appreciated the Association's sustained efforts in supporting students across the country, particularly during times of crisis and uncertainty. (ANI) Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta on Saturday emphasised major improvements in the national capital's healthcare infrastructure, asserting that "previous governments had left major gaps" in hospital facilities. Speaking to mediapersons after reviewing the hospitals, the Chief Minister said, "Previous governments used to talk about health modules. But today, when we look at big hospitals, the required machinery is not there at all... What can be more unfortunate?" The Chief Minister emphasised that since assuming office, her government has initiated all necessary processes to "strengthen medical services". "We have installed various kinds of machinery, and we have also taken reviews, and today, in all our hospitals, there is no shortage of ventilators anywhere; they are 100 per cent operational and working," she said. The Chief Minister also pointed out that hospital capacity has increased, with more beds available than needed. Efforts are underway to address medicine availability, which is currently at 90 per cent, with the remaining 10 per cent gap being actively managed. "Sometimes the process takes time, we have ensured to eliminate that gap so that things get better," Gupta said. Earlier in the day, the Chief Minister distributed cheques to the families of the health workers who died during COVID-19 and said that the previous government was busy and didn't remember for years that it had to give them money. "These people's applications had been pending for years. During the COVID-19 pandemic, when the entire world was in their homes, these individuals continued to work tirelessly to save lives. No sanitation worker, doctor, nurse took leave, no one refused, yet in such circumstances, the government did not give them their due; what was the previous government busy with that it didn't remember for years that it had to give them money... I apologise to all these families, and today we have distributed the money that is their right." Delhi CM said. (ANI) Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Saturday called for justice in the wake of the alleged suicide of Haryana IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, urging the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central and Haryana governments to "speak with the bereaved family, respect their sentiments and ensure justice is delivered." Speaking to reporters after visiting the officer's residence and meeting his family, Punjab CM said, "The family is demanding justice. I request the Chief Minister of Haryana and the Central Government to stand with this family. You can't disregard the law to protect one person. No one is above the law. Justice should be done." The Punjab CM further said that he had approached the Chandigarh Administrator and urged him to intervene in the matter. "I met the Governor and requested him to intervene. You're the Chandigarh Administrator, and you should sit with the officers and the family together and talk. I'll talk to him (Haryana CM)...now it's clear that a community is being deliberately targeted as part of a conspiracy. They didn't come through any recommendations. They cleared the UPSC," he added. Earlier in the day, CM Mann visited the residence of the deceased IPS officer in Chandigarh. IPS officer Y Puran Kumar allegedly died by suicide on October 7 at his residence in Chandigarh. In a 'final note' reportedly left behind, he accused eight senior police officers, including Haryana Director General of Police (DGP) Shatrujeet Kapur and Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya, of "blatant caste-based discrimination, targeted mental harassment, public humiliation and atrocities." His wife, Senior IAS officer Amneet P Kumar, has demanded that an FIR be registered against the DGP and SP, citing serious allegations of harassment and discrimination. Meanwhile, Congress leader Kumari Selja also arrived at the Haryana IPS officer's residence to meet his family and said that these are testing times for the "entire Dalit community" and the whole society. "I dont understand how the government is working. Everyone should act as one when it comes to justice... When his family reached the mortuary, they found that his dead body had been shifted elsewhere... All evidence is right in front, and the whole nation knows what is going on... These are testing times for the entire Dalit community and the whole society. Such a high-ranking officer has been forced into such a situation..." said Congress MP Kumari Selja. Earlier, Chandigarh SSP Kanwardeep Kaur stated that the post-mortem would be conducted only after obtaining consent from the family. "The post-mortem will be started after the consent of the family. We are yet to receive a message from the family. A team of doctors are present here. Nothing can be done without the consent of the family. As soon as we get a go-ahead from the family, the post-mortem will begin..." she said. Meanwhile, the Haryana Government transferred Rohtak Superintendent of Police Narendra Bijarniya, who is facing accusations along with seven other senior police officers of the Haryana police in the death of IPS officer Y Puran Kumar. According to a Haryana Government order, Superintendent of police, Narcotics Bureau, Surinder Bhoria, will replace Bijarniya as Rohtak SP. Earlier, the family of the deceased officer had demanded the immediate arrest of the DGP and Rohtak SP. (ANI) AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of "telling lies" in his remarks concerning infiltration and disparity in population growth across all religions and said it is the Centre's responsibility to check infiltration. In an interview with ANI, Owaisi claimed that the Muslim population has increased by 4.4 per cent from the first census to the 2011 census. "Amit Shah made a statement about the population. He is telling lies after lies. From the first census to the 2011 census, the Muslim population has increased by 4.4%... Mohan Bhagwat said that the population of one community is increasing a lot, and then later Yogi Adityanath said that the population of indigenous people is decreasing. Mohan Bhagwat is now saying to have three children," he said. "Government statistics show that the total fertility rate of Muslims has fallen the most. If someone is infiltrating, you are a minister, why can't you stop them?... If you call every Bengali-speaking Indian Muslim a Bangladeshi, then this is wrong," he added. Amit Shah had said at event on Friday that disparity in population growth across all religions observed in the censuses from 1951 to 2011 is primarily due to infiltration. He said that the Muslim population has increased at a rate of 24.6 per cent, while the Hindu population has decreased by 4.5 per cent. He clarified that this decline is not due to the fertility rate but rather due to infiltration. When India was partitioned, Pakistan was formed on both sides based on religion, which later split into Bangladesh and Pakistan. He noted that infiltration from both sides has led to such a significant change in the population. "Today, infiltration, demographic change, and democracy; I want to say without hesitation that until every Indian understands these three issues, we cannot ensure our country, our culture, our languages, and our independence. These three topics are interconnected..." Shah said. "Censuses were conducted in 1951, 1971, 1991, and 2011... In the 1951 census, Hindus constituted 84 per cent, while Muslims constituted 9.8 per cent. In 1971, Hindus constituted 82 per cent and the Muslim population was 11 per cent while in 1991, Hindus constituted 81 per cent and the Muslim community accounted for 12.12 per cent, while in 1991, we accounted for 89 per cent, and Muslims accounted for 14.2 oer cent. I'm talking about the populations of only two religions because I want to talk about infiltration..." he said. (ANI) Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Saturday said that law is not merely a set of rules but a bridge of trust between the state and its people. Speaking at the two-day East Zone Regional Conference of the seven northeastern states along with Sikkim, Bihar, West Bengal, Jharkhand and Odisha at Sonapur, Chief Minister Sarma said the conference that brings together the collective experience and wisdom of judiciary and legal service institutions from the eastern and north-eastern states would strengthen institutional mechanisms and ensure greater access to justice, especially by the poor and marginalised. He said that the presence of the legal luminaries from 12 states reflects the strength of the justice system and the collective belief that law is not just a set of rules but a bridge of trust between the State and the people. Commending the initiative of the Assam State Legal Services Authority and the Gauhati High Court for organising the regional conference under the aegis of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), the Chief Minister said that the conference has presented a platform of meeting of minds committed to the common goal of making justice accessible, simple and meaningful for every citizen. The Chief Minister, while hailing the role of NALSA, said that under the leadership of the judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts, NALSA has grown into a nationwide movement. "Since its inception it has been providing legal aid, legal awareness, and helping the underprivileged understand and use laws in their daily lives. Equally important are NALSA's efforts inside prisons, where legal aid ensures that no person remains deprived of justice for want of representation. NALSA's awareness campaigns in schools, colleges, and villages have helped citizens understand their rights and duties," he said. Chief Minister Sarma said that the Northeast, with its rich diversity of languages, customs, and terrain, presents unique challenges to the justice delivery system. He also said that the region also offers valuable lessons in harmony and community-based resolution. "Traditional practices and modern law can together make justice more participatory and responsive," he said. Stating that the Legal Services Authorities have a key role in spreading awareness, resolving local disputes through Lok Adalats, and strengthening access to justice at the grassroots, Dr. Sarma said that the Assam Government will continue to work closely with NALSA and State Legal Services Authorities to make justice delivery simple, swift, and inclusive. He also expressed optimism that the East Zone Regional Conference being held in Guwahati presents special significance as a platform for deliberating on some of the key critical issues of law and social concern of the Northeast. The Chief Minister, moreover, said that the persistence of child marriage in several eastern and north-eastern states continues to pose serious socio-legal challenges. "The overlap between the POCSO Act and child marriage laws has created conflicting outcomes," the Assam Chief Minister said. He, therefore, advocated for harmonising the legal framework that safeguards children while addressing social realities. He also said that education, awareness, and empowerment of girls must remain the most effective tools for prevention of child marriage. CM Sarma also observed that the Northeast's proximity to international borders has made it vulnerable to the drug trade. "Assam has been relentless in its fight, registering over 3,000 NDPS cases every year and seizing large quantities of heroin, ganja, and psychotropic substances. The conference would provide a platform to deliberate on stronger enforcement, witness protection, rehabilitation, and youth awareness to build a drug-free, healthy, and secure North-East. The tribal communities in North East are the guardians of forests, culture, and tradition, yet many continue to face marginalisation," he said. He believed that NALSA's new SAMVAD Scheme will help spread awareness about the laws, such as the Fifth and Sixth Schedules, the PESA Act, and the Forest Rights Act, 2006 to ensure legal aid to tribal communities. He also expressed his gratitude to Assam State Legal Services Authority for taking the initiative in setting up Legal Aid Clinics and inaugurating them in 46 tea estates across the State. He believed that the move will empower the tea communities to face the challenges of poverty, poor health, and lack of access to education and justice. Speaking on Viksit Bharat as envisioned by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Sarma said that to fully transform India into Viksit Bharat, every sector, namely governance, economy, education, and justice, needs to work together for a strong, equitable, and self-reliant India. He emphasised that in this journey justice delivery will play a defining role. He, therefore, reiterated on the need of making justice accessible, affordable, and timely for all. The Chief Minister on the occasion set across certain priorities namely digital access to justice, legal awareness in every village, gender-sensitive justice, engaging young students, law graduates, and social workers as the messengers of justice, and giving environmental and climate justice equal importance. Chief Minister Sarma concluded by expressing his confidence that the two-day conference would definitely strengthen the network of legal services institutions and enhance access to justice for vulnerable and marginalised communities and promote awareness on vital issues of social concern. The programme was presided over by Judge of the Supreme Court of India Justice Surya Kanta, in the presence of Union Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal, Chief Justice of Gauhati High Court Justice Ashutosh Kumar, Judges of the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts of Gauhati, Sikkim, Patna, Calcutta, Jharkhand, Tripura, Manipur, Meghalaya and Odisha. (ANI) AICC General Secretary and MP K.C. Venugopal on Saturday alleged that there is a mystery surrounding the withholding of information about the ED summons issued to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's son, Vivek Kiran, in 2023 in connection with the LIFE Mission money-laundering case Speaking to ANI, Venugopal alleged that the breakfast meeting between Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and a Union Minister at Kerala House in New Delhi, which he said violated official protocol, and the Chief Minister's private visits to Union Ministers' residences without the presence of officials, raised serious questions. "If we read all these developments together, it is clear that something is rotten in Denmark. The Chief Minister has the responsibility to clarify what's going on," Venugopal said. Though the ED issued a notice to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's son, the agency did not interrogate him. KC Venugopal also targeted the Left government in the State over the Sabarimala gold "theft" row. He demanded that a court-monitored Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) could expose the "real" miscreants involved in the incident. The Congress MP mentioned that the issue came to light following the intervention of the Kerala High Court. "Sabarimala is a sacred temple for everyone in India. The incident reported from Sabarimala is painful for all of us. It is a clear indication that the government of Kerala and the Devaswom Board are trying to hide the incident. Only after the intervention of the Kerala High Court was this issue brought to light. Only a CBI enquiry under the supervision of the court can reveal the real culprits," Venugopal told ANI. After the Kerala High Court directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the alleged Sabarimala gold theft incident, Devaswom Board Minister VN Vasavan said that a vigilance inquiry has found lapses at the official level and the government has faith in the judiciary."Everyone responsible for this incident must be exposed, and no culprit should escape justice. The government has full faith in the judiciary. What has taken place is nothing short of theft, and there can be no justification for it," Vasavan told reporters. The court has directed that the investigation be completed and a report submitted within six weeks. The court said that the investigation should be kept strictly confidential. No information related to the investigation should be leaked. The division bench of the High Court has also directed, in an interim order, that the special investigation team submit a sealed cover directly to the court. The court directed that the special investigation team should only inform the court about the investigation. The investigation information should not be disclosed to anyone else. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader V. Muraleedharan earlier launched a scathing attack on the Kerala government, stating that the state administration was betraying the trust of devotees and demanding the immediate dismissal of the Devaswom Minister, along with the dissolution of the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB). (ANI) Following the violent clashes in Perambra, the police have registered a case against Vadakara MP and KPCC Working President Shafi Parambil and several others. The FIR names 692 individuals, including prominent Congress leaders such as Kozhikode DCC President Adv. K. Praveen Kumar, alleging that they attacked the police during the incident. A separate case has also been registered against LDF workers, listing 492 identified individuals, for unlawful assembly, blocking roads, and obstructing vehicular movement. MP Shafi Parambil, who sustained a fractured nose during the police action, underwent emergency surgery at a private hospital in Kozhikode. Details of the FIR surfaced soon after his treatment. Meanwhile, the Congress has announced statewide protests today against what it calls "police brutality" against a sitting MP. Kozhikode DCC President Adv. Praveen Kumar told ANI that the UDF will hold a mass protest meeting at 3 PM in Perambra, which will be inaugurated by AICC General Secretary and MP K.C. Venugopal. Tension flared in front of the Kozhikode Police Commissioner's office as UDF workers staged a protest against the police and the Pinarayi Vijayan government, following violent clashes between UDF and CPM workers at Perambra. Protests continued late into the night in several parts of the state. Police faced resistance while removing demonstrators, and tension prevailed as Congress activists blocked roads at multiple locations before eventually dispersing. Earlier, the Congress intensified its protests against the issue of alleged theft of Sabrimala Gold. Congress General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal said that Sabarimala is a "sacred" temple for the people of the country and stated that the alleged Sabarimala gold theft incident suggests that the government of Kerala and the Devaswom Board are attempting to suppress the matter. He demanded that a court-monitored Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) could expose the "real" miscreants involved in the incident. The Congress MP mentioned that the issue came to light following the intervention of the Kerala High Court. "Sabarimala is a sacred temple for everyone in India. The incident reported from Sabarimala is painful for all of us. It is a clear indication that the government of Kerala and the Devaswom Board are trying to hide the incident. Only after the intervention of the Kerala High Court was this issue brought to light. Only a CBI enquiry under the supervision of the court can reveal the real culprits," Venugopal told ANI. (ANI) Janata Dal (United) working president Sanjay Kumar Jha stated on Saturday that the NDA government will be formed under the leadership of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on November 14, following the declaration of the Bihar poll results. Bihar polls will take place on November 6 and November 11 and votes will be counted on November 14. "The people are with Nitish Kumar. On November 14, a government will be formed under the leadership of Nitish Kumar," Jha told reporters. Jha said earlier this week that the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) will contest the Bihar Assembly elections "unitedly". "The NDA will contest the election unitedly. The biggest issue in these elections is where Bihar will be in the next 25 years after the formation of the Government. When the era of liberalisation began in 1991, the IT industry and investment came to several states. Over the past 15 years, Bihar has experienced negative growth. When there should have been an IT setup here, 'Charwaha Vidyalaya' was being established instead. Instead of industries, the kidnapping industry was set up here," he said. "Then Nitish Kumar came to power here. In 20 years, Bihar entered a take-off stage. Roads, electricity, law and order, and women's empowerment - he has worked on all of these. Bihar is in fourth gear. We need to shift into fifth gear. The election will decide whether we have to enter fifth gear or back gear," the JD(U) leader added. Political parties are gearing up for assembly elections in Bihar. While Jan Suraaj has declared its first list of candidates, the ruling NDA and opposition Mahagathbandhan are holding hectic consultations on seat distribution. (ANI) Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Saturday attended the Girl Child Education Promotion Programme organised at Chief Sevak Sadan, located at the Chief Minister's Camp Office, on the occasion of International Girl Child Day. The event was organised by the Department of Women Empowerment and Child Development, during which 326 meritorious girls were awarded smartphones. The Chief Minister also felicitated the top three girl toppers of the High School and Intermediate examinations at the district level, along with block-level toppers. Extending his greetings on International Girl Child Day, the Chief Minister said that, this year too, daughters have demonstrated remarkable achievement in board examinations through their hard work, talent, and determination. He informed that 90% of students passed the High School examination, with girls achieving a success rate of over 93%. In the Intermediate examination, 83% of students passed, among whom the success rate for girls was over 86%. The Chief Minister stated that the progress of society is driven by the power of women. If the women of a state move forward, no force can stop that state's development. Educated daughters shape the future of the coming generations. Inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the state government has introduced several initiatives, such as 30% reservation for women in government jobs, the Mukhyamantri Nari Sashaktikaran Yojana, Mukhyamantri Mahalaxmi Yojana, Mukhyamantri Vatsalya Yojana, and Nanda Gaura Yojana. Through these schemes, daughters of the state are being selected for government services and becoming self-reliant through self-help groups, startups, and small industries. He further said that under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several historic steps have been taken in the direction of women's empowerment. Schemes like Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao, Sukanya Samriddhi Yojana, and Balika Samriddhi Yojana are ensuring the education, safety, and prosperity of girls. Through initiatives such as the Nari Shakti Vandan Adhiniyam, Ujjwala Yojana, and Lakhpati Didi Yojana, respect and recognition have been accorded to matri shakti (the power of motherhood). The Chief Minister added that schemes like the construction of women's hostels, the free bicycle scheme, and the Girl Child Education Promotion Programme are motivating girls in the state to pursue education. Many daughters in the state aspire to secure government jobs, and to fulfil their dreams, the strictest anti-cheating law in the country has been implemented. As a result, over the last four years, more than 25,000 youth have successfully secured government employment in the state. Women Empowerment and Child Development Minister Rekha Arya stated that, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the national level and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami at the state level, numerous efforts have been made towards women's empowerment. The Beti Bachao Beti Padhao campaign was launched to encourage the birth of daughters, promote their education, and advance women's empowerment--objectives on which rapid progress has been made. Following this campaign, there has also been an improvement in the gender ratio of daughters in the state. (ANI) CHONGQING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- As dusk settled over Songgai ancient town in southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, the scent of roasted rice cakes and steaming tofu pudding mingled with the lively hum of visitors wandering beneath rows of oil-paper umbrellas and glowing snack stalls. "Having explored the town by day, I returned to experience its nighttime charm. The lanterns and ancient architecture create an entirely different atmosphere after dark," said Zheng Guangxin, who hails from east China's Shandong Province. This shift toward nighttime leisure -- from bustling markets and cultural performances to late-night dining -- is becoming an increasingly popular way to spend holidays across China. The country recorded 888 million domestic tourist trips during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday, up 123 million from the seven-day National Day holiday in 2024, data from the Ministry of Culture and Tourism showed. According to the Ministry of Commerce's urban resident consumption habits survey, approximately 60 percent of domestic consumption occurs at night. Driven partly by the night economy, domestic tourism spending reached 809 billion yuan (about 113.8 billion U.S. dollars) during the holiday, up 108 billion yuan year on year. From central China's Fenghuang ancient town in Hunan Province, where visitors pose in traditional attire against glowing waterfront backdrops, to cliffside guesthouses in east China's Jiangxi Province, nightlife is redefining travel experiences. In Chongqing, the nightly closure of Qiansimen Bridge to vehicles transforms the structure into a vibrant pedestrian market. "We prepared for days and came early to secure a good spot," said a vendor surnamed Zheng, who sells popular snacks like pan-fried dumplings and triangular rice cakes. "Holiday business is always strong, and we often run out of ingredients." Technology has further enriched the experience. On Oct. 1, a drone light show featuring thousands of drones illuminated Chongqing's skyline with patriotic and cultural themes. Regular weekend and holiday performances have attracted over 4 million spectators since April, boosting restaurant occupancy near show venues and spurring a surge in online searches for "drone show dining." "Each performance brings new creativity," said Liu Shuangyu, head of the drone show's operations team. The convergence of culture, technology and commerce within the night economy also reflects China's broader economic resilience. Major commercial districts in cities like Beijing and Shanghai reported increases in foot traffic and revenue during the holiday period. "With fast-paced lives, people like us crave unique experiences during long holidays, especially these lively, well-lit nights," Zheng said. Reliance Power has informed stock exchanges that Ashok Kumar Pal, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer(CFO) of the Company, who was arrested by ED on the night of October 10 under PMLA, has demitted the office with immediate effect pending investigation. "We refer to our disclosure dated November 7, 2024 and November 14, 2024 whereby we have informed that the Company had lodged a criminal complaint in the matter of alleged fake endorsement of bank guarantee against EMD (issued by foreign bank), which was arranged by third party, with Economic Offence Wing of Delhi Police against the third party on October 16, 2024, basis on which First Information Report (FIR) has been registered on November 11, 2024," the filing said. It said the Company and its subsidiaries acted in a bonafide manner "and are a victim of fraud, forgery and cheating conspiracy". "In this matter, Ashok Kumar Pal, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer(CFO) of the Company has been arrested by ED in the night of October 10, 2025 under Section 19 of PMLA, 2002. He was produced before the Court today morning and ED has been granted two days' custody," the filing said. "Pending the ongoing matter and in order to assist the investigation, Ashok Kumar Pal has demitted the office of Executive Director and CFO with immediate effect," it added. Referring to media reports, the company clarified that Anil D Ambani is not on the Board of Reliance Power Limited for more than 3.5 years and is not concerned with this matter in any manner. The Company will take all appropriate steps in the matter, as legally advised, it said. A Special Judge on Friday granted two days' custody of Ashok Kumar Pal, , to the ED. He has been arrested in a case involving a fake bank guarantee. Pal is to be produced in the Patiala House Court on Monday. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Pradhan Mantri Dhan Dhanya Krishi Yojana (PM-DDKY) and Mission for Aatmanir bharta in Pulses: landmark initiatives aimed at promoting sustainable and inclusive growth in agriculture and allied sectors, in New Delhi on Saturday, according to an official statement from the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying. Addressing the event virtually, Union Minister for Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, Dairying, and Panchayati Raj, Rajiv Ranjan Singh alias Lalan Singh, stated that these initiatives, through convergence, innovation, and inclusive development, will transform the agrarian districts in the country. On this occasion, Prime Minister Narendra Modi also inaugurated 16 major projects worth Rs 947 crore and laid the foundation stone for one key project worth Rs 219 crore in the animal husbandry sector. He also laid the foundation stone for seven new projects worth Rs 572 crores and inaugurated nine projects worth Rs 121 crores for the fisheries sector. The Union Minister stated that the establishment of the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying in 2019 provided these sectors with dedicated policy support and accelerated their development. He emphasised these sectors now sustain over 10 crore livelihoods, with women forming more than 70 per cent of the dairy workforce, a true reflection of women's empowerment and rural prosperity in the country. Singh highlighted that through schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY) and the Fisheries Infrastructure Development Fund (FIDF), a significant boost has been given to the fisheries sector for the creation of modern infrastructure, such as fishing harbours, hatcheries, feed mills, and cold chains. He stated that today India is second in the world in terms of fish production and has witnessed a phenomenal increase of 104 per cent (96 lakh tonnes in 2013-14 to 195 lakh tonnes in 2024-25). He informed that 16 major fisheries projects (worth over Rs 693 crores) were inaugurated on this occasion, which will further boost productivity, exports, and employment in India. Speaking about the achievements of the dairy and animal husbandry sectors, the Union Minister stated that milk production has increased by 63 per cent (from 146 million tonnes in 2014-15 to 239 million tonnes in 2024-25) and India ranks first globally in terms of milk production. He added that the productivity of cattle and buffaloes has grown by over 25 per cent (the fastest rate in the world). In the area of livestock health, more than 125 crore vaccine doses have been administered under free nationwide vaccination drives against Foot-and-Mouth Disease, Brucellosis, PPR, etc, with nine states moving rapidly towards FMD-free status that will further boost India's milk exports. Singh said that the PM-DDKY reflects the Prime Minister's vision to enhance farmers' income, further strengthen India's rural economy and position the fisheries, animal husbandry, and dairy sectors as key pillars of Atmanirbhar Bharat. The Union Minister reiterated the commitment of "Rural Prosperity to National Prosperity," emphasising technology-led growth, improved livelihoods, and nutritional well-being for all. (ANI) The 71st convocation ceremony of Gujarat Vidyapith, founded by the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi, was held at the Vidyapith campus under the chairmanship of President Droupadi Murmu. The Chancellor of the university and Governor of Gujarat and Maharashtra, Acharya Devvrat, announced the conferment of degrees. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel also graced the occasion and encouraged the students. Degrees were awarded to 713 students from 18 departments across seven faculties by the President, according to the official release. For the first time, Gujarat Vidyapith honoured students with gold medals based on their academic achievements as well as their participation in social activities, according to the release. Addressing the students of Gujarat Vidyapith, President Droupadi Murmu said that she felt immense joy coming to this sacred land, which was the principal workplace of the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. From this land of the ideals of the freedom struggle, she respectfully bowed to the pure memory of Mahatma Gandhi. Recalling the glorious history of the Vidyapith, the President said that Gujarat Vidyapith was established in 1920 during the Non-Cooperation Movement against the British Government. At that time, citizens were called upon to boycott British-run schools and colleges and establish national educational institutions. Built with the resources of the people, this institution stands as a 105-year-old historic symbol of nation-building and self-reliance. She added that from its establishment in October 1920 until January 1948, Mahatma Gandhi himself served as the Chancellor of this institution. After him, great personalities like Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, and Morarji Desai guided the Vidyapith as Chancellors. The President emphasised that there would hardly be any institution in the country that has received the guidance of such great personalities for 75 years, and for this reason, it is natural for the countrymen to have special expectations from the Vidyapith. Recalling one of the convocation ceremonies held before the historic Dandi March, the President said that Gandhiji had then urged students to take a leading role in the freedom movement. This demonstrates that Bapu saw Vidyapith's students as pioneers in national causes. She appreciated the students' efforts in conducting social service through visits to 50,000 villages. Speaking about Gujarat's culture of entrepreneurship and self-employment, the President remarked that Gujaratis have made their mark both in India and abroad. She urged the students to become torchbearers of this culture of self-reliance and promote it nationwide. She said, "You must play an active role in the nationwide Swadeshi movement. With the spirit of 'Nation First,' promote locally made products." Quoting the thoughts of Mahatma Gandhi, the President said that the ray of hope is not to be sought outside but within our own hearts. Explaining the Vidyapith's motto "saa vidyaa yaa vimuktye" (That is true knowledge which liberates), she said that the education which leads to liberation is the real education. It is not appropriate to pursue education merely for livelihood, as learning is a lifelong process. She inspired the students to live their lives with a focus on the progress of society and the nation and to repay their debt to the country through social service. She urged them to work for the upliftment of the underprivileged sections of society, following the principle of Sarvodaya, and to strive for environmentally sustainable development. The President expressed happiness that the number of graduating female students exceeded that of male students. She emphasised that girls should have equal opportunities in education and, where necessary, receive special support. Praising the National Education Policy, she said it has integrated local languages, Indian knowledge systems, character formation, and moral values at the core of the education system. In conclusion, she extended her best wishes to all the students for a bright future. Students Should Continue to Study Constantly, Only That Enriches Knowledge: Governor Shri Acharya Devvratji On this occasion, Governor Acharya Devvratji stated that the revered Mahatma Gandhi did not establish Gujarat Vidyapith solely for education, but his objective was to liberate the nation from the mentality of slavery. He showed the path to independence based on truth, non-violence, and Indian values. The Governor further stated that the convocation ceremony is an extremely important occasion for every institution. The degree you have received today is not just for you, but it is also the beginning of a responsibility towards society and the nation. Referring to the final instruction given by the Guru to the disciple in the Indian tradition, he stated that students' primary goal should be to practice truth, follow Dharma (duty), and continually study. Only through continuous study is knowledge enriched. The Governor urged students to use their knowledge for the nation's service, comparing it to clouds that draw pure water from the sea and shower it for the benefit of others. Referring to Gandhiji's vision of a self-reliant and Swadeshi-based nation, the Governor said that under Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi's leadership, India is moving towards becoming an Atmanirbhar and Viksit Bharat. By embracing Swadeshi and working with dedication, we can fulfil Bapu's dream of an ideal India. The Governor congratulated the graduating students and wished them success in every aspect of life, urging them to act responsibly towards their families, society, and the nation. Addressing the graduating students, Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said that as India, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, moves toward the centenary of independence during the Amrit Kaal, it is a moment of pride to graduate from the institution established by the Father of the Nation, Mahatma Gandhi. He added that receiving degrees from the hands of President Droupadi Murmu is a historic moment for the students. Recalling the legacy of Gujarat Vidyapith, the Chief Minister stated that Mahatma Gandhi founded the institution in 1920 to inspire the youth in nation-building, based on the eternal values of truth, non-violence, and self-reliance. Established as part of the Non-Cooperation Movement against British rule, today's convocation marks the entry of youth dedicated to building Viksit Bharat and a self-reliant India. Referring to India's ancient convocation traditions, the Chief Minister stated that in earlier times, students were advised to utilise their knowledge for the benefit of society and the nation after completing their education in Gurukuls. Even Lord Rama, Lord Krishna, and the Pandavas received education and initiation in Gurukuls. He stated that today, modern universities have replaced those Gurukuls, and Gujarat Vidyapith has emerged as a unique institution providing value-based and time-relevant education. Highlighting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision of a Viksit Bharat, the Chief Minister said that Modi has given the mantra of governance. By taking up the broom himself, he turned cleanliness into a people's movement. Through the call of "Khadi for Nation, Khadi for Fashion," he revived Swadeshi, resulting in a phenomenal 447% increase in Khadi sales over the past 11 years. He added that for over a century, the Vidyapith has upheld Mahatma Gandhi's values of truth, non-violence, and the dignity of labour. Continuing this legacy, the Prime Minister is nurturing the spirit of 'Nation First' among the youth. Narendra Modi has identified the four pillars of Viksit Bharat as Garib (the Poor), Yuva (the Youth), Annadata (Farmers), and Nari Shakti (Women) -- GYAN -- giving special importance to the youth. Through initiatives in skill development, education, and startups, young people have been empowered, while the New Education Policy promotes innovation and global competitiveness among them. Inspiring the graduates, the Chief Minister said, "Students of this Vidyapith are special because, along with education, you have imbibed values such as self-discipline, dignity of labour, and Swadeshi." He emphasised the growing importance of self-reliance and Swadeshi in the changing global landscape. He urged students to become ambassadors of the 'Har Ghar Swadeshi, Ghar Ghar Swadeshi' campaign initiated by the Prime Minister. Finally, he extended his best wishes to all graduates for a bright and prosperous future. On this occasion, graduating students took the convocation pledge. Vice-Chancellor Harshad Patel delivered the welcome address, stating that Gujarat Vidyapith has effectively implemented the New Education Policy both academically and practically. He spoke about various initiatives undertaken by the Vidyapith to strengthen the spirit of Swadeshi and self-reliance in society. He expressed confidence that the graduates will uphold the ideals of goodwill, service, and self-reliance in their lives. During her visit to Gujarat, President of India Droupadi Murmu participated in the 71st Convocation Ceremony of Gujarat Vidyapith and then departed for New Delhi. On this occasion, Governor Acharya Devvrat and Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel gave her a heartfelt farewell at Ahmedabad Airport. On this occasion, Minister of Protocol Jagdish Vishwakarma, Mayor of Ahmedabad City Pratibhaben Jain, State Chief Secretary Pankaj Joshi, Director General of Police Vikas Sahay, Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari, Major General Gaurav Bagga, Ahmedabad City Police Commissioner G.S. Malik, Ahmedabad Collector Sujeet Kumar, along with senior officials and officers, also gave a heartfelt farewell to the President. (ANI) Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader V Muraleedharan on Saturday slammed the Communist Party of India (Marxist)-led government in Kerala for attempting to suppress public protests over the alleged theft of gold from the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple. Speaking to reporters, Muraleedharan said, "The protests over the Sabarimala robbery are being suppressed by the government... The march to the office of the Devaswom Minister today in Kottayam was met by the CPI(M) by resorting to strong-arm tactics and unleashing an attack on the participants of that agitation." He further alleged that the state government was evading questions raised by devotees and instead using force to silence dissent. "This approach of the government shows that they have no answer to the questions being raised by the devotees... Instead of replying, they are trying to silence and attack those who have resorted to protest," he said. Muraleedharan asserted that the BJP would continue to raise the issue before the people. "I would like to bring to their attention that you cannot suppress these agitations of the devotees by resorting to such tactics of unleashing hooliganism on the protesters... The BJP will raise these before the people. The government will have to reply to these issues, bring those people who are involved before the law and also ensure that every single gram of gold that has been stolen from Sabrimala is returned," he added. Earlier in the day, BJP leader Tarun Chugh launched a scathing attack on the Kerala government over the ongoing Sabarimala temple gold plating controversy, alleging large-scale corruption and misuse of temple resources, and stated that the Devaswom Board and the ministers involved in the alleged irregularities must be exposed. Speaking to ANI, Chugh claimed that the Left-led Kerala government had turned Hindu temples into "a hub of corruption" and demanded a thorough and impartial investigation into the matter."...Kerala's leftist government has turned Hindu temples into a hub of corruption...The state government has influence on SIT investigations...Accountability and a thorough investigation are needed...Devaswom board and ministers involved in this corruption must be exposed....Kerala's left government has been looting temple gold for many years now..." Chugh told ANI. The BJP leader accused the state government of systematically mismanaging religious institutions under its control and called for transparency in the functioning of temple boards. Meanwhile, Kerala BJP leader Anoop Antony Joseph claimed that both the CPM and Congress are plotting a conspiracy to destroy the Sabarimala temple. Speaking on the Sabarimala gold theft issue, Anoop Antony Joseph stated that it had been carried out with the knowledge of the Devaswom Board."The CPM and the Congress have been plotting a conspiracy to destroy the temple. It was done with the knowledge of the Devaswom minister and the Devaswom board. Everything is linked to CM Pinarayi Vijayan directly," Joseph told ANI. He further demanded a comprehensive investigation with active participation of the Central agencies, and also demanded the resignation of VN Vasavan, Devaswom board minister."The BJP demands that first, the investigation should be comprehensive. The Central agency has to come in on that kind of investigation. Devaswom board minister, VN Vasavan, should resign immediately," he said. (ANI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi has shared an article written by Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia that underscores the transformation and growing importance of Arunachal Pradesh in the nation's development journey. The Prime Minister said that for the first time, the Northeast is not the periphery but the pulsating heart of India's growth story. He noted that from new airports to empowered self-help groups, and from connectivity to creativity, Arunachal Pradesh mirrors the spirit of Viksit Bharat. Responding to the article written by the Union Minister, Prime Minister Modi said, "For the first time, the Northeast is not the periphery, it is the pulsating heart of India's growth story. From new airports to empowered SHGs, from connectivity to creativity, Arunachal Pradesh mirrors the spirit of Viksit Bharat. A must-read piece by Union Minister Shri @JM_Scindia." https://x.com/PMOIndia/status/1976919206789615941 Earlier, Prime Minister Modi unveiled a series of transformative initiatives for India's agriculture and allied sectors at an event held at Pusa, Delhi, on Saturday, a statement from the Ministry of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare said. He interacted directly with groups of farmers engaged in pulse cultivation, the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), animal husbandry, and fisheries, discussing their challenges and innovations. The occasion also marked tributes to eminent social reformers such as Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan and Nanaji Deshmukh on their birth anniversaries. Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers' Welfare, and Rural Development, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Minister of State Shri Bhagirath Choudhary were also present on the occasion with the Prime Minister. The launch of the 'Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' and the 'Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission' marks a major milestone in India's agricultural journey. The 'PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' is a coordinated initiative involving 36 sub-schemes across 11 ministries, designed to accelerate agricultural progress in aspirational districts. The 'Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission' aims to make India self-sufficient in pulses production, reducing dependence on imports in light of rising domestic demand. The Prime Minister also inaugurated and laid the foundation for 1,100 projects under the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF) in the animal husbandry, fisheries, and food processing sectors. Together, these initiatives represent a historic investment exceeding Rs 42,000 crore, paving the way for the creation of modern cold storage facilities, processing units, and warehouses across rural India. (ANI) Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan stated on Saturday that, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the government ensured that the surge in global fertiliser prices did not impact Indian farmers. "A bag of urea continues to be available at just Rs 266, and DAP (Di-Ammonium Phosphate) at Rs 1,350, due to massive government subsidies," he said at an event held at Pusa, Delhi, where PM Modi unveiled a series of transformative initiatives for India's agriculture and allied sectors. The Union Minister also noted that the reduction in GST on agricultural machinery has made modern equipment more affordable for farmers across the nation. Chouhan highlighted that the Central government has significantly increased the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for major crops: by Rs 160 per quintal for wheat, Rs 200 or more for gram, Rs 300 for lentil, Rs 250 for mustard, and Rs 600 for sunflower. The Union Agriculture Minister also stated that under the 'PM-Kisan Samman Nidhi', Rs 3.90 lakh crore have been directly transferred into farmers' bank accounts. Through the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme, loans worth over Rs 10 lakh crore were disbursed in FY 2024-25, alongside interest subsidies of Rs 1.62 lakh crore. The 'Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana' provided compensation exceeding Rs 1.83 lakh crore to insured farmers. Highlighting the success of Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), Shri Chouhan said that over 52 lakh farmers are now shareholders in FPOs, with 1,100 FPOs achieving 'crorepati' status and collectively recording a turnover exceeding Rs 15,000 crore. The Agriculture Ministry continues to extend innovation, branding, and market linkage support to these organisations. The Union Minister reiterated that the government is working to position Indian agriculture on global standards while driving the nation towards 'Atmanirbharta' (self-reliance) and 'Viksit Bharat' (Developed India). He appealed to citizens to embrace Swadeshi and contribute to the nation's growth. Praising the Prime Minister's visionary leadership, Chouhan said, "Under Prime Minister Modi's guidance, we are committed to fulfilling the dream of a developed, self-reliant India, built on the foundation of farmers' prosperity, indigenous enterprise, and innovation." Prime Minister Modi interacted directly with groups of farmers engaged in pulses cultivation, the Agriculture Infrastructure Fund (AIF), animal husbandry, and fisheries, discussing their challenges and innovations. The occasion also marked tributes to eminent social reformers, such as Lok Nayak Jayaprakash Narayan and Nanaji Deshmukh, on their respective birth anniversaries. The launch of the 'Pradhan Mantri Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' and the 'Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission' marks a major milestone in India's agricultural journey. The 'PM Dhan-Dhaanya Krishi Yojana' is a coordinated initiative involving 36 sub-schemes across 11 ministries, designed to accelerate agricultural progress in aspirational districts. The 'Self-Reliance in Pulses Mission' aims to make India self-sufficient in pulses production, reducing dependence on imports in light of rising domestic demand. (ANI) Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani on Saturday said that what is happening with women in Afghanistan is "wrong" and added that wherever there is a madrassa in the world, the same religious teachings are imparted. Responding to reports of women journalists being excluded from a press conference addressed by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi on Friday, Madani said it was "just a coincidence" and that women were not specifically asked not to attend. His remarks came after a meeting with the visiting Afghan Foreign Minister. "We did not talk about that (ban on education for women in Afghanistan)... There is no difference in our religious teachings anywhere in the world, and we all preach the same things... Wherever there is a madrassa in the world, the same things are taught... What is happening with women in Afghanistan is wrong. In the press conference yesterday, it was just a coincidence that there were no women present. They did not ask women not to come. This is propaganda," Madani told reporters. Earlier in the day, Muttaqi visited Darul Uloom Deoband and met Maulana Arshad Madani. The Afghan minister thanked the seminary and residents for their warm welcome and expressed hope that relations between India and Afghanistan would continue to strengthen. "I am thankful to all of you for the warm welcome given to me by everyone in Deoband and the love showered upon me. I will pray to god that India-Afghanistan relations improve further. After the meeting I had in Delhi, I can say that our future is bright. I hope that our visits between Delhi and Kabul increase," Muttaqi said. Madani said that the meeting was not political, but that the two spoke about Afghanistan's historical links with India's independence movement. "I told him that our ties with you are not just academic. You contributed to the independence of India. Our forefathers chose the land for Afghanistan to fight for India's independence. For your independence, you defeated powers like America and Russia. You learnt from us how to do that when we defeated Britain. I told him (Afghan FM Amir Khan Muttaqi) that this meeting shows how the Muslims of India and the Darul Uloom Deoband have deep ties with you. There should be harmony within the nations of the world, irrespective of their religion... We had no political discussion... The relations between the two nations will improve. India has had complaints that Afghanistan sent terrorists to India. Now, after this meeting, it is confirmed that no terrorists will come to India from Afghanistan," Madani said. Since taking control of Afghanistan in August 2021, the Taliban has banned women and girls from secondary and higher education. A controversy erupted in New Delhi after Indian women journalists were reportedly barred from attending Muttaqi's press conference at the Afghanistan Embassy on Friday. Muttaqi is on a week-long visit to India, from October 9 to 16. This is the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August 2021. Earlier on Saturday, the Afghan minister said the "future of India-Afghanistan relations seems very bright," and thanked the Ulema and people of Deoband for their reception. "The journey has been very good so far. Not just the people of Darul Uloom, but all the people of the area have come here. I am grateful to them for the warm welcome they extended to me... I am thankful to the Ulema of Deoband and the people of the area for this warm welcome... The future of India-Afghanistan relations seems very bright," Muttaqi told ANI. (ANI) Uttar Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya, in the early hours of Saturday, is leading a high-level delegation of 11 senior Indian monks transporting sacred Relics of Gautam Buddha to Russia's Kalmykia Republic for an exposition. The exposition will be held in the capital city of Elista, the capital city of Kalmykia, from October 11 to 18. Before their departure, Dy CM Maurya offered prayers to the relics at Palam Airport. "This is a very fortunate moment in my life... I thank PM Modi from the bottom of my heart for this... These remains have a very long history... It is a very big day," he said. National Museum Director General Gurmeet Singh Chawla and the delegation of 11 senior Indian monks also offered prayers before departing for Kalmykia for an exposition. International Buddhist Confederation Director General Abhijit Halder said, "... It is certainly going to strengthen the relationship between the two countries because Buddhism has been popular in Russia... Keshav Prasad Maurya is leading the delegation, and upon their return, Manoj Sinha will escort the delegation back. We have 11 monks from the Theravada and Mahayana traditions... We have the good honour that the 43rd Sakya Trizin Rinpoche is accompanying us." On leading the delegation, 43rd Sakya Trizin, Gyana Vajra Rinpoche said, "I feel honoured. This is a great initiative taken by the government. It will help our Russian brothers and sisters... I hope the Indian government will take the relics to all parts of the World..." The Ministry of Culture is organising the exposition with the International Buddhist Confederation, the National Museum, and the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. The Sacred Relics will be enshrined in the main Buddhist monastery in Elista, known as the Geden Sheddup Choikorling Monastery, also called the 'Golden Abode of Shakyamuni Buddha.' The Holy Relics exposition, a first in the Russian Republic, is organised by the Union Ministry of Culture in collaboration with the International Buddhist Confederation (IBC), the National Museum, and the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA). The Holy Relics will be received by the Head of the Buddhists of Kalmykia, Shajin Lama of Kalmykia, Geshe Tenzin Choidak, Batu Sergeyevich Khasikov, Head of the Republic of Kalmykia and other eminent Buddhist Sangha members, a release said. It may be recalled that it was the 19th Kushok Bakula Rinpoche, the revered Buddhist monk and diplomat from Ladakh, who played a pivotal role in reviving Buddhism in Mongolia and, subsequently, was also instrumental in reintroducing interest in Buddha dharma in the three regions of Russia, namely Buryatia, Kalmykia, and Tuva. The UP Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya-led delegation will host additional activities during the week. These include teachings and discourses by His Holiness the 43rd Sakya Trizin Rinpoche, Head of the Sakya Order; the presentation of the Holy 'Kanjur', a Set of 108 Mongolian religious texts originally translated from the Tibetan language. IBC will present the Kanjur to nine Buddhist Institutes and a University. These are from the Manuscripts division of the Ministry of Culture. IBC will present the Kanjur to nine Buddhist Institutes and a University. These are from the Manuscripts division of the Ministry of Culture. A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) is likely to be signed between the Central Spiritual Administration of Buddhism and the International Buddhist Confederation. A unique exhibition of Buddhist stamps, curated by Vinod Kumar of Dharwad, Karnataka--featuring around 90 countries will also be displayed. Another exhibition by IBC titled the "Sacred Legacy of the Shakyas: Excavation and Exposition of Buddha's Relics" will be presented through panel displays. It traces the remarkable journey of the Buddha's relics from their ancient enshrinement to their rediscovery. It opens with a map locating Piprahwa, identified with the ancient city of Kapilavastu, the capital of the Shakya clan. The panels guide visitors through the sacred geography in India of the Buddha's final days and the regions that hold the legacy of his timeless teachings. An exhibition on 'Bodhicitta'- Treasures of Buddhist Art from the National Museum of India and the National Mission for Manuscripts in India will also be displayed at the venue. It offers a unique opportunity for visitors to engage deeply with India's rich Buddhist cultural heritage, spanning over two millennia. Accompanying the Sacred Relics are other officials and Buddhist academicians. The Holy Relic will be transported from the National Museum with great reverence, escorted by senior monks with full religious sanctity and protocol, to Kalmykia by a special Indian Air Force aircraft, the release said. Kalmykia is a region characterised by vast grasslands. However, it also encompasses desert areas, and it is situated in the southwestern part of Russia's European territory, bordering the Caspian Sea. The Kalmyks are descendants of the Oirat Mongols who migrated from Western Mongolia in the early 17th century. Their history is deeply tied to nomadic lifestyles, which influences their culture. They are the only ethnic group in Europe that practices Mahayana Buddhism. Kalmykia hosted the 3rd International Buddhist Forum from September 24 to 28, 2025, in its capital, Elista. The holy relics of the Buddha have been taken to Mongolia, Thailand, and Vietnam in recent times. The Piprahwa relics at the National Museum were transported to Mongolia in 2022, whereas the holy relics of the Buddha and his two disciples, enshrined at Sanchi, were taken for exposition to Thailand in 2024. In early 2025, the holy relics of the Buddha from Sarnath were transported to Vietnam. The relics for Russia are enshrined in the 'Buddhist Gallery' of the National Museum in New Delhi for veneration. The holy relics being taken to Kalmykia belong to the same family of relics based in the National Museum. (ANI) US President Donald Trump on Friday (local time) outlined his upcoming visits to Israel and Egypt, following a landmark deal on Gaza, while describing it as a "great deal" for the world. He said that the deal will secure the release of hostages and the return of approximately 28 bodies. "It is a great deal for Israel, but it's a great deal for everybody, for Arabs, for Muslims, everybody, for the world. On Monday, the hostages come back. They're in some pretty rough places under Earth. Only a few people know where they are... They're also getting approximately 28 bodies. Some of those bodies are being unearthed right now as we speak. It's a tragedy. I'll be going to Israel. I'll be speaking at the Knesset. Then I'm also going to Egypt. Everybody wants this deal to happen," Trump told reporters at the White House. Trump added that the agreement represents a broader step towards peace in the Middle East. "I think Gaza is going to be rebuilt. There are some very wealthy countries there. It would take a small fraction of their wealth to do that. Gaza is very important, but this is beyond Gaza. This is peace in the Middle East. It is a beautiful thing," the US President said while noting that he will address the Knesset during his visit. Earlier, the Israeli government voted in favour of a ceasefire and hostage release agreement under US President Donald Trump's 20-point Gaza Peace Plan, CNN reported. This came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu initially convened Israel's security cabinet to discuss the decision, and subsequently, held a meeting with ministers. "The government has now approved the outline for the release of all the hostages - the living and the dead," the Israeli Prime Minister's office announced early on Friday morning, The Jerusalem Post reported. Officials have stated that the ceasefire will take effect immediately, according to CNN. Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, were also present in the Israeli government's meeting in Jerusalem, where the government voted on the US-brokered ceasefire deal. With this, the Israeli government approved "phase one" of a ceasefire agreement, where the exchange of hostages and Israel's withdrawal from parts of Gaza is expected, Al Jazeera reported. Hamas chief negotiator Khalil al-Hayya spoke about the guarantees received from the US that the ceasefire agreement's first phase means that the war in Gaza "has ended completely". Earlier, US President Trump on Wednesday announced that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a peace plan, which would end the war in Gaza with a ceasefire deal. In this, he said that the hostages will be released. Later, the US President held a cabinet meeting at the White House on Thursday morning following the announcement that the "first phase" of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas would commence soon. At the meeting, Trump said, "Last night, we reached a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East, something that people said was never going to be done. We ended the war in Gaza, and I think it's going to be a lasting peace, hopefully, an everlasting peace." Meanwhile, Israeli parliament's (Knesset) speaker Amir Ohana invited Trump to deliver an address before the Knesset and called him the "greatest friend and ally of the Jewish people in modern history". In the letter shared on Thursday, Ohana hailed Trump's leadership and vision in "not only to a deal securing the release of all Israeli hostages abducted by Hamas on October 7, but also to an unprecedented regional agreement accepted by nearly every nation in the Middle East." Later, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel is "about to achieve the central aim" of the war in Gaza, after US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas after two years of conflict. Netanyahu said the breakthrough came after both sides agreed to release hostages and prisoners under the first phase of the Gaza peace plan. In a short address on Thursday, Netanyahu said, "We are at a momentous development. In the last two years, we've fought to achieve our war aims. And a central one of these war aims is to return the hostages, all of the hostages, the living and the dead. And we're about to achieve that." Netanyahu thanked Trump for mediating the peace process, which ended a war that killed thousands on both sides. (ANI) Defence Minister Rajnath Singh offered prayers at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in Sydney, where he said that Dharma (religion) ensures protection to the "animate or inanimate of this universe." He stated that Dharma ensures the protection of the universe's rules, regulations, and laws. "What is Dharma? If we were to define Dharma, I could do so in very simple terms. (It is) That which guarantees the protection of the animate or inanimate of this entire universe is called Dharma. That which guarantees the protection of the sanctity of its rules, regulations, and laws is called Dharma. That which guarantees the development and support of both of these is called Dharma," Singh said while addressing a gathering. Singh visited the BAPS Swaminarayan Mandir in Sydney on Friday, where he was warmly welcomed by children singing devotional hymns and chants. Singh also performed aarti at the temple. Later, addressing the Indian diaspora in Sydney, Rajnath Singh said, "I arrived here the day before yesterday, and yesterday I had fruitful meetings with the Prime Minister, Deputy Prime Minister, and the Minister for Foreign Affairs of Australia. The discussions were very productive and meaningful." He said he was deeply touched by the community's respect for both India and Australia, noting the children's performance of the national anthems of both countries."I was deeply moved to see the people gathered here showing respect for both the Indian and Australian national anthems, which were beautifully sung by children. This gesture reflects your large-heartedness and the spirit of mutual respect between our two nations," he said. Highlighting India's growing global stature, the Defence Minister said that during his meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, the Australian leader praised India's rapid pace of development. "Yesterday, during my meeting with the Australian Prime Minister, he praised India's rapid pace of development and progress. Today, India holds a special place at international forums; our views are being heard and respected across the world. We have earned this recognition through our consistent growth and achievements," Singh added. Reflecting on India's transformation, Singh added that the nation has overcome past challenges and is now moving forward with confidence. "There was a time when India was considered a poor nation struggling with unemployment. But now, the country is progressing rapidly and moving forward with confidence and positivity," he said. Earlier in the day, Singh also co-chaired the India-Australia Defence Industry Round Table in Sydney with Australia's Assistant Minister for Defence, Peter Khalil. Both sides discussed strengthening cooperation in the defence sector and emphasised expanding collaboration between their industries and armed forces. Singh is on an official two-day visit to Sydney. He arrived in the city on Wednesday and held a series of meetings with senior Australian officials and delegations to advance bilateral cooperation. (ANI) A tofu-making craft that once traveled from the Chinese mainland to Taiwan has now made its way back home, as Yao Fengyan, a native of Minqing County in China's Fujian Province, started her own tofu business here. US foreign policy analyst Scott Horton said the recently signed Saudi Arabia and Pakistan's Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement does not mark any major shift, noting that both countries have long shared a "de facto" alliance. In an interview with ANI, Horton noted that speculation over Pakistan possibly providing a nuclear weapon to Saudi Arabia has existed for years, given that Pakistan is a nuclear-armed state "outside of the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT)." "As far as Pakistan and Saudi Arabia announcing their deal, I think my understanding always was that they had a de facto alliance, if not an official one. There had always been a question of whether Pakistan would even furnish a nuclear weapon to Saudi Arabia. They are, after all, a nuclear-weapon state outside of the Non-Proliferation Treaty," Horton said. He further observed that Saudi Arabia might consider acquiring nuclear weapons due to ongoing regional tensions, particularly the "Sunni-Shia civil war" dynamic that he said was set in motion by former US President George W Bush's 2003 invasion of Iraq. "There was a question of whether the civil war, the Sunni-Shia civil war that W Bush touched off in 2003, which was really another way to say it, was the Riyadh-Tehran civil war, dominance in the region that was touched off by the invasion of Iraq whether that would get bad enough that Saudi might feel like they needed a nuke and then the question was whether they would just go to Pakistan and ask for one and whether the Pakistanis would give them one and that has been floated as an option for Saudi Arabia for many years now. I think that this probably doesn't signify too much of a change," Horton explained. Discussing the broader regional context, Horton pointed to the US's strong military presence in the Gulf, noting that "America's largest military base in the Middle East is in Qatar, -- the Al-Udeid Air Base -- which is also the headquarters of the Central Command." "It's a bigger base than even our Army bases in Kuwait or Navy base in Bahrain, and all the various Army and Air Force bases in Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Morocco," he said. "Qatar is one of the Gulf states, specifically the Sunni Gulf Arab states, that have the closest ties to Iran, as they share a gas field beneath the Persian Gulf. They share a vast economic interest, one that has been in place for many decades. And so sometimes they're even like the back channel to talk to Iran because they're closer to Iran than, say, the government in Bahrain or Saudi Arabia," he added. In September, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan signed a "Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement", pledging that any aggression against either nation would be treated as an attack on both. The agreement was signed during a state visit by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on September 17 to Riyadh, at the invitation of Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud. According to a joint statement issued following the visit, "building on the historic partnership extending for nearly eight decades between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, and based on the bonds of brotherhood and Islamic solidarity, as well as shared strategic interests and close defence cooperation between the two countries, HRH the Crown Prince and the Pakistani prime minister signed a Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement." "This agreement, which reflects the shared commitment of both nations to enhance their security and to achieve security and peace in the region and the world, aims to develop aspects of defence cooperation between the two countries and strengthen joint deterrence against any aggression. The agreement states that any aggression against either country shall be considered an aggression against both," the joint statement further read. (ANI) China has criticised Washington's proposal to bar its airlines from flying through Russian airspace on routes to and from the United States, stating that such actions would harm "international travel and people-to-people exchanges." Responding to the US move, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said, "Barring Chinese airlines from flying over Russia on flights to and from the US would hinder travel and people-to-people exchanges." The Ministry advised the Trump administration to "take a hard look at its own policy and its impact on American businesses", hinting towards the US's unprecedented tariffs on other countries. "Rather than punishing other countries and passengers around the world, perhaps it's time the US took a hard look at its own policy and the impact on American businesses, " the ministry added. According to Fox News Business, citing Reuters, the Trump administration on Thursday proposed restricting Chinese airlines from using Russian airspace, arguing that access to shorter routes gives them an "unfair" advantage over American carriers. The US Transportation Department suggested this after many American airlines raised the issue, as US airlines have been forced to take longer and more costly routes around Russia, while Chinese carriers continue to use the shorter routes, enabling them to offer faster and cheaper flights on major routes. As per Fox News Business, the US administration has given China two days to respond and indicated that a final order could take effect as early as November. Russia, in response to Western sanctions following its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, has banned US and several European carriers from its airspace. Russian skies remain the shortest route between Asia, Europe, and North America, offering lower fuel consumption and operating costs. The move comes amid rising tensions between Washington and Beijing on several economic fronts. Earlier on Thursday, Beijing announced tighter export controls on rare earth materials, which are essential to US industries, a step seen as a countermeasure to Washington's trade restrictions. Escalating the standoff further, US President Donald Trump on Friday announced a 100 per cent tariff on Chinese goods, effective November 1, 2025, in addition to existing duties. He also said export controls on all critical software would be implemented the same day. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said, "Based on the fact that China has taken this unprecedented position... the United States of America will impose a Tariff of 100% on China, over and above any Tariff that they are currently paying. Also on November 1, we will impose Export Controls on any and all critical software." Trump claimed the decision followed what he described as an "extremely hostile letter" from Beijing announcing plans to impose large-scale export controls on nearly all products, calling it "a moral disgrace in dealing with other nations." (ANI) Large-scale protests erupted in Pakistan on Friday after members of the far-right Tehreek-i-Labbaik Pakistan (TLP) began marching towards Islamabad, leading to violent clashes with police in Lahore and prompting authorities to block roads and suspend internet services in the capital, Dawn reported. According to Dawn, the march dubbed the "Gaza March" by the group was launched after Friday prayers from the party's headquarters on Multan Road in Lahore. The procession, led by TLP chief Saad Rizvi, drew thousands of supporters, many chanting religious slogans and carrying sticks, rods, and bricks. Police tried to block the rally by setting up barricades and using tear gas near key intersections, including Yateem Khana Chowk, Chauburji, Azadi Chowk, and Shahdara. However, the protesters broke through the barriers and continued advancing towards Islamabad. Eyewitnesses said some TLP supporters occupied parts of the Orange Line Metro track and threw stones at security forces, injuring several police officers. According to Dawn, footage circulating on social media appeared to show protesters commandeering government vehicles, including cranes belonging to the Lahore Waste Management Company and the Punjab Police, to use in the procession. Clashes turned intense near Lahore's Azadi Chowk, where several police vehicles were damaged and multiple officers were injured. Videos on social media showed law enforcement personnel firing tear gas and warning shots to disperse the crowds, while some officers were seen retreating to safety. Further, Lahore police reported that dozens of officers sustained injuries, while the TLP claimed that many of its workers were also hurt and alleged that some had been killed in police firing, claims that could not be independently verified. Amid the unrest, an anti-terrorism court in Lahore remanded 110 TLP activists to police custody for 12 days for allegedly attacking officers and damaging public property during the protest. The FIR filed by Nawankot Police accuses the group of opening fire and resorting to violence against law enforcement personnel. Pakistan's Minister of State for Interior, Talal Chaudhry, accused the TLP of exploiting the issue of corruption for political purposes, warning that the government would not tolerate violence or blackmail by any group. Speaking to the media in Islamabad, Chaudhry said, "Peaceful protest within the democratic and constitutional framework is a constitutional right. But there is no space for groups to blackmail others, use mobs, or resort to violence to achieve their demands." The TLP, a hardline Islamist party, has frequently clashed with authorities in recent years over religious and political issues. Founded in 2015, it is known for mobilising large-scale street protests that often paralyse major Pakistani cities, as per Dawn. By late Friday night, tensions remained high across Punjab province, with authorities maintaining heavy security along the main routes to Islamabad to prevent further escalation. (ANI) The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Saturday clarified that it had no involvement in the press interaction held by Afghanistan's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in New Delhi on Friday, which later sparked controversy after reports emerged that women journalists were allegedly barred from attending. "MEA had no involvement in the press interaction held yesterday by the Afghan FM in Delhi," the ministry said in a statement. The press conference, organised at the Afghanistan Embassy in New Delhi following bilateral talks between External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Muttaqi, drew widespread criticism after women journalists claimed they were denied entry. No joint press briefing was held after the official meeting between the two ministers and the Afghan side alone conducted a separate media interaction at its embassy premises. During the press conference, Muttaqi addressed regional issues, including India-Afghanistan relations, humanitarian assistance, trade routes, and security cooperation. Only selected male journalists and officials of Afghan embassy attended the presser. Under the "Taliban 2.0" regime that took power in August 2021, Afghan women and girls face what the UN calls the most severe women's rights crisis in the world. Rather than a more moderate approach, the Taliban have systematically expanded and intensified their restrictions on women's lives, effectively erasing them from public existence. The exclusion of women journalists sparked political outrage nationwide. Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Saturday demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi clarify his position on the incident, calling it "an insult to India's women journalists." In a post on X, she said, "Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of women's rights isn't just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of India's most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride." Former Union Home Minister and senior Congress leader P Chidambaram also expressed shock and disappointment, saying male journalists should have walked out in solidarity with their female colleagues. "I am shocked that women journalists were excluded from the press conference addressed by Mr Amir Khan Muttaqi of Afghanistan. In my personal view, the men journalists should have walked out when they found that their women colleagues were excluded (or not invited)," Chidambaram said in a post on X. Congress MP Karti P Chidambaram also criticised the government, calling the exclusion "outright ridiculous." "I understand the geopolitical compulsions that force us to engage with the Taliban, but to accede to their discriminatory and primitive mores is outright ridiculous. It's very disappointing to note the conduct of the Ministry of External Affairs and S Jaishankar in excluding women journalists from the press briefing of the Taliban Minister," he said. Meanwhile, during his bilateral meeting with Muttaqi, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar announced that India would upgrade its Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of the Embassy of India. "India is fully committed to the sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of Afghanistan. To enhance that, I am pleased to announce today the upgrading of India's Technical Mission in Kabul to the status of Embassy of India," Jaishankar said during his opening remarks at the meeting. The Taliban minister's visit, which began on October 9 and will continue until October 16, marks the first high-level delegation from Kabul to India since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan in August 2021. The MEA has reiterated that the ministry had no role in organising or managing the Afghan Embassy's press interaction, distancing itself from the controversy surrounding the exclusion of women journalists. (ANI) Balochistan [Pakistan], October 11 (ANI) The Baloch Yakjehti Committee (BYC) has accused Pakistani authorities of deliberately extending the illegal detention of its key leaders through systematic legal delays and denial of justice, as reported by The Balochistan Post. According to The Balochistan Post, the organisation stated that its central organisers, Dr Mahrang Baloch, Beebarg Baloch, Sibghatullah Shah Jee, Beebow Baloch, and Gul Zadi Baloch, remain imprisoned under extended judicial remand after an already lengthy period of physical detention. Despite several court orders, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) has yet to file a formal charge sheet, which the BYC described as a deliberate tactic to prolong their custody indefinitely. The BYC alleged that repeated court extensions reflect a "coordinated effort" between judicial and security institutions to deny the detainees their constitutional rights. The group also criticised the authorities' recent decision to shift upcoming court hearings to Quetta's Hudda Jail instead of holding them in an open court. The BYC condemned this move as a "serious violation of fundamental rights" and a breach of both domestic and international legal norms. The organisation further voiced grave concern over the health condition of detained social activist Beebarg Baloch, who is reportedly suffering from a blocked urinary tract requiring urgent medical attention. Prison officials have allegedly refused to provide him adequate treatment, a stance the BYC described as "cruel, inhumane, and contrary to international humanitarian standards," as cited by The Balochistan Post. In its appeal, the BYC urged the United Nations, international human rights organisations, and global civil society groups to intervene and hold Pakistan accountable for what it termed "unlawful detention and systematic rights violations." The statement emphasised that the ongoing suppression of peaceful Baloch voices reflects Islamabad's deepening crackdown on dissent and disregard for due process, as reported by The Balochistan Post. (ANI) North Korea displayed new hypersonic and long-range nuclear missiles during a large military parade in Pyongyang on Friday night to mark the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea, Yonhap News reported, citing state media. The parade took place in Kim Il Sung Square and showcased two major weapons the Hwasong-11Ma hypersonic missile and the Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which North Korean state media described as the country's "most powerful nuclear weapons." Speaking at the event, Kim called for the armed forces to continue to develop into an "invincible" entity, as per Yonhap News. "Our army should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats approaching our range of self-defence by dint of its political, ideological, military and technical superiority overwhelming the enemy, and it should steadily strengthen itself into elite armed forces which win victory after victory on the strength of morality and discipline," he said. As per CNN, pictures and videos shared online showed soldiers marching, large missile launchers rolling through the streets, and crowds cheering under bright lights. It was North Korea's first big military parade in two years. The event came a month after leader Kim Jong Un attended a military parade in Beijing, where he stood alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin. That visit strengthened North Korea's ties with China and Russia. The newly shown Hwasong-11Ma is designed to fly at hypersonic speed, more than five times the speed of sound, and can change direction during flight, making it very difficult for defence systems to stop. CNN reported that North Korea has used he new 11Ma model with a warhead carried in a boost glide vehicle system, meaning it can move unpredictably towards its target. It also uses solid fuel, which allows for faster launch and easier transport than older liquid-fuel rockets. The parade also introduced the Hwasong-20, North Korea's newest ICBM, which is believed to be capable of carrying nuclear warheads and reaching targets as far as the United States,CNN reported citing KCNA. Earlier this year, North Korea said it had completed final testing of a new high-powered rocket engine made from carbon-fiber materials for the Hwasong-20. The same engine is also expected to be used for the Hwasong-19, another long-range missile that experts believe can reach anywhere in the US Friday's parade was attended by senior North Korean officials and possibly guests from China, Russia, and Vietnam. While Kim Jong Un was seen at the event, it is not clear if he gave a speech or was joined by his daughter, Kim Ju-ae, who often appears beside him at important military events. (ANI) US Ambassador to India, Sergio Gor, arrived at the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Saturday, where officials received him. According to the US Embassy spokesperson, Ambassador Gor's formal presentation of credentials and move to India will take place "at a later date that has not yet been determined." Before departing for India, the Indian Embassy in the United States hosted Ambassador Sergio Gor at India House for Diwali celebrations. Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay Mohan Kwatra shared on X, "Pleasure to host Ambassador and Special Envoy to the President @SergioGor yesterday at India House for Diwali celebrations before his visit to India." Gor's arrival comes shortly after he met with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) session in New York on September 24, where both leaders discussed deepening the India-US strategic partnership. Following the meeting, the US State Department shared on X, "US Special Envoy for South and Central Asia and Ambassador Nominee to India Sergio Gor met with India's External Affairs Minister Jaishankar on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly. They look forward to further promoting the success of the US-India relationship." Earlier, during his Senate confirmation hearing on September 12, Gor highlighted the "deep friendship" between US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling it a unique strength in advancing bilateral ties. Speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gor said, "India is a strategic partner whose trajectory will shape the region and beyond. India's geographic position, economic growth, and military capabilities make it a cornerstone of regional stability and a critical part of promoting prosperity and advancing the security interests that our nations share." He further noted, "As Secretary Rubio said, India is one of the most important relationships our nation has in the world. If confirmed, I will prioritise deepening defence and security cooperation with India." Gor's appointment underscores Washington's commitment to strengthening ties with New Delhi amid the steep tariffs imposed on India by the Trump adminstration. This year, in August, Trump nominated Sergio Gor as India's next ambassador and Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs. (ANI) Frankfurt [Germany], October 11 (ANI) Jeay Sindh Muttehida Mahaz (JSMM) Chairman Shafi Burfat has extended unwavering solidarity to the Afghan people, describing them as a brave and dignified nation that has always upheld courage and resilience throughout history. Burfat lauded the Afghan nation's steadfastness and expressed heartfelt respect as many Afghan refugees prepare to return from Sindh to their homeland. Taking to X, Burfat emphasised that it is a moral responsibility of the Sindhi nation to bid farewell to their Afghan brothers and sisters with dignity and compassion. He asserted that the Sindhi people are not part of Punjab's political or military conspiracies aimed at destabilising Afghanistan. "The Punjabi establishment, along with its military machinery, has long been involved in anti-Afghan activities, but the Sindhi nation stands completely apart from these hostile agendas," he stated. Highlighting Sindh's distinct cultural and political identity, Burfat reaffirmed that the Sindhi nation has its own aspirations, history, and struggle for self-determination. He said Sindhis envision independent and friendly relations with Afghanistan, founded on mutual respect, sovereignty, and cooperation. The JSMM chief also praised the current Afghan government's ongoing efforts to restore peace, stability, and rebuild the nation's social fabric, calling these initiatives a reflection of Afghanistan's patriotism and commitment to national dignity. He recalled that Afghan refugees had always shown respect towards Sindh and its people, a sentiment the Sindhi nation deeply values. Looking ahead, Burfat stated that after the formation of an independent Sindhudesh, the nation would consider granting citizenship to Afghan children born on Sindhi soil. He further urged the Afghan government to support Sindhudesh's political movement, describing it as a legitimate struggle for liberation from Punjabi colonial rule. Reiterating his vision for regional cooperation, Burfat stated Sindhudesh and Afghanistan should build strong political, economic, and diplomatic relations in the future. (ANI) India and Czechia held the 7th Joint Defence Committee (JDC) Meeting in Prague from October 7 to 9, focusing on strengthening defence industrial collaboration, military training, and expanding overall bilateral cooperation, the Ministry of Defence said in a statement. The Indian delegation was led by Additional Secretary and Director General (Acquisition) A. Anbarasu, while the Czech side was headed by Radka Konderlova, Director General of the Industrial Cooperation Division at the Czech Ministry of Defence. The talks centred on new opportunities for joint defence production, research and development, technology sharing, and capacity-building. Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to deepen cooperation in defence manufacturing and training, in line with their growing strategic partnership. An India-Czechia Defence Industry Seminar was also held alongside the meeting, which saw active participation from defence industries and representatives of both countries. The seminar served as a platform to explore new avenues for partnership and enhance industrial engagement between Indian and Czech defence companies. India and the Czech Republic share a long-standing defence relationship dating back to the establishment of diplomatic ties with Czechoslovakia in 1947. Following the country's dissolution in 1993, India immediately recognised the Czech Republic, and the two nations have since maintained close cooperation, especially in defence and industrial development, as per Ministry of External Affairs. Bilateral defence cooperation gained renewed momentum with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Cooperation in October 2003, leading to the creation of the Joint Defence Committee. Six JDC meetings have been held so far, with the last one taking place in New Delhi in February 2020. Czech defence companies have been regular suppliers of military equipment to the Indian armed forces and continue to explore collaborative projects in line with India's 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives. The latest JDC meeting builds on the outcomes of Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala's visit to India in January 2024, during which both sides underlined the importance of innovation in defence technology, R&D, and joint production. Following that visit, a joint statement was issued by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said, "Both partners underline the importance of innovations in the defence field and the defence industry. They note with satisfaction the existing connections among their entities in these areas and are committed to further encouraging cooperation, including R&D, training, and innovative production solutions involving Czech and Indian stakeholders." Both partners also reaffirmed their shared intent to enhance cooperation in cybersecurity, countering hybrid threats, CBRN defence, and space security, as well as to continue coordination in multilateral forums such as the United Nations on cyber and security issues of mutual interest. (ANI) The study, released by the Stockholm Centre for South Asian and Indo-Pacific Affairs ahead of COP30, warns that Tibet, often called the "Roof of the World", is facing environmental breakdown with global implications. Tibet's role in climate discussions is crucial, as its rapid warming is impacting water, food, and energy security throughout the Indo-Pacific, as reported by Phayul. According to Phayul, the research notes that Tibet is warming at more than twice the global average, with glaciers retreating and permafrost melting. Grasslands that sustain Asia's major river systems are deteriorating, endangering nearly two billion people downstream. The Stockholm paper blames Beijing's state-controlled model of development, marked by highways, railways, airports, and hydropower dams, for prioritising speed and militarisation over ecological balance. It further criticises China's opacity and the suppression of independent environmental studies. Evidence on the ground supports these warnings. In July 2025, China began constructing the Medog Hydropower Station on the Yarlung Zangbo (Brahmaputra) in Tibet, a USD 170 billion project designed to produce massive energy outputs. While Chinese authorities claim minimal downstream impact, India, Bangladesh, and several NGOs fear potential disruptions to river ecology, water flow, and regional biodiversity. Experts also caution against the seismic risk, referencing the January 2025 earthquake in Tibet that killed more than 120 people and damaged multiple reservoirs, as highlighted by Phayul. The growing concern over mining activities in Chamdo's Markham County and controversial incidents like a fireworks display in Shigatse by the outdoor brand Arc'teryx, part-owned by China's Anta Sports. Tibetan environmental defenders such as Tsongon Tsering and A-Nya Sengdra remain imprisoned for opposing illegal mining and corruption, highlighting the human cost of environmental advocacy under China's control, as reported by Phayul. (ANI) TAIYUAN, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Visiting museums has become a new holiday fashion among young Chinese people, as more travelers got off the beaten track during the eight-day National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday to enjoy culture and history rather than overcrowded tourist spots. Ahead of the "super golden week," online tickets for popular Chinese museums, such as the National Museum of China and the Palace Museum in Beijing, and the Shanxi Museum in the northern province of Shanxi, sold out quickly. "I feel really lucky to have secured a ticket for the National Day!" said a visitor in her early 30s, surnamed Wang, from the eastern Chinese city of Fuzhou, who visited the Shanxi Museum on Oct. 1. For many young visitors, museums offer not only a cultural enrichment journey that transcends time and space, but also a peaceful and therapeutic retreat from the holiday bustle. "I like to come here for a walk when I feel stressed," said a 30-year-old surnamed Wang, who works for an internet company, when visiting the Jinci Museum in Shanxi's provincial capital of Taiyuan. "Gazing at these millennia-old buildings and reflecting on how ancient people created such marvels with so little help put my own troubles into perspective." Some visitors want to make their museum visits more fun and personal by creating humorous memes based on artifacts in the museums and purchasing creative cultural products from museums. At the Shanxi Museum, stuffed toys shown sleeping cozily in a pouch, were a particular hit with visitors during the holiday. Qiu Ping, deputy director of the Jinci Museum, noticed the changing behaviors of young visitors. "They are no longer satisfied with just walking through exhibits -- they do homework on the museums in advance and are not shy to discuss with the museum guides and ask questions about the exhibits' cultural significance." This shift from passive observation to active participation reflects the growing interest of China's younger generation in traditional culture, Qiu said. On Xiaohongshu, a popular Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform, posts tagged "museum" have exceeded 11 million, as many young people share their museum experiences. Technology is also adding new dimensions to the museum experience. At the Taiyuan Northern Qi Dynasty Mural Museum, visitors can don VR headsets to experience the grandeur of ancient banquets, while interactive projection walls enable them to play music alongside musicians in the murals with a simple wave of the hand. Wang Jiang, the museum's director, said the venue aims to create immersive experiences for visitors using technologies such as digital imaging and 3D animation. The move has helped the Taiyuan Northern Qi Dynasty Mural Museum attract more young visitors, as those under 30 accounted for more than 60 percent of all bookings at the museum during the holiday, according to the museum's data. The Indian Navy and the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom commenced their first-ever joint Carrier Strike Group (CSG) operations as part of Exercise KONKAN-25, which began off the western coast of India on October 5 and continues in the Western Indian Ocean, the Indian Navy said on Friday. On the sidelines of the visit by the UK Carrier Strike Group, UK Minister of State for Defence Lord Vernon Coaker visited Mumbai and hailed the collaboration as a testament to the strong ties between the two countries. "It is even more remarkable to be here just after the wonderful visit of our Prime Minister to meet with your Prime Minister. The relationship between Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Starmer is excellent and demonstrates the importance of the partnership between the UK and India as respected global partners," Lord Coaker said. State Defence Minister Sanjay Seth also held a bilateral meeting with the UK Minister of State for Defence, Lord Vernon Coaker, during the visit. During the meeting, both sides reviewed the ongoing defence engagements and explored avenues to further deepen cooperation between India and the UK. Sanjay Seth noted with satisfaction that the UK CSG, led by the Prince of Wales, had successfully completed the sea phase of the bilateral maritime exercise KONKAN-25 with the Indian Navy off the western coast. The CSG is currently engaged in harbour-phase activities in Mumbai and Goa, as per a press statement. The ongoing exercise marks a significant milestone in India-UK defence cooperation. For the first time, the Indian Navy's INS Vikrant Carrier Battle Group and the Royal Navy's HMS Prince of Wales Carrier Strike Group are operating together at sea. The joint drills aim to strengthen interoperability and reflect the growing depth of the maritime partnership between the two countries. The UK Carrier Strike Group is currently on an eight-month deployment under Operation Highmast. It has now joined the Indian Navy fleet for four days of advanced maritime exercises, which include coordinated operations involving surface ships, submarines, and naval aircraft from both sides. Commander of the UK Carrier Strike Group, Commodore James Blackmore, expressed pride in leading the deployment. "It's my immense privilege to command the UK Carrier Strike Group during our time in the Indo-Pacific, and most importantly, here in Mumbai. We departed the UK on April 22, 171 days ago, with about 50 days remaining until the completion of Operation Highmast," he said. The UK Carrier Strike Group is built around HMS Prince of Wales, a 65,000-tonne Queen Elizabeth-class aircraft carrier -- the largest surface vessel ever constructed in the United Kingdom. The group comprises HMS Richmond (Type 23 Frigate), HMS Dauntless (Type 45 Destroyer), Royal Fleet Auxiliary support ships, and assets from partner nations, including Norway and Japan. On the Indian side, the exercise is led by INS Vikrant, India's indigenous aircraft carrier, and is supported by destroyers, frigates, submarines, and naval aircraft. Exercise KONKAN, which has been held biennially since 2004, has grown in scale and complexity over the past two decades. The current edition focuses on enhancing combined maritime and air operations, tactical coordination, and mutual understanding between the Indian and Royal Navies. (ANI) At the invitation of President Droupadi Murmu, President of Mongolia Khurelsukh Ukhnaa will pay a state visit to India from October 13 to 16, a statement by the Ministry of External Affairs said. Ukhnaa will be accompanied by a high-level delegation comprising Cabinet Ministers, Members of Parliament, senior officials, business leaders, and cultural representatives. This will be Ukhnaa's first visit to India in his capacity as Head of State of Mongolia, as per MEA. During the visit, Rashtrapatiji will meet with President Khurelsukh and host a banquet in his honour. President Khurelsukh will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and review the entire gamut of bilateral relations. Vice President CP Radhakrishnan, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar are expected to call on the visiting dignitary. Diplomatic relations between India and Mongolia were established in 1955. Over the past seven decades, the two countries have developed a close and multifaceted partnership, anchored in shared cultural and spiritual links and democratic values. The partnership spans across sectors such as defence and security, parliamentary exchanges, development partnership, energy, mining, information technology, education, healthcare, and cultural cooperation, the MEA statement said. The forthcoming State Visit will provide an opportunity for the leadership of India and Mongolia to review progress in bilateral relations, set the vision for strengthening the strategic partnership, and exchange views on regional and global issues of mutual interest. India and Mongolia are Strategic Partners, Spiritual Brothers and Third Neighbours with centuries old deep civilizational linkages through Buddhism. Of late, 4 Ds Dharma, Democracy, Development Partnership and Digital Development Cooperation- have become pillars of the India-Mongolia relationship, as per the Indian Embassy. India's diplomatic relations with Mongolia were established on December 24, 1955, and in January 1956, the first Mongolian Ambassador was posted to Delhi. However, the Indian Resident Mission in Ulaanbaatar was opened on 22 February 1971 and prior to that, the Indian Ambassador in Moscow (TN Kaul) was concurrently accredited. (ANI) Afghanistan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi on Saturday visited Darul Uloom Deoband, where he met Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani. Muttaqi expressed his gratitude for being welcomed to Doband, and hoped that the relations between India and Taliban continue to improve. He said, "I am thankful to all of you for the warm welcome given to me by everyone in Deoband and the love showered upon me. I will pray to god that India-Afghanistan relations improve further. After the meeting I had in Delhi, I can say that our future is bright. I hope that our visits between Delhi and Kabul increase." Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani told reporters that the two did not have any political discussions, but they reminisced about Afghanistan's role in India's independence. "I told him that our ties with you are not just academic. You contributed to the independence of India. Our forefathers chose the land for Afghanistan to fight for India's independence. For your independence, you defeated powers like America and Russia. You learnt from us how to do that when we defeated Britain. I told him (Afghan FM Amir Khan Muttaqi) that this meeting shows how the Muslims of India and the Darul Uloom Deoband have deep ties with you. There should be harmony within the nations of the world, irrespective of their religion... We had no political discussion... The relations between the two nations will improve. India has had complaints that Afghanistan sent terrorists to India. Now, after this meeting, it is confirmed that no terrorists will come to India from Afghanistan." Earlier in the day, speaking exclusively with ANI, Muttaqi highlighted the bright future of India-Afghanistan relations, indicating a positive trajectory in bilateral ties. Muttaqi thanked the Ulema and people of the area for their warm welcome, appreciating the large turnout. "The journey has been very good so far. Not just the people of Darul Uloom, but all the people of the area have come here. I am grateful to them for the warm welcome they extended to me... I am thankful to the Ulema of Deoband and the people of the area for this warm welcome... The future of India-Afghanistan relations seems very bright," Muttaqi told ANI. (ANI) A leading Taiwanese defence analyst has rejected the notion that China could effectively blockade Taiwan with only a handful of submarines, arguing that such a military manoeuvre is both logistically and strategically implausible, as reported by Taipei Times According to Taipei Times, a seminar hosted by the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University, Alexander Huang, a strategic studies scholar at Tamkang University, challenged the claim made by China affairs expert Willy Lam. Lam, a senior fellow at The Jamestown Foundation, had stated at a symposium in Washington that China could impose a naval blockade around Taiwan simply by deploying four or five submarines. Huang questioned the sustainability of such a blockade, emphasising that even nuclear-powered submarines have operational limitations. "A nuclear submarine can stay submerged for extended periods, but the crew still needs food, rest, and rotation. No vessel can maintain its position forever," he said. Huang further warned that a blockade, if attempted, would expose Chinese submarines to severe risks. "It's not only about sustaining the blockade, but also about whether those submarines could return safely. Other nations' naval forces could easily obstruct their path back to Chinese ports," he noted, adding that Taiwan has the capability to strike back if necessary. Huang also pointed out that a prolonged blockade could trigger an international response. "If the US were to restrict Chinese vessels in the Strait of Malacca, or target China's Yangshan Port near Shanghai, Beijing would face immense economic repercussions," he said. Lam's remarks drew immediate rebuttals from Taiwanese officials. Taiwan's Representative to the U.S., Alexander Yui, countered Lam's argument during the same event, highlighting the strong will of the Taiwanese people to defend themselves, as cited by Taipei Times. Mainland Affairs Council deputy head Liang Wen-chieh dismissed Lam's theory, asserting that if such a blockade were that simple, Taiwan's decades of defence preparation "would have been meaningless." The exchange reflects Taiwan's firm stance that China's military coercion, including any form of naval blockade, remains more theoretical than practical, as reported by Taipei Times. (ANI) Tel Aviv [Israel], October 11 (ANI/TPS): In a statement addressing the agreement to end the war, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine denied that they would accept any "foreign rule." The terrorist organisations stated that governance in Gaza is a 'Palestinian matter', though they expressed "willingness" for Arab countries and the international community to participate in rebuilding the Strip. They also emphasised that an agreement has so far been reached 'on implementing the first phase' of the deal. The organisations also pledged to continue working for the release of the remaining Palestinian convicts detained in Israel. (ANI/TPS) Tel Aviv [Israel], October 11 (ANI/TPS): The IDF announced today that, during an operation in Jenin yesterday, a terrorist threw an explosive device at forces from the Paratroopers Reconnaissance Battalion. The soldiers returned fire and eliminated the terrorist. This was reported by an IDF spokesperson, who confirmed that there were no casualties among the forces. (ANI/TPS) The US Embassy in India has officially welcomed Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor, who is set to strengthen the ties between the United States and India. He will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship. https://x.com/usandindia/status/1976930904397562297?s=46&t=TbrKHKgG29uXA1CMFN38Pw In a post on X, the US Embassy in India wrote, "Excited to welcome Ambassador Sergio Gor to India! He will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship." Gor's first meeting in India took place earlier today with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, where the two discussed the India-US relationship and its growing global significance. Sharing details of the meeting on X, Jaishankar tweeted, "Pleased to meet Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor of the US today in New Delhi. Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance. Wish him the best for his new responsibility." https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/1976929390450835582 In addition, Gor also met with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. The officials had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson wrote on X, "Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met US Ambassador-designate to India @SergioGor earlier today. They had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. FS wished Amb-designate Gor all success for his assignment." Earlier, during his Senate confirmation hearing on September 12, Gor highlighted the "deep friendship" between then US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling it a unique strength in advancing bilateral ties. Speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gor said, "India is a strategic partner whose trajectory will shape the region and beyond. India's geographic position, economic growth, and military capabilities make it a cornerstone of regional stability and a critical part of promoting prosperity and advancing the security interests that our nations share." He further noted, "As Secretary Rubio said, India is one of the most important relationships our nation has in the world. If confirmed, I will prioritise deepening defence and security cooperation with India."Gor's appointment underscores Washington's commitment to strengthening ties with New Delhi amid the steep tariffs imposed on India by the Trump adminstration. This year, in August, Trump nominated Sergio Gor as India's next ambassador and Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs. His visit marks another significant step forward in enhancing the strategic partnership between the two nations across defence, trade, and technology sectors. (ANI) Taiwan's Ministry of Defense detected seven sorties of Chinese military aircraft, eight military vessels and one official ship around its territorial waters as of 6 am (local time) on Saturday. As per the MND, of the seven sorties, three crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern ADIZ. In a post on X, the MND said, "7 sorties of PLA aircraft, 8 PLAN vessels and 1 official ship operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 3 out of 7 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern and southwestern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded." https://x.com/MoNDefense/status/1976831403540275572 Earlier on Friday, eight sorties of PLA aircraft and nine vessels were detected. Of the eight sorties, four crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern, southwestern and southeastern ADIZ. In a post on X, MND said, "8 sorties of PLA aircraft and 9 PLAN vessels operating around Taiwan were detected up until 6 a.m. (UTC+8) today. 4 out of 8 sorties crossed the median line and entered Taiwan's northern, southwestern and southeastern ADIZ. We have monitored the situation and responded." https://x.com/MoNDefense/status/1976452629828898972 A leading Taiwanese defence analyst has rejected the notion that China could effectively blockade Taiwan with only a handful of submarines, arguing that such a military manoeuvre is both logistically and strategically implausible, as reported by Taipei Times. According to Taipei Times, a seminar hosted by the Institute of International Relations at National Chengchi University, Alexander Huang, a strategic studies scholar at Tamkang University, challenged the claim made by China affairs expert Willy Lam. Lam, a senior fellow at The Jamestown Foundation, had stated at a symposium in Washington that China could impose a naval blockade around Taiwan simply by deploying four or five submarines. Huang questioned the sustainability of such a blockade, emphasising that even nuclear-powered submarines have operational limitations. "A nuclear submarine can stay submerged for extended periods, but the crew still needs food, rest, and rotation. No vessel can maintain its position forever," he said. Huang further warned that a blockade, if attempted, would expose Chinese submarines to severe risks. "It's not only about sustaining the blockade, but also about whether those submarines could return safely. Other nations' naval forces could easily obstruct their path back to Chinese ports," he noted, adding that Taiwan has the capability to strike back if necessary. (ANI) Nepal President Ram Chandra Paudel was admitted to the Manmohan Cardiothoracic Vascular and Transplant Centre in Kathmandu on Saturday after experiencing health-related complications. According to the hospital, the President's health condition is currently stable and being closely monitored. In an official statement released by the Centre under the Tribhuvan University Teaching Hospital, the hospital said, "Honourable President Ram Chandra Poudel has been admitted to this centre for treatment after experiencing health problems. We would like to inform you that his health is currently being examined and his health condition is normal." As per the President's Secretariat, the head of state experienced a severe headache and vomiting at around 11:30 am (local time) while attending a meeting at the official residence, Sheetal Niwas. He was immediately rushed to the hospital for medical attention. President Paudel was to hold discussions with the Gen-Z delegation at his office on Saturday. "The meeting has now been postponed to Monday," an official from the President's office told ANI. Just a day prior to his hospitalisation, President Paudel held talks with the Prime Minister and political party representatives, urging them to begin preparations for the March 2026 elections. "The president's condition is normal and medical examinations are being carried out. He is under regular observation and medical supervision," Ratna Mani Gajurel, the doctor, announced. Meanwhile, on September 22, President Paudel administered the oath of office to four newly inducted ministers in the interim government, led by Prime Minister Sushila Karki, at Sheetal Niwas. This brought the total number of ministers in Karki's cabinet to eight. Interim Nepali Prime Minister Sushila Karki reshuffled the ministerial portfolios, reallocating responsibilities among members while inducting four new ministers. Four newly appointed ministers took the oath of office on Monday afternoon, following cabinet nominations made by Interim Prime Minister Sushila Karki. Former Supreme Court Justice Anil Kumar Sinha has been appointed Minister for Industry and Law; innovator Mahabir Pun will head the Ministry of Education, Science, and Technology; Madan Pariyar takes over as Minister for Agriculture; and journalist Jagdish Kharel will lead the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology. (ANI) Canada Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand is set to embark on a diplomatic visit to India, Singapore, and China from October 12 to October 17 to advance bilateral relations and cooperation with these countries as part of Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy, the Canadian government said in a release. During her visit to India, Anand will hold meetings with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi. The discussions will focus on advancing a framework for strategic cooperation encompassing trade diversification, energy transformation, and security issues. In addition to Delhi, Anand will travel to Mumbai to engage with Canadian and Indian businesses fostering investment, job creation, and economic opportunities in both Canada and India, the release added. In Singapore, Anand will meet with Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan to further strengthen Canada's cooperation with one of its most important partners in Southeast Asia. This meeting comes as Canada and Singapore mark the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations. Anand will highlight the progress Canada and ASEAN member states have made toward a free trade agreement and underscore the importance of efforts to conclude negotiations as soon as possible in 2026, according to the Canadian government. In China, Anand will meet with China's Director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs and Minister of Foreign Affairs, Wang Yi, to continue engagement on the bilateral relationship as Canada and China mark 55 years since establishing diplomatic ties. This meeting builds on the commitment made by Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Li Qiang of China to regularise channels of communication between the two countries. The ministers will discuss the Canada-China Strategic Partnership, the evolving bilateral and global context, as well as issues of importance to the Canadian economy, the Canadian government stated. Anand highlighted the significance of the trip in a statement: "For Canada to be strong at home, we need strong, stable partnerships abroad. I am building bridges and increasing cooperation with India, Singapore, and China. In line with Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy, I will be working to advance efforts to position Canada as a trusted, reliable partner of choice for Indo-Pacific countries and their economies." (ANI) BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Friday sent a congratulatory message to Kim Jong Un, general secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), on the 80th anniversary of the founding of the WPK. In his congratulatory message, Xi, on behalf of the Central Committee of the CPC and in his own name, extended warm congratulations and best wishes to Comrade General Secretary Kim, the Central Committee of the WPK, all members of the WPK and the people of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of the WPK. Xi said over the past 80 years, the WPK has united and led the people of the DPRK to forge ahead and overcome difficulties, making impressive achievements in advancing the socialist cause of the DPRK. In recent years, Comrade General Secretary has led the Party and people of the DPRK to work relentlessly to strengthen party building, develop the economy and improve people's livelihood, he said. Xi wished that under the strong leadership of the WPK headed by Comrade General Secretary, the socialist cause of the DPRK will continue to achieve new accomplishments, and the country will greet the successful convening of the WPK's 9th Congress. Noting that both China and the DPRK are socialist countries led by communist parties, Xi said that in recent years, he has held multiple meetings with Kim to guide and steer the development of relations between the two parties and two countries, opening a new chapter in the China-DPRK friendship. Xi also recalled Kim's recent visit to China to attend the commemorations marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, during which the two leaders had in-depth discussions and charted the course for further developing the friendly and cooperative relations between China and the DPRK. No matter how the international situation changes, it remains the unwavering policy of the CPC and the Chinese government to maintain, consolidate and develop China-DPRK relations, Xi noted. China stands ready to work with the DPRK to strengthen strategic communication, deepen practical cooperation, enhance coordination and promote the steady development of bilateral relations, so as to better serve the socialist causes of both countries and make positive contributions to regional and global peace, stability and prosperity, said Xi. Xi also extended his best wishes to the WPK for even greater success, expressing the hope that the China-DPRK friendship will be everlasting. PM Modi expressed confidence that his tenure would further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership. https://x.com/narendramodi/status/1977011830372597954 In a post on the social media platform X, Prime Minister Modi posted, "Glad to receive Mr. Sergio Gor, Ambassador-designate of the US to India. I'm confident that his tenure will further strengthen the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership." The US Embassy in India has officially welcomed Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor, who is set to strengthen the ties between the United States and India. He will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship. https://x.com/USAndIndia/status/1976930904397562297 In a post on X, the US Embassy in India wrote, "Excited to welcome Ambassador Sergio Gor to India! He will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship." Gor's first meeting in India took place earlier today with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, where the two discussed the India-US relationship and its growing global significance. Sharing details of the meeting on X, Jaishankar tweeted, "Pleased to meet Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor of the US today in New Delhi. Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance. Wish him the best for his new responsibility." https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/1976929390450835582 In addition, Gor also met with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. The officials had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson wrote on X, "Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met US Ambassador-designate to India @SergioGor earlier today. They had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. FS wished Amb-designate Gor all success for his assignment." Earlier, during his Senate confirmation hearing on September 12, Gor highlighted the "deep friendship" between then US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling it a unique strength in advancing bilateral ties. (ANI) US Ambassador-designate to India, Sergio Gor said that the US values its relationship with India, and showed optimism regarding the relations between both the nations. Gor said that US President Donald Trump values his personal friendship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The US values its relationship with India, and under the strong leadership of President Donald J Trump and Prime Minister Modi, I'm optimistic about the days ahead for both of our nations. President Trump considers Prime Minister Modi a great and personal friend. In fact, just before I left for New Delhi, they had an incredible phone call. And that is something that will continue over the weeks and months ahead," he said. Gor said that he had meetings upon arrival with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and also held talks on various topics, including critical minerals. "We hit the ground running. We had a great series of including with Foreign Secretary Misri, with the External Affairs Minister, Dr. Jaishankar, and with the National Security Advisor, Doval. And we just finished an incredible meeting with Prime Minister Modi, where we discussed bilateral issues, including defense, trade, technology. We also discussed the importance of critical minerals and the importance of that to both of our nations," he said. Gor added that he looked forward to deepen the relationship between both the nations. "Once again, it's an honor to serve as President Donald Trump's ambassador to India, and I look forward to this very important relationship and continuing to grow and deepen the relationship between our two nations," he said. Earlier in the day, the US Embassy in India officially welcomed Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor, who is set to strengthen the ties between the United States and India. He will met with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship. https://x.com/USAndIndia/status/1976930904397562297 In a post on X, the US Embassy in India wrote, "Excited to welcome Ambassador Sergio Gor to India! He will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss opportunities to further deepen our ambitious strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous relationship." Gor's first meeting in India took place earlier today with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, where the two discussed the India-US relationship and its growing global significance. Sharing details of the meeting on X, Jaishankar tweeted, "Pleased to meet Ambassador-designate Sergio Gor of the US today in New Delhi. Discussed the India-US relationship and its global significance. Wish him the best for his new responsibility." https://x.com/MEAIndia/status/1976929390450835582 In addition, Gor also met with Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri. The officials had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. The Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson wrote on X, "Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met US Ambassador-designate to India @SergioGor earlier today. They had a productive exchange on the India-US Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership and its shared priorities. FS wished Amb-designate Gor all success for his assignment. Earlier, during his Senate confirmation hearing on September 12, Gor highlighted the "deep friendship" between then US President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, calling it a unique strength in advancing bilateral ties. Speaking before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Gor said, "India is a strategic partner whose trajectory will shape the region and beyond. India's geographic position, economic growth, and military capabilities make it a cornerstone of regional stability and a critical part of promoting prosperity and advancing the security interests that our nations share." He further noted, "As Secretary Rubio said, India is one of the most important relationships our nation has in the world. If confirmed, I will prioritise deepening defence and security cooperation with India." Gor's appointment underscores Washington's commitment to strengthening ties with New Delhi amid the steep tariffs imposed on India by the Trump adminstration. This year, in August, Trump nominated Sergio Gor as India's next ambassador and Special Envoy for South and Central Asian Affairs. His visit marks another significant step forward in enhancing the strategic partnership between the two nations across defence, trade, and technology sectors. Michael J Rigas, Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources, the State Department had announced on Thursday that Gor will travel to India from October 9-14 and meet Indian government counterparts to discuss the wide gamut of India-US ties. "U.S. Ambassador to India Sergio Gor and Deputy Secretary for Management and Resources Michael J. Rigas will travel to India from October 9 to October 14. Ambassador Gor and Deputy Secretary Rigas will meet with Indian government counterparts to discuss a wide range of bilateral issues. The United States will continue to work with India to strengthen our strategic partnership and promote a safer, stronger, and more prosperous Indo-Pacific region", the statement from the State Department said. The US Embassy Spokesperson said that Gor's presentation of credentials and move to India will occur at a later date that has not yet been determined. (ANI) Malte Hohlfeld, Executive Chairman of the German nonprofit organisation Global Bridges, highlighted India's unity during the Indo-German Young Leaders visit to Delhi. Speaking to ANI, he said, "During our stay in India, we were received with great hospitality. A big shout-out also to the team of the Indo-German Young Leaders Forum because they have done an amazing job of putting us all together." Reflecting on his first trip to India in 2023 with a German business delegation, Hohlfeld said the experience revealed the forward momentum of India. "As a matter of fact, it was my first time coming to India in 2023 with a German business delegation, where we first experienced the kind of momentum forward that India has, and we wanted to bring this to the next generation of leaders. And so when I returned to Germany, we had the idea of initiating a youth format between the two countries in order to bring young voices from different fields together and really find common solutions to shared problems," he said. "Today, we had our first introduction to the Sikh faith, where we watched an introductory video about a religion that is relatively unknown in Germany. But from what I know, India is a very populous and diverse place, but still united," he added. As part of their cultural exchange, delegates of the Indo-German Young Leaders Forum were introduced to Sikhism through a visit to the International Centre for Sikh Studies at Gurudwara Rakabganj Sahib. The visit included a holographic show and a discussion on Sikh history and values. Aam Aadmi Party MP Vikramjit Singh Sahney accompanied the delegation and shared details of the programme. "Today, at the International Centre for Sikh Studies at the Gurudwara Rakabganj Sahib, a holographic show was organised for the 50 delegates of the Indo-German Young Leaders' Forum. They saw the show, and we had discussions on Sikhism. They all appreciated the show... To acquaint them with the Sikh history, ethos, principles, and our contribution in the modern society," Sahney told ANI. Earlier, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar extended wishes to Germany on the occasion of the German National Unity Day. He underlined the momentum of ties in the bilateral relationship as New Delhi and Berlin complete 25 years of the strategic partnership. Jaishnakar wrote on X, "Warmest greetings to FM Wadephul, the Government and people of Federal Republic of Germany, on the occasion of German National Unity Day. Value the sustained momentum in our ties, as we complete 25 years of our Strategic Partnership." (ANI) India is slated to host the United Nations Troop Contributing Countries (UNTCC) Chiefs' Conclave from October 14 to 16 at Delhi. The conclave is set to bring together 30 military chiefs from around the world. In a post on X, the Additional Directorate General of Public Information (ADGPI) said, "United Nations Troop Contributing Countries Chiefs' Conclave 2025. India will be hosting the United Nations Troop Contributing Countries, UNTCC Chiefs' Conclave from 14 to 16 October 2025 at New Delhi. The Conclave will bring together over 30 Military Chiefs from around the world, to deliberate on evolving peacekeeping challenges, best practices and future readiness. Watch the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Kyrgyzstan share his message on the upcoming UNTCC 2025 and reaffirm the collective commitment to global peacekeeping." https://x.com/adgpi/status/1976517748185498089 A curtain raiser was organised at Manekshaw Centre, Delhi, on October 1. Lt Gen Rakesh Kapoor, DCOAS (IS&T), briefed about the modalities of conduct of the upcoming Conclave. He underlined the significance of the Conclave as a unique platform for UN troop-contributing countries to foster dialogue, cooperation and mutual understanding. He highlighted India's steadfast commitment to UN peacekeeping, the nation's role as one of the largest troop contributors and the Indian Army's readiness to share its operational experience, innovations and best practices. He expressed confidence that the Conclave would pave the way for deeper collaboration, collective preparedness and stronger partnerships in addressing contemporary peacekeeping challenges. As one of the largest and most consistent contributors to UN missions, India is convening this Conclave to provide a high-level forum for sharing best practices, fostering common understanding and creating a collaborative approach to chart out the future trajectory of peacekeeping. The event underscores India's enduring commitment to global stability and reflects its ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam (the world is one family). (ANI) Pakistan's Director General Inter-Services Public Relations (DG ISPR) Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry on Saturday alleged that nearly 30 suicide bombers involved in attacks over the past two years were Afghan nationals, trying to orchestrate terrorism against Pakistan, ARY News reported. Addressing a press conference at Corps Headquarters, Peshawar, the DGD ISPR said that a terror-crime nexus lies behind ongoing terrorist activities, without acknowledging their own security lapses, as per ARY News. Chaudhry added that a "political-criminal nexus" is behind the recent surge in terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). The military's spokesperson stated that certain elements are promoting a false narrative against ongoing anti-terror operations, which he said not only misleads the public but also mocks the sacrifices of Pakistan's security forces. He added that this deliberate campaign reflects the political-criminal nexus is behind the terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Lieutenant General Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry said Pakistan -- and particularly Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) -- has battled the scourge of terrorism for the past two decades, as per ARY News, adding that the press conference was held to review the security situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Chaudhry said that a political-criminal nexus is driving terrorism in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP). He warned that no one will be permitted to barter away the rights or future of the people of KP for personal gain, as per ARY News. He added that the political alliances supporting terrorists are not operating effectively in Sindh and Punjab, but that KP remains targeted by such collusion. Addressing root causes, he identified several factors responsible for the continued presence of terrorism: failure to fully implement the National Action Plan, politicisation of terrorism-related issues that confuses the nation, and external encouragement, as per ARY News. He also cited safe havens and resupply of modern weapons in Afghanistan as contributing factors. The DG ISPR alleged that nearly 30 Afghan suicide attackers were used over the last two years, which, he said, indicates external exploitation of Afghanistan for violent ends. He further warned of a terror-crime nexus and foreign terrorists operating in the region, as per ARY News. (ANI) CHANGSHA, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- A direct air route between Singapore and the tourist city of Zhangjiajie in central China's Hunan Province was launched on Thursday. The new route uses Airbus A320 and A321 aircraft, and operates round-trip flights every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday. Official data shows that in 2024, Zhangjiajie welcomed visitors from 183 countries and regions. Singapore was the city's seventh-largest source of inbound tourists that year, accounting for some 81,000 arrivals. Zhangjiajie, known for its spectacular sandstone pillars and as the inspiration for the movie "Avatar," has expanded its international tourism market beyond established sources. "This year, with China's continued optimization of its visa-free transit policy, Zhangjiajie has opened 15 international or regional passenger routes," said He Chao, deputy general manager of Zhangjiajie Hehua International Airport. The airport now connects to 11 overseas destinations, including Seoul, Jakarta, Bangkok, Singapore and Hong Kong, handling more than 103 flights each week, according to He. Zhangjiajie is a well-known Chinese tourist destination. The city's Wulingyuan scenic area is a natural site inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Prominent figures from Moroccos Jewish community have welcomed the latest ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, brokered by the US. The truce, which came into effect Friday morning, is being hailed as a potential turning point for peace and stability in the region. The agreement, reached earlier this week in Sharm El-Sheikh, outlines several key provisions: the exchange of hostages and the remains of those killed, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza City, Rafah, Khan Younis, and northern Gaza, the delivery of humanitarian aid to the enclave, and the return of displaced residents to central and northern areas of the Strip. Jacky Kadoch, president of the Jewish community in the Marrakech-Safi region, described the ceasefire as a highly significant step toward establishing security and stability in a region that has been engulfed in war since the events of October 7. Speaking to Hespress, Kadoch emphasized that the agreement opens new avenues for cooperation between peoples of the region. Kadoch also praised Moroccos consistent support for peace in the Middle East, highlighting the leadership of King Mohammed VI. Morocco has always stood for peace, and its initiatives have made it a key player in countering extremism and promoting dialogue among nations and civilizations, he added. David Kanan, president of the Jewish Association of Marrakech, echoed these sentiments, noting that the ceasefire could help alleviate the suffering of many families. In the quiet tug-of-war between European institutions, the European Commission has made a decisive move: it chose diplomacy over legal bias. By signing an amendment to the agricultural agreement with Morocco on October 3-explicitly including products from the Sahara- the EU sent a clear message: the strategic partnership with Rabat is not up for negotiation. This decision comes just days before the deadline set by the European Court of Justice (ECJ), whose rulings in October 2024 challenged the legality of including the Sahara in EU-Morocco trade deals. Behind this legal challenge lies a well-organized pro-Polisario lobby, now entrenched in the European Parliaments INTA committee. Yet, despite mounting pressure, EU member states opted for pragmatism. The swift opening of negotiations in September and the rapid signing of the amendment reflect a strong political will: Europe does not want a diplomatic rift with one of its key southern partners. The European Commissions renewal of the trade deal with Morocco is a gesture that reflects a tacit endorsement of Moroccos sovereignty over the Sahara, already supported by the US, France, and a growing number of global powers. Algeria, which sought to undermine Morocco by encouraging the Polisario to use a European law encroaching on diplomacy, now finds itself diplomatically cornered. The new agreement, the economic momentum in the Sahara, and the unified stance of EU member states all point to the fact that Europe is clearly aligning itself with Rabat, not with legal ambiguity. BELLINZONA, Switzerland, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China and Switzerland issued a joint document on Friday outlining a wide range of consensus on deepening bilateral and multilateral cooperation and advancing their strategic partnership. The document was issued at the fourth round of China-Switzerland Foreign Ministers' Strategic Dialogue in the southern Swiss town of Bellinzona. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi visited Switzerland for the dialogue at the invitation of Swiss Federal Councillor and Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis. This year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Switzerland, and the two countries will celebrate the 10th anniversary of their innovative strategic partnership next year. The two sides are committed to building on the important consensus reached by the leaders of their countries, advancing the results of bilateral cooperation, and pushing for new developments in their innovative strategic partnership, the document said. They also expressed willingness to strengthen cooperation in diverse sectors including culture, education and tourism to deepen mutual understanding and enhance friendship between the two peoples, it said. The two sides spoke highly of the free trade agreement that has been in effect since 2014, underscoring its important role in bilateral trade and economic cooperation. The two countries are ready to advance negotiations on upgrading the agreement to a higher level, so as to further boost trade and economic cooperation, safeguard free trade and promote economic globalization in a more open, inclusive and balanced manner to benefit all, the document said. The two countries agreed to take advantage of the active bilateral dialogue mechanisms across various fields and continue their cooperation in areas such as finance, human rights, environmental and climate protection, green and sustainable development, and artificial intelligence. Switzerland welcomes China's initiative to establish the International Organization for Mediation (IOMed) and is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in this field, the document said. Both countries reaffirmed their support for the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law, and pledged to engage in productive cooperation through multilateral platforms such as the World Trade Organization, it said. Switzerland welcomes the Global Governance Initiative proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping, which aims to reform and improve the global governance system. Switzerland is committed to supporting all global governance initiatives based on respect for international law, the document said. It said the two foreign ministers are willing to maintain close communication and continue to hold regular strategic dialogues, alternating between the two countries. The next round of such dialogue will be held in China. Energy companies are exploring alternative ways to access less conventional clean energy sources in a bid to support a global green transition and accelerate the shift away from fossil fuels. One of the energy sources being explored it space solar power. Scientists have discussed the potential for beaming solar power from space for decades, but until now it seemed like a pipedream. However, thanks to technological innovations, it may soon be possible. According to a recent study, putting solar panels in space could reduce Europes terrestrial renewable energy needs by 80 percent by 2050. The study used a detailed computer model of Europes future power grid to assess the potential for a network of space-based panels to deliver clean energy to the region. The panels, designed by Nasa, could significantly reduce the cost of Europes power network, by up to 15 percent, it found. It would also reduce our reliance on battery storage to make the solar power supply more stable. The Kings College London-led study looks at the use of space-based solar power (SBSP) system, which uses mirror-like reflectors to collect sunlight in orbit to transmit sunlight to specially designed stations on Earth before converting it into electricity to deliver to the grid. The computer assesses the delivery of power to a European transmission network spanning 33 countries. The researchers found that SBSP could be used to replace as much as 80 percent of the regions land-based renewable energy to provide a more reliable source of clean power. While the modelling does not account for certain challenges that may be encountered by generating solar power in space, including orbital congestion, transmission interruptions, and beaming variability, it provides significant hope for the future of clean energy delivery. One of the main barriers to the rollout of the technology is the initial set-up costs involved with launching such complex, large-scale solar space project. The SBSP project assessed in the study would not be cost-effective until around the mid-century due to the building, launching and maintenance costs involved at present. There are additional risks that must be assessed before any SBSP can be developed. Kings College professor Wei He said, There are some risks to consider, such as how the satellite in space could have too many solar panels. Could it cause collisions or be damaged by debris in space? However, SBSP technology shows significant promise for the future of clean energy and decarbonisation if those risks can be mitigated. SBSP projects are already being developed in some parts of the world, such as Japan, which views the technology as key to achieving a green transition. The Japanese government will support the launch of giant solar panels measuring 2 km2 into space to produce clean electricity using solar energy. The satellites are expected to be capable of generating power 24 hours a day, regardless of the weather and will produce an estimated five to 10 times more power than ground-based solar panels. Each satellite is expected to produce 1 million kW of electricity, equivalent to the output of a nuclear power plant. The microwaves used by the system can also penetrate clouds and rain to provide optimum power delivery. Related: Oil Tankers Jam Seas as Global Glut Builds This year, Japan plans to take its first steps to achieving space solar power by launching a 180 kg satellite into low Earth orbit to send a meagre 1 KW of power to a ground antenna. While the energy output is expected to be very low, if achieved it could encourage other governments to run pilot projects to eventually achieve commercial solar space power production. The project is called OHISAMA, the Japanese for sun. For future commercial operations, receiving antennas on Earth will need to be big enough to receive the power, spanning several kilometres, as the solar satellites will be travelling at an immense 28,000 kilometres an hour. However, Japan plans to use thirteen receivers spread over a 600-square-metre area in the city of Suwa to capture the microwaves sent from the solar panels, to provide proof on concept. If successful, Japan plans to launch bigger solar satellites to transmit more clean power to Earth. Meanwhile, in 2023, in the United States, Caltech successfully demonstrated its Space Solar Power Demonstrator (SSPD-1), the first space-borne prototype from the universitys Space Solar Power Project (SSPP). MAPLE, short for Microwave Array for Power-transfer Low-orbit Experiment, has an array of flexible lightweight microwave power transmitters driven by custom electronic chips that were built using low-cost silicon technologies, which researchers aim to use to deliver space solar power to Earth. To achieve space solar power, governments and scientists worldwide must work together to understand the potential risks of the technology rollout as well as establish international regulations on the use of space solar power satellites. This will lay the groundwork for the testing of innovative space solar technologies over the coming decades, which could be used to significantly reduce our reliance on fossil fuels in support of a global green transition. By Felicity Bradstock for Oilprice.com More Top Reads From Oilprice.com: By Taxpayers Association of Oregon OregonWatchdog.com Multnomah County District Attorney is trying to connect with the 1,000 Portland victims of human trafficking so that they can help them with with a compensation fund. The number fo victims is painfully extraordinary. Multnomah County District Attorneys Office statement, The Multnomah County District Attorneys Office is sending letters to more than 1,000 Portland area victims who may have been sex trafficked on the website Backpage between 2004 and 2018, when the site was shut down by the federal government. The Department of Justice is now using the money and assets seized to help survivors heal. Today, Senior DDA JR Ujifusa and sex trafficking survivor and advocate Robin Miller spoke to local media about our offices efforts to inform survivors about the federal program, known as Backpage Remission. SDDA Ujifusa said, We hope we can reach those individuals and provide them with the support they need to help them receive some compensation. There will soon be a page on MCDA.us dedicated to providing resources to survivors to help them navigate the process. By Taxpayers Association of Oregon OregonWatchdog.com Rioters in Oregon are putting out the call for people to shine lasers at law enforcement helicopters in Portland. Fox News reports, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) responded to a Portland groups advertisement urging members of the public to point lasers at aircraft amid unrest over the Trump administrations illegal immigration crackdown.Aiming a laser pointer at an aircraft is a federal crime. This is incredibly dangerous for the aircraft personnel and for the publics safety, DHS wrote in a post on X. Antifa domestic terrorists WILL NOT overrun our cities. We will bust their networks and bring every one of them to justice. Also in Portland a few weeks ago a suspect aimed his laser pointer at a ICE helicopter. Four men were arrested all illegal migrants. DARK DECOR: DHS calls out a Halloween display of hanging ICE agents surrounded by coffins and a Mexican flag. The Department of Homeland Security is calling for sanctuary politicians and the media to tone down their rhetoric. pic.twitter.com/DibKfDd2Qh Fox News (@FoxNews) October 10, 2025 On the evening of May 23, "Huizhou Woman", a Huangmei opera performance by Anhui Zaifen Huangmei Opera Art Theater, commenced at the Venetian Theatre in Macao. This performance was part of the "Macao-Anhui Huangmei Opera Culture Week" series within the "5th Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area Chinese Theatre Cultural Festival." Focusing on the theme of "Women's Destiny," the culture week also featured performances of "Huizhou Past" on the evening of May 25 and "Female Princess Consort" on the evening of May 27. "Huizhou Woman", a winner of the "Cao Yu Drama Award" at the China Theatre Festival and the top prize at the Sixth China Art Festival, condenses a woman's thirty-five years of waiting into four acts, transforming the resilience and endurance of Eastern women into an enduring stage imagery. "Huizhou Past", hailed as a "new aesthetic benchmark for Huangmei opera," examines the struggles of women constrained by feudal ethics. Refined over more than six decades, "Female Princess Consort" presents a female character who courageously pursues justice and true love, establishing her as a classic figure on the opera stage. In addition to the performances, Macao and Anhui jointly organized a variety of events including the opening ceremony of the inaugural 2025 Macao-Anhui Huangmei Opera Culture Week, the unveiling ceremony of the Macao Huangmei Opera Masters Studio (a collaboration between the Macao Chinese Drama Artists Association and Han Zaifen), media meet-and-greets, and campus lectures on Huangmei opera. These diverse activities not only allowed Macao audiences to appreciate authentic Huangmei opera but also fostered deeper cultural and artistic integration between Anhui and Macao. "This culture week represents a mutual effort between Macao and Anhui. Through classic productions, we aim to attract more young audiences. Culture needs to reach out; we hope to bring excellent cultural traditions to Macao, allowing more people to understand and appreciate both Huangmei opera and Huizhou culture," said Han Zaifen. Source: Anqing Evening News Department of Culture and Tourism of Anhui Province Anqing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism 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: Leiden University A cap on the number of international students at the five comprehensive Randstad universities will have a significantly negative impact on the Dutch economy. The gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to decline by approximately 4 to 5 billion euros. Regions, businesses, and society as a whole will feel the substantial economic consequences. The Randstad region, which accounts for half of the Dutch GDPthe economic value of the countrywill be hit hardest: 82% of the loss will occur here. The most affected sectors are business services (39%), financial institutions (20%), and the public sector (10%). These findings come from recent research conducted by SEO Economic Research, commissioned by Leiden University, Utrecht University, Erasmus University Rotterdam, the University of Amsterdam, and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. The SEO study highlights the need for a balanced internationalization policy, as demonstrated earlier this year by the Dutch universities in their joint self-regulation proposal. They urge political parties to incorporate these findings into the development of a National Talent Strategy, in which international students are essential for both the regions and the Randstad. International students strengthen the earning capacity of the Netherlands International students are of great value to the Dutch economy, according to SEO Economic Research. Graduates help reduce labor shortages in sectors with high demand for highly educated professionals, including business services, finance, and public sectors such as healthcare, government, and education. The duration that graduates stay in the Netherlands and contribute to the economy has increased in recent years. The retention rate of international students one year after graduation rose from 40% (cohort 20172018) to 57% (cohort 20222023). After five years, 25% still live in the Netherlands, of whom 80% have paid employment. Regions outside the Randstad also benefit through direct employment and supporting sectors. Short-term savings, long-term economic damage The cap imposed by the outgoing cabinet on international students at the comprehensive Randstad universities results in a net annual saving of 80 to 132 million euros on a total national budget of approximately 488 billion euros. This relatively small savingcomprising education funding, student finance, and social provisions (735 to 825 million euros) minus lost tax and premium revenues (603 to 745 million euros)comes at the cost of broader economic damage. The impact on the labor market, business climate, and GDP translates into a decline of 3.9 to 4.8 billion euros per year. Business climate under pressure due to loss of international talent The economic damage from fewer international students at the comprehensive Randstad universities affects not only the state budget and labor market but also the business climate. Previous research shows that reduced availability of international talent will further strain the Dutch business climate. 30% of companies employing many foreign knowledge workers are considering relocating growth plans or activities abroad if they cannot attract sufficient talent. This increases the risk of losing investments, jobs, and innovation capacity in the Netherlands. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our free newsletter and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matterdaily or weekly. Negative effects for Dutch students In addition to the economic impact, researchers also point to negative side effects of restricting internationalization policy on the quality of education for Dutch students. With fewer international students and English-taught programs, part of the international classroom disappearswhere students gain international perspectives, language skills, and intercultural competencies that prepare them for an increasingly global and diverse labor market and society. About the Report The report "Out of Balance Without Internationalization?" was conducted by SEO Economic Research on behalf of the comprehensive Randstad universities: Leiden University, Utrecht University, Erasmus University Rotterdam, University of Amsterdam, and Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam. SEO conducts independent applied economic research commissioned by government and industry. The report provides an objective, quantitative analysis of the economic impact of the "Internationalization in Balance Act" (Wet Internationalisering in BalansWIB), specifically through the restriction of international student numbers at the five comprehensive Randstad universities. It models various scenarios and shows the effects for the Netherlands of even a significant cap on international talent in the Randstad. The report underscores the need for a balanced internationalization policy. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain The Albanese government has hinted it is close to a deal with the Coalition over the long-awaited overhaul of Australia's environment laws. Environment Minister Murray Watt plans to introduce new legislation to parliament in November. Can Watt deliver what is sorely needed to turn around Australia's climate and nature crises? Or will we see a continuation of what former Treasury Secretary Ken Henry called "intergenerational bastardry?" However the bill is passed, the new laws must include substantial improvements. But with pressure from all sidesincluding the Opposition and minor parties, mining companies, green groups and big businesswill the new laws be strong enough to protect Australia's embattled environment? Here are some of the ways our environment laws should be reformed. Not fit for purpose Australia's key national environmental law, the Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act 1999 (EPBC Act), is 25 years old. Two major reviews, ten years apart in 2009 and 2020, criticized it variously as "too repetitive and unnecessarily complex" and "ineffective." At the 2022 election, the Albanese government promised to overhaul the laws. But most of its proposed reforms were abandoned in the lead up to the next election in 2025, citing a lack of parliamentary support. A strong watchdog The success or failure of the reformed laws rests on developing well-defined National Environmental Standardslegally binding rules to improve environmental outcomes. These would apply to environmental decisions that affect nationally important plants, animals, habitats and places. Examples include land clearing in areas where threatened species occur, regional planning and Indigenous consultation. Alongside strong standards, we need a well-resourced and fearlessly independent Environment Protection Agency to assess proposals, such as applications for new gas wells or to clear native vegetation for mining. A strong EPA is essential for legal compliance. The Coalition doesn't support an EPA and wants final approval powers to rest with the minister of the day. But if an EPA can be overruled by the minister, it could further reduce public confidence in the protection system, especially given recent examples of real or perceived industry pressure on government decisions. If the minister is given powers to "call in" proposals to assess them, they should be very specific and restricted. For example, for responding to national disasters but not for purely economic purposes. The reasons for calling in a decision should be published and made public. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our free newsletter and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matterdaily or weekly. Habitats are homes for wildlife and need greater protection New laws should also clarify what are considered "unacceptable impacts" of new projects. For example, irreplaceable natural areas should be saved from destruction or damage by new developments. Destroying or damaging habitats that are home to rare and endangered species should be illegal. Protected, "no-go" areas could be recorded on a register to guide project decisions, as Watt has discussed. It is vital that environmental offsets, designed to compensate for unavoidable impacts from developments, are legislated as a last resort. In 2022, Labor was talking up its plan to reform Australias broken environmental laws. Climate change The EPBC Act lacks a "climate trigger" that explicitly requires consideration of climate change impacts of greenhouse gas-intensive projects. At least ten previous attempts to introduce a climate trigger have not succeeded, and Watt has all but ruled it out in these reforms. Instead, Watt suggests "the existing Safeguard Mechanism as an effective way of controlling emissions." The Safeguard Mechanism legislates limits on greenhouse gas emissions for Australia's largest industrial facilities. But it only applies to the direct or scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions. It does not include emissions produced from Australia's fossil fuel exports of coal, oil and gas. Nearly 80% of Australia's contribution to global emissions comes from its fossil fuel exports. Even without a climate trigger, reforms to the EPBC Act must reflect the impact of climate change on Australia's environment. They could require climate to be taken into account in all decision making to achieve environmental outcomes under the Act, and prohibit development in places that offer refuge to native species during extreme events. First Nations to the front Environmental decision making must include genuine Indigenous engagement and a required standard should be part of the Act. A Commissioner for Country would help to ensure this expectation was adhered to. Furthermore, calls have been made by First Nations for new laws to include the protection of species based on their cultural significance. No more logging loopholes There must be an end to industry carve-outs, including regional forestry agreements. A pact between the national government and certain states, these agreements define how native forests should be managed, harvested and protected. For decades, they have allowed the logging of forests that are home to endangered native species, including the koala and greater glider. In 2024, Victoria and Western Australia both ended the native forestry industries in their states. In August 2025, Watt confirmed that bringing regional forest agreements under the operation of national environmental standards "remains our position." But so far he has avoided questions about how that would work in practice. Clear targets If the Labor government is serious about delivering on its promise of "No New Extinctions" these reforms must include clear targets to better protect threatened animals, plants and their environments. Preventing further extinctions will take far greater, long-term funding than Australia currently provides. We need a better understanding of how endangered species and ecological communities are faring. The newly-created Environment Information Australia body will collect data and track progress against an agreed baseline, for example the 2021 State of Environment Report. Conservation leader not pariah Australia is known globally for its unique and much-loved wildlife, and its diverse and beautiful nature places. However, in the face of enormous pressure to enable increased development, we are gaining a reputation for our gross failure to care for and conserve this extraordinary natural heritage. Australia must step up as a global leader in nature conservation through strong environmental laws and biodiversity recovery strategies. As we bid to host the UN's global climate summit COP31 next year, the eyes of the world will be on our environmental and climate ambition. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Albania experienced a summer of devastating forest fires. As Albania recovers from a summer of devastating wildfires, locals and experts are eyeing a long road back to save its shrinking forests from intensifying disasters. In some of the worst blazes to ever hit Albania, nearly 60,000 hectares (nearly 150,000 acres)or around 2% of Albania's landmassburned when blazes swept across parts of southern Europe earlier this year, according to data from the European Forest Fire Information System. For the small, developing nation, the toll was heftykilling one person, destroying dozens of homes, and reducing vital forests to ash. "Forests are very important, and they need time to regenerate," Armand Kisha told AFP, standing in the ruins of his carpentry workshop which was destroyed when fires ripped through the central Gramsh region in August. As he tries to rebuild after also losing his home and livestock, Kisha mourns the pine forest that had surrounded him since his childhood. "We won't see green pines here like before. It's a catastrophe," he said. Even as the smell of charcoal lingers, the local fire department is warning of the need to rapidly restore the forest, ahead of the wet winter months. "This natural disaster could lead to deadly floods," Ilir Llapushi, head of the Gramsh firefighting unit, said. For years, scientists have warned that the risk of damaging floods is dramatically increased after intense wildfires, as rain struggles to permeate the burned-out forest floor and flows encounter little resistance from the remaining vegetation. "We must act quickly to regenerate the forest," Llapushi said. Head of the municipal administration Arif Feimi walks in the burned forest near Gramsh. 'Compound and cascade' A 2024 World Bank report noted that Albania is one of the most at-risk European nations to climate disasters. Nearly all its regions had been affected by floods, wildfires, landslides or earthquakes in the last two decades, the report said. A boom in informal settlements across most of the Balkans during the 1990s, often built on flood-prone land, means disasters could "compound and cascade" as their frequency increases, the report stated. As Albania faces more extreme weather driven by climate change, it is essential to reform its forest management, said Abdulla Diku, a forestry engineer and researcher based in Tirana. Deforestation, reduced river flows from hydroelectric dams, and an exodus of people from rural areas were intensifying the country's wildfires and putting forests at greater risk, Diku said. "The overall situation is such that we now have at least 30% less forest than we did 20 or 25 years ago." Earlier this month, Prime Minister Edi Rama announced an action plan to revive forests. His government banned construction on land affected by the blazes, and pledged harsher penalties for arsonists. Ten people were arrested in August, accused of lighting fires. They have since been released. Kujtim Palloshi and his wife Mimoza stands in their house destroyed by a wildfire Gramsh. But Diku said that Albania was a laggard in forest restoration projects, investing the lowest amount in Europe. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our free newsletter and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matterdaily or weekly. 'Fire-filled bombs' As replanting efforts continue, locals and experts are pushing to change the type of trees in their forests. When the flames swept through the Gramsh region, they devoured the pines, whose cones turned into "fire-filled bombs," said Kujtim Palloci, a resident of the hard-hit village of Skenderbegas. Efforts to make the forests more disaster resilient are underway, according to environmental non-government organization PPNEA. Biologist Melitjan Nezaj said the NGO was working with the International Union for Conservation of Nature on implementing a restoration plan that includes mixing in tree types that better resist "extreme conditions like fires, floods, and landslides". In Gramsh, the municipality is exploring options to alternate pines with other trees, especially deciduous species. But for Palloci, the changes were too late to save his home. In less than 30 minutes, his house was reduced to ashes, his goats burned alive, and his family memoriesphotos of his childrenconsumed by fire. "This house was all we had. This house is my love, my life, my family, my hard work. This house really is everything to me." 2025 AFP This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Black mamba. Credit: Nick Evans KZN Amphibian & Reptile Conservation Black mambas (Dendroaspis polylepis) are Africa's longest, most famous venomous snakes. Despite their fearsome reputation, these misunderstood snakes are vital players in their ecosystems. They keep rodent populations in check and, in turn, help to protect crops and limit disease spread. The species ranges widely across sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal to Somalia and south into South Africa. They can adapt to many environments. Zoologist Cormac Price, in new research with professors Marc Humphries and Graham Alexander and reptile conservationist Nick Evans, found that black mambas can be indicators of heavy metal pollution. We asked him about it. How do black mambas indicate toxic pollution? It's about bioaccumulation. Bioaccumulation happens when chemicals, like pesticides or heavy metals, build up in an organism's body. These toxins come from polluted environments, from waste products of human activities like manufacturing. They pollute water or soil and gradually accumulate in plants and animals. If toxins are present in the environment, they may first be taken in by plants, and then by animals that eat the plants, and animals that eat those animals. Black mambas are quite high up the food chain, so a lot of the toxins would accumulate in their bodies. These poisonous substances can reach dangerous levels, causing health problems for whatever eats them. We tested the presence of four types of heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury) in the bodies of black mambas. All our samples were from the eThekwini Municipality (greater Durban area) in South Africa. Durban is a busy shipping container port and has a large industrial sector that includes chemicals, petrochemicals and automotive manufacturing. Alongside all this industry, the municipality also has a network of conservancies and green spaces, known as the Durban Metropolitan Open Space System. We chose to test for these metals because they are widely used in different industries and can cause drastic negative effects in the body. Mercury primarily damages the nervous system, arsenic can cause cancer and skin lesions, cadmium harms kidneys and bones and lead mainly affects brain development and blood functions. Because these metals accumulate over time and are difficult to break down, even low-level exposure can lead to chronic poisoning and long-term health problems. Black mambas appear to be doing well in Durban and taking advantage of the abundance of rodents which they eat. Wherever there is human settlement, there will be waste and discarded food which rodents take full advantage of. Black mambas can also be quite site-specific when not disturbed, living in the same refuge for many years, giving a clearer indication of pollution levels at that specific site. This makes the snakes potentially good bioindicator species. A bioindicator species is one that helps us understand the health of an environment. Because they are sensitive to changes like pollution or habitat damage, their presence, absence or condition can reveal if an ecosystem is in good condition or is experiencing increases of pollution or degradation. The pollutants can be detected and calculated from a noninvasive, harmless scale clipping. Snake scales are composed mostly of keratin, the same sort of protein that produces human hair and nails. To clip a very thin slice of snake scale is as harmless as clipping a human fingernail. We collected 31 mambas that had already been killed by vehicles, people or dogs, and tested muscle and liver samples from them for toxins. We also took scale clippings from 61 live snakes. This was the first time in Africa that a species of snake was tested to see if it could be used as an indicator species of heavy metal pollution. Discover the latest in science, tech, and space with over 100,000 subscribers who rely on Phys.org for daily insights. Sign up for our free newsletter and get updates on breakthroughs, innovations, and research that matterdaily or weekly. What did you find? We found that the heavy metal concentrations in scales correlated with those found in the muscle and liver samples. For three of the four metals, scales were as accurate for testing as muscle and liver samples. So the harmless testing method is as good as the more invasive one. For arsenic, cadmium and lead, the snakes were accumulating significantly lower concentrations of these toxins in the open, natural sites of the Durban Metropolitan Open Space System compared to more industrial and commercial areas. Mercury was less significantly different due to its more volatile nature and its capacity to travel through the environment. What made you test mamba scales in the first place? In 2020, I attended a conference on amphibians and reptiles, where a friend of mine presented his work on heavy metal pollutants in tiger snakes in the city of Perth, Australia. I've also been working with Nick Evans of KZN Amphibian & Reptile Conservation for some years, on urban reptile ecology. Nick began collecting scale clippings, and I began to realize, while looking through the literature, how novel this was on a continental scale. Snakes had never been tested as a potential bioindicator species of heavy metal pollution in Africa previously. Marc Humphries is a professor of environmental chemistry, and I was aware of his work on lead exposure in Nile crocodiles at St Lucia, a wetland in South Africa. When he expressed interest in examining the scale clippings, we were thrilled. Graham Alexander's expertise in snake behavior in general and specifically snakes in Durban was also instrumental in the success of this research. How can this help fight pollution? The fight against pollution is in the hands of the municipality and city managers. What the snakes are doing is warning us of the increasing danger these pollutants pose to environmental health and ultimately, human health. They are also showing us how important open spaces are to the overall environmental and human health of the city of Durban. The snakes are telling us a story; what people in authority decide to do with this story rests with them. More information: Marc Humphries et al, Black mambas (Dendroaspis polylepis) as novel bioindicators of urban heavy metal pollution, Environmental Pollution (2025). DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126730 Journal information: Environmental Pollution This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. World Conference on China Studies set to open in Shanghai 16:37, October 10, 2025 By Wang Xin ( Chinadaily.com.cn The second World Conference on China Studies is set to convene in Shanghai from Oct 13 to 15, with its official poster released on Friday. Hosted by the State Council Information Office and the Shanghai Municipal People's Government, the conference will gather about 500 renowned scholars and experts from home and abroad to engage in in-depth discussions and exchanges around a wide range of topics. With a main theme of "Historical and Contemporary China: A Global Perspective", the conference will dive deep into global China studies with five parallel forums, addressing China in the global context, Chinese modernization, the knowledge system of China Studies, China Studies in the era of digital intelligence, as well as the youth and future of China Studies. The conference will bridge historical and contemporary China through academic discourse, fostering exchanges on the continuity and innovation of Chinese civilization. It will explore the civilizational essence, experience, insights and global significance of the Chinese path, aiming to achieve broader consensus on the development of Sinology at deeper levels and wider dimensions. The conference also hopes to contribute to the advancement of mutual learning between Chinese and foreign civilizations. As the official publication of the conference, the inaugural issue of the bilingual journal China Studies, was officially released on Sept 26, published quarterly in both Chinese and English. The journal aims to provide a high-level academic platform for scholars from home and abroad to share, accumulate and disseminate research findings in the field of China studies. (Web editor: Huang Kechao, Liang Jun) Courage under pressure: story of female bomb disposal officer in E China Pub Date:25-10-11 10:13 Source:Xinhua Meet Liu Minrui, the only female bomb disposal officer in Tongling, east China's Anhui Province. Wearing a 35-kg suit, she defuses explosives and trains daily for precision and courage. Editor:Qin Shuying Related News Chinese female food delivery worker finds ... 'Silver trains' gain speed in China's boom... China reports surge in foreign tourists as... Goodwill campaign offers free cold drinks ... WASHINGTON (AP) President Donald Trump was passed over for the Nobel Peace Prize on Friday despite jockeying from his fellow Republicans, various world leaders and most vocally himself. Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado was awarded the prize, after she was nominated last year by a group that included then-Sen. Marco Rubio, who is now Trumps secretary of state. The Norwegian Nobel Committee said it was honoring Machado for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy. Machado, however, said she wanted to dedicate the win to Trump, along with the people of her country, as she praised the president for support of her cause. Her campaign manager Magalli Meda confirmed that Trump congratulated Machado in a phone call Friday. At the White House later, Trump listed the peace efforts hed made while in office this year something that's become a frequent habit as he appears before the media and was wistful as he spoke about Machado winning. The person who actually got the Nobel Prize called me and said, Im accepting this in honor of you because you really deserved it. he said. I didnt say, Then give it to me, he added, drawing chuckles from his advisers. I think she might have. She was very nice. He also suggested the award, which has a Feb. 1 deadline for nominations, was given out for 2024 achievements. You could also say it was given out for 24, and I was running for office in 24, Trump said. The tone from the White House was much sourer early Friday, shortly after the award was announced. White House communications director Steven Cheung said members of the Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace" because they didn't recognize Trump, especially after the Gaza ceasefire deal his administration helped strike this week. Machado's opposition to President Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela aligns with the Trump administration's own stance on Venezuela, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio previously praised her as the personification of resilience, tenacity, and patriotism. Trump, who has long coveted the prestigious prize, has been outspoken about his desire for the honor during both of his presidential terms, particularly lately as he takes credit for ending conflicts around the world. The Republican president has also expressed doubts that the Nobel committee would ever grant him the award. Although Trump received nominations for the prize, many of them occurred after the February deadline for the 2025 award, which fell just a week and a half into his second term. His name was, however, put forward in December by Republican Rep. Claudia Tenney of New York, her office said in a statement, for his brokering of the Abraham Accords, which normalized relations between Israel and several Arab states in 2020. A long history of lobbying for the prize Jrgen Watne Frydnes, chair of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said the committee has seen various campaigns in its long history of awarding the peace prize. We receive thousands and thousands of letters every year of people wanting to say what for them leads to peace, he said. This committee sits in a room filled with the portraits of all laureates, and that room is filled with both courage and integrity. So we base only our decision on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel. The peace prize, first awarded in 1901, was created partly to encourage ongoing peace efforts. Alfred Nobel stipulated in his will that the prize should go to someone who shall have done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses. Three sitting U.S. presidents have won the Nobel Peace Prize: Theodore Roosevelt in 1906, Woodrow Wilson in 1919 and Barack Obama in 2009. Jimmy Carter won the prize in 2002, a full two decades after leaving office. Former Vice President Al Gore received the prize in 2007. Obama, a Democrat who was a focus of Trump's attacks well before the Republican was elected, won the prize early in his tenure as president. They gave it to Obama for doing absolutely nothing but destroying our country, Trump said Thursday. Wars in Gaza and elsewhere As one of his reasons for deserving the award, Trump often says he has ended seven wars, though some of the conflicts the president claims to have resolved were merely tensions and his role in easing them is disputed. But while there is hope for the end to Israel and Hamas war, with Israel saying a ceasefire agreement with Hamas came into effect Friday, much remains uncertain about the aspects of the broader plan, including whether and how Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza. And little progress seems to have been made in the Russia-Ukraine war, a conflict Trump claimed during the 2024 campaign that he could end in one day. As Trump pushes for peaceful resolutions to some conflicts abroad, the country he governs remains deeply divided and politically fraught. Trump has kicked off what he hopes to be the largest deportation program in American history to remove immigrants living in the U.S. illegally. He is using the levers of government, including the Justice Department, to go after his perceived political enemies. He has sent the military into U.S. cities over local opposition to stop crime and crack down on immigration enforcement. Internationally, he also touched off global trade wars with his on-again, off-again tariffs, which he wields as a threat to bend other countries and companies to his will. He asserted presidential war powers by declaring cartels to be unlawful combatants and launching lethal strikes on boats in the Caribbean that he alleged were carrying drugs. The full list of people nominated is secret, but anyone who submits a nomination is free to talk about it. Trump's detractors say supporters, foreign leaders and others are submitting Trump's name for nomination for the prize and announcing it publicly not because he deserves it but because they see it as a way to manipulate him and stay in his good graces. Global reaction The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who this summer said he was nominating Trump for the prize, on Friday reposted Cheungs response with the comment: The Nobel Committee talks about peace. President @realDonaldTrump makes it happen. The facts speak for themselves, Netanyahu's office said on X. President #Trump deserves it. The authoritarian president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, said Trump deserved the prize and said it was sheer stupidity for him not to receive it. Lukashenko, whose government has faced sweeping Western sanctions for its brutal crackdown on critics after a contested 2020 election, had a phone call with Trump in August that sparked speculation of a possible thaw in relations. Russian President Vladimir Putin, who sent troops to Ukraine in 2022 and has sought to show alignment with Trump, told reporters in Taijikistan on Friday that its not up to him to judge whether Trump should have received the prize, but he praised the ceasefire deal for Gaza. He also criticized the Nobel Committees prior decisions, saying it has in the past awarded the prize to those who have done little to advance global peace. Putin's remarks nearly echoed the comments Trump made about Obama, and the U.S. leader responded to his Russian counterpart's praise by posting on social media, Thank you to President Putin! Others who formally submitted a nomination for Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize but after this year's deadline include Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Manet and Pakistan's government, all citing his work in helping end conflicts in their regions. National Banking Securities revokes license and starts CIBanco liquidation Mexico City, Mexico Financial regulator National Banking and Securities Commission (CNBV) has revoked CIBancos license. The revocation means authorities have started the banks liquidation process. The Institute for the Protection of Bank Savings (IPAB) reported that as a result of the revocation, its Board of Governors approved proceeding with the payment of deposits. In a statement on Friday, the IPAB (Instituto para la Proteccion al Ahorro Bancario) announced that it had authorized payments to individuals who have savings at the institution following the revocation of CIBancos license. The IPAB will begin the payment process for savers insured deposits on October 13, 2025, the institute stated. According to IPAB, CIBanco branches began closing October 10, noting that 205 will remain open for inquiries, clarifications, or requests for payment of guaranteed deposits. Its trust business has been transferred to Banco Multiva and its auto loan portfolio was sold to BanCoppel. The sale of businesses such as the brokerage firm and the corporate loan portfolio are still pending. CIBanco (Institucion de Banca Multiple) was one of three Mexican financial institutions accused of money laundering linked to fentanyl trafficking in June of this year. Intercam Banco, a second bank accused of money laundering, was acquired by Kapital Bank, while brokerage firm Vector, also accused of money laundering, transferred its client portfolio and assets to join Finamex. The revocation of CIBancos license comes just days before the expiration of the extension granted by the U.S. Treasury Department to isolate CIBanco, Intercam and the brokerage firm Vector from the financial system, a measure that will take effect on October 20. Royal Caribbean plans cleanup of already contaminated Mahahual mangroves as part of Perfect Day Mexico Mahahual, Q.R. Perfect Day Mexico representatives say Mahahual mangroves have been found already contaminated, however, they are committed to its cleanup. They made the public announcement during a press conference earlier this week ahead of submitting for permits. The press conference was held at the pier in Mahahual with Royal Caribbeans Chief Product Innovation Officer Jay Schnider and its President of Royal Caribbean Group Mexico, Adler Brotman. On Wednesday, the company announced that the 45 hectares of mangroves on the property where they will develop Perfect Day Mexico are already contaminated. During the conference, Jay Schneider explained that for years, the coastal wetlands have been used to discharge wastewater from the municipal treatment plant. He reported that the municipality currently dumps sewage into the coastal area of Mahahual, contaminating both the mangroves and the beach adjacent to the cruise ship pier. He said Royal Caribbean plans to build their own reverse osmosis system to provide drinking water as well as a treatment plant to clean up the area, which will later be transferred to the municipal government to serve the entire community. The company representatives explained that the project is based on three strategic pillars which include environmental sustainability, economic benefit and community engagement. Jay Schnider On the environmental front, Royal Caribbean has developed a comprehensive plan that includes the use of advanced technology for water treatment, responsible waste management, emissions control and restoration of natural habitats. Economically, the project promises significant benefits for Mahahual and the southern region of Quintana Roo with the estimated creation of over 3,000 direct and indirect jobs during the construction and operation phases. One of the central points of Royal Caribbeans plan is collaboration with the local community. According to Ari Adler, the project includes training and employment programs primarily aimed at Mahahual residents as well as support programs for tourism and service micro-businesses. Perfect Day Mexico wont be a standalone development but rather an integrated project that will benefit the entire area. We want the community to be an active part of this growth, Adler said. Another goal is to have 75 to 80 percent of its supply be regional which would contribute to the creation of more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs. They stressed that for now, the company is only carrying out site cleaning and that construction will not be started until all the required permits have been issued. At this time we will only carry out cleanup and debris removal tasks on existing structures within the property. No construction will be carried out without the proper environmental authorization. They also explained that the infrastructure that will make up the new complex will be built on top of existing ones. They said that the current parking lot, for example, will be demolished and transformed into a pool and that their new water park will be built on top of the existing one. Jay Schnider, left with Adler Brotman in Mahahual earlier this week. Royal Caribbean will also build a new artisian shopping village and grocery store and help rebuild surrounding roads to improve driving access to the town of Mahahual. With the opening of a new grocery store, residents will have access to fresh, local produce, while supporting regional suppliers and strengthening the local economy, he explained. The press conference was initially meant to be an outdoor tour of the companys newly acquired property, however, due to heavy rain, an inside briefing was held instead. Jay Schnider According to Schnider, the Perfect Day Mahahual environmental impact statement (Manifestacion de Impacto Ambiental MIA) will be submitted next month for assessment by the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (Semarnat). Schneider says the company will submit their environmental impact statement (MIA) in October and estimates a review and approval process of between four to six months. We are committed to meeting every technical, social and environmental requirement before beginning construction. This project represents a historic opportunity for Mahahual and also a great responsibility to its natural environment and community, Schneider stated during the media presentation at the Costa Maya pier. The completed Royal Caribbean Perfect Day Mexico Mahahual park will include first-class tourism infrastructure and a revamped cruise port capable of receiving state-of-the-art ships that will strengthen Mahahuals position as a key destination in the Mexican Caribbean. Sign up for the Surge, the newsletter that covers most important political nonsense of the week, delivered to your inbox every Saturday. Welcome to this weeks edition of the Surge, a newsletter that would like to console President Donald Trump for losing the Nobel Peace Prize. The Surge has been there, bud. Buck up, put in the offseason work, and youll be right there for 2026. The government has been shut down long enough that weve found a way to blame Jeffrey Epstein for it. In the governments absence (RIP government), weve got some elections to talk about. Plus, another indictment of someone the president doesnt like. Cool? Lets start with an old pal. 1. Marjorie Taylor Greene Democrats new Republican best friend. The Georgia congresswoman whom Democrats spent years portraying as the wild-eyed manifestation of the MAGA fringe is suddenly singing a new tune. Greene has broken with her party and Trump on a number of high-profile occasions this year, calling the situation in Gaza a genocide and criticizing Trumps bombing of Iran. In perhaps her most high-profile move, she was one of a few Republicans to sign the House discharge petition forcing a vote to release all the Epstein files. That, especially, is not going over well with the White House. As if the trend-piece sirens werent already blaring in newsrooms, Greene made another splash this week when she defended extending expiring Obamacare subsidies, the very issue over which Democrats are waging this shutdown. When the tax credits expire this year my own adult childrens insurance premiums for 2026 are going to DOUBLE, she wrote in a long post, along with all the wonderful families and hard-working people in my district. She noted that it is absolutely shameful, disgusting, and traitorous, that our laws and policies screw the American people so much that the government is shut down right now fighting over basic issues like this, and warned that Republicans had no plan to combat spiking health insurance premiums. Even after Chuck Schumer and Hakeem Jeffries made Greene the centerpiece of their talking points, Greene kept going. In a surreal episode, she went on CNN, in person, to trash her party to Wolf Blitzer. Youre a courageous politician, but more important, a loving mother, Blitzer told her. We did not see any of this coming. Advertisement 2. Jay Jones A proper October surprise. Jay Jones isas of this writingthe Democratic nominee for Virginia attorney general, running against incumbent Republican AG Jason Miyares. Ten or so days ago, Jones, a former state lawmaker, was in strong shape to win the race, as these off-year Virginia elections trend toward the party that doesnt hold the White House. Last week, though, National Review reported on texts from 2022 in which Jones made jokes to a fellow state lawmaker about shooting the Republican state speaker, Todd Gilbert, among other sick thoughts. There were quite a few errors in judgment on Jones behalf, here. One specific piece of advice, though: If youre planning a run for statewide office in a couple years but you simply have to send sicko texts, dont send them to someone from the other party. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement With ballots set and early voting underway, theres no clean way for Jones to bow out of the race now. Polls in the last couple of days have shown him taking a serious hit, perhaps even vaulting Miyares into the lead. The bigger question is what effect, if any, this has on the top of the ticket. Republicans are trying to tie the Jones scandal to Democratic gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger, who has denounced Jones comments but stayed short of withdrawing her support. And, more broadly, theyre trying to fit this into the post-Charlie-Kirk-assassination argument that Democrats have a violence problem. Its clear enough that Jones is in a true fight now for his own race. But as far as the governors race, Virginia has bigger things to worry about in the Trump era than Jay Jones texts from 2022. Advertisement 3. Letitia James The revenge indictment tour continues. On Thursday, New York Attorney General Letitia James was federally indicted for being a political opponent of Donald Trump. Technically, she was indicted for bank fraud relating to alleged hanky-panky on a mortgage application. But her deciding to rent out a property is not why this happened. Career prosecutors in the Eastern District of Virginia, after studying the case and doing interviews for months, found nothing worthwhile. The prosecutor overseeing major criminal cases there found nothing, and might get fired, just like the previous EDVA U.S. attorney, Erik Siebert, was. Ultimately Sieberts replacement, Florida insurance lawyer Lindsey Halligan, went ahead with the case anyway, because Trump wanted revenge on the person who prosecuted him for fraud for lying about how rich he was. It was Halligan, after a similar sequence of ignoring career prosecutors, who secured the indictment of former FBI Director Jim Comey a couple of weeks ago. Comey was arraigned this week and pleaded not guilty, while his lawyer announced that he would seek the cases dismissal on the grounds of being vindictive and selective. We dont know how judges evaluate such things, but YA THINK? The president publicly ordered his attorney general to put Halligan in the job so that she would prosecute people he doesnt like! Speaking of that: The Wall Street Journal reported this week that the infamous Trump post addressed to Pam delivering that order was, in fact, supposed to be a direct message. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement 4. Russ Vought A new law to ignore. In 2019, Congress passed and Trump signed into law the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act, stating that each employee of the United States Government furloughed as a result of a covered lapse in appropriations shall be paid for the period of the lapse in appropriations. After previous lapses in appropriationsshutdownsCongress would have to pass a law to provide back pay for furloughed employees. GEFTA was implemented to make that back pay automatic upon the reopening of the government. But Office of Management and Budget Director Russ Vought, who suffers from delirium tremens if he goes more than a few days without threatening the livelihoods of the federal civil service, isnt so sure about this law. As Axios first reported this week, Vought sought and received a draft memo from OMBs general counsel finding textual wiggle room in the law. The memo concluded that Congress still needs to pass express language appropriating funds for back pay for furloughed employees, or such payments cannot be made. The key word in this paragraph, however, is draft memo. While Vought enjoys throwing around a good threat, forgoing backpay for furloughed federal employees isnt popular on Capitol Hill, and is something that Cabinet and agency heads looking to maintain workforce morale might object to as well. This didnt rattle Senate Democrats resolve at all. Well see if the layoffs that Vought finally announced on Friday will. Advertisement 5. Adelita Grijalva The long-prophesied Jeffrey Epstein angle to the shutdown. For the second week in a row, Speaker Mike Johnson has kept the House chamber out of town. We get the macrostrategy. The House has passed its bill extending government funding and is trying to keep the pressure on the Senate to pass it. Reconvening would be a form of negotiation in and of itself, and they dont feel thats necessary. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement But theres another theory about why Johnson is keeping the members away and, like all theories, it involves Jeffrey Epstein. Once the House is back in session, Johnson will swear in Democratic Rep.-elect Adelita Grijalva, who won a special election on Sept. 23 to fill her late fathers Arizona seat. And as soon as Grijalva is sworn in, shes going to sign the shit out of the Epstein files discharge petition, giving it the necessary 218 signatures to force a vote. Keeping the House away, then, gives the White House and Republican leadership more time to pressure Greene and three other Republicans to withdraw their signatures from the petition. Johnson says that his actions in keeping the House away, and refusing to swear in Grijalva until the House is back, have nothing to do with Epstein. But it kind of seems like they have a little bit to do with Epstein, right? Maybe more than a little bit, no? Advertisement 6. Katie Porter Virality cuts both ways. The former Orange County Democratic congresswoman, whos running for governor of California, built her reputation among progressive activists with viral videos of herself using a whiteboard during congressional hearings. This week, she went viral for all the wrong reasons. First, she threatened to walk out of an interview because she didnt find the reporters questions and follow-ups pleasant enough of an experience. Its an agonizing watch. Shortly thereafteronce the knives were outPolitico posted a 2021 video of her berating a staffer to get out of my fucking shot! during a recorded video conversation with the energy secretary. Porter had a reputation during her time in Congress for this sort of behavior toward her staff. Surely theres more to come. The Surge never quite got it with Porter, perhaps because committee-room prop gimmicks arent really our thing. She had a solid win in 2018, flipping a red district (that was trending leftward fast as the Democratic Party became more suburban and upscale). But she underperformed in subsequent reelections in 2020 and 2022, and then burned a mountain of cash to come in a distant third place in the California Senate race in 2024. After that experience, she whined about how the contest was rigged. Dont love it, never did! Anyway, there goes our chance to score an interview with her (that she would walk out of). Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement 7. Wesley Hunt Coming soon to Texas: More ad spending. The GOP Senate primary in Texas is getting Texas-sizedi.e., increasing from two to three major candidates. State Attorney General Ken Paxton, the MAGA survivor of an impeachment attempt and federal and state criminal investigations, had announced a primary challenge to Sen. John Cornyn, who has a couple of times expressed displeasure with Trump and worked on bipartisan gun control legislation. Cornyn was in a deep hole in polling at first, but had tightened the gap by September after outside groups spent $20 million propping him up. Well, good news: Now everyone gets to spend more! Rep. Wesley Hunt, a two-term member from Houston, joined the race this week. Hes presenting himself as an above-the-fray option whos MAGA, but without Paxtons baggage. What this means in practicality is that now Cornyns establishment allies will have to dump a lot of money into a three-way race to carry Cornyn through a likely runoff. That frustration was evident in Mondays statements from Cornyns allies. Now that Wesley has chosen personal ambition over holding President Trumps House Majority there will be a full vetting of his record, the National Republican Senatorial Committee said. Its unfortunate that Wesley Hunt has decided to abandon President Trumps efforts to protect the House majority and instead pursue his personal ambitions, the Senate Leadership Fund, the main Senate GOP super PAC, said. As you can tell by these statements, and as you already know having been awake for the last decade, Trumps endorsement will be crucial in this primary. Three-year-old trotter Greenma, second by a nose to divisional leader Emoticon Legacy in his Hambletonian elimination, found the company in the featured $18,750 conditioned trot for non-winners of five races much more to his liking, as he won as trainer/driver Trond Smedshammer pleased in 1:54.4. Smedshammer kept Greenma steady into the first turn then sent him up quickly, gaining the lead and putting up early numbers of :29.1 and :58.2. The competition began to melt one by one as Greenma went to the three-quarters in 1:26.3. As he turned for home, he had a 3-1/2-length lead, which remained intact to the wire with Santa Cristina and Manoah rounding out the top three. A Greenshoe-Ma Was Right gelding, Greenma now has five wins and five seconds in 15 seasonal starts and surpassed the $200,000 mark in career earnings for owner Purple Haze Stable of Fairport, New York. In the $18,056 trot for fast-class performers, the three-year-old Walner-Speak To Me filly Walspea, second in the Hambletonian Oaks, exceed the specifications of the developmental trot and thus have to race against more seasoned performers. And she defeated them, too, in 1:53.4, giving Smedshammer and Purple Haze a feature double (this one is co-owned by M3 Racing Stable of Berlin, Ohio). Mr Bluebird, in search of his fifth straight win, flew to the early lead, made the quarter in :27.2 then backed the half off to :57.1. Favourite Usain Hanover made a big move in early backstretch but then jumped it off, giving Smedshammer a chance to move his filly outside before the 1:25.4 third pole. Though Mr Bluebird held strongly in the :28 last quarter, Walspea earned a 1-1/2-length decision to raise her lifetime earnings over $380,000. There were three $16,667 races for the non-winners of three races class, two on the trot and one for pacing fillies. In the faster of the trots, the freshman Tactical Landing-Amber Ella colt Southwind Alamo took on older foes and made it look easy, grinding to the lead and then drawing off to a clear 1:56 victory. Johnathan Ahle had the sulky duty for trainer Ron Coyne Jr. and the ownership of Coyne And Pachuta Stable of Allentown, New Jersey, Blair Corbeil of Leduc, Alta., Richard Carney of Hartsdale, New York and Mike McAllister of Beaumont, Alta. In the other division of the sub-feature trot for developing horses, the Bar Hopping-Dab Hanover sophomore filly Demarara Hanover kept grinding uncovered, made the lead in the stretch, then held off the late-charging Berry Good News to win by a half-length in 1:59. Corey Callahan was in the sulky for trainer Ron Burke and the partnership of Burke Racing Stable of Fredericktown, Pennsylvania, Knox Services of Mt. Vernon, Ohio, Fac Racing of Scarsdale, New York and Jandt Silva - Purnel And Libby of Ocean Ridge, Florida. In the section of this class for pacing distaffs, another two-year-old proved victorious: JK Fierce Lady, a daughter of Captaintreacherous and JK First Lady (whos a daughter of Horse of the Year JK Shesalady). Her pedigree came through in her race, in which she was put on the lead just past the quarter by George Napolitano Jr. and had more than enough to keep pocket-sitting Make It Right a length at bay under the wire in 1:54.4. JK Fierce Lady is trained by Nancy Takter for 3 Brothers Stable of NEw York City, New York. Corey Callahan took sulky honours on the day with three successful steers while two-time driving winners were Tony Morgan, Trond Smedshammer and Ake Svanstedt. The two Scandinavians both sent out a pair of winners from their barns. Harrahs Philadelphia will be back racing on Sunday at 12:40 p.m. Racing will continue on Friday at 12:25 p.m. and Sunday at 12:40 p.m. next week, and then Thursday will be re0added to the mix with post time at 12:25 p.m. (With files from PHHA/Harrah's Philadelphia) Batavia Downs held its annual breast cancer awareness fundraiser on Friday, Oct. 10 in partnership with the Breast Cancer Coalition of Rochester (New York), which has become a major function of the organization's yearly calendar. The 2024 event raised in excess of $25,000 and the hope is to surpass that amount again this year. Among the many activities that were conducted during the sold out event to raise funds and awareness to fight this dreaded disease, the fifth race was named the $10,417 Breast Cancer Awareness Pace and featured horses from seven female trainers who were invited to enter. And the race was won by Mateo who is trained by Jami Chatt. Drew Monti sent Mateo right to the front and turned back all comers from the start. After getting to the half in :59.4, Mateo took on challenges from Mason Street (Dave McNeight III) and Barry Hanover (Justin Huckabone) from the three-quarters to the line, but fought hard for the cause to fend them off and won by a length in 1:58.3. A former O'Brien Award finalist who also made headlines for his prowess despite only having one eye, Mateo picked up his 31ist career win to push the 11-year-old gelded son of Blue Burners career bankroll over $455,000. Chatt also co-owns Mateo with his driver, Drew Monti. The other trainers in the race were (from post one out) Lynn Fisher, Courtney Wright, Judy Blaun, Ann Yurenka, Cassandra Johnson and Sophie Norton. There were also a lot of other lady trainers who sent out winners all night long at Batavia Downs including Sheena Cohen (Brookview Darius-1:58.3, $4.36), Maria Rice (Munk-1:59.1, $6.80), Tammy Cummings (My One Percent 1:59.4, $19.30 and Always Choose Chip 1:58.4, $2.28), Mae Smith (Huntsville Place 1:58.2, $8.72), Candace Brandstatter-Hall (Grinder 1:59.4, $9.78) and Taylor Fritz, (Starlitcresentroll-1:58.3, $13.26). Kyle Swift led all drivers Friday with three wins on the card while trainers Tammy Cummings and Chris Petrelli scored two wins apiece to lead their category. The $5,000 guaranteed pool in the Pick-5 wager on Friday turned out to be a major score for some lucky punters. The combination of 1-4-2-6-2 returned $1,972.61 for the 50-cent wager. Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Oct. 11) with post time at 6:00 p.m. and there will be a $2,630 carryover in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta in the 12th race. (with files from Batavia) The Ontario Harness Horse Association (OHHA) has announced that its annual membership meeting will take place on Wednesday, Oct. 22. The meeting will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Forest Room at the Flamborough Baptist Church, located at 41 Concession 5 Road East in Waterdown, Ont. The agenda for the meeting is as follows: 1) CALL TO ORDER 2) INTRODUCTION OF DIRECTORS 3) INTRODUCTION OF 2025 OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE 4) PRESIDENTS REMARKS 5) APPROVAL OF 2024 ANNUAL MEETING MINUTES 6) APPROVAL OF AUDITED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 7) APPOINTMENT OF 2025 AUDITOR 8) GENERAL MANAGERS REMARKS 9) OTHER BUSINESS 10) ADJOURNMENT (Standardbred Canada) Standardbred Canada (SC) would like to advise members that its main office in Mississauga, Ont. will be closed on Monday, Oct. 13 in observance of Thanksgiving. The office will resume regular operating hours on Tuesday, Oct. 14. Standardbred Canada would like to wish everyone a safe and enjoyable holiday weekend. (Standardbred Canada) 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 Some of the world's biggest tech firms have soared in value over the last year. As AI evolves at pace, there are hopes that it will improve lives in ways that people could never have imagined a decade agoin sectors as diverse as health care, employment and scientific discovery. OpenAI is now worth US$500 billion (373 billion), compared with US$157 billion last October. Another firm, Anthropic, has almost trebled its valuation. But the Bank of England has now warned of a possible rapid "correction" due to its concerns about these staggering valuation rises. The question is whether these values are realisticor based on hype, excitement and unfounded optimism for the potential of AI. Put simply, is AI's value today a product of what AI will do in future or what people hope it may do? Ultimately, we will only really know if it's a bubble if it burststhough the warning signs are evident today. With hindsight, many things that happen in a bubble may sound exceedingly optimistic. If you take many headlines and replace the word AI with the word computers it often sounds a lot more naive. But, predicting the path of technological change is hard. Back in 2000, the Daily Mail declared the internet could be a passing fad. Just a few months earlier the dotcom boom had peaked. A burst bubble may not change the end of the journey. The internet was not a passing fad. However, bubbles are extremely disruptive and affect people in very real ways. Stocks fall, pensions suffer, unemployment rises and investment is wasted. Real potential is crowded out in the hype and mania to focus all investment in a small number of stocks and firms. Right now, we have the first sign of a bubblea rapid rise in valuations. If these correct and fall we will have a bubble. If these valuations continue to rise we could be seeing a new sustained market that is focused on the technology of the future. Of course, it might be that these valuations plateau. What happens then depends on whether people have invested in the belief that prices will always rise. Consider a situation where people believeas the Bank of England doesthat AI firms' valuations may be "stretched." It's helpful to consider what these valuations are based on. Investment is simply a bet that AI increases profitability for the firms involved. These massive valuations are bets that AI will hugely increase future profitability. In some cases, these are bets that AI will improve in capabilities towards some kind of "artificial superintelligence" that can do everything a human can door more. This could raise the living standards of everyone on Earth. Leading computer scientist Stuart Russell estimates the value of that at US$14 quadrillioninvestors are buying a claim on that outcome too. If investors begin to fear that AI profits won't materialize, then they will try to get their money back. This realization can appear quite suddenly and can be prompted by seemingly minor events. It doesn't require a big needle to pop a bubble. A US article published in March 2000 warned that internet companies were fast running out of money. This caused many people to rethink their investments At this stage of the bubble, investment excitement had spread to everyday investors. These regular people balanced their fear of missing out with a fear that they were investing in something new that they didn't know much about. For many, an article in a popular magazine suggesting they may have made a mistake tipped the scales towards caution. They began to sell their dotcom stocks. In search of profit It may come as a surprise to some that, despite its increasing valuations, OpenAI does not yet make a profit. It may require ten times more revenue to do so. A US$500 billion valuation is quite something for a company that reportedly lost US$7.8 billion in the first half of this year. Some of this value appears to flow from a new deal between OpenAI and Nvidia where Nvidia will invest in OpenAI and OpenAI will buy Nvidia chips. This circular financing keeps everything afloat for now, but at some point investors will need to see returns. AI firms more generally do not appear to be profitable at the moment. Investors are not putting their money into today's lossesthey are betting on an AI future. It is of course perfectly feasible that AI firms will develop business models to increase their profitability. OpenAI is exploring advertising options and allowing chatbots to recommend products. Using AI to deliver these messages is a viable option, though they will have to avoid the tricks and manipulations associated with online platforms, such as when hotel websites announce that rooms are about to sell out. We believe that AI can increase the power of these manipulations and we wonder how persuasive chatbots may be in their recommendations. However, the big fourMeta, Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazonare this year spending the equivalent of the GDP of Portugal on AI infrastructure. This is not investment in new targeted ads, it is investment in an AI future. The bubble will burst if and when this future is in doubt. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies . Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain A proposed constellation of satellites has astronomers very worried. Unlike satellites that reflect sunlight and produce light pollution as an unfortunate byproduct, the ones by US startup Reflect Orbital would produce light pollution by design. The company promises to produce "sunlight on demand" with mirrors that beam sunlight down to Earth so solar farms can operate after sunset. It plans to start with an 18-meter test satellite named Earendil-1 which the company has applied to launch in 2026. It would eventually be followed by about 4,000 satellites in orbit by 2030, according to the latest reports. So how bad would the light pollution be? And perhaps more importantly, can Reflect Orbital's satellites even work as advertised? Bouncing sunlight In the same way you can bounce sunlight off a watch face to produce a spot of light, Reflect Orbital's satellites would use mirrors to beam light onto a patch of Earth. But the scale involved is vastly different. Reflect Orbital's satellites would orbit about 625km above the ground, and would eventually have mirrors 54 meters across. When you bounce light off your watch onto a nearby wall, the spot of light can be very bright. But if you bounce it onto a distant wall, the spot becomes largerand dimmer. This is because the sun is not a point of light, but spans half a degree in angle in the sky. This means that at large distances, a beam of sunlight reflected off a flat mirror spreads out with an angle of half a degree. What does that mean in practice? Let's take a satellite reflecting sunlight over a distance of roughly 800kmbecause a 625km-high satellite won't always be directly overhead, but beaming the sunlight at an angle. The illuminated patch of ground would be at least 7km across. Even a curved mirror or a lens can't focus the sunlight into a tighter spot due to the distance and the half-degree angle of the sun in the sky. Would this reflected sunlight be bright or dim? Well, for a single 54 meter satellite it will be 15,000 times fainter than the midday sun, but this is still far brighter than the full moon. The balloon test Last year, Reflect Orbital's founder Ben Nowack posted a short video which summarized a test with the "last thing to build before moving into space". It was a reflector carried on a hot air balloon. In the test, a flat, square mirror roughly 2.5 meters across directs a beam of light down to solar panels and sensors. In one instance the team measures 516 watts of light per square meter while the balloon is at a distance of 242 meters. For comparison, the midday sun produces roughly 1,000 watts per square meter. So 516 watts per square meter is about half of that, which is enough to be useful. However, let's scale the balloon test to space. As we noted earlier, if the satellites were 800km from the area of interest, the reflector would need to be 6.5km by 6.5km42 square kilometers. It's not practical to build such a giant reflector, so the balloon test has some limitations. So what is Reflect Orbital planning to do? Reflect Orbital's plan is "simple satellites in the right constellation shining on existing solar farms". And their goal is only 200 watts per square meter20% of the midday sun. Can smaller satellites deliver? If a single 54 meter satellite is 15,000 times fainter than the midday sun, you would need 3,000 of them to achieve 20% of the midday sun. That's a lot of satellites to illuminate one region. Another issue: satellites at a 625km altitude move at 7.5 kilometers per second. So a satellite will be within 1,000km of a given location for no more than 3.5 minutes. This means 3,000 satellites would give you a few minutes of illumination. To provide even an hour, you'd need thousands more. Reflect Orbital isn't lacking ambition. In one interview, Nowack suggested 250,000 satellites in 600km high orbits. That's more than all the currently catalogued satellites and large pieces of space junk put together. And yet, that vast constellation would deliver only 20% of the midday sun to no more than 80 locations at once, based on our calculations above. In practice, even fewer locations would be illuminated due to cloudy weather. Additionally, given their altitude, the satellites could only deliver illumination to most locations near dusk and dawn, when the mirrors in low Earth orbit would be bathed in sunlight. Aware of this, Reflect Orbital plan for their constellation to encircle Earth above the day-night line in sun-synchronous orbits to keep them continuously in sunlight. Bright lights So, are mirrored satellites a practical means to produce affordable solar power at night? Probably not. Could they produce devastating light pollution? Absolutely. In the early evening it doesn't take long to spot satellites and space junkand they're not deliberately designed to be bright. With Reflect Orbital's plan, even if just the test satellite works as planned, it will sometimes appear far brighter than the full moon. A constellation of such mirrors would be devastating to astronomy and dangerous to astronomers. To anyone looking through a telescope the surface of each mirror could be almost as bright as the surface of the sun, risking permanent eye damage. The light pollution will hinder everyone's ability to see the cosmos and light pollution is known to impact the daily rhythms of animals as well. Although Reflect Orbital aims to illuminate specific locations, the satellites' beams would also sweep across Earth when moving from one location to the next. The night sky could be lit up with flashes of light brighter than the moon. The company did not reply to The Conversation about these concerns within deadline. However, it told Bloomberg this week it plans to redirect sunlight in ways that are "brief, predictable and targeted", avoiding observatories and sharing the locations of the satellites so scientists can plan their work. The consequences would be dire It remains to be seen whether Reflect Orbital's project will get off the ground. The company may launch a test satellite, but it's a long way from that to getting 250,000 enormous mirrors constantly circling Earth to keep some solar farms ticking over for a few extra hours a day. Still, it's a project to watch. The consequences of success for astronomersand anyone else who likes the night sky darkwould be dire. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. Former president of the Fyzabad Chamber of Commerce, Angie Jairam, has been appointed as the As Viet Nam's e-commerce sector grows rapidly, cross-border e-commerce has been identified as a strategic pillar, offering a golden opportunity for Vietnamese goods to gain a stronger foothold on international trade and enhance the nation's competitiveness within the global value chain. The country's e-commerce market reached over US$25 billion last year, marking a year-on-year growth of 20 per cent, said Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Phan Thi Thang. This accounted for approximately 10 per cent of the countrys total retail and consumer service revenue, securing Viet Nam's position among the top three largest e-commerce markets in Southeast Asia. With this strong momentum, many Vietnamese brands and local products have established themselves on domestic platforms and are now expanding to international markets through global platforms, according to Thang. Cross-border e-commerce is not only a key trend for businesses -- it is a strategic driver for national exports, and has now been integrated into the Government's GoGlobal Plan. The global cross-border e-commerce market was valued at $791.5 billion last year and is forecast to grow by more than 30 per cent over the coming years. Vietnamese businesses are expanding their online presence in key markets like the US, China, the EU, Japan, and South Korea, while also exploring new potential markets in ASEAN, the Middle East, Russia, and Australia. Digital export strategy Under the National E-commerce Development Master Plan for the 2026-2030 period, cross-border e-commerce has been designated as a key strategic pillar. The goal is to build a sustainable digital export ecosystem, boost the international competitiveness of Vietnamese businesses and help Vietnamese goods reach further across the global trade map, according to Thang. To achieve this vision, the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Vietnam E-commerce and Digital Economy Agency will implement a range of coordinated solutions. These include improving policies and institutions, providing training and capacity-building support for businesses, connecting them with major global e-commerce platforms and coordinating closely with Vietnamese trade offices abroad to promote exports through e-commerce channels. Nguyen Thi Hoai An, vice president of the Global Alliance for Cross-Border E-Commerce and chairwoman of ACBC Viet Nam, told the Nhan Dan (The People) newspaper that she believed cross-border e-commerce was not just a new platform for global trade, but also an "extended arm" of globalisation, allowing products, value and knowledge to flow without borders. An said she considered this a "golden moment for Viet Nam to break through", citing strategic advantages such as a favourable geographical location to become a regional logistics hub, abundant resources, a young workforce, and rapidly advancing digital transformation capability. She noted that cross-border e-commerce had helped Vietnamese goods gain a presence in international markets and created opportunities to export knowledge and services, shaping Viet Nam's national brand on the global trade map. An advised Vietnamese businesses to prepare thoroughly in several key areas. First, products must meet high quality standards, have a clear brand story and be managed through professional processes. She also stressed that companies should not focus solely on processing or manufacturing for foreign partners, but should build their own unique brands to establish a strong market position. Another crucial strategy would be to adopt a direct-to-consumer (D2C) sales model, which helps products reach buyers faster while building a stronger bond and greater trust. Finally, using modern technology to ensure transparent product traceability and obtaining reputable international certifications could help build solid trust with global consumers. E-commerce logistics network According to inh Thanh Son, deputy general director of ViettelPost, logistics is the backbone of e-commerce. ViettelPost is heavily investing in infrastructure, technology and operational systems to shorten delivery times, optimise costs and enhance service quality, helping Vietnamese goods access international markets faster and more efficiently. Viet Nam is increasingly solidifying its position in the global supply chain. Major logistics corporations like DHL, FedEx and UPS have been in Viet Nam for decades, establishing direct networks to the US, Europe and Northeast Asia. Meanwhile, domestic companies like ViettelPost are expanding their logistics networks to communes and craft villages. Deep-water port infrastructure is another significant advantage. From Cai Mep Thi Vai, goods can reach the US in just 16 days and Europe in 21 days. In terms of air transport, direct flights to the US, Japan and South Korea have significantly reduced international e-commerce delivery times. Land routes are also crucial, with thousands of container trucks crossing borders daily at checkpoints like Huu Nghi, Mong Cai, Lao Cai, and Moc Bai, connecting directly to China and the Mekong region, which has a population of nearly 1.4 billion. Son said he believed that with a clear strategic vision and strong determination, Viet Nam could quickly become a crucial and reliable link in the global supply chain. "Made in Viet Nam" products would likely appear on more online shopping channels worldwide and could become a symbol of quality, he said. At the same time, global platforms like Amazon Global Selling, Shopee and domestic tech companies like Yugeeks and Torus AI are supporting Vietnamese businesses by providing solutions in management, marketing, logistics and AI. These solutions aim to optimise the supply chain, enhance customer experience and scale up exports. VNS HAI PHONG The Viet Nam China Friendship Association of Hai Phong city, alongside the China Business Association in Viet Nam and relevant agencies, co-hosted the countries' 2025 friendship exchange in the northern port city on Friday. Vice Chairman of the municipal Peoples Committee Hoang Minh Cuong, in his address, highlighted Hai Phongs history of vibrant people-to-people exchanges. This years event, focused on people-to-people diplomacy and business connectivity, underscores the vitality and potential of cooperation with Chinese partners, he said, stressing its role in reinforcing traditional friendship, exploring new collaboration areas, and fostering a community of shared prosperity in the city. Hai Phong considers cooperation with Chinese localities and enterprises one of its top priorities in external relations and investment promotion, he said. According to him, the city now maintains cooperative ties with six Chinese localities and has welcomed numerous delegations from major Chinese firms and business associations in recent years, thus further deepening people-to-people, locality-to-locality, and business ties between Hai Phong and China. Hai Phong now hosts 1,737 foreign-invested projects worth US$50.3 billion from 44 countries and territories. Of these, 769 projects valued at $12.77 billion come from China, representing over a quarter of the citys total foreign direct investment inflows. Investors praised Hai Phongs strides in administrative reform, investment attraction, and its crucial role in advancing Viet Nam China co-operation. Cao Ping, General Director of ADHES Vietnam Packaging Technology Co., Ltd., described Hai Phong as a key port city and gateway to northern Viet Nam, boasting a strategic location, strong industrial potential, and a promising market outlook. She added that local authorities have shown utmost efforts in streamlining administrative processes and improving the business environment, with approvals now processed more swiftly. This reflects Hai Phongs firm commitment to supporting the business community, she said. VNS HA NOI Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien and Singaporean Minister-in-Charge of Energy, and Science and Technology in the Ministry of Trade and Industry Tan See Leng have agreed to continue close coordination in implementing key areas of cooperation, particularly in energy, industry, trade, and science and technology. The two ministers held talks in Ha Noi on October 10 as part of Tans trip to attend the 19th Viet NamSingapore Connectivity Ministerial Meeting. They noted that bilateral economic and trade relations have continued to develop substantively and comprehensively, forming a key pillar of the Viet NamSingapore bilateral relationship. A major focus of the meeting was the proposed renewable energy export project from Vietnam to Singapore. Both sides discussed options for direct transmission between the two countries as well as indirect connections through a third country. Dien underlined the projects strategic significance, not only for the bilateral ties but also for the formation of an integrated ASEAN power grid. Viet Nams revised Power Development Plan VIII sets a target of exporting 510GW of electricity to Singapore, Malaysia, and other partners by 2035, while ensuring economic efficiency and energy security. The two sides agreed to work closely at the technical level to develop legal, financial, and technical frameworks for the project, and to explore the establishment of interconnection agreements among Vietnam, Malaysia, and Singapore in the near future. The ministers also welcomed progress in negotiations on a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on rice trade between the two governments. Dien said the signing of the MoU would help strengthen Singapores food security while expanding a stable, long-term market for Vietnamese rice. Both sides agreed to accelerate procedures to soon sign the MoU. Dien also called on Singapore to increase imports of other Vietnamese agricultural products such as seafood, coffee, tea, and fresh fruits, while enhancing information sharing on standards, quality control, and food safety, as well as conducting professional exchanges to facilitate trade in agricultural products. The two ministers agreed to promote industrial collaboration in electronics, semiconductors, smart energy, and liquefied natural gas (LNG), and to share experience in e-commerce, SME development, digital economy, and innovation. Vietnam proposed Singapore support the development of a Halal industrial park in the country and help expand market access for Vietnamese goods, especially those under the Vietnam Value national brand, within Singapores retail and supply chains. They also concurred to strengthen cooperation in policy research and industrial development planning through collaboration between the Viet Nam Institute of Strategy and Policy for Industry and Trade and Singapores Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy. Focus will be placed on renewable energy, green transition, supporting industries, and sustainable trade. Tan expressed strong support for his Vietnamese counterparts proposals and affirmed that he would direct Singapores relevant agencies to continue close coordination with the Vietnamese side. According to Viet Nams Ministry of Industry and Trade, Singapore remains a key economic partner, ranking as Viet Nams fourth-largest trading partner within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and its second-largest foreign investor. Bilateral trade has maintained steady growth, reaching US$8.8 billion in the first nine months of 2025, up 14.1 per cent year-on-year. Viet Nams exports to Singapore were valued at $4.34 billion, a 9.7 per cent increase, while imports from Singapore rose 18.7 per cent to $4.46 billion over the same period last year. VNA/VNS Nguyen Duy Anh, general secretary of the Global Network for Vietnamese Language and Culture Teaching, and head of the Vietnamese Association in Fukuoka City, Japan, spoke about the network's launch on September 29 and the growing need for upholding the traditional culture among the over 6 million overseas Vietnamese. As the founder of the Global Network for Vietnamese Language and Culture Teaching, could you elaborate on the initiative? I have been living in Japan for 20 years and am currently the Principal of the GAG Japanese Language Academy in Fukuoka. Throughout this period, Ive always asked myself: What can I do to preserve Vietnamese culture and language for future generations? That very question inspired me to dedicate myself to teaching Vietnamese to the children of overseas Vietnamese families. In fact, since 2019, weve been running the first Vietnamese language class in Fukuoka. Then came the pandemic, and it seemed everything would come to a halt. But in the midst of those challenges, thanks to the invaluable support of the Consulate General of Viet Nam in Fukuoka, especially Consul General Vu Chi Mai, and the solidarity of the Vietnamese community, we were able to reset and rebuild the class from scratch. It was during that time that I felt more deeply than ever the love for the Vietnamese language and the power of community connection. The classes were reopened, completely free of charge. From teachers and facilities to textbooks, everything was provided in the spirit of volunteerism. Building on that foundation, and with the official support of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese, along with the collaboration of many intellectuals and dedicated teachers from the Vietnamese diaspora across five continents, the Global Network for Vietnamese Language Teaching came into being. The network operates on three core principles: volunteerism, sharing and spreading. The coordinating board includes regional representatives from Europe, North America, Asia, and Australia, a specialised committee responsible for curriculum and teaching methodology and a communications team to connect and share information. While most activities are conducted online, we regularly organise seminars, training sessions and workshops, maintaining close ties with institutions in Viet Nam. This network is not an administrative body, but rather a shared home for those who are passionate about the Vietnamese language to come together and take action. Could you speak about initial outcomes of the network? The network was established in May. Though still in its early days, thanks to the support of the community and sponsorship from domestic institutions, we have grown rapidly. To date, the network has nearly 500 members, including teachers, volunteers and association staff across more than 30 countries and territories. This is not only a useful reference channel for parents and students, but also a contribution to the formation of a global Vietnamese language ecosystem where classes, teachers and learners can find one another and together spread the love for the Vietnamese language. One of our key achievements has been the launch of foundational projects, including the development of the Global Vietnamese Digital Map, an online tool that records, connects and shares information about Vietnamese language classes held by communities around the world. A notable result is the emergence of an expanding system of overseas Vietnamese language classes from Europe to North America, from Japan and South Korea to Australia and New Zealand. The network also organises many online training courses and thematic seminars, and collaborates with domestic universities to invite lecturers for training programmes. The digital map marks the beginning of building a global Vietnamese language ecosystem. In the past, each overseas Vietnamese class was like a small island, operating in isolation and lacking mutual awareness. Now, thanks to the digital map, all can be present on a shared platform. Anyone seeking a class, teacher or learning materials can connect with just a few clicks. The greatest value of this ecosystem lies in its connectivity. It helps teachers feel less alone, offering a space to share challenges and seek professional support. Parents anywhere can quickly access information and choose suitable classes for their children. At the same time, the digital map enables domestic institutions to better understand the situation and develop more practical support policies. How significant is the teaching of Vietnamese to children of Vietnamese communities overseas? Vietnamese is the soul of the nation. If overseas generations lose their Vietnamese language, their bond with the homeland will inevitably fade. On the contrary, by preserving Vietnamese, we safeguard our memories, customs, traditions, and national identity. For children, learning Vietnamese is not just about communicating with grandparents and parents; its about understanding culture, history and roots. In the context of global integration, many children grow up in multilingual environments. The language provides them with a foundation, preventing them from being assimilated while opening up career opportunities as they become bridges for trade and cultural exchange between Viet Nam and the world. I often say that each Vietnamese language class for overseas communities is a miniature cultural embassy of Viet Nam abroad. This value goes far beyond education; it contributes to people-to-people diplomacy and the nation's image. As mentioned, the global Vietnamese language ecosystem will become a vibrant data repository of teaching and learning activities among overseas Vietnamese. It is not only a tool to sustain language classes, but also a channel to promote Vietnamese culture, helping international friends witness the vitality and aspiration of the Vietnamese diaspora to preserve their mother tongue. What are challenges in organising and maintaining such language classes for overseas Vietnamese children? What about the availability of textbooks and related materials? The first challenge is the lack of professional teachers. Many classes are maintained by members of community associations or volunteer university students. They have great dedication, but most have not received formal training in teaching Vietnamese as a foreign language. This leads to inconsistencies in teaching methods and approaches to students. The second challenge is the curriculum and materials. Textbooks published in Viet Nam are mainly designed for native Vietnamese students and may not be suitable for overseas Vietnamese children, who often learn Vietnamese as a second language. Many materials focus heavily on spelling and grammar, while these children need content that is relatable, lively and connected to everyday life. As a result, many places have to create their own materials, leading to fragmentation and a lack of systematisation. The network has made efforts to collect, digitise, and share curricula from various sources, while also encouraging the development of customised materials for overseas Vietnamese children. Weve established an open library with hundreds of books, lecture files and illustrated images. Notably, some curricula are created by overseas Vietnamese themselves, reflecting the learning needs in a far-from-home environment. Additionally, infrastructure and funding are significant issues. Some classes have to borrow community rooms, churches or even conduct lessons online, but many classrooms are offered fee-free locations. Yet every difficulty is compensated by love and the desire to preserve the Vietnamese language for future generations. In particular, we have received valuable support from the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese and teaching expertise from Viet Nam. Numerous training courses have been organised, with the direct participation of Professor Nguyen Minh Thuyet, a senior lecturer at the Faculty of Linguistics, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University Ha Noi, from 1990 to 2003, and lecturers from Vietnamese universities. Every Saturday morning, overseas Vietnamese teachers can join online sessions on teaching methods for Vietnamese as a foreign language. Each session attracts 400500 participants, forming a large international classroom where they gain access to modern pedagogical knowledge and have the opportunity to connect and exchange experiences. This is a meaningful source of encouragement and practical support, contributing to improving the quality of Vietnamese language teaching and learning within the community. VNS PYONGYANG General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee To Lam and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation attended a ceremony to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) (October 10, 1945 - 2025) held at Kim Il Sung Square in the capital of Pyongyang late Friday (local time), within the framework of their state visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Korea and President of the State Affairs of the DPRK Kim Jong Un presided over the ceremony. The DPRK leader delivered a speech at the ceremony, thanking guests and international friends who attended the parade and thanking the people of the whole country for doing their best towards a glorious October. He affirmed that the WPK always regards the socialist cause that the people have chosen and strived for as their own. At the same time, he expressed that the DPRK people will forever remember and be grateful to the army for sacrificing themselves and blood for the great history of the Fatherland, for the dignity and honour of the nation, and for the achievements of the revolution. The parade of the armed forces of the DPRK was a highlight in the series of activities to celebrate the 80th founding anniversary of the WPK. The WPK was founded on October 10, 1945. Since its founding, the WPK has held eight congresses, with the general policy of firmly affirming the principle that the WPK is the sole ruling and leading party; focusing on building a clean and strong Party through strengthening solidarity and unity within the Party, further consolidating the Party organisation at the grassroots level, fundamentally improving the form and method of information and ideological education of the Party in the direction of being close to the people and close to reality. At the 8th National Congress of the WPK held in January 2021, the DPRK affirmed the spirit of "self-reliance, self-sufficiency" and required the construction of a stable, independent economy with a roadmap, focusing on developing the metallurgical and chemical industries, and attaching importance to agricultural development. Following the guidelines set out at the 8th Party Congress of the WPK, the DPRK has focused on socio-economic development through a people-centered policy, continuing to prioritise solving the people's urgent livelihood issues such as housing and food. VNA/VNS HA NOI - General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee To Lam and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation arrived in Ha Noi in the early morning of October 11, successfully concluding their state visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and attendance at the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) from October 9-11 at the invitation of General Secretary of the WPK and President of the State Affairs of the DPRK Kim Jong Un. During the visit, the top leaders of Viet Nam and the DPRK held talks. In a sincere, friendly and open atmosphere, the two leaders exchanged views on the situation of each country, the Viet Nam - DPRK relationship, and international and regional issues of mutual concern. The two leaders reviewed and expressed their appreciation for the traditional friendship between the two Parties and the two countries, which was personally built by President Ho Chi Minh and President Kim Il Sung and has been cultivated, inherited and promoted by generations of leaders of both sides, as well as the sincere and wholehearted mutual assistance during the arduous revolutionary years. They expressed their delight at the continued consolidation and enhancement of the relationship between the two Parties and the two countries. The two sides agreed to increase the exchange of delegations at all levels through the Party, State, Government, National Assembly, and local cooperation channels to enhance experience sharing, consolidate political trust and mutual understanding; effectively maintain dialogue and cooperation mechanisms, study the possibility of cooperation in appropriate fields; promote people-to-people exchanges, and strengthen the friendship between the two countries. General Secretary Lam also hoped that the two sides would expand areas of cooperation with great potential such as culture, sports, tourism, education, health, information and communication, and develop radio and television programmes to introduce Viet Nam, the DPRK and their cultures and people. Appreciating and agreeing with the cooperation proposals of General Secretary To Lam, General Secretary and President of the State Affairs Kim Jong Un affirmed that the DPRK wants to cooperate closely with Viet Nam in Party building and national development, and is ready to promote cooperation in many appropriate fields. The two leaders discussed the regional and international situation, and agreed to strengthen cooperation, support each other and coordinate at multilateral forums such as the United Nations and the ASEAN Regional Forum. The visit was an important milestone, contributing to further enhancing the effectiveness of bilateral cooperation between the two Parties and two countries, meeting the aspirations and wishes of the people of both nations and at the same time, contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world. VNA/VNS AN GIANG National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man and a working delegation offered incense at the Special National Historical Site, commemorating President Ton uc Thang in My Hoa Hung Commune, in the Mekong Delta province of An Giang on Saturday morning. The visit formed part of activities marking the upcoming 80th anniversary of Viet Nams first general election to the National Assembly (January 6, 1946 - January 6, 2026). Man and the delegation laid wreaths, offered incense and observed a minutes silence in remembrance of President Ton uc Thang, an exemplary leader and shining model of revolutionary virtue as well as a proud son of An Giang Province, who devoted his life to the nations cause. In the memorial book, Man wrote that generations of National Assembly deputies pledge to carry forward the achievements of their predecessors, remain steadfast in their trust in the Party, and uphold unity, innovation and dedication to build a developed Vietnamese National Assembly worthy of the trust and expectations of voters and people nationwide, contributing to bringing the country firmly into a new era of wealth, prosperity and happiness for the people. He also conveyed his best wishes for An Giang Province to achieve rapid and sustainable development in step with the countrys progress, worthy of being the homeland of President Ton uc Thang. He urged local authorities to continue caring for the Special National Historical Site, ensuring it remains a red address for educating younger generations in patriotism and revolutionary traditions. President Ton uc Thang, who lived to the age of 92 and dedicated more than 70 years to the revolutionary cause, devoted his entire life to the Party and the nation. Throughout his career, Ton uc Thang held numerous key positions entrusted to him by the Party, State and people. Following the passing of President Ho Chi Minh in 1969, Ton uc Thang was elected President of the State. In that role, he, together with the entire Party and people, led the nation to complete victory in the resistance war against the United States, liberating the South and reunifying the country. He continued to serve as State President after national reunification. The life and career of President Ton uc Thang stand as a shining example of a communist soldier who overcame the harshest trials of imperialist prisons and the ravages of war, dedicating himself to the cause of national liberation, reunification and the happiness of the people. He was a model of the great national solidarity policy of the Party and President Ho Chi Minh. On the occasion, Man and the delegation presented 200 gifts to policy beneficiary families, revolution contributors, children and disadvantaged ethnic minority households in My Hoa Hung Commune, Vinh Te Ward and Chau oc City in the province. VNS NGHE AN Party General Secretary To Lam on Saturday attended the ground-breaking ceremony in the central province of Nghe Ans Na Ngoi Commune for the construction of a primary and secondary boarding school, one of the 248 of its kind planned for Viet Nams land border communes under a policy approved by the Politburo. The Na Ngoi boarding school covers an area of about 5.5ha, with a total investment of nearly VN240 billion (US$9.11 million) sourced from both the State budget and social contributions. It will feature 49 classrooms as well as dormitories, canteens, playgrounds, and experiential learning zones, among other facilities. Once completed, the school is expected to provide quality education and holistic development opportunities for more than 1,900 students in the border region. The project also aims to help preserve local cultural identity, nurture future cadres for the locality, and strengthen defence and security in border areas. Speaking at the ceremony, General Secretary Lam highlighted the current shortage of adequate schooling facilities, particularly boarding schools, in remote border communes, which limits childrens learning conditions. He stressed that the investment in 248 boarding schools reflects a humane and strategic policy of the Party and State, showing deep care for ethnic minority communities in border, remote, and disadvantaged areas. The schools will not only improve education but also enhance living standards for border residents, thereby reinforcing national sovereignty from its roots the people and communities closely attached to the land, forests, and border markers. The Party chief urged local authorities to consider this as a special political task, ensuring swift and effective implementation, timely site clearance, proper infrastructure and fund disbursement, and favourable conditions for construction and future teaching activities. He also called on ministries, local administrations, village elders, community leaders, and armed forces to work closely together in mobilising public support for education, considering schools as fortresses of knowledge, culture, and patriotism in border areas. Secretary of the Nghe An Party Committee Nguyen uc Trung pledged to promptly hand over a clean site and facilitate the construction progress, ensuring quality and absolute safety. The province will also prepare qualified teaching staff, curricula, and facilities to put the school into operation effectively. On this occasion, the Party leader presented the Na Ngoi boarding school with an iconic photo of President Ho Chi Minh tying a red scarf for a student, and together with his delegation, gave gifts to local students and 50 presents to disadvantaged and policy-beneficiary families in the commune. VNA/VNS A NANG A ceremony celebrating the National Day of Spain was organised on October 11 in the central city as part of closer friendship ties between Viet Nam and Spain as well as a Nang City and Spanish partners after 48 years of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. Spanish ambassador to Viet Nam, Carmen Cano de Lasala said it is a pleasure to celebrate the National Day of Spain in a Nang City. Both Spain and Viet Nam are countries rich in culture and diversity. a Nang is undoubtedly one of Viet Nams most prosperous cities and shares with Spain a deep maritime tradition. Many Spanish tourists visit a Nang every year, and the city is becoming a key commercial, industrial, financial, and tourist hub, Carmen Cano de Lasala said. We want to continue strengthening our co-operation with a Nang. I hope that in 2026 a twinning agreement with a Spanish city will be reached. We will also continue working to promote Spains commercial and cultural presence," she said. The Spanish ambassador said Spain also feels very close to Viet Nam in difficult times, and we deeply regret the human losses caused by the recent typhoons. We would like to carry out activities of mutual interest, such as the promotion of the Spanish language, the second most spoken language in the world and increasingly relevant in business and finance. Spanish language gives access to a market of 500 million people, she shared. As we approach the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2027 between our countries, we want a Nang to be part of the commemorative events, perhaps with a strong presence of the Spanish film industry at the a Nang International Film Festival. Vice Chairman of the citys Peoples Committee Ho Ky Minh strongly committed to create the most favourable conditions in promoting co-operations with Spanish partners in the coming time. He said a Nang reserves priorities for investment in hi-tech industries, smart city, renewable energy, education, tourism and heritage. Last year, a painting exhibition, the World Needs Superheroines, which was organised by the Embassy of Spain in Viet Nam, opened in the city as part of a series activities in celebration of the National Day of Spain. The Spanish Chamber of Commerce, along with AmCham Vietnam in HCM City and a Nang, the Australian Chamber of Commerce Vietnam, the NordCham Vietnam, CEEC Vietnam, German Business Association (GBA), the Swiss Community and ITCC-YBA a Nang, also hosted a networking event for charitable and humanitarian purposes in the city with all proceeds donated to the Long Tho Disabled Children Centre and the Hope Vocational Centre for disabled people (both in Hue and a Nang). Spain opened its honorary consul office in a Nang in 2017. NEW YORK Viet Nams hosting of the signing ceremony of the United Nations (UN) Convention against Cybercrime (Ha Noi Convention) in Ha Noi on October 2526 demonstrates the countrys commitment to promoting the rule of law in cyberspace and its contribution to global efforts to address emerging challenges in international affairs, said Ambassador o Hung Viet, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the UN. Addressing a plenary debate themed The rule of law at the national and international levels hosted by the 80th UN General Assemblys Legal Committee (Sixth Committee) in New York from October 710, the Vietnamese diplomat noted that in recent years, Viet Nam has actively participated in international legal bodies and processes, and positively contributed to the negotiation and drafting of aforementioned key legal instruments. Upholding, respecting, and strictly implementing international law is the foundation of global peace, security, and sustainable development, he stressed. Viet affirmed the UNs irreplaceable role in developing the modern international legal system over the years. He also welcomed recent significant progress in strengthening the global legal framework, including the soon-to-enter-into-force Agreement on Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), the UN Convention Against Cybercrime, as well as ongoing negotiations on a convention on international tax cooperation and the launch of processes to draft new legal documents on crimes against humanity and the protection of civilians in natural disasters. As a nation that has endured wars and division, Viet Nam deeply understands the value of peace and the rule of law, and therefore it always remains steadfast in its principle of resolving all disputes peacefully in accordance with international law, he stated. On that principled basis, the Vietnamese diplomat reaffirmed that all claims and actions by parties in the East Sea must comply with international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). He took this occasion to highlight Viet Nams recent reforms to strengthen the socialist rule-of-law state, including adopting a two-tier local administration model, revising the Constitution and key laws, thus enhancing governance and creating motivation for socio-economic development and better protecting citizens rights. Speaking at the session, UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina J Mohammed and representatives of many countries affirmed that the rule of law is a core value and guiding principle enshrined in the UN Charter and reflected in all the organisations activities since its founding. They called on countries to join hands in safeguarding the rule of law - the foundation of multilateralism through concrete actions at multilateral forums, in each region and nation. VNA/VNS VIENTIANE Lao Minister of National Defence Sen. Lt. Gen. Khamlieng Outhakaysone has called on the Viet Nam Border Guard High Command and the Border Guard High Command of the Lao Peoples Army to enhance coordination in combating cross-border drug trafficking, preventing human trafficking, and cracking down on illegal activities that distort the policies and guidelines of the two Parties and States. While receiving a delegation from the Viet Nam Border Guard High Command led by its Commander Lt. Gen. Le uc Thai in Vientiane on October 10, Khamlieng urged both sides to promptly address emerging issues that could threaten stability along the shared border. Welcoming the Vietnamese delegation, Khamlieng emphasised that the visit holds significant importance in further tightening the great friendship, special solidarity, and comprehensive cooperation between the Parties, States, armies, and people of the two countries. He noted that the strengthened defence ties also contribute to maintaining peace, stability, and social order along the Viet NamLaos border. The Lao minister proposed the two sides continue developing effective cooperation mechanisms between their armies, particularly in agriculture, crop cultivation, and livestock raising, while maintaining regular high-level exchanges and reciprocal visits in a spirit of mutual trust, solidarity, and special friendship. For his part, Thai said the visit aims to deepen the close cooperation between the two border guard forces, contributing to consolidating the special solidarity between the armies and people of Viet Nam and Laos. He also briefed the Lao minister on the outcomes of earlier talks between the two Border Guard High Commands. At the bilateral talks held the same day, the two sides reviewed recent cooperation, noting that the border guard forces of both countries have regularly held meetings and delegation exchanges, achieving positive results. They have also supported each other with technical equipment, military supplies, and medical materials, and jointly organised celebrations and visits on major national and military anniversaries. Both sides highly valued the effectiveness of joint patrols along the shared border, which have strengthened security, built mutual trust, and helped to educate younger generations about the importance of the Viet NamLaos special friendship and solidarity. They agreed on a cooperation plan for the coming period, identifying drug prevention and control as a key area of collaboration. Both sides pledged close coordination and effective implementation to successfully fulfill their assigned tasks. Concluding the talks, the Border Guard High Commands of Viet Nam and Laos signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Comprehensive Co-operation for 2025, reaffirming their commitment to deepening practical and results-oriented cooperation between the two forces. VNS BRUSSELS Deputy Prime Minister Bui Thanh Son held meetings with President of the Belgian House of Representatives Peter De Roover and European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Sikela on October 10 on the sidelines of the second Global Gateway Forum in Brussels, aiming to strengthen Viet Nams cooperation with Belgium and the European Union (EU) across priority areas. At his meeting with De Roover, the Belgian parliamentary leader extended sympathy to the Vietnamese people over recent storm and flood damage. Son thanked Belgium and the international community for their concern and support, calling it a valuable source of encouragement for the Vietnamese people. Both sides expressed satisfaction with the positive development of bilateral relations and reaffirmed their commitment to effectively implementing outcomes from the Belgian King and Queens state visit to Viet Nam in April. They welcomed the cooperation agreement signed between the Vietnamese National Assembly and the Belgian Parliament in February, describing it as an important foundation for expanding bilateral collaboration in the coming years. Son praised Belgiums active role within the EU and urged its parliament to soon ratify the EUViet Nam Investment Protection Agreement (EVIPA) in 2025, saying it would encourage Belgian businesses to expand investment in Viet Nams key sectors such as logistics, seaports, and renewable energy. He also called on Belgium to support Viet Nam in developing a sustainable maritime economy and fisheries, and to advocate for the European Commissions early removal of the yellow card imposed on Vietnamese seafood exports related to illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. As strategic partners in agriculture, both sides agreed to strengthen cooperation in circular and smart agriculture, as well as in addressing saltwater intrusion and drought in the Mekong Delta, contributing to Viet Nams green transition and sustainable development. De Roover voiced support for enhancing exchanges between parliamentary committees, young lawmakers and friendship groups, and for closer coordination at regional and global inter-parliamentary forums such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF), Asia-Europe Parliamentary Partnership Meeting (ASEP), and ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA). He reaffirmed Belgiums commitment to multifaceted cooperation with Viet Nam, particularly in trade, investment, high-tech agriculture, smart logistics, and climate change response. Son appreciated the Belgian Parliament for being the first foreign legislature to adopt a resolution supporting Vietnamese Agent Orange victims, proposing both sides implement the resolution through concrete projects to overcome war aftermath, restore ecosystems, and support those affected by Agent Orange. He also suggested Belgium consider granting visa exemptions for holders of Vietnamese diplomatic and official passports to facilitate bilateral exchanges. He took this occasion to convey National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Mans invitation to De Roover to visit Viet Nam soon and the Belgian parliamentary leader accepted with pleasure. Later the same day, the Vietnamese Deputy PM met with European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Sikela. Both sides recognised the strong alignment between the EUs Global Gateway Strategy and Viet Nams development orientation, agreeing to boost cooperation projects in green infrastructure, digital connectivity, innovation, and high-quality human resource development, thereby further consolidating the Viet NamEU Comprehensive Partnership and Cooperation. As part of his trip, Son also visited the Vietnamese Embassy in Belgium and the Vietnamese Mission to the EU, commending staff for their efforts in strengthening friendship and cooperation between Viet Nam, Belgium and the EU. VNA/VNS HA NOI The state visit to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) and attendance at the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) from October 9-11 by General Secretary of the Communist Party of Viet Nam (CPV) Central Committee To Lam and a high-ranking Vietnamese delegation was a success, producing numerous notable outcomes, according to Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu. Vu stressed that the visit was an important foreign political event for both Parties and countries, especially as the two sides actively implement their respective Party Congress resolutions in preparation for the 14th National Congress of the CPV and the 9th Congress of the WPK. The visit helped generate new momentum and strengthen the traditional friendship between Viet Nam and the DPRK, Vu said, noting that the two leaders spent considerable time reviewing the long-standing relationship, established by President Ho Chi Minh and President Kim Il Sung, and expressed mutual appreciation for the support provided to each other in the past. Through frank, sincere, and substantive exchanges between the two leaders, along with the signing of several cooperation agreements, the visit helped elevate the traditional friendship between Viet Nam and the DPRK to a new stage, he noted. The two leaders agreed on key cooperation directions to strengthen the bilateral ties sustainably, focusing on sectors such as economy, tourism, culture, education, information and communication, and healthcare, in line with each countrys strengths, demand, and relevant international regulations, Vu said. They shared their views and positions on regional and international issues of mutual concern. The Vietnamese Party chief reiterated Viet Nams consistent stance on contributing to peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world, including matters concerning the Korean Peninsula and the East Sea (internationally known as the South China Sea), he noted. The Deputy FM stated that with these outcomes, the visit represents a concrete advancement of the Party and States consistent foreign policy of independence, self-reliance, peace, cooperation, and development; treasuring relations with traditional friends; and demonstrating Viet Nams role as a responsible member of the international community, and a country undergoing renewal and successfully advancing reform in the international community. It can be said that the outcomes of the visit have opened a new chapter in the long-standing friendship between Viet Nam and the DPRK, marking an important milestone in the two nations cooperation and development in the new era, the deputy minister stated. On the basis of the perceptions and commitments reached by the top leaders of the two countries, as well as the agreements signed during the visit, Viet Nam and the DPRK will work closely in the time ahead to implement and materialise the achieved results in the following key areas. First, both sides will continue to strengthen political trust through enhanced exchanges and contacts between senior leaders, while maintaining delegation exchanges via Party, State, Government, parliamentary, local, and people-to-people channels, along with sustaining and effectively implementing existing cooperation mechanisms. Second, the two countries will work closely to concretise the shared perceptions and the signed agreements, and to foster cooperation in areas suited to both sides strengths, including culture, tourism, sports, education, health, agriculture, and information and communications. Immediately after their talks, the two leaders instructed relevant ministries, sectors, and agencies to promptly carry out the agreed cooperation activities. Third, the two sides will maintain coordination at regional and international mechanisms and forums of shared interest particularly within the frameworks of the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement, and the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), thereby contributing to promoting the trend of peace, cooperation, and development in the region and the world. With the positive outcomes achieved during the visit, Vu expressed his confidence that the foundation of friendship between the two countries will be further strengthened, the will and desire for cooperation will be sustained, and Viet NamDPRK relations will continue to grow in a stable and solid manner in the future, for the benefit of both nations' people and for peace, stability, cooperation, and development in the region and the world. VNA/VNS GENEVA Vietnamese delegates have actively joined multiple meetings and debates within the 60th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), highlighting Viet Nams commitment to promoting and protecting human rights and stressing the importance of bridging political division and fostering cooperation and trust through dialogue. The session, concluded on October 8 after nearly five consecutive weeks, spotlighted Viet Nams active participation and important contributions, laying an important foundation for the Southeast Asian country to seek re-election to the UNHRC. In his speech at an emergency discussion on September 16 regarding Israels attack on Qatar, Ambassador Mai Phan Dung, Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to the United Nations (UN), World Trade Organisation (WTO), and other international organisations in Geneva, who led the Vietnamese to the event, condemned the use of force and violations of international law, the UN Charter, and the sovereignty and territorial integrity of states. He called on all parties to exercise restraint, avoid escalating tensions, resolve disputes by peaceful measures, and create favourable conditions for negotiating a comprehensive ceasefire agreement. Viet Nam chaired the drafting and delivery of a joint statement on promoting the human right to vaccination, which received broad support and is now co-sponsored by 51 countries from all continents. The Vietnamese delegation also engaged in discussion sessions on topics related to youth and human rights, the impact of climate change on human rights, access to clean water and sanitation, and the rights of older persons, during which they briefed on measures that Viet Nam has implemented to promote and protect the rights of vulnerable groups. Alongside other ASEAN countries, the Vietnamese delegation also made joint statements on shared regional concerns, including technical cooperation, capacity building, and the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) mechanism. The Vietnamese delegation actively participated in all activities of the UNHRC, from bilateral and multilateral consultations to contributing to the drafting of documents, co-sponsoring initiatives, and delivering joint statements in a spirit of dialogue, cooperation, and mutual respect. These efforts clearly demonstrated Viet Nams consistent policy on promoting and protecting human rights, and making practical contributions to the UNHRCs activities in line with the UN Charter and international law. Viet Nams active and responsible presence at this session holds great significance as it marked Viet Nams final session as a member the UNHRC for the 20232025 term, affirming the countrys proactive, constructive, and responsible role in global human rights issues. Successfully completing its 2023-2025 tenure provides an important foundation for Viet Nam to further enhance its reputation and create favourable momentum for its re-election to the UNHRC in the 20262028 tenure, thereby contributing actively and proactively to the Councils work under the UN motto "Respect - Understanding, Dialogue - Cooperation, All Human Rights for All". VNA/VNS Nguyen Khanh Chi Driven by a deep love for their mother tongue, national pride and a yearning to connect with their roots, Vietnamese expatriates have committed themselves to ensuring that every generation of Vietnamese abroad feels close to the homelands culture and origins through the spread of the Vietnamese language. Tran Hong Van, PhD, principal of Vietnamese Community Language School (VietSchool) in Australia, recognised the imperative of preserving Vietnamese among her three Australian-born children, even as she deeply understood their need to master English for full integration into their host country. No matter where we go, we must always remember our roots as Vietnamese. Teaching our children Vietnamese is a way to help them understand their origins, preserve Vietnamese cultural identity, and feel more connected to Viet Nam, Van said, who is teaching translation and interpreting at the Western Sydney University. In Australia alone, home to over 320,000 Vietnamese residents, studies indicate that only about 69 per cent of Vietnamese-origin children can speak Vietnamese, and fewer than 14 per cent possess a strong vocabulary comparable to children in Viet Nam. Meanwhile, only 36 per cent of families actively create a "Vietnamese language space" at home. These figures highlight the significant challenges in maintaining the ancestral language and culture. After completing her second doctoral thesis -- examining the maintenance of the mother tongue for Vietnamese-origin children abroad in general, and in Australia specifically at Charles Sturt University -- she realised that her research knowledge would merely gather dust on bookshelves if she didn't transform it into something more practical. Consequently, she approached SBS, a broadcaster that airs programmes in 54 ethnic languages, and began hosting the Cung Giu Tieng Viet (Let's Preserve Vietnamese) programme for 20-30 minutes each week since 2021. The programme's objective is to raise general awareness about preserving Vietnamese abroad, and to spread positive examples demonstrating that maintaining Vietnamese overseas is crucial and achievable for anyone with persistence and perseverance. This, she emphasises, requires the collective effort of families, individuals, schools and the community. If parents don't start teaching and speaking Vietnamese to their children early on and don't prioritise it, maintaining the language becomes very difficult, she said. Following the Cung Giu Tieng Viet programme, Van and her associates opened VietSchool, offering in-person Vietnamese language classes for children from kindergarten to Grade 12, along with online classes to support Vietnamese language learning for children not only in Australia but also across North America and Europe. Joint efforts Nguyen Van Hao moved to Cambodia with his family when he was young, so he was well aware of the difficulties facing children of Vietnamese community there in terms of gaining access to proper education. Haos family sent him back to Viet Nam for secondary and high school and later he was fortunate to receive a scholarship supported by the Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia to continue his university education in Viet Nam. He graduated in 2012 with a degree in mathematics and computer science from Ho Chi Minh City University of Education. Feeling more fortunate than many others, Hao volunteered to return to Cambodia to teach Vietnamese to primary-level children. He is currently the principal of the Vietnam-Khmer Friendship Primary School and eight other smaller satellite schools. The school was inaugurated in 2012 in Prey Veng Province with up to 80 per cent of the construction costs being supported by Viet Nams ong Thap Province. The school offers bilingual education in Vietnamese and Khmer, free and open to all, including Cambodians, and also provides backpacks and uniforms. According to Hao, in addition to learning the host country's language for integration, it's essential to learn and speak Vietnamese. "I am the only one with a teaching degree; the other teachers are not specialised, so they face many difficulties and lack materials and suitable methods, said Hao. However, due to their love for the profession, the teachers strive to stay. Because teaching Vietnamese is completely free, in addition to monthly support funds, they have to work various odd jobs to supplement their income. For instance, Hao still installs Windows and CCTV cameras for hire after hours. "If I hadn't done those extra jobs, I wouldn't have been able to keep the school going for the past 13 years," he said. Besides providing literacy to Vietnamese expats in Cambodia for community integration, Hao and the teachers at the school emphasise reinforcing and promoting Vietnamese cultural aspects, customs, and traditional holidays. "Thanks to little pedagogical knowledge, I don't face difficulties in persuading Vietnamese families to send their children to school, as knowing an additional language is also beneficial for their business endeavours." Hao was honoured among nearly 80 non-professional teachers and volunteers attending a training course this year organised by the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese in conjunction with the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University-Hanoi. Like Hao, ao Duy Anh, who has been living and working in Japan for 20 years, found the training course very helpful. Through annual training courses like this and global networks, we aim to achieve a more professional standard so that parents feel secure because their children are taught in a pedagogical environment. Though I'm not sure if it's truly professional yet, it's better than in the past. The desire is to ignite and maintain the passion, said Anh. He said that he conceived the idea of opening Vietnamese language classes for Vietnamese children in Japan in 2019. A key advantage of this initiative is its alignment with the Viet Nam Communist Party and State's policy of preserving the Vietnamese language and disseminating Vietnamese culture within overseas Vietnamese communities. Many young Vietnamese parents in Japan -- even though they aren't proficient in Japanese -- are delighted when their children excel in Japanese, proudly declaring their child is fluent in Japanese," said Anh, who is currently the Principal of the GAG Japanese Language Institute in Fukuoka. However, when asked if their child knows Vietnamese, they often say no. I jokingly remarked that it's normal for children born and raised in Japan to be good at Japanese, but the most important thing is for them to know that they need to speak/use another language, which is Vietnamese," said Anh. According to Anh, one of the difficulties in this work lies in textbooks, instructors, and maintaining classes. Honestly, it's very simple to establish a class, but hard to maintain, develop and ensure that parents trust sending their children to class so their children will become proficient in Vietnamese, he said. The 2025 training course for teaching Vietnamese to overseas Vietnamese teachers concluded with nearly 20 sessions, covering a wide range of practical topics such as modern Vietnamese teaching methods, digital technology applications, classroom organisation, and literary appreciation. In addition, the programme included seminars, teaching practicums, and visits to historical sites, museums, and scenic spots in Ha Noi and neighbouring localities. These aim to facilitate participants to gain rich experiences that would help nurture their emotional connection to their homeland and strengthen their motivation to continue promoting the Vietnamese language within Vietnamese communities around the world. Speaking at the closing ceremony of the training course in late August, Professor Hoang Anh Tuan, principal of the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, said beyond organising training courses, the university had developed and compiled a set of teaching materials for various levels, expected to be officially published in the near future. These materials not only focus on language instruction but also integrate cultural and historical content, providing teachers with high-quality resources to share with their students, said Tuan. Cultural identity As they grow up, having such roots helps them feel less lost. Especially when living in a country like Australia, which is culturally diverse, it gives them more confidence and a clearer sense of who they are in this world. Beyond learning another language, studying Vietnamese brings many benefits in terms of thinking skills, job opportunities and family connections, said Van. When we preserve the Vietnamese language, we also preserve our culture. It contributes to cultural diversity in the host country while maintaining our traditions and helping friends around the world learn about Viet Nam, Vietnamese culture, and become more interested in Viet Nam in many other aspects, she added. Recently, with support from the ASIF Foundation -- a charity organisation operating in both Australia and Viet Nam -- the Association of Vietnamese Intellectuals and Experts in Australia partnered with VietSchool to introduce VietNEST, an AI-based Vietnamese language learning programme. Scheduled to serve the community from November, VietNEST serves as a nurturing space for language, knowledge and Vietnamese cultural identity for the younger generation, especially Vietnamese children in Australia and Vietnamese communities around the world. In 2022, September 8 was designated annually as the Day of Honouring the Vietnamese Language in the Vietnamese Community Abroad. This initiative includes practical activities to honour the richness and beauty of the Vietnamese language, especially for the younger generation. Discussing this year's celebration, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Le Thi Thu Hang said: Through practical activities we can further encourage and spread the community's interest and the participation of overseas Vietnamese, ensuring that we can not only preserve and conserve but also honour the Vietnamese language as a precious heritage of the nation. Nguyen Trung Kien, chairman of the State Committee for Overseas Vietnamese, described the language as a stream that flows through every Vietnamese soul. "It begins with the lullabies sung by our grandparents and parents, with familiar proverbs and folk verses that gently seep into our hearts through poetry, music, and history lessons," Kien said. "It nurtures our love for the homeland and carries that spirit across borders, connecting Vietnamese communities around the world. VNS HCM CITY Students at HCM City University of Technology (HCMUT) were inspired on Friday (October 10) as they attended a special talk by Professor Serge Haroche, the 2012 Nobel Laureate in Physics, who shared insights from his groundbreaking research in quantum physics. Speaking at the event, Vice president of HCMUT Pham Tran Vu said the university is deeply honored to welcome Prof. Serge Haroche an outstanding physicist who has made pioneering contributions to quantum physics. Todays event presents a valuable opportunity for the academic community, especially the universitys students, to interact directly with one of the worlds leading scientists. Professor Haroches work not only opens new directions in modern science, but also inspires the younger generation those who are nurturing a passion for exploration, innovation, and contributing to the advancement of human knowledge. The iuniversity aims to become a leading center for education and research in the region, where knowledge, innovation, and global connections converge, he said. We are confident that this meeting will open up many opportunities for meaningful cooperation, further advancing the development of science and education between Vietnam and France. During the talk, Prof. Haroche shared insights into the evolution of photonics and quantum technology from foundational principles to emerging research trends and discussed their vast potential applications in science and daily life. His presentation offered valuable perspectives on the opportunities and challenges facing Viet Nams research community as it seeks to advance in this cutting-edge field. Born in 1944, Prof. Haroche is a French theoretical physicist and honorary professor at the College de France. He is a member of the French Academy of Sciences, the US National Academy of Sciences, and several other prestigious institutions. In 2012, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics, together with David J. Wineland, for developing groundbreaking methods to observe and control individual particles of light and matter at the quantum level laying the foundation for quantum computing and modern technologies. His achievements have reshaped how scientists explore the microscopic world and inspired generations of young researchers worldwide. Prof. Haroche has received numerous other honors, including the Humboldt Prize (1992), the Einstein Prize (2009), and the Grand Prix de lAcademie des Sciences (2009). Quantum technology has been identified as one of six key research directions of HCMUT in the coming years, as the university aims to align with global scientific and technological developments. The initiative focuses on cultivating high-quality human resources in quantum physics and engineering, building interdisciplinary research teams, promoting international collaboration, and fostering a local ecosystem for quantum research and applications. Etienne Ranaivoson, Consul General of France in HCM City, said science is a powerful catalyst for international exchange and for sharing common values such as excellence, integrity, openness, and the ability to create social and economic value. There can be no peace without science. Serge Haroche is a vital link in the brilliant chain of French Nobel Laureates in Physics, representing our countrys excellence in exploring the fundamental questions of the universe from the infinitely small to the infinitely large, he said. He said the high-quality engineer trainingprogramme of Vietnam (PFIEV) is not only an engineering training programme. It is also a symbol of Franco Vietnamese friendship, a driving force for economic and technological development, and a source of inspiration for future innovation. I hope that Professor Haroches insights, vision, and unique experiences will be a precious source of inspiration for your own journeys. The talk attracted lecturers and students from universities across HCM City, as well as high school students awarded the Odon-Vallet scholarships. Through this rare encounter with a world-renowned physicist, HCMUT reaffirmed its commitment to advancing frontier science and nurturing the next generation of Vietnamese researchers. VNS HCM CITY Over the last five years, HCM City has been implementing practical policies for its citizens to ensure sustainable social welfare, caring for the well-being and improving living standards for all people. Tran Thi Dieu Thuy, deputy chairwoman of the municipal Peoples Committee, told the Sai Gon Giai Phong (Liberated Sai Gon) newspaper that social security and welfare are consistently prioritised in the citys development process from the expanded social security network to specific policies on healthcare, education, sustainable poverty reduction, leaving no one behind in the progress of development. The city has always been a pioneer in implementing mechanisms and policies to help mobilise and effectively use social resources to care for the well-being of people and improve health, stature, longevity and quality of life. It has gradually developed comprehensive health care from preventive medicine and primary health care to specialised health care. At the same time, it has continuously expanded free medical examination and treatment programmes and health insurance for the disadvantaged and people in difficult circumstances. In the 2020-2025 period, the city has strengthened its health care system with 34 new hospitals and 106 renovated health stations. It has achievedca ratio of 21 doctors and 43 hospital beds per 10,000 people. During the period, the policy of tuition fee exemption has been implemented from kindergarten to grade 12. The city has effectively implemented its social security policy, putting into effect Resolution No. 35/2023/NQ-HDND of the municipal Peoples Council on special policies to care for and support the elderly, orphans and people in difficult circumstances in the city. The city has prioritise attention to people with meritorious service, policy beneficiaries, social protection beneficiaries and those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. Policies to support the disadvantaged continue to be implemented, and many localities have established social security centres to support people in need. Many localities in the city have invested heavily in social welfare, poverty reduction, healthcare, and expanding the coverage of social insurance for citizens. The former HCM City supports 100 per cent of health insurance premiums for people aged 75 and over from poor and near-poor households in Can Gio, people with serious illnesses, abandoned orphans, and children with mild disabilities from six to 16 years old, according to the HCM City Social Security Office. After the merger with Ba Ria-Vung Tau and Binh Duong provinces, the expanded city has a population of about 14 million people. The rate of social insurance coverage both mandatory and voluntary reaches 57 per cent of the workforce and the rate of health insurance participation reaches 95 per cent. No more poor households The citys Poverty Reduction Programme has been effectively implemented during the period. In the first six months of 2025, the city has reduced the number of poor and near-poor households by 1,267 and fulfilled the goal of no more poor households in accordance to the citys multidimensional poverty standards for the period 2021 - 2025. In 2025, the programme has a total budget of more than VN13.2 trillion (US$501.3 million). In addition, many social resources are mobilised to support poor and near-poor households. As of early June, the programme has mobilised more than VN12.3 trillion ($466.9 million) from social resources. In the first six months of the year, the programme supported 73,438 health insurance cards for people who are eligible to the programme with a total budget of more than VN91.5 billion ($3.47 million). During the period, the city provided vocational training for 157 workers from poor households, near-poor households, and households that have just escaped poverty. It supported employment for 469 workers from poor households, near-poor households, and households that have just escaped poverty. In the first six months of the year, the programme has coordinated with localities to support the construction and repair of 327 houses for poor households, near-poor households, and households with housing difficulties with a total amount of more than VN25.8 billion ($977,900). The deputy chairwoman of the municipal Peoples Committee emphasised that the city will continue efforts to implement sustainable poverty reduction strategies and practical solutions to build a livable, modern, civilised and compassionate city. VNS Minister of Finance Nguyen Van Thang (left, back row) and Singapores Minister-in-Charge of Energy and Science and Technology Dr. Tan See Leng (right, back row), withnessed the representative of Ho Chi Minh City Department of Finance granted the investment registration certificate for Saigon Centre Phase 3 to Keppels representative The certificate was presented at the Vietnam-Singapore Connectivity Ministerial Meeting (CMM), witnessed by the co-chairs Nguyen Van Thang, Minister of Finance and Dr. Tan See Leng, Minister-in-Charge of Energy and Science and Technology of Singapore. The CMM is a key economic platform established under the Singapore-Vietnam Connectivity Framework Agreement to promote cooperation between both countries in key sectors such as energy, sustainability, connectivity and innovation. According to Joseph Low, president (Vietnam), Real Estate, Keppel, the company was grateful for the continued trust and support from the Vietnamese authorities, which have enabled it to advance the development of Saigon Centre, a landmark development in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City. As a global asset manager and operator with deep expertise in sustainability solutions, Keppel is committed to continue contributing to Vietnams development through projects in infrastructure, real estate and connectivity that create long-term value for the community, said Low. Keppel has been present in Vietnam for more than three decades and is one of the largest foreign real estate investors in the country, contributing to the countrys urban transformation through high-quality, sustainable developments. Strategically located in the heart of Ho Chi Minh Citys central business district, fronting Le Loi, Nam Ky Khoi Nghia, Huynh Thuc Khang and Pasteur streets, Saigon Centre is a vibrant mixed-use development that integrates retail, office and hospitality spaces. The first two phases of Saigon Centre have established a premium commercial hub that caters to a diverse range of tenants and customers. Phase 3 of Saigon Centre is envisioned to be a premier green development, offering high-quality office, retail, and hospitality spaces thoughtfully designed with sustainability and community at its core. This latest phase will further contribute towards enhancing the vibrancy of Ho Chi Minh Citys urban landscape and reinforce Keppels long-term commitment to Vietnam. Keppel collaborates with leading brands to enhance urban living in Vietnam Keppel Ltd. signed MoUs on April 2 in Ho Chi Minh City with leading retail, interior design, and education partners to offer high-quality amenities at the developer's residential projects in Vietnam. Keppel: investing in Vietnams sustainable development As Vietnam continues its economic advancement, Keppel has been a steady contributor to its growth journey over the past three decades. Joseph Low, chief representative (Vietnam) and president (Vietnam) of Real Estate at Keppel Ltd., talked to VIRs Ngoc Anh about how the Singaporean firm is contributing to Vietnams growth through bold sustainability strategies and a deep commitment to excellence. The two ministers and delegates at the 19 th Vietnam-Singapore Connectivity Ministerial Meeting The 19th Vietnam-Singapore Connectivity Ministerial Meeting on October 10 was co-hosted by Vietnam's Ministry of Finance Nguyen Van Thang and Tan See Leng, Singapore's Minister for Manpower and Minister-in-charge of Energy and Science and Technology. The two ministers explored new cooperation proposals in investment, agricultural trade, transport, construction, infrastructure, and energy. They welcomed Singapore's continued role as Vietnam's second largest investor, citing projects like the third phase of Keppel's Saigon Centre and Shopee's fourth automated sorting centre in Hung Yen province as major contributors to economic ties. Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Vietnam reached over $28.5 billion in the first nine months, up 8.5 per cent on-year. Singapore remains Vietnam's second largest foreign investor, with 4,226 projects worth $87.6 billion accumulated to end-September. Meanwhile, Vietnamese investment in Singapore has grown to 190 projects valued at $685 million. On agricultural trade and sustainable development, the meeting hailed Singapore's approval of Vietnam's heat-treated poultry exports starting in March and the signing of an agreement on implementing Article 6 of the Paris Agreement on September 16, signalling a strong commitment to sustainable development and green transition. The Singapore Food Agency (SFA) and Ministry of Agriculture and Environment are establishing an agri-food task force, and the SFA and Vietnam's Ministry of Industry and Trade are discussing a Rice Cooperation Agreement. In tourism, the meeting welcomed the strategic partnership between the Singapore Tourism Board, Sentosa Development Corporation, and Vietnam Airlines to jointly boost tourism and connectivity between Vietnam and Singapore, while promoting inbound tourism to Vietnam. The digital transformation action plan between Grab and Danang In energy and transport, both sides finalised a joint report on offshore wind power cooperation and reaffirmed the importance of a direct Vietnam-Singapore undersea cable, a 'backbone' of Singapore's low-carbon energy import strategy. Vietnam proposed expanding the bilateral Air Services Agreement to include fifth-freedom cargo rights, aiming to establish itself as a regional air logistics hub and attractive tourism destination. Vietnam called for investment from Singapore in aircraft parts manufactured in Vietnam, as Vietnam is one of the few countries able to export commercial aircraft parts to the United States without being subject to tariffs. In IT and communications, they mentioned the singing ceremony of the MoU between the Ministry of Science and Technology and Singapore's Ministry of Development and Digital Information in March. The two sides are discussing the plan for 2025-2026, focusing on digital connectivity and digital transformation, emerging technologies, research and development, digital talent, digital innovation, and digital startups. The meeting also acknowledged the proposal from the Vietnamese Ministry of Science and Technology on signing a bilateral food cooperation agreement and mutual recognition of Halal certification between Singapore and Vietnam. Vietnam is considering applying for observer status in the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement. In education and human resource training, the two countries are cooperating to promote training for semiconductor engineers, particularly between the National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University, and Vietnam National University. Signed MoUs between agencies of both sides have been effective, facilitating vocational training and better job opportunities for workers, opening the door to pilot programmes allowing Vietnamese workers in construction, maritime, and processing industries to work in Singapore. Vietnam SuperPort launching its off-airport cargo terminal, marking a new milestone in Vietnam-Singapore cooperation In digitalisation and innovation, progress in the Innovation Talent Exchange programme and labour cooperation was praised, with new criteria opening avenues for talent and knowledge transfer. Singapore's Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre, the National Innovation Centre, and Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Parks are engaged in tripartite collaboration to strengthen Vietnam's digital manufacturing capabilities. In finance, the meeting promoted ongoing collaboration in payment connectivity between the Monetary Authority of Singapore and the State Bank of Vietnam. A notable example is the partnership between Singapore's NETS and Vietnam's National Payment Corporation to implement cross-border QR code payment connectivity between the two countries, expected to go live next year. At the meeting, three cooperation agreements were handed over, including an altered investment certificate for Saigon Centre Phase 3 between Ho Chi Minh City authorities and Keppel, and a digital transformation action plan between Grab and Danang. Separately, Vietnam's T&T Group, Singapore's YCH, and Phu Tho province launched an off-airport cargo terminal, a key component of a multimodal logistics hub offering customs clearance, security screening, storage, unit load device handling, and airside transport services. The 20th CMM will be hosted by Singapore under the rotating mechanism. Singaporean funds injecting money and know-how Singaporean funds are ramping up their capital flows into Vietnam to capture the country's robust growth potential and emerging industries. Singapore becomes launchpad for Vietnamese SMEs Singapore is emerging as a strategic gateway for Vietnamese small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to expand abroad. Labour MPs under fire for not speaking out on controversial digital ID plans This article is old - Published: Saturday, Oct 11th, 2025 North Wales six Labour MPs have remained silent on government proposals to introduce mandatory digital identity cards. The Local Democracy Reporting Service contacted the MPs for their views on the potential introduction of BritCards a proposal that has sparked national debate on the extent of government control and the potential threat to privacy, security, and government oversight. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer argues the digital IDs will make accessing government services easier whilst helping to control illegal immigration. The app-based system would be mandatory for those wanting to work and will include residents name, date of birth, nationality, and a photo. The IDs could also be used for verification purposes, such as opening a bank account, and, if Labour get their way, will be introduced by 2029. But nearly three million (2.85m) people have already signed a petition against the plans described by civil liberty campaigners as an Orwellian measure of control. The Local Democracy Reporting Service asked the six Labour MPs Claire Hughes (Bangor Aberconwy), Becky Gittins (Clwyd East), Mark Tami (Alyn and Deeside), Gill German (Clwyd North), Steve Witherden (Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr), and Andrew Ranger (Wrexham) for their opinion on Labours plans. None of the MPs responded to requests for a comment. Both Plaid Cymrus MPs said they opposed the introduction of digital ID cards. Plaid Cymru MP for Dwyfor Meirionnydd Liz Saville Roberts commented: Plaid Cymru will not support any digital ID system that risks shutting people out of services or eroding civil liberties. Wales still has thousands of people who are digitally excluded, and no one should ever be locked out of vital services simply because they dont have a smartphone or internet access. IDs could reduce some of the paperwork people face to access everyday services, but we are not convinced the UK Governments plans are really about making things easier. We are concerned about data security, and we will oppose any system that risks making monetising sensitive personal data for private companies or making it more vulnerable to cyberattacks. Thats why we need a proper public debate about whether digital IDs are truly in the public interest. Sadly, the fact this was announced as a dead-cat strategy while Parliament is in recess suggests the UK Government has no real interest in an open or democratic debate. And lets get one thing clear: a majority of people in Wales identify as Welsh only. Describing this as a BritCard is the surest way to get a policy off to a bad start here. Plaid Cymru MP for Ynys Mon Llinos Medi said: At a time when people are struggling with the cost of living and facing soaring bills, its extraordinary that this Labour UK Governments priority is a Digital ID scheme. We all recognise that the world is becoming more digital, but people are right to feel uneasy about all their interactions with the state being dependent on online systems. Cybersecurity is a real concern, and the Government has done little to reassure people about data protection. There is an argument in favour of streamlining how people access government services, but forcing everything to happen through an app could lock some people particularly people in rural areas, older and disabled people out of vital support simply because they dont own a smartphone or have internet access. She added: I, along with my fellow Plaid Cymru MPs, will oppose these plans. Welsh Labour was also contacted for comment. By Richard Evans BBC Local Democracy Reporter Politicians clash over financial support scheme for farmers A fiery debate has erupted over claims a financial support scheme for farmers will lead to the loss of an estimated 1,100 jobs, 56,000 livestock and 76m. Samuel Kurtz, the Tory shadow rural affairs secretary, urged the Welsh Government to scrap the stuttering sustainable farming scheme (SFS) which has been plagued by protests. He said: Their own economic impact assessment tells a stark story: job losses, livestock reductions and millions wiped from farm business incomes. But Welsh ministers accused the opposition of misleading farmers, arguing the figures were incomplete scenarios, not predictions that failed to account for the schemes full benefits. Mr Kurtz told the Senedd the farming sector employs about 50,000 people directly and a further 250,000 in the wider food and drink supply chain a sector worth 9.3bn a year Government by decree Behind every one of those numbers lies a family, a community, a business, people who have served Wales for generations, he said. Farming is not simply an occupation: its a way of life, the beating heart of our rural economy and a cornerstone of Wales national identity. The Tory said the flawed SFS risks hollowing out the core of Welsh farming, prioritises bureaucracy over practicality and puts environmental targets before food production. Warning of the cumulative burden on farmers, he told the Senedd: We will not accept a scheme that puts our farms at risk, our jobs in jeopardy and our food security in question. Mr Kurtz, who is from a farming family, said: I dont believe that this is a farming scheme; I believe it is an environmental scheme that the government expects farmers to deliver. He criticised Labour for rejecting calls for a binding vote on the scheme. They denied farmers the chance to have their voices properly heard here in this place, he said. I dont believe that is democracy in action rather, [it is] government by decree. Simple soundbites But Huw Irranca-Davies (pictured), Wales deputy first minister and rural affairs secretary, hit back warning of inaccuracies in the way in which data has been interpreted. Even the motion tabled before us today is inaccurate, he said. Nowhere, nowhere, in the evidence we have published does it say that job losses, livestock number reductions, or reductions in farm business income will definitively happen. Nowhere. This is trying to turn really complex information into simple soundbites. This is not helpful to serious debate and, most importantly, it is not helpful to farmers. Mr Irranca-Davies said the Welsh Government will invest more than 340m in the first year of the sustainable farming scheme, which goes live in January. Cautioned that scrapping the SFS and starting again would cause uncertainty and instability, he argued the Tories lost all credibility with their not a penny less Brexit funding promise. Nuclear option Llyr Gruffydd took the middle ground during Wednesdays (October 8) debate, urging Welsh ministers to improve the scheme rather than take the nuclear option of scrapping it. Plaid Cymrus shadow rural affairs secretary expressed concerns about the impact of falling livestock numbers on abattoirs and the potential for farm incomes to drop. He told the Senedd: Yes, perhaps it is the worst-case scenario but it is a cause of concern for me and many people out there whose livelihoods rely on the scheme. Mr Gruffydd criticised the Conservatives for complaining about the consequences of Brexit. He also attacked the Labour UK Government for Barnettising the farming budget, meaning Wales gets a smaller share based on population rather than the nations needs. Senedd members voted 30-11 against the Conservative motion before agreeing the Welsh Governments amended version, 22-20. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter A concert dedicated to the 140th anniversary of Azerbaijani composer Uzeyir Hac?b?yli and the 150th anniversary of Lithuanian composer Mikalojus Konstantinas ?iurlionis was held at the Azerbaijan State Academic Philharmonic named after M. Magomayev. Azernews reports that the event began with speeches by K?stutis Vaskelevi?ius, Lithuanias Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to Azerbaijan, and Professor Farhad Badalbeyli, Rector of the Baku Music Academy named after U. Hac?b?yli. They highlighted the diplomatic and cultural ties between the two countries and celebrated the creative legacy of the two distinguished composers. Following the speeches, cellist ?sm?r K?rimli performed alongside the Uzeyir Hac?b?yli Azerbaijan State Symphony Orchestra under the baton of Lithuanian conductor Vilmantas Kali?nas, delighting the audience with a repertoire honoring both Hac?b?yli and ?iurlionis. Wales National Library on high alert over cyber attacks Wales digital treasures, viewed 1.5 billion times, face a threat similar to a catastrophic cyber attack that left part of the British Librarys website offline for two years. The stark warning came from Rhodri Llwyd Morgan the National Library of Wales chief executive during a Senedd committee hearing on Wednesday (October 8). Cyber security is taking a great deal of the national librarys focus, Dr Llwyd Morgan told the culture committee, adding that significant additional investment is a priority. The chief librarian said: Youll remember that the British Library suffered a catastrophic attack two years ago. Their website still isnt back up and running. The British Library doesnt have the ability to provide an electronic legal deposit service for its users in London. Dr Llwyd Morgan pointed out that the service is now available in Aberystwyth and Cardiff as he welcomed extra Welsh Government funding to strengthen digital infrastructure. When, not if Explaining whats at stake, he told Senedd members: The way that we reach Wales and the world more than any other method is through the digital collections. The librarys work in terms of the digital collections on Wikipedia, for example, has been seen 1.5 billion times. So, our profile, and the profile of Wales on the international stage, stems in a significant manner from the librarys digital collections and those of our partners. He said he called an urgent meeting of the librarys internal security board that morning to review arrangements in the wake of a break-in at St Fagans museum. Jane Richardson, chief executive of Amgueddfa Cymru (Museum Wales), echoed concerns about the growing risk of digital attacks on public bodies. We have a screen in our IT department that shows all the attacks that are coming at us, she said. Were having multiple attacks, all the time. Some of them get further than others. Ms Richardson said one such attack about six weeks ago was almost very serious, adding that experts warn: It will be a question of when not if someday, someone will get through: its just one of those facts that we have to live with. Bordering on a crisis Beyond the cyber threat, library leaders also detailed a looming conservation crisis, the impact of a 10.5% budget cut and pension scheme changes during the evidence session. Dr Llwyd Morgan warned that the loss of specialist conservation skills was a Wales-wide issue, hitting local archives particularly hard as their budgets have shrunk. He warned: As budgets have been restricted, staff have gone, the expertise has gone. Its bordering on a crisis in this particular area when it comes to the conservation of documents. The chief executive said the national library had also felt the effects, failing to meet its own targets for conservation hours due to staff cuts, and now plans to establish a centre of excellence in conservation to address the skills gap. Dr Llwyd Morgan confirmed a two-month consultation was starting that day on changes to the staff pension scheme, including requests for slightly higher contributions. In closing, Ashok Ahir the national librarys president warned Wales now risks being unable to properly care for a major new historical collection if one were discovered. By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter It's day 10 of the government shutdown and there is zero movement from lawmakers in the nation's capital. Lawmakers are not set to meet until Tuesday, leaving many federal workers' pockets empty while the gridlock continues. "They don't accomplish anything except disruption, and we all look like idiots." said Congressman Mark Amodei, (R) Nevada. Amodei had a sit down with us Friday morning to give us his two cents on the shutdown and why it's a lose-lose for everyone. "This deal of saying I want to deliver for my political base, whether it's Republicans or Democrats, it's like that isn't going to solve the problem," he said. Amodei said that with the majority of Nevada being owned by the federal government and a good amount of the state's budget coming from Washington D.C., things could even get even worse the longer this goes on. "After 30 days, it's getting into real, real blood on the street, if you will," the Congressman said. Amodei says it's the people who have nothing to do with this who really feel the squeeze. "So, you're going to get paid. The question is that doesn't really help when it's like, so you're going to call my mortgage company and say, hey, I'm good for it as soon as they pay me or, you know, the inconvenience is off the charts," he said. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than 22,000 federal employees work in Nevada, not including federal contractors. The White House said Friday morning it would start firing federal employees to push Democratic lawmakers into signing the bill. Amodei says it could be a bluff, but if not? "You better have something that doesn't add to the fact that people have earned money and are not getting paid," he said. "You don't do something that adds to it and go 'Oh, by the way. And you don't have a job.' It's like there better be a good reason for somebody not having a job. Other than we're just going to keep up in the ante until one side or another says uncle," he said. Since Amodei is on the House side, he wanted to state he doesn't know what the Senate is doing. He does think more needs to be done in the health care space. "Health care reform is something that the federal government has dodged the ball on, whether it's Republicans or Democrats, and it's like, okay, if you're worried about affordability, then instead of just saying keep subsidizing this stuff, let's get together and talk about what the two drivers of cost are instead of, well, we got to shut down here," Amodei said. "We're going to see who blinks first. I don't think that solves anything." The Congressman says he has not spoken with either of the Nevada Senators but applauds Senator Catherine Cortez Masto being one of the few Democrats to vote in favor of continuing talks on the bill. "Hats off for her because I know what it's like to be one of only one or two that vote against whatever the party line happens to be. And that's never fun," Amodei said. Both Senator Cortez Masto and Senator Jacky Rosen said they would donate their paychecks earned during the shutdown to charity. Amodei says he doesn't plan to keep his money either. "Yeah, but we're going to take a look at who is doing the best to minimize the impact on federal workers and the troops," Amodei said. "So, maybe that's the Food Bank. Maybe that's if the National Guard's got something. So, we're in the process of looking at all we've got till the end of the month to figure that out." Again, the next time the Senate meets is Tuesday. Jeff Tucker I generally vote against general obligation bonds. Ive never had kids to send to school, and asking taxpayers to fund schools through both income and property taxes feels like double-dipping to me, especially with New Mexico holding a $66 billion sovereign wealth fund pumped full of oil and gas royalties and fees. Im usually a no vote on judicial retentions as well. I figure someone has to vote against judges to keep them on their toes. And I now always vote against constitutional amendments proposed by Democrats, no matter how they dress them up, after we got bamboozled in November 2016. The proposed constitutional amendment in 2016 was pitched as a public safety measure, although in reality it all but ended cash and property bonds in New Mexico courts. That was one of the most egregious bait-and-switch propositions Ive seen. The ballot language said nothing about cash bail and passed with 87.2% support among voters. We were hoodwinked by liberals in the Legislature and judicial branch who are philosophically opposed to cash bail and who gave us our current catch-and-release criminal justice system. So color me skeptical when elected leaders ask for my support at the ballot. Im leaning heck no on everything, although sometimes I can be persuaded. The Journal Editorial Board met on Oct. 3 with top leaders of Albuquerque Public Schools regarding their proposed $350 million bond election on Nov. 4 ballots. They made a good case, stating that $40.2 million would be used to replace swamp coolers with air conditioning at 20 campuses five middle schools, 14 elementary schools and one alternative high school. Gone are the days of film noir judges, jurors and attorneys fanning themselves in sweltering courtrooms. Every courtroom Ive covered across five states has air conditioning in the 21st century. You dont want heated jurors making rash decisions like in 12 Angry Men in order to get out of the building and cool off. Kids deserve and need air-conditioned buildings, too, to concentrate and think about something other than their sweltering classroom. A total of $70.4 million of the $350 million bond would be used for right-sizing priorities, including building a $15 million special needs facility on the citys West Side, a $30 million classroom block at Taylor Middle School and $25.4 million for a career technical education training facility, something the Ed Board has supported for years. We need more welders and plumbers and fewer community organizers and social justice warriors. They build nothing but division. Roughly half of the bond, $173.7 million, would be used to finish 13 previously approved projects at schools stalled by increased construction costs. The one hesitation I had for upgrading Albuquerques schools was whether the buildings would be open very long. APS will have to close schools in the upcoming years as enrollment continues to decline. Its a certainty, just a matter of time. The district was designed for 100,000 students but now has roughly 65,000. However, that doesnt mean todays APS kids should suffer. Ad Kizito Wijenje, executive director of the districts capital master plan, said the schools slated for an air conditioning overhaul are expected to remain open for 20 years or more. If theres one thing Im for spending taxpayer money on its the kids, even though I dont have any. The kids are our nations future, and I want them to have all the classroom and playground opportunities my Sesame Street generation had. My grade school and junior high werent air-conditioned 50 years ago, but we didnt go back to school in August, there were no summer programs, and Hoosiers didnt go to school in the American Southwest. The least we can do for New Mexico kids is keep them cool at school in the late spring and late summer when the current swamp coolers arent up for the task. I encourage voters to support the APS bond. I may just vote for it myself. Gail Armstrong Source: NM Legislature Not surprisingly, New Mexicos progressive Democrat lawmakers have been giving themselves credit for protecting New Mexicos families after the recent special session. But this political spin should not fool New Mexicans the session was nothing more than political theater. It was Act II of the Democrats months-long effort to spread fear that President Trump would destroy health care and take food assistance from hundreds of thousands of New Mexicans. Since President Trump signed the federal budget reconciliation bill (H.R. 1), all weve heard from progressive lawmakers are talking points that simply arent true. The results of the special session prove it. Despite their sky is falling rhetoric, the five bills Democrats rushed through failed to address the issues they claimed to care about. For example, the Democrat-led Legislature did little to address changes to Medicaid. The only major action they took for SNAP recipients was to use state taxpayer dollars to continue benefits for people who will lose eligibility. The one health care item Democrats did address had nothing to do with President Trump. They sought to extend federal premium tax credits that were already scheduled to expire in December 2025 an expiration set by a Democrat-controlled Congress and signed into law by President Biden. What this special session should be remembered for is not what lawmakers did but what they refused to do. If progressive Democrats truly wanted to protect New Mexicos families, why did they ignore our states health care crisis and the shortage of providers? Why did they fail to address the homelessness epidemic plaguing Albuquerque and Santa Fe? Why did they refuse to tackle our revolving-door criminal justice system that has made Albuquerque one of the most dangerous cities in America? And why did they continue to ignore the Children, Youth and Families Department repeated failures to protect abused and neglected children? Republican House members came prepared with solutions to these problems, but the bills were not even introduced for debate. In reality, the Democrats used the special session to posture politically and cater to special interest groups not to solve the urgent problems every New Mexican sees in their own community. To the governor and Democrat lawmakers, funding for public television mattered more than tackling violent juvenile crime and protecting vulnerable children from abuse and neglect. This special session should serve as a wake-up call. It exposed who is really running our state and why New Mexicos most serious challenges remain unaddressed. Progressive Democrats would rather blame President Trump than take responsibility for decades of failed, out-of-touch policies. As the tax committee chair, Rep. Derrick J. Lente, said on the House floor: In New Mexico, until things change, the Democrats are the majority in the House and the Senate. Hes right. Democrats have controlled this state for more than 90 years and are responsible for the crises we face today a failing education system, a violent crime epidemic, an exodus of health care providers and a child welfare system that continues to fail our most vulnerable. Until there is a change in the progressive Democrat-controlled Legislature, New Mexicans cannot and should not expect things to get any better. ED Arrests Reliance Group CFO Ashok Pal in Money Laundering Case Linked to Anil Ambani Firms 2 The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has arrested Ashok Pal, the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of Reliance Power, a company under Anil Ambanis Reliance Group, on charges of money laundering, official sources said on Saturday. Pal was taken into custody on Friday under provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), following a detailed investigation into financial irregularities linked to the group. According to sources, the ED is probing multiple Anil Ambani-led Reliance Group companies in connection with alleged multi-crore bank fraud cases. The investigation focuses on suspected fund diversions and potential violations of banking and financial regulations. The arrest marks a major development in the agencys ongoing crackdown on corporate money laundering and financial misconduct cases involving major business groups. Maharashtra Govt Announces Major Relief Package for Rain-Hit Farmers in 34 Districts 2 The Maharashtra government has announced a major relief package for farmers across 34 districts who suffered extensive losses due to heavy rains and floods between June and September. The states decision includes rationalisation of cooperative loans, suspension of loan recovery for a year, and waivers of examination fees for students of Classes 10 and 12 in the affected regions. According to a government resolution (GR) issued on Friday, 347 tehsils across the state recorded large-scale damage to crops, farmland, and houses, along with the loss of livestock and other property. The GR also confirmed that electricity bills for three months will be waived in the impacted tehsils. Preliminary assessments by the state agriculture department revealed that crops spread over 65 lakh hectares were damaged by the unseasonal rainfall. The Marathwada region and adjoining areas were among the worst hit, facing widespread flooding and soil erosion. Earlier this week, the state government announced a comprehensive compensation package of 31,628 crore to support affected farmers and residents. The package covers compensation for crop and property losses, soil damage, medical expenses, and direct financial assistance to farmers, along with concessions typically provided during drought conditions. According to preliminary arrest statistics, the New Orleans field office made 33 at-large arrests May 13-16 including 12 in Alabama More police in Alabama are helping federal agents detain undocumented immigrants under a growing collaboration. The program, called 287G, allows local law enforcement to carry out the duties of federal agents in order to achieve President Trumps goal of mass deportations. We just joined to be able to help out if there are people in our communities that are criminals and need to be taken into custody, said Sheriff Joe Hamilton of Lauderdale County. Immigrant advocates nationwide say they are worried the program will encourage racial profiling. We condemn the use of 287(g) agreements to further weaponize local law enforcement against their own communities, said Allison Hamilton, who heads the Alabama Coalition for Immigrant Justice. Alabama departments that joined the program this fall include the sheriffs offices in Autauga and Marshall counties and the Lanett Police Department. The sheriffs of Baldwin, Lauderdale and Washington counties are in the process of joining, according to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Hamilton said Lauderdale County does not have many immigrants. Washington County also has a small immigrant population, although there is one undocumented immigrant currently in jail for a shooting. We do interact with them from time to time, said Blake Richardson, with the Washington County Sheriffs Office. He added its important to enforce all state and federal laws. If we can partner with other agencies to identify and arrest any types of criminals, I think thats important for us to do, he told AL.com. The sheriff for Marshall County, home to one of the largest immigrant populations in the state, did not immediately respond to AL.coms request for comment. Earlier this year, Mobile and Baldwin counties, the coastal epicenter of Alabamas immigration arrests, joined the program. (We joined) to show support of the program and to do our part in completing this mission, Mobile County Sheriff Paul Burch told AL.com in June. Two local police departments, Level Plains and Lanett, have joined the program. As local police become more involved in detaining immigrants, particularly during traffic stops, Alabama has more than doubled its rate of immigration detentions from last year. Of about 2,500 people arrested in Alabama during the Trump administration, 1,913 have pending criminal charges and 464 were convicted of crimes. Their most common offense was traffic violations, at 24%, according to data from ICE published by the Deportation Data Project. Violent criminals were a small minority of detainees. Just 2.6% of the 2025 detainees were charged with or convicted of homicide, 2.6% of sexual assault, and 3.2% of weapons offenses. As of July, federal agents in Alabama were short staffed, with just four offices and 25 employees, according to Chris Cannon, an assistant field officer for ICE. Cannon spoke to Alabama sheriffs at a conference in Orange Beach in July, encouraging them to enroll. We want to make one of your deputies, and maybe more of them, mini-immigration officers, he said. Local sheriffs can opt to work with ICE through three models: Chinese premier attends 80th anniversary celebrations of Workers' Party of Korea Xinhua) 08:07, October 11, 2025 Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, watches military parades in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025. Li Qiang attended the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Workers' Party of Korea, held on Thursday and Friday in Pyongyang. Li attended the celebration ceremony and watched grand mass gymnastics, artistic performances and military parades. (Xinhua/Shen Hong) PYONGYANG, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Workers' Party of Korea, held on Thursday and Friday in Pyongyang. Li, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, attended the celebration ceremony and watched grand mass gymnastics, artistic performances and military parades. On the sidelines of the event, Li also talked with General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee To Lam, Chairman of the United Russia party and Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council Dmitry Medvedev, and others. Chinese Premier Li Qiang, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, attends the celebration ceremony and watches grand mass gymnastics, artistic performances in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 9, 2025. Li Qiang attended the 80th anniversary celebrations of the Workers' Party of Korea, held on Thursday and Friday in Pyongyang. Li attended the celebration ceremony and watched grand mass gymnastics, artistic performances and military parades. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) During his visit to Ukraine, Executive Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers and Commissioner of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Mohamed Elsanousi, met with Elshad Ibrahimov, Deputy Chairman of the United Diaspora of Azerbaijanis in Ukraine (UABD). Azernews reports that the meeting focused on the situation of religious and ethnic minorities living in Ukraine, their integration into society, and efforts to strengthen mutual understanding. Elshad Ibrahimov emphasized that the Azerbaijani community serves as a cultural, humanitarian, and spiritual bridge between the peoples of Azerbaijan and Ukraine. He noted that Azerbaijanis have long been an integral part of Ukrainian society and remain committed to the countrys multicultural values. Azerbaijanis freely practice their religion and beliefs. The Ukrainian state respects religious freedom and provides an environment of mutual understanding and peaceful coexistence among different faiths. This represents an exemplary model of tolerance for both Ukraine and Azerbaijan, he said. Ibrahimov added that members of the diaspora actively participate not only in religious holidays but also in national and cultural events. Despite the ongoing war since 2022, the Azerbaijani community has preserved its spirit of solidarity and mutual assistance. Azerbaijani businessmen and philanthropists in Ukraine have provided medical, humanitarian, and social support to soldiers, demonstrating loyalty to both the Ukrainian people and universal human values, he remarked. During the meeting, Ibrahimov presented a photo album showcasing the diasporas social, cultural, and humanitarian projects, including charity events, iftar dinners, and community initiatives organized during wartime. Commissioner Elsanousi described the meeting as not only an introduction to the Azerbaijani diasporas activities but also as a reaffirmation of religious tolerance, multiculturalism, and international peace. Representatives of Finlands largest humanitarian organization, Finn Church Aid, also attended, emphasizing the importance of compassion, dialogue, and mutual respect among nations and religions. When Patricia McCormick published her novel Sold in 2006, she never imagined it would someday become one of the most challenged books in the United States. The critically acclaimed work, which tackles the harrowing subject of child sex trafficking through the story of a 13-year-old Nepali girl named Lakshmi, was written to educate young readers about a global crisis. It was not intended to stir controversy. Never, and it was the opposite, said McCormick, 69, a New York-based, award-winning author and National Book Award finalist. Its a story about child sex trafficking. Its supposed to be upsetting. But its not pornography. Defending libraries Nearly 20 years after its release, Sold has been lauded for raising awareness about human trafficking and has become a staple in classrooms and libraries across the country. McCormick has spoken at numerous literary events nationwide, using the book as a reference for difficult but necessary conversations. Those appearances, however, have dwindled in recent years amid a dramatic increase in book bans and challenges across American schools and libraries. McCormick continues to speak publicly and will appear at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Fairhope Public Library in Alabama. The event is open to the public and will center on topics including banned books and the importance of local libraries. It comes as the culture wars over book availability and book bans continues to animate nationwide, including in Fairhope where disputes with state officials has led to a $42,000 pause to the librarys state funding. Librarians are the ones who are taking it on the chin, McCormick said, referring to the post-pandemic wave of censorship efforts led by activists. Librarians are being fired. They are being hassled whenever they go to the grocery store. They are called groomers. Their private information is being released for just doing their jobs. McCormick said she hopes her advocacy for public libraries will unite people across political divides. I believe its something everyone can get behind, she said. Sold by Patricia McCormick Hyperion Fairhopes plight Her appearance in Fairhope comes at a time when the library itself is under scrutiny. It remains out of compliance with new sexually explicit book placement standards issued by the Alabama Public Library Service board, a policy that has led to heightened tensions over which books are deemed appropriate for young readers. Sold is one of the books that has been read to APLS board members and held up as an example of content that should not be made available to teenagers under 18. The book, while shelved in the Adult section at the Ben May Branch of the Mobile Public Library, remains in the Young Adult section in Fairhope where it can be checked out by anyone age 13 and up. Two pages within the 263-page book have created much of the controversy with Sold. They provide a description of a sexual assault, and the eventual muffled sounds of sobbing by the girl who is attacked. There is no graphic language, McCormick said. It describes her confusion. The feeling of betrayal. Shes 13. She doesnt understand what is happening to her. McCormick added, I am aware I am writing for other peoples children. If they are going to wade into a book about child sex trafficking, I want to be very careful with the language. Its a brutal topic. I do not intend to brutalize them with the language. The language, though, runs afoul of the APLS version of the definition of what constitutes sexually explicit. The APLS, earlier this year, posted a definition on its website that considers sexually explicit as any visual, written, or audio content depicting sexual conduct that includes sexual intercourse, excitement, nudity, bestiality, masturbation, sadistic or masochistic abuse or lascivious exhibition. In Fairhope, the argument exists over the different interpretations of what constitutes sexually explicit, with the APLS taking a hardened stance that any passages within a book could make it eligible for relocation within a public library. The Fairhope Library Board, after reviewing challenges to 37 books, decided that 24 of them should remain shelved primarily in the librarys teen section (age 13 to 17). Rob Gourlay, the librarys director, said that Sold remained one of the books at issue. The librarys funding has yet to be reinstated. Its unclear if that book, or a number of other books, is the main cause for the lack of restoring funding to the Fairhope Library. The APLS decided in March to pause Fairhope librarys funding. Read Freely Alabama, a grassroots free speech advocacy organization that has fought restrictions on library content, then privately raised the money to replace the lost state funding. I think our community continues to be very supportive of this library and Im very proud of that, Gourlay said. Rendering of the road project in McCalla. Alabama Department of Transportation A multi-million-dollar transportation project is underway in Jefferson County. Last month, the Alabama Department of Transportation announced a $22 million Diverging Diamond Interchange (DDI) project in McCalla, south of Birmingham. ALDOT said the modern interchange style, first installed in Springfield, Missouri, in 2009, could significantly reduce crashes while also being cost-effective and efficient. The project will transform Exit 104 on Interstate 59/20 at McAshan Drive and offer access to the Rock Mountain Lakes community along with the Jefferson Metropolitan Park, officials said. The corridor, according to ALDOT, is home to a dozen industrial campuses, including the new $1.1 billion JM Smucker Uncrustables plant. Jefferson County is paying for most of project with $14 million. The rest is coming from federal and state sources. The Rebuild Alabama Act funds provide $2 million, and $6 million is coming from the Federal Interstate Maintenance Fund. As drivers approach one side of the bridge, the DDI design allows traffic to gently transition from the right side to the left and then back again at the other end of the bridge, state officials wrote in their announcement. Drivers will make all left turns without crossing opposing traffic since it travels on the left side of the bridge. The project will last through the fall of 2026. Motorists should expect temporary lane closures and shifts as the project proceeds. Plans include adding interchanges at the intersections of I-65 and Lakeshore Drive in Homewood, as well as at the future Exit 9 on I-459 in Hoover. The state transport agency says research by the Federal Highway Administration shows that, when compared to conventional intersections, DDI reduces cost by 75%, vehicle conflict points by 50%, and increases traffic efficiency by 30%. Alabama got its first DDI in 2020 in Baldwin County. There were 150 similar insulations across the country as of June 2024. Men line up at Easterling Correctional Facility in south Alabama in this undated photo, provided by HBO's documentary "The Alabama Solution". Contributed, 'The Alabama Solution' A documentary chronicling Alabamas notorious prison system has dropped on HBO. The Alabama Solution is a nearly two-hour look at the states maximum-security lockups, using footage from inside prison walls taken by inmates on contraband cellphones. The documentary has been in the works for six years and hit the services streaming app HBO Max on Friday. We want to show viewers the truth about a system that has been cloaked in secrecy, said co-director Andrew Jarecki. We hope the film sparks an effort to allow access for journalists and others so the public can have transparency into how incarcerated citizens are treated and how our tax dollars are being spent. We hope to inspire Alabamas leadership to acknowledge the crisis and to overhaul its prison system and its use of forced labor. The film, from directors Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, first premiered at the 2025 Sundance Film Festival. Press releases around its release said the footage exposes the inhumane conditions inside Alabamas prisons. The documentary begins with filmmakers visiting a revival meeting at a south Alabama lockup in 2019. While the cameramen document the meeting, inmates start to pull them aside and tell them of horrible conditions inside the facilities which filmmakers were not allowed to enter and record. According to the filmmakers, that incident sparked the six-year investigation into what was really going on behind the southern prison walls. The cellphone videos show leaking sewage, rats captured in water bottles, inmates sleeping on the floors of overcrowded dorms, people overdosing without medical attention, blood scattered across tile floors and more. The U.S. Department of Justice has long said the conditions inside the prisons are unconstitutional. Some inmates also took videos of themselves to submit to documentarians or recorded their video calls with producers. The inmates who most frequently told their stories on camera were Robert Earl Council, also known as Kinetik Justice, Melvin Ray, and a man who identified himself as Raoul. Kaufman, the co-director, said without those men, the movie wouldnt have happened. Thanks to their work, the film is able to break through the veil of secrecy and bring the audience into a world that is otherwise inaccessible. Birmingham-based journalist Beth Shelburne was a co-producer on the film. Prison data, compiled by AL.com, shows from October 2023 through September 2024 the 2024 fiscal year there were 292 death investigations opened inside Alabama prisons. During the same period, there were 738 sexual abuse investigations. Some of those incidents involved staff, but the majority were inmate-on-inmate incidents. More than 30 of those sexual abuse incidents involved group attacks, with 4 or more people. And according to the new documentary, Alabama has paid out more than $52 million in settlements for wrongful abuse cases from prison workers. Alabamas prison system has been in the federal crosshairs for years and is currently facing a lawsuit from the Department of Justice for rampant physical and sexual violence and unconstitutional conditions. Too many male inmates are raped and killed, too many drugs to enter prison walls and life expectancy drops from the moment an inmate walks through the doors, the government argues. Alongside showing what life is like behind bars, The Alabama Solution follows a mother whose son was killed in prison. But the narratives of what happened to Steven Edward Davis vary. At the time of his 2019 death, prison officials said Davis rushed out of his cell brandishing one prison-made weapon in each hand and attempted to strike an officer. His former roommate told a lawyer, documented on The Alabama Solution, that officers did the right thing. But then, the roommate said he had to look out for himself, hinting he could be in danger, until he was released from prison and would speak with Davis mother in person to tell her what happened. That man died before his release day. In the film, other inmates and anonymous prison workers said officers killed Davis using excessive force. The directors said they are concerned for the safety of the men who participated in the film. Kaufman said the men, specifically Council and Ray, have faced retaliation for their activism in the past, and the risk remains present. In response, the organization One For Justice, through the Alabama Whistleblower Legal Defense Fund, has assembled a defense committee of lawyers and experts to prepare legal arguments and challenge retaliation by authorities or others. Ultimately, it is the legal and moral responsibility of the Alabama Department of Corrections to keep these men safe. The name of the film appears to come from frequent comments by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey, who has long said the state needs an Alabama solution to an Alabama problem. In 2021, she said that opening new mega prisons was the driving force behind our Alabama Solution to an Alabama Problem. The governors office directed questions to the prison system, but prison officials didnt respond to requests for comment for this story. Neither did the Alabama Attorney Generals Office. Jarecki added one of his hopes is that by getting to know the extraordinary men in the film, we can look past their circumstances and see their humanity. In the U.S., being convicted of a crime may result in extended imprisonment, but it should not mean forfeiting the most basic human rights. What can be fixed? In its 2019 and 2020 investigation documents, the Department of Justice laid out possible solutions to Alabamas prison crisis. Among those were: Stop blaming victims. Change how the prisons handle complaints about violence, drugs and threats to avoid subjecting victims to disciplinary actions Figure out why people are dying. Develop a centralized system to house autopsies of all who die in ADOC custody Install metal detectors Investigate and document every allegation of sexual abuse Fix broken locks Provide running water and ensure at least 80% of toilets, sinks, and shower heads work That was just some of what the federal government recommended. But, according to the lawsuit filed at the end of 2020, the government said the state hadnt taken their solutions seriously and that Alabama has not made this easy fix despite acknowledging the decrepit conditions for years. Construction is ongoing for a mega-prison for men in Elmore County thats going to cost more than $1 billion. That new prison is slated to have just 4,000 beds, along with additional room for medical care, mental health care, and educational opportunities. The new lockups wont add beds to the states total number when they open theyre set to simply replace beds in the dilapidated facilities that will shut their doors. Theres plans for a second mega-prison in Escambia County. The federal investigators said the expensive new buildings wont solve Alabamas issue, and the state might just wind up back in the same position its in now. Mens prisons in the state, according to the 2020 lawsuit, remain extremely overcrowded, prisoner-on-prisoner homicides have increased, other forms of prisoner-on-prisoner violence including sexual abuse remains unabated, the facilities remain inadequate, use of excessive force by security staff is common, and staffing rates remain critically and dangerously low. A response from the states lawyers in court records said the lawsuit contained vague allegations and that its descriptions of violence inside the prisons are isolated examples. Researchers at EJI found that people are murdered in Alabamas prisons at a rate 513% higher than Alabamians who are not incarcerated. The same data showed the fatal overdose rate in the states prisons was 1,629% higher than the rate for Alabamians who werent imprisoned. The suicide rate for Alabama inmates was 135% higher. And a recent report from the ACLU of Alabama showed that 105 prison deaths in 2024 were listed as being from an unknown cause or were under investigation. The report cited a lack of transparency in death data, and the organization called for the prison system to require autopsies for all who die in custody and update its definitions of death. The Alabama Solution calls the states lockups Americas deadliest prison system. Every day these conditions persist brings greater risk to the men at the center of the film, said Kaufman. In recent years Alabamas state prisons have had the highest rate of assault, drug overdose, rape, and murder of any system in America. Since the DOJ sued the state over its prisons in 2020, we believe the situation has further deteriorated. The US prison system, operating largely out of public view, costs US taxpayers a fortune (over $80 billion annually) and many of the policies and practices around incarceration are not making us safer. Residents attend a vigil honoring the victims of a blast at an explosives plant, Accurate Energetic Systems, on Friday, Oct. 10, 2025, in Centerville Tenn. (AP Photo/Obed Lamy) Associated Press By ADRIAN SAINZ and TRAVIS LOLLER Associated Press McEWEN, Tenn. (AP) The blast that leveled an explosives plant and was felt for miles around in rural Tennessee left no survivors, authorities said today. Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said during a news conference that officials were working on the assumption that all of the people at the site were dead. The total number of people who died was unclear, as was the cause of the blast. Davis had said earlier there were 18 people missing. The explosion occurred Friday morning at Accurate Energetic Systems, which supplies and researches explosives for the military. Weve recovered no survivors, Davis said. The explosion scattered debris over at least a half-mile area and was felt by residents more than 15 miles away, Davis said. Aerial footage showed the companys hilltop location smoldering and smoky Friday, with just a mass of twisted metal, burned-out shells of cars and an array of debris left behind. Davis, who described it as one of the worst scenes hes ever seen, said officials were investigating the site and still working to recover those who were killed. Its not like working an accident. Its not like working a tornado. Were dealing with explosions. And I would say at this time, were dealing with remains, he said. Davis said there has been an outpouring of support for the community, located in a heavily wooded area of middle Tennessee, between the economically vital Tennessee River and the bustling metropolis of Nashville. Signs near the site on Saturday asked for prayers for the families. A lot of grief Terry Bagsby, 68, is retired but he helps out working the register at a gas station near the site. He said people in the close-knit community are very, very sad. He said he knows people who worked at the site and are missing. I dont know how to explain it. Just a lot of grief. The companys website says it processes explosives and ammunition at an eight-building facility that sprawls across wooded hills in the Bucksnort area, about 60 miles southwest of Nashville. Davis said investigators are trying to determine what happened and couldnt say what caused the explosion. The company has been awarded numerous military contracts, largely by the U.S. Army and Navy, to supply different types of munitions and explosives, according to public records. The products range from bulk explosives to landmines and small breaching charges, including C4. Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee posted on the social platform X that he is monitoring the situation and asked Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident. A small group gathered for a vigil Friday night at a nearby park, clutching candles as they prayed for the missing and their families and sang Amazing Grace. In 2019, Accurate Energetic Systems faced several small fines from the U.S. Department of Labor for violations of policies meant to protect workers from exposure to hazardous chemicals, radiation and other irritants, according to citations from OSHA. In 2014, an explosion occurred at another ammunition facility in the same small community, killing one person and injuring at least three others. ____ Associated Press writers Sarah Brumfield, in Cockeysville, Maryland; Hannah Schoenbaum, in Salt Lake City; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Kimberlee Kruesi in Providence, Rhode Island; and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed to this report. Chris' Famous Hotdogs in downtown Montgomery, has been in business since 1917! Contributed, Chris' Famous Hotdogs A perennial Montgomery restaurant is changing ownership for the first time in a century. Chriss Famous Hotdogs, a downtown staple since 1917, is changing hands with Angia Katechis turning over the keys to new owners, the business announced on social media today and confirmed by WSFA 12 in Montgomery. The transition will occur next Friday. Angia Katechis, wife of the late owner Theo Katechis, said in a Facebook post today that she will lovingly pass Chris into the hands of wonderful new owners devoted caretakers who share our deep love for Montgomery and its rich traditions. The business was founded by Christopher Anastasios, Greek immigrant. It is the oldest family-owned and operated restaurant in Montgomery. Christopher Anastasios son, Theo Katechis, succeeded his father at the restaurant. He died last year. While not naming the new owner, Angia Katechis said the new proprietors share deep roots in Montgomery. I have every confidence that Chris will remain the same welcoming place to gather with friends, old and new just as it always has been. English News Upholding multilateral trading system and advancing global economic governance reform Alwihda Info | Par peoplesdaily - 11 Octobre 2025 In recent years, China has firmly defended the multilateral trading system, actively participated in WTO reform and the adjustment of international economic and trade rules, and worked to make the global economic governance system more just and equitable. By Jiang Bo, People's Daily At a high-level meeting on the Global Development Initiative (GDI) recently held by China at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, China announced that it will not seek new special and differential treatment available to developing countries in current and future negotiations at the World Trade Organization (WTO). WTO Director-General Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala praised this decision as a critical moment for the WTO, saying that it demonstrates China's commitment to building a more balanced and equitable global trading system. She emphasized that the move provides strong momentum for WTO reform, helping to make the organization more adaptive and effective. The multilateral trading system with the WTO at its core is facing severe challenges. Calls to safeguard the multilateral trading system have grown stronger across the international community, alongside rising expectations for the WTO to play a more active role. Since joining the WTO in 2001, China has achieved rapid economic and social development, transforming into the world's second-largest economy, top merchandise trader, and second-largest services trader. Associate Professor Hu Jianguo(Nankai University School of Law) notes that China's expanding economic influence now positions it to play a more prominent role in safeguarding the multilateral trading system, participating in WTO reform, and shaping international economic and trade rules. Ji Wenhua, professor at the School of Law, University of International Business and Economics, explained that special and differential treatment is an institutional arrangement under the WTO framework granted to developing members. As the world's largest developing country, China has strictly observed WTO rules and fully honored its accession commitments since acceding to the organization. On this basis, Ji said, continuing to exercise its rights in accordance with WTO rules is consistent with international law and the principles of the WTO. Amid rising unilateral tariffs and trade conflicts that undermine the multilateral trading system, disrupt global trade order, and heighten economic instability, Ji adds that China's announcement can help break deadlocks on development issues at the WTO, accelerate institutional reform, and boost developing countries' confidence in the multilateral trading system. Han Yong, director general of the Department of WTO Affairs at China's Ministry of Commerce, reaffirmed three guiding principles that remain unchanged: China's status as a developing member, its commitment to defending the legitimate rights of developing countries, and its support for trade and investment liberalization and facilitation. Tu Xinquan, dean of the China Institute for WTO Studies at the University of International Business and Economics, explained that this decision, while refraining from seeking additional differential treatment, does not alter its legal status as a developing country within the organization. "China has always been, and will always remain, a member of the Global South, standing together with fellow developing countries," said Tu. He added that these three "unchanged" principles represent China's solemn commitment to safeguarding the multilateral trading system and its concrete actions to uphold the rightful place of developing countries in global governance. Ji Wenhua further clarified that China's position papers and policy statements to the WTO have clearly defined the scope and application of this decision. First, the decision applies solely within the WTO framework and does not set a precedent for, or affect China's status and treatment in, other international organizations or treaties. Second, it concerns only whether China seeks special and differential treatment in negotiations, and does not change its developing-country status, which remains consistent with WTO rules, practice, and China's stage of development. Third, the decision applies only to current and future negotiations and does not affect, nor retroactively apply to, special and differential treatment that China already enjoys or has requested in ongoing negotiations. Accordingly, assertions that this decision means China has become a developed country within the WTO or is no longer a developing country are incorrect and misleading. In recent years, China has firmly defended the multilateral trading system, actively participated in WTO reform and the adjustment of international economic and trade rules, and worked to make the global economic governance system more just and equitable. "At a time when protectionism and unilateralism are spreading, and some major countries disregard international rules and impose unilateral tariffs, the WTO's authority and effectiveness face grave challenges," Ji said, At this critical juncture, Ji argued, China's pragmatic actions reject zero-sum thinking and demonstrate its sense of responsibility for advancing global development. This move underscores China's commitment to safeguarding the international economic and trade order, and highlights its leading role in global governance. Dans la meme rubrique : < > Tang Xianzu and Shakespeare: Theater as a bridge for global cultural dialogue Shanghai seed bank hits 100 million samples in biodiversity conservation push China unveils world's first mid-infrared solar magnetic-field telescope Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena) As part of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons, participants of the international conference titled Combining Efforts and Expanding Cooperation to Address the Problem of Missing Persons have begun their visit to Zangilan, Azernews reports. The delegation traveled to the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, visiting Zangilan District as part of their program. During the trip, the participants visited the Victory monument located in the newly rebuilt Aghali village center. The visitors were also briefed on the conditions created for the return of residents to Aghali village, one of the first smart villages reconstructed in the liberated territories. It should be noted that a day earlier, conference participants visited a mass grave discovered in the Balligaya village area of Aghdara District and the former Shusha prison, where Azerbaijani captives were held during the Armenian occupation. The visit aims to provide international participants with a deeper understanding of the human and humanitarian consequences of Armenias aggression and to highlight Azerbaijans ongoing efforts to address the issue of missing persons and support the safe return of displaced citizens to their ancestral lands. A devastating explosion at a Tennessee military supplier plant has left at least 18 souls dead or missing, officials say. The massive blast that occurred at the Accurate Energetic Systems facility in the Bucksnort area just before 8 a.m. local time rocked the close-knit communities in Humphreys County and neighboring Hickman County. We do have several people at this time unaccounted for. We are trying to be mindful of families and that situation, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said earlier in the day. We do have some that are deceased. And a lot of times when I have this type of situation, Ill refer to them more than just a person. Theyre a soul to me. I can tell you that were missing 19 souls. Nineteen was revised down to 18 on Saturday. An official death toll has not yet been given by authorities. Davis said at a later press conference that he personally knew three families impacted by the blast and he described the task of informing grieving loved ones as hell. "We're small counties. And when you have small counties like this, we know each other, we communicate with each other, we love each other, he said, choking back emotion. The blast that occurred at the Accurate Energetic Systems facility in the Bucksnort area just before 8 a.m. local time rocked the nearby close-knit communities (AP) A massive explosion at a Tennessee military supplier plant has left at least 18 people missing, with some feared dead, officials say (AP) Video from the scene showed the remains of the plant, much of which was still on fire, with thick black smoke also visible. The eight-building facility is located around 60 miles southwest of Nashville. The sheriff said it was one of the most devastating scenes hes ever seen. When asked to describe the building where the explosion happened, he responded, There's nothing to describe. It's gone." He later told reporters the explosion, which was felt miles away and showed up on weather radar, left a half-mile square of debris, with some of the wreckage found off-site. The eight-building facility is located around 60 miles southwest of Nashville (AP) First responders couldnt enter the plant at first because of continuing detonations, Hickman County Advanced EMT David Stewart told the Associated Press. There was no further danger of explosions and the scene was under control by Friday afternoon. The cause of the explosion remains unknown as the search of the property and investigation into the blast will continue through the night. Tennessee residents reported hearing the blast from miles away. Beyonica Holt, who lives around 15 miles from the plant, said she thought we were at war and that I was going to die. I was standing in my bedroom. It shook the whole house. I thought it was going to blow out my windows it didnt, but thats how big it was, she told The Tennessean. When asked to describe the building where the explosion happened, the local sheriff responded, There's nothing to describe. It's gone (Brett Carlsen/Getty) Tennessee Governor Bill Lee wrote on X Friday afternoon he was monitoring the situation and asked Tennesseans to join us in prayer for the families impacted by this tragic incident. Accurate Energetic Systems has supplied munitions and explosives, including landmines and C4, to the military, largely the Army and Navy, the AP reported, citing public records. Fridays explosion marked the second of its kind in less than a decade. In April 2014, a fire at the plant killed one man and injured four others, local outlet WSMV reported. Hundreds of thousands of pro-Palestine protesters gathered in central London to mark two years since the start of the war in Gaza, a day after the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas came into effect. Protesters marched along the Victoria Embankment before ending with a rally close to Downing Street on Saturday afternoon, the events organisers Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) said. Stalls selling keffiyeahs stood along the River Thames as the demonstration began, while people handed out placards that read from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free, its not a crime to act against genocide and Starmer has blood on his hands, free Palestine. Meanwhile, a counter-protest by Stop The Hate took place at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand, with police putting measures in place to prevent serious disruption between the two groups. People on Waterloo Bridge as they take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march (Yui Mok/PA Wire) The Met Police reported that a small group of counter-protesters had breached its conditions by demonstrating at the form-up area of the pro-Palestine march, leading to a scuffle between several individuals from the two groups. Officers had to separate those involved and made a small number of arrests, police said. After the pro-Palestine demonstration dispersed, the Met Police confirmed it had made 14 arrests in total during the day, including seven for breaching conditions under the Public Order Act. Other arrests were made for offences including supporting a proscribed group and affray, the force added. People take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street (Yui Mok/PA Wire) At one stage during the event, police had ushered away a group of people carrying placards saying We stand with Britains Jews before the march set off and took them out of the crowd of pro-Palestine protesters. Another sign, decorated with the image of a bee in the Star of David, read It was never about Palestine, it was always about hate. Shouts of shame and free Palestine came loudly from the pro-Palestine crowd gathered along Victoria Embankment as they were led away shortly before 12.45pm. The pro-Palestinian protest was the 32nd national demonstration in support of Palestine since October 2023, according to PSC. Last weekend, the Government announced that police would be given greater powers to restrict protests by allowing them to consider the cumulative impact of repeated demonstrations. Protesters at a counter protest organised by Stop The Hate, as people take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march (Yui Mok/PA Wire) Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said repeated large-scale protests had caused considerable fear for the Jewish community. The Metropolitan Police said it was aware of the plans, but that at this time, the law remains unchanged. Calls for restraint were made following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on October 2 in which two people were killed, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urging protesters to respect the grief of British Jews. Protesters shouted from the rivers to the sea, Palestine will be free as they marched towards Westminster on Saturday, a chant that Sir Keir has suggested the Government may crack down on. Some consider the slogan to be antisemitic as they believe it calls for the eradication of Israel, while proponents of the chant claim they are calling for an end to conflict in Gaza and the West Bank. (REUTERS) Your Party co-founder Jeremy Corbyn walked at the front of the crowd across Westminster Bridge, helping to carry a large banner that said National march. Free Palestine. He stayed silent as a woman using a megaphone led the from the rivers to the sea chant, and Keir Starmer you cant hide, we charge you with genocide. Fellow Your Party co-founder Zarah Sultana later criticised the Home Secretary for switching sides on Palestine and locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action, who she described as heroes. The Independent MP for Coventry South said Shabana Mahmood doesnt want to just ban demonstrations, she wants to criminalise dissent she wants to send a message that if you march for Palestine, if you speak out against genocide, if you demand justice, then the state considers you the problem. Shame on her. From a stage outside Downing Street, she said that in 2014 Ms Mahmood took part in two demonstrations for Gaza: Lying on the floor of a Sainsburys supermarket and weeks later addressing a Palestine protest like this with expressions of compassion. Today she is locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action and calling them terrorists they are heroes, Ms Sultana said. The real terrorists are the war criminals that continue to drop bombs on Gaza and the politicians here in Britain who welcome them with open arms shame on them, she added. At stage during the protest more than 25 police officers escorted a handcuffed woman away from the pro-Palestine demonstration as she shouted because I said coconut I have been arrested. As police walked her away at around 1.45pm, the woman shouted: This is Islamophobia, because I said coconut I have been arrested, for what is a legal word in English; the word coconut is not illegal, it has been proven in a court of law. A large stationary crowd of counter-protesters waving Israeli flags blared loud music as they faced more than a hundred thousand pro-Palestinian protesters passing from Waterloo Bridge on to the Strand. A deafening loud speaker blared heavy rock metal music that included lyrics you can stick your Palestine up your hole and ended with the line youre not welcome anymore, before someone on the megaphone shouted Shalom losers. A blue make America great again flag was flown at the front of the counter-protest, as well as several Union flags. The Stop The Hate counter-protest blared Lily Allens song F*** You from the speakers, as a man sang from a microphone f*** you and said bye, bye, bye see you never. Ben Jamal, PSC director, said the group will never stop supporting Palestinians to achieve a free Palestine. Of the protest this weekend, he said: This is a movement supported by millions of people in this country and around the world who want freedom and justice for Palestine. That work will go on. Because we know Israel is capable of breaking the ceasefire at any time, as it has done on every previous occasion. And we know this ceasefire based on (US President Donald) Trumps plan does nothing to address the root causes of Israeli occupation and colonisation of Palestine, and its system of apartheid against Palestinians. It also does nothing to hold those responsible for genocide to account. The rights of the Palestinian people are enshrined under international law they are inviolable and non-negotiable. They will never give up those rights, and we will never stop supporting them to achieve a free Palestine. The demonstrations come as tens of thousands of Palestinians returned to their homes in Gaza following the withdrawal of Israeli forces. The Israeli military said on Friday that the ceasefire agreement came into effect at noon local time (10am BST). The pause in the two-year war in the Middle East follows Hamas agreeing to release the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. News of the ceasefire agreement came just two days after the second anniversary of October 7, the attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel. California State University Long Beach student, 22, is found dead and now his roommate is charged with murder Long Beach Police have identified a 22-year-old California State University, Long Beach student who was stabbed to death by one of his roommates over the weekend. The incident occurred on Sunday October 5 on Temple Avenue, according to the police department. Officers who responded to the incident found two men at the scene with stab wounds to their upper bodies. One of the victims was taken to a hospital in stable condition, while the other victim was declared dead at the scene. Police have identified the individual who died as 22-year-old Spencer Timms. He was studying industrial design at the university and had just transferred to the school from Saddleback College. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner's Office listed Timms cause of death as being multiple stab wounds to the chest. The Walter Pyramid at California State University, Long Beach. A CSULB student, Spencer Timms, 22, was killed in a stabbing at a nearby commercial district on October 5 (Google Maps) Alejandro Iniestra, 34, of Long Beach, was at the scene when police arrived and has been arrested as a suspect in the stabbing. He has been charged with murder and is being held on a $2 million bail, according to the Long Beach Current. Investigators believe Iniestra attacked both of the roommates, but a motive has not been made public by police. The University of California, Long Beach provided the following statement to local broadcaster KTLA: We are deeply saddened by the loss of our student, Spencer Timms. We have been in touch with Spencers family and have been reaching out to and supporting his Beach classmates and faculty," the university said. The identity of the other roommate injured in the attack has not been made public by police. The dean for the school's College of Arts Royce W Smith sent students emails discussing Timms on Wednesday. It is with a heavy heart that I share with you that one of our Department of Design and College of Arts students, Spencer Timms, passed away in Long Beach this past Saturday, the statement said. Smith described Timms as being an "incredibly positive and impactful student, maintaining a 4.0 GPA during his time at CSULB and sharing a passion for design." I remember quite well meeting Spencer on one of my visits to the department and clearly recall seeing and admiring the creative fire in him and his work, Smith said in the statement. A student who knew he had something special to offer and who put all of himself into honing his talents and focusing his ambition. Police have asked that anyone with information regarding the incident to contact investigators. Sunita Chauhan with grooms Pradeep and Kapil Negi in Himachal Pradesh (Facebook) High in the misty hills of Himachal Pradesh this summer, a wedding drew hundreds of villagers not for its pomp, but for its rarity. Sunita Chauhan stood at the altar flanked by two grooms, brothers Pradeep and Kapil Negi, as she entered into a kind of a union that held families together in this Himalayan region for centuries. In this part of northern India, polyandry the practice of a woman marrying multiple men is known variously as Jodidara or Pandav Pratha, invoking the legend from the Hindu epic Mahabharata of Draupadi, the daughter of the king of Panchala, marrying the five Pandava brothers. Though polyandry isnt uncommon, particularly in the north, the Negi wedding in the hamlet of Shillai made global headlines, a cultural curiosity in a country better known for arranged marriages and elaborate wedding rituals. But, for the Hatti community, to which the bride and grooms belong, it is less about spectacle and more about survival. If brothers marry the same woman, there is no question of splitting farmland. The family stays united, the land stays intact, explains Raghuvir Tomar, who grew up with two fathers in Shillai. For Sunita, the choice was personal. I was aware of the tradition and made my decision without any pressure. One of her husbands, Kapil, says: Were ensuring support, stability and love for our wife as a united family. While the marriage fascinated outsiders, it was just one example of how societies in remote corners of Asia built family systems defying conventional norms. Across the border, on the Himalayan fringes of southwest China, lives a community with an even more radical departure from the familiar script. In Yunnans fertile valleys, the Mosuo, an ethnic minority of Tibetan Buddhist heritage, practise what anthropologists call the walking marriage. Here, the families live in a world without fathers, without marriage and without the nuclear family. At the centre of each household is the grandmother, surrounded by her daughters and their children, with lineage traced solely through women. Mens roles are limited largely to procreation, often with little expectation of raising the children they father. Some hail this as a rare matriarchal society, an arrangement that seems almost utopian in its egalitarianism. Others argue it is merely the mirror image of patriarchy. Tibetan man Gama Sangding poses for a photo with his elder brother La Wen and their common wife Cai Zhuo, in their tent at the Burong Village on 18 July 2007 (Getty Images) Either way, from Himachal Pradesh to Yunnan, communities like the Hatti and the Mosuo challenge the idea that marriage, parenthood and family are fixed universals, highlighting that even the most intimate human bonds are moulded by geography, history, and necessity. The logic behind the Negi union, which anthropologists refer to as fraternal polyandry, is echoed across distant parts of the world, from Himalayan peasants treasuring scarce farmland to Amazonian tribes that believe children can have multiple fathers. More broadly, polyandry underscores how communities adapt to harsh conditions of their particular environments, and find quite pragmatic solutions to enduring human problems: scarcity, survival and solidarity. The practice is in decline now, but its echoes persist around the world. In the remote Dolpa region of Nepal, Tashi Sangmo recalls marrying a 14-year-old neighbour when she was 17. As tradition dictated, she was marrying her husbands younger brother as well. Things are easier this way because everything we have stays in one family, she told the news agency AFP in 2013. Two brothers bring in the money and it is me who decides what to do with it. Her husbands brother, Pasang, joined the marriage without question. They live in a village 4,000m above sea level, where daily life is harsh. Their children call both the men father, with little concern for biology. If I felt jealousy, then I would go and marry someone else, Pema, a Dolpa man who shares a wife with his elder brother, explains matter-of-factly. A bride holds her grooms hand as they take part in a Hindu wedding ritual (AFP via Getty) For centuries, almost every Dolpa household practised fraternal polyandry to prevent land and livestock from being divided into unsustainable fragments. Anthropologist Melvyn Goldstein says the purpose of this practice is not to create wealth but to preserve it. If two brothers inherited 10 acres, their grandchildren would reduce it to plots too small to live on. A single wife would keep the estate whole. Dutch charity SNV estimated that eight in 10 Dolpa households were polyandrous about a generation ago. Today, the figure is closer to one in five. Satellite dishes adorn stone rooftops and tourism is introducing new ideals of romance and marriage, but older people still defend the system. With many brothers the household is stronger and the children have better chances for the future, says Choyocap Gurung, 67, who once shared a wife with two brothers. On the other side of the Himalayas, Goldstein offers two reasons for the perpetuation of fraternal polyandry in some Tibetan communities. Tibetans practice female infanticide and, therefore, have to marry polyandrously, owing to a shortage of females, he explains in a 1987 paper titled When Brothers Share a Wife. And Tibet, lying at extremely high altitudes, is so barren and bleak that Tibetans would starve without resorting to this mechanism. Polyandry is one of the least understood marital systems in the world, breaking many taboos and inviting fascination from other societies. Far less common than polygyny the practice of a man marrying multiple women or monogamy, it appears sporadically across cultures, often in places facing ecological or social strain. Anthropologist Laura Benedict, through a survey of 43 societies, identifies six distinct forms in her 2017 paper Polyandry Around the World. These are fraternal, associated, polykoity, secondary, walking marriage, and familial. Irving Goldman documented a Cubeo woman in Colombias Amazon who took her husbands younger brother as an additional partner when he could not find a wife in their isolated community. She fed both men and was a sexual partner of the junior husband only when her first husband was away, the anthropologist wrote in 1963. In some societies, women married multiple men in separate ceremonies, in what the researcher described as associated polyandry. Unlike fraternal unions, the husbands were not always related but sometimes had a clear hierarchy. Among the Aleuts of Alaska, a woman might take a second husband if the first fell ill or struggled to provide. In southern India, the Paliyans accepted associated polyandry, and took in other men if the first failed to meet their sexual needs or was ill. While the first husband resented the second marriage of the wife, he chose to maintain the relationship rather than lose his wife, Peter Gardner noted in a 2009 paper. The anthropologist also found cases of group marriages involving couples living next to each other. Often, the wife married a neighbour and had a child with him if the older man acquired an illness that prevented sexual activity. But unlike fraternal polyandry, in such marriages, the second husband did not contribute to the household of the first husband. However, the society accepted both men as the womans spouse, he explained. Nepalese harvesters scour meadows at 4,000m altitude during the 2012 harvest in the Dolpa district (AFP via Getty Images) Perhaps the most striking form of polyandry is polykoity, which is when a woman is married to one man but has sexual relations with others. This is accompanied by an overlapping belief that a child can have more than one father, also known as partible paternity. The Bari of Venezuela, the Yanomami of Brazil, and the Ache of Paraguay all shared this conviction once. The communities believed that a child could not possibly be conceived with only one father. They believed the sperm built a ball inside the woman until it was large enough to create a fetus, which, in turn, blocked the passage of the menstrual blood, Donald Pollock explains in his 2002 book Cultures of Multiple Fathers. The belief stemmed from a misconception that the woman merely carried a vessel and did not contribute to the making of a foetus. For women, this spreads the risk in the face of elevated mortality rates. If the father died, others remained. For men, it extended alliances and secured care for children. Children in such societies enjoyed the resources and protection of multiple fathers, blurring the line between kinship and community. In parts of Africa and South America, polyandry took the form of lingering attachments after divorce, which researchers called secondary polyandry. The wife divorced the husband and married the friend but wanted to maintain sexual contact with the first husband. This instance differs from the associated polyandry, Benedict says in her paper, because the woman divorced the first husband, and he did not live with the new couple, nor did he contribute to their household as the junior husband of associated polyandry would do. This was particularly noted among Nigerias Irigwe where remarried couples continued sexual relations with former partners, with no stigma attached. Here, polyandry was not about land or scarcity but about flexible, overlapping bonds in societies where exclusivity carried less weight. This was an accepted and expected practice in the society, Benedict writes. In this community, co-husbands reported no jealousy but avoided each other because of the belief that the one could cause harm or death to the other just by his presence. Families in some areas of Nepal have taken to fraternal polyandry to avoid land division (AFP via Getty) In China, the Mosuo developed one of the most unusual systems: the walking marriage. Men would be invited into womens homes at night and left before dawn. No marriage ceremony, cohabitation or economic obligation. Children would be raised in the maternal household, with uncles often acting as father figures. Though its rarely practised now, the walking marriage once gave Mosuo women remarkable autonomy: the ability to choose and end relationships freely, without dependence on men. In the Mosuo society, women held authority, sexual relationships were pursued freely without stigma, and the responsibility for looking after the children and the elderly lay with the entire extended family. Similar patterns appeared elsewhere: among southern Indias Nayar, women often had multiple lovers alongside a symbolic marriage. In the Congos Lele communities, wives of the village enjoyed broad sexual freedoms. At the other end of the spectrum was familial polyandry wherein access to women was expected rather than chosen. In Alaskas Point Hope, men offered wives to travellers as hospitality. Among the Pawnee of Kansas, brothers were expected to share their wives and sisters with their husbands. Not all women welcomed this. Anthropologist Froelich Rainey notes that Tigara women resented being used in such a way. In other communities, like the Cherokee, women retained more agency in choosing multiple partners. This variation underscores a key reality: polyandry can be empowering as well as coercive, depending on context. Today, polyandry is retreating. Migration, modern education and ideals of romantic love lead younger generations in Himachal and beyond to prefer monogamy. The television now beams the idea of nuclear families into remote valleys, while city jobs loosen ties to ancestral land, a village farmer in northern Indias Uttarakhand laments. We urge you to spread this practice of polyandry as it helps inculcate love among the brothers and help keep families together. The love in the society and among family members is reducing by the day, he says. Migration is rampant and people are increasingly moving towards cities, leaving their land and people behind. And as people are getting educated and married separately, they no longer have the kind of love that they earlier used to have. Europes wild bees and butterflies are facing an escalating extinction crisis, a new conservation assessment has warned, prompting urgent calls for action to reverse the dire state of these vital pollinators. Their decline poses a significant threat to natural systems and food production. The latest European-level assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Natures (IUCN) Red List now classify nearly 100 more wild bee species as at risk. This brings the total to 172 out of 1,928 assessed meaning one in 10 wild bees in Europe are now threatened, a sharp rise from 77 species in 2014. More than 20 per cent of both bumble bee and cellophane bee species are under threat, the IUCN reports. This includes 15 species of bumble bees, crucial for pollinating plants like peas, beans, and clover, and 14 species of cellophane bees, vital for plants in the daisy family and trees such as red maples, now listed as threatened. These essential insects are succumbing to pressures from agriculture, pollution, and rising temperatures, necessitating immediate intervention. A rising number of wild bees and butterflies in Europe are facing the threat of extinction, a new conservation assessment has warned (Eric Leglise/PA Wire) The situation is also severe for Europes butterflies, with 65 out of 442 assessed species, some 15 per cent, facing the threat of extinction, up from 37 species in 2010. More than 40 per cent of those butterflies that are only found in Europe are now threatened or close to being so. One species, the Madeiran large white which was only found on the Portuguese island of Madeira is now officially classed as extinct, the IUCN said. Conservation experts said the biggest threat to wild pollinators was habitat loss, as more intensive agriculture and forestry combined with land abandonment in less productive areas meant they were losing their traditional rural landscape homes such as flower-rich meadows. Nitrogen fertilisers and widespread use of pesticides, including herbicides that reduce the variety of flowering plants, are also hitting many pollinators. And climate change is bringing prolonged hot weather, droughts and wildfires which are increasingly damaging butterfly habitats in southern Europe and encroaching on bog and tundra habitats in Alpine and more northerly areas. More than half (52 per cent) of Europes threatened butterfly species are affected by climate change, the IUCN warns, and some, such as the critically endangered Nevada grayling in southeast Spain, are suffering from a combination of habitat loss and global warming. The findings have prompted calls for urgent action to reverse the dire state of the continents pollinators, which play a key role in natural systems and food production but face threats from agriculture, pollution and rising temperatures (Sam Ellis/PA Wire) But the effects of warmer temperatures on bees are more mixed, hitting cold-adapted bumble bees, while carpenter bees are benefiting from hotter conditions, which speed up their development and breeding. Dr Martin Warren, former chief executive of Butterfly Conservation and one of the lead coordinators of the European Butterflies assessment, said: Many European butterflies are threatened by habitat changes due to rising temperatures. However, by ensuring their habitats are managed as well as possible and populations are large and robust, they stand a chance. Others can be saved from extinction by preventing wildfires, which can obliterate habitats for years. Dr Grethel Aguilar, IUCN director general, said: Beyond their beauty and cultural significance, pollinators like bees and butterflies are lifelines for our health, our food systems and our economies sustaining the fruits, vegetables and seeds that nourish us. In fact, four out of five crop and wildflower species in the EU rely on insect pollination. The latest European Red List assessments reveal serious challenges, with threats mounting for butterflies and crucial wild bee species. Nearly 100 more wild bee species on the continent are classified as at risk of extinction in the latest European-level assessments for the International Union for Conservation of Natures (IUCN) Red List of threatened species (El Gritche/PA Wire) But, she added, it also provided the data needed to drive urgent conservation action to reverse declining population. The European-level assessments of a range of species groups for the first time since the early 2010s was funded by the European Commission. The Commissions environment commissioner, Jessika Roswall, said: The new assessment shows that the conservation status of European wild bees, butterflies and other pollinators is dire. These are the foundation for our food systems, our ecosystems and our societies. Urgent and collective action is needed to tackle this threat. A 72-hour countdown for Hamas to release the remaining living Israeli hostages it holds has begun as the first stage of a ceasefire with Israel takes effect. Israeli troops began pulling back its positions in Gaza on Friday, allowing thousands of displaced Palestinians to return to the ruins of their abandoned homes. Under Donald Trumps peace deal, Hamas has 72 hours to release the 20 living Israeli hostages it is still holding once Israels military withdraws from roughly half of Gaza. The countdown began on Saturday as both Israel and the US said the necessary withdrawal had been completed. The US President said the hostages are due to come back on Monday. In exchange, Israel will free 250 Palestinians serving long terms in its prisons and 1,700 detainees captured during the war. Hundreds of trucks per day are expected to surge into Gaza carrying food and medical aid. Israel's government ratified the ceasefire with Hamas in the early hours of Friday. The potentially historic breakthrough was soon followed by the sight of a huge column of people filing on foot north along the coastal road overlooking sandy beaches towards Gaza City, the enclave's biggest urban area, which had been under attack just days ago in one of Israel's biggest offensives of the war. But even as Gazans headed home, questions loomed about whether the ceasefire and hostage-prisoner exchange deal between Israel and Hamas, the biggest step yet toward ending two years of war, would lead to a lasting peace under Trump's 20-point plan to end the war. Palestinians displaced to the southern part of Gaza make their way along a road as they return to the north, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas (REUTERS) Speaking to reporters at the White House, Trump expressed confidence the ceasefire would hold, saying: "They're all tired of the fighting." He said he believed there was a "consensus" on the next steps but acknowledged some details would still have to be worked out. Trump said he would head to the Middle East in the coming days and planned to address Israel's parliament in Jerusalem. Hamas has said it rejects foreign guardianship of Gaza, insisting that governance of the territory is purely an internal Palestinian matter. The group issued a statement issued on Friday, presenting a potential challenge to the next phase of Trumps peace deal, which envisages an international body - the "Board of Peace" - playing a key role in Gaza's post-war administration. The plan calls for Trump to lead it and includes former Prime Minister Tony Blair. However Hamas is insisting that governance of Gaza is purely an internal Palestinian matter. But a senior Hamas official said that Palestinians have "very bad memories" of Mr Blair, who took the UK into the US-led war on Iraq in 2003. Palestinians have a lot of independent leaders who can do the job in the best interests of the Palestinian people, Dr Basem Naim told Sky News. Israelis and Palestinians alike rejoiced after the deal was announced, to end two years of war in which over 67,000 Palestinians have been killed, and to return the last hostages seized by Hamas in the deadly attack that provoked it. The exiled Gaza chief of Hamas, Khalil Al-Hayya, said he had received guarantees from the United States and other mediators that the war was over. During the Hamas-led attack on Israeli communities and a music festival on October 7, 2023, fighters killed 1,200 people and captured 251 hostages. Twenty hostages are still believed to be alive in Gaza, while 26 are presumed dead and the fate of two is unknown. Hamas has indicated that recovering the bodies of the dead may take longer than releasing those who are alive. One-time Derby hope Damysus won the first Group race of his career with an ultimately cosy success in the Too Darn Hot Darley Stakes at Newmarket. John and Thady Gosdens Wathan Racing-owned Frankel colt was placed in two Classic trials in the spring and headed to Epsom with many thinking he would be capable of running a big race. He finished last of 18 there, though, and was given a long break to get over those exertions before returning with a Listed win in France last time out. Settled in fourth by James Doyle, he gradually made his ground near the centre of the track before edging over to challenge Gladius in the final furlong. Doyle did not have to get too serious for the 2-1 shot to take the Group Three prize by three-quarters of a length. John Gosden said: His only blip this year was in the Derby when he kicked the back gate out of the stalls and rather nastily injured his back legs. He had a lot of cuts that needed patching up and he looked like he had done 15 rounds with Joe Frazier. So the Derby was a bit of a disaster, but we put him away and he came back to win well at Deauville in the Prix Nureyev and has won nicely again today. Hes a grand horse and went over to France last weekend to run in the Prix Dollar, but when it rained it was too soft and all he ended up doing was have a good lunch and nice dinner and then came back on the train. He actually missed a piece of work last weekend as all he was doing was eating and drinking in France, but he enjoyed the journey and we whipped back here which was the right thing to do. I think he could be a nice horse and I think we could head to Sandown to start him off next season over 10 furlongs in the Gordon Richards, I can see the races for him now and well see if he can come up the ladder. He added: There is the Bahrain International Trophy and the owners might want to go there, but we will see. I wouldnt be surprised if it came on the radar. Hes a great mind on him and maturing and strengthening all the time and everything is possible. Karl Burkes incredible streak of significant strikes with his juveniles continued with Hankelow in the Group Three Emirates Autumn Stakes. Burke has been the man to turn to in recent Saturdays and the 5-2 favourite proved another friend of the punters. Clifford Lee, who has been on board for most of them, sent his mount into an early lead and he fended off all-comers before crossing the line an authoritative length and a quarter winner from Al Zanati, who did well considering how keen he was. Burke said: Hes a beautiful horse with a great mind on him as well. Hes only going to get better and I think he will be better on a better track and with a bit more juice in the ground. It was heads up, heads down at Doncaster (when beaten a nose by Roger Varians Avicenna in the Flying Scotsman Stakes), but he was a little stop-start for two or three weeks before that and I think that is what got him beat. The step up in trip has suited him well here and he has a fantastic attitude. You only have to watch him in the prelims to see he is a very relaxed horse and Im delighted. He went on: Hes good and whether hes quick enough for the Guineas will be the thing or whether we have to step him up in trip. Weve got plenty of time to think about that and its unbelievable to be lucky enough to keep having these nice horses. New York City Mayor Eric Adams called a local beat reporter a dark, sick person over a story about a book written by a woman who alleged she had a romantic relationship with him. Former City Hall official Jasmine Rays new tell-all memoir, Political Humanity, describes an alleged secret relationship with Adams from 2014 to 2016 while he was serving as Brooklyns borough president, according to The New York Times. Adams went on to appoint Ray as the citys first director of the Mayors Office of Sports, Wellness and Recreation in 2022. She resigned from the role last month. Adams endorsed the book on Thursday, writing on X that Ray always led with integrity and that he enjoyed reading her book. But at a press conference the same day, Adams ripped into a journalist from the New York Daily News after the outlet reported that Ray described sleeping with Adams for the first time in his Brooklyn Borough Hall office. The mayor said it was never in the book as he appeared to slam a reporter involved in the story. "In the Daily News today, it was stated that there was a sexual action that happened in Borough Hall she reported in that book, and it wasnt, Adams said. You're a dark, sick person...your name was on the byline." New York City Mayor Eric Adams hit out at a reporter Thursday over a story detailing a new book by a woman describing her secret romantic relationship with him (AP) Some of you have been covering me for three-and-a-half years, some of you are so sick and dark, and you're the leader of that, Adams added. Youre one of the most dark writers Ive ever seen in this city." Adams went on to accuse the reporter of oversexualizing a Black man. The sickness of how you think of oversexualizing a Black man," he continued. "That in the book, you stated that there was a sexual action in Borough Hall, that was never in the book, but thats typical of the sickness and the darkness of your sick mind. Youre one of the sickest reporters I know." Ray wrote that she and Adams crossed that line in Borough Hall, but she didnt go into clear detail, according to an excerpt of her book shared on social media. He didnt ask. He didnt explain. He just looked at meAnd in that look, I knew. He had made up his mind, the excerpt reads. He closed the distance like a man stepping into something he couldnt walk back from. And then he said, F*** it. After we crossed that line, the love and the fun only intensified. New York Daily News Executive Editor Andrew Julien told City and State New York that the outlet is not the story here. The Independent has contacted the New York Daily News, Adamss office and Ray for comment. The New York Times described Rays book as an ardent love letter to the outgoing mayor, who ended his reelection bid last month. This comes as several polls show New York State Assembly Member Zohran Mamdani leading in the mayoral race, while his opponent, Andrew Cuomo, remains in second place. New Yorkers will elect their next mayor on November 4. A stellar Qipco British Champions Day is in store at Ascot, with Aidan OBrien confirming Delacroix will run at the showpiece meeting on Saturday. The future of the Eclipse and Irish Champion Stakes hero has been the subject of much speculation since his Leopardstown success, with his Coolmore connections keen to emphasise his value to the operation as a stallion. On the decision to run Delacroix, OBrien said: The lads wanted to race and they love racing. Obviously they had to be happy and make the decision, but thats what they wanted to do and love doing, watching their horses run, and were grateful and happy about that. He went on: I think we will supplement Stay True, who ran in the Leger, for the Long Distance Cup, everything has gone well with him since Doncaster. It is the plan to run The Lion In Winter in the QEII and hes been good since his last run in France also. Meanwhile John Gosden is relishing the rare prospect of good ground for the fixture after his A-team of Field Of Gold, Ombudsman and Trawlerman stepped up their preparations for the weekend. All three will be returning to the scene of their finest hours having landed a blow for the Clarehaven team at Royal Ascot, with Field Of Gold taking to the track for the first time since returning lame when suffering a shock defeat in the Sussex Stakes at Goodwood in the Queen Elizabeth II Stakes. Gosden said: Field Of Gold is in good order and breezed nicely this morning, were happy with him and pointing towards Ascot and the ground looks like it could be on the fast side which is really unusual. I think for the first Champions Day in 2011 it was that ground and since then its been rather bottomless. We wont be on the inner turf track as they like to call it this year. Ombudsman and Trawlerman also breezed this morning and we were happy with them. It was nice, normal, routine work and it wasnt trying to find out anything much at this stage, but I was pleased with them all going in. OBrien suggested on Friday that if Delacroix were to go to Ascot, then his preference for his target would be the Champion Stakes over the QEII, meaning a highly-anticipated third clash with Ombudsman is on the cards. Gosden added: Who knows who we might take on, but well just get there and see who turns up on the day. Diane Keaton shared a "beautiful" moment recording in the studio in her final Instagram video posted before her death aged 79, according to reports. The Annie Hall actor shared footage from a session with Jonas Myrin, who wrote her debut solo single "First Christmas," in which he kept playing the piano while recording the song, letting the music "wash over them." "It reminds me why I love musicit has a way of speaking straight to the heart," Keaton wrote in the December 2024 post. People magazine reported that the Oscar-winning star's family told the outlet that she died in California. No further details have been released yet. The Independent has contacted Keatons representatives for comment. The Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah el-Sisi, met with Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner in Cairo, Egypt, on 9 October. Photograph: Egyptian Presidency/Reuters Donald Trump and the Egyptian president, Abdel Fatah al-Sisi, are due to chair a Gaza peace summit with several world leaders in Sharm el-Sheikh on Monday. The meeting would take place on Monday afternoon in Egypts Red Sea resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh with the participation of leaders from more than 20 countries, the Egyptian presidency said. It will aim to end the war in the Gaza Strip, enhance efforts to achieve peace and stability in the Middle East, and usher in a new era of regional security and stability. The UN secretary general, Antonio Guterres, said he would attend, as will Britains prime minister, Keir Starmer, his Italian counterpart, Giorgia Meloni, and Pedro Sanchez of Spain. The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has also confirmed his attendance. There was no immediate word about whether Israels Benjamin Netanyahu would be in Sharm el-Sheikh. Hamas has said it will not take part. On Saturday, three Qatari diplomats were killed in a car crash at the Red Sea resort, two security sources told Reuters. Two diplomats were also wounded, the security sources said. The summit was arranged after Israel and Hamas agreed on a ceasefire and prisoner-swap deal after intense indirect negotiations in Sharm el-Sheikh in recent days. More than 67,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israels assault on Gaza. The war began after a Hamas-led incursion into Israel in which 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage. The negotiations, mediated by Egypt, Qatar and Turkey, and involving the US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, precipitated the truce and subsequent increase of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The announcement came as thousands of Palestinians journeyed along the north of Gaza on Saturday, trekking by foot, car and cart back to what was left of their homes. It is an indescribable feeling; praise be to God, Nabila Basa told Reuters, as she travelled by foot with her daughter, who she said had suffered a head wound in the war. We are very, very happy that the war has stopped, and the suffering has ended. For many in Gaza, there is no home to return to, as the war has reduced their neighbourhoods to dust after two years of heavy bombardment. My house, which I built 40 years ago, was gone in a moment, said Ahmed al-Jabari, as he stood in the wreckage of a Gaza City street. Im happy that there is no blood, no killing [but] where will we go? Will we live 20 years in a tent? Agence France-Presse contributed to this report Former Emmerdale actor Lewis Cope has topped the Strictly Come Dancing leaderboard during movie week after scoring the first 10 of the series. The 30-year-old and his professional partner Katya Jones scored a total of 37 for their Paso Double to The Plaza Of Execution from the film The Mask of Zorro. Judge Motsi Mabuse said the performance was the dance of the night, without a question and gave them the first 10 point score of the series. Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Lauren Oakley scored well for the rumba to a James Bond song (Guy Levy/BBC) Dressed in a black suit, a hat and a mask, the actor received a standing ovation from Mabuse and guest mentor actor Cynthia Erivo. Addressing the pair, the Wicked star said of the dance: Passion, tension, release all the commitment that could possibly come into this dance was right here. My mind is blown. Congratulations. Speaking after the performance, Cope said: I absolutely loved it. I mean, I cant even get the words to say Im just speechless, I loved it. Karen Carney and Carlos Gu danced a cha cha (Guy Levy/BBC) The actor, who performed last on Saturdays show, said: Ive been in these heels now for nearly two hours, but you know, Im watching everyone else dance, and it inspires me to dance, so thank you. It came after the couple placed second in last weeks episode after performing the Viennese waltz to Lose Control by Teddy Swims and scoring 27. Former Love Island winner Amber Davies, who topped the leaderboard last week, placed second on Saturdays leaderboard with a score of 35 after dancing the American Smooth to Sixteen Going on Seventeen from The Sound of Music. In third place on Saturdays leaderboard was Gladiator Harry Aikines-Aryeetey who performed a Salsa to I Always Wanted a Brother from Mufasa: The Lion King and was was handed a total of 32 by the judges. Shirley Ballas told the Olympian: You are just going from strength to strength, you are quite extraordinary in every department. Aljaz Skorjanec and La Voix danced to Feed The Birds from Mary Poppins (Guy Levy/BBC) Social media star George Clarke performed a couples choice dance to Soda Pop from K-Pop Demon Hunters and scored 31 points. Anton Du Beke told him: Youre super, super good, but judge Craig Revel Horwood said: It needed to be sharper and I think it was out of sync a lot, actually. It was a difficult dance, you were set an enormous challenge, which you coped with admirably. Actor Alex Kingston received 30 for her quickstep to Suddenly I See from The Devil Wears Prada, while drag artist La Voix and partner Aljaz Skorjanec scored 28 for their waltz to Feed The Birds from Mary Poppins. Former Chelsea star Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink also received 28 for his rumba to James Bond title track No Time To Die by Billie Eilish, which judge Anton Du Beke said was one of the best rumbas he had seen for a considerable amount of time. EastEnders star Balvinder Sopal and her partner Julian Caillon were awarded 26 for their foxtrot to the Frank Sinatra classic The Way You Look Tonight. Balvinder Sopal and Julian Caillon danced the foxtrot (Guy Levy/BBC) Model Ellie Goldstein, who is the first person with Downs syndrome to compete on the main series of Strictly, danced the samba to Dance The Night from Barbie and scored 27. Former Lioness Karen Carney danced a cha cha to Shes A Lady by Tom Jones from Miss Congeniality and was awarded a score of 25, while reality TV star Vicky Pattison her partner Kai Widdrington received the same score for their Charleston to A Little Party Never Killed Nobody from The Great Gatsby. Former England rugby player Chris Robshaw and his professional partner Nadiya Bychkova scored 22 for their paso doble to Sweet Child O Mine from Thor. TV star Ross King was awarded the lowest score of the evening of 19 points for his paso doble to the theme from Thunderbirds Are Go, while judge Anton Du Beke said he was the most improved of the week. Neighbours actor Stefan Dennis did not perform on Saturday due to illness and wrote in an Instagram comment that he was so sorry to miss the show but expected to be back next week with a rip roaring dance. According to the competitions rules, Dennis and his professional partner, last years Strictly champion professional dancer Dianne Buswell, will receive a bye to next weeks show. The US Capitol in Washington DC on 8 October. Photograph: Brendan Smialowski/AFP/Getty Images The White House announced layoffs of federal workers on Friday, making good on a threat it had made in response to the US government shutdown, which now appears set to stretch into a third week. Russell Vought, the director of the White House office of management and budget, wrote on social media that RIFs have begun, referring to the governments reduction-in-force procedure to let employees go. A document filed with a federal court revealed that hundreds of layoffs took place across the executive branch, including notices sent to employees at the Department of Commerce, the Department of Energy, the Department of Education and several others. The document shows that about 315 employees at the Department of Commerce, 466 employees at the Department of Education, 187 employees at the Department of Energy, from 1,100 to 1,200 employees at the Department of Health and Human Services, 442 employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development, 176 employees at the Department of Homeland Security and 1,446 employees at the Department of Treasury received RIF notices. Related: IRS to furlough nearly half its workforce due to government shutdown Union leaders warned the layoffs would have devastating effects on services relied upon by millions of Americans, and pledged to challenge the moves in court. It is disgraceful that the Trump administration has used the government shutdown as an excuse to illegally fire thousands of workers who provide critical services to communities across the country, said Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), which represents 800,000 federal and DC government workers. Vought had warned that federal agencies could slash jobs if the government shuts down, but the Trump administration largely held off after funding lapsed last week. Asked at a press conference before Voughts announcement why no layoffs had occurred, the top Senate Republican, John Thune, signaled they would happen soon. The White House has now for 10 days laid off doing anything in hopes that enough Senate Democrats would come to their senses and do the right thing and fund the government, he said. My expectation is, yes, theyre going to start making some decisions about how to move money around, which agencies and departments are going to be impacted, which programs are going to be impacted, which employees are going to be impacted. Thats what a shutdown does. The AFL-CIO, the largest federation of labor unions in the US, responded to Voughts post on Friday, saying: Americas unions will see you in court. Last week, the AFGE and the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) filed for a temporary restraining order to block the Trump administration from carrying out any reductions in force (RIFs) during the shutdown. The unions filed an emergency motion for a temporary restraining order on Friday, following Voughts post. Lee Saunders, president of the AFSCME, said: These mass firings are illegal and will have devastating effects on the services millions of Americans rely on every day. Whether its food inspectors, public safety workers, or the countless other public service workers who keep America running, federal employees should not be bargaining chips in this administrations political games. By illegally firing these workers, the administration isnt just targeting federal employees, its hurting their families and the communities they serve every day. We will pursue every available legal avenue to stop this administrations unlawful attacks on public service workers freedoms and jobs. Congressional Democrats have refused to vote for a Republican-backed bill to restore funding unless it includes an array of healthcare-centered concessions. After holding seven unsuccessful votes on the parties spending bills, the Senates Republican leaders have put the chamber in recess until next Tuesday, meaning the standoff is unlikely to be resolved before then. The layoffs came on the same day government employees received only a partial paycheck covering the final days of September but not the beginning of October, since appropriations lapsed at the start of the month. At a Friday-morning press conference, the Republican House speaker, Mike Johnson, blasted Senate Democrats for not supporting the GOPs bill, which passed his chamber on a near party-line vote.If the government is not reopened by next Wednesday, US military personnel are set to miss a paycheck. This is the last paycheck that 700,000 federal workers will see until Washington Democrats decide to do their job and reopen the government, Johnson said. Starting next week, American service members, many of whom live paycheck to paycheck, are going to miss a full paycheck. If Democrats dont end this shutdown by Monday, then that October 15 date will pass us by. Johnson has kept the House out of session throughout the shutdown in an effort to pressure Senate Democrats into supporting the Republican funding proposal. Earlier this week, a group of House Democrats sent the speaker a letter asking him to allow a vote on legislation that would ensure US troops get paid during a shutdown, but Johnson has refused to bring lawmakers back to Washington. The Senate has become a chokepoint in the funding battle because any legislation needs at least 60 votes to advance in the chamber. In exchange for their support, Democratic senators are demanding that premium tax credits for Affordable Care Act health plans be extended beyond their end-of-the-year expiration date. They are also seeking safeguards against Donald Trumps rescissions of congressionally approved funding, a restoration of money for public media outlets and an undoing of cuts to the Medicaid healthcare program for poor and disabled Americans. Max Stier, the president and CEO of the non-profit Partnership for Public Service, condemned the gridlocks impact on government workers. It is wrong to make federal employees suffer because our leaders in Congress and the White House have failed to keep our government open and operational, Stier said. Our air traffic controllers, VA nurses, smoke jumpers and food inspectors are not responsible for this government shutdown, and they shouldnt bear the financial burden created by the failures of our elected officials. The irony is that members of Congress and senior White House leaders are continuing to be paid. Earlier this week, on 7 October, a federal judge ordered the Trump administration to provide specifics on the status of any layoff plans, the affected agencies and whether any federal employees had been recalled to work to carry out layoffs, by Friday, 10 October. A report by the Center for American Progress on 30 September argued that a government shutdown limits the ability of the Trump administration to carry out firings, citing guidance from the office of management and budget that admitted any permanent layoffs need to have been initiated before the shutdown began. Constraints on permanently firing federal employees during a shutdown largely exist because of the Antideficiency Act and the distinction between shutdown furloughs that happen during a lapse in congressional appropriations and administrative furloughs, which are department and agency procedures on how to permanently let staff go, including for example through a RIF, the report, authored by Greta Bedekovics, associate director of democracy policy at the Center for American Progress, states. The Trump administrations threats to layoff federal employees should be understood as a goal of the administration that will be pursued with or without a government shutdown and should not drive lawmakers decisions on whether to support government funding bills. Shrai Popat contributed additional reporting Diane Jones, 21, and her daughters Shauna, two, and Sarah-Jane, one, were murdered in 1995 (South Wales Police/PA Wire) Modern forensic techniques could solve the murders of a young mother and her two children who died 30 years ago, police believe. Diane Jones, 21, and her daughters Shauna, two, and Sarah-Jane, one, were killed when a blaze engulfed their home in Wales after petrol was poured through their letterbox. Two women were found guilty of arson at the property on the Gurnos Estate, Merthyr Tydfil, in 1997 but later had their convictions quashed. Three decades on, the murders remain unsolved. But South Wales Police hope advances in forensic technology could provide a long-awaited breakthrough in the case. The family were found dead in the upstairs bedroom of their three-bedroom end-of-terrace house on the Gurnos estate on October 11, 1995. Diane's two daughters, Sarah-Jane, 1, and Shauna, 2, who died in a fire in Merthyr Tydfil, Wales (South Wales Police/PA Wire) Ms Jones sister Mary Jones has described how her life was shattered into a million pieces after the tragedy and said her father, John, took his own life in 2003 after struggling with the loss of his daughter and granddaughters. Dianes mother Myra has also died without getting to see justice. Mary Jones said: It has been 30 years but as a family we are still living this nightmare as if it only happened yesterday. We didnt just lose a sister and our nieces, we also lost our parents. It absolutely broke their hearts and they were never the same. As a family we will never give up fighting for justice. My mam and dad didnt get to see justice but Im hoping I will for them. Detective Chief Inspector Gareth Davies said: At the time, this tragic case which claimed the innocent lives of a mother and her two children sent shockwaves through Gurnos and has cast a shadow over the community ever since. Dianes family have been left without answers for decades and have suffered immeasurably as a result. Officers re-examining this case are hopeful that new forensic technology and techniques which were not available previously will present opportunities to progress the investigation. Our hope is that we can uncover new evidence which will give us the breakthrough we need to find who was responsible. French police use pepper spray on migrants trying to cross English Channel French police have used pepper spray to stop migrants from trying to cross the English Channel. Footage shared on Friday (10 October) shows a group of around 100 people gathered on Gravelines beach in northern France as they attempt to board a small boat. As they approached the dinghy, French police use a spray to try and deter them, with migrants shouting please at the officers. At least 70 people were able to make their way to the boat and set off across the Channel towards Dover. It comes after the first group removals of small boat migrants under the new UK-France agreement took place on Thursday (9 October). Some 19 individuals were sent back across the Channel this week, after seven were returned in September. Gavin Newsom calls out Joe Rogan for talking about him behind his back in profane rant: Lets do it Gavin Newsom has called out podcaster Joe Rogan for talking about him so frequently, and challenged him to invite him onto his show to debate. Rogan has repeatedly poked fun at the Democratic California Governor and recently said he wanted to be president so bad. Many have speculated that Trump foe Newsom may be eyeing a presidential run in 2028. You cant ruin a city and then go on to ruin a state and say, Guys, that was just practice. Once I get in as president, Im gonna fix it all, he Rogan said, adding that he was a terrible politician and a bull**** artist. Speaking on the Higher Learning podcast, Newsom threw down the gauntlet. Hes been attacking me for years and years and years and wont have me on the show, Newsom told hosts Rachel Lindsay and Van Lathan. Rogan has repeatedly poked fun at the California governor and recently said he wanted to be president so bad (The Joe Rogan Experience/YouTube) The California governor has challenged Rogan to invite him onto his podcast to debate (Copyright 2025. The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) Addressing Rogan directly he continued, Joe, why wont you have me on the show? He wont have me on the show. Its one way. And he has guests coming and attacking and bashing, but he will not have me on the show. Period. Full stop. Lindsay then suggested that Newsom host Rogan on his own podcast This Is Gavin Newsom with the governor agreeing. Lets have it. Lets do it, Joe. Come on my show, Joe. Rogan had also said that Newsom had managed to stay as Governor for so long due to low competition for the job in California. Theres no one whos good who is competing against him, theres no sincerity. The things that he says when he gets confronted with we're the highest this and the highest that everybody's leaving [California]... You have the highest unemployment, you have the highest homelessness, even Hollywood is missing... you killed Hollywood, like, Hollywood doesn't exist anymore. It's literally gone. Responding to a clip of Rogans criticism, Newsom wrote on X: Joe Rogan is too [chicken emoji] to have me on his show and expose his listeners to the truth, so Ill put it here, adding a list of his states achievements. He ended the post with, I could continue invite me on any time, @joerogan :). An artists impression of the proposed new Chinese embassy complex near the Tower of London British intelligence agencies were prevented from directly submitting spying concerns about the proposed Chinese super-embassy in London. The embassy, which would be Chinas largest in Europe, has prompted national security warnings from officials, including over a spy dungeon in the basement of the building. Ministers have called in Chinas planning application to be reconsidered after it was initially rejected by Tower Hamlets council. The Telegraph can reveal the UKs intelligence agencies have been prevented from submitting concerns to the Government about spying in the embassy, because their evidence would also be disclosed to Beijing. MI5, MI6, GCHQ and the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) are not allowed to give evidence about national security risks, which have previously included fears that China would tap into underground cables that serve the nearby City of London. Ministers admitted that the agencies have not directly given evidence to Steve Reed, the Housing Secretary, who is responsible for deciding whether the construction will go ahead. b' ' Mr Reed is required to act independently of the Government, and can only consider evidence that has been submitted in public. The Government has not used the special planning process for sensitive sites, which would have allowed evidence to be given in private. A section 321 direction would allow ministers to collect sensitive evidence that would only be disclosed to those with necessary security clearance, such as intelligence officers and government officials. But to use this process means that arguments about the embassy would also be visible to Beijing, which has prevented intelligence agencies from making a direct appeal to the Government. China redacted the blueprints for the super-embassy, removing key details about a basement that critics say could be used for eavesdropping and interrogations. Donald Trumps administration has said it is concerned about the embassy, which could become a nest of spies in the heart of Londons financial district. Sir Keir Starmer is already facing scrutiny over Labours position on China, after officials refused to submit evidence that Beijing was a threat to national security in the trial of two alleged spies. Sir Keir Starmer is already facing scrutiny over Labours position on China - WPA Pool/Getty Images The Telegraph has also revealed that the Government suppressed the China audit a Whitehall investigation into Chinas espionage in Britain after lobbying from the Treasury, which was concerned about the impact on trade and investment. James Cleverly, the shadow housing secretary, said ministers were hiding the advice of our security and intelligence services from the people deciding whether to approve the new Chinese super-embassy. He said: The embassy looks set to be rubber-stamped without proper thought about the serious implications it has for our national security. This cannot be allowed to happen. Just like with the China spy case, our weak Prime Minister is exposing our country to potential international threats and trying to cover it up. He must urgently come clean and let the security services do their vital work. The intelligence agencies minimal role in the planning process was revealed in a series of questions to ministers in Parliament. Protesters demonstrating against the super-embassy plans outside the Royal Mint - SOPA Images Dan Jarvis, the security minister, said in July that relevant agencies and departments have been consulted on the national security implications of the application and that their concerns were reflected in a letter to the planning inspector by Yvette Cooper and David Lammy. But in their letter, dated Jan 14, Mr Lammy and Ms Cooper said while they had considered the breadth of the diplomatic equities and national security considerations, they concluded it is right that China is able to carry out its diplomatic work in the United Kingdom. Officials considering the planning application have also been prevented from considering the China audit, the Home Offices assessment of Chinese repression of Hong Kong dissidents in the UK, and evidence from the National Protective Security Authority, which advises organisations on threats from espionage and terrorism. On Saturday, The Telegraph revealed the application is set to be delayed further, after the deadline for giving a response to China had been pushed back to this month. Critics say the Government will probably allow the application to go ahead because national security concerns have been deliberately played down. Ministers are understood to be concerned about the diplomatic risk of blocking the embassy, after the issue was raised directly with Sir Keir by Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, in their first conversation after last years election. Renovations to the UKs own embassy in Beijing have been blocked while Chinas application in London is considered, and British diplomats in China have said the water supply in their building is regularly switched off. China has said that any accusations of Chinese espionage, cyber-attacks, and transnational repression against the UK are entirely fabricated, malicious slander. The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government has declined to comment. The Hwasong-20 is said to be capable of hitting almost any target on the US mainland - KCNA via KNS North Korea flaunted its most powerful nuclear-capable intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) at a military parade. The Hwasong-20 weapons were driven along the streets of Pyongyang in front of leaders from China and Russia on Friday. The parade, which marked 80 years of the ruling Workers Party, allowed North Koreas leader Kim Jong-un to show off a growing arsenal that is capable of targeting America, as well as his rivals in Asia. Guests watching the event included Dmitry Medvedev, the deputy chairman of Russias Security Council and an outspoken Kremlin hardliner known for his nuclear sabre-rattling. Chinese premier Li Qiang and Vietnamese leader To Lam were also present alongside North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. The parade saw the debut of the Hwasong-20 ICBM, with at least three examples wheeled through Kim Il Sung Square on 11-axle launcher trucks. Credit: Reuters The Hwasong-20, hailed as its most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system, is the latest in a long line of long-range ICBMs, which Pyongyang first tested in 2017. The display featured some of the hermit kingdoms most advanced weapons, including multiple launch rocket systems, drones, hypersonic glide vehicles, newly upgraded battle tanks and surface-to-air missile systems. Edited footage from North Korean state television showed what appeared to be tens of thousands of spectators packed into the square. They cheered and waved the national flag as columns of soldiers and missile-mounted vehicles paraded through the rain-soaked streets. The soldiers included troops Kim had sent to Russia marching under North Korean and Russian flags as state media hailed them as invincible warriors. Soldiers march through the streets during North Koreas show of force on Friday - KCNA via KNS The Hwasong-20s existence was first revealed a few weeks ago when North Korea tested a new solid-fuel rocket engine that it said was intended for future ICBMs. State media said the engine, built with carbon fibre, was more powerful than past models. In September, the countrys state media released images of Kim inspecting the missile while visiting a weapons factory, and said the maximum thrust of the new-type solid-fuel engine using the composite carbon fibre material is 1,960 kilonewtons. This level of thrust could allow it to carry heavy payloads thousands of miles. Hwasong-20s predecessors - Hwasong-18 and Hwasong-19 - are capable of reaching almost anywhere on the US mainland. Kim has called for the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve the chances of penetrating missile defences, and some experts say the latest missile could be designed for that purpose. North Koreas Kim Jong-un greets a vast crowd during the military parade in Pyongyang - KCNA via Reuters It is not clear, though, how precise its guidance system is or whether the warhead it carries could survive atmospheric re-entry. In a speech at the parade, Kim hailed the bold heroism, staunch stamina and matchless fighting spirit of Pyongyangs army, saying it should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats. He also praised the more than 12,000 North Korean soldiers who fought for Russia in Ukraine, extolling their heroic fighting spirit and the victory achieved on foreign battlefields for international justice and genuine peace. Kim met Medvedev and asked him to convey warmest greetings to dearest comrade Vladimir Putin, according to Russian state media TASS. They discussed deepening cooperation after the joint operation in Kursk, which Medvedev said testified to the strength of the fraternal ties between the two countries and the indestructibility of the allied relations forged in blood. In June, the two countries signed a mutual defence pact and committed to strengthening military cooperation as North Korea continued to send large shipments of artillery shells, rockets and missiles to support Moscow in the ongoing conflict. The parade also gave Kim a platform to consolidate growing diplomatic relations with China, after he stood shoulder to shoulder with Xi Jinping at Chinas largest-ever military parade last month. North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un rolled out his nuclear-armed militarys most powerful weapons, including a new intercontinental ballistic missile he may be preparing to test in the coming weeks, at a massive military parade attended by foreign leaders. The parade, which began on Friday night and marked the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers Party, highlighted Mr Kims growing diplomatic footing and his relentless drive to build an arsenal that could viably target the continental United States and his rivals in Asia. North Koreas official Korean Central News Agency said the parade featured a new, yet-to-be-tested intercontinental ballistic missile called the Hwasong-20, which it described as the most powerful nuclear strategic weapons system. Other weapons on display included shorter-range ballistic, cruise and supersonic missiles, which the North previously described as capable of delivering nuclear strikes against targets in rival South Korea. In a speech at the parade, Mr Kim said his military must continue to evolve into an invincible force that eliminates all threats, but made no direct mention of Washington or Seoul, according to comments published by KCNA. Mr Kim had earlier vowed to transform North Korea into the best socialist paradise in the world. From left, Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Russian Security Council Deputy Chairman and the head of the United Russia party Dmitry Medvedev attend a reception marking the 80th anniversary of the ruling Workers Party in Pyongyang, North Korea, Friday, 10 Oct 2025 (Sputnik) In practice, North Korea has been ruled by Kims family for all of those 80 years. It remains one of the worlds poorest countries based on GDP per capita and ranks 118th out of 127 nations on the Global Hunger Index, with around one in five children suffering stunted growth due to malnutrition. Nonetheless, the North Korean dictator celebrated the partys leadership on Thursday night, portraying it as a revolutionary force that has built a powerful socialist state despite wars, sanctions, and global isolation. He credited the party with developing nuclear capabilities which he said were designed to deter the US and steering the country through several transformations. According to Rodong Sinmun, Mr Kim said: The past 80 years were really complicated and arduous, yet worthwhile and glorious. A meeting of presenting letters of loyalty to their leader Kim Jong Un is held at Kim Il Sung Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea Tuesday, 7 Oct 2025, on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of the founding of North Korea's ruling Worker's Party of Korea. (AP Photo/Jon Chol Jin) He said: Our party cannot exist apart from the people the party is great as the people are great. North Korean state media released images of a large celebration at Pyongyangs sprawling May Stadium on Thursday. South Korean military analysts predict that the main event, a massive parade in the capital, could take place Friday night, featuring tens of thousands of participants. Analysts suggest that North Korea could showcase its next-generation Hwasong-20 ICBM, the new Hwasong-11 Ma hypersonic glide vehicle, and other advanced weapons systems. North Korean military parades are closely watched as platforms to display the countrys latest missiles and weaponry, much of which has been developed in violation of UN Security Council sanctions. Children perform during the ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, 9 Oct 2025 Historically, there has been no such country in the world as ours, which had to carry out so many tasks ... for national defence and construction, even as it was facing constant and tenacious pressure, interference and threats of aggression by outside forces, Mr Kim reportedly claimed during his speech. Our party and government are still coping with our adversaries ferocious political and military moves of pressure by pursuing harder-line policies, holding fast to firm principles and employing brave, unflinching countermeasures. He urged continued perseverance, saying a few more years of effort could change our life remarkably, without providing specifics on how his regime plans to better the lives of ordinary North Koreans. According to the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Mr Kim said: I will surely turn this country into a more affluent and beautiful land and into the best socialist paradise in the world. North Koreas 80th Workers Party anniversary was attended by top officials from China, Russia, Vietnam, and Laos. Chinese premier Li Qiang, former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev, and Vietnams Communist Party leader To Lam took front-row seats as Mr Kim launched Thursdays celebrations with mass games and artistic performances. People turn cards to form an image of a child during the ceremony marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party at the May Day Stadium in Pyongyang, North Korea, Thursday, 9 Oct 2025 According to CNN, amid enthusiastic flag-waving, North Korea presented a vibrant mix of traditional and patriotic songs alongside meticulously choreographed dances performed by thousands, including uniformed children. Soldiers reportedly performed martial arts, breaking cinder blocks on their stomachs, and the event ended with a grand fireworks display. Earlier this month, speaking at a weapons exhibition in Pyongyang, Mr Kim accused the US and its allies of intensifying military activities in the region. The US, Japan and South Korea hold regular joint drills in the region, which they say are necessary to prepare defences and offer a deterrent to the unpredictable and dangerous leadership in Pyongyang. In direct proportion to the build-up of US forces in Korea, our strategic interest in the region has also increased, and we have accordingly allocated special assets to key targets of interest, Kim said, according to KCNA. The USROK nuclear alliance is making rapid progress, and they are conducting various kinds of exercises to execute dangerous scenarios, Mr Kim said, referring to South Korea by its formal name, the Republic of Korea. The enemy will have to worry about which direction their security environment is moving in, he added, without elaborating on the nature of the special assets. Mr Kim recently joined a military parade in Beijing alongside Chinese president Xi Jinping and Russian president Vladimir Putin, marking the anniversary of the end of World War II. Following the breakdown of denuclearisation talks with the US in 2019, Pyongyang has declared itself an irreversible nuclear power, firmly rejecting any prospect of giving up its atomic arsenal. (With additional inputs from agencies) Sebastien Lecornu has accepted the role and must now form a new cabinet - Alain Jocard/AFP Emmanuel Macron reappointed Sebastien Lecornu as Frances prime minister on Friday night, four days after he stood down. Mr Lecornu said he accepted the role out of duty and had been tasked with forming a new cabinet following meetings with the main parties, excluding the far-Right and the far-Left. Following his surprise return to front-line politics, he said that we must end the French political crisis and pledged to make improving French public accounts a priority, with next years budget due to go before parliament on Monday. Only two days ago, he had indicated that his mission is over. Elysee Palace said in a statement: The president of the republic has nominated Mr Lecornu as prime minister and has tasked him with forming a government. A bad joke Mr Lecornu said that all those who wanted to join his government must commit to setting aside presidential ambitions for the 2027 elections. Mr Macron, facing the worst domestic crisis since the 2017 start of his presidency, has yet to address the public. Mr Lecornus reappointment was called a bad joke by Jordan Bardella, the far-Right National Rally party leader, who pledged to immediately seek to vote out the new cabinet. A spokesman for the hard Left said Mr Lecornus return was a huge two fingers to the French people. The Socialists, a swing group in parliament, said they had no deal with Mr Lecornu and would oust his government if he did not agree to suspend a 2023 pensions reform that increased retirement age from 62 to 64. Mr Lecornu, 39, is a loyal ally of the president who prides himself behind-the-scenes negotiation skills and discretion, and with ambition to be head of state. He is one of few politicians who have been with Mr Macron without a break since the centrist rose to the presidency in 2017. Defence minister for over three years throughout almost all of Russias war on Ukraine, he extols values that have a military ring: loyalty, valour and duty. I accept out of duty the mission entrusted to me by the president of the republic, he wrote on X on Friday, in typical style, after his reappointment. Sebastien Lecornu is a loyal ally of Emmanuel Macron - Benoit Tessier/AFP via Getty He took an almost impossible task from Mr Macron when the president appointed him prime minister in September. Mr Lecornu resigned less than a month later, saying the conditions were not fulfilled to remain in the post. But Mr Macron then gave him two days to thrash out a compromise, and on Wednesday evening the usually publicity-shy Sebastien Lecornu appeared on French televisions prime-time evening news to announce there would be no new elections for now and a new premier would be named. I am a monk warrior, he said. This evening, my mission is complete. His assured, sober and straightforward performance impressed viewers frustrated after days of political theatre. Mr Lecornu made clear he was not eager to be given the job again, saying he was not running after the post, but did not explicitly rule out being reappointed. Sebastien says he doesnt want to be reappointed, but he has no political clout. Hell do what the president asks, said a person close to Mr Macron, asking not to be named. Mr Lecornu, seen with Mr Macron in Vietnam in May, is said to be called the Le Pen whisperer, able to work with the National Rally - Ludovic Marin/AFP via Getty Mr Lecornu consistently made clear his support for Ukraine as defence minister while successfully expanding the military budget, yet carefully remaining in the shadows with infrequent media appearances. One of his key assets for Mr Macron was that he is not what is known in France as presidentiable namely someone who harbours ambitions of winning Elysee Palace for themselves. In his interview with French television on Wednesday, he said there should be no one in the cabinet eyeing a run in the 2027 presidential elections. One must always put country before party, he said in his resignation speech earlier this week, criticising the partisan appetites of those who brought down his cabinet. Even his opponents applauded the manner in which he had given way at the time, with Socialist leader Olivier Faure saying he had resigned with dignity and honour. Mr Lecornu is a loyal soldier who doesnt have too much charisma or presidential potential, one ministerial adviser told AFP on condition of anonymity. A career politician, Mr Lecornu started out as a parliamentary assistant aged just 19. Mr Lecornu and Mr Macron at a ceremony marking the 81st anniversary of the liberation of Bormes-les-Mimosas during WW2, in southeast France, in August - Miguel Medina/AFP via Getty He had held ministerial posts ever since Mr Macron came to power in 2017 and was promoted to defence minister in May 2022. Interested in politics from an early age, Mr Lecornus ascent began with the conservative UMP party of former president and now jailed Nicolas Sarkozy. He became Frances youngest-ever ministerial adviser in 2008, joining Bruno Le Maire later Mr Macrons long-serving finance minister on the Europe brief. Ironically, the appointment of Le Maire as his defence minister sparked the wave of anger from the right that precipitated his downfall as premier earlier this month. Le Maire is seen by many as the incarnation of Mr Macrons budgetary policies. A graduate in public law rather than the elite administration or business institutions that traditionally shape top French leaders, Mr Lecornu has made sure to keep up his local roots. In 2015, he was the youngest-ever regional president of a French department, Eure in Normandy, after serving as mayor of his hometown Vernon. He reached ministerial rank at 31, covering portfolios including the environment and overseas territories before landing at defence. Sebastien Lecornu has been reappointed as Frances prime minister four days after he resigned - Martin Lelievre/AFP Emmanuel Macrons reappointment of Sebastien Lecornu as prime minister has been described as a slap in the face for the French public. On Friday, Mr Macrons Elysee Palace announced the return of Mr Lecornu and tasked him with forming a government again. Four days earlier, he had resigned following criticism for not bringing new faces into the cabinet. His resignation triggered the collapse of a government that lasted only 14 hours the latest in Frances political turmoil. Mr Lecornu is now on the clock to bring together yet another cabinet to present a 2026 budget as early as Monday to provide the French parliament with the constitutionally required 70 days to review the proposal. The French prime minister urged Frances political parties to work together to put an end to the ridiculous spectacle seen in recent days as he criticised the political deadlock that has gripped the country. Sebastien Lecornu is a loyal ally of Emmanuel Macron - Ludovic Marin/AFP France is the European Unions second-largest economy, repeatedly breaking rules on budget deficits and debt limits. A debt crisis has exacerbated its political deadlock, with a string of prime ministers ousted after trying to resolve the deficit with unpopular spending cuts and tax rises. Mr Lecornu said: I accept out of duty the mission entrusted to me by the president to do everything possible to provide France with a budget by the end of the year. We must put an end to this political crisis that exasperates the French people and to this instability that is harmful to Frances image and its interests. But within hours of Mr Lecornus reappointment, the same political crisis again threatened to derail his plans. The heads of at least two parties the far-Right National Rally (RN) and the far-left La France Insoumise (LFI) pledged a no confidence motion in Mr Lecornus new government. Though their combined votes wont be enough to topple the nascent leadership, any political opposition could ensure the political deadlock continues. Manuel Bompard, co-ordinator of La France Insoumise, denounced another slap in the face of French nationals and described Mr Macron as irresponsibly drunk on his power, according to French media. He said: Never has a president governed so much through disgust and anger. Even before it was announced that Mr Lecornu would return, Marine Le Pen said RN would vote against any prime minister unless the president called snap parliamentary elections. A rocky road ahead Mr Macrons decision to ignore calls for change and reinstate Mr Lecornu means the pair have an extremely rocky road ahead especially as the latters resignation on Monday was prompted by failing to usher in a new guard within government. Now Mr Lecornu faces the same task with even more doubts and anger, in the worst domestic crisis of Mr Macrons presidency since he took office in 2017. There are some early signs that Mr Lecornu is hoping cooler heads will prevail, and that hes angling for a new government that will do what its meant to govern rather than politicking. He said all those joining his new government will have to renounce ambitions to run for president in 2027, adding that the new cabinet will incarnate renewal and a diversity of skills. We need a government that reflects the reality of parliament but is not held hostage to partisan interests, he said. Mr Lecornu is Mr Macrons fifth prime minister since the latter was re-elected in 2022 for a second term, and is faced with the difficult task of reining in Frances spending. Frances public debt was at 3.35tn (2tn), equivalent to 114 per cent of GDP, as of the end of the first quarter of this year. b' ' The countrys poverty rate hit a record 15.4 per cent in 2023, according to data published this summer. Around 9.8 million people were living below the poverty line, which is set at 60 per cent of the median monthly income, or 1,288 (1,068) for a single person. Mr Lecornu has not said what might be in the draft budget proposal, but he did say after his initial resignation on Monday that the state deficit had to be reduced from 5.4 per cent this year to between 4.7 per cent and 5 per cent next year. That would represent a slightly less ambitious goal of a 4.6 per cent deficit as proposed by his predecessor. For Mr Macron, this may be a last shot at restoring confidence in his second term, which is due to run until 2027. He has suffered from a drop in approval ratings to a record low of 14 per cent amid mass protests and economic discontent. b' ' French unions have arranged and called for more protests to scrap proposed austerity cuts, disrupting public transport in Paris and main roads in cities across the country. Last week, the Eiffel Tower was shut due to strikes. The turmoil has affected tourism, a vital component of the French economy. Abilene Pride Alliance, the events organizers, requested extra security for the parade after seeing Coles comments. Photograph: Johner Images/Getty Images/Johner RF A Texas man has agreed to plead guilty to going on social media and threatening to shoot people at an LGBTQ+ parade as vengeance for the murder of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk. Joshua Wayne Cole signed federal court filings indicating that he planned to plead guilty to a charge of interstate threatening communications at a hearing tentatively set for 16 October, about a month after he was arrested in connection with online posts threatening to open fire on a Pride parade in Abilene, Texas. The resident of Anson, Texas, could be sentenced to up to five years in prison, though defendants who plead guilty before their trials do not typically face maximum punishments. Related: Inside a US parents group chat about raising kids in violent times Cole fell under authorities scrutiny on 18 September after people preparing to host the Abilene Pride parade took notice of his threatening Facebook posts and reported them to local police. Police then notified the FBI, as tensions across the US were heightened in the aftermath of Kirks killing. Responding to a message about how the organizers of the 20 September Abilene Pride parade had announced that no weapons would be allowed at their event, one of the posts in question said: Fk their parade, I say we lock and load and pay them back for taking out Charlie Kirk. Cole allegedly continued: Theres only like 30 of em we can send a clear message to the rest of them. And, using a term used to demean LGBTQ+ people, Cole also wrote: Come on bro lets go hunting fairies. The posts alluded to certain aspects of the investigation into Kirks shooting death on 10 September at Utah Valley University (UVU). Citing investigators interviews with people close to the suspect in the case, Utah prosecutors have alleged Tyler Robinson, 22, killed Kirk after becoming sick of what he perceived to be the activists hatred. Investigators maintain that they were told by Robinsons family that he had become more pro-gay and trans rights-oriented in the year prior to Kirks killing. An FBI agent reported trying to confront Cole at his place of employment in Abilene. But an employee there said Cole describing him as a hot head had already quit his job there and angrily stormed out of the facility, federal prosecutors wrote in court records. Abilene police, accompanied by the FBI agent investigating him, pulled Cole over while he was driving a day later. Cole agreed to speak about his online activity with the FBI agent, admitted to posting the comments that had gotten investigators attention and added that he did not believe that the gay pride event should be allowed, prosecutors said. Authorities arrested Cole at that point, and he was later ordered detained without bail until the resolution of the case against him. That did not deter the Abilene Pride Alliance organizing the parade that was threatened by Cole from requesting extra security for the event, prosecutors noted. And, prosecutors wrote, McMurry University canceled their participation at the parade after sponsoring a float for the event because Coles posts left the school fearful of the students being hurt or killed. Cole signed on 5 October the documents signaling his intent to plead guilty, court records show. His attorney, Russell Lorfing, did not immediately return requests for comment. As a result of Kirks death, the Trump administration has vociferously promised to crack down on leftwing groups who generally opposed the Turning Point USA founders views, arguing that those organizations were also to blame for his killing. It did not, however, announce or comment on Coles arrest. Pro-Palestinian supporters hold placards and wave flags in central London - HENRY NICHOLLS/AFP via Getty Images The marches have always been the dead giveaway. Since October 7, the pro-Palestine lobby has enjoyed unprecedented success in manipulating the media coverage of Israels war to free its hostages from Gaza. The world lapped up inflated casualty tolls from the Hamas health ministry, swallowed without question the claim that Israel was deliberately manufacturing a famine to wipe out Palestinian children, and nodded along solemnly to patently absurd allegations of genocide. But there was one thing the Hamas-Iran-Qatar axis could not control: its useful idiots in the West. Israels fightback had barely begun two years ago when throngs marched through London brandishing Palestinian flags. What were they protesting? The IDF was still scrambling to mount a rescue operation for abducted Israelis. The only massacres or atrocities to protest were those that had been conducted by Palestinians against Israelis, and Western sympathisers were certainly not demonstrating against those. They were celebrating their victim-idols daring slaughter of defenceless Israelis. As then, so now. Todays demonstration in London must be the first recorded example of people protesting the end of a supposed genocide. Just as there is no genocide, other than the well-documented, intergenerational Palestinian campaign against Israeli Jews, the protests in London and elsewhere reveal the true nature of the pro-Palestine movement. For one, there is nothing especially pro-Palestine about it. Western Leftists and intellectuals have for decades encouraged the worst of Palestinian revanchism and extremism, holding out the false hope that rebuffing Israeli peace offers in favour of continued struggle would bring victory. Many Palestinians have died at their own hands or those of the IDF, but no charge sheet would be complete without listing the aid and abetment of cosplaying revolutionaries on the university campuses and in the newsrooms and trade unions of the West. For another, this is a movement more concerned with dismantling Israel than with building up Palestine. Some strands of opinion have been honest about that all along, while others spent many years feigning support for the two-state solution outlined in the Oslo Accords, which gave greater international recognition and diplomatic heft to the Palestine Liberation Organisation. In the wake of October 7, with Western elites and institutions shifting sharply in favour of the Palestine side, activists have had less need to be circumspect. A video from todays march posted online by the ironically named Stop the War Coalition showed protesters chanting From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free. For those not familiar with the geography, the river is the Jordan and the sea the Mediterranean, and in between the two lies Israel. The slogan is an unambiguous call for the destruction of the Jewish state and its replacement with Palestine, a territory which has never previously existed as a nation-state or sovereign entity. The slightly more respectable fringes of the anti-Israel movement try to downplay the deeply extremist politics with which they have involved themselves, but the London march makes that all the more difficult. There is a ceasefire. The killing has stopped. Aid is going in. Who in their right mind protests that? A movement so morally rancid that it sees peace for Palestine as an impediment to vilifying Israel. It is understood that the recent surge in anti-Semitism has been a key factor in Lisa Nandys decision to bring forward the proposals - Anadolu Hate preachers will be barred from leadership roles at mosques and Islamic Centres under an anti-Semitism crackdown to be unveiled by ministers. Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, is drawing up plans for a new law to disqualify anyone who has been convicted of a hate crime from senior positions at charities. Under the reforms, the watchdog will also be handed greater powers to pursue charity leaders who use their positions to promote violence or hatred. It is part of a wider strategy, especially in the wake of the Manchester attack, to stamp out anti-Semitism. It coincides with Bridget Phillipson also writing to vice-chancellors, urging them to take practical and proportionate steps to protect Jewish students. The move comes amid concerns that charitable status is being exploited, including by Iran, to spread extreme Islamist narratives and anti-Semitism. Ms Nandy told The Telegraph: Having worked in the charity sector, Ive seen the power these institutions have to transform lives and support our communities. But we have seen too many shocking cases where extremists have tried to exploit charities to spread hate and division. That cannot be allowed to continue. That is why we will ensure the Charity Commission has the powers it has asked for to bar anyone convicted of hate crimes from serving as a trustee or using charitable status as a shield for extremist activity. There can be no place for hate in our charity sector. New legislation applies to all hate crime Many mosques and Islamic Centres are set up as charitable trusts to manage their financial affairs, as is common for places of worship across all religions. Last week, it was reported that the mosque attended by the Manchester synagogue attacker was previously reported to the Charity Commission in 2023. The new legislation will apply across the board and cover anyone who is convicted of a hate crime, regardless of the reason. But it is understood that the recent surge in anti-Semitism has been a key factor in the Culture Secretarys decision to bring forward the proposals. Figures released last week show that, in the year up to March, there were 106 anti-Semitic hate crimes reported for every 10,000 Jewish people. That is by far the highest rate for any religion, with the next most targeted group being Muslims, with 12 hate crimes per 10,000 of the population. The Charity Commission has opened more than 300 investigations related to the war in Gaza since October 2023, making 70 referrals to the police. Ministers have become increasingly alarmed by the rise in anti-Semitism, which has been fuelled in part by the two-year war between Israel and Hamas. There have been repeated pro-Gaza protests, including across university campuses last Tuesday, on the second anniversary of the October 7 attack. Critics say the demonstrations have contributed to a climate of fear for Jewish people and have prompted intense criticism from the Government. Shabana Mahmood, the Home Secretary, has said that she is considering giving the police greater powers to ban intimidatory marches. Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, is also set to unveil plans to tackle the scourge of antisemitism in universities and schools. She has written to vice-chancellors in the wake of the Manchester synagogue attack, urging them to do more to protect Jewish students from harassment. Measures could include moving repeated pro-Gaza protests from outside intimidatory areas such as halls of residence or religious spaces. Antisemitism is a poison that must be torn out from our schools, colleges and universities by its roots: I will not allow hatred to deter students from their education, Ms Phillipson said. Lawful protest must be respected but there is no place for harassment or intimidation on our campuses. One instance of antisemitic abuse is one too many, so Im clear: the buck stops with universities when it comes to ridding their campuses of hate - and they have my full backing to use their powers to do so. Ms Phillipson will also unveil 7 million in funding for a new programme of teacher training so that schools can better educate students about antisemitism. A hand-painted sign at a residence down the road from the munitions plant, in McEwen, Tennessee, on 10 October 2025. Photograph: Martin B Cherry/EPA There were no survivors in the blast that obliterated part of an explosives factory in rural Tennessee, authorities said on Saturday. The families of 18 people had been waiting anxiously on Saturday as their loved ones had been feared dead since explosions ripped through the plant near McEwen in western Tennessee early on Friday. The initial toll had been believed to be 19 people but that figure was later revised. The Humphreys county sheriff, Chris Davis, spoke to the public and media early on Saturday afternoon and revealed that authorities were assuming that anybody who was inside the building that exploded the day before was dead. Davis said the tragedy was even more devastating than had been thought. In the close-knit community, he and other members of law enforcement and many in the community know people who were victims of the disaster. The blast was felt for miles as it leveled a building at the 1,300-acre headquarters of Accurate Energetic Systems (AES), which is located in the tiny community of Bucksnort, just south of McEwen, about an hours drive west of Nashville. More than 300 people have been through almost every square inch of this facility, and at this time, weve recovered no survivors, an emotional Davis told reporters early on Saturday afternoon. Its a great loss to our communities. Officials did not offer a precise death toll but have previously said 18 people were unaccounted for. Davis confirmed the operation had shifted from rescue to recovery and that investigators would use DNA testing to confirm the identities of those who are assumed to have died. Investigators, including agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, were still working to determine the cause of the explosion, officials said. The presence of explosives and other ordnance at the property has made searching the scene complicated. Initially, first responders were not able to get close to the scene of devastation because of secondary explosions. In a statement on Friday, the company thanked first responders but did not indicate a possible cause. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, coworkers and community members affected by this incident, the company said. AES develops, manufactures and stores explosives for military, aerospace and commercial demolition markets, according to the companys website. The headquarters includes eight production buildings and a quality lab. A small ammunition explosion at the plant in 2014 killed one person and injured three, according to local news reports. The Associated Press contributed reporting Leading New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani was left shocked after a producer for Stephen Colberts late-night TV show suggested a game segment that would ask him to rate Hamas and Palestine, according to a new report. Mamdani appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert in June alongside New York City comptroller and fellow mayoral candidate Brad Lander. That day, Colbert had received a letter from prominent Jewish figures calling on him to ask Mamdani about Israel, The New Yorker reports. Israel has been a flashpoint in the mayoral race, with many of Mamdanis political opponents attacking him over his criticism of the state and its war with Hamas in Gaza. In response, Mamdani has said that he believes that the state of Israel should exist and has denounced antisemitism. Moments before the candidates went on stage, Colberts producers told Mamdani they wanted to go over some additional questions with him, The New Yorker reports. A producer then pitched a thumbs-up thumbs-down segment about Hamas and Palestine. Thumbs-up or thumbs-down: Hamas, the producer suggested, according to The New Yorker. Thumbs-up or thumbs-down: a Palestinian state. New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani says he couldnt believe a producer on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert suggested a thumbs-up thumbs-down game about Hamas and Palestine (REUTERS) Mamdani told the magazine: I just couldnt believe what was happening. That a genocide could be distilled into a late-night game. Zara Rahim, a senior adviser for Mamdani, reportedly told the producer: You have the first Muslim candidate for mayor in the history of New York. You dont want to ask him a question about that? The Independent has contacted CBS for comment. The network did not provide comment to The New Yorker. The thumbs-up thumbs-down segment didnt happen, but Colbert did ask Mamdani: Does the state of Israel have the right to exist? Yes, like all nations, I believe it has a right to exist, and a responsibility also to uphold international law, Mamdani replied. Mamdani appeared on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, where he said that Israel has a right to exist, and a responsibility also to uphold international law. (The Late Show/CBS) Mamdani also touched on the issue earlier this week, when he released a statement on the second anniversary of the Israel-Hamas conflict. The war began on October 7, 2023, when Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage. Israel then launched an offensive on the Gaza Strip, devastating the region and killing more than 67,000 Palestinians over the last two years, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Mamdanis statement criticized Hamass horrific war crime and accused the Israeli government of launching a genocidal war. The mayoral candidate also called for peace and an end to the occupation and apartheid. The statement came just days before President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had agreed on a first phase of a ceasefire deal. The agreement will involve the release of hostages and the withdrawal of Israeli troops from some areas in Gaza. Mamdani, a democratic socialist, is the current front-runner for New York City mayor, with some polls putting him more than 10 points ahead of his closest challenger, Andrew Cuomo. New York City voters will elect their next mayor on November 4. National March for Palestine in London - TOLGA AKMEN/EPA/Shutterstock There is still work to do on the Donald Trump-brokered peace deal between Israel and Hamas. The release of the hostages is set to occur prior to Monday morning; a commitment to the terror groups disarming has yet to be secured. For now, though, the mood in Israel and Palestine is celebratory: for the first time since the horror of October 7, a long-term peace deal is in sight. On the streets of London, however, the mood of the regular pro-Palestine protesters was unchanged. One organiser stated that the ceasefire was not a plan for an enduring peace as it says nothing about the root causes of violence. Many of those attending made it quite clear what they believed those root causes to be: the existence of Israel. Protesters repeated the from the river to the sea slogan calling for the destruction of the Jewish state as police ushered away people carrying placards reading we stand with Britains Jews. Crowds chanted Israel is a terror state; an interviewee stated the protest was a bigger thing about who controls the world, appearing to recycle old anti-Semitic tropes; placards showed Netanyahu manipulating Sir Keir Starmer and read Intifada until victory; voices called out death to the IDF. On paper, at least, much of what these protesters purported to want has been achieved. The IDF has partially withdrawn from Gaza. The conflict is set to come to an end. There is a roadmap, however tenuous, to a flourishing Palestine, with the backing of both Israel and Arab states. That the streets of London can be filled with people calling for the destruction of Israel, accusing the Jewish state of genocide, at precisely the point at which it is voluntarily giving up its overwhelmingly successful military campaign in the hope of finding a route to long-lasting peace and coexistence illustrates that the root causes for many protesters is unlikely to be the current conflict at all. If all of the tens of thousands of people marching on the capitals streets were motivated uniformly by a desire for peace, the tenor would be completely different: there would be celebration of the ceasefire, calls for Hamas to disarm so the deal can progress, jubilation at the release of hostages. Instead, we hear death to the IDF, from the river to the sea; calls, at their core, for more dead Jews, the continuation of the intifada, the unending war until the destruction of the state of Israel. To call these elements pro-Palestinian is a fundamental misreading of their nature. For all too many involved, these protests and their motives would appear instead to be anti-Israel, an expression of hatred rather than a call for peace. Russia is suspected of being behind the cyber attack that forced Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) to stop production, The Telegraph can reveal. The scale of the attack and the economic damage inflicted have raised suspicions that the hackers were acting on behalf of the Kremlin. The hack forced the closure of the carmakers manufacturing operations across the world for more than a month and threw 200,000 jobs into doubt. It led to the Government promising to underwrite a 1.5bn loan guarantee amid concerns the knock-on consequences for smaller suppliers could be devastating. The Telegraph now understands that the possibility of the Russian state being behind the attack is an active line of enquiry. No final assessment has been made. Intelligence chiefs have long warned that Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, has been targeting the UK with cyber attacks to cause disruption. Spy chiefs have long warned that Vladimir Putin has been targeting the UK with cyber attacks - Vladimir Smirnov/AP Rachel Reeves, the Chancellor, said last month that the Russian state had been involved in recent cyber attacks on the UK, but did not name specific cases. Drones recently disrupting airspace in Germany and Denmark, two countries whose leaders have called out Russias invasion of Ukraine, have also raised suspicions of Kremlin disruption in Europe. James Cartlidge, the shadow defence secretary, said: In a context where Putin has been provoking Nato allies with drone and fighter jet incursions, if this turns out to be a Russian cyber attack on our industry, that would be very significant indeed. We know Russia is deliberately testing our resolve. It underlines why all the effort in Government needs to be on the defence of the homeland. Labour needs to increase defence spending much faster than they are planning to. The hack on JLR was detected on the last day of August and left the carmaker unable to produce at any of its factories in the UK, Brazil, Slovakia, and India. Suspicions that a foreign state was involved come in part from the scale of damage done and the knock-on impact to the business. All 800 of the computer systems used by JLR were knocked out, according to government insiders familiar with the case. Outside experts have noted that it appears not to have been a ransomware attack, which involves demands of payment and is often used by cyber-criminals looking to make money. Teams of experts from Government Communications Headquarters (GCHQ), Britains listening spy post, were sent into the company to restore order and work out what happened. The investigation is being headed up by the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, and assisted by the National Crime Agency. A spokesman said: The investigation is ongoing, and we would caution against speculation. The Government has persistently called out a range of actors for malicious cyber activities against the UK and will continue to do so. A team from the National Cyber Security Centre, part of GCHQ, is heading the investigation - David Goddard/Getty Images The hack wreaked havoc with JLRs supply chain, which involves around 200,000 workers. Operations at the Range Rover production lines in Solihull finally restarted last week. Peter Kyle, the Business Secretary, said last month he had concerns about the impact the hack could have on smaller suppliers who rely on JLRs contracts for work. The decision to underwrite the 1.5bn loan guarantee sees the Treasury take on extra financial risk at a time when the public finances are already under pressure. There has been a spate of cyber attacks on major British businesses in recent months, including Marks and Spencer, the Co-op and Harrods. Ms Reeves pointed the finger at Russia over the attacks last month, though did not name the incidents which were suspected of having Kremlin backing. Ms Reeves said of cyber attacks: We also need to deal with this at source. Its coming from hostile states, states like Russia and thats why we are doing what we are doing. A number of these attacks originate in Russia by Russian-backed entities, and we are getting a grip of that. Sir Keir has continued his Tory predecessors position of being a firm supporter of Ukraine in its attempts to fight off the Russian full-scale invasion. This year, the Prime Minister has been at the forefront of planning for a coalition of the willing peace-keeping force to defend Ukraine if a ceasefire is agreed. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan during his speech at the opening of the London Diwali Festival for Hindus, Sikhs, and Jains in Trafalgar Square in 2016 (PA) The Mayor of London has rejected calls to sever ties with the UK wing of an organisation found by the UK Government to have organised mass anti-Muslim violence in India. Vishwa Hindu Parishad UK (VHP-UK), also known as the World Council of Hindus UK in the English language, are on the official committee of organisers for the City Hall-backed Diwali celebrations in Trafalgar Square this Sunday (October 12). In 2002, a Foreign Office report found that the Indian branch of the organisation organised a pogrom which killed thousands of Muslims in Gujarat that year. The document, cited in a BBC documentary on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, says: The aim of the perpetrators of the violence, the VHP and other Hindu extremist groups, was to purge Muslims from Hindu and other mixed localities in order to ghettoise them. Their systematic campaign of violence has all the hallmarks of ethnic cleansing. The issue was raised last year directly with the Mayor, when VHP-UK were also on the organising committee, but City Hall has dismissed any concerns about their involvement. Rajiv Sinha, of Hindus for Human Rights UK, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): As a proud Hindu, I am disgusted that London's annual Diwali celebration is organised by a range of organisations that bring the unacceptable politics of Hindutva, anti-Muslim hate, and casteism. For most people Diwali is thought of as a celebration of good over evil, of truth over falsehood, yet the Mayor of London apparently considers it appropriate to be working with the the likes of VHP UK. The VHP is a violent Hindu supremacist component of the Sangh Parivar, or Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) family of organisations. The Mayor of London must cut off all ties with these organisations. It requires only the most basic level of research to discover the horrors the VHP is affiliated with - it is an anti-Muslim pogrom group that played key roles in the demolition of the Babri Masjid in 1992, the Gujarat riots of 2002, and countless more instances of violence and terror. Mr Sinha added that he doesn't consider the current makeup of the Diwali in London Committee to represent progressive, anti-Hindutva, anti-caste Hindu voices in its entirety. He said he raised the issue directly with the Mayor last year and was surprised it had not been addressed. Dancers perform during the Diwali on the Square celebration, in Trafalgar Square, on Sunday October 9, 2022 (PA) On its website, VHP-UK says the local organisation works independently in pursuit of the objectives of the VHP in harmony with the laws of the country they operate in. They reject any notion that any organisation was responsible for initiating or supporting the Gujurat riots, adding: We wish to emphasise that in India people of all faiths live harmoniously with each other, and enjoy equal rights and religious freedom. VHP-UK were approached for comment. The UK-Indian Muslim Council (UK-IMC) said VHP-UK's participation was an unacceptable lapse of judgment by the Mayor, adding: By partnering with organisations linked to the Hindutva movement, the Mayor's Office risks undermining its own commitment to inclusion. Festivals of unity cannot be organised by groups with a history of division. India Labour Solidarity, which campaigns against the caste system, added: A celebration like this should be promoting cohesion, not a platform for groups linked to caste violence and Hindutva extremism. Aligning with such organisations risks deepening divisions in London, where race-related and Islamophobic hate marches are already on the rise. A spokesperson from the Muslim Greens, an advocacy group within the party, told the LDRS: Entertaining groups who fuel any kind of exclusivity on the occasion of Diwali - or any other occasion - is far from acceptable. The Indian diaspora in the UK must insist that the Mayor commemorate Diwali with organisations who champion plurality and who represent and advocate for all of India's communities. A spokesperson for the Mayor of London told the LDRS: Diwali on the Square is attended by tens of thousands of people and welcomes people of all backgrounds and faiths. The event is a beacon of inclusivity and showcases the very best of London. The Diwali in London (DiL) Committee is made up of several different organisations which represent London's Hindu and Jain communities and supports the delivery of Diwali on the Square. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office declined to comment, but Whitehall sources pointed out that the organisation of the Diwali celebrations was purely a matter for the Mayor of London, not the Government. Sir Keir Starmer is expected to tell Donald Trump that the peace pact marks a historic turning point for the Middle East - Leon Neal/AP Sir Keir Starmer will lavish praise on Donald Trumps leadership on Monday at a summit to mark the US presidents Gaza peace deal. The Prime Minister is set to fly to Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt to join other world leaders at the signing of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas. He is expected to say that the pact championed by the White House marks a historic turning point for the Middle East. Sir Keir will pay special tribute to Mr Trumps leadership, as well as praising the contributions of Egypt, Qatar and Turkey towards bringing about peace. Last week, the Prime Minister, who has been criticised for recognising Palestine before the ceasefire was announced, said peace would not have happened without the US president. The summit will take place against the backdrop of the first phase of the US plan, which is expected to see the last Israeli hostages returned by Hamas. Families of hostages welcomed the news that Hamas was to return the last of its captives - Ronen Zvulun/Reuters Osama Hamdan, an official for the terror group, said the release of 48 mostly Israeli hostages held by Palestinian militants in Gaza will start on Monday morning. Following the return of the captives from Gaza, Israel will release 250 Palestinians serving life sentences in its jails, as well as 1,700 more who have been detained in Gaza. On Saturday evening, Steve Witkoff, the US presidents Middle East envoy, addressed a jubilant crowd in Tel Aviv, flanked by Ivanka Trump, the presidents daughter, and her husband Jared Kushner. I dreamed of this night. Its been a long journey, Mr Witkoff said to applause as thousands gathered at Hostages Square. I only wish the president was here, he would love this, he added. The crowd erupted into enthusiastic chants of thank you Trump, thank you Witkoff. There were also loud boos at the name of Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, when he was mentioned by Mr Witkoff. The crowd also chanted bring them home, the refrain they have repeated ceaselessly for two years. Steve Witkoff, the White House envoy, addressed a crowd in Tel Aviv, flanked by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump - Jack Guez/AFP Mr Kushner joked to the crowd that Mr Witkoff had no four-letter words in his speech because I think he used them all up in the negotiation. The presidents son-in-law also said he couldnt feel prouder to be a friend of Israel. Ms Trump said the return of each hostage represented triumph of faith, of courage and of our shared humanity. On Monday, Sir Keir is expected to urge the parties to press on swiftly to the remaining parts of the deal, which must begin with the disarmament of Hamas. Under the second part of the agreement, an international stabilisation force will be deployed to Gaza to maintain peace and train a local police force. However, it is not currently known which countries will contribute troops towards this. A new board of peace, chaired by Mr Trump and including Sir Tony Blair, will be set up to oversee the governance of Gaza. The peace deal includes training for police forces in Gaza - Hamza Qraiqea/Anadolu Frances Emmanuel Macron will also travel to Egypt on Monday to witness the formal closure of the deal, the Elysee Palace confirmed. Both the UK and France enraged Israel by recognising the state of Palestine last month, alongside Canada, Australia and others. However, it did not cause a major rupture with the US, although the White House made clear it disagreed with the policy shift. Mr Trump will fly out of Washington on an overnight flight, landing in Tel Aviv for a meeting with Mr Netanyahu on Monday before travelling to Egypt. We have a lot of leaders from all over the world coming, the president told reporters in the Oval Office on Friday evening. He admitted there were still questions about how to move from the first phase of the deal to the next steps. I think theres consensus on most of it, and some of the details, like anything else, will be worked out, because youll find out that when youre sitting in a beautiful room in Egypt ... its easy to work something out, but then sometimes it doesnt work from a practical standpoint, he said. Mr Trump will meet Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv before travelling to Egypt - Alex Brandon/AP On Saturday, a Hamas official said the group would not be taking part in the formal signing ceremony in Egypt. The matter of the official signing we will not be involved, Hossam Badran, a political bureau member, said in an interview, adding that Hamas acted principally through... Qatari and Egyptian mediators during ceasefire talks. He added: The second phase of the Trump plan, as it is clear from the points themselves, contains many complexities and difficulties. Talk about expelling Palestinians, whether theyre Hamas members or not, from their land is absurd and nonsense. His comments echo those of other senior Hamas members, which suggest that the group may resist the push to give up its weapons. It risks a return to war with Israel, after Mr Netanyahu threatened on Friday that the group must disarm the easy way or the hard way. As agreed in the deal, the IDF has withdrawn from most of Gazas urban areas, now controlling 53 per cent of the Strip. Further withdrawal is dependent upon Hamas disarming. However, while the terror group accepted the condition in the Trump plan that demanded giving up the hostages, it has been vague on its commitment to meet the other criteria. Their actions in the hours since Israel withdrew suggest a force that is determined to reassert control over the civilian population, which is currently streaming back into Gaza City, among other urban areas, despite the widespread destruction. The Taliban reportedly barred women journalists from attending a press event of visiting foreign minister Amir Khan Muttaqi in India, drawing anger from a wide section of Indian reporters, activists, and politicians. The women journalists, including this reporter for The Independent, who had gathered outside the Afghanistan embassy in Delhi on Friday, were stopped by the security staff and Delhi Police officials from attending the event despite multiple requests. India is hosting the Talibans interim foreign minister during a high-profile but controversial visit as it seeks to upgrade its diplomatic ties with Afghanistans hardline Islamist regime. Mr Muttaqi, a UN-sanctioned official, addressed a male-only gathering of press at Afghanistans embassy in the lush diplomatic enclave in the heart of the Indian capital. Following the withdrawal of US-led Nato forces from war-torn Afghanistan four years ago, India was forced to operate the embassy in New Delhi in a restricted manner as it has not formally recognised the Taliban group. The embassy was reopened for the first-ever diplomatic visit by the Taliban minister on Thursday. Following a social media backlash, Indias Ministry of External Affairs claimed on Saturday it was not involved in the press event held on Friday by the visiting Afghanistan minister. What if the Minister of External Affairs had been a woman? As was the case not too long ago. Would they have kept her out of the meeting with the #Taliban - the way they excluded women journalists from the press meet? So unacceptable. Maya Sharma (@MsMayaSharma) October 11, 2025 Taliban foreign minister Mawlawi Amir Khan Muttaqi sits in a car as he leaves the building of Vivekananda International Foundation after meetings in New Delhi (Reuters) The women present at the embassy had adhered to the conservative dress code imposed by the Taliban in Afghanistan and many were seen with scarves covering their hair. The Talibans enforcement of Sharia rule in Afghanistan has been the main roadblock to their international recognition. Their restrictions on women and girls and freedom of expression have drawn criticism from rights groups and foreign governments since the former insurgents resumed control of Afghanistan in 2021. On Friday, in response to a question on the Taliban curtailing the rights of Afghan girls and women, Mr Muttaqi claimed it was all part of a propaganda. Women in Taliban-ruled Afghanistan are currently barred from most of the ordinary activities their counterparts elsewhere in the world see as their natural right studying, working, going to a salon or the gym, midwifery, and even speaking or praying in public. A female cat has more rights than a woman in Afghanistan, Hollywood star Meryl Streep said last September, speaking at an event on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Experts monitoring the Talibans activities have questioned the Indian governments stance on the incident. Despite the Ministry of External Affairs claim of no involvement in the Taliban Afghan foreign ministers press interaction, concerns persist about the Talibans activities on Indian soil, said author and journalist Nayanima Basu. By not allowing women journalists to attend the press conference of the Taliban Foreign Minister, India has compromised its own moral and diplomatic standing. This is not just a procedural lapse but a symbolic surrender of Indias long-cherished commitment to equality, freedom of pic.twitter.com/nUxk82v1pc Manoj Kumar Jha (@manojkjhadu) October 11, 2025 The Afghan embassy had been inactive since the departure of former diplomats, yet it suddenly became operational within 24 hours of the new foreign ministers arrival in India. This raises questions about the embassys status and the governments role in permitting the Talibans activities, Basu said. ...Has Indias relationship with the new Afghan dispensation become so close that it will no longer verify the Talibans activities within Indias capital city or anywhere else? she told The Independent. The implicit ban on women covering Mr Muttaqis press conference in Delhi has also sparked outrage among the Indian opposition. Prime Minister @narendramodi ji, please clarify your position on the removal of female journalists from the press conference of the representative of the Taliban on his visit to India. If your recognition of womens rights isnt just convenient posturing from one election to the other, then how has this insult to some of Indias most competent women been allowed in our country, a country whose women are its backbone and its pride, said senior Congress politician Priyanka Gandhi. The government has dishonoured every single Indian woman by allowing Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from the presser. Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites, said opposition MP Mahua Moitra. Govt has dishonoured every single Indian woman by allowing Taliban minister to exclude women journalists from presser. Shameful bunch of spineless hypocrites. pic.twitter.com/xxnqofS6ob Mahua Moitra (@MahuaMoitra) October 10, 2025 Mr Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them. In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such discrimination exposes the emptiness of your slogans on Nari Shakti (womens power), said leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi. Mr. Modi, when you allow the exclusion of women journalists from a public forum, you are telling every woman in India that you are too weak to stand up for them. In our country, women have the right to equal participation in every space. Your silence in the face of such https://t.co/FyaxxCteK6 Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 11, 2025 Indian lawmaker Priyanka Chaturvedi from the regional Shiv Sena UBT party said India should question the Taliban on humiliating our women journalists. India should take this up, and considering that we have upgraded them to our embassy, we would need to engage with the Taliban government on the backsliding of rights for women, she said. Especially when our laws are not being maintained inside the Afghan embassy for them to follow and to humiliate our women journalists, she told The Independent. The Taliban has not issued a statement yet on the latest incident. India upgraded ties with the Taliban administration, giving a boost to the diplomatically isolated group, by announcing it would reopen its embassy in Kabul that was shut after the Taliban seized power in 2021. The Afghan Taliban administration will also send diplomats to New Delhi, its foreign minister said. India closed its embassy in Kabul following the withdrawal of US-led Nato forces from war-torn Afghanistan four years ago, though it launched a small mission in 2022 to facilitate trade, medical support and humanitarian aid. About a dozen countries including China, Russia, Iran, Pakistan and Turkey have embassies operating in Kabul, although Russia is the only country to have formally recognised the Taliban administration, whose members are under UN sanctions including a travel ban and asset freeze. Indias announcement came during talks in New Delhi between foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar and his counterpart, Mr Muttaqi, who is on a six-day visit after getting a temporary exemption on his travel ban. It was the first such trip to India by a Taliban leader since 2021. India will raise its technical mission to a diplomatic mission in Kabul, and our diplomats will also come here, Mr Muttaqi told reporters on Friday, adding that the aim was for the two countries to slowly return to normalcy. India and Afghanistan have historically had friendly ties. Tens of thousands of pro-Palestine protesters march through London to mark two years of war in Gaza Tens of thousands of pro-Palestine protesters have gathered in central London for a march to mark two years of the war in Gaza. Arrests have been made after a clash with counter-protesters, while several people carrying placards that read We stand with Britains Jews have been removed from the crowd. Stalls were selling keffiyehs and outside Embankment station people were handing out placards that read from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free, its not a crime to act against genocide, and Starmer has blood on his hands, free Palestine. The demonstration comes as thousands of Palestinians began returning to their homes in Gaza following the withdrawal of Israeli forces after a US-brokered ceasefire came into effect on Friday. A counter-protest organised by Stop The Hate is also taking place, at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand. Police have imposed conditions on the march and a counter-protest (Yui Mok/PA) (PA Wire) In a post on X (Twitter), police said a small group of counter-protesters had breached conditions by demonstrating at the form-up area of the pro-Palestine march, leading to a scuffle between several individuals from the two groups. Officers separated those involved and made a small number of arrests, police said. Another individual held a sign, decorated with the image of a bee in the Star of David, which read It was never about Palestine, it was always about hate. A large stationary crowd of counter-protesters waving Israeli flags faced more than a hundred-thousand pro-Palestinian protesters passing from Waterloo Bridge onto the Strand. A counter-protester from Our Fight clashing with a pro-Palestine demonstrator (Yui Mok/PA Wire) A deafening loud speaker blared heavy rock music that included the lyrics you can stick your Palestine up your hole. Shouts of shame and free Palestine came loudly from the pro-Palestine crowd gathered along Victoria Embankment. The cheering crowd was led by a woman on a mobility scooter carrying a sign that said Palestine. Freedom peace, with a mannequin wearing a head-dress in the back. A police officer is seen with a demonstrator from Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, at the pro-Palestine march (Yui Mok/PA Wire) Another pro-Israel demonstrator seen in the crowds at the march (Yui Mok/PA Wire) Behind her walked a line of men and women in Palestine Solidarity Campaign hi-vis jacket, holding hands. One of them was wearing a white T-shirt and skirt covered in red paint that said no more blood sacrifice. Free Palestine. Your tax helps pay to bomb innocent civilians in Gaza. Your Party co-founder Jeremy Corbyn also walked at the front of the crowd across Westminster Bridge, helping to carry a large banner that said national march. Free Palestine. He stayed silent as a woman on a megaphone led the from the rivers to the sea chant, but was seen chanting Palestine will be free after she shouted Netanyahu you will see. Scotland Yard said it has imposed conditions on both demonstrations under the Public Order Act to prevent serious disruption and has set out specific areas that protesters can gather as well as a march route. The Met Police are expecting hundreds of thousands to attend the demonstration (Yui Mok/PA Wire) The pro-Palestinian protest is the 32nd national demonstration in support of Palestine since October 2023, according to organiser the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), and will see protesters march along Embankment before a rally in Whitehall. Last weekend, the government announced that police would be given greater powers to restrict protests by allowing them to consider the cumulative impact of repeated demonstrations. Home secretary Shabana Mahmood claimed repeated large-scale protests have caused considerable fear for the Jewish community. The Metropolitan Police said it was aware of the plans, but that at this time, the law remains unchanged. Scotland Yard have imposed conditions on both demonstrations to prevent disruption (Yui Mok/PA) (PA Wire) The government has also said it could launch a crackdown on some of the chants used at pro-Palestine protests. Some consider the slogan from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free to be antisemitic as they believe it calls for the eradication of Israel. Proponents of the chant claim they are calling for an end to conflict in Gaza and the West Bank. Almost 500 people were arrested at last weeks protest, with the majority on suspicion of supporting the banned terror organisation Palestine Action. Tony Blair admits he met Jeffrey Epstein at Number 10 but says it was before his crimes were known - Reuters Sir Tony Blair met Jeffrey Epstein in Downing Street when he was prime minister. Last month a secret memo was released revealing that Lord Mandelson urged Sir Tony to meet the paedophile financier, but it was unclear if the meeting went ahead. It has now emerged that it did take place, while Sir Tony was in Number 10, the BBC reported. The memo, written by Matthew Rycroft, a senior civil servant, and dated May 14 2002, briefed Sir Tony on super-rich Epstein. Their meeting took place at 5pm that day, six years before Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in 2008. He died in prison in 2019 and his death was ruled a suicide. A spokesman for Sir Tony told The Telegraph: As far as he can remember, Mr Blair met with him for less than 30 minutes in Downing Street in 2002, and discussed US and UK politics. He never met or engaged with him subsequently. He added: This was, of course, long before his crimes were known of and his subsequent conviction. Epstein is safe, Mandelson said Lord Mandelson, who was sacked as US ambassador after a Telegraph investigation into his links with Epstein, pushed for the meeting to take place. He was a backbench MP at the time, having twice resigned from Sir Tonys Cabinet. Emails show Mandelson telling Jonathan Powell, Sir Tonys chief of staff, that Epstein was safe and a friend of mine. Lord Mandelson was sacked as US ambassador by Sir Keir Starmer over his links to Epstein - Getty Images On May 7 2002, he wrote to Mr Powell: I think TB [Tony Blair] would be interested in meeting Jeffrey, who is also a friend of mine, because Jeffrey is an active scientific catalyst/entrepreneur as well as someone who has his finger on the pulse of many worldwide markets and currencies. He is young and vibrant. He is safe (whatever that means) and Clinton is now doing a lot of travelling with him. The email continued: I mentioned to TB that Jeffrey is in London next week and he said he would like to meet him. I have ascertained from Jeffrey that he is flexible he could be here any time from Tuesday onwards to fit round the diary but would obviously need to know reasonably quickly so as to re-schedule accordingly. Can you let me know? Three hand-written notes are visible on the print-out of the email. One of the notes reads: Do you want to do this... Because you wanted to see Clinton by yourself... I know very little more about him. The memo was scheduled to be released this year by the National Archives, in compliance with rules which state government papers should be revealed after 20 years. According to a memo, Bill Clinton (left) was keen on Tony Blair meeting Jeffrey Epstein - PA However, the release was blocked by the Government due to concerns with how it might embarrass Britain and affect relations between the UK and US. The document has now been released by the National Archives following a Freedom of Information request. The National Archive also released a schedule titled Trade and Industry Meetings with Industry which includes a memo briefing Sir Tony about the meeting. The briefing by Mr Rycroft was marked R, for restricted and told Sir Tony: Jeffrey Epstein is seeing you at 5pm today. He is a financial adviser to the super-rich and a property developer. He is a friend of Bill Clinton and Peter Mandelson ... he is very rich and close to the Duke of York. He added: Peter says that Epstein now travels with Clinton and Clinton wants you to meet him. He thinks you would find worthwhile a conversation with him about a) science and b) international economic and monetary trends. Tony Blair met with Jeffrey Epstein while he was prime minister, new documents reveal Sir Tony Blair met with Jeffrey Epstein in Downing Street while he was prime minister, after lobbying from Lord Peter Mandelson, new documents have revealed. The former prime minister was briefed by a senior civil servant about super-rich financial adviser Epstein ahead of a meeting scheduled on 14 May 2002 at 5pm that day, according to a memo seen by the BBC. The meeting took place six years before Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in June 2008. A spokesperson for Sir Tony said: As far as he can remember, Mr Blair met with him for less than 30 minutes in Downing Street in 2002, and discussed US and UK politics. He never met or engaged with him subsequently. This was, of course, long before his crimes were known of and his subsequent conviction. Lord Mandelson is said to have encouraged then prime minister Sir Tony Blair to meet Jeffrey Epstein in 2002 (PA Wire) Lord Mandelson pushed for the meeting, according to emails seen by the BBC, as documents have been released by the National Archives under a freedom of information request. The new details come weeks after he was sacked as US ambassador following revelations about his friendship with the convicted paedophile. In an email to Sir Tonys chief of staff Jonathan Powell, Lord Mandelson vouched that Epstein was a friend of mine, and said former US president Bill Clinton had hoped to introduce Epstein to the prime minister. An email to Mr Powell, currently the governments national security adviser, read: Do you remember when Clinton saw TB [Tony Blair] he said he wanted to introduce his travelling friend, Jeffrey Epstein, to TB? This was frustrated TB said at the time in the office for reasons (he says) he was unclear about. I think TB would be interested in meeting Jeffrey, who is also a friend of mine, because Jeffrey is an active scientific catalyst/entrepreneur as well as someone who has his finger on the pulse of many worldwide markets and currencies. He is young and vibrant. He is safe (whatever that means) and Clinton is now doing a lot of travelling with him. Jeffrey Epstein died by suicide in 2019, at the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York City (Getty Images) The email continues: I mentioned to TB that Jeffrey is in London next week and he said he would like to meet him. I have ascertained from Jeffrey that he is flexible he could be here any time from Tuesday onwards to fit round the diary but would obviously need to know reasonably quickly so as to re-schedule accordingly. Can you let me know? Lord Mandelson was sacked from his role as the UKs ambassador to the United States after emails emerged in September in which he told Epstein to fight for early release shortly before he was sentenced to 18 months in prison. He is also reported to have told Epstein I think the world of you the day before the sex offender began his sentence for soliciting prostitution from a minor in June 2008. Speaking to reporters during his trade mission to Mumbai this week, Sir Keir Starmer hinted that Lord Mandelson would never get a job in government again. Not in a government role in terms of future appointments, Sir Keir said. I think Peter is also on a leave of absence from the Lords in any event, so the issue of the whip doesnt arise. Blair (left) and Clegg hosted the private dinner at the five-star Corinthia hotel in London in January. Composite: Getty/Rex Tony Blair and Nick Clegg hosted a private dinner earlier this year at which a select group of technology entrepreneurs were given access to a key minister, official documents have revealed. The former prime minister, who is a champion of the tech industry, held the dinner in an upmarket London hotel in his capacity as the head of the Tony Blair Institute (TBI) political consultancy. He and Clegg, the former deputy prime minister who at the time was a senior executive at Meta, invited leaders of six tech companies to dine with Poppy Gustafsson, who was the governments investment minister responsible for persuading firms to invest in Britain. Blair is an evangelical proponent of the revolutionary potential of technology to transform faltering public services and has long courted alliances with leaders in the industry. His consultancy has echoed much of this zeal through a stream of policy papers arguing that artificial intelligence should be put at the heart of government. However, critics are concerned that Blair, who is known to be close to Keir Starmers government, has been able to set the agenda without enough public scrutiny. There have also been questions over the reliance of Blairs consultancy on donations from the Silicon Valley billionaire Larry Ellison, a friend of Donald Trump and Elon Musk. Ellison, who this year briefly became the worlds richest person, has donated or promised more than $300m to Blairs consultancy. The documents released to the Guardian under freedom of information legislation show how the 12 diners discussed the governments evolving policies on artificial intelligence at what was described a salon dinner. The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know. If you have something to share on this subject you can contact our investigations team confidentially using the following methods. Secure Messaging in the Guardian app The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said. If you don't already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS/Android) and go to the app menu. Pick Secure Messaging, follow the instructions to compose your message and select UK Investigations Team as the recipient. SecureDrop, instant messengers, email, telephone and post If you can safely use the tor network without being observed or monitored you can send messages and documents to the Guardian via our SecureDrop platform. Finally, our guide at theguardian.com/tips lists several ways to contact us securely, and discusses the pros and cons of each. Hosted at the end of January in the five-star Corinthia hotel, the diners included Lonne Jaffe, the managing director of the US venture capital firm Insight Partners, which invests in technology companies. Also present were Alex Kendall, the chief executive of Wayve, which is seeking to develop self-driving cars; Nigel Toon, the head of Graphcore, which produces computer chips; and Marc Warner, the chief executive of Faculty AI, which published a joint document last year with TBI on how AI could be used to improve public services. A spokesperson for Clegg, who as president for global affairs at Meta jointly hosted the dinner, said :During his time at Meta Nick Clegg regularly met with government ministers and leaders from other tech companies. As the executive responsible for policy and global affairs that was literally his job. A TBI spokesperson said: This event was a discussion about a range of issues between tech leaders with a minister in attendance. No company paid to attend. The companies represented at the dinner said they had not donated money to TBI, nor hired it. The dinner illustrates how Blairs consultancy works to push his pro-technology agenda. Having rapidly expanded, TBI is active in 45 countries with its staff numbering more than 900. Its latest accounts show its income totalled $145m in 2022 from a mixture of fees for its advice and donations. The identities of many of its donors and clients are kept secret. The consultancy has drawn criticism that its policy positions have been shaped by its donors commercial interests an accusation it has denied. It was also criticised for continuing to take money from Saudi Arabia after the murder of the journalist Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Blair is in line to play a leading role in the reconstruction of postwar Gaza. Weeks before the dinner, the government had given TBI a confidential summary of its action plan for artificial intelligence days before it was due to be published. On 9 January, Feryal Clark, then a minister in the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), spoke to Jakob Mokander, TBIs science policy director, at her instigation. The next day, an aide to Clark emailed Mokander to say: It was great talking to you yesterday. As a follow-up please see this confidential summary of the action plan. Thank you for agreeing to amplify publication of the plan on Monday through your network and supportive quotes. Mokander replied: Thank you for sharing the action plan (confidentiality noted). Blair backed the action plan, aimed at expanding the countrys role in developing and deploying artificial intelligence, when it was published on 13 January. Asked why it had given early sight of this document to TBI, a spokesperson for the DSIT said: We make no apologies for regularly engaging with stakeholders. It is standard practice to share embargoed information with them ahead of announcements. The TBI spokesperson said: It is standard practice for governments to consult experts and engage a wide range of stakeholders when shaping policy. The AI opportunities action plan rightly drew on our published work, as the footnotes make clear. The best public interest journalism relies on first-hand accounts from people in the know. If you have something to share on this subject you can contact our investigations team confidentially using the following methods. Secure Messaging in the Guardian app The Guardian app has a tool to send tips about stories. Messages are end to end encrypted and concealed within the routine activity that every Guardian mobile app performs. This prevents an observer from knowing that you are communicating with us at all, let alone what is being said. If you don't already have the Guardian app, download it (iOS/Android) and go to the app menu. Pick Secure Messaging, follow the instructions to compose your message and select UK Investigations Team as the recipient. SecureDrop, instant messengers, email, telephone and post If you can safely use the tor network without being observed or monitored you can send messages and documents to the Guardian via our SecureDrop platform. Finally, our guide at theguardian.com/tips lists several ways to contact us securely, and discusses the pros and cons of each. A leading girls school is to become the latest London secondary to go smartphone free in a bid to boost achievement and reduce the threat of online harm. Walthamstow School for Girls plans to implement the changes in September next year with phones found to breach the new rules being confiscated for up to eight weeks. Parents of Year 6 primary school girls about to apply for places at the over-subscribed state secondary have been warned of the forthcoming smartphone-free policy at open evenings. Helen Marriott, headteacher at Walthamstow School for Girls, said the aim was to address an increase in harmful online behaviour by students and create a more compassionate school community. She told The Standard: We think the smartphone-free school initiative will have a positive impact by making students less reliant on their phones, more focused on learning and less apt to view the online world as a more attractive alternative. We believe it will improve students mental health and wellbeing: the seven- to eight-hour window when they travel to and from school and are in the building will be an opportunity to switch off from the online world and focus on the real one. No phones: The Prince and Princess of Wales with their children, Prince George, Prince Louis, and Princess Charlotte (Gareth Fuller/PA) (PA Archive) Earlier this week, the Princess of Wales warned of the dangers of screentime for children and an epidemic of disconnection. Prince William has revealed that he and Kate are very strict in not allowing their children - Prince George, 12, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven to have mobile phones. Pupils at Walthamstow School for Girls are currently allowed to bring smartphones to school but these have to be handed in to the school office at the start of the day, and collected at the end of the day. Students found with a mobile phone in their possession during the school day have it confiscated and not returned for 48 hours. Under the new rules, students will be allowed to bring a brick phone a device without access to the internet to school but this will have to be turned off and kept in their school bag during lessons. If the brick phone goes off, it will be confiscated for 48 hours and only returned to the childs parents. Ms Marriott said that while it was rare to see a student using a phone in school, not all students handed them in to reception, and some were found during bag searches. We know that smartphones are designed to be addictive and so if students phones are switched on, they will be aware of notifications and will therefore become distracted from learning, she said. We have also seen an increasing trend in harmful online behaviour through social media and WhatsApp groups. Some students seem to feel they can be abusive or be bystanders in this arena in a way that they wouldnt do in real life. One of our school values is compassion and we see the smartphone-free school initiative as a way of creating a more compassionate school community which is also more focused on learning. Oversubscribed: Walthamstow School for Girls is in demand (SLL) The school, which has 900 pupils, uses a geographical catchment area to help determine how its places are allocated. The idea of becoming smartphone-free emerged out of a meeting with other headteachers. School staff then visited Fulham Boys school, which introduced a ban last year. Kelmscott school, a mixed secondary in Walthamstow, is believed to be considering a similar ban, and there is political support on Waltham Forest council for more borough schools to follow suit. Ms Marriott said that most parents were on board with the proposal. The new rules will be explained to students in advance, during the summer term including advice on which models of brick phone are permitted and which are not. She said: Once introduced, we would enforce the policy by confiscating phones, if they are found, until the end of that half-term, when they would need to be collected by parents. We would conduct random bag searches to ensure that the policy was being consistently followed and would reinforce what staff need to do if they see or hear smartphones. She added: Ultimately, parents and carers have a choice about where to send their children and there are many good schools in the local area. If we find we are at an impasse, families can choose to go elsewhere; if they prefer WSFG, the expectation is that they adhere to our new policy. Owen Cooper as killer schoolboy Jamie Miller and Stephen Graham as his father in Adolescence (Netflix) Ms Marriott said misuse of smartphones presented a different type of danger to teenage girls. She said: The risks to boys have been well-publicised through the Netflix series Adolescence, making clear the dangers of the online world of misogyny, and there is a lot of information linking the use of smartphones with boys addiction to pornography. The greatest risks for girls are around mental health. Children are bombarded with images which match a beauty standard that few can attain. The result has been a significant rise in self-harm, depression and eating disorders, particularly since 2019, perpetuated by the availability of images and websites, and now AI chatbots, that encourage harmful behaviour. The selfie culture created by social media, whereby validation must be sought through clicks and comments, means that appearance, rather than character and values, becomes the greatest currency in the lives of many teenagers. That cant be right. Our school motto is Neglect not the gift that is in thee, meaning that we want all of our students to have the widest range of learning experiences in order to find their superpower, not be limited by an algorithm, or someone elses vision of who they can be. Other risks include the temptation for children to send nudes and semi-nudes, as well as greater risk of coercion and grooming through online forums and messaging. Bullying, which we call harmful and abusive behaviour, has always existed in schools. Now it is more likely to be online, so abusive behaviour continues even when the child is at home, meaning that there is no chance of escape. You can never eliminate risk but you can mitigate it. We think that our smartphone free school policy will help to mitigate the risks detailed above by limiting students access to smartphones so that they are free to make healthier choices. We think that it will inform and empower parents and students to enable children to be children, as well as preparing them to be the best version of themselves. Removing smartphones enables us to shine an even brighter spotlight on learning in its broadest sense, for all our students. President Donald Trumps former National Security Adviser John Bolton is reportedly about to be indicted on criminal charges, according to a new report citing sources close to the matter. MSNBC reports that an indictment against John Bolton could arrive as early as next week. Two people close to the situation, speaking anonymously to the broadcaster, said that a grand jury in Maryland has been hearing evidence for several weeks relating to claims that Bolton kept classified national security information at his home. The sources said the pace of the case against Bolton has sped up recently. Bolton's potential indictment would make him the third of Trump's enemies to face criminal charges in just a matter of weeks. Both former FBI Director James Comey and New York Attorney General Letitia James have also been indicted on criminal charges. Former National Security Adviser John Bolton is reportedly about to be indicted, according to sources close to a Maryland grand jury. FBI agents raided Boltons Maryland home in September to search for alleged classified documents in his possession (Getty Images) Trump fired Bolton during his first administration and Bolton has been a vocal critic of Trump's leadership ever since. The sources told MSNBC that prosecutors in Virginia and New York are hesitant to bring cases against Comey and James, respectively, but prosecutors in Maryland reportedly believe the charges being brought against Bolton may actually be based in fact. Acting U.S. Attorney for Maryland Kelly Hayes has told her colleagues that she believes there is enough evidence to justify charging Bolton, the sources reportedly said. Bolton's home in Bethesda, Maryland, was raided by the FBI on August 22. Agents were executing a search warrant at his home in an attempt to locate classified records. The warrant was reportedly provided by the CIA and approved by a federal judge, according to MSNBC. FBI agents remove items from Donald Trump's former national security adviser John Bolton's house, as the FBI conducted a court-authorized search at his residence on August 22, 2025 in Bethesda, Maryland (AFP/Getty) FBI Director Kash Patel celebrated the raid on social media at the time. NO ONE is above the law... @FBI agents on mission," Patel wrote on X. Bolton's attorney, Abbe Lowell, has maintained that his client is innocent of all allegations made against him. He has repeatedly said that all of the classified documents Bolton had in his possession were from the George W. Bush administration during which he served as a U.S. ambassador to the United Nations and said those documents are typical of those that would be retained by a longtime government employee. An objective and thorough review will show nothing inappropriate was stored or kept by Ambassador Bolton, Lowell said in September. A heavily redacted version of the probable cause affidavit used by the FBI to justify the raid at Bolton's home was unsealed in September. A page titled "Hack of Bolton's AOL Account by Foreign Entity" is completely blacked out, but the sources speaking to MSNBC claim to have information about its contents. According to the insiders, the page details how the U.S. government found Bolton's AOL emails during an intelligence collection operation directed at a foreign government. The specific government is not named or was not provided by the sources. Former national security adviser John Bolton arrives at his house Friday, August 22, 2025, in Bethesda, Maryland (Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.) The discovery of Bolton's emails in the hands of a foreign government reportedly kicked off an investigation into whether or not the former ambassador had mishandled classified information. The indictments against Comey and James and soon, reportedly, Bolton have come down just weeks after Trump posted what appeared to be a private message to Attorney General Pam Bondi demanding she speed up prosecution of his political enemies. Senior Republicans were blindsided by the message and believed it was intended to be private. "What about Comey, Adam 'Shifty' Schiff, Letitia???" Trump wrote in the post. "Theyre all guilty as hell, but nothing is going to be done." Trump continued, saying, "We can't delay any longer, it's killing our reputation and credibility," and concluded with, "They impeached me twice, and indicted me (5 times!), OVER NOTHING. JUSTICE MUST BE SERVED, NOW!!!" President Donald Trump, left, and Attorney General Pam Bondi during a press briefing at the White House (AP) Trump later deleted the message and his staff acted as though it was intended for public view the entire time. According to a Wall Street Journal report citing unnamed sources, Trump was surprised to learn he'd posted the message to his Truth Social account, then said "Oh," and shrugged the mistake off. Two of the three people mentioned Comey and James have been indicted. It is unclear if or when an indictment will come down for Senator Adam Schiff. Both Comey and James have investigated Trump in the past. Comey led an investigation into Trump's first presidential campaign's alleged ties to Russia, and James investigated the Trump Foundation and sued it for fraud, alleging it was inflating the values of its properties and minimizing its debts to dupe potential investors. UK ready to spend frozen Russian assets to fund loan to Ukraine Sir Keir Starmer has signalled his readiness to advance plans for using frozen Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraine's war effort. His stance follows a meeting of European leaders in Copenhagen last week, where discussions centred on a "reparations loan" for Ukraine, funded by immobilised Russian assets. Sir Keir subsequently co-signed a joint E3 statement on Friday with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron. The statement declared: We will increase pressure on Russia as President Putin continues his stalling tactics and abhorrent attacks in response to peace talks. To that end, we are ready to progress towards using, in a co-ordinated way, the value of the immobilised Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraines armed forces and thus bring Russia to the negotiation table. We aim to do this in close co-operation with the United States of America. We agree to develop further bold and innovative mechanisms to increase the cost of Russias war and ramp up pressure. This includes driving forward action on the Russian shadow fleet. Emergency crews work to extinguish a fire following a Russian attack on Kyiv Sir Keir also spoke with Volodymyr Zelensky, and told him that the UK, Germany and France were united in wanting to drive progress towards using the full value of the immobilised Russian sovereign assets to end the war and ensure a just and lasting peace in Ukraine, according to a readout. Sir Keir and the Ukrainian president agreed that further sanctions in the coming days and weeks would also add to the pressure on Russia, the document added. No 10 said: The Prime Minister began by sharing his heartfelt condolences to those impacted by the barbaric Russian attacks overnight. The leaders discussed how Russias systematic attacks on Ukraines critical national infrastructure in the lead up to winter further emphasised that (Vladimir) Putin was not serious about peace. It was vital Ukraine received the military equipment it needed to defend itself from Russias continued aggression, the Prime Minister said. Aftermath of a Russian drone and missile strike in Zaporizhzhia (REUTERS) Writing on X, Mr Zelensky said: I appreciate his words of condolence. Last night, Russia carried out another terrorist attack on our cities and communities. One of the targets was Ukraines energy system, therefore, we need to strengthen our air defence and expedite every decision regarding missile and system deliveries. And that was the main focus of our conversation with Keir. I am grateful for his understanding of our needs and for his support. Mr Zelensky later added: We are also preparing new sanctions steps against Russia. Keir shared some ideas that could set the right pressure. Every sanction decision weakens Russias war machine, and we will continue our joint work with all partners. A rescuer helps an injured man after a Russian strike on a residential building in Kyiv, Ukraine (Dan Bashakov) European Commission vice-president Kaja Kallas gave members of the press in Copenhagen an insight into the structure of the scheme being discussed on the continent, which she said was based on the frozen assets. She said: The system is so that if Russia does not pay the reparations to Ukraine, then, you know, these assets are not given back. If Russia decides, after this war is over, to repay all the damages that they have caused, then of course, these assets will be given back, and this loan is not there. But if we do not take those assets into account then it is on our taxpayers, that is for sure. Power was restored to 270,000 consumers in Kyiv after attacks from Russia knocked it out, Ukraines energy minister Svitlana Hrynchuk wrote on Facebook on Friday. People in Kyiv heard blasts throughout Thursday night and many woke up without power on Friday after the huge air attack targeted Ukraines energy system. Images posted online showed firefighters working to tackle burning blocks of flats. Hrynchuk did not say how many people had lost power. Ukraines president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said the Russian strikes targeted civilian and energy infrastructure as Ukraine prepares for winter temperatures. Russian drones and missiles damaged 12 apartment buildings in the south-eastern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing a seven-year-old boy and injuring four people, according to the regional governor. The Kyiv mayor, Vitali Klitschko, said 12 people had been injured, with eight of them taken to hospital. Vladimir Putin rowed back his deputy foreign ministers declaration that the momentum from the Alaska talks had been lost and that the edifice of relations between the US and Russia has cracked and is collapsing the cracks have reached the foundation. Rybakov made the comments during the week after Donald Trump hardened his line towards Russia. Putin, Russias president, said on Friday: These are complex issues that require further consideration. But we remain committed to the discussion that took place in Anchorage. An aide to Putin said contacts with Washington were continuing. Fair use of frozen Russian assets for Ukraines defence and rebuilding was discussed between the European Central Bank president, Christine Lagarde, and Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday. There are solutions for how this can be done, said Ukraines president, calling for more political will in Europe to do it. We are getting closer to a decision on the assets, and I thank everyone who is helping. Jonathan Powell is currently at the centre of the row over the dropped Chinese spying case - David Ramos/Getty Images No 10 is under pressure to reveal whether Jonathan Powell has been involved in talks to allow a Chinese company to build a wind turbine factory branded a serious threat to UK national security. The Tories have demanded that Sir Keir Starmer must declare any involvement by his national security adviser in internal Government discussions over whether to approve the 1.5bn investment by Ming Yang. The companys proposed wind turbine factory in Scotland, which was announced on Friday, would be the UKs largest. It would supply turbines for offshore wind farms in the North Sea, which are located near vital subsea cables and communications links. The Telegraph understands that the plans have caused a split within the Government, with the Ministry of Defence privately warning over the security risks. The plans for Ming Yangs involvement in the factory have sparked concerns from the White House over the UKs reliance on China, and from the Royal Navy, which fears Beijing could use offshore wind farms to spy on Britain. But the Treasury is keen to encourage more Chinese investment in the UK while Ed Milibands climate department is said to see the new factory as key to meeting his goal of decarbonising the energy grid by 2030. Mr Powell, who is one of the Prime Ministers most powerful advisers, is currently at the centre of the row over the dropped Chinese spying case, and has faced significant scrutiny over his links to Beijing. The Telegraph revealed this week that Mr Powell suppressed a major Whitehall investigation into Chinese spying after lobbying from the Treasury. In a statement, Ming Yang said it had held extensive discussions with the Government and was now awaiting final approvals for the plans. MPs, government officials and military figures have all publicly and privately expressed concerns about the security risks of them going ahead. At the start of the year, Royal Navy chiefs briefed MPs that China could use wind farms to spy on ship and submarine movements and disrupt communications. The case against two men accused of spying on Parliament for China collapsed because the Government allegedly failed to brand Beijing a threat to national security. Mr Powell has been accused of having a hand in the decision not to provide prosecutors with more evidence, though No 10 has flatly denied he was involved. Dame Priti Patel, the shadow foreign secretary, said Downing Street must declare whether the national security adviser has been involved in internal discussions around whether to approve the planned investment. She said: There are serious national security issues with allowing Chinese company Ming Yang to have such a significant role in our energy industry. Giving China access to our critical national infrastructure is incredibly risky which is why our allies in the US are worried about it too. Keir Starmer must confirm what role his national security adviser Jonathan Powell is playing in this process and what promises, if any, have been made to Ming Yang. And he must prove that there is no connection between this investment and the decision to drop the China spy case. Labour are cosying up to China and putting Britains safety at risk. Only the Conservatives can be trusted to put the national interest first. Nick Timothy, the Tory MP for West Suffolk, added: Ministers seem uncertain about whether to call Beijing a threat - but letting Ming Yang into our infrastructure would undoubtedly be a dangerous and reckless decision we will come to regret. Given his alleged role in the collapsed spy trial, we need to be told what role Jonathan Powell has had in this decision. This policy is driven by the ideology of Ed Miliband, but it is the job of the national security adviser to keep this country secure. A deal with Ming Yang does the opposite. Ed Miliband (right), the Energy Secretary, is said to see the wind farm as key to meeting his decarbonisation goal - Ian Forsyth Ministers have previously said that, because it concerns an energy project, the Ming Yang investment would be subject to the highest levels of national security scrutiny. Mr Powell is the most senior adviser to the Prime Minister on national security issues. Government records show that executives from Ming Yang met Poppy Gustafsson, Sir Keirs former investment minister, twice in the past year. On the first occasion on Dec 6 last year it was to discuss the companys investment aspirations whilst the second meeting on June 18 was to discuss investment into offshore wind and supply chain development in the UK. Jonathan Reynolds, the former business secretary, also met with representatives from Ming Yang on Oct 14 last year, public declarations show. Although the firm is privately owned, concerns have been raised about the level of influence that Beijing is able to wield over all Chinese companies. In particular, Chinas National Intelligence Law requires all businesses to cooperate with state intelligence work if they are asked to. A Government spokesman said: This is one of a number of companies that wants to invest in the UK. Any decisions made will be consistent with our national security. RAF Rivet Joint planes were supported by a US Stratotanker so they could refuel while flying - MoD Two RAF surveillance planes were deployed on a 12-hour mission to patrol Natos eastern frontier. The aircraft flew nearly 10,000 miles, starting from the High North - the far northern Arctic region - and continuing along Russias border, past Belarus and Ukraine. The RAF said the operation involved an RC-135 Rivet Joint electronic intelligence surveillance aircraft and a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft. It was a response to recent incursions into Nato airspace by Russian drones and fighter jets. They were supported by a US Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker from the 100th Air Refueling Wing, allowing them to go further than they could on a single fuel load. Both RAF aircraft were purpose-built for intelligence gathering. The Rivet Joint was designed to intercept and eavesdrop on military communications while the Poseidon is equipped for anti-submarine warfare. John Healey, the Defence Secretary, said: This was a substantial joint mission with our US and NATO allies. Not only does this provide valuable intelligence to boost the operational awareness of our Armed Forces, but sends a powerful message of Nato unity to Putin and our adversaries. RAF Gp Cap Matthew DAubyn said: Missions like this demonstrate Natos unity and readiness to defend its members against any aggression. Last month, a stream of Russian drones travelled over Ukraine into Poland, prompting Nato to scramble jets to shoot them down. On Sept 14, a Russian Geran drone strayed into Romanian airspace near Ukraines southern border, while on Sept 19, three Russian MiG-31 fighter jets violated Estonian airspace before circling for 12 minutes. Fears of a shadow war designed to provoke Nato were heightened after at least 18 unidentified drones were spotted in Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Germany in September and October, disrupting operations at airports. Credit: Nato Russia has continued to deny involvement in the incidents at Scandinavian airports, though Vladimir Putin said at a foreign policy forum in Sochi last week that he wont send any more drones... neither to France, nor to Denmark, nor Copenhagen. The incursions sparked furious debate on how Nato should counter invasions of its airspace, with Donald Trump suggesting last month that the alliance could open fire on Russian aircraft breaching allied territory. On Sept 12, Nato launched Operation Eastern Sentry to safeguard territory on its eastern flank. Two RAF fighter jets with the call signs chaos 1-1 and chaos 1-2 were deployed on their first policing mission over Poland as part of the operation on Sept 21. The latest RAF mission involving the two spy planes came as Denmark announced $4.2bn (3.2bn) of additional defence spending in the Arctic and North Atlantic regions on Friday, as well as a $4.5bn (3.4bn) budget for purchasing 16 more F-35 fighter jets from the US. Denmarks foreign minister Troels Lund Poulsen said that the investment would significantly strengthen the capabilities of the Danish Armed Forces in the region, which lies at the intersection of North America, Russia and Europe. In September, Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, said British pilots would confront Russian fighters entering Nato airspace without permission, adding that they were ready to take all steps necessary to protect the alliance. However, Nato member countries remain divided over what posture it should take towards Russian provocations, with some allies pushing for a conservative approach while others call for an aggressive stance to deter future Kremlin-led incursions. The Financial Times reported on Thursday that allies were mulling plans to deploy armed drones along the border with Russia and allow pilots to open fire on Russian aircraft, to make future provocations more costly for Moscow. President Putin has dismissed suggestions that he intends to start a war with Nato as hysteria, but pledged retaliation in kind to Europes escalating militarisation. Some European officials have attributed the violations to the hybrid war being carried out by Moscow in Europe by way of cyber attacks, disinformation and sabotage, amid suggestions that the EU could respond by curbing the travel of Russian diplomats within the bloc. There are no survivors of the blast that rocked a Tennessee explosives plant, authorities said on Oct. 11 as investigators work to determine the cause. All 16 people inside the building that exploded at Accurate Energetic Systems are dead, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said at an Oct. 11 press conference. Residents from miles away could hear the blast on Oct. 10 at the facility in Hickman County, Tennessee, about 60 miles west of Nashville. I can tell you at this time, we have notified all 16 families of those people that we feel (were) involved in this situation, this tragedy, Davis said during an emotional evening press briefing outside the Accurate Energetic Systems facility gates. The facility processes high-grade explosives for demolition, military and other uses, according to its website. Authorities previously said 18 people were missing in the explosion. Earlier on Oct. 10, officials said 19 were unaccounted for but later said they located one person at home who had been believed to be among the missing. The difference in number, Davis explained, was because a vehicle and personal items were found on the scene and they were unable to locate the owners, at first. Initially, the presence of those items made officials think there more people who died, but "they were not in the destroyed building," the sheriff said. A hand-painted message along Highway 230 near the entrance to the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, an explosive manufacturing company, Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in Hickman County, Tenn. A devastating blast killed some workers, injured several others on Friday. Throughout the day on Oct. 11, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation worked to conduct DNA testing and confirm the identities of those who died, officials noted during the briefing. "As widely acknowledged, we endured a tragic incident today that has profoundly impacted our community, Humphreys County, and surrounding communities I extend my most profound condolences to the victims and their families during this difficult time," Hickman County Sheriff Jason Craft said late on Oct. 10. "The investigation is currently in its active phase, and the scene remains highly dynamic," Craft said. Jason Yates, right, hugs his friend, who lost a family in the explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant, while arriving at the Hurricane Chapel Freewill Baptist Church for a prayer service Saturday, Oct. 11, 2025, in McEwen, Tenn. What happened in the Tennessee explosion? The explosion happened at about 7:45 a.m. on Oct. 10, authorities said. The blast was heard for miles, with a home security camera over 20 miles away picking it up and residents reporting the ground shaking. At least a few people with minor injuries from being near the blast were treated at Ascension Saint Thomas' Three Rivers Hospital in Waverly, about 15 miles from the facility, the hospital told the Nashville Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network. When asked to describe the building where the blast occurred, Davis told reporters, "There's nothing to describe. It's gone." Members of the public were asked to stay clear of the area as first responders contained the scene. Officials also asked the public not to "post anything about missing or any type of status of personnel." "Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, coworkers, and community members affected by this incident. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions," Accurate Energetic Systems said in a statement. What caused the Tennessee explosion? The cause of the blast, which encompassed an entire building, was not immediately clear, and officials said they are investigating. It could take weeks or months to determine if any foul play was involved, Davis said on Oct. 11. "There's not going to be a short explanation for that," Davis previously said. The Nashville Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms field office said bomb techs are working the area, as the national response team is expected to arrive in the coming hours. Explosives facility had history of safety violations The explosives facility had a history of safety issues and violations, according to a report from the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development obtained by the Nashville Tennessean. Another explosion at the facility in 2014 left one dead and two injured. The family of the deceased employee settled a lawsuit that claimed workplace safety standards at the time of the explosion fell below what is required by law, the Tennessean reported. Multiple employees previously experienced seizures in 2019, leading inspectors to determine they had been potentially exposed to a toxic chemical through inhalation, ingestion and absorption through the skin. Five "serious" violations were identified in the inspection, but within years, they were dialed back or removed from the record, and the matter ended with a settlement between Accurate Energetic Systems and Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Tennessean reported. Contributing: Jonathan Limehouse, USA TODAY; Kirsten Fiscus, Vivian Jones, Craig Shoup, Angele Latham, Liz Schubauer, Austin Hornbostel, Hadley Hitson, Keith Sharon, Evan Mealins and Rachel Wegner, the Nashville Tennessean; Reuters This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tennessee explosion kills all 16 people inside facility, officials say President Donald Trump takes questions from reporters during a press conference on crime in Washington, Aug. 11, 2025. Photo: Abe McNatt / Official White House Photo via Flickr / United States Government Work (The Center Square) Last year was the deadliest year for journalists on record, with the Gaza Strip being the deadliest location, according to multiple reports. Totals vary depending on organization reports that dont evaluate the same countries. However, the conclusions are the same: 2024 was the deadliest year for journalists based on data they have collected over the years. According to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 124 journalists and those working in the media field were killed last year. Thats the most killed since the CPJ began collecting data 30 years ago, it says. Deaths are categorized as confirmed murders, crossfire/combat and dangerous assignment in its lates report. The overwhelming majority, 70%, were killed covering the Israel-Palestinian conflict, according to the data. Last year, 82 reporters were killed in Gaza; 78 were killed in 2023 as a result of the conflict, CPJ states. Some have raised concerns about how many reporters in Gaza were connected to Hamas and who actually killed them. CPJ notes that as global conflicts doubled over the last five years, more journalists covering them were killed. Excluding the Israel-Palestinian conflict, CPJ documented 39 confirmed deaths of journalists and media workers in 16 countries last year. The most confirmed deaths were reported in Sudan and Pakistan, with six each; five in Mexico; four in Syria; three each in Lebanon, Myanmar and Iraq, and two in Haiti. Journalists deaths last year exceeded a record high of 113 who were killed in 2007 roughly half of them died covering the Iraq war, the CPJ says. According to a French-based group, Reporters Sans Frontiers (RSF) (Reporters Without Borders), in 2023 and 2024, more than 145 journalists were killed in countries it tracked. Fifty-four were killed in 17 countries, with 30% in the Gaza Strip, it said in a recent report. It also argues, Gaza became the most dangerous region in the world for journalists last year. According to the United Nations Human Rights Council, as of last month, at least 252 reporters were killed in Gaza since the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attack against Israel. "Dying is not an acceptable risk of journalism, RSF states. It also clarifies, Journalists do not die, they are killed; they are not in prison, regimes lock them up; they do not disappear, they are kidnapped. These crimes violate international law and too often go unpunished. Journalists are no longer collateral victims but targets, inconvenient witnesses, and even bargaining chips, pawns in a political game. At least 550 journalists were detained worldwide in countries RSF analyzed last year. The most were imprisoned in China, Myanmar, Israel, Belarus, Russia, Vietnam, Iran, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Egypt, it found. This included 298 provisional detentions, 244 imprisonments and eight house arrests, it says. An additional 55 journalists were held hostage and 95 remain missing, RSF says. Among the missing were 43 enforced disappearances, it says. Top hostage takers were ISIS and Islamic rebel groups in Syria, the RSF analysis found. In Mexico, five journalists were assassinated in a country where they are relentlessly persecuted by gangs and armed factions, RSF said. According to the independent non-partisan organization, ARTICLE 19, 174 journalists have been murdered in Mexico since 2000, when the group began reporting murder data. The majority were killed during the Felipe Calderon (48), Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (47) and Enrique Pena Nieto (48) administrations, it says. So far, five journalists have been murdered under the current president, Claudia Sheinbaum, it states. It lists confirmed deaths by name, date, location and provides other information, including details on assassinations. Article 19 advocates for freedom of the press and free expression worldwide. Citing its namesake, Article 19 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, it states, Everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression; this right includes freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. The reports exclude North America, where Canadian journalists are increasingly being arrested and forcibly detained, and where American journalists are being assaulted and arrested, The Center Square reported. Last year, the Canadian Association of Journalists demanded that all national, provincial and regional law enforcement agencies swiftly implement enforceable policies that will prevent journalists from being improperly arrested or detained. It cites multiple Canadian journalists who were arrested or forcibly detained while reporting in the field. The Canada Press Freedom Project is also documenting and tracking journalists who are denied access to report on events, arrested and criminally charged, physically attacked, had their equipment destroyed, or were targeted by chilling statements. Nathan Calvin, the 29-year-old general counsel of Encodea small AI policy nonprofit with just three full-time employeespublished a viral thread on X Friday accusing OpenAI of using intimidation tactics to undermine Californias SB 53, the California Transparency in Frontier Artificial Intelligence Act, while it was still being debated. He also alleged that OpenAI used its ongoing legal battle with Elon Musk as a pretext to target and intimidate critics, including Encode, which it implied was secretly funded by Musk. Calvins thread quickly drew widespread attention, including from inside OpenAI itself. Joshua Achiam, the companys head of mission alignment, weighed in on X with his own thread, written in a personal capacity, starting by saying, At what is possibly a risk to my whole career I will say: this doesnt seem great. Former OpenAI employees and prominent AI safety researchers also joined the conversation, many expressing concern over the companys alleged tactics. Helen Toner, the former OpenAI board member who resigned after a failed 2023 effort to oust CEO Sam Altman, wrote that some things the company does are great, but the dishonesty & intimidation tactics in their policy work are really not. And at least one other nonprofit founder also weighed in: Tyler Johnston, founder of AI watchdog group the Midas Project, responded to Calvins thread with his own, saying: [I] got a knock at my door in Oklahoma with a demand for every text/email/document that, in the broadest sense permitted, relates to OpenAIs governance and investors. As with Calvin, he added, he received the personal subpoena, and the Midas Project was also served. Had they just asked if Im funded by Musk, I would have been happy to give them a simple man I wish and call it a day, he wrote. Instead, they asked for what was, practically speaking, a list of every journalist, congressional office, partner organization, former employee, and member of the public wed spoken to about their restructuring. OpenAI referred Fortune to a post by chief strategy officer Jason Kwon on Friday in which Kwon said Encodes decision to support Musk in the lawsuit, and the organizations not fully disclosed funding, raises legitimate questions about what is going on. We wanted to know, and still are curious to know, whether Encode is working in collaboration with third parties who have a commercial competitive interest adverse to OpenAI, Kwon wrote, noting that subpoenas are a standard method of gathering information in any litigation. The stated narrative makes it sound like something it wasnt. Kwon included an excerpt of the subpoena that he said showed all the requests for documents OpenAI made. As reported by the San Francisco Standard in September, Calvin was served with a subpoena from OpenAI in August, delivered by a sheriffs deputy as he and his wife were sitting down to dinner. Encode, the organization he works for, was also served. The article reported that OpenAI appeared concerned that some of its most vocal critics were being funded by Elon Musk and other billionaire competitorsand was targeting those nonprofit groups despite offering little evidence to support the claim. Calvin wrote Friday that Encodewhich he emphasized is not funded by Muskhad criticized OpenAIs restructuring and worked on AI regulations, including SB 53. In the subpoena, OpenAI asked for all of Calvins private communications on SB 53. I believe OpenAI used the pretext of their lawsuit against Elon Musk to intimidate their critics and imply that Elon is behind all of them, he said, referring to the ongoing legal battle between OpenAI and Musk over the companys original nonprofit mission and governance. Encode had filed an amicus brief in the case supporting some of Musks arguments. In a conversation with Fortune, Calvin emphasized that what has not been sufficiently covered is how inappropriate OpenAIs actions were in connection with SB 53, which was signed into law by Gov. Gavin Newsom at the end of September. The law requires certain developers of frontier AI models to publish a public frontier AI framework and a transparency report when deploying or substantially modifying a model, report critical safety incidents to the state, and share assessments of catastrophic risks under the states oversight. Calvin alleges that OpenAI sought to weaken those requirements. In a letter to Governor Newsoms office while the bill was still under negotiation, which was shared on X in early September by a former AI policy researcher, the company urged California to treat companies as compliant with the states rules if they had already signed a safety agreement with a U.S. federal agency or joined international frameworks such as the EUs AI Code of Practice. Calvin argues that such a provision could have significantly narrowed the laws reachpotentially exempting OpenAI and other major AI developers from key safety and transparency requirements. I didnt want to go into a ton of detail about it while SB 53 negotiations were still ongoing and we were trying to get it through, he said. I didnt want it to become a story about Encode and OpenAI fighting, rather than about the merits of the bill, which I think are really important. So I wanted to wait until the bill was signed. He added that another reason he decided to speak out now was a recent LinkedIn post from Chris Lehane, OpenAIs head of global affairs, describing the company as having worked to improve SB 53a characterization Calvin said felt deeply at odds with his experience over the past few months. Encode was founded by Sneha Revanur, who launched the organization in 2020 when she was 15 years old. She is not a full-time employee yet because shes still in college, said Sunny Gandhi, Encodes vice president of political affairs. Its terrifying to have a half a trillion dollar company come after you, Gandhi said. Encode formally responded to OpenAIs subpoena, Calvin said, stating that it would not be turning over any documents because the organization is not funded by Elon Musk. They have not said anything since, he added. Writing on X, OpenAIs Achiam publicly urged his company to engage more constructively with its critics. Elon is certainly out to get us, and the man has got an extensive reach, he wrote. But there is so much that is public that we can fight him on. And for something like SB 53, there are so many ways to engage productively. He added, We cant be doing things that make us into a frightening power instead of a virtuous one. We have a duty and a mission to all of humanity, and the bar to pursue that duty is remarkably high. Calvin described the episode as the most stressful period of my professional life. He added that he uses and gets value from OpenAI products and that the company conducts and publishes AI safety research that is worthy of genuine praise. Many OpenAI employees, he said, care a lot about OpenAI being a force for good in the world. I want to see that side of OAI, but instead I see them trying to intimidate critics into silence, he wrote. Does anyone believe these actions are consistent with OpenAIs nonprofit mission to ensure that AGI benefits humanity? This story was originally featured on Fortune.com By Phil Stewart WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Far-right activist Laura Loomer slammed President Donald Trump's administration on Friday over its deepening defense ties with Qatar and made false accusations that spread on social media that the Pentagon was giving it a military base on U.S. soil. U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani at the Pentagon earlier in the day, announcing that Qatar would pay for a facility at a U.S. air base in Idaho. He did not say the U.S. would give Qatar the base, or any base in the United States. The facility, which has been in discussions for years, would support Qatar's plans to train pilots on 12 F-15 fighter jets that the country is buying and which would be located there, a U.S. official told Reuters. The facility would include hangars to shield the aircraft from the elements and a squadron operations building for the pilots, the official said. U.S. TO SUPERVISE CONSTRUCTION The arrangement, which the official said was in line with those agreed with other U.S. allies, would result in the facility being built by local contractors under U.S. military supervision and funded by Qatar. Pilots from Singapore already train at the U.S. base. "We're signing a letter of acceptance to build a Qatar Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Base in Idaho," Hegseth said, alongside his Qatari counterpart. Shortly after the announcement, Loomer said she did not think she would vote in next year's mid-term elections. "Never thought I'd see Republicans give terror financing Muslims from Qatar a MILITARY BASE on US soil so they can murder Americans," Loomer wrote on X. She posted a clip of Trump speaking in 2017, when he accused Qatar of historically funding terrorism "at a very high level." In the wake of her remarks, Hegseth posted on X: "To be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States nor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners." Qatar's embassy also denied there would be a Qatari air base. Qatar is a U.S. security partner and host to al-Udeid Air Base, the largest U.S. military facility in the Middle East. It acted as a mediator alongside Egypt in talks between Israel and Hamas. A self-proclaimed "Islamophobe" who for years argued the September 11, 2001, attacks were an inside job, Loomer has a history of provocative and self-promotional actions, including handcuffing herself to Twitter's headquarters in New York in 2018 after the platform banned her for hate speech. With 1.8 million followers on X and her own weekly program that draws a large audience, Loomer can say she speaks for many of the MAGA faithful and influences their views of the Trump administration. In April, Trump fired U.S. General Timothy Haugh, who was the director of the National Security Agency and head of U.S. Cyber Command. The New York Times reported that Loomer had called for his ouster. (Reporting by Phil StewartEditing by Rod Nickel) Tech giants are projected to spend hundreds of billions of dollars this year on AI infrastructure, including data centers and chips. This level of investment is among the largest in modern corporate history. By 2026, total AI capital expenditures are expected to exceed $500 billion globally, roughly equivalent to Singapores annual GDP. Yet the returns on this spending remain modest. According to multiple economic reports, business spending on AI has contributed significantly to U.S. GDP growth, even as consumer spending on AI products and services remains comparatively small. The gap between what companies are investing and what they are currently earning is striking. Investors are treating AI like a gold rush by throwing billions at startups that promise breakthroughs but have yet to deliver them. One prominent example is Thinking Machines, a company led by former OpenAI executive Mira Murati, which recently raised $2 billion at a $10 billion valuation despite not yet releasing a commercial product. This speculative frenzy echoes the dot-com era, when valuations soared on promise rather than profits. The S&P 500s recent gains have been driven primarily by a handful of major AI-linked firms (Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, Meta, Microsoft, Nvidia, and Tesla), often referred to as the Magnificent Seven. Several of these companies have seen their free cash flow decline by about 30% over the past two years, even as their market values have climbed. AI Spending Is Fueling Growth, But It Cant Last Image via Canva/Cnv Studio Economists warn that the AI boom is shouldering much of the burden for Americas recent economic strength. Analysts note that massive spending on AI infrastructure and data centers has been a key factor supporting GDP growth. Without this surge in Big Tech investment, the U.S. economy would likely be weaker. However, this momentum depends on continual high levels of capital expenditure, something few economists believe is sustainable in the long run. If AI spending begins to plateau, the growth that depends on it could slow sharply. Paul Kedrosky, an economist and investor, has compared todays AI surge to the telecom boom of the 1990s. Investment was poured into a single hot sector, which drove up borrowing costs and pulled capital away from other industries. Kedrosky describes this dynamic as a black hole of capital, where money is absorbed into one trend at the expense of the broader economy. Productivity Problem No One Wants to Talk About AIs greatest selling point has been its purported ability to increase worker productivity, but mounting evidence challenges this assumption. A study by the Model Evaluation & Threat Research (METR) group found that experienced software developers using AI coding assistants completed tasks roughly 20% slower than those working without them. Many participants reported spending extra time correcting AI-generated mistakes, thereby offsetting any potential efficiency gains. Research from MIT and McKinsey supports similar conclusions. An MIT study tracking 300 corporate AI initiatives found that 95% failed to boost profits, while McKinsey reported that over 80% of companies using AI saw no measurable improvement in earnings. Gartner has also declared that AI has entered the trough of disillusionment, a phase where initial enthusiasm gives way to disappointment and realism. Danger Comes When the Money Runs Out Image via Getty Images/D-Keine AI investment has functioned like a private-sector stimulus, temporarily cushioning the economy from a slowdown. In the first half of this year, business spending on AI added more to GDP growth than all consumer spending combined. This type of growth cannot continue indefinitely. A slowdown in AI investment could lead to layoffs, delayed projects, and a reduction in economic output. Economists warn that if private credit loans tied to AI expansion were to default simultaneously, it could trigger financial instability. Interestingly, AI is not eliminating jobs at a rapid pace. Studies show that workers in AI-exposed fields are not experiencing faster job losses than those in less-exposed sectors. Yet many executives are mandating AI integration into workflows, often mistaking busier teams for more productive ones. This mirrors the early adoption of email in the 1980s, which made workers busier but not necessarily more efficient. AI might eventually fulfill its potential, but for now, it is running on a mix of optimism, momentum, and extraordinary spending. If that investment slows before the technology delivers real economic returns, the impact could reach far beyond Silicon Valley and weigh heavily on the entire U.S. economy. A Georgia woman was arrested in connection with the death of an 86-year-old grandmother who was mauled by dogs in her yard. Appling County Sheriff Mark Melton announced Friday that 53-year-old Misty Ann Branch of Baxley was arrested in connection with the death of Maria D. Nunez, who was viciously attacked by two dogs in her yard. Branch faces charges of reckless conduct and involuntary manslaughter. Nunez was found dead on Wednesday at around noon at her residence, also in Baxley, after sustaining multiple injuries, Melton said. Her body was transported to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations crime lab for autopsy. The sheriffs office and the Appling County coroner are leading the investigation. The Appling County Sheriffs Office did not immediately respond to NBC News request for comment. A Mexico native, Nunez was a midwife and a co-founder of her family business, Nunez Pine Straw, according to her obituary. She was also a devoted member of St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church. Nunez is survived by her three daughters all of whom live in Baxley as well as three brothers, nine grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild. An image collage containing 3 images, Image 1 shows Suspected assassin Tyler Robinson wears a suicide vest during a virtual court appearance in Utah on Sept. 16, 2025, Image 2 shows Idaho murderer Bryan Kohberger appears in court during his sentencing hearing in Boise, Idaho, on July 23, 2025, Image 3 shows Conservative activist Charlie Kirk speaks to a crowd at Utah Valley University moments before he was fatally shot on Sept. 10, 2025 Alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson asked a Utah judge to swap his shackles and prison garb for civilian clothes in court arguing that convicted Idaho killer Bryan Kohberger was granted the same break. Lawyers for the 22-year-old accused killer claimed that photos showing him in a prison jumpsuit and restraints could make potential jurors think hes guilty and deserving of the death penalty jeopardizing his chance at a fair trial, according to a 21-page motion filed Thursday in Utahs 4th District Court. In the face of worldwide scrutiny, permitting Mr. Robinson to wear civilian clothing for court appearances is a minor inconvenience compared to the already present concerns with securing a fair trial before an impartial jury, his lawyers argued in their filing to District Judge Tony Graf. Suspected assassin Tyler Robinson wears a suicide vest during a virtual court appearance in Utah on Sept. 16, 2025. Getty Images Idaho murderer Bryan Kohberger appears in court during his sentencing hearing in Boise, Idaho, on July 23, 2025. KYLE GREEN/POOL/EPA/Shutterstock With each development in the case generating thousands of articles and comments online, the likelihood of potential jurors seeing and drawing conclusions regarding Mr. Robinsons guilt and or deserved punishment from obvious signs of pretrial incarceration will only increase. Robinson who is accused of gunning down the conservative activist during a speaking event at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10 was seen sporting a suicide smock during a virtual hearing last month. Given the pervasive media coverage in this case, the repeated and ubiquitous display of Mr. Robinson in jail garb, shackles, and a suicide vest will undoubtedly be viewed by prospective jurors and will inevitably lead to prosecutive juror perception that he is guilty and deserving of death, the motion states. A footnote in the filing also cites Kohbergers highly publicized death penalty case, where he was granted a request to wear a suit and sit in the courtroom without handcuffs during pretrial hearings. Conservative activist Charlie Kirk speaks to a crowd at Utah Valley University moments before he was fatally shot on Sept. 10, 2025. via REUTERS However, the quadruple murderers courtroom appearance didnt help him, as he was sentenced in July to life in prison without parole for stabbing four University of Idaho students Kaylee Goncalves, Madison Mogen, Xana Kernodle and Ethan Chapin to death in November 2022. Robinson was charged with aggravated murder and other offenses, and could face the death penalty under Utah law a punishment publicly supported by President Trump, a close friend of Kirk. Defense attorneys representing Tyler Robinson appear in Utah County Court for a hearing on Sept. 29, 2025. Getty Images Utah is one of five states that still use a firing squad as a method of capital punishment. Robinson has not yet entered a plea on his charges. He is due back in court on Oct. 30. A general view of Yantian port at night in Shenzhen, Guangdong province, China May 9, 2025. REUTERS/Tingshu Wang By Ryan Woo, Lisa Baertlein and Arathy Somasekhar BEIJING/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -China will slap port fees on U.S.-owned, operated, built, or flagged vessels on Tuesday as a countermeasure to U.S. port fees on China-linked ships starting the same day, China's transport ministry said on Friday. Later in the day, U.S. President Donald Trump said he was raising tariffs on Chinese exports to the U.S. to 100% and imposing export controls on critical software in a reprisal to export limits by China on rare earth minerals. There are relatively few U.S.-built or U.S.-flagged vessels conducting international trade, but China will ensnare more ships by applying levies to companies with 25% or more of their shares or board seats held by U.S.-domiciled investment funds, analysts said. "This casts a wide net and could affect many public shipping companies with a listing on U.S. stock exchanges," said Erik Broekhuizen, a marine research and consulting manager at ship brokering firm Poten & Partners. "The potential impact is significant." On Tuesday, ships built in China - or operated or owned by Chinese entities - will also need to pay a fee at their first port of call in the United States. SOME VESSELS TO PAY BOTH CHINA, U.S. FEES U.S.-based shipping company Matson told customers it is subject to the new China port fees and has no plans to change its service schedule. Also likely affected are CMA-CGM's U.S.-based American President Lines and Israel-based Zim, which appears to have more than 25% of its shares owned by U.S. entities, Lars Jensen, CEO of container shipping-focused consultancy Vespucci Maritime, said on LinkedIn. The fees in both China and the U.S. will apply to 100 vessels owned by Poseidon's Seaspan and chartered by container lines, said Jensen. Maersk Line Limited, APL, Zim and Seaspan did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the fees. Oil tanker operators are mostly based outside the United States, but they may get stung by China's port fees because they are listed in the U.S., analysts said. For example, Scorpio Tankers has the industry's largest and youngest fleet and is U.S.-listed. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The Chinese port fees "have thrown the tanker market in turmoil," Broekhuizen said in a client note, adding that many vessels that could be affected are already on their way to China. An analysis by Vortexa showed 43 liquefied petroleum gas-carrying super tankers, or 10% of the global fleet, will be affected by China's port fees, said Samantha Hartke, who heads Americas analysis for the energy research firm. Vessels owned or operated by a Chinese entity will face a flat fee of $50 per net tonnage per voyage to the U.S. China-owned carrier COSCO, including its OOCL fleet, is the most exposed with fees of around $2 billion in 2026, analysts said. COSCO did not immediately comment. CHINA CALLS U.S. FEES DISCRIMINATORY The U.S. fees on China-linked vessels, following a probe by the U.S. Trade Representative, are part of a broader U.S. effort to revive domestic shipbuilding and blunt China's naval and commercial shipping power. "It is clearly discriminatory and severely damages the legitimate interests of China's shipping industry, seriously disrupts the stability of the global supply chain, and seriously undermines the international economic and trade order," the Chinese ministry said. The USTR's office did not respond to a request for comment. Over the past two decades, China has catapulted itself to the No. 1 position in the shipbuilding world, with its biggest shipyards handling both commercial and military projects. The fees announced by China, like those put in place by the U.S., "add further complexity and cost to the global network that keeps goods moving and economies connected, and risk harming their exporters, producers, and consumers at a time when global trade is already under pressure," said Joe Kramek, president and CEO of the World Shipping Association. RATES RISE OVER THREE YEARS For U.S.-linked vessels berthing at Chinese ports starting Tuesday, the rate will be 400 yuan ($56.13) per net metric ton, the Chinese transport ministry said. That will increase to 640 yuan ($89.81) from April 17, 2026, and to 880 yuan ($123.52) from April 17, 2027. For vessels calling at Chinese ports from April 17, 2028, the charge will be 1,120 yuan ($157.16) per net metric ton. Tensions between China and the United States have deepened since September, with the two superpowers struggling to move beyond their trade tariff truce - a 90-day pause from August 11 that ends around November 9. Retaliatory tariffs in the U.S.-China trade war this year have sharply curtailed Chinese imports of U.S. agriculture and energy products. ($1 = 7.1241 Chinese yuan renminbi) (Reporting by Ryan Woo in Beijing, Naveen Thukral in Singapore and Lisa Baertlein in Los Angeles, additional reporting by Jonathan Saul in London and Arathy Somasekhar and Georgina McCartney in Houston; Editing by Kim Coghill, Kate Mayberry, Rod Nickel) A long weekend of flooding has begun in a wave of wild weather forecast to move northward along the Atlantic Coast from Florida into New Jersey through Monday, Oct. 13. Unfortunate timing is creating the compound weather event expected to bring moderate to major flooding along the coast through Monday. A seasonal king tide event arrived with the fulll moon along the East Coast at the same time as a strengthening low pressure system offshore interacted with other weather patterns in the region to bring gusty winds, rain, waves and high seas. Strong onshore winds are forecast to push high tides higher into inlets, sounds, bays and rivers, the National Weather Service advised. A combination of fresh and salt water flood events could occur, especially if high tides occur during periods of the heaviest rains, the weather service said. The rough weather and ocean conditions have prompted a variety of watches and warnings along the coast and offshore, where marine conditions are forecast to be particularly hazardous. October's Harvest Moon lights up sky as first supermoon of 2025 A passenger plane passes in front of the first supermoon of the year, known as the Harvest Moon, as it flies above London, Britain, Oct. 6, 2025. In New Jersey, Lt. Gov. Tahesha Way declared an emergency on Oct. 10 as a result of the weekend forecast. In Maryland, Gov. Wes Moore urged the state's residents to stay vigilant and prepare for a range of impacts on the coast and inland. Rainfall of 4 to 7 inches or more could fall in coastal areas of North Carolina and from New Jersey to Maine, with widespread rainfall of an inch or more along the Eastern Seaboard, the weather service said. According to AccuWeather, wind gusts of 4060 mph or higher could down trees and power lines from southeastern Virginia to southern New England. But the east coast doesn't have a monopoly on flooding at the moment. Rain is falling in Arizona and southern Utah as moisture associated with former Hurricane Priscilla arrives in the desert southwest. And, major flooding occurred at two locations in Alaska as the remnants of Typhoon Halong arrived. Carly Holcomb wades through water carrying her guitar out of her home, while her mother, Sabrina Holcomb, looks around them on Canal Road and Cheeta Drive in Edgewater, Florida on Oct. 10, 2025. The pair said they'd only lived in the home for three months. Low-lying areas in the city flooded through at combination of rain and high tides, city officials said. Flood forecasts Along the coast, moderate to major flooding is forecast at nearly three dozen tide gauges from North Carolina to Long Island over the weekend, including the Chesapeake and Delaware bays. In New Jersey, the highest tides are forecast to peak by Monday, according to forecasts from the National Water Prediction Service, which operates under the weather service umbrella. Among the weather service flood forecasts are the following: On Delaware Bay at Lewes, the tide is forecast to reach 8.9 feet on Sunday. That's around six inches shy of the record set during a powerful nor'easter and blizzard on Jan. 23, 2016. Records at the gauge date back to 1947. The Murderkill River at Bowers Beach in Delaware is forecast to reach major flood levels, potentially setting a new record. The tide could be a foot higher than the point where major flooding begins that can produce severe damage to homes and businesses, making some roads impassable and isolating neighborhoods. On Sunday, a 15% chance of flash flooding from excessive rainfall exists along the coast from Ocean City, Maryland to Cape Cod. Friday flooding Fortunately for the Southeast, tides on Friday, Oct. 10 weren't as high in some locations as had been forecast, but numerous locations in Florida, Georgia and South Carolina still reported flooding in low-lying areas near the coast. Local governments and the weather service reported flooding in the following locations in the Southeast on Friday, Oct. 10: In Florida: Rain and coastal erosion from high tides along beaches caused closures in Jupiter. Officials in Brevard County reported road closures due to flooding, in Viera, and in Palm Bay, more than five miles inland from the Intracoastal Waterway. In Edgewater, in Volusia County, water in the Intracoastal pushed up into low-lying neighborhoods and the city recorded as much as 7 inches of rain, the city stated in a news release. In Flagler County, numerous docks flooded and waves were topping over some seawalls along a series of canals off the Intracoastal in Palm Coast, and a few inches of tidal flooding was reported in the oceanfront community of Flagler Beach, emergency officials told the weather service. Flooding and road closures also were reported in St. Augustine, police said. Rough surf and high water is seen along Vero Beach, Florida during a high tide and storm event on Oct. 10, 2025. In Georgia and South Carolina: Road closures due to coastal flooding were reported in Tybee Island, Georgia and Edisto Island, South Carolina. In Charleston Harbor in South Carolina, preliminary records indicate the water reached its 13th highest tide level on record, where records date back to 1921. It matched the record for the 7th highest non-tropical event tide level. At one point, Charleston officials said at least 20 road closures were reported. The town of McClellanville, South Carolina posted photos on its Facebook page showed coastal flooding near its town offices and across at least two streets. Contributing: USA TODAY NETWORK reporters Keith Demko and Olivia Minzola at the Salisbury Daily Times. Dinah Voyles Pulver, a national correspondent for USA TODAY, has written about hurricanes, tornadoes and violent weather for more than 30 years. Reach her at dpulver@usatoday.com or @dinahvp on Bluesky or X or dinahvp.77 on Signal. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Wet wild weekend expected along Atlantic Coast Heat waves in Phoenix, left, and Las Vegas. (AFP; Zuma; AP) LAS VEGAS As temperatures began to rise in Phoenix this spring, Dr. Jeffrey Johnston braced for the many hundreds of deaths that have become a grim summer trend. Johnston, the chief medical examiner for Maricopa County, Arizona, has seen extreme heat kill more and more people over the last decade: Heat-related fatalities there jumped from several dozen in 2014 to 645 in 2023. The surges were so intense and long, so we really did approach it like a mass casualty event, he said of recent summers. But Maricopa County the most populous county in the desert Southwest has invested heavily in heat preparedness planning and mitigation. Multiple cooling centers in Phoenix now stay open 24/7. The county boosted public messaging about heat safety and hired a full-time heat relief coordinator. As a result, it recorded fewer heat deaths last year than the year before, despite record-breaking heat its first such dip in a decade. Now that summer is over, officials are evaluating this years progress, and preliminary data indicates the downward trend will continue: Maricopa County has confirmed 185 heat deaths so far, significantly less than the 284 at the same time last year. Phoenix firefighters treat a homeless man during a heat wave on May 30, 2024, in Phoenix. (Matt York / AP file) A different story has played out in Clark County, Nevada, the regions second-most populous, where Las Vegas is located. Deaths from heat here more than tripled in just three years, with a record 513 people killed in 2024. This years death toll is still preliminary, but heat fatalities will likely number in the hundreds. Ariel Choinard, a scientist at the Desert Research Institute in Las Vegas, said last summers brutal temperatures were a major wake-up call. There was something about seeing 120 degrees in Las Vegas that made people be like, Oh, my gosh, wait, this is really serious, she said. Choinard is at the forefront of local efforts to turn Clark Countys heat deaths around and has been following the progress made in Maricopa County. She knows theres catching up to do. They started the work around heat earlier than we have in this region, so in many ways theyre ahead of us, she said. Heat kills more people in the U.S. each year than any other type of weather event, including hurricanes, floods and tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service. As climate change increases the frequency and intensity of heat waves, these two counties in one of the fastest-warming parts of the U.S. offer a cautionary tale about what it takes to save lives in the face of this growing threat and the severe human toll of inaction. 'Every one of these deaths is preventable' Heat tends to kill unequally. People who lack access to air conditioning are particularly vulnerable those experiencing homelessness, as well as residents of low-income neighborhoods and mobile homes. Workers who labor outdoors, people with pre-existing medical conditions and the elderly are also at higher risk. In Maricopa County last year, homeless individuals made up 49% of heat-related deaths, and 57% involved substance use like drugs or alcohol. So efforts to save people from dying in extreme temperatures must focus on those vulnerable populations. Maricopa County tried to do that in 2023 by expanding its network of cooling centers and hydration stations, but then came a record 31 straight days at or above 110 degrees. Heat deaths spiked. EMT personnel assist a man who collapsed near downtown Phoenix on July 26, 2023, during a 27-day heat wave. (Carlos Barria / Reuters file) In the aftermath, officials conducted an extensive survey and found that the majority of the people frequenting the cooling centers were homeless or had unstable housing. But the centers most often libraries, community centers, churches and health clinics typically closed after regular business hours and on weekends and holidays. So the next year, Phoenix opened 10 cooling centers that operated 24/7. Although the city then endured its hottest summer in recorded history with a record 113 consecutive days at or above 100 degrees Maricopa County logged 602 heat fatalities in 2024, a decrease from the year before. We were able to reverse the trend, said Dr. Nick Staab, chief medical officer for the countys health department. Weve been plugging away at this for many years now, and were going to keep plugging away because every one of these deaths is preventable. The 24/7 cooling centers reopened this summer. Other keys to Maricopa Countys success include its full-time heat relief coordinator, a role created in 2024 that focuses year-round on preparedness issues, and public messaging early each year (in both English and Spanish) about heats dangers. The county is also committed to quantifying the scale of heats death toll. Over the past decade, it has maintained the countrys most robust and meticulous records of heat-related deaths, an effort that involves thorough investigations of instances in which heat exposure is thought to have played a role. Johnston, the countys chief medical examiner, said the protocol is to consider heat a potential factor in a death anytime temperatures hit 95 degrees or above. Wed rather evaluate more cases that ultimately dont turn out to be heat-related than risk missing some, he said. People try to cool off in "The Zone," a vast homeless encampment where hundreds of people reside, during a record heat wave in Phoenix in 2023. (Patrick T. Fallon / AFP - Getty Images file) Currently, more than 300 deaths are still under investigation. 'Slow-moving disasters' Clark Countys response to extreme heat has been more sluggish. But as emergency room visits and heat-related deaths skyrocketed over the last few years, local officials were jolted into a new reality. Jeff Quinn, public health preparedness manager at the Southern Nevada Health District, the public health authority for Clark County, characterized the past two summers as slow-moving disasters. Lingering heat waves can overwhelm the county, he said. We have limited capacity with our hospitals and health care system, and you see when theres an increase in temperature, the emergency departments surge, Quinn said. That impacts the ability of hospitals to respond to the next incident. The countys primary heat mitigation effort thus far has been its network of cooling centers. But, unlike in Maricopa County, they are not open 24/7 because of limited resources, according to Quinn a shortcoming at odds with Vegas culture. This is a 24/7 town, he said. If you want to go grocery shopping at 2 a.m., theres a grocery store open, and its air conditioned. Some of our biggest strengths are our resort properties and communities. So we need to look at opportunities where we can maybe leverage partnerships with existing businesses or resorts to make some changes. Kathy Jones, 56, wipes her face in the heat at the outdoor Courtyard Homeless Resource Center in Las Vegas on July 11, 2024. (Bridget Bennett / The New York Times via Redux file) A survey led by the Nevada Heat Lab, a research consortium that Choinard leads, revealed a fundamental disconnect between how people perceived the cooling centers and how they were actually used. Over 47% of the people who responded to our survey were not aware about cooling stations in southern Nevada, said David Almanza, who oversaw the survey. And these were people that were in cooling stations when we were surveying them. Clark Countys most vulnerable residents are comparable to those in Maricopa County. A Southern Nevada Health District report found that at least 34% of heat-related deaths last year were among people experiencing homelessness (and the figure could be higher, as some victims had unknown housing status). There was also a significant link to alcohol and drugs, and the highest number of heat-related deaths were in ZIP codes with lower incomes and high rates of unemployment. The findings matched an assessment from the Nevada Heat Lab. Milton John Scott III pours a jug of water on his head to cool off on June 5, 2024, in Las Vegas. (L.E. Baskow / Las Vegas Review-Journal via Getty Images file) Quinn said the reports helped public health officials determine where to channel resources this summer, including programs that offered some residents free bus passes and ride-sharing services to improve access to cooling centers. The county also started stocking the overdose-reversal drug Narcan at the centers. Following Maricopa Countys lead, Quinn and his colleagues have started public outreach about heats dangers earlier in the year, as well. The fact that Maricopa County managed to bring down deaths in the midst of an exceptionally hot and truly brutal summer in 2024 is really remarkable, Choinard said. Its not a one-size-fits-all solution, but my hope is that we will figure out something that works for us here. Luckily, this summer was less extreme compared to last year, when Las Vegas recorded its most consecutive days ever at or above 110 degrees. As a result, Choinard said the heat-related death count may be lower, but its not a trend leaders can bank on. Finding Funding Funding for heat preparedness work remains a major issue for both counties. Maricopa County has funded the majority of its efforts with money from the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act. But that funding is set to expire after next years heat season. People try to keep cool down at the Justa Center, a resource center catering to the older homeless population, on July 19, 2022, in Phoenix. (Ross D. Franklin / AP file) In Clark County, Quinn said, the free bus passes and ride-sharing services to cooling centers were the result of a federal grant and a partnership with the nonprofit United Way. Even so, he said, that budget is fully exhausted in the first month of summer. Quinn added that funding across the board is under attack as the Trump administration rolls back federal spending, particularly for climate initiatives. Were seeing this backlash on climate change, like with diversity, equity and inclusion, where people want to eliminate funding any grant that mentions climate change, he said. In a statement to NBC News, White House spokesman Kush Desai said that local officials concerned about heat mitigation should focus on unleashing economic forms of American energy to reduce electricity costs for everyday Americans. Federal funding cuts could be a major setback for heat preparedness at a time when officials are racing against the climate clock, but Quinn remains determined. This threat isnt going to go away. It will impact us regardless of whos working on it or whether theres funding or not, he said. We just have to do our best with what limited resources we have. FILE PHOTO: A staff uploads packages on Delta Air Lines plane at John F. Kennedy International Airport in Queens, New York City, U.S., April 23, 2025. REUTERS/Jeenah Moon/File Photo By David Shepardson WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Delta Air Lines and Aeromexico sued the U.S. government challenging an order that they unwind a joint venture by January 1 that lets the carriers coordinate scheduling, pricing and capacity decisions for U.S.Mexico flights. On Thursday the companies filed a legal challenge in the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to the U.S. Transportation Department decision issued on Sept. 15. The petition was made public Friday. The Transportation Department ordered an end to the nearly nine-year-old joint venture as part of a number of actions aimed at Mexican aviation, citing competition concerns. Delta said in a statement Friday the petition "is our only option at this point in time and procedurally the next step in the process to protect Deltas and Aeromexicos business interests, global networks, and customers." The Atlanta-based U.S. airline said that following the order to unwind the venture by January 1 "would be operationally and financially burdensome." The companies plan to ask the appeals court for a stay to prevent enforcement of the Jan. 1 deadline pending the outcome of the courts review. The Transportation Department did not immediately comment. Last month, USDOT said the end of the joint venture "is necessary because of ongoing anticompetitive effects in U.S.-Mexico City markets that provide an unfair advantage to Delta and Aeromexico." The carriers account for about 60% of passenger flights from Mexico City Airport to the U.S. The airport is the fourth-largest international gateway to and from the United States. The U.S. government said it was not requiring Delta to sell its 20% equity stake in Aeromexico. Delta said previously the joint venture generates nearly 4,000 U.S. jobs and more than $310 million of U.S. gross domestic product. It warned up to $800 million in annual consumer benefits could evaporate, two dozen routes could be canceled and smaller aircraft could replace existing planes. The department warned likely problems from the venture included higher fares in some markets, reduced capacity and challenges for U.S. carriers due to government intervention. (Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Diane Craft and David Gregorio) Greenbelt, Maryland A federal judge on Friday sharply questioned Justice Department lawyers about Trump administration plans to again deport Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Salvadoran man who was mistakenly deported to a prison in his home country earlier this year before he was brought back to the U.S. to face criminal charges. U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis questioned what is standing in the way of immigration authorities removing Abrego Garcia to Costa Rica, a country that he has said is his preferred place to go and which has indicated it is willing to accept him. Xinis also repeatedly expressed frustration with testimony from a U.S. immigration official, Jonathan Schultz, who appeared to answer questions about the administration's next steps regarding Abrego Garcia's potential removal to Eswatini, a small African nation formerly known as Swaziland, or other countries, including Costa Rica. Xinis told Drew Ensign, a Justice Department lawyer, that the government presented a witness who "knows nothing, and I mean next to nothing, about Costa Rica." She said she gave specific directions about the scope of the testimony she was seeking, and said the Justice Department had again ignored those instructions, "getting to the three strikes, you're out." The administration has attempted to deport Abrego Garcia while his criminal case on charges of human smuggling plays out in Tennessee, but Xinis issued an order in August preventing immigration officials from removing him from the U.S. Xinis is weighing whether to release Abrego Garcia from immigration custody while a challenge to his detention moves forward. Schultz, an official from Enforcement and Removal Operations at Immigration and Customs Enforcement, told the court that government officials have had discussions with numerous foreign nations about accepting Abrego Garcia upon his removal from the U.S. File: Kilmar Abrego Garcia and his wife Jennifer Vasquez Sura enter a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) field office on August 25, 2025 in Baltimore, Maryland. / Credit: Anna Moneymaker / Getty Images Schultz said the U.S. reached an agreement with Eswatini to accept people deported from the U.S. and has made assurances they will be safe from torture and persecution. But he said Eswatini hasn't agreed to receive Abrego Garcia, specifically, and the Trump administration did not reach out to the African nation about him until Wednesday evening, according to Schultz. Administration officials do not appear to have undertaken efforts yet to evaluate whether Abrego Garcia would be tortured, detained or face persecution if deported to Eswatini, Schultz said. The immigration official told the court the Trump administration has also been discussing removing Abrego Garcia to Ghana, but a notice of his potential deportation to the country had been sent to Abrego Garcia prematurely. Ghana's foreign affairs minister, however, said on social media earlier Friday that his country "is not accepting Abrego Garcia." "He cannot be deported to Ghana. This has been directly and unambiguously conveyed to US authorities," Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, the foreign affairs minister, wrote on Facebook. "In my interactions with US officials, I made clear that our understanding to accept a limited number of non-criminal West Africans, purely on the grounds of African solidarity and humanitarian principles would not be expanded." Schultz said he is "confident" that once the Trump administration receives approval from a third country to accept Abrego Garcia, he could be deported within 72 hours. Ahead of the hearing, Xinis said she wanted the witness to have answers on what steps the government has taken to deport Abrego Garcia to Eswatini or any other country, including Costa Rica, which he designated as his preferred country of removal. The judge also said the administration official should be prepared to testify about what additional steps the government could take "in the reasonably foreseeable future" to deport Abrego Garcia. Schultz revealed that he believes Eswatini entered into discussions about whether Abrego Garcia could be removed to the country after the government in Uganda declined to accept him. Abrego Garcia's lawyers received a notice from the Department of Homeland Security in late August informing them that he might be deported to Uganda. Documents obtained by CBS News in August indicated that the Trump administration and Uganda reached a deal for the East African nation to accept deportees. Abrego Garcia's attorneys have moved to free their client from federal immigration detention as his immigration case plays out, citing a 2001 Supreme Court decision that found federal law does not permit "indefinite detention" for those the government seeks to deport. Detention should be limited to a "period reasonably necessary" to bring about their removal from the U.S, the high court ruled. After being released from criminal custody on unrelated charges, Abrego Garcia was taken into immigration custody in late August, and his lawyers argue that his continued confinement is illegal. They wrote in a challenge to the legality of his detention that because the Trump administration has been relying on a "purported" final order of removal for Abrego Garcia from 2019, the "presumptively reasonable period" of detention would've expired in 2020. Andrew Rossman, a lawyer for Abrego Garcia, argued that his client has been in "continuous confinement" since March, when he was first arrested by immigration authorities and then deported to El Salvador, where he remained detained with the exception of a brief weekend in August. The "U.S. government held the keys" to Abrego Garcia's confinement at a Salvadoran prison, he said. Rossman said the administration is "0 for 3" in finding a country that will accept Abrego Garcia for removal to. Abrego Garcia's lawyers also said they confirmed with him that if the U.S. moved to deport him to Costa Rica, he would go. The Costa Rican government said in an August letter to the top U.S. diplomat in the country that it intends to provide refugee status or residency to Abrego Garcia, and would accept him "upon the conclusion of any criminal sentence he may serve in the United States of America." Rossman told the court that he doesn't believe the Trump administration is "intending to remove [Abrego Garcia] in a lawful way." "They have spun the globe and picked various places," he said, to effectively "fail on purpose" by selecting countries that would be "completely unpalatable" to Abrego Garcia and lead him to express reasonable fear of persecution or torture that then have to be adjudicated during which he would remain detained. "That shows the real aim of the government, the improper aim, is a punitive one, which is just to keep him incarcerated," Rossman said. Xinis questioned Ensign, the Justice Department lawyer, about whether the Trump administration has had any conversations with Abrego Garcia and his lawyers about potentially being removed to Costa Rica given his designation of the country as the place where he wanted to be removed. "Why hasn't there been?" she said of discussions. Abrego Garcia had been living in Maryland for more than a decade with his wife and children when he was first taken into immigration custody in March and deported to El Salvador. But an immigration judge in 2019 had granted Abrego Garcia a withholding of removal, a legal status that prohibited the Department of Homeland Security from removing him to his home country because of likely persecution by local gangs. Xinis ordered the Trump administration in April to facilitate Abrego Garcia's return to the U.S., though the Department of Homeland Security resisted doing so for weeks. But in early June, Abrego Garcia was brought back to the U.S. after a federal grand jury indicted him on two counts of human smuggling. He pleaded not guilty to both counts, and in July, a federal judge overseeing his criminal case ordered him to be released on bond while awaiting trial. But Abrego Garcia remained detained for several more weeks because of concerns that he would be swiftly taken into immigration custody following his release and deported. He had been held at a detention center in Virginia but was transferred to a facility in Pennsylvania last month. Earlier this month, an immigration judge in Maryland rejected a request from Abrego Garcia's legal team to reopen his immigration case and allow him to seek asylum in the United States. While the bid was denied, Abrego Garcia can appeal the decision to the Board of Immigration Appeals. Last week, a federal judge in Tennessee said he believes the Justice Department's criminal case against Kilmar Abrego Garcia may have been "vindictive," writing on Friday that "The government had a significant stake in retaliating against Abrego's success." The judge has not made a final ruling on those claims, and will allow for discovery and a hearing on Abrego Garcia's claims. There are 62,000 people in immigration custody, Schultz, the immigration official said. Saturday Sessions: Neko Case performs "Little Gears" Saturday Sessions: Neko Case performs "Baby I'm Not (A Werewolf)" Saturday Sessions: Neko Case performs "Wreck" Fifteen minutes before water from a flooded stream swept into her home, Lilia Ramirez took off running with what little she could carry. When she returned she found not only damage from the water that had flooded her first floor to the ceiling, but the oil it had carried now streaking her walls. Poza Rica is an oil town, and among the challenges confronting some residents who fled flooding that has killed 64 people across five states and left 65 missing, is residue from the oil that built this city not far from the Gulf of Mexico. Authorities say some 100,000 homes across the region have been damaged by the torrential rains and flooding. In Veracruz state, more than 24 inches of rain fell in three days from Oct. 6 to 9. Never before has it been tarred before like that, Ramirez said Monday standing in her devastated ground floor, where walls that had once been pink were now vertically striped with black. Videos on social media from different parts of the affected areas showed streets turned into rivers carrying away vehicles and houses almost completely covered in water. Mexico has deployed some 10,000 troops in addition to civilian rescue teams. Helicopters have ferried food and water to the 200 some communities that remained cut off by ground and carried out the sick and injured. There are sufficient resources, this wont be skimped on ... because were still in the emergency period, President Claudia Sheinbaum said during her daily press briefing Monday. But on some streets in Poza Rica, 170 miles northeast of Mexico City, the cleanup of mud and debris was complicated by thick oil deposits on trees, roofs and vehicles tossed by the current that swept through Friday. Ramirez said that at other times of heavy rains, the state oil company Pemex had drained nearby areas with oil to avoid it spreading. Roberto Olvera, one of her neighbors, said that a siren from a nearby Pemex facility alerted them to danger. It was a really anguishing moment because a lot of people from the neighborhood stayed behind and some perished, he said. Pemex said in a brief statement to the AP that so far it did not have reports of an oil spill in the area. Sheinbaum acknowledged it could still be days before access is established to some places. A lot of flights are required to take sufficient food and water to those places, she said. Authorities have attributed the deadly downpours to two tropical systems that formed off the western coast of Mexico and have since dissipated, Hurricane Pricilla and Tropical Storm Raymond. Mexicos Civil Protection agency said the heavy rains had killed 29 people in Veracruz state on the Gulf Coast as of Monday morning, and 21 people in Hidalgo state, north of Mexico City. At least 13 were killed in Puebla, east of Mexico City. Earlier, in the central state of Queretaro, a child died in a landslide. Mohamed Elshahed/Anadolu via Getty A Guinness World Records official (stock image) NEED TO KNOW Laurence Gregory Watkins of New Zealand changed his legal name in 1990 by adding more than 2,000 middle names Guinness World Records gave him the title of worlds longest name, with his full name being 2,253 unique words Watkins, who worked at a library at the time, picked many of his unique middle names out of library books One man made a big name for himself 35 years ago. In 1990, Laurence Gregory Watkins of Auckland, New Zealand, changed his legal name by adding more than 2,000 middle names. Two years later, Guinness World Records (GWR) gave him the title of worlds longest name, with his record a full name of 2,253 unique words first appearing in the annual records book starting in 1992. Watkins, who was 24 when he changed his name via a legal document called a deed poll, worked at a library at the time in the 90s. The library worker told GWR that he picked his many unique middle names out of books or through recommendations from colleagues. I was always fascinated by the quirky unusual records that some people went for and I really wanted to be part of that scene, Watkins told GWR. He continued, I read the Guinness World Records book from cover to cover to see if there was a record I could beat and the only one I had a chance at beating was adding more names than the current holder. Watkins also revealed to GWR that his application to legally change his name was initially accepted by a district court; however, the application got knocked back by the Registrar General. A high court eventually granted the name change. Never miss a story sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. PEOPLE reached out to Guinness World Records to provide the full name all 2,253 words but did not receive an immediate response. Oh, and if youre wondering why we havent included his full name here, its because we'd still be typing now, GWR said in a post about the record. Read the original article on People Despite heavy campaigning by U.S. President Donald Trump for the prestigious recognition, the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize has been awarded to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado for her democracy advocacy in the Latin American nation. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called Machado the personification of resilience, tenacity, and patriotism in a profile for her inclusion in this years TIME 100 list of the most influential people in the world. The 58-year-old industrial engineer, nicknamed by journalists and commentators as Venezuelas Iron Lady, has led the opposition to the countrys authoritarian President Nicolas Maduro, whose last two electoral victories have not been recognized by a number of countries, including the U.S. In the countrys 2024 election, Machado emerged as the oppositions central figure despite being formally barred from running for public office. After winning the oppositions 2023 primary with an overwhelming 92 percent of the vote, she was disqualified by the governments comptroller, which accused her of administrative irregularities and barred her from holding public office for 15 years. When the ban was upheld, Machado named historian Corina Yoris as her stand-in candidatea move widely seen as a protest against Maduros tightening control over Venezuelas electoral system. In recent years, Machado has been forced into hiding to protect her safety. The Nobel Peace Prize for 2025 goes to a brave and committed champion of peace, to a woman who keeps the flame of democracy burning amidst a growing darkness, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, chairman of the Norwegian Nobel Committee, said Friday when announcing the prize. At a time when democracy is under threat, it is more important than ever to defend this common ground. The committee said Machado was awarded the prize for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy. Machado co-founded and formerly led vote-monitoring civic group Sumate in the early 2000s. In 2010, she won a seat in Venezuelas National Assembly with a record number of votes and served in the legislature till 2014, when she was stripped of her seat in a move that critics have said was politically motivated. She received the Sakharov Prize and the Vaclav Havel Human Rights Prize, both in 2024, recognizing her nonviolent resistance to authoritarianism in the country. The Nobel Peace Prize was founded by Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, who established in his 1895 will that it should go to a person who has done the most or the best work for fraternity between nations and the abolition or reduction of standing armies and the formation and spreading of peace congresses. Last year, Nihon Hidankyo, a Japanese grassroots organization that advocates for nuclear disarmament, took home the Nobel Peace Prize. Each years laureates are chosen by the five-member Norwegian Nobel Committee, appointed by the Norwegian Parliament. The committee evaluates nominations from qualified proposerssuch as heads of state, national legislators, professors in relevant disciplines, past laureates, and directors of foreign policy or peace institutes. Nominations must be submitted by January to be eligible for the same year. You are not allowed to nominate yourself, according to the committee. Winners receive a medal, diploma, and 11 million Swedish kroner, which is worth around $1 million. The award ceremony will be held in Oslo on Dec. 10. Four other Nobel prizes in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, and literature were awarded earlier this week, while the prize for economic sciences will be announced on Monday. Contact us at letters@time.com. Great Smoky Mountains National Park will stay open through the government shutdown. George Rose/Getty Images Great Smoky Mountains National Park is open during the government shutdown. Two of its four visitor centers are open. The park has 275 full-time employees and 140 seasonal employees. The most visited national park is at least partially open during the government shutdown: Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Most roads, trails, campgrounds, and restrooms at the park remained open as of 5:50 p.m. Thursday, according to Visit North Carolina. Trash collection continues despite the shutdown. The park is situated in the Appalachian Mountains, spanning the border between North Carolina and Tennessee. Two of its four visitor centers, Oconaluftee Visitor Center and Kuwohi Visitor Center, are open for at least the short term. The National Park Service listed three sections and roads in the park as closed on Friday morning. Great Smoky Mountains National Park has 1,000 camp sites, 1,050 picnic sites, and nearly 850 miles of trails, according to the NPS. It saw more than 12 million recreational visits in 2024 and is consistently the most-visited national park in the US. Representatives for the park did not respond to requests for comment from Business Insider. Several local governments and a nonprofit came to an agreement to keep the park funded and operational during the shutdown, Sevier County in Tennessee said in a statement last week. The agreement was extended this week to keep the park funded through October 19. The partners in the funding agreement include: the cities of Gatlinburg, Sevierville, Pigeon Forge, and Pittman Center; the counties of Sevier, Blount, and Cocke; the state of Tennessee; the Tennessee Department of Tourist Development; the nonprofit Friends of the Smokies; and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians. The funding agreement is providing pay for most of the park's 275 full-time employees to keep the park operating during the shutdown, NPR reported, adding that local governments have raised nearly $2 million to keep the park running. The funding allowed the park to reopen some facilities that were closed for several days following the shutdown, including the Cades Cove Loop Road, the Sugarlands and Cades Cove visitor centers, and picnic areas at Chimneys and Cades Cove, according to Friends of the Smokies. "The park is a vital part of our regional economy, and closing it during peak fall season is simply not an option," Sevier County's mayor, Larry Waters, said in a statement. Sevier County is located in the foothills of the mountain range. According to the NPS, the park generated over $2.2 billion in 2023 and supports more than 30,000 jobs in surrounding communities. In addition to its 275 full-time employees, it has 140 seasonal staff members. The US government shut down on October 1 after Republican and Democratic lawmakers failed to reach an agreement on the government budget. The shutdown has affected everything from the postal service to flights and airports. Per a nine-page National Park Service Contingency Plan from September 2025, the NPS planned to furlough 9,296 of its employees, or about two-thirds of its workforce, if the government shut down. The plan said that park roads, lookouts, trails, and open-air memorials would generally remain accessible to visitors. However, it added that if a park facility was regularly locked during non-business hours, it should remain closed for the duration of the shutdown. National parks' social media accounts and websites would also not be maintained during the shutdown, the service said, except in emergencies. October 10, 2025: This story has been updated with information from the National Park Service, Sevier County, and Friends of the Smokies. Read the original article on Business Insider Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks to President Donald Trump during a news conference at the White House on Sept. 22. (Tom Brenner / The Washington Post via Getty Images file) It started with an unsubstantiated warning that taking Tylenol during pregnancy could raise a childs risk of autism. But the message from President Donald Trump and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. seems to have quickly expanded to suggest that babies and young children should avoid the common painkiller. Dont give it to the baby when the babys born, Trump said of Tylenol at a Cabinet meeting on Thursday. Kennedy jumped in to suggest that children who are circumcised have higher autism rates, likely because theyre given Tylenol. As the administrations stance on the medication has broadened over the last few weeks, researchers say the notion that young children may develop autism as a result of taking Tylenol is particularly far-fetched. Theres even less evidence that theres a link between Tylenol in early childhood and autism than there is that Tylenol taken during pregnancy causes autism, said David Mandell, a psychiatry professor at the University of Pennsylvania. The bulk of scientific evidence suggests moderate Tylenol use is safe in pregnancy, and many autism researchers say data does not support a causal link to autism. When it comes to young children, the American Academy of Pediatrics says Tylenol is safe when taken correctly under the guidance of a pediatrician. The medication shouldnt be given to children younger than 12 weeks, the group says, unless a doctor recommends it, since Tylenol can mask fevers or early signs of sepsis, which require immediate medical attention. Packages of Tylenol and generic pain and fever relief medicine for sale on a shelf in a pharmacy in Houston on Sept. 23. (Ronaldo Schemidt / AFP - Getty Images file) Trump and Kennedys first announcement about Tylenol and autism came on Sept. 22, when they unveiled regulatory actions to limit the medications use in pregnancy. Though Trump warned pregnant women to fight like hell not to take it, the actual policy changes were more subdued. The Food and Drug Administration issued a letter asking physicians to consider minimizing the use of acetaminophen during pregnancy for routine low-grade fevers. (Acetaminophen is the active ingredient in Tylenol.) The FDA acknowledged, however, that Tylenol is the safest over-the-counter pain reliever in pregnancy and that a causal relationship has not been established with autism. The agency made no mention of risks to children. Nevertheless, both Kennedy and Trump have repeated such warnings on several occasions a significant leap from the FDA messaging. In a post on Truth Social two weeks ago, Trump wrote that young children should not take Tylenol for virtually any reason. Kennedy, meanwhile, doubled down on his statement about circumcision in a post on X on Friday, saying that the observed autism correlation in circumcised boys is best explained by acetaminophen exposure. Dr. Joshua Gordon, chair of the psychiatry department at Columbia University, said the snowballing warnings about Tylenol represent a common tactic among those looking to attribute autism to vaccines or medications. Robert F. Kennedy and his colleagues will start with asking one question, and when the scientific community answers that question, theyll tweak the question slightly to prolong, if you will, the debate on the topic, Gordon said. He pointed to the way the anti-vaccine community first raised concerns about the measles, mumps and rubella vaccine in connection to autism, then pivoted to focus on a mercury-based preservative in vaccines and on the cumulative amount of vaccines administered in childhood. (Each of these concerns has been debunked.) No amount of scientific evidence can ever be conclusive for this community, Gordon said. The debate is like a hydra. You cut off one head and theyre just going to try to emerge with another. The Department of Health and Human Services did not respond to a request for comment. White House spokesperson Kush Desai said that the President is right to express his commonsense opinion that Americans should use caution with all medications and adhere to FDA guidance, including the longstanding guidance regarding appropriate use and dosage of acetaminophen in young children. A spokesperson for Kenvue, the maker of Tylenol, said the medication is one of the most widely studied pain relievers and fever reducers in infants and children, and numerous randomized, controlled clinical trials support the safety of acetaminophen in infants and children when used as directed. The spokesperson added that independent, sound science clearly shows that taking acetaminophen does not cause autism. Mandell said claims that Tylenol increases autism rates in babies and toddlers are based on low-quality studies that dont prove causation. He pointed to a small study that found younger children with autism were significantly more likely to take acetaminophen for a fever compared to children without the disorder. Mandell said the study had limitations: Parents had to recall how often they gave their children acetaminophen, and children with autism are more prone to discomfort, which may lead their parents to give acetaminophen more frequently. One scientist in particular, immunologist William Parker, has fueled the theory that autism can be attributed to acetaminophen use in babies and young children. In his post on X, Kennedy cited a paper by Parker that says there is overwhelming evidence that acetaminophen triggers autism. But the paper hasnt been peer-reviewed or published in a scientific journal. Kennedy also mentioned a Danish study from 2015 that concluded that boys who are circumcised may have a greater risk of developing autism. But the study authors said they couldnt attribute the purported effect to Tylenol. Dr. Sian Jones-Jobst, a pediatrician and the president of Complete Childrens Health, a pediatric network in Lincoln, Nebraska, said very few pediatricians administer Tylenol for circumcisions; instead, the common practice is injecting a numbing medication. She added that in other situations, Tylenol is a useful tool to reduce fever or pain. You shouldnt let your child suffer if theyre obviously uncomfortable, Jones-Jobst said. WASHINGTON President Donald Trump says he will posthumously award slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk the Medal of Freedom at a White House celebration next week. Trump said he'll be rushing back to the U.S. from Israel and Egypt, following a trip that's tied to a ceasefire and hostage-release deal he he helped secure in Gaza, for the ceremony honoring Kirk. President Donald Trump embraces Erika Kirk as she gestures during a memorial service for her husband, Charlie Kirk, on Sept. 21, 2025. "We're going to have a great celebration at the White House," Trump said Oval Office remarks. "Friend of mine, a friend of all ours," Trump said of Kirk on Oct. 10. The president said Kirk's wife, Erika, would be at the East Room event, which he said would take place on the evening of Oct. 14. Kirk was murdered on Sept. 10 during an appearance at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. Trump said a day later that he would award the late conservative influencer the highest civilian honor. The 31-year-old cofounder of Turning Point USA, a youth activist group, was a close political ally of the White House, and the president spoke at his funeral. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump to posthumously give Charlie Kirk the Medal of Freedom U.S. President Donald Trump walks before boarding Marine One to depart for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center from the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 10, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak By Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump revived the trade war against Beijing on Friday, ending an uneasy truce between the two largest economies with promises to sharply hike tariffs in a reprisal against China curbing its critical mineral exports. The president unveiled additional levies of 100% on China's U.S.-bound exports, along with new export controls on "any and all critical software" by November 1, nine days before existing tariff relief is set to expire. Trump also called into question the prospects for a previously announced meeting set for three weeks from now with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, saying on Truth Social that "now there seems to be no reason to do so." "I haven't canceled," Trump later told reporters at the White House. "I would assume we might have it." Beijing has never confirmed the meeting. The new trade steps were Trump's reaction to China dramatically expanding its rare earth element export controls. China dominates the market for such elements, which are essential to tech manufacturing. "It was shocking," Trump said of China's steps, which did not specifically target Washington. "I thought it was very, very bad." The actions signaled the biggest rupture in relations in six months between Beijing and Washington - the world's biggest factory and its biggest consumer. Many questioned whether an uneasy economic detente reached over the summer can survive. It was a swift and dramatic response by Trump, a Republican who has wielded tariffs paid by U.S. importers against friends and foes. It could escalate a trade war that Washington and Beijing paused earlier this year after painstaking diplomacy. Experts said restrictions on U.S. software shipments to China could be a massive blow to the country's tech industry, including cloud computing and artificial intelligence. Trump also threatened new export controls on airplanes and airplane parts, and a person familiar with the matter said the administration was sketching out other possible targets. Beijing has long called for Washington to abandon unilateral trade restrictions it says undermine global commerce. MARKETS DIVE ON NEW THREATS Trump's trade threats - delivered in a series of social media posts and a public back-and-forth with reporters - sent markets and relations between the world's largest economies into a spiral. China produces over 90% of the world's processed rare earths and rare earth magnets. Many are vital materials in products ranging from electric vehicles to aircraft engines and military radars. Trump's unexpected broadside shook global financial markets, sending the benchmark S&P 500 Index sliding by more than 2%, its biggest one-day drop since April when a steady barrage of tariff announcements by Trump stoked market volatility. Investors fled into the safe haven of gold and U.S. Treasury securities, and the U.S. dollar weakened against a basket of foreign currencies. Tech stocks piled on losses in after-market trading after Trump detailed the tariff and export control measures. "Trump's post could mark the beginning of the end of the tariff truce," said Craig Singleton, a China expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Singleton said Washington viewed China's export control steps as a betrayal. "Beijing appears to have overplayed its hand." In his first social media post on Friday, Trump said China has been sending letters to countries worldwide saying it planned to impose export controls on every element of production related to rare earths. The reference to letters was an apparent reference to Beijing's policy papers. Trump said he had been contacted by unnamed countries incensed over Beijing's steps and said he was surprised because of the "very good" recent relationship with China. TRUMP CONDEMNS BEIJING'S 'HOSTILE ORDER' Terming China's actions a "hostile order," Trump said he had been forced "to financially counter their move." "For every Element that they have been able to monopolize, we have two," Trump said. The White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the U.S. Trade Representative declined comment on what countermeasures Trump was contemplating while a spokesperson for the U.S. Treasury did not respond to a request for comment. The two offices have led talks with Beijing on trade. Economic tensions had been rising in recent days. On Thursday, the Trump administration proposed banning Chinese airlines from flying over Russia on routes to and from the U.S. On Friday, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission said on major U.S. online retail websites have removed millions of listings for prohibited Chinese electronics. China's move on Thursday included adding five new elements as well as dozens of pieces of refining technology to its export-restricting control list. It also required foreign rare earth producers that use Chinese materials to comply with its rules. Analysts said the stakes had risen for a positive outcome from a Trump-Xi summit, if it still happens, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum starting October 31 in South Korea. "Things are going to get interesting," said Scott Kennedy, a China business and economics expert at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. "They both are hoping that amping up pressure will lead the other to make concessions in advance of APEC, or they are now re-escalating assuming a deal at APEC is impossible and are gaining leverage for the next round of the fight." (Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; additional reporting by David Brunnstrom, Jarrett Renshaw, Steve Holland, David Lawder and Maiya Keidan; Editing by Dan Burns, Deepa Babington and David Gregorio) U.S. President Donald Trump walks before boarding Marine One to depart for Walter Reed National Military Medical Center from the South Lawn at the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., October 10, 2025. REUTERS/Jessica Koscielniak By Trevor Hunnicutt WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to hike tariffs on Chinese exports and cancel a meeting with President Xi Jinping, in a broadside against Beijing on Friday that sent markets and relations between the world's largest economies into a spiral. Trump, due to meet Xi in about three weeks in South Korea, complained on social media about what he characterized as China's plans to hold the global economy hostage after China dramatically expanded its rare earth element export controls on Thursday. China dominates the market for such elements, which are essential to tech manufacturing. Trump said there was no reason to hold the meeting with Xi that he had previously announced. Beijing had never confirmed the meeting between the leaders. The remarks signaled the biggest rupture in relations in four months and immediately raised questions about whether an economic detente between Beijing and Washington - the world's biggest factory and its biggest consumer - can survive. Trump, a Republican who has wielded tariffs paid by U.S. importers against friends and foes, said on Friday that he was weighing a "massive" increase in such levies on Chinese-made goods. Such a step could revive a destabilizing tit-for-tat trade war that Washington and Beijing paused amid painstaking diplomacy earlier this year. Beijing has long called for Washington to abandon unilateral trade restrictions it says undermine global commerce. MARKETS TUMBLE ON TARIFF THREATS The unexpected broadside shook global financial markets, sending the benchmark S&P 500 Index sliding by more than 2%, its biggest one-day drop since April when a steady barrage of tariff announcements by Trump was a central feature of market volatility. Investors fled into the safe haven of gold and U.S. Treasury securities, and the U.S. dollar weakened against a basket of foreign currencies. "Trump's post could mark the beginning of the end of the tariff truce," said Craig Singleton, a China expert at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, who said Washington viewed the export control steps as a betrayal. "Beijing appears to have overplayed its hand." In his post, Trump said China has been sending letters to countries worldwide saying it planned to impose export controls on every element of production related to rare earths. He said he had been contacted by unnamed countries incensed over Beijing's steps and said he was surprised because of the "very good" recent relationship with China. TRUMP CONDEMNS BEIJING'S 'HOSTILE ORDER' "Dependent on what China says about the hostile 'order' that they have just put out, I will be forced, as President of the United States of America, to financially counter their move," Trump said on Truth Social. "For every Element that they have been able to monopolize, we have two." He added: "I was to meet President Xi in two weeks, at APEC, in South Korea, but now there seems to be no reason to do so." Trump had earlier said he would meet Xi on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum being held in Gyeongju, South Korea, starting October 31. The White House and the Chinese embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for the U.S. Trade Representative declined comment on what countermeasures Trump was contemplating while a spokesperson for the U.S. Treasury did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The two offices have led talks with Beijing on trade. Economic tensions had been rising in recent days. The Trump administration on Thursday, for instance, proposed banning Chinese airlines from flying over Russia on routes to and from the United States. The Federal Communications Commission said on Friday that major U.S. online retail websites have removed millions of listings for prohibited Chinese electronics. China's move on Thursday included adding five new elementsas well as dozens of pieces of refining technology to its export-restricting control list. It also required foreign rare earth producers that use Chinese materials to comply with its rules. China produces over 90% of the world's processed rare earths and rare earth magnets. Many are vital materials in products ranging from electric vehicles to aircraft engines and military radars. "Beijing must have concluded that the U.S. was not prepared to make significant concessions on tariffs, export controls or Taiwan," said Scott Kennedy, a China business and economics expert at Washington's Center for Strategic and International Studies think tank. China calculated, he said, that if Trump retaliates, "China will be in a better position to weather the storm, and that the U.S. will be the first to back down." (Reporting by Trevor Hunnicutt; additional reporting by David Brunnstrom, David Lawder and Maiya Keidan; Editing by Caitlin Webber and Deepa Babington) CHICAGO A WGN-TV video editor and producer was roughly detained by two Border Patrol agents on Friday morning during a highly visible rush hour enforcement action in Lincoln Square. Debbie Brockman, who has worked as a producer for WGN since 2011, according to her LinkedIn profile, was taken to the ground face down on Foster Avenue and handcuffed while stopped cars honked and onlookers shouted epithets such as fascists at the two federal agents detaining her. The woman identified herself as working at WGN and asked an onlooker taking a video to let them know before she was hauled off by the agents in an unmarked silver van with New Jersey plates. On Friday evening, WGN issued a statement that its employee had been released from ICE detention. Earlier today, a WGN-TV creative services employee was detained by ICE, the station said. She has since been released, and no charges were filed against her. Out of respect for her privacy, we will have no further statements about this incident. The incident occurred at about 8:30 a.m. near the intersection of Foster and Lincoln avenues, according to Josh Thomas, a neighbor who videotaped the detention of Brockman and an unidentified Latino male, who was already in the van when Thomas came down from his apartment. Nearly two dozen pedestrians gathered and shouted objections at the agents while cars stopped and honked as the scene unfolded, Thomas said. I walk out the front door of the condo, shes laying on the ground in the street and theyre wrestling with her, trying to get her hands behind her back, said Thomas, 36, who works at a law firm in Chicago. They said they were detaining her for obstruction. She said, I didnt obstruct. The man who was already detained in the van did not identify himself, Thomas said. Once Brockman was handcuffed and placed in the van, the agents pulled out, clipping the rear bumper off of a stopped car partially blocking their path and speeding away past an approaching elongated CTA bus and through the busy intersection. Tricia McLaughlin, Homeland Security assistant secretary, said in a statement Friday that U.S. Border Patrol was conducting immigration enforcement operations when several violent agitators used their vehicles to block in agents, impeding the officers. In fear of public safety and of law enforcement, officers used their service vehicle to strike a suspects vehicle and create an opening, McLaughlin said in the statement. As agents were driving, Deborah Brockman, a U.S. citizen, threw objects at Border Patrols car and she was placed under arrest for assault on a federal law enforcement officer. Immigration and Customs Enforcement launched Operation Midway Blitz on Sept. 8 with the stated mission of targeting criminal illegal aliens in Chicago and Illinois. As of Oct. 1, the Department of Homeland Security reported that ICE and Border Patrol agents had arrested more than 800 people during the initiative. It is not clear how many people have been detained and released during Operation Midway Blitz. On Thursday, ICE was dealt at least a temporary setback when a Chicago federal judge blocked the Trump administrations deployment of National Guard troops in Illinois to support the immigration enforcement efforts. The ICE enforcement activity Friday on Chicagos North Side had area schools, students and parents on high alert. From Ravenswood Elementary in Lakeview to Amundsen High School in Lincoln Square, principals sent parents emails during the day with tips from Chicago Public Schools on staying safe, including information on constitutional rights and immigration-related resources. The letters all emphasized that CPS WILL NOT allow ICE agents or any other federal representatives access to schools without a criminal judicial warrant signed by a federal judge. ____ Xcel Energy confirmed Friday, Oct. 10, that it is withdrawing the proposed Oneida 2 solar project from regulatory proceedings in Texas and New Mexico, announcing it will not move forward with construction in Amarillos Rolling Hills neighborhood following community opposition. Potter County Commissioner John Coffee said he met with a representative from Xcel Energy on Friday morning and was informed of the companys decision to withdraw the project. This is truly great news for our community, Coffee said. I want to commend the leadership at Xcel and SPS for taking the time to listen, engage, and respond to the concerns of our residents. Their willingness to hear the communitys voice speaks volumes about their commitment to being a responsible partner in Potter County. A representative from Xcel Energy speaks to residents during an Oct. 7 public meeting at Pleasant Valley Methodist Church in Amarillo about the proposed Oneida 2 solar project. Coffee thanked residents who raised questions and attended public meetings about the project, calling the outcome the power of a community working together. The decision follows weeks of public concern and an Oct. 7 meeting at Pleasant Valley Methodist Church, where residents filled the sanctuary to question the projects proximity to homes and Rolling Hills Elementary School. Neighbors raised issues about flooding, noise, wildlife displacement and property values, urging the company to find another location. The Oneida 2 project had been planned as a large-scale renewable facility featuring hundreds of photovoltaic panels on privately owned land north of Loop 335. It was designed to support Xcels renewable-energy portfolio and meet rising demand across the Texas Panhandle and eastern New Mexico. Xcel Energy issues statement In a written statement, Xcel Energy said it will withdraw the Oneida 2 solar project from its current regulatory proceedings in both states and will not be building the project in the Rolling Hills neighborhood. The company said it will continue to evaluate whether there is another location within Potter County, or elsewhere, to locate the project. We are grateful that so many people from the Rolling Hills neighborhood shared their concerns about this project because it gives us an opportunity to better serve our communities, the statement read. Moving forward, we will ask for regulatory approval to build more generation sources to meet the needs of our growing economy, but we are taking the lessons we learned from this project seriously. Xcel Energy will take an active role, sitting down with landowners in Rolling Hills so we can improve how we notify people and make regulatory processes clearer for those who would like to participate. Xcel Energy is appreciative of Pleasant Valley Methodist Church for hosting this weeks public meeting and the Rolling Hills neighborhood for giving us the feedback we needed to make this decision about the Oneida 2 solar project. We will provide updates if the project is moved to another site. Our employees know the importance of being good neighbors. When high winds and severe weather hit the Texas Panhandle, you can count on Xcel Energy line crews. We aim to keep the lights on because we know the importance of powering the industries that drive our region. Xcel Energy and Southwestern Public Service Co. have proudly served this region for more than a century, and we are looking toward the future. More: Xcel announces new power plant plan, renovation with gas turbine purchase Taylor Brewster, who organized the Pleasant Valley meeting, said she was overwhelmed by how quickly Xcel responded. Im in shock over the moon and beyond grateful, Brewster said. This was a definite blessing and a gift from the Lord, because thats the only way it moved so fast. Huge thank-you to Xcel. They didnt have to listen, and they didnt have to come get beat up for two and a half hours, and they did and they listened. Brewster said she isnt opposed to renewable energy but wants companies to consider where projects are placed. Im not against solar, she said. Im just against building it on top of a community. More power to them just not here. Im so proud of this neighborhood. They linked arms, worked together, and truly lived out love your neighbor as yourself. Xcel Energy said it will provide updates if the project is relocated to another site. The plan withdrawal comes as Xcel continues expanding its renewable-generation capacity across the South Plains and eastern New Mexico. The utility plans to add solar, wind and natural-gas resources to meet future demand while maintaining reliability for industrial, agricultural and residential customers. This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: Xcel drops Oneida 2 solar project in Amarillos Rolling Hills People gathered at the entrance of McBride Gateway in Bryn Mawr College As college tuition continues to climb, students and parents got a bit of good news recently. Must Read Beginning in the Fall semester of 2026, Tufts University will waive undergraduate tuition for middle-income families earning less than $150,000 a year. Families earning under $60,000 will typically receive aid packages with no student loans. Bryn Mawr also just announced free undergraduate tuition to eligible families of students applying for Fall 2026 (or later) with an annual income of $175,000 or less. Last year, it eliminated all federal student loans for students with family incomes below $110,000 and assets under $500,000. Both universities are among the small percentage that are committed to meeting 100% of demonstrated financial aid need for all undergraduate students. Despite annual increases in the official cost of Tufts attendance, the actual average cost for Tufts students has decreased in recent years, thanks to the growing amount of financial aid the university provides, said the Tufts press release. How much of a benefit is free tuition? For the 2025-2026 school year, the cost of undergraduate tuition at Tufts is $71,982 and $67,730 at Bryn Mawr, so the savings are pretty significant. With costs so high, how can students put themselves in the best financial position and avoid steep student loans once they graduate? Heres our guide on paying off your loans in a timely way and avoiding defaulting or delinquency. Tuition relief at other major universities Its important to realize that the sticker price is not what you will usually end up paying at many colleges. You may see the sticker price and write it off. Please dont, said JT Duck, dean of admissions and enrollment management for the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering. Do a deeper dive on Tufts, because it might be more affordable than you realize. Tufts and Bryn Mawr join a growing set of selective schools expanding aid for middle-income families. MIT has made tuition free for families with income under $200,000 starting this year, and Harvard announced a similar threshold for tuition with health insurance, food and housing costs also covered for families that earn below $100,000. The university estimates about 86% of U.S. families will qualify for financial aid under this program. Some private universities also reduce borrowing by eliminating loans in aid packages or by meeting full demonstrated need. Public universities are also expanding affordability programs that blunt rising costs. New Yorks Excelsior Scholarship offers tuition-free study at SUNY and CUNY for eligible families up to $125,000, and the University of Californias Blue and Gold plan typically covers systemwide tuition for most families near $100,000. This year, the University of Texas System began a program to waive tuition for families earning up to $100,000, and the University of Michigans Go Blue Guarantee will cover tuition for in-state families with an income up to $125,000, also effective for Fall 2025. Financial relief cant come too soon for many families Americans owe about $1.81 trillion in student loans, and the typical federal borrower carries roughly $39,075 while 42.5 million people hold federal debt, per Education Data Initiative [1]. Most first-time, full-time undergraduates receive some form of financial aid, and just over a quarter of all undergraduates take federal loans in a given year, so borrowing remains a big part of how many students finance college. Collections on defaulted federal loans resumed on May 5, 2025. Borrowers in default can face wage garnishment of up to 15% of disposable pay. The government can also take money from tax refunds and some federal benefits to service your loan. The New York Feds Household Debt and Credit Report from Q2 2025 show that 10.2% of student loan balances were delinquent for 90 or more days in the second quarter of 2025. Read more: How much cash do you plan to keep on hand after you retire? Here are 3 of the biggest reasons you'll need a substantial stash of savings in retirement Though the average age of a delinquent student loan borrower was around 40 as of Q1 2025, recent graduates are more likely to suffer from a hit to their credit scores. That means they are less likely to get approved for home or auto loans, which can significantly impair their ability to build wealth for the rest of their lives. Moreover, student loans are notoriously hard to discharge. According to the government website, your loan can be discharged only under specific circumstances, such as school closure, a school's false certification of your eligibility to receive a loan, a school's failure to pay a required loan refund, or because of total and permanent disability, bankruptcy, identity theft, or death. Needless to say, many borrowers spend decades paying off their loans. For most people, the solution to student loan debt is to only take on as much as you know you can repay. These steps can help keep you from getting in over your head on student loans: Use each colleges Net Price Calculator to compare what you would actually pay after grants, not just sticker price. Keep in mind these calculators are not standardized. File the FAFSA and any required CSS Profile early and accurately. Aid cannot be awarded without them. Prioritize schools that meet full need and offer no-loan or tuition-free commitments at your income level. Borrow conservatively. A common guardrail is to keep total undergraduate borrowing near or below your expected first-year salary. If you must borrow, favor federal loans first and enroll in an income-driven plan promptly to keep payments affordable and protect against delinquency. If you slip into default, explore loan rehabilitation or consolidation to stop collections and rebuild status. Know your rights. You can contest garnishment, and resolving default can halt wage withholding and Treasury offsets. Tuition-free pledges bring real relief to admitted students and their families. They wont necessarily make college free, but they will lower the need to borrow for many. Given the scale of national student debt and the return of collections, the smartest move is to apply widely, compare net prices, and choose a school that lets you graduate with manageable or no loans. What to read next Join 200,000+ readers and get Moneywises best stories and exclusive interviews first clear insights curated and delivered weekly. Subscribe now. Article sources We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines. Education Data Initiative (1) This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind. A "devastating" blast at a Tennessee explosives manufacturing plant on Friday is believed to have left 16 people dead, authorities announced on Saturday. At a press conference on Saturday, Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis said authorities had narrowed down the number of workers missing after the massive blast to 16. "At this time we have not located any survivors, and we are making the assumption that all are deceased at this time," Davis said. - PHOTO: The aftermath is seen following an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, Tennessee. The explosion occurred Friday morning at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, located about 50 miles west of Nashville. Earlier, authorities had said 18 people remained unaccounted for after the blast. However, the sheriff said Saturday evening that two people, whose vehicles and belongings were found at the scene, were later determined not to be on site at the time of the explosion. The cause of the explosion has not yet been determined, according to officials with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the National Center for Explosives Training and Research. At a briefing earlier Saturday, Davis said the search had transitioned from a search and rescue into a recovery effort. "It's a great loss to our communities," Davis said while holding back tears. "We are dealing with explosions, and I would say at this time, we're dealing with remains." Davis said officials are now in the process of identifying the remains and are using cellphone data to determine whose devices were at the site at the time of the blast. "As we get into this, we find it more devastating that we thought initially," he said. Davis emphasized that the investigation is a "slow, methodical" process due to the nature of the scene and the volatility of the chemicals currently present. Certified explosive specialists and bomb technicians with the ATF were also at the scene to help law enforcement. WKRN - PHOTO: Law enforcement officials are shown at the scene of an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, Tennessee, Oct. 10, 2025. Authorities said they would be conducting some controlled explosions throughout the day on Saturday to clear out the dangerous materials currently at the scene, so they can safely continue the investigation and recovery efforts. - PHOTO: The aftermath is seen following an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, Tennessee. After the blast, four to five people were brought to hospitals, according to the sheriff, who did not detail their injuries. Asked to describe the building where the explosion occurred, Davis said, "There's nothing to describe. It's gone. It's probably been one of the most devastating situations that I've been on in my career." The sheriff said during an earlier briefing that this is a "very big investigation." "This is not going to be something that we're going to be like a car wreck or something like that, that we're just going to clean up the debris and leave. We're going to probably be here for a few days," he said. Brett Carlsen/Getty Images - PHOTO: Humphreys County Sheriff Chris Davis speaks to media at Accurate Energetic Systems on Oct. 10, 2025, in McEwen, Tennessee. "We're trying to take as much time as is needed right now. We're prioritizing people that are involved, their families and trying to be very compassionate toward them," he continued. Victims identified in California fireworks warehouse explosion Accurate Energetic Systems manufactures explosives and energetic devices for the military, aerospace, demolition and mining industries, according to its website. Its customers include the Defense Department and Homeland Security, according to the Association of the United States Army. Video from a Nest camera at a home in Lobelville, about 11 miles from the plant, captured shaking as an explosion can be heard. WKRN - PHOTO: Law enforcement officials are shown at the scene of an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, Tennessee, Oct. 10, 2025. A McEwen resident who lives several miles from the plant said she felt her whole house shake. "It felt like our house had some kind of explosion," Lauren Roark told ABC News. "I jumped out of bed, asked my husband, 'What was that?'" Roark found what she believes to be debris from the explosion in her yard -- "big chunks of insulation-looking stuff" -- which she reported to authorities. WKRN - PHOTO: First responders are on the scene at an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems in McEwen, Tennessee, Oct. 10, 2025. Kadi Arnold, who also lives in McEwan, told ABC News she would sometimes hear explosions from the plant, which is about 4 miles from her home, but "knew this one wasn't normal." "The explosion was so loud and shook my home, I literally thought the back of my house had exploded," she said. Kadi Arnold - PHOTO: Smoke from an explosion at Accurate Energetic Systems military munitions plant is seen from McEwen, Tennessee, on Oct. 10, 2025. "Once I realized it wasn't my home, I immediately knew something terrible had happened at AES," she said, adding the community is in "shock." "We're a pretty tight-knit community and we're all just devastated and heartbroken," she said. If you missed one of those initiatives to purchase a home in the Italian countryside for the price of a cappuccino, don't worry. Set along the hills of Tuscany, the medieval town of Radicondoli is welcoming new residents with cheap housing and other subsidies. Established over a thousand years ago with ancient churches and palaces, Radicondoli is a bucolic village with a history of wool working and a long tradition of producing olive oil. The town launched its first housing program in 2023, offering up to 20,000 (around $23,227) plus a bonus of 6,000 (around $6,900) to people buying property. Since the project began, the town said it's added 60 new residents, growing from 900 to 960, according to the program's website. This year, Radicondoli and its neighboring village, Belforte, relaunched the scheme, known as the WivoaRadicondoli 3.0 program. "The goal is to offer opportunities to improve people's quality of life, stimulate economic development and residential development, and also invite new friends to join the community, with a particular focus on young people," the website states. A Tuscan village where Leonardo Da Vinci was born, is pictured from the house of Leonardo Da Vinci in the outskirts of the village on April 9, 2019. Mayor Francesco Guarguaglini told CNN that Radicondoli's population began to decline in the 1950s when villagers migrated to cities for better opportunities. This program aims to revitalize the area by attracting 1,000 new residents. Other rural regions of Italy have had similar experiences and also launched similar schemes over the last several years with the goal of boosting development and combating depopulation. Some of the other programs include offering homes for as little as a $1 or paying new residents up to $32,000 to purchase a home in a village with a population of less than 5,000. What are some of the incentives? The two villages said on the program's website that they budgeted 300,000 (around $348,427) to fund initiatives aimed at residents, families, landlords and new businesses. First-time home buyers can get grants with a maximum of 20,000 (around $23,227) to go toward a property purchase, if they are registered as residents. According to CNN, the charming homes range between 50,000 (around $58,071) and 100,000 (around $116,132), with some neglected and in need of renovations. Other incentives the program is offering include: subsidies of up to 50% eligible expenses, or 4,000 (around $4,645), for revitalizing businesses for at least three years. covering up to 80% of rent for two years, which targets young people moving out on their own or those from other municipalities who want to check out life in Radicondoli and Belforte with the possibility of settling there. offering grants to property owners who are interested in becoming landlords that help them revamp homes to welcome tenants. Who can apply? According to the website, Italian, European Union or non-European Union citizens who are legally residing in Italy are eligible to apply. Depending on the specific incentive people are applying for, they may also have to meet certain requirements. For example, the first-home purchase grants require applicants to commit to living in the village for at least a decade and to own no more than one other property in Italy. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Want to live in Tuscany? This Italian town offers cash, cheap homes. Commentary: Lai's secessionist plot poses greatest threat to peace across Taiwan Strait Xinhua) 08:14, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- In a Friday speech, Taiwan regional leader Lai Ching-te obstinately adhered to his "Taiwan independence" stance and played up the so-called mainland threats. In a brazen maneuver of blame-shifting, Lai claims that it is the mainland that should "stop changing the status quo of the Taiwan Strait through force and coercion." But the fact is that it is precisely Lai's Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) authorities who are seeking to alter the status quo of the Taiwan Strait -- namely, that there is only one China in the world and Taiwan is an inalienable part of it. It is Lai's secessionist provocations that pose grave threats to peace across the Strait. In his speech, Lai said Taiwan's defense budget will be raised to more than 3 percent of the island's GDP next year, and to 5 percent of GDP by 2030. This is a policy statement that once again exposes his ignorance of mainstream public opinion on the island and his attempts to push forward secessionist schemes with force. By willingly acting as a cash cow for external forces, the DPP authorities have squandered taxpayers' hard-earned money on purchasing weapons, when such money could have been used to improve people's lives and develop the economy. In fact, more and more people in Taiwan have realized that they must not become the sacrifices of "Taiwan independence" and that "Taiwan independence" is a dead end. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, as well as the 80th anniversary of Taiwan's restoration to China. Yet in his speech, Lai referred to the V-Day anniversary as the anniversary of the "end of war," echoing the distorted historical perspective in the shoes of the Japanese aggressors. As a matter of fact, China's sovereignty over Taiwan is reaffirmed in a host of documents with international legal effect, including the 1943 Cairo Declaration, the 1945 Potsdam Proclamation and the 1945 Japanese Instrument of Surrender. Taiwan's restoration to China constituted an integral part of the outcomes of the World War II victory and the post-war international order. The legitimacy, validity, and authority of the United Nations General Assembly's (UNGA) Resolution 2758 are indisputable. However, in his speech, Lai once again distorted the UNGA Resolution 2758 and the historical documents of World War II. Such attempts to challenge the post-war international order are doomed to failure. If Lai sincerely advocates for peace, he should abandon the secessionist stance aimed at "Taiwan independence," uphold the 1992 Consensus, which embodies the one-China principle, and acknowledge Taiwan's restoration to China. The "Taiwan independence" agenda, which defies public opinion and historical trend, will lead nowhere. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) by Nirmala Carvalho The court ruled that the land is a private donation, not religious property, squashing the Waqf Boards attempt, in 2019, to claim the area as a religious asset, creating uncertainty for more than 600 Catholic families who had legally purchased the land. The court called the Board's action a land-grabbing tactic, clarifying that the state is not bound by its orders. The Archbishop Chakkalakkal of Calicut calls for the full restoration of property rights. Kochi (AsiaNews) The Kerala High Court has harshly criticised the Waqf Board for classifying land in Munambam, in the southern state of Kerala, as waqf property, calling the action a land-grabbing tactic. The decision brought relief to hundreds of families who had been protesting the loss of their property rights for over a year. According to the ruling, the disputed land is not a waqf (religious asset) property, but a gift granted in 1950 by Mohammed Siddique Sait to Farooq College, an educational institution in Kozhikode. The court clarified that the original deed is a private donation (gift deed), and not a deed of religious dedication (waqf deed). While not formally annulling the Waqf Board's order, the court ruled that the state is not bound by it, effectively declaring the latters claim ineffective. The controversy broke out after the Kerala State Waqf Board claimed the property as waqf land in 2019, nearly 69 years after the original donation, creating legal uncertainty for approximately 610 families living in Munambam and Kadappuram, who had legally purchased the land. The delay, the Court emphasised, represents a "total farce" and an abuse of the powers conferred by the Waqf Act. The original land, approximately 404 acres, has since shrunk due to coastal erosion and siltation. In 2009, a state commission of inquiry, the Nissar Commission, had already reported irregularities in the management of the land transferred from Farooq College, but without reaching a conclusion. The case flared up again in 2022 when the Waqf Board attempted to assert its claim, arguing that the 1950 donation constituted a deed of dedication as a religious endowment. The Kerala Region Latin Catholic Council (KRLCC) welcomed the Court's decision. It is unequivocally clear from the provisions of the Waqf Act that existed at the time when the land was acquired by Farook College and the contents of the legal document for transfer that the land in question is not waqf land, said KRLCC general secretary Fr Thomas Tharayil. The money raised by selling off the land, which was donated to Farook College, was used by the institution for educational purposes, Father Tharayil added. KRLCC community spokesperson Joseph Jude said the claim that it is waqf land is irrelevant. The Waqf Board only recently came forward to claim the land without following and implementing the provisions of the Waqf Act of 1954. Under Indian law, land declared waqf becomes an inalienable religious asset, administered by a mutawalli under the supervision of the Waqf Board. In this case, owners or residents would no longer be able to sell, inherit, or register the land. Houses built on the area could have been considered illegal occupations and subject to eviction, while the state would have been required to recognise religious jurisdiction over the property. The Court thus prevented a potential mass expropriation and reaffirmed that, in the absence of legal evidence in accordance with the Waqf Act, the Board's decisions are not binding on the state administration. After the decision, the Archbishop Varghese Chakkalakkal of Calicut called on the Kerala government to immediately restore the rights of the Munambam people. The ruling brought great joy to the more than 600 families who had been protesting for months, demanding the reinstatement of their land rights. Residents gathered at the Velankanni Matha Church in Kadappuram, where they celebrated the victory by sharing sweets. "Justice is served," said Joseph Benny, coordinator of the Munambam Land Protection Council. According to him, the residents had lost their property rights on 13 January 2022, and had since sought help from every source. We knocked on all doors seeking help. However, when we didnt get any, we launched a relay hunger agitation on October 13, 2024. With only days left for the completion of a year of agitation, the verdict arrived like a God-send gift, he explained. Benny also noted that Kerala Industries Minister P Rajeeve called a meeting with members of the movement's central committee for Saturday. Members of our core committee will meet him and then come up with further decisions based on the talks with the minister, Benny explained, highlighting how the residents can now look forward to the early restoration of their rights. Champion local news. Join our community of readers who value daily beat reporting and in-depth stories alike. Your membership allows us to continue the legacy of local, independent journalism in the Roaring Fork Valley. With your support, we can remain a free and accessible source of news for everyone, always without paywalls or corporate influence. Together, we can ensure that vital local stories are told. 11 October 2025 13:45 (UTC+04:00) Qabil Ashirov Read more Azerbaijan is quietly but confidently stepping into a new phase of economic engagement with Europe. Recent figures from the State Customs Committee reveal that in the first eight months of 2025, the country exported nearly $11.9 billion worth of goods to European Union (EU) member states a 13.4% increase compared to the same period in 2024. Imports from the EU also rose by 5.4%, reaching $1.88 billion. These numbers are more than just trade statistics; they are a reflection of Azerbaijans growing economic maturity and its strategic positioning in the global marketplace. Access to paid information is limited Find the plan that suits you best. 11 October 2025 12:40 (UTC+04:00) An international conference dedicated to the legendary Dede Qorqud epic was recently held at Igdr University in Turkiye. Azernews reports that the event was organized with the initiative of Azerbaijans Consulate in Igdr and supported by the Igdr Azerbaijan House, as well as the administrations of Igdr University and Nakhchivan State University. Participants of the conference highlighted the epics scientific and moral significance, recognizing it as a cornerstone of the cultural heritage of the Turkic world. The event was attended by prominent figures including Azerbaijans Consul General in Igdr Zamin Aliyev, Igdr Governor Ercan Turan, Igdr University Rector Ekrem Gurel, and Nakhchivan State University Rector Elbrus Isayev. Opening the conference, Governor Ercan Turan described the Dede Qorqud epic as the cultural code of the Oghuz Turks. He emphasized that the traditions and values expressed in the epics stories and songs remain relevant today, noting that the path to strengthening Turkic nations lies in unity and solidarity. Turan also highlighted the close cooperation and dialogue between the Presidents of Turkiye and Azerbaijan as a guarantee for regional peace and stability. Rector Ekrem Gurel discussed how the epic reflects Turkish attitudes toward family and society, encapsulating the broader worldview of the Turkic world. He expressed confidence that the conference, with the participation of distinguished Turkish and Azerbaijani scholars, would inspire new initiatives across literature, history, linguistics, arts, and sociology. Rector Elbrus Isayev underscored the epics role in uniting the Turkic world and encouraged young people to study and appreciate this timeless work. Meanwhile, Consul General Zamin Aliyev stressed that Dede Qorqud is not only a literary masterpiece but also a key element of national identity and spiritual heritage, noting its inclusion in UNESCOs Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. Ziya Zakir Acar, head of Igdr Azerbaijan House, highlighted that the epic has been preserved and passed down through generations in both Azerbaijan and Turkiye, instilling core values such as family, love for the homeland, heroism, hospitality, respect for elders, and care for the young. He called on youth to study the epic deeply, emphasizing that a nation without knowledge of its history has no future. The conference also featured a video tribute to Professor Kamal Abdulla, Rector of Azerbaijan University of Languages, on his 75th birthday. The event continued with two sessions attended by scholars from Azerbaijan and Turkiye. 11 October 2025 10:30 (UTC+04:00) During his visit to Ukraine, Executive Director of the Network for Religious and Traditional Peacemakers and Commissioner of the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Mohamed Elsanousi, met with Elshad Ibrahimov, Deputy Chairman of the United Diaspora of Azerbaijanis in Ukraine (UABD). Azernews reports that the meeting focused on the situation of religious and ethnic minorities living in Ukraine, their integration into society, and efforts to strengthen mutual understanding. Elshad Ibrahimov emphasized that the Azerbaijani community serves as a cultural, humanitarian, and spiritual bridge between the peoples of Azerbaijan and Ukraine. He noted that Azerbaijanis have long been an integral part of Ukrainian society and remain committed to the countrys multicultural values. Azerbaijanis freely practice their religion and beliefs. The Ukrainian state respects religious freedom and provides an environment of mutual understanding and peaceful coexistence among different faiths. This represents an exemplary model of tolerance for both Ukraine and Azerbaijan, he said. Ibrahimov added that members of the diaspora actively participate not only in religious holidays but also in national and cultural events. Despite the ongoing war since 2022, the Azerbaijani community has preserved its spirit of solidarity and mutual assistance. Azerbaijani businessmen and philanthropists in Ukraine have provided medical, humanitarian, and social support to soldiers, demonstrating loyalty to both the Ukrainian people and universal human values, he remarked. During the meeting, Ibrahimov presented a photo album showcasing the diasporas social, cultural, and humanitarian projects, including charity events, iftar dinners, and community initiatives organized during wartime. Commissioner Elsanousi described the meeting as not only an introduction to the Azerbaijani diasporas activities but also as a reaffirmation of religious tolerance, multiculturalism, and international peace. Representatives of Finlands largest humanitarian organization, Finn Church Aid, also attended, emphasizing the importance of compassion, dialogue, and mutual respect among nations and religions. 11 October 2025 14:20 (UTC+04:00) As part of the Baku Dialogue on Missing Persons, participants of the international conference titled Combining Efforts and Expanding Cooperation to Address the Problem of Missing Persons have begun their visit to Zangilan, Azernews reports. The delegation traveled to the liberated territories of Azerbaijan, visiting Zangilan District as part of their program. During the trip, the participants visited the Victory monument located in the newly rebuilt Aghali village center. The visitors were also briefed on the conditions created for the return of residents to Aghali village, one of the first smart villages reconstructed in the liberated territories. It should be noted that a day earlier, conference participants visited a mass grave discovered in the Balligaya village area of Aghdara District and the former Shusha prison, where Azerbaijani captives were held during the Armenian occupation. The visit aims to provide international participants with a deeper understanding of the human and humanitarian consequences of Armenias aggression and to highlight Azerbaijans ongoing efforts to address the issue of missing persons and support the safe return of displaced citizens to their ancestral lands. 11 October 2025 08:00 (UTC+04:00) By Alimat Aliyeva Toyota Motor is recalling 54,631 vehicles in the United States because of a potential safety issue involving the second-row seat rails, according to a report released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) on Friday, Azernews reports, citing foreign media. The recall specifically affects certain 2025 Toyota Sienna Hybrid models. According to the NHTSA, the seat rails may have been improperly welded during manufacturing, which could prevent the seat from securely holding passengers in the event of a crash. This defect significantly increases the risk of injury. To resolve the issue, Toyota dealers will replace the second-row seat rails at no cost to the vehicle owners. Toyota will begin notifying affected customers by mail in the coming weeks. This isn't the first time Toyota has faced seat-related recalls. In recent years, many automakers have strengthened their focus on seat safety, as improperly secured seats can lead to serious injuries even in minor collisions. The Toyota Sienna is one of the few minivans on the U.S. market that comes exclusively as a hybrid, offering both fuel efficiency and family-friendly features which makes safety recalls like this one especially important for families who rely on it for daily transportation. For more information, vehicle owners can check the NHTSA website or contact their local Toyota dealership. 11 October 2025 18:35 (UTC+04:00) The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has dismissed dozens of employees from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) as part of a new wave of staff reductions, Azernews reports citing international media outlets. The layoffs primarily affected experts specializing in disease detection and monitoring a move that has raised concerns among public health professionals about the countrys preparedness for potential health threats. Sources said the affected employees were notified via email that their positions were being eliminated. The notices reportedly stated that their roles were no longer considered necessary, though no detailed explanation was provided. The exact number of dismissed staff members has not yet been disclosed, but internal sources described the cuts as significant, targeting several divisions involved in epidemiological research and early-warning systems. 11 October 2025 22:25 (UTC+04:00) Denmarks Ministry of Defence has allocated 2.1 billion kroner (approximately $330 million or 561 million manats) to establish resources for detecting and combating unidentified drones, Azernews reports. According to a statement by the ministry, the decision was made based on a proposal from the Danish Armed Forces Command. In total, 3.8 billion kroner (around $590 million) will be spent between 2025 and 2033 on reserves and new initiatives. The statement noted that, given the current security environment, the Chief of Defence has recommended acquiring counter-drone systems as well as decision-support systems based on artificial intelligence. The recent incidents involving unmanned aerial vehicles have increased the Danish Armed Forces need to strengthen their counter-drone capabilities. Therefore, I am pleased that Denmark is allocating funds for the acquisition of vital resources to enhance its ability to combat drones. This demonstrates that Denmark is reinforcing its efforts to counter this type of hybrid threat, said Defence Minister Troels Lund Poulsen. 11 October 2025 21:20 (UTC+04:00) The European Union, together with its international partners, has announced large-scale investments aimed at developing Central Asias hydropower infrastructure. The decisions were presented at the Global Gateway Forum held in Brussels on October 910, according to the European Commissions press service, Azernews reports. Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, the EU, and the European Investment Bank (EIB) signed memorandums of understanding on the 900 million Kambarata Hydropower Plant-1 (HPP-1) project. The feasibility study for the project is financed by the European Union and implemented by the World Bank. In addition, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is considering allocating a further 1.3 billion for the plants construction. EU Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Sikela stated that investments in hydropower will ensure reliable access to electricity, create new income sources for local communities, and strengthen the resilience of agriculture. EIB Vice-President Kyriakos Kakouris stressed that the bank supports projects aimed at fostering regional energy cooperation, while EBRD President Odile Renaud-Basso described the project as a flagship example of regional cooperation and sustainable water resource management. Within the Team Europe initiativewhich brings together the EU, its member states, and financial institutionsthe parties are working to enhance regional coordination in water resource management and energy development. The Kambarata HPP-1 project is being implemented in Kyrgyzstan on the Naryn River. With a planned capacity of 1,860 megawatts, it will become the countrys largest power facility. Its 256-meter-high dam and 5.4 billion cubic meter reservoir will allow the plant to generate about 5.6 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually. Construction is expected to take about ten years, with the first turbine unit scheduled to begin operation four years after the main construction phase begins. Upon completion, all assets and shares of the hydropower plant will be transferred to the ownership of Kyrgyzstan. Anger across unionism should not be underestimated: Letter slams Belfast councils Irish language policy It is signed by several members of the UUP Good Friday Agreement talks team Signatories of the statement include (L-R): David McNarry, Lord Dennis Rogan, David Campbell, Michael McGimpsey and Lord John Kilclooney Abdullah Sabri Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 09:17 Unionist negotiators of the Good Friday Agreement have warned that the anger across unionism against a new Irish language policy should not be underestimated. Doves were released as a symbolic gesture as Northern Irelands first integrated primary school celebrated 40 years of education across the religious divide. Pupils and staff at Hazelwood Integrated, on Whitewell Road in north Belfast, were joined yesterday by former members of staff and some of the original parents who fought to get the school open in 1985. From day one the school adopted the dove as its emblem of peace and reconciliation. Pupils in 2025 still wear it on their badge. Among the guests for the birthday event was Jackie Davidson, whose north Belfast kitchen was the venue for the first meeting of parents in the early 1980s who were determined to craft something better for the future of their children. And 40 years on, Jackie is still in the school, which has come a long way since its 1985 opening in a disused warehouse, reading to the current pupils. I cant get away from this place! she said. I cant let it go, we fought hard to make it into the school it is today and yes, there is a certain amount of pride we all take in what we have managed to achieve. Hazelwood Integrated Primary School celebrating the 40th anniversary of it becoming N.Irelands first Integrated Primary School on the 10th October 2025 (Luke Jervis/Belfast Telegraph) Jackies family have all been involved with the school since its formation and she said it was her time working in the Civil Service that made up her mind to help set up the integrated primary school. Those early days in the job were the first time I had met anyone of the opposite religion in my life, she said. I knew that wasnt right. They looked like me, they talked like me, they were just like me. I felt back then there had to be something we could do to try to bring people from different communities closer together, though I knew little about how to set up a school. The doves were a big hit with the schoolchildren Jackie joined with like-minded parents, who had seen Lagan College set up as Northern Irelands first integrated school in 1981 and were determined to bring something similar to north Belfast. The Troubles were bad around here, perhaps the worst in Northern Ireland at the time, said Jackie. It was tough in those early days, said Jackie, There wasnt much in the way of financial support, but we survived on the will of parents who wanted to make a difference. Current Principal Jim McDaid said the real heroes were the parents who are with us celebrating today. "They were the original risk takers, as were all the parents 40 years ago who took a risk in sending their children to an integrated school in an old warehouse, he added. "There was no proper school building. They could have sent their children elsewhere, but they were the ones who wanted something better for future generations and they are the ones this school has been built on the back of. Patricia who is a founding parent with her children Austin and Deirdre who attended the school, with her grandchildren Lottie Kelly, Laylah Kelly and Olivia Lenghan They continue to trust us with their children and they trust us with their tradition and their identity. Were very proud of that and the legacy started 40 years ago continues. The values they get here about the world today are vital. We need children who stand up against division and for tolerance. Empathy, compassion and respect are whats needed. This school was established by parents meeting in a kitchen one evening. It remains important that parents lead the integrated movement. Thats why it was so disappointing to see schools being turned down for integrated status earlier this year despite [parental] votes in favour. That decision was very regrettable, he said, after DUP Education Minister Paul Givan turned down attempts to transform from both Bangor Academy and Sixth Form College and neighbouring Rathmore Primary. I know theres an appeal in place, and we hope the outcome of that is a positive one, not just for those schools, but for Northern Ireland, the north, the six counties, whatever anyone wants to call this place. We dont want opposition to children coming together and learning. We have a vision that is being shared across several of our political parties now, but it is a regret that our Education Minister doesnt have the same vision and passion as the parents here did 40 years ago to build a place thats respectful of all traditions, he continued. Pupils from Hazelwood Integrated Primary School celebrating the 40th anniversary of it becoming N.Irelands first Integrated Primary School on the 10th October 2025 (Luke Jervis/Belfast Telegraph) We do live in a society thats fractured by culture and religion. But schools like this can create opportunities, allow children to be proud Protestants, confident Catholics, have children who take joy in learning about and celebrating the many more cultures we now have in our community. We have respect for difference. The one thing we can all agree on is that this place is home for all of us. Here we are 40 years on, in a wonderful school building, fully subscribed with more parents than ever wanting to send their children into our care. Thats certainly something worth celebrating. Mike Nesbitt making his leaders speech at the Ulster Unionist Party Conference held at the Crown Plaza hotel in South Belfast. Declan Roughan / Press Eye English nationalism has become the greatest threat to Northern Irelands place in the Union, the UUP leader has claimed. Mike Nesbitt warned that the regions 19billion annual funding from Westminster was an easy target for populist right-wing politicians. It comes amid a surge in support for Nigel Farages Reform UK party. He was addressing the UUP conference in Belfast this afternoon. In a wide-ranging speech, Mr Nesbitt slammed outrageous attempts to justify Troubles-era murders, and said the upheaval of Brexit should be a lessen against any attempt to hold a border poll in the coming years. Mr Nesbitt returned as UUP leader in September last year after the resignation of Doug Beattie. He previously served between 2012 and 2017, when he quit after poor Assembly election results. In his opening remarks this afternoon, he spoke of his optimism for the future. In my 15 years in politics, I have never felt more positive about the future, he said. Why? Because for the first time in Northern Ireland's history, every mainstream political party has a reason to make Northern Ireland work. Mr Nesbitt insisted any referendum on the border was not in sight, despite Sinn Fein demands for a vote by 2030. The problem with constitutional change like Brexit is that its destabilising, confusing and ultimately disappointing, he said. I think one constitutional leap of faith is enough for any generation to endure. Mr Nesbitt said Micheal Martins support for a Shared Island Fund rather than a referendum showed the Taoiseach also understood no-one is ready for a border poll. He accused the DUP of putting the constitutional question back on the agenda through their full throated support for Brexit. And he warned of the growing danger coming from right-wing parties in England. While unionists have always looked over their shoulder at Irish nationalists as the biggest threat to Northern Irelands place in the Union, Irish nationalists have been knocked off the gold medal spot on the rostrum by English nationalism, he said. Last time I joined our team at Westminster, I was struck by the number of MPs sporting lapel badges, not with the flag of the United Kingdom, but the flag of St George. Since then, of course, waving the flag of England has become a campaign for many English people. Like Brexit, they see it as another campaign to take back control. At the same time, I read of one English nationalist MPs attack on Scotland for its annual Block Grant and therein lies the danger. Our annual Subvention, some 19 billion, is a significant sum of money. It could build acute hospitals in the constituency of English nationalist MPs. It could put bobbies on the beats of their towns and villages. It could fund classroom assistants for the children of the people who voted them into power. Thats the real danger of supporting the sort of right-wing parties other unionists currently find so appealing. Mr Nesbitt referred to comments in a new BBC podcast, where ex-Sinn Fein MP Michelle Gildernew and loyalist activist Jamie Bryson suggested that some Troubles murders had been justified. He added: Given the outrageous attempts by some this week to justify murder, let me say it again no one needed to die to get Northern Ireland to where it is today. Mike Nesbitt making his leaders speech at the Ulster Unionist Party Conference held at the Crown Plaza hotel in South Belfast. Declan Roughan / Press Eye Analysis: Justification for murder- why does every conversion on the future tumble back to the past | Allison Morris Those murders, those needless deaths, have created a highly toxic legacy we still struggle with today." Mr Nesbitt called for a return to the spirit of hope and cooperation of the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, saying compromise was not a weakness. There is simply no viable alternative to working together, respecting every party's legitimate, democratic mandate, stretching ourselves when necessary to find accommodation and compromise, he said. Let us be clear. Compromise is not a dirty word. And it should never be confused with appeasement. Appeasement is when only one side moves to close a gap. Compromise requires all sides to move. As was the case so remarkably in 1998. Bette Midler has led tributes to the "extraordinary" Diane Keaton following her death. Tributes have been paid to Diane Keaton following her death The passing of the Oscar-winning actress at the age of 79 was announced by her family on Saturday (11.10.25) and Bette - her co-star in the 1996 comedy flick The First Wives Club - is among those from the film industry who have paid tribute to the Hollywood icon. Bette wrote on Instagram: "The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died. I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me. She was hilarious, a complete original, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she was... oh, la, lala!" Kimberly Williams-Paisley, who played Keaton's daughter in the Father of the Bride comedy films, described working with the Annie Hall star as one of the "highlights of (her) life". The 54-year-old star wrote on the social media platform: "Diane, working with you will always be one of the highlights of my life. You are one of a kind, and it was thrilling to be in your orbit for a time. Thank you for your kindness, your generosity, your talent, and above all, your laughter." Mary Steenburgen, who starred with Keaton in both the 2018 film Book Club and its 2023 sequel Book Club: The Next Chapter, described her as "magic". In a statement shared with Deadline, she said: "Diane was magic. There was no one, nor will there ever be, anyone like her. I loved her and felt blessed to be her friend. My love to her family. What a wonder she was!!!" Elsewhere, director Paul Feig reflected on the pride he felt in calling Keaton a "friend". The Bridesmaids filmmaker posted on X: "I was so honoured to call Diane Keaton a friend. She was an amazingly kind and creative person who also just happened to be a Hollywood legend. She has been taken from us far too soon. We will miss you, Diane." Beauty and the Beast star Luke Evans posted a selfie of himself with The Godfather actress and remembered her as "such a brilliant actor". He wrote: "What a sad day. Rest in peace #dianekeaton. Such a brilliant actor, a kind heart and full of graciousness with a shining independent spirit." An extraordinary and intelligent great-grandmother is preparing to celebrate her 105th birthday at the end of the year. Maureen Helena Hastings, born on December 8, 1920, in east Belfast, is the older sister of the late renowned hotelier, Sir William Hastings. According to her daughter, Hilary Spears, who frequently visits her at Kirk House Residential Home, she is the absolute matriarch of the family. Maureen received birthday cards from Queen Elizabeth on her 100th and 101st birthdays. For her centenary, she was also sent a bounty of 2,212 (2,540) from Irish President Michael D Higgins, along with a commemorative medal and letter. A keen painter with a sense of humour, Maureen is the eldest of five children. In the 1940s, she worked in the City Treasuries Office at Belfast City Hall, but like many married women of the time, faced pressure to give up her career and focus on homemaking. Persevering despite societal norms, Maureen and her City Hall Girls built life-long friendships with one another. She married Hugh Bailie, a newly qualified teacher from Stranmillis College, at St Columbas Church, Knock, on July 4, 1945. They had five children Paul, Diana, Ashley, Hilary and Roy. Maureen Hastings Maureen changed careers when her husband became a headmaster, taking on a role as secretary at the Brackenber House School for Boys. Hugh passed away in his early 50s, and with three of their children having left home, Maureen moved to Bangor in search of a quieter life. She married again in 1978, moving to Donaghadee with her new husband, Willie Wright. She produced some of her best paintings in the Co Down town, capturing quaint seaside cottages, white cliffs rising from the water, and boats bobbing along the quays. Maureen continued to live in Donaghadee for many years after Willies passing. In 1996, she met Jim Kernaghan and married him that same year. Nearly 80 at the time, the pair were keen travellers, but Maureen was widowed once again. Hilary says her mother loves talking to people. She lives independently and is quite sound of mind. She is very interesting to talk to, said Hilary. Maureen and her first husband Hugh Bailie She had four coins from the President of Ireland. Those were for her 101st, 102nd, 103rd and 104th. I am very proud of her, she is incredible. She is amazing and a very intelligent woman. She loves people, that is what keeps her alive. She doesnt like being on her own. Being in Kirk House is quite good for her, she likes talking about old stories and has a mischievous sense of humour. She is inspired by interesting people, her brain is sharp as anything. She does crosswords every day with no help, and can recite poetry from memory. However, all of the people she knew from her past have died. She was quite sad when her brother, Sir William Hastings, died. But she does have a lot of visitors from her family. She is probably the most visited in Kirk House. She was very ambitious; if she was born now it would be interesting to see where she would go. J&B Engineering have said Thomas Lagan, who was killed in an accident near Cookstown, was a cherished member of the family A young man who died in a crash in Co Tyrone has been described as a gentle giant. Thomas Lagan (21) was killed in the accident near Cookstown on Friday morning. It happened on the Pomeroy Road shortly after 6.45am. A woman who was injured in the accident was taken to hospital, police said. Mr Lagan worked at J&B Engineering in Cookstown. It said: Thomas was an integral part of J&B Engineering, known not only for his exceptional work ethic but also for his kindness, warmth, and quiet nature. His contributions to our team and his positive spirit will be greatly missed by everyone who had the privilege of working alongside him. Our thoughts are with Thomass family, especially Thomass brother James, our colleague; his brother Daniel, a former employee; his friends, and all those who loved him during this difficult time. He will always be remembered as a cherished member of the J&B Engineering family. Mr Lagan was a former pupil at Holy Trinity College in Cookstown. Friends described him as a gentle giant with a heart of gold who always had a smile on his face. Another said simply: Forever 21. DUP councillor Eva Cahoon said the community was in a sense of shock and sadness. "This is devastating news and my immediate thoughts and prayers are with the family in this time of heartbreak and sorrow, she said. UUP councillor Trevor Wilson said it was "dreadful to hear of another tragedy on our roads". "My thoughts are with all those affected by this tragic incident," he added. Mr Lagan was the driver of a grey Volkswagen Bora involved in a collision with a grey Seat Leon on the Pomeroy Road. He was pronounced deceased at the scene. A woman was also transferred to hospital for treatment for her injuries. Police have appealed for information on what happened. They said officers from the Collision Investigation Unit are continuing to investigate the circumstances surrounding the collision. Thomas Lagan worked at J&B Engineering in Cookstown Belfast History Explained: The Story of the River Farset The Northern Ireland Ambulance Service said it tasked two emergency ambulances and the Air Ambulance to the scene. Following assessment and initial treatment at the scene, one person was taken to Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast by Air Ambulance. Politics Alliance MP on honour of being only MP from NI nominated for Backbencher of the Year: I am more grateful than you will ever know Woman suffered suicidal thoughts after unlawful detention for five days at NI immigration centre The Spanish national was later released unconditionally Larne House is a short-term immigration detention centre in NI Liam Tunney Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 08:26 A Spanish woman who was detained unlawfully in a Northern Ireland immigration centre suffered suicidal thoughts and had to be constantly watched, an inspection report into the centre has revealed. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys speaking to the media during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Heather Humphreys has said she will not smear anyone but will ask hard questions of her fellow presidential candidate Catherine Connolly. Ms Humphreys also thanked Taoiseach and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin for saying he would vote for her though he said he would not be recommending to members how they should cast their vote. Mr Martins comments came ahead of an annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how the partys presidential candidate Jim Gavin fared. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys cuts a cake at half-time during a visit to a game at Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 euros in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. This leaves just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks time. On Saturday, Fine Gaels candidate Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met with people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 euros of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, Theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys meets Ruth Ryan, aged four, holding her teddy Bruno, during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary (Niall Carson/PA) After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach Micheal Martin for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. Mike Nesbitt said all mainstream parties have a reason to make Northern Ireland work (PA) Unionists should be wary of what supporting right-wing parties could do for Northern Irelands place in the UK, UUP leader Mike Nesbitt has said. He told party members that English nationalism was now a greater threat to Northern Irelands constitutional position than Irish nationalism. Mr Nesbitt gave an address to the UUP party conference at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Belfast on Saturday afternoon. He said that while unionists had looked over their shoulder at Irish nationalists as the biggest threat to Northern Irelands place in the UK, they had been knocked off the gold medal spot by English nationalism. He said: Last time I joined our team at Westminster I was struck by the number of MPs sporting lapel badges, not with the flag of the United Kingdom but the flag of St George. Since then, of course, waving the flag of England has become a campaign for many English people. Like Brexit, they see it as another campaign to take back control. Referring to a risk to block grants from Westminster, he said there was a real danger of supporting the sort of right-wing parties other unionists currently find so appealing. The Health Minister also said that people calling for a border poll should be careful what they wish for. He said Taoiseach Micheal Martin is not ready for a united Ireland and the DUPs full-throated support for Brexit had put the constitutional question back on the agenda. Referring to the 1994 rom-com Four Weddings And A Funeral, he criticised a united Ireland, calling it Four Ironies and a Paradox. He said one of the ironies was that the DUP was the organisation doing most to put the constitutional question back on the agenda through its full-throated support for Brexit. He said one of the people who understands that no one is ready for a border poll is Mr Martin, hence his focus on the Shared Island Fund rather than a referendum. He also referenced the economic crash, the Irish economys over-reliance on corporation tax revenues from pharmaceutical multinationals, and Irelands low spending on defence as reasons to be wary of Irish unity. In a united Ireland, he added, the Dail, the lower house of the Irish parliament, which currently has 174 members, would have maybe 60 new, additional TDs representing what was Northern Ireland. Around half of them could be unionist, or representing people who identify as British. So unionists could hold the balance of power in Leinster House, he said. Why would a proud Irish person want me, or Gavin Robinson or Jim Allister choosing their next Taoiseach? He said Brexit was destabilising, confusing and ultimately disappointing, and that one constitutional leap of faith was enough for a generation. Turning to domestic politics, he said that all mainstream parties have a reason to make Northern Ireland work, even republicans. He said: When was the last time you heard a leading republican politician describe this place as a failed, ungovernable statelet? Its a little difficult when you hold the positions of First Minister, finance minister, economy minister and minister for infrastructure, is it not? Plus, come a border poll, and youre voting in Dublin, or Galway or Limerick, whats attractive about being asked to adopt a failed, ungovernable statelet? A place you may never have visited. A place you barely know. A place apart. I say to those calling the loudest for a border poll careful what you wish for. Mr Nesbitt also paid tribute to David Trimble, former party leader and a key figure in the peace process, during his speech. Lady Daphne at the unveiling of a bust of her late husband, Lord David Trimble, at Leinster House (PA) Earlier this year, I joined Lady Daphne and the Trimble family at Westminster for the unveiling of a bust of Lord Trimble, which sits at the midpoint between the Houses of Commons and Lords, reflecting his time and influence in both Houses of Parliament, he said. It is a truly remarkable tribute to his brand of unionism that there are now busts of David Trimble in both the British and Irish parliaments. A tribute as fitting as the Nobel Peace Prize he was awarded jointly with John Hume. He added: Embracing diversity was his thing, uniting minds and people rather than fixating on borders and lines on maps. 1998 was much, much harder for David and yet he did it. This party did it and people are alive because of it. The First Minister has met for face-to-face talks with Donald Trump four times this year (Jane Barlow/PA) Scotlands First Minister has said he has to try and get on with US President Donald Trump, following a series of meetings this year. John Swinney has met in person with the president on four occasions in recent months twice during Mr Trumps visit to Scotland, a third time during his own impromptu visit to Washington, and another during the presidents state visit to Britain in September. The discussions focused largely on carving a deal for the Scotch whisky industry in trade talks with the US, but were remarkable for the First Ministers shift in tone towards Mr Trump. Donald Trump was in Scotland to open his new golf resort a few weeks before his official state visit to Britain (Leon Neal/PA) In the days before the presidents re-election, Mr Swinney endorsed his opponent Kamala Harris, telling journalists in the Scottish Parliament I have not come to that conclusion only because Donald Trump is opposed to Scottish independence. In a speech to the SNP conference in 2019 when he was deputy first minister under Nicola Sturgeon, Mr Swinney accused Mr Trump along with former prime minister Boris Johnson of choosing the gutter, adding: Their road leads to ruin. But speaking to the PA news agency ahead of his partys conference in Aberdeen, the First Minister said: Were very different types of people. The world is made up of different types of people and we have to try and get on. What do we need more of in the world today? Its probably the ability to get on with each other. Put to him there is a difference between sitting down with a political opponent to hash out a deal on the Governments budget and doing the same with someone who has deployed troops on to the streets of his own country, Mr Swinney said he cannot second-guess everything thats going on within the United States. Asked if he believes Mr Trump to be a liar, Mr Swinney said: It has been demonstrated by public comment that there are things that President Trump says that are not based on evidence. But he added: Ive got a job to do, which is about protecting, promoting the interests of Scotland. If the president of the United States is going to come to Scotland and take an interest in our country, I think its an opportunity for me to try to advance the interests of the country, which is what Ive tried to do. With a Scottish election just months away, Mr Swinney also said he is concerned about the division and lack of cohesion between communities. He said he has worked very hard to bring people together, pointing to his attendance at a synagogue in Edinburgh in the wake of the attack in Manchester last week, as well as a vigil of Jewish people outside Holyrood to commemorate those who died or were kidnapped in the October 7 attack during which Mr Swinney was heckled. I think its important that I make myself available to engage with communities in an attempt to try to create the conditions whereby we can continue to live in a peaceful, democratic society, the one that Ive grown up in all my days, that I cherish, he said. I really view that as a precious part of life. Belfast thug kicked his dog and hit cops after trying to get free food in Chinese takeaway Tigers Bay man told he could be jailed over incident Clarke Porter John Toner Sat 11 Oct 2025 at 19:00 A man who hit one dog with a chain and kicked another after attempting to get food for free is facing prison. Francesca Eastwood has announced the birth of her second child. Francesca Eastwood has announced the birth of her second child The 32-year-old actress, who is the daughter of filmmaker Clint Eastwood, 95, and actress Frances Fisher, 73, revealed the news on Instagram on Friday by sharing a series of intimate photographs from the hospital with her newborn. She captioned them: Day one, before adding over one of the images: Well, we had a wild night. The monochrome photographs showed Francesca cradling her baby shortly after giving birth, though she did not reveal the childs name or gender. Her post marks Francescas first public update since revealing her pregnancy earlier this year. Francesca, who first became a mother in 2018 with the birth of her son Titan, shares the six-year-old with her partner, actor Alexander Wraith. The couples latest arrival comes nearly a year after Francesca faced legal trouble following an alleged domestic incident. According to TMZ, Francesca was arrested in Beverly Hills on 12 October 2024 on suspicion of felony domestic violence after a reported altercation with a boyfriend turned physical. Police were called when the man, whose identity was not disclosed, contacted authorities and was instructed to meet officers at the Beverly Hills Police Departments Safety Zone. The outlet reported the man showed visible injuries upon arrival, leading to Francescas arrest and booking on felony charges. She was later released on $50,000 bail. Sources told TMZ the man declined medical treatment and refused to cooperate with investigators, which ultimately led prosecutors to drop the case. It was not confirmed whether Alexander was the alleged victim. Alexander, who has a 14-year-old son named Trajan from a previous marriage to Lili Gaildraud, separated from his wife in 2015. Francescas parents, Clint and Frances, were together from 1990 to 1995 but never married. She remains their only child together. Clint, one of Hollywoods most acclaimed directors, has been married twice first to Maggie Johnson, whom he wed in 1953 before their divorce in 1984, and later to broadcaster Dina Ruiz in 1996. The couple, who divorced in 2014, have daughter, Morgan, now 28. He is also father to actor Scott Eastwood, 39, whose mother is Jacelyn Reeves, a former flight attendant. Clint and Jacelyn never married. Francesca, who has appeared in films including True Crime and M.F.A., has largely kept her private life out of the spotlight in recent years. POWNAL Another potentially impactful auction of the former Green Mountain Race Track property has been scheduled at the site in January. Mortgage-holder Bayview Loan Servicing LLC plans a real estate auction on January 7, 2026, beginning at 11 a.m. at the 144-acre property off Route 7, according to a posted notice. The notice is related to a mortgage given by an investment group that purchased the former track property for $1 million from the late John Tietgens in 2004. The mortgage was later assigned to the Florida-based Bayview Loan Servicing. The planned auction in January is being undertaken by virtue and in execution of the power of sale contained in [the mortgage] for breach of the conditions of said mortgage and for the purpose of foreclosing ... , according to the notice. Tietgens, owner of a bus company based in Clarksburg, Massachusetts, had purchased the then-closed race track at auction in 1992 for $250,000 a price far lower than expected. The facility opened in 1963 as a thoroughbred and harness race track but had switched to greyhound racing in the 1970s, before closing for good in 1992 and being subsequently auctioned and purchased by Tietgens. Tietgens, a horse owner, hoped to revive Green Mountain as a horse track, but several proposals put forth by him and potential investors never came to fruition. One notable plan to create a Las Vegas-style casino and horse racing facility failed to win the support of many state officials including then-Governor Howard Dean, who said it was not compatible with the image most Vermonters and visitors have of the Green Mountain State. Development potential Area planning officials have continued to see great potential for other types of economic development at the track site, which is roughly a mile from the Williamstown, Massachusetts, border and within reasonable driving distance of the Albany, New York, area. The BCRC will monitor the upcoming auction of the Green Mountain Race Track and, should the property transfer, will be available to assist in any possible redevelopment of the property, Bill Colvin, director of the Bennington County Regional Commission, said Friday in an email. He added, The BCRC can provide economic and demographic data, access to prior regional studies and other information that might be helpful to a prospective developer and can make connections to possible funding sources and permitting guidance. The former race track moved Pownal forward for many years, but it's been holding us back for decades now, said state Rep. Jonathan Cooper, whose House district includes a section of Pownal. It's become a threat to public safety, and a barrier to local prosperity, Cooper said of the property. But it's future is vital to Pownal's future. I look forward to working with new ownership, town leadership, the railroad, and other partners to support creative and realistic options for a property with potential on both sides of the tracks. A PanAm Railway rail line runs along Route 7 in front of the track entrance. Grandstand fire Any new owner would have to deal with a number of site preparation or environmentally related issues, including a fire-gutted, 64,000-square-foot track grandstand, which has been the target of long-running efforts by the town of Pownal and state public safety officials who aim have the building secured or demolished. An overnight blaze in September 2020 destroyed much of the interior of the vacant concrete block, steel and glass grandstand, which is located at the western edge of the former horse track oval, close to the Hoosic River. State investigators determined that the likely cause of the fire was related to youths entering the vacant three-story grandstand to party, while apparently lighting campfires on the cement floors. The structure has been open to the elements since that time and has become the target of several town and state attempts to have the owner either secure it from trespassers or have it demolished. Simply demolishing the blackened grandstand could prove expensive for a new owner, with one estimate pegging the cost at more than $1 million. The property was most recently owned by Stephen Soler, a partner with the original investment group, called Progress Partners Ltd., that purchased the site in 2004 from Tietgens. In recent years, the track ownership entity has been called Green Mountain Race Track, LLC, with Soler as managing partner. The former track property also is home to a 2.2-megawatt capacity solar array in a section of the former track horse barn area, which began producing power in 2013. Pownal officials could not be reached Friday for comment on the auction posting. Tietgens had purchased the property at auction after it had been owned for a number of years by the Rooney family owners of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the Palm Beach (Florida) Kennel Club. The facility was constructed by an investment group for about $6 million in the early 1960s and opened for horse racing in 1963, originally considered a potential rival for Saratoga Race Track. The Pownal track was sold to the Rooneys in 1973 for $8.5 million. MILL RIVER When the sale of Limestone Farm became a matter of record last week, county and area dairymen and others were not sure whether to offer the former owners congratulations or condolences. Dear Reader, A few weeks ago, I told you that I was stepping down as publisher of The Berkshire Eagle, but I continue to be very involved with The Eagle as its president. I am writing today to share the very happy news that The Eagle was named New England Newspaper & Press Associations 2025 Newspaper of the Year for its weekday editions. In a related category, The Eagles Weekender edition was cited as a distinguished newspaper in the Sunday Newspaper of the Year category. These awards are testaments to the excellence of our reporting, editing and design, and something of which we can all be justifiably proud. More noteworthy, perhaps, is the fact that this marks an unprecedented, eighth straight year that The Eagle has been named Newspaper of the Year in New England in one or both of these categories. Completing a NENPA trifecta, The Eagle also received the Allan B. Rogers Editorial Award for the third time in the last three years. This award recognizes the best editorial on a local subject that ran in New England in 2025. The editorials were titled Miss Halls scandal calls for a hard look at consent law and Beacon Hill must not bury [state Rep. Leigh] Davis age of consent bill. The judges cited The Berkshire Eagle for its moral leadership in calling for reform of Massachusetts consent law. The award-winning editorials were written by Dave Coffey, our editorial page editor. LOCAL JOURNALISM FUND Two months ago, I wrote to you to announce the launch of the 2025 campaign for the Local Journalism Fund, the philanthropic effort that supports reporting in The Eagle. This years LJF drive will officially end Oct. 25, when we will publicly thank everyone who has donated over the past year. This years campaign has been very successful, but the more support we receive the more quality journalism we can deliver to you. So, if you have not given, or if you are able to make an additional gift, it is not too late to be recognized as a 2025 donor. The Local Journalism Fund is a partnership between The Berkshire Eagle and the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation to mobilize philanthropic resources to support reporting in the areas of education, health care, the environment and economic development. Please make checks payable to the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation with The Berkshire Eagle Local Journalism Fund on the checks memo line, and mail to Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, 800 North Main St., Sheffield, MA 01257-9503, or visit berkshireeagle.com/donate to give online. THE BERKSHIRE EAGLE STORE Finally, I am very happy to announce the opening of The Berkshire Eagle Store, an online site that offers Eagle-branded items ranging from our famous Read Local T-shirts to a throw blanket bearing an 1853 map of Berkshire County. The website is berkshireeaglestore.com. I am honored that the wizards who put the store together created a section called Freds Picks that features The Eagle-branded high-top sneakers one option is the pair that I am wearing in the photo accompanying this column and the other option is the pair Ill be wearing at the 2026 Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade. Shopping at The Berkshire Eagle Store is a way to support The Eagle and its mission and to find fun gifts for your friends, relatives and yourself. When you have a minute, check out our store. If you would like The Berkshire Eagle Store to carry additional items, please send me an email with your suggestion. If we accept it, we will give you a $50 store credit. Please keep reading The Eagle and supporting quality local journalism, Fred Carlos Roberto De Andrade sat in the Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office in Burlington, expecting another check-in like he's done several times before. He and his wife, Kimberly Moro, arrived early that morning on Aug. 22, waiting hours for De Andrade's name to be called. After most everyone had been seen, he finally heard his name. Then, two or three ICE agents approached. The 36-year-old Pittsfield man was taken behind a closed door, he said during an interview Thursday where his statements were translated by his lawyer, Shaan Chatterjee. The ICE agents told him he was being arrested, and De Andrade said he asked why. He said he was told it was "because of a new policy." De Andrade explained to the agents that he had a pending asylum claim as well as a marriage petition. It didn't matter, and De Andrade was taken to the Plymouth County Correctional Facility. De Andrade, a Brazilian auto mechanic, spent more than a month in ICE detention after being arrested under a policy he and his lawyer say was wrongly applied. A federal judge later ruled his detention unlawful, highlighting broader conflicts over how immigration laws are enforced, and underscoring the precarious reality for immigrants navigating the system even when following the rules. The day he was detained, his wife said she knew something was wrong, but was told to sit down and stay in the waiting room. She said she asked where he'd gone, but the employees didn't say. "I freaked out and started crying because I was so blindsided and shocked," she said. They wouldnt even tell me where they were bringing him." She was told to email the field office, and she was finally told his location. De Andrade said he wasn't allowed to make a phone call to Moro until the following day. What followed was more than a month in ICE detention. He recalls bad meals and feeling cold during his time there, and he eventually got sick. I was very, very afraid that I would be deported. I cried every day," he said. Deportation would have meant being sent back to a dangerous situation in his home country, he said. When he told the psychologist in the facility what happened to him in Brazil, he cried again, and the specialist suggested he begin psychiatric medication. De Andrade said he fled Brazil after being threatened by a police chief associated with a powerful criminal gang. He said the threats began in 2020 and continued into 2021, culminating in the officer attacking him and threatening his life. After the officer tracked him down even after he moved to another city in his home country, De Andrade said he realized he could no longer live safely in Brazil. He left for the United States in April 2021. He crossed the U.S. border near Otay Mesa, Calif., federal court filings state, where he was detained for about two months. He was then released on conditional parole in June 2021, and he moved to Framingham, Chatterjee said, before eventually relocating to Pittsfield for work as an auto mechanic. FEDERAL JUDGE ORDERS RELEASE On Tuesday, a federal judge ruled that immigration authorities unlawfully detained De Andrade under a statute meant for people seeking entry to the country, because he had already been conditionally paroled into the country as he sought asylum. In granting a writ of habeas corpus, U.S. District Judge F. Dennis Saylor IV wrote that the government could not turn back the clock to treat him as if he had just arrived at the border, ordering his immediate release from ICE custody while his case is adjudicated. The ruling was first reported by The Boston Globe. After Moro got the news from their attorney, she returned to the immigration field office in Burlington where they'd been separated over a month prior. The first thing De Andrade and Moro did after his release was visit her grandmother at her nursing home, she said. They'd grown close over the time Moro had served as her caretaker. It was a surprise; she didnt tell her family in advance that he was coming home. They went to the grocery store and bought food for dinner, then surprised the rest of her family at her mothers house. Her seven nieces and nephews had their tio back, she said, and her mother was overcome, crying and hugging him. The couple met in 2023, when they both worked at the 99 Restaurant in Pittsfield. They legally married about a year later, and planned a wedding ceremony to celebrate with friends and family for this Saturday at First Congregational Church in Dalton. But Moro said they made the difficult decision to postpone the ceremony in early September, once it became clear that he may not be released from ICE detention in time. Our wedding was supposed to be in two days on 10/11, Kim said Thursday. We pretty much made the decision that if we werent sure one way or the other, we were going to postpone it just because we had a lot of family coming from out of state. They are now considering rescheduling the wedding for next year on Oct. 10, their anniversary. FEAR THAT LINGERS Their postponed wedding is just part of what lingers from his detention. Even after the federal judge ruled his detention unlawful and ordered his release, De Andrade said he's still fearful. Im happy that Im home with my wife, but Im afraid that ICE is going to arrest me again, he said. Chatterjee, De Andrades attorney, said he believes the likelihood of ICE detaining him again while his asylum case is still pending is low given the federal judges order. I dont foresee ICE going after him again based on the federal judges order, Chatterjee said. Hypothetically, they could issue a warrant and rearrest him based on that. But in my experience, that hasnt been happening when someone is granted a writ of habeas corpus." Chatterjee said the only way he sees ICE trying to detain De Andrade again would be if he were arrested on a new criminal charge something he considers unlikely given De Andrades character and lack of criminal record. Chatterjee said De Andrades detention is part of a broader legal and policy clash between immigration judges and federal courts. He said ICE has been relying on a statute intended for people arriving at the border in order to detain people who have already been living in the United States. Chatterjee pointed to a growing rift between immigration judges and federal judges over how the law should be applied. "You have immigration judges on the one hand saying that this person has to be detained, and you have federal judges on the other hand saying, no, they have to be released," he said. "The federal judges ... are looking at the Constitution and the law as it is. He also emphasized that immigration courts are part of the executive branch, not the judiciary, which he said gave the federal judge the final say. Though he said he wasn't aware of a statistical analysis on this point, he said people in De Andrade's position are winning their habeas petitions, as "federal judges are just not playing ball with ICE interpretation of the border statute." 'JUST BE CAREFUL' Moro said it seems impossible to understand a situation like this until you've lived through it. Yet she's looking ahead to the future, and their plans to start a family after their wedding ceremony. Carlos is someone that did everything the right way, Chatterjee said. He went to all of his immigration check-ins, he "has zero criminal history." He applied for asylum on time, and filed his marriage petition on time. "All this stuff we hear about, 'Oh, they're only going after the bad immigrants, and not the people who do things the right way,' It's just not really consistent with what we're seeing on the ground," he said. "If Carlos can be thrown in ICE detention with criminals at Plymouth prison, anybody can." Asked what De Andrade would want people to know about himself and others in his situation, he said through Chatterjee's translation: "He wants to say to everyone, 'Just be careful, because I suffered. I suffered a lot when I was in immigration detention.'" A Heron 1, foreground, and Heron TP drones stand at the ILA Berlin Air Show on April 26, 2018, in Schoenefeld, Germany. "As important as drones are to modern warfare, they are in a continual chess match with signal-jamming technology," writes Eagle columnist Dalton Delan. At Lenox Librarys Banned Bookathon, readers push back against censorship one book at a time Organized by Lenox Library Director Katie ONeil, nearly 40 area residents signed up for 15-minute slots to push back against book censorship and challenges at public and school libraries. It felt really important to do something, O'Neil said. As journalists, freedom of speech, thought and information is always top of mind for us. Its especially so during Banned Books Week, the American Library Associations annual campaign drawing attention to the most challenged books in the country and the dangers of censorship in general. Banned Books Week culminates today on Let Freedom Read Day, defined by organizers call to action for all liberty-minded Americans: The freedom to read is under attack lets do something about it. We encourage our readers to do whatever they can, big or small, to take up this righteous mission to help defend books from censorship and to stand up for the library staff, educators, writers, publishers, and booksellers who make them available. Were grateful we live in a community where that call resonates and our neighbors show the way. Case in point: The Lenox Library on Wednesday hosted a Banned Bookathon. Nearly 40 residents signed up to read a 15-minute selection from a book that either has been banned in the past or faces current challenges somewhere in America. That these intrepid readers for freedom had enough material to stand and deliver for nine hours demonstrates the breadth of misguided censorship campaigns. Yet it also shows the depth of commitment to those most fundamental of freedoms to express and think for oneself right here in our Berkshire backyard. In fact, wed encourage more public libraries to follow Lenoxs lead. And they neednt wait until next years Banned Books Week, since the freedom to read is always essential and increasingly in need of defense. The Banned Bookathon was the brainchild of Lenox Library Director Katie ONeil and Library Trustee Shawnee Tannenbaum. Ms. ONeil served as the opening reader and chose a fitting source: the appendix titled The Principles of Newspeak from George Orwells 1984. Ms. Tannenbaum, who serves as the self-described keeper of books and keeping the books at her fathers local business The Bookstore, highlighted the need for grassroots support of the basic freedoms that powerful forces are undermining in many corners of the country. How lucky we are to live in a town where our school committee meetings are not about banned books? Its something we take for granted here, Ms. Tannenbaum told an Eagle reporter. As she suggests, we cannot take these precious rights for granted. Massachusetts often has been a leader in academic freedom and civil rights since the nations founding. Still, no one is truly immune to the cowardly instincts of censorship and repression, as we are painfully relearning in the ostensible land of the free. Great Barrington was roiled by controversy in December 2023 after police searched a middle school English classroom for a book following a school janitors complaint over the books content. Its worth noting that the book at the center of that controversy, Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe, is still among the 10 books facing the most challenges for removal or restriction in American schools or libraries, according to the ALAs most recently available data. Elsewhere in the commonwealth, federal authorities in March arrested Tufts University graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk and threatened her with deportation because she co-authored an op-ed on the Israel-Palestine conflict for the Tufts student newspaper. These attacks on the very spirit of the First Amendment would be bad enough on their own, but they fit into an alarming trend. The Trump administrations systematic crackdown on universities, museums and libraries is a direct assault on academic freedom. The Federal Communications Commissions mafioso-like threat over a late-night comedians monologue underscores how low authoritarians will go to quash criticism and dissent. The presidents attempt to undo long-settled precedent on constitutional protections of free expression via executive order should be a wake-up call to all who value civil liberties regardless of partisan affiliation. The right to speak, think, write and read freely is the core of democracy; without one, we do not have the other. So if youre wondering what meaningful action an individual can take in this dangerous time for democracy, have a look in a book perhaps a banned one and stand up for the freedom to read and the local institutions that protect this endangered liberty. Kerala unveils BioEconomy Report 2025, sets target of $11-12 B by 2030 October 11, 2025 | Saturday | News By 2030, Kerala aims to establish district-level biotech clusters and ESG-compliant bioindustrial parks During Bio Connect 3.0, held on 9 and 10 October in Trivandrum, the Government of Kerala released the State BioEconomy Report 2025, a comprehensive blueprint to position the state as a national leader in sustainable bio-based innovation. Prepared by the Association of Biotechnology Led Enterprises (ABLE) for Kerala Lifesciences Industries Parks (KLIP), a subsidiary of Kerala State Industrial Development Corporation (KSIDC), the report projects the states BioEconomy value at $ 7.53 billion (Rs 62,000 crore) and sets a target of $11-12 billion (Rs 1 lakh crore) by 2030. Keralas BioEconomy brings together science, sustainability, and social welfare, said the HChief Minister of Kerala. By 2030, we aim to make bio-based industries a key pillar of the states Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP), creating value through innovation, wellness, and ecological stewardship. BioPharma (44.2%) leads with Ayurveda, nutraceuticals, medical devices, and therapeutics. BioIndustrial (35.2%) follows, driven by biofuels, marine biotechnology, and fermentation-based industries. According to Kerala Startup Mission (KSUM), Kerala hosts 320 recognised startups in life sciences and allied domains across all 14 districts, led by Ernakulam, Thiruvananthapuram, and Thrissur. Complementing this, ABLE Research analysis based on Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) data shows 275 new startup incorporations between 2022 and mid-2025, with BioPharma leading 2024 registrations at 47%. Together, these data sets confirm Keralas emergence as one of Indias most geographically inclusive biotechnology ecosystems. Keralas healthcare and life sciences sector has attracted over $35.8 million (Rs 301 crore) in investments between 2020 and 2025. Major deals include DentCare Dental Lab ($17.5 million) and Cyrix Healthcare ($16.5 million), with early-stage activity from startups such as Piiko Labs and Previu Health. The Kerala Medical Technology Consortium (KMTC), established in 2018, now anchors a network of 32 research institutions and 86 licensed MedTech firms, collectively generating Rs 9,000 crore ($1.05 billion) in annual outputaround 20% of Indias medical device production. The BioEconomy aligns with the Kerala Industrial Policy 2023 and the upcoming Biotechnology & Life Sciences Policy, said P. Rajeev, Minister for Law, Industries and Coir, Government of Kerala. Brutally racist statements by a potential new Czech Foreign Secretary: "Burning a gypsy child is a mitigating circumstance. Obama is a nigger." 10. 10. 2025 cas cteni 10 minut Update, Saturday 16.00 hrs.: Babis has now said that he will not appoint Turek to the post of foreign secretary. * * * Last week, the somewhat questionable oligarch and populist politician Andrej Babis won the Czech general election. However, in order to achieve a majority government of at least 101 seats in the 200-seat Czech parliament, since he has won only 80 seats, he has been forced to rely on the support of two small extremist political parties, the SPD and the so called "Motorists". Filip Turek from the "Motorists" party has allegedly now been nominated to become the new Czech Foreign Secretary in Babis's new government. The Prague-based daily newspaper Denik N has just published a number of grossly racist and insulting comments that Mr. Turek has published (and later erased) on social networks. The publication of these gross statements has shocked many Czechs, who are rightly asking whether such a person can really become the new Foreign Secretary of the Czech Republic. Here are some extensive quotes translated from the Denik N article: Filip Turek, a possible future foreign minister, repeatedly posted openly racist, sexist, and homophobic statements on Facebook, as well as numerous references to Hitler and Mussolini. Denik N has access to an archive of his later deleted posts and comments. Turek described the publication of his statements as "a shameless attempt to discredit me." Overall, his public statements on social media reveal his adoration of totalitarian regimesHitler's Germany and fascist Italyand his contempt for various groups of citizens. The Motorists' candidate for Czech foreign minister made racist remarks about representatives of foreign states for example, he described former US President Barack Obama as "a negro who can at best sell hashish at the train station." He also made xenophobic remarks about Meghan Markle, the wife of Britain's Prince Harry. He described Norway as a "left-wing parastate" and "the vanguard of the degeneration of the elites," to which he would "declare war." Many of these posts were later deleted, but Denik N has screenshots and the original URLs. Filip Turek did not respond to phone calls and only sent a short statement to the editorial office after the article was published. "It is difficult for me to respond to this shameless attempt to discredit me. Attempts to make me out to be a racist are completely ridiculous, especially given that I have been serving for years as ambassador for one of the associations of Roma entrepreneurs in the Czech Republic, a position I took on long before entering politics," he wrote to Denik N. He did not respond to specific questions. Here is an overview of Filip Turek's most serious statements. "Planet of the Apes" The racist post about Barack Obama quoted above dates from 2011. The archive available to Denik N contains posts published between 2009 and 2021. Racism, xenophobic statements, and references to Adolf Hitler permeate this entire period. Five years ago, Turek made repeated references to Meghan Markle, a member of the British royal family whose mother is of African American descent. "I think she'll run away with someone from her tribe anyway," he wrote on a photo of her wedding to Prince Harry. In an older post, he called her "trash." Turek made similar judgments about African American culture and other ethnic groups in general. "Well, I can't imagine filming myself in LA, where one lady stands next to another in a Rolls-Royce Corniche, not only because I'm black, but also because I'm going shopping with my fellow blacks... it's just Planet of the Apes, late episode, where monkeys drive Veyrons." In other posts, Turek wrote about "Arab filth." In a post from 2015, he added: "Let the Arabs live in the White House instead of the Negroes, and there are plenty of places in labor camps for the rest of them; there's still a great piece of land called Israel." "Burning a gypsy is a mitigating circumstance" Perhaps Turek's most offensive statements were directed at the Roma. He commented on the well-known arson attack by three neo-Nazis on a Roma family in Vitkov in the Opava region, in which a three-year-old girl, Natalka, suffered serious burns. She still suffers from the serious consequences of her injuries: "Setting someone's property on fire is stupid, but the fact that a gypsy was burned should, if anything, be considered a mitigating circumstance. It's exactly the opposite," he added in comments referring to the fate of the burned Natalka. In 2018, he distinguished between "normal people" and Roma. "If a group of normal people did this to a gypsy, they would all go to prison for x years for a racially motivated attempted murder," he commented on the attack on a young man by a group of Roma in Dubi in northern Bohemia. "Women's suffrage the biggest mistake of the 20th century" In posts from 20152018, he repeatedly disparaged their intellectual abilities "Before women's suffrage flooded the world, there was order on the planet," he wrote in one post. He also linked his anti-feminist views with homophobic remarks. "It's simply not possible for two fags to raise a little boy!" he said about the possibility of same-sex couples adopting children. "So the opinions of infantile mothers, feminists, faggots, and deviants are important? Women's suffrage was the biggest mistake of the 20th century, and one day people will realize that," he said. He described women in other positions as "immature" and "incapable of making decisions," emphasizing the alleged historical "superiority" of men: "And I ask, what have women ever achieved that they dare to make decisions about children of the historically superior male sex?!" Turek repeatedly expressed his belief in the superiority of men and "Western civilization." In August 2021, he wrote: "White men built and, thank God, continue to build this world as we know it. Is there really a retard who finds this unnatural?" Attacks on LGBTQ The archives of Turk's posts repeatedly contain sharply homophobic statements. In them, the elected representative uses vulgar terms for homosexual people (f*ggots, queers, deviants) and expresses contempt for them. In July 2016, he wrote: "What kind of impulses lead all these terribly modern and cool chicks to fanatically defend the right of f*ggots to raise adopted children?! ... You call 'dad' and two of them turn around, then you start clarifying which one you mean, and you're f*cked." He responded even more sharply in the comments: "It's just not possible for two f*ggots to raise a little boy! And no boy would want that, isn't that a strong enough argument? So the opinions of infantile mothers, feminists, queers, and deviants are important?" In February 2017, he wrote in response to an article about the first gay couple to adopt a child in Czechia: "Let everyone fuck whoever they want, but this is simply a crime against nature and naturalness... denying biological predispositions is a sign of degeneration." In subsequent comments, he described homosexuality as an "innate defect" and added that if "two dykes adopted a baby, it would be very surprised in a few years," and added the sentence "lesbians go after little boys." In June 2021, he shared a post by CT24 about Munich wanting to light up the stadium in rainbow colors during a match against Germany to support sexual minorities and protest against a Hungarian law restricting the dissemination of information about LGBTQ among children. However, UEFA banned it as a "political gesture." Turek added: "Every proud German simply died in 1945 at the latest." Praise for Mussolini and Hitler Filip Turek repeatedly used language and symbols associated with Nazism and fascism on his profile. He referred to Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini or their ideology, often stylizing similar posts with exaggeration. Turek repeatedly referred to himself as "the Fuhrer." In October 2021, he wrote about himself: "The Fuhrer arrived to modestly celebrate his creations in a small circle at his beloved cottage." He also frequently mentions the Eagle's Nest, Hitler's mountain residence in Bavaria. In another post, he stated: "Since I am white, I give the Nazi salute and publicly mock the American army like an oligarch, I will sleep in the capital like a human being and arrive at the scene of the attack in the morning well-rested, stoned, and with a star on my badge." His profile also contained obvious references to the Holocaust: "The Jewish Bolsheviks get gifts from Father Frost or Santa Claus, I get them from Baby Jesus, and when I misbehave, I get them from myself or Hitler! In the eagle's nest, during these holy days, I am working on a loose continuation of our favorite Czech-German national fairy tale. It will be called Three Wagons for Cinderella," he wrote, with an obvious reference to transports to concentration camps. "And it will be followed by Three Chimneys," he added. In short: Turek did not respond to questions from Denik N, and Motorists chairman Petr Macinka did not comment on the findings. Source in Czech (paywall) HERE -1 8934 Denik N has access to an archive of Turek's Facebook posts, which he deleted after entering active politics. They contain a number of openly racist statements, in which Turek repeatedly professes his admiration for Hitler, mocks the Holocaust, rejects women's suffrage, and vulgarly insults LGBTQ people. In 2010, he described the burning of three-year-old Roma girl Natalka as a "mitigating circumstance" for the convicted arsonists from Vitkov.In 2015, Turek asked in the comments whether Obama was "so stupid because he's a nigger."Turek also expressed his views on women very explicitly on Facebook.He repeated similar views in subsequent years. "No! A little boy or even a grown man would never, under any circumstances, want two f*ggots as parents. Women and f*ggots are the only ones promoting this, so let them adopt little girls! Not little boys!" he wrote in one of the discussions.Similarly, Turek has likened himself to Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. In posts from 2016 and 2017, he used slogans and phrases associated with the fascist cult of personality. In one of them, he wrote: "Tutti avanti Benito Mussolini!" In another, he added the comment: "Only Iago! And the bastard. Tutti avanti Benito Mussolini!" (A tutti, Avanti, Benito Mussolini! is a fascist slogan still used in the neo-Nazi scene, ed. note). Denik N obtained an archive of Filip Turek's Facebook posts from 2009 to 2021. In them, the likely foreign minister expresses openly racist and homophobic views and refers to Hitler's Germany and fascist Italy. He approves of the burning of three-year-old Natalka in an arson attack in Vitkov in the Opava region. Daniel Kahneman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2002. (archive picture) Picture: sda At the age of 90, Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman chose to die a self-determined death in Switzerland. He spent his last days in Paris - conscious, fulfilled and quiet. Sven Ziegler No time? blue News summarizes for you The Israeli-American psychologist Daniel Kahneman chose assisted suicide in Switzerland on March 27, 2024. The Nobel Prize winner wanted to forestall a phase of mental and physical decline. His final step was well-considered - and yet difficult for many to understand. Show more In March 2024, Daniel Kahneman celebrated his 90th birthday - surrounded by his partner Barbara Tversky, his daughter and her family in Paris. The Israeli-American psychologist strolled through the city, visited museums and the ballet, enjoyed souffles and chocolate mousse. They were days full of life. But towards the end of his stay, Kahneman began to send a personal message to close friends: a farewell email. On March 26, he left his family and flew to Zurich. One day later, he died by assisted suicide. In the email, he wrote openly about his decision, as theWall Street Journalhas now revealed: He was convinced that the suffering and humiliations of old age were superfluous - and that it was now time to go. He wanted to "forestall natural decline, not slip helplessly into a state" that he himself had experienced with his mother, his wife Anne Treisman and other loved ones. His partner died in 2018 as a result of vascular dementia. The loss affected him deeply. Kahneman wanted to preserve his autonomy until the end Although Daniel Kahneman neither suffered from dementia nor required dialysis, he said he noticed an "increase in mental lapses and a decline in his kidney function". His decision seems to have been based less on his famous scientific thinking and more on a very personal feeling. He wanted to retain his autonomy until the end and to shape his own end. Kahneman knew that many would see his decision as premature. But that was exactly what he intended, he wrote: If you wait until a life is "obviously no longer worth living", it is already too late. Therefore, his move was inevitably premature. He had spoken about it with some people close to him, and even though they initially resisted, they had finally accepted his decision. Kahneman: "Thank you all for helping me" Daniel Kahneman did not want to make a statement or start a debate. "I am not ashamed of my decision," he wrote, "but I don't want it to be discussed publicly either." Even in death, the Nobel laureate remained modest - his wish was that his passing should not dominate the obituaries. He spent his last days in Paris - remembering, enjoying, writing. And even at the end, when asked what he would like to do, he said: "I would like to learn something." Kahneman lived to the end as a curious researcher. He closed his email with the words: "Thank you all for helping me to make this life a good one." Suicidal thoughts? You can find help here: These services are available around the clock for people in suicidal crises and for those around them. Dargebotene Hand counseling hotline: Telephone number 143 or counseling hotline: Telephone number 143 or www.143.ch Pro Juventute counseling hotline (for children and young people): Telephone number 147 or counseling hotline (for children and young people): Telephone number 147 or www.147.ch Further addresses and information: www.reden-kann-retten.ch Refugium: Association for bereaved people after suicide : Perspectives after the suicide of a parent Addresses for people who have lost someone to suicide:: Association for bereaved people after suicide Sea of fog : Perspectives after the suicide of a parent Show more More videos from this section Kelly Osbourne surprised her mother Sharon Osbourne with a heartfelt birthday gesture her first since the death of her husband Ozzy Osbourne. Kelly Osbourne surprised her mother Sharon Osbourne with a heartfelt birthday gesture her first since the death of her husband Ozzy Osbourne Black Sabbath frontman Ozzy, died aged 76 on 22 July from heart failure at his home in Buckinghamshire, just two weeks after performing a farewell concert with his bandmates at Birminghams Villa Park. And Kelly, 40, has now shared videos on Instagram showing the surprise decorations she had arranged while her mother slept. She said on her Instagram Stories: Shhh! So its my moms birthday today, and I just decorated her room. Panning the camera across floating balloons and wrapped gifts before turning the camera towards Sharon, who had just turned 73, Kelly added: And shes still sleeping. Music manager Sharon has spoken about the overwhelming love and support she has received since her husbands death, saying she had been carried through by those around her and was still finding her footing. Sharon and Ozzys son, Jack Osbourne said about her state of mind on Good Morning America: Shes okay, but shes not okay. I know she feels the love. A new BBC One documentary, Sharon and Ozzy Osbourne: Coming Home, recently chronicled the rock legends final years, including his return to Britain after more than three decades in the US. The series came along with the release of the Paramount+ film Ozzy: No Escape From Now, which includes the couples eldest daughter, Aimee Osbourne, speaking about her fathers final years. Ozzy had battled multiple health issues, including Parkinsons disease and coronary artery disease, before his death. His death certificate, published in August and obtained by The New York Times, listed the causes of his passing as out of hospital cardiac arrest, acute myocardial infarction, coronary artery disease and Parkinsons disease with autonomic dysfunction. The family announced his death in a statement saying: It is with more sadness than mere words can convey that we have to report that our beloved Ozzy Osbourne has passed away this morning. He was with his family and surrounded by love. We ask everyone to respect our family privacy at this time. Black Sabbaths 1969 debut album helped define heavy metal, while their 1970 follow-up, Paranoid, included the classics War Pigs, Iron Man and Fairies Wear Boots songs that cemented Ozzys legacy as the self-styled Prince of Darkness. State Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Washington D.C. West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming Puerto Rico US Virgin Islands Armed Forces Americas Armed Forces Pacific Armed Forces Europe Northern Mariana Islands Marshall Islands American Samoa Federated States of Micronesia Guam Palau Alberta, Canada British Columbia, Canada Manitoba, Canada New Brunswick, Canada Newfoundland, Canada Nova Scotia, Canada Northwest Territories, Canada Nunavut, Canada Ontario, Canada Prince Edward Island, Canada Quebec, Canada Saskatchewan, Canada Yukon Territory, Canada Postal Code Loose Women star Charlene White has announced her amazing father Denniston has taken his own life. A message from White, 45, and the TV presenters family members, said they had decided to be open about their loss as hiding emotions and the true depth of our feelings hurt, pain, shock, grief etc. helps no-one. Whites Instagram post, which included a photo of her father smiling on a beach, said two weeks ago our lives changed forever because unbeknownst to us, our dad had been living with a dark cloud he couldnt lift. White added: This kind of grief is new and unexpected and were still finding our way. Hug your parents close, and always tell them that you love them. Because thats sort of our job as children, to love them, no matter where the road eventually takes them. Advertisement Even if they end up taking the hardest most unfathomable path. But we have each other, and I dont know how wed ever be able to see a sliver of brightness and light in everyday without each other to lean on. And the million extended family members, and tribes of friends whove held our hearts and our hands over the past two weeks. White said the family had celebrated Jamaican nine night, a traditional funeral celebration held on the ninth night after a death. The ancestors were right it was the most perfect way to release our grief through food, dancing, drink and joy, with hundreds of friends and family. All organised by our tribe of friends and family. Were incredibly blessed, White said. Denniston was an amazing dad, step dad, surrogate dad to many, friend, brother, grandad, uncle, cousin and husband. And were all just taking it step by step. From Charlene, Liz, Joshua, Carina, Jade, Gemma, Justin, Soriah, Alfie, Florence, Kairo, Elisha and Shaniya. White is a presenter on ITV News and Loose Women and appeared on Im A Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here! in 2022. Reese Witherspoon wants to mentor the next generation of female stars in Hollywood. Reese Witherspoon is hoping to mentor aspiring females in Hollywood The 49-year-old star was grateful for those who helped her out during the early years of her movie career and is determined to "pass the microphone" to those trying to find their way in the industry. Speaking to E! News at her media company Hello Sunshine's annual Shine Away event in Los Angeles, Reese said: "Mentorship is everything. "I just had lunch with my mentor yesterday, who helped me so much in my 20s. She really guided me and gave me great advice about choices I was gonna make in my career, but also my personal life. "It's important for women to find ways to connect in real life and learn from each other, really gather those best practices, those critical words of wisdom that can really guide you." Witherspoon has welcomed five new mentees to the Hello Sunshine Collective and explained that the company was set up to benefit others. The Walk the Line star said: "Hello Sunshine was never just about me. It always about passing the microphone or shining a light on another woman and her accomplishments. So, the Collective is an extension of that." Reese has produced hit shows such as The Morning Show and Daisy Jones and the Six through Hello Sunshine and says her younger self would be "blown away" by the company's success. The Legally Blonde actress said: "I think my younger self would be blown away. "She'd be astounded at the community that Hello Sunshine has become. I was always looking for connection with other people and celebrating my friends growing up. I think women are so interesting, so my natural curiosity has gotten me to this place." The Shine Away event takes place across the weekend and brings women from various fields together - with speakers including Chrissy Teigen, Brittany Snow and Olivia Culpo. Witherspoon said: "We get some of the greatest female entrepreneurs, experts and talent to come and talk about their passions. "So much of our lives is taken over by scrolling and the internet, and it's an opportunity to get off your phone and into your real life and have a little inspiration." Taoiseach Micheal Martin has said he is deeply sorry for how Fianna Fail candidate Jim Gavin had fared during the presidential race. The Fianna Fail leader said he had not spoken to the partys former presidential contender but said he was in touch with friends of Mr Gavin. Mr Gavin withdrew as a presidential contender last Sunday after a tenant claimed he tried to recover 3,300 in overpaid rent from Mr Gavin 16 years ago. Ive been speaking to people close to Jim, he said. I think Jim is obviously having time with himself and his family, and I think that should be respected, and I think its been very traumatic for him and very difficult for him and for his family, and Im very conscious and aware of that. Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin attended a grassroots event in Dublin (Niall Carson/PA) I have been talking to close friends of Jim. He said he is glad to see that that has been resolved in relation to Mr Gavin reportedly repaying his former tenant 3,300. Advertisement I think the tenant is also a victim in all of this, he said. I listened to the podcast (the tenant spoke on) and I think he spoke frankly and candidly and in a very reasonable manner. So Im glad that that has been resolved. He made the comments at the annual Fianna Fail grassroots event on Saturday evening in Dublin, days after he apologised to his parliamentary party for how presidential candidate Mr Gavin fared. Addressing the event, he said he was deeply sorry for how things turned out, and acknowledged the disappointment within the party. Clearly we need to have a new procedure for deciding when we run a candidate for president and who that candidate is to be, he said. I for one support the idea that we move to a process which is in tune with the wider reforms which we have introduced in the past. Tonight, we think of Jim Gavin and his family, who have gone through a very traumatic time, he added, which drew applause from the room. Jim Gavin has made a very significant contribution to our country as UN peacekeeper, public servant and in his impactful work in the North East inner city of Dublin, where he is hugely respected. This needs to be said. Speaking to the media before his address, Mr Martin also explained his decision not to direct party members to vote a certain way, stating it would represent a certain degree of arrogance if he did. Advertisement He said he would vote for Fine Gael candidate Heather Humphreys, as its important that the president of Ireland is one who can get on with other countries, but said he would not campaign for her. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys cuts a cake at half-time during a visit to a game in Tipperary while on the campaign trail (Niall Carson/PA) Earlier, Ms Humphreys thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her. Presidential candidate Catherine Connolly said on Saturday that Mr Martin was entitled to back Ms Humphreys and said: I think he probably has actually clarified the situation that for the leadership of Fianna Fail there is very little difference between Fianna Fail and Fine Gael, so the people of Ireland have a clear choice to make now. Mr Gavins withdrawal has left just two candidates in the race ahead of polling day in less than two weeks. On Saturday, Ms Humphreys canvassed in Co Tipperary, while left-wing independent Ms Connolly met people in counties Waterford and Wexford. Speaking at Upperchurch Drombane GAA, Ms Humphreys was asked about comments from former Fine Gael minister and broadcaster Ivan Yates calling on Fine Gael to smear the bejaysus out of Ms Connolly. Ms Connolly said she was absolutely shocked when she heard Mr Yatess comments and said it trivialised the election campaign. Ms Humphreys responded: Ivan Yates is a commentator, and he hasnt been in Fine Gael for the last 25 years, and hes certainly not advising me on my campaign. I need all the votes I can get, there's no question about that Heather Humphreys Hes entitled to say what he thinks himself. Hes no more involved in my campaign than Joe Brolly is involved in Catherine Connollys campaign. So I wont be a candidate thats going to smear anybody, but I will ask the hard questions, and I have already a number of issues that I think Catherine needs to clarify. Advertisement She raised the issue again of Ms Connolly giving a woman with a Special Criminal Court conviction access to the Dail for six months while Garda clearance was pending. She said: We all know the rules are very clear, you must have Garda vetting. We talk about trying to unite people in this country, were talking about a united Ireland. Eirigi are the very people that tried to pull down the Good Friday Agreement. She also raised questions about using 3,691 of parliamentary allowance for a trip to Syria in 2018. I really do believe she needs to answer those questions, but those are straight questions, and thats acceptable in any campaign, Ms Humphreys said. These are the questions that will be debated during the campaign, but I certainly wont be smearing anybody. Appealing for votes, Ms Humphreys said she was a centre ground candidate at a divisive time who wont fall out with our European neighbours. I need all the votes I can get, theres no question about that, she said as she pledged to travel on trade missions all over the world if she became president. Ms Humphreys also thanked Mr Martin for saying he would vote for her after Mr Gavins shock withdrawal. Fine Gael presidential candidate Heather Humphreys meets Ruth Ryan, aged four, holding her teddy Bruno, during a visit to Upperchurch Drombane GAA in Tipperary (Niall Carson/PA) After surviving a leadership wobble during the week, Mr Martin said he would not be telling party members who to vote for, stating that when you start telling people how to vote, they generally go in the opposite direction. Asked about discontent within Fianna Fail, junior minister Niall Collins said the issue needed to be put into perspective. Advertisement Nobody is dead, he said on RTE Radio. Ms Humphreys said she had received phone calls from some Fianna Fail members who will definitely vote for me. Id just like to thank the Taoiseach, Micheal Martin, for saying that hes supporting me and hes going to vote for me. I do appreciate that, she said. Asked about her stance on fox hunting, Ms Humphreys said she is in favour of rural pursuits, stating that there are many controls and many regulations in place. The candidates are entering the final week of campaigning, which includes a one-on-one debate on RTE Radio on Sunday. The last poll conducted, which was published last Sunday before Mr Gavins withdrawal, put Ms Connolly ahead of Ms Humphreys. A woman who is accused of murdering two men asked about taking a boat out on Lough Sheelin - where the deceased's bodies were eventually found - the day before the men were last seen alive, a witness has told the Central Criminal Court. The trial also heard on Friday that the accused Ruth Lawrence later borrowed an electric engine from her landlord, having told him that her boyfriend, South African national Neville van der Westhuizen, had a bad back and "wouldn't be able for much rowing". Ms Lawrence (45), who is originally from Clontarf in Dublin but with an address at Patricks Cottage, Ross, Mountnugent in Co Meath has pleaded not guilty to murdering Anthony Keegan (33) and Eoin O'Connor (32) at an unknown location within the State on a date between April 22nd 2014 and May 26, 2014, both dates inclusive. Advertisement Auctioneer Geraldine O'Reilly told Michael O'Higgins SC, prosecuting, she received instructions from the owner of Patricks Cottage in December 2013 to put the property on the rental market. Ms O'Reilly said the accused Ms Lawrence signed a lease and the tenancy commenced on December 19th 2013. Declan McCabe said he is the owner and landlord of Patricks Cottage, which is on the shore of Lough Sheelin in Co Cavan. Mr McCabe, who is a boat builder, said he had picked up rent from his tenant Ms Lawrence on April 21st 2014 when she inquired about going out on the lake as the weather was good. "She wanted to know where she would get a boat. I told her where the boat was at the back of Sheelin Cottage on the lake. She was inquiring about something with a cabin and I said all I had was a lakeboat," said Mr McCabe. The witness said he told Ms Lawrence that another person living on the lake might have a cabin boat. "Maybe she wanted some shelter but no reason was given," he added. Mr McCabe said he told the accused he had oars but she had inquired about an engine. He said he could get a lend of an electric engine for her. The witness went on to say he had suggested a boat with oars but the accused told him that her boyfriend Mr van der Westhuizen had a bad back and wouldn't be able for much rowing. Mr McCabe said Ms Lawrence and her boyfriend Neville arrived in a van to pick up the engine two days later on April 23. He said Neville had got out of the vehicle and gestured "oh my back". Advertisement The witness said he showed them how to clip the engine and told them to bring it back when they were finished with it as it didn't belong to him. Neville put the engine into the back of the van. He said there was no panic and everything was calm and relaxed. Around noon the next day, he said the couple returned the engine and Ms Lawrence told him: "we didn't really go out so thanks anyways". Mr McCabe agreed that he subsequently checked the state of the engine's battery and it was green. He said this meant there was very little battery used, if any at all. When Mr McCabe accompanied gardai to Patricks Cottage on April 29 he saw it had been abandoned and there was no sign of life. The house was untidy and the couple's three dogs were gone, he told the court. The prosecutor said in his opening address that the last contact on Mr O'Connor and Mr Keegan's mobile phones was on the night of April 22, 2014 and a missing persons investigation began that week as Mr O'Connor's family became very concerned about the two men. Earlier, Anthony Roche, whose sister was the partner of Eoin O'Connor, said Mr O'Connor called to his house in Bailieborough in Co Cavan on April 21 2014. Mr Roche said Mr O'Connor told him he was going to Cavan to "collect a few quid" from "a black fella" and "another fella whose daughter had a red Nissan Micra". Asked by the prosecutor why he was looking for money, the witness said "someone" owed Mr O'Connor money for cannabis. Advertisement In his opening address, Mr O'Higgins, told the jury that the State would argue that Ms Lawrence shot drug dealer Mr O'Connor and worked "as a unit" with her boyfriend to kill him and another man, with their bodies later found "bound in rope, tape and covered in tarpaulin" by fishermen on Inchicup Island on May 26th 2014. Counsel for the State said the 12 jurors would hear evidence that the accused woman shot one of the two men but this was not immediately fatal and was "quickly followed up" by a shot from the defendant's boyfriend, Mr van der Westhuizen. The 12 jurors were also told by Mr O'Higgins it is the prosecution case that the accused woman and her boyfriend had "spoken openly" about "the murders and disposing of the bodies". The trial continues on Tuesday before Mr Justice Tony Hunt and a jury of four men and eight women. US President Donald Trump is in exceptional health, his doctor said after he underwent a check-up that included lab tests and preventive health assessments at Walter Reed National Military Medical Centre. Mr Trump spent roughly three hours at the hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, for what his doctor, Navy Captain Sean Barbabella, called a scheduled follow-up evaluation that was a part of his ongoing health maintenance plan. While there, the president also got his yearly flu shot, as well as a Covid-19 booster vaccine. President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington (Alex Brandon/AP) President Donald J Trump remains in exceptional health, exhibiting strong cardiovascular, pulmonary, neurological and physical performance, Capt Barbabella wrote in a one-page memo released by the White House. The doctor noted in the memo that the evaluation helped prepare for Mr Trumps upcoming overseas trips and included advanced imaging, lab testing and preventive health assessments. Advertisement The president is travelling to the Middle East this weekend and is scheduled to fly to Asia at the end of this month. Capt Barbabella also said he evaluated Mr Trumps cardiac age, which was about 14 years younger than his chronological age. Mr Trump is 79 and was the oldest US president at his inauguration. The White House this week initially described Mr Trumps Walter Reed visit as a routine yearly check-up, although he had his annual physical in April. The president then called it a semi-annual physical. Mr Trumps April physical found that he was fully fit to serve as commander in chief. The three-page summary of the exam done by Capt Barbabella then said he had lost 20lbs (nine kilograms) since a medical exam in June 2020 and said he has an active lifestyle that continues to contribute significantly to the wellbeing of the president. In July, the White House announced that Mr Trump had recently undergone a medical check-up after noticing mild swelling in his lower legs and was found to have a condition common in older adults that causes blood to pool in his veins. President Donald Trump gives a thumbs-up (Alex Brandon/AP) Tests by the White House medical unit showed that Mr Trump has chronic venous insufficiency, which occurs when little valves inside the veins that normally help move blood against gravity gradually lose the ability to work properly. At the April physical, Mr Trump also passed a short screening test to assess different brain functions. Advertisement Presidents have large discretion over what health information they choose to release to the public. Mr Trumps summary from his April exam included information about his weight, body mass index, past surgeries, mental health screenings, cholesterol levels and blood pressure. When spokesperson Karoline Leavitt discussed the results of his chronic venous insufficiency diagnosis from the briefing room, she noted that the White House was disclosing details of the check-up to dispel rumours about Mr Trumps health. At the time, Mr Trump was frequently observed with bruising on his hand. The Republican president has also repeatedly used the issue of health as a political cudgel. He repeatedly questioned the mental and physical health of his Democratic predecessor Joe Biden, and pointed out that he has undergone cognitive testing that Mr Biden had not. Mr Biden has brushed aside those criticisms and said he was fit to serve, but he dropped out of the 2024 race for the White House after a disastrous debate with Mr Trump raised doubts about his fitness for office. Power has been restored to more than 800,000 residents in Kyiv a day after major attacks by Russia on the Ukrainian power grid caused blackouts across much of the country. Ukraines largest private energy company DTEK said on Saturday that the main work to restore the power supply had been completed, but that some localised outages were still affecting the Ukrainian capital following Fridays massive Russian attacks. Russian drone and missile strikes wounded at least 20 people in Kyiv, damaged residential buildings and caused blackouts across swathes of Ukraine early on Friday. Emergency services personnel work at the scene following a Russian attack in Brovary, near Kyiv, Ukraine (Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP) Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the attack as one of the largest concentrated strikes against Ukraines energy infrastructure. Russias Defence Ministry on Friday said the strikes had targeted energy facilities supplying Ukraines military. Advertisement It did not give details of those facilities, but said Russian forces used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and strike drones against them. The energy sector has been a key battleground since Russia launched its all-out invasion more than three years ago. Each year, Russia has tried to cripple the Ukrainian power grid before the bitter winter season, apparently hoping to erode public morale. Winter temperatures run from late October through to March, with January and February the coldest months. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said in his nightly address on Friday that Russia was taking advantage of the world being almost entirely focused on the prospect of establishing peace in the Middle East, and called for strengthening Ukraines air defence systems and tighter sanctions on Russia. Russian assets must be fully used to strengthen our defence and ensure recovery, he said in the video, posted to X. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said in a joint statement on Friday they were ready to move towards using in a co-ordinated way, the value of the immobilised Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraines armed forces and thus bring Russia to the negotiation table. The statement added they aimed to do this in close co-operation with the United States. Ukraines budget and military needs for 2026 and 2027 are estimated to total around 130 billion euros. The European Union has already poured in 174 billion euros since the war started in February 2022. Advertisement The biggest pot of ready funds available is through frozen Russian assets, most of which is held in Belgium around 194 billion euros as of June and outside the EU in Japan, with around 50 billion dollars, and the US, UK and Canada with lesser amounts. Ukraines air force said on Saturday that its air defences intercepted or jammed 54 of 78 Russian drones launched against Ukraine overnight, while Russias Defence Ministry said it had shot down 42 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory. At least two people were killed and five wounded in air strikes on Kostiantynivka, a city in Ukraines Donetsk region, on Saturday, regional governor Vadim Filashkin said. Mr Zelensky said on Saturday that he had a very positive and productive phone call with US President Donald Trump. In a post on X, Mr Zelensky said he told Mr Trump about Russian attacks on Ukraines energy system, and that the two discussed opportunities to strengthen Ukraines air defence. There needs to be readiness on the Russian side to engage in real diplomacy this can be achieved through strength, Mr Zelensky wrote. Advertisement Updated WorldMiddle EastIsraeli-Palestinian conflict Hamas hostage release is on track, but its fighters mobilise in Gaza David Crowe Updated October 12, 2025 9:27am ,first published October 12, 2025 8:35am Save 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 London: A senior Hamas leader has confirmed plans to release Israeli hostages from Monday morning (Israel time) to meet a crucial deadline in the Gaza ceasefire ahead of a ceremony in Egypt to mark a peace deal that could end the war. The move comes as US President Donald Trump prepares to fly to Egypt for the peace ceremony on Monday, along with as many as 20 other national leaders, in a sign of international support for enforcing the terms of the agreement. Flanked by Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump, US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff speaks at a rally supporting the hostages in Tel Aviv on Saturday. AP But top Hamas officials are seeking to assert their control over key parts of Gaza as the Israel Defence Forces withdraw from the devastated war zone, with the BBC reporting that 7000 fighters are being recalled to the territory. The Hamas Interior Ministry said on Friday its police force would deploy across Gaza, and by Saturday, armed and masked men wearing caps labelled Internal Security were seen carrying out vehicle checks, according to witnesses, and footage on social media and Al Jazeera TV. Advertisement The mobilisation of thousands of Hamas fighters challenges a central feature of Trumps peace plan, which says the group should disarm and have no role in the governance of Gaza. Related Article Israeli-Palestinian conflict The numbers that show what two years of war have done to Palestinian lives Hamas has been designated a terrorist group by major democracies, including Australia. Several of the nations that recognised a Palestinian state at the United Nations last month did so while stipulating that Hamas should have no control over Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned on Friday, when the ceasefire began, that Hamas had to be disarmed and Gaza had to be demilitarised. Hamas official Osama Hamdan said the group was on course to begin releasing hostages ahead of the deadline of noon on Monday (8pm AEDT). Advertisement According to the signed agreement, the prisoner exchange is set to begin on Monday morning as agreed, and there are no new developments on this matter, he told Agence France-Presse. If Hamas meets the noon deadline, Israel is expected to release as many as 2000 Palestinian security prisoners under the terms of the ceasefire agreed at the Egyptian resort of Sharm El Sheikh. The families of the hostages gathered in Tel Aviv on Saturday with 500,000 people to prepare for the release of the final 48 hostages, but they spoke of the pain of receiving the bodies of those who had died in captivity. About 20 hostages are said to be still alive. Ivanka Trump speaks at the rally in Israel. Getty Images US special envoy Steve Witkoff spoke at the rally, which was also attended by Trumps daughter, Ivanka Trump, and her husband, Jared Kushner, who has been part of the team negotiating the peace deal. Advertisement To the hostages themselves, our brothers and sisters, you are coming home, Witkoff told the crowd. Kushner said they would celebrate on Monday when the remaining hostages were released, and also noted the suffering in Gaza. While the crowd cheered Trump, the Associated Press and Reuters reported that some booed Netanyahu when Witkoff mentioned his name. One hostages father, Michel Illouz, said: This week, we will all see sights we only dreamed of, meet people we waited for so much, embrace hugs we so longed for. A man wearing a Donald Trump mask holds a sign backing the US president for the Nobel Peace Prize in Tel Aviv. AP This week, we will also all cry, we will cry at the return of the deceased, we will mourn and bury our children. Advertisement His son, Guy, was kidnapped by Hamas at the Nova music festival on October 7, 2023, and wounded by gunfire. He died in captivity, according to other hostages who were later released. Global leaders to join peace summit Egypt announced on Saturday that more than 20 national leaders, including Trump, would join Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi at Mondays peace summit in Sharm el-Sheikh, which will include a signing ceremony for the ceasefire deal. Related Article Israeli-Palestinian conflict Who are the hostages believed to still be alive in Gaza? British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron are among those expected to attend. Advertisement Trump is expected to visit Israel on Monday before heading to Egypt. The commander of the US Central Command, Admiral Brad Cooper, confirmed on Saturday that American soldiers had begun arriving in the region to monitor the ceasefire. This great effort will be achieved with no US boots on the ground in Gaza, he said. Thousands of Palestinians have begun returning to their former homes in the areas occupied by Israeli forces before their withdrawal, but aid groups warned that they needed urgent supplies of food, water and shelter. Thank God my house is still standing, Ismail Zayda, 40, told Reuters in the Sheikh Radwan district of Gaza City. Advertisement But the place is destroyed, my neighbours houses are destroyed, entire districts have gone. In Khan Younis, in southern Gaza, a middle-aged man, Ahmed al-Brim, told Reuters his area had been destroyed. Loading We went to our area. It was exterminated. We dont know where we will go after that, he said. We couldnt get the furniture, or clothes, or anything, not even winter clothes. Nothing is left. The BBC reported that armed Hamas units were already returning to some districts, either in civilian clothing or in the blue uniforms of the Gaza police. Advertisement It cited a mobilisation order that was sent via phone calls and text messages to Hamas fighters, who were expected to return to areas previously held by Israeli forces. We declare a general mobilisation in response to the call of national and religious duty, to cleanse Gaza of outlaws and collaborators with Israel, it said. You must report within 24 hours to your designated locations using your official codes. With Reuters, AP Get a note directly from our foreign correspondents on whats making headlines around the world. Sign up for our weekly What in the World newsletter. Meghan, Duchess of Sussex has praised Prince Harry as the man who always keeps me laughing. Duchess Meghan's romantic tribute to Prince Harry The 44-year-old star took to Instagram Stories to share a short video of herself laughing with her husband, the Duke of Sussex, with Sylvie Vartan's song Baby, c'est vous, playing in the background. She captioned the black and white video: "Happy World Mental Health Day ...to the man who always keeps me laughing." The couple recently spent time together in New York for the annual World Mental Health Day Festival, where their Archewell Foundation hosted three panels. Harry, 41, took to the stage to introduce the first session, Thriving or Surviving: How Are Young People Doing in the Digital Age?, and said: Today is more than just about conversation its about community. "Young people learning to navigate a digital world that wasn't designed with their wellbeing. This is what we've discovered. Maintaining good mental health isn't just an individual challenge, it is a community responsibility. Approach this way, everybody wins. That's what today is about." Meghan cheered her husband on from the front row. Meanwhile, when speaking at the Project Healthy Minds' World Mental Health Day Gala, Harry and Meghan opened up about raising their two kids, Prince Archie, six, and Princess Lilibet, four, in the digital age - vowing to protect them from online dangers for as long as possible. Meghan said: "Our children, Archie and Lilibet, are just six and four years old. Can you believe it? "Luckily, theyre still too young for social media, but we know that day is coming. "Like so many parents, we think constantly about how to embrace technologys benefits while safeguarding against its dangers. And that hopeful intention of separation is rapidly becoming impossible." According to PEOPLE, Harry told the audience: "Tonight we're all here together to focus on what remains one of the most pressing issues of our time ...This is a pivotal moment in our collective mission to protect children and support families in the digital age, and we cannot do it without you." Record floods submerged streets and inundated homes in Vietnam on Wednesday, leaving tens of thousands of people stranded, with at least eight killed this week. Floodwaters reached the tops of cars and rooftops in areas of Thai Nguyen city, about 80 kilometres (50 miles) north of the capital Hanoi, with many left stuck at home and others forced to flee. The environment ministry said eight people were killed in flash floods and landslides in Vietnam's mountainous north since Monday, and five others were missing. "I have never witnessed such a terrible flood since I was born 60 years ago," Nguyen Van Nguyen told AFP from his three-storey house in Thai Nguyen province. "There has never been flooding here in my street but now my ground floor is all submerged." The military said it had mobilised 30,000 personnel and thousands of boats to join rescue and relief efforts. It used three helicopters to drop more than four tonnes of water, instant noodles, dry cake, milk and lifejackets to people in flooded parts of Lang Son province. From late Tuesday to Wednesday, the country recorded the highest flood levels on three rivers in the north in nearly 40 years, state media reported. The high-water mark of Trung river in Lang Son, bordering China, was forecast to peak at nearly two metres (6.5 feet) above the record, Vietnam state television said. The Bang and Thuong rivers also surpassed levels not seen since 1986. By Wednesday morning, the weather bureau said the Cau river, running across Thai Nguyen city, was more than a metre higher than the previous record level -- when Typhoon Yagi devastated the country in September last year. Overnight Tuesday and Wednesday, social media users posted pleas for help as their relatives and friends were left stranded with no electricity and few provisions in the provinces of Thai Nguyen, Cao Bang and Lang Son. "Our ground floor (in Thai Nguyen province) was totally flooded. My parents and five kids were stuck, with not enough food and water. No communication since late Tuesday. They need urgent help," Thoan Vu posted online alongside hundreds of similar pleas. More than 200 families living in Lang Son province, downstream from a dam that burst Tuesday afternoon, were earlier evacuated to shelters, the environment ministry said. The cracked dam, part of the reservoir for the Bac Khe 1 hydropower plant, caused about $1.9 million in estimated economic losses, the ministry said in a statement. "The reservoir of the small hydropower plant has a capacity of four million cubic metres of water... so together with heavy rains, neighbouring communes may be inundated, but no flash floods were forecast," it said. Scientists say human-driven climate change is making extreme weather events like typhoons more deadly and destructive. The floods followed heavy rain from Typhoon Matmo, which weakened on Monday while approaching Vietnam but hit the north hard. Matmo landed only a week after Typhoon Bualoi triggered widespread flooding, killing at least 56 people and causing economic losses estimated at more than $710 million. Among the Medal of Honor recipients at the 2025 National MoH Convention in Chattanooga last week was Florent Flo Groberg. He said it was great to be in a city that is the historic Birthplace of the Medal of Honor, and in a region of our nation where people understand what being an American really is. Indeed, we do! Flo is a native of Poissy, France, not far from Paris. His mother was of Algerian descent, and he never met his biological father.He was raised by his mom and his American adoptive stepfather, Larry Groberg from Indiana. He spent the first six years of his life in France, and then in Spain when his stepfathers job took the family there. At age 11, his family moved to Potomac, Maryland, where he graduated from high school in 2001, the year he became a naturalized citizen. He then graduated from the University of Maryland in 2006. In 2008, motivated by both his sense of duty to our nation and the personal loss of two of his uncles in terrorist attacks, he joined the Army. I felt it was my duty as a newly naturalized citizen to go serve my country, he says. Flo graduated from Officer Candidate School at Fort Benning and commissioned as an infantry officer in December that year. After completing the Infantry Officers Basic Course, Mechanized Leaders Course, and the Airborne and Ranger Schools, he was then assigned to the 4th Infantry Division at Fort Carson, Colorado, as a platoon leader, 2nd Battalion, 12th Infantry Regiment. In late 2009, Flo deployed for his first tour to Kunar Province in Afghanistan during Operation Enduring Freedom as part of Task Force Lethal. He returned home and served as his infantry companys executive officer until deploying to Afghanistan again in February 2012 with Task Force Mountain Warrior as Personal Security Detachment commander for 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division. Six months later, on the morning of 8 August, then-Captain Groberg would distinguish himself in combat while moving on foot from Forward Operating Base Fiaz to the provincial governors compound in Asadabad for a security meeting. He and his American soldiers were responsible for the safety of 28 coalition and Afghan National Army personnel. As a result of his heroic actions that day, Flo would become the tenth living Medal of Honor recipient for his service in Afghanistan. According to his Medal of Honor citation: "As they approached the Provincial Governors compound, Captain Groberg observed an individual walking close to the formation. When the individual made an abrupt turn towards the formation, he noticed an abnormal bulge underneath the individuals clothing. Selflessly placing himself in front of one of the brigade commanders, Captain Groberg rushed forward, using his body to push the suspect away from the formation. Simultaneously, he ordered another member of the security detail to assist with removing the suspect. At this time, Captain Groberg confirmed the bulge was a suicide vest and with complete disregard for his life, Captain Groberg again with the assistance of the other member of the security detail, physically pushed the suicide bomber away from the formation. Upon falling, the suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest outside the perimeter of the formation, killing four members of the formation and wounding numerous others. The blast from the first suicide bomber caused the suicide vest of a previously unnoticed second suicide bomber to detonate prematurely with minimal impact on the formation. Captain Grobergs immediate actions to push the first suicide bomber away from the formation significantly minimized the impact of the coordinated suicide bombers attack on the formation, saving the lives of his comrades and several senior leaders." His citation concludes: Captain Grobergs extraordinary heroism and selflessness above and beyond the call of duty at the risk of life are in keeping with the highest traditions of military service and reflect credit upon himself, 4th Infantry Brigade Combat Team, 4th Infantry Division and the United States Army. When the first bomb detonated, Flo was thrown 20 feet from the point of detonation and suffered severe injuries. Despite his action to protect his men, four among them were killed: Army SCM Kevin Griffin and MAJ Thomas Kennedy, Air Force Maj. Walter Gray, and U.S. Foreign Service Officer Ragaei Abdelfattah. Flo says: We defeated the enemy on that day. We sent a message that no matter how bad you want to hurt us, were always going to keep standing up and bringing it back twice fold on you. But it was the worst day of my life because even though we defeated the enemy, I lost four of my brothers. Of his Medal of Honor, he says, The only people that I care judging me in the end are going to be those guys who didnt come home, their families, and my family. Regarding his service to our nation, he says, The proudest thing I have ever done in my life is to wear this uniform and serve my country. And of his future, Flo says: Over the years, I have come to understand that I am at my best in the most austere environments and at my worst when it is all quiet on the front. War taught me many lessons, but it was my recovery at Walter Reed that truly shaped my mindset. I went from a warrior mentality to resiliency at the core. What I take pride in from that time is that I never forgot the pain, the frustrations, the boredom, and the waiting. Those long nights and endless days still drive me today. He concludes: Resiliency is not about pretending things are easy. It is about choosing to stand back up, again and again, no matter how many times you are knocked down. After separating from the Army, Flo became Managing Director at AE Industrial Partners, LP. He also serves with the American Battle Monuments Commission. He is married to Carsen and the proud father of their son. CPT Florent Groberg: An ordinary man faced with extraordinary circumstances, he summoned the greatest measure of courage to place his life in imminent peril to save others. Your example of valor a humble American Patriot defending Liberty for all above and beyond the call of duty is eternal. "Greater love has no one than this, to lay down ones life for his friends." (John 15:13) Live your life worthy of his sacrifice. Semper Vigilans Fortis Paratus et Fidelis Pro Deo et Libertate -- 1776 Join us in daily prayer for our Patriots in uniform -- Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen -- standing in harm's way in defense of American Liberty, honoring their oath "to support and defend" our Constitution, and for the families awaiting their safe return. Pray also for our Veterans, First Responders, and their families. Please consider a tax-deductible gift to support our historic hometown National Medal of Honor Heritage Center. Make a check payable to National MoH Sustaining Fund and mail to: Generosity Trust 345 Frazier Avenue, Unit 205 Chattanooga TN 37405. Lieutenant Colonel Benny Ray Ray Adkins, a dedicated military veteran and respected community leader, passed away peacefully on October 9, 2025, at the age of 82. A lifelong servant of his country and his community, Ray leaves behind a legacy of leadership, compassion, and faith that stretched from Chattanooga to Washington, Germany, and Bosnia. A proud graduate of Central High School, Class of 1961, Ray went on to earn a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Management from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. He served his nation with honor for 36 years in the United States Army and Army Reserve, retiring with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. After his military career, Ray continued his lifelong commitment to service through his work and volunteer leadership across Tennessee. He retired from the Hamilton County Courts after 13 years and from Sunshine Biscuit Company after 29 years of dedicated service. Rays many honors reflected his deep devotion to veterans and community. Among them, he was named Veteran of the Year (2017), received the Hometown Patriot Award (2018), and was honored with the Ray Adkins Interchange designation by the Tennessee General Assembly in 2021. One of his proudest contributions was his work with the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center, where he served on the Advisory Board and played an integral role in its creation and completion. Ray and his wife, Charlotte, were devoted members of Lookout Valley Baptist Church, where they served faithfully in various ministries. He was also a proud Life Member of Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 4848 and the American Legion Post 14. A devoted husband, family man, and friend, Ray will be deeply missed by all who knew him. His unwavering faith, integrity, and love for others will continue to inspire those whose lives he touched. He was preceded in death by his parents, Ben and Dimple Adkins, and his brother Kenneth Adkins. He is survived by his loving wife of 59 years, Charlotte Ellison Adkins; sister Doris Adkins Ellis; nieces Cara (Jonathon) Woolsey, Vicki (James) Goldsmith, and Dawn (Carl) Beard; nephews Kenny (Amy) Adkins; goddaughter Keli (Marcus) Cooper; sister-in-law Jayne Ellison Harbour; brothers-in-law Randy Ellison and Michael Ellison; great-nieces and nephews Tim (Kat) Goldsmith, Olivia Goldsmith, Michael (Macy) Adkins, Ellison (Josh) Beard, and Connor (Rachel) Beard; and a wide circle of beloved friends and colleagues. A Celebration of Life will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 15, at 12 p.m. at Lookout Valley Baptist Church. The family will receive friends on Tuesday, Oct. 14, from 37 p.m. at Chattanooga Funeral Home, East Chapel, and again at the church prior to the service starting at 10 a.m. He will be laid to rest in the Chattanooga National Cemetery with full military honors following the service. Serving as honorary pallbearers are B.B Bell, Ben Cagle, Mickey McCamish, Sen. Todd Gardenhire, John Davenport, Joe Galloway, Jonathan Woolsey, Chip Henderson, Weston Wamp, Austin Garrett, Randy Ellison, Michael Ellison, Kenny Adkins, Michael Adkins, Linda Moss Mines, Harvey Brisson, Earl Freudenberg and Jim Ashley. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in Rays memory can be made to the Charles H. Coolidge National Medal of Honor Heritage Center or a veterans organization of your choice. Please share your thoughts and memories of Ray at www.ChattanoogaEastChapel.com Arrangements have been entrusted to Chattanooga Funeral Home East Chapel, 404 S. Moore Road, East Ridge, Tn. 37412. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency has certified a new Class A (sportfishing methods) state record Alabama Bass. The 7 pounds, 3 ounces fish was caught by angler Caleb Bell on the Ocoee River and tops the previous state record of 7 pounds, 0 ounces from Parksville Reservoir set by Shane McKee in 2014. Unfortunately, Alabama Bass are an invasive species that was illegally introduced in Tennessee. Invasive species are non-native species that cause harm to the environment, economy, or health of humans or native species. Alabama Bass currently impact numerous reservoirs associated with the Tennessee River. As an invasive species, Alabama Bass jeopardize native bass populations, including Smallmouth Bass, through hybridization and competition for resources. Although Alabama Bass have somewhat higher growth rates upon initial introduction to new places, this is typically a short-lived phenomenon, and these fish tend to overpopulate and remain relatively small. They also compete for resources with native species. Accurate identification of these fish can also be difficult due to their similarity of appearance with Spotted Bass and their tendency to hybridize. This hybridization ultimately affects the long-term genetic composition of native bass populations with potentially devastating effects to fisheries and sportfishing in Tennessee. Identification issues have caused problems for anglers and TWRA biologists, and wildlife officers charged with managing populations. To address this challenge, the Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission voted in February to align regulations for Smallmouth Bass, Alabama Bass, and Spotted Bass in reservoirs where Alabama Bass have been introduced to reduce confusion over identification of hybrids of these species. Anglers can help protect Tennessee waters by preventing the further spread of invasive species. In Tennessee, it is illegal to move and release fish, including Alabama Bass, from one body of water to another. Information about illegal fish stocking can be reported through TWRAs regional poaching hotline. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency is responsible for protecting, managing, and conserving fish and wildlife species for the benefit of Tennesseans and visitors. The agency also maintains public safety through law enforcement and safety education on waterways. On Oct. 8, the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation distributed communication to Oklahomans stating the departments game wardens will issue citations to individuals deemed to be hunting or fishing in violation of the states laws, regardless of tribal citizenship. Tribal leaders quickly rebutted in statements posted on social media. Home News Brandon Lake sweeps 2025 Dove Awards, brings down the house alongside Jelly Roll with 'Hard Fought Hallelujah' NASHVILLE, Tenn. This years GMA Dove Awards highlighted the power of collaboration and unity, as Brandon Lake swept the nights biggest honors and brought down the house alongside Jelly Roll with one of the ceremonys most memorable performances. Held Tuesday at Bridgestone Arena for the first time in the show's history, the 56th annual Dove Awards celebrated faith-driven artistry across genres, from worship and hip-hop to Latin and country, with messages of humility, hope and shared purpose emphasized throughout the night. Lake took home the most awards of the night with five, including Songwriter of the Year and Song of the Year for Hard Fought Hallelujah," a collaboration with Jelly Roll. Accepting the award, Lake gestured toward the crowd. I was telling my great friend Dr. John Maxwell about this collaboration, he said. He told me, Stay in the church, but never stop moving toward the lost. Thats what this is about. Millions of lives have been saved, he added, addressing Jelly Roll. I get all the testimonies. I want to thank you so much for sticking your neck out for me and treating me like a little brother. Jelly Roll, who has often credited his faith for his personal transformation, spoke candidly about redemption, challenging audiences to live out their faith. I was thinking about Matthew, when he talks about belief, when he said, When I was hungry, you fed me, when I was thirsty Im standing here because people took time with me. The world is hearing about Jesus like they have never before. Put faith on your feet and feet on your faith, he said. The duo also closed the night with a rousing performance of Hard Fought Hallelujah, joined by Grammy-winning pianist Jon Batiste. Forrest Frank, who has become one of the most-streamed independent voices in Christian pop, won Artist of the Year, Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year for Child of God and Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year for YOUR WAYS BETTER. Despite his success, the 30-year-old artist controversially announced he wouldn't be attending the ceremony a day prior due to a personal conviction that the greatest award of all time is salvation. From the start, host Tauren Wells, who also performed his new song "Let the Church Sing," framed the evening around the nights mission: elevating the name of Jesus and pointing viewers to the hope found in the Gospel. Were not just celebrating artists, he said. We want to honor everyone in this creative community, writers, producers, musicians, production crews, label representatives, agents, publishers, managers, interns, social media managers, photographers, radio reps and everyone who shines in the shadows. Later in the show, Wells also addressed cultural divisions directly, telling the audience about the role faith should play in healing. If the spirit in the world is pride, we dont fight pride with pride. We fight pride with humility. If the spirit of the world is divisiveness, we fight with unity. If the spirit of the world is deception, we must fight with truth, he emphasized. The Church at its worst is an industry and a business and an organization. The Church at its best is a family. That spirit carried through the nights worship performances. CeCe Winans, who won Gospel Worship Recorded Song of the Year for Come Jesus Come with Shirley Caesar, shared a message of faithfulness and perseverance. I've been in this industry since I was probably about 19 and all I can say is that God is faithful, Winans said. We don't do what we do for this. We do what we do for Jesus. All of us in here, we have an incredible opportunity. We get a chance to worship all over the world and do what we do. But we have an awesome responsibility, and that is to bring as many people as we can when Jesus returns. Let's remember why we do what we do so that God will be glorified, and so that as many souls as possible can come to know who Jesus is. Elevation Worship, joined by Brandon Lake and Chris Brown, took home Worship Recorded Song of the Year for I Know a Name. Accepting the top song award, Lake recalled the unlikely way it was born. Stephen Furtick wrote this song in my house, and we didn't think much of it. And that's why I love these stories of songs like Gratitude and this one, I Know a Name, he said. Then I got the demo a few days later, and I was just flying like 90 down the highway. I was like, we got a song, yall. Collaboration is everything. Phil Wickham, whose song The Jesus Way earned Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year, read from Philippians while accepting his award, telling the audience, Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. Rather, in humility, value others above yourselves. The ceremony showcased the broad reach of Christian and gospel music. Performers included CeCe Winans, Lauren Daigle, Tamela Mann, Leanna Crawford, for KING + COUNTRY, Lecrae and ELEVATION RHYTHM. Presenters included Aspen Kennedy, Karen Peck, Sarah Jakes Roberts, Lee Vasi and Sonya Isaacs, with appearances by Colton Dixon, Joel Courtney and John OLeary, the latter two fresh off their collaboration in "Soul on Fire," a faith-based film inspired by OLearys true story. A multi-artist Latin medley led by Israel & New Breed and Unified Sound featured Aaron Moses, Adrienne Bailon-Houghton, Christine DClario, Lucia Parker, Alex Campos and members of Miel San Marcos, earning one of the evenings loudest ovations. Their rendition of Coritos de Fuego and Amigo celebrated the churchs global unity in multiple languages. In honor of the Grand Ole Oprys 100th anniversary, Opry members Lady A, Steven Curtis Chapman and Vince Gill performed a mashup of hymns and songs, including Lady A's hit 2009 I Run to You. Country star Carrie Underwood also performed "If It Was Up To Me" alongside Ben Fuller as a surprise guest. Crawford, who won New Artist of the Year, reflected on her nine-year journey in Nashville and unlikely rise to success. I moved to Nashville because I felt like I was called to write songs to hopefully encourage people and point them to Jesus, she said. Theres been a lot of ups and downs, a lot of moments that I wanted to just throw in the towel and give it up. But by Gods grace, He put people in my life that encouraged me, lifted me up, and pointed me back to Him. Autumn Nelon, accepting Southern Gospel Album of the Year for Loving You, fought back tears as she spoke about her late family members who died in a plane crash last year. This moment is incredibly special and honestly, a little bittersweet. Its the first award that Ive ever accepted without my family. This album is the last thing that we ever made together, and to see it honored like this just means more than words could ever express. I wish more than anything that my family was standing here beside me today, but I know they're honored and looking down and saying, You did it, kid, she added. Hulvey, who won Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year for Cry, urged the audience to stay spiritually ready before closing in prayer. Maybe theres bitterness in this room. Maybe theres things that we dont even want to share with anyone thats just harboring deep within us. Strip it off. Because when He comes back, were going to be held accountable for the way we love each other. The 56th Annual GMA Dove Awards will air exclusively on TBN and the TBN+ app on Oct. 10 at 7:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. ET and simulcast on SiriusXM The Message. 2025 Dove Awards major winners Artist of the Year: Forrest Frank (absent) Song of the Year: Hard Fought Hallelujah Brandon Lake, Jelly Roll Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year: Child of God Forrest Frank Pop/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year: YOUR WAYS BETTER Forrest Frank Worship Recorded Song of the Year: I Know a Name Elevation Worship, Chris Brown, Brandon Lake Gospel Worship Recorded Song of the Year: Come Jesus Come CeCe Winans, Shirley Caesar Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year: The Jesus Way Phil Wickham Rap/Hip Hop Album of the Year: Cry Hulvey Southern Gospel Album of the Year: Loving You The Nelons New Artist of the Year: Leanna Crawford Spanish Language Album of the Year: Kintsugi Un Corazon Feature Film of the Year: "The King of Kings" Television Series of the Year: "The Chosen" Producer of the Year: Jeff Pardo Songwriter of the Year (Artist): Brandon Lake Songwriter of the Year (Non-Artist): Mitch Wong Home News Hamas might not return all deceased hostages: report Hamas might not return all the bodies of the deceased hostages in Gaza as part of President Donald Trumps peace deal, according to Israeli officials. Three unnamed Israeli sources reportedly told CNN this week that the Israeli government knows, due to its intelligence reports, that Hamas might not know the location of and is unable to retrieve the bodies of the 28 deceased hostages. Hamas leaders and mediators conveyed during recent negotiations that the terrorist group doesn't know the location of some of the deceased hostages. Of the captives still in Gaza, 20 are believed to be alive, but there are grave concerns for the well-being of two of them, CNN reported. According to the three Israeli sources, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his cabinet, as well as the U.S. government, have known for months that the terror group might not be able to retrieve all of the hostages' bodies. Negotiators during President Joe Bidens administration knew about this challenge, according to CNN, which reported that some of the hostages were held captive by factions in Gaza that Hamas doesn't control. Under the terms of Trumps peace plan, Hamas is supposed to return all of the hostages within 72 hours of the deal going into effect. Multiple countries including Turkey, Israel, the U.S., Qatar and Egypt will participate in a joint multinational task force to try and locate the missing remains of the deceased hostages in Gaza, according to The Times of Israel. The formation of the task force was decided during negotiations in Sharm el-Sheik, Egypt, that also resulted in the peace deal and agreement to release the hostages, according to the outlet. During a Thursday cabinet meeting, Trump discussed the peace plan and said the hostages who are still alive and held captive by Hamas in Gaza are expected to be released on Monday or Tuesday. Trump also said that he has plans to attend a signing ceremony in Egypt for the agreement. Last night, we reached a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East, something that people said was never going to be done, Trump told reporters. We ended the war in Gaza, and really, on a much bigger basis, created peace. The president acknowledged the difficulties in securing the release of the 28 deceased hostages, noting that some are going to be a little bit hard to find. But we have the hostages for the most part, and I dont think its going to be an overly big situation with the bodies , Trump said. But were going to do the best we can. Israels Ministry of Justice published a list this week of the 250 Palestinian terrorists it has agreed to release as part of the deal. The terrorists set to be released include individuals convicted of murder, kidnapping, weapons offenses and various other crimes. In addition to releasing the 250 prisoners, Israel has agreed to transfer the bodies of 360 Palestinian terrorists to the Gaza Strip, according to Government Decision No. 3396. Also part of the peace plan, Israel has also agreed to release 1,700 detainees from the Gaza Strip who were arrested after the Hamas-led terror attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, but were not involved in the massacre. Israeli hostages released through previous deals during the war have spoken out about the starvation and abuse they faced throughout their time in captivity. Keith Siegel, one of three hostages released as part of a deal at the beginning of February, said that the brutality that he and the other captives had to endure still haunts him. The images of medieval torture, the echoes of suffering, they do not fade, Siegel said during a Tuesday vigil at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., commemorating the second anniversary of Hamas terror attacks. We were trapped in suffocating tunnels, left alone, 130 feet underground. We were starved, denied water, beaten, held in unbearable conditions, forced to make propaganda videos and pressured to convert to Islam, the freed hostage stated. Full of grief after two years of war but glad to be going home, thousands of displaced Palestinians set off across the Gaza Strip on Friday, as a truce between Israel and Hamas took hold. Timidly at first, then in a huge column, thousands walked northwards in a line at least a kilometre long from the safer areas of central Gaza towards Gaza City, the scene of a gruelling Israeli offensive before Friday's ceasefire. People chanted "God is great", cheering and whistling in their joy as they walked on a recently opened Mediterranean seafront road, AFP journalists saw. Ibrahim al-Helou, a 40-year-old man from Gaza City displaced in the central refugee camp of Al-Maghazi, told AFP he was excited, but remained cautious. He said that when he began heading home, "the situation was dangerous, with gunfire, so I waited for a while". "Now, the road has been opened and we have all continued on our way back to Gaza to check on our homes and assess the situation". Ahmad Azzam, a 35-year-old who was also displaced to central Gaza from Gaza City, said he moved as soon as he heard of the troops pulling back. "When I heard news of the Israeli withdrawal and that the road would be opened in the coming hours, my family and I immediately headed to Al-Rashid Street to return to Gaza," he told AFP. He added that, like Helou, he found the situation dangerous at first, and initially chose to wait on a hill overlooking the coastal road. "Only a few people are risking moving forward," he said, speaking at noon, the time the troops' pullback officially began. Israel's military said Friday that troops "began positioning themselves along the updated deployment lines in preparation for the ceasefire agreement and the return of hostages". It said in a separate statement in Arabic that Gaza's main north-south axis, Salah Al-Din road, had also been reopened, but warned Gazans against approaching army troops still stationed inside the Palestinian territory. Israel government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian told journalists on Thursday that Israel's military would redeploy to the so-called Yellow Line, as they gradually withdraw under a plan proposed by US President Donald Trump. During this first part of the withdrawal process, the military will still hold about 53 percent of the Gaza Strip. In the southern city of Khan Yunis, dozens walked back to their homes on paths cleared through piles of rubble accumulated from over two years of war and air strikes, an AFP journalist reported. Destroyed and damaged buildings, their facades torn off by blasts or crumbling upon their foundations, stood on all sides as the returnees walked in the morning sun, shortly after news spread that Israeli forces had withdrawn from parts of Khan Yunis. "We're happy. Even if we return to ruins with no life, at least it's our land," Ameer Abu Iyadeh, a returnee, told AFP. "We're going back to our areas, full of wounds and sorrow, but we thank God for this situation," he said smiling, a pink school backpack strapped to his chest, holding a jerrycan full of water in one hand and his young daughter in the other. "God willing, everyone will return to their areas," the 32-year-old said, while his two other daughters walked by his side, holding hands. Areej Abu Saadeh, a Palestinian woman who lost a daughter and a son during the war, said she could not wait to get home. "We've been displaced for two years now, living on the sidewalks with no shelter and nowhere to stay," she told AFP. "We're now on our way to Bani Suheila, running -- I just want to reach my place," she said, referring to her town east of Khan Yunis. Israel had previously said all parties had signed the first phase of a ceasefire agreement at talks this week in Egypt, adding that Hamas freeing its remaining Israeli captives alive and dead would "bring the end to this war". Home News JD Vance, Elon Musk blast Church of England for God-mocking graffiti: 'They have debased themselves' A new exhibit at the historic Canterbury Cathedral in the United Kingdom that features graffiti questioning God's goodness prompted Vice President J.D. Vance, Elon Musk and others to claim the Church of England is humiliating itself. The art exhibit, titled "Hear Us," features temporary graffiti in the church that aims to highlight minorities while posing difficult questions to God, according to a press release from the cathedral. "This project focuses on partnering with marginalized communities such as Punjabi, black and brown diaspora, neurodivergent, and LGBTQIA+ groups to collaboratively create handwritten literature responding to the question, 'What would you ask God?'" said the cathedral, whose dean, the Very Rev. David Monteith, approved of the project. Welcome to the UKs most famous cathedralCanterbury Cathedral. ?? The Cathedral, which was founded over 1400 years ago, has been covered in graffiti art as part of an exhibition by an artist who identities as an agender goblin, non-binary and a queer vegan. pic.twitter.com/Q2OXKRTR7B Oli London (@OliLondonTV) October 10, 2025 "Are you there?" and "Why did you create hate when love is by far more powerful?" are among the questions posed by the exhibit headed by Alex Vellis, a poet who identifies as a queer vegan and uses they/them pronouns. Other messages include, "Does everything have a soul?" and "Do you regret your creation?" "Is illness sin?" said another message. Others asked, "Why all the suffering?" and "If you made us all in your own form, why the violence killing storm?" Given that some of the graffiti scrawled on the cathedral's stone pillars appeared to question God's existence and even taunt Him, some claimed the exhibit was effectively an act of sacrilege, blasphemy and desecration that is symptomatic of spiritual rot in the U.K. "It is weird to me that these people don't see the irony of honoring 'marginalized communities' by making a beautiful historical building really ugly," Vance tweeted. "It's tragic how great nations are fallen," said Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. "Consumed by self-destructive pathologies embraced by their 'elites.' God help England." X and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk weighed in on the situation multiple times on social media, calling the display "shameful." "They have debased themselves," Musk wrote under one tweet that featured footage of the graffiti. "Relentless anti-Western propaganda has made so many people in the West want to suicide their own culture. Unfortunately, propaganda works," Musk wrote in another tweet. He also expressed agreement with an X user who asserted that the Church of England is "just [an] anti-white cult at this point." Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, said the exhibit "rivals the dumbest things I have ever heard." "And they wonder why Christians don't bother going to churches anymore," wrote conservative political commentator Ann Coulter. The Rev. Dr. Gavin Ashenden, former chaplain to the late Queen Elizabeth II, told The Telegraph he was "shocked" by the graffiti, which he said "belongs more to the architecture for a car park or a modern church." Ashenden, who left Anglicanism for the Roman Catholic Church and recently condemned the Church of England as an apostate body with "nothing at the center," said the God-mocking graffiti in its most prominent church indicates "decay, rebellion and anger." "How is that congruent with the art of a cathedral?" he asked. "It's undermining. It has a different kind of aesthetic dissonance which I don't think helps with the quest for God." One of the oldest Christian buildings in England, Canterbury Cathedral was founded by Augustine of Canterbury, who became the first archbishop of Canterbury in A.D. 597 after Pope Gregory I dispatched him to evangelize the Anglo-Saxons. The cathedral was rebuilt in the 1070s and featured prominently in the history of English Christianity, perhaps most notably when former Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Becket was murdered in the northwest transept by four knights of King Henry II in 1170. The cathedral graffiti comes a week after the Church of England announced Dame Sarah Mullally as the first female archbishop of Canterbury. The installation of Mullally, who has openly affirmed abortion and homosexuality, prompted some within the global Anglican Communion to claim that the Church of England has been given over to apostasy. Home Opinion This is deadly serious: Democrat Va. AG candidate Jay Jones politically violent texts Weve all heard it before from politicians and pundits on both sides of the aisle. They finally reach the end of their stump speech or broadcast, pause dramatically, and then warn you that This is the most important election of our lifetime. Sure, sure. Thats what you said last time. And the time before that. But the election came and went, and the world didnt stop spinning. The sun didnt darken. Life went on. But life is changing fast in these not-so-United States. In the last few years, weve witnessed a surge in deadly acts of politically motivated violence almost all of them perpetrated by leftists of one rotten flavor or another (pro-LGBT, Antifa, anti-ICE, pro-abortion, pro-Hamas, you name it), and almost all of them targeting conservatives, Christians, or Republicans. Most notably, of course, was the public assassination of conservative Christian hero, husband, father, and now martyr Charlie Kirk, just four short weeks ago. If you, as a normal patriotic American citizen, had hoped that the left would tone things down after Charlie was shot through the neck and explicitly for his Christian and conservative beliefs and speech you would be wrong. Instead, the Left is doubling down on its violent rhetoric. After all, if the only good fascist is a dead fascist (and these days anyone to the right of Bill Clinton is a fascist), why would they stop? Why indeed when you understand that not only is the left not ashamed of using speech and slogans that incite physical and even deadly force against their opponents but that they feel completely morally justified in doing so. They think we are Nazis. That you are a Nazi. And what do you with Nazis? Well, you know. Which brings me to Virginia. Specifically, the current Democrat nominee for attorney general, Jay Jones. Now, I dont live in Virginia. I live in North Carolina. But Ive driven across the state line countless times enough times to know that Virginia is for lovers. Apparently, Virginia is also for candidates for the top law enforcement position in the state who fantasize about killing their political rivals, desecrating their graves, and wishing death upon their kids, too. Not as catchy. Or as welcoming. I can see why their tourism department didnt go with that one. Make no mistake, this is a deadly serious issue at play in the Commonwealth. Just last Friday, National Review broke a truly shocking story: It published a string of texts sent by Jay Jones in 2022 to one of his former colleagues in the Virginia House of Delegates shortly after then-House Speaker Todd Gilbert, a Republican, had publicly offered condolences for the death of retired Democrat Del. Joe Johnson. In a private text exchange with Carrie Coyner, Jones described a hypothetical scenario involving Gilbert, mass murderers Pol Pot and Adolf Hitler, and two bullets. Who of the three would get the bullets? For Jones, it wasnt much of a dilemma: Gilbert gets two bullets to the head Spoiler: Put Gilbert in the crew with the two worst people you know and he receives both bullets every time. According to The Federalist, it didnt stop there. They reported that after these texts, Jones called Coyner after the exchange and doubled down, saying that public policy would only change if those in charge feel pain, like the pain that parents feel when they watch their children die from gun violence, according to a source familiar with the exchange cited by the outlet. He also reportedly suggested he wished Gilberts wife could watch her own child die in her arms so that Gilbert might reconsider his political views, prompting Coyner to hang up the phone in disgust. Yet again, Jones didnt stop wishing death on anyone and everyone who didnt see eye to eye with his radical leftist agenda. In the follow-up texts to this dark and violent phone call, further texts reveal he meant what he said. You were talking about hopping [sic] Jennifer Gilberts children would die, Coyner wrote in one message, referring to Gilberts wife. Yes, Ive told you this before, Jones replied. Only when people feel pain personally do they move on policy. As if that wasnt bad enough, Jones made sure to circle back and add, I mean do I think Todd and Jennifer are evil? And that theyre breeding little fascists? Yes. When you read an interchange like this, one that is so proudly wicked, explicitly violent, darkly demonic, and more, it can be hard to know how exactly to respond. This is the kind of language you expect to find in a serial killers manifesto. Instead, its whats been hiding in the mind and heart of a man running to be none other than the attorney general of one of the largest states in America. In the Bible, Jesus taught that The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks (Luke 6:45). From the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks and texts. This means that whats in Jay Joness heart is simple but shocking: Murder. Equally shocking has been the response from other Virginia Democrats, including the top of the ticket for statewide office, gubernatorial candidate Abigail Spanberger. Spanberger, who earlier this election cycle told her supporters to let your rage fuel you, has refused to step away from Jones or call for his removal from the ticket. The same goes for just about every other major liberal politician and political group in Virginia. Sure, theyve offered mealy-mouthed caveats about such language being unacceptable, but then they immediately pivot into pointing fingers at Donald Trump and doubling down on their endorsement of Jones. As Mollie Hemingway from The Federalist insightfully suggested, perhaps the reason every single Democrat is standing behind Virginia Democrat AG candidate Jay Jones, who fantasized about Republicans getting assassinated and their children dying, is because they more or less agree with him. Shes not wrong. I said its shocking that the other leftists in Virginia would stand by their comrade, but lets be honest, it really isnt. This is who the left is. For the Left, who trace their ideological roots back to the bloody guillotines of the French Revolution and through the killing fields of the Khmer Rouge, the presence of violence in their political quest for eternal power isnt a bug its a feature. For Jones specifically, though, its a pattern. Coyner also revealed that back in 2020, in another heated and disturbing phone call, Jones suggested that it might be a good thing if a few cops got killed in the line of duty. Well, maybe if a few of them died, that they would move on, not shooting people, not killing people. Dead cops. Dead kids. Dead political opponents. Is there anyone Jay Jones doesnt want to see die if it would help his political career and his ideological agenda? The fact that such a question is not, even in the slightest, hyperbole should send every reasonable conservative and Christian rushing to the polls to vote against this madness next month. The gravity of the situation cannot be overstated. If Jay Jones stays in the race and wins, after being exposed for texting about putting bullets in the head of his political rivals and wishing death on literal kids just because they have conservative parents then the left will know that not only are there no repercussions for their violence and incitement but that they will actually be rewarded for it at the ballot box. The fact that the entire political apparatus of the Left hasnt called on Jay Jones to drop out yet is an actual mask drop moment. Behind every shout about protecting our sacred democracy hides a face that would rather see conservatives put in the ground than lose their power. In Deuteronomy 30:19, Moses charges the Israelites before the Lord to follow God and keep His commandments so that they may live: I call Heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live. No, Virginian voters arent about to cross the Jordan and inherit the Promised Land. But they do have their own Rubicon to cross. They have the opportunity to choose life for themselves and their offspring. And what they find on the other side of that choice in this upcoming election will either be a political safe haven or a dangerous and violent hellscape. Putting two bullets in the head of his political rivals. Fantasizing about children being killed. Boasting that he would urinate on the graves of dead Republicans. And labeling little kids fascists. Imagine a man who thinks like that, who talks like that, serving as the top law enforcement officer in your state. A man who harbors such hatred in his heart for those who simply disagree with him politically running point for your states judicial system. You think hes going to use that power fairly? Justly? Righteously, as he is commanded to do by God as a civil magistrate in Romans 13? Not a chance. If someone like that takes office, its going to be open season on Christians, conservatives, and Republicans everywhere and their kids. If you live in Virginia, you need to take this seriously, for it is serious. Deadly serious. Nothing less than life and death is on the ballot next month. So maybe, actually, this is the most important election of your lifetime. Originally published at the Standing for Freedom Center. Home Opinion Trumps Israel-Hamas peace plan is a big deal: All hostages coming home Israels war in Gaza moved one step nearer to resolution on Wednesday, when Hamas and Israel both agreed to the first phase of President Donald Trumps peace plan. This means that ALL of the Hostages will be released very soon, and Israel will withdraw their Troops to an agreed upon line, Trump wrote Wednesday afternoon on Truth Social. This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America. The agreement covers all terms and mechanisms for implementing the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, which will lead to stopping the war, releasing Israeli detainees and Palestinian prisoners, and allowing aid to enter, said Qatari Foreign Ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari. While public pronouncements are light on details, Israeli officials expect the simultaneous release of all the living hostages within 72 hours, likely on Monday. The clock starts, and the ceasefire officially begins when the deal is ratified by the Israeli government. Israel also insists on Hamas returning the bodies of all deceased hostages, although Hamas claims that will take longer to achieve, as some of the bodies are buried under rubble or lie behind the Israeli lines. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu celebrated the release of the final hostages as an unqualified victory. From the beginning, I made it clear: we will not rest until all our hostages return and all our goals are achieved, he declared. With the approval of the first phase of the plan, all our hostages will be brought home. This is a diplomatic success and a national and moral victory for the State of Israel. Recovering the remaining hostages will both lift Israels spirits and simplify its remaining war aims. No longer will it have to negotiate prisoner exchanges with the terrorist entity it seeks to drive out. Now, it can focus its efforts solely on victory. At the same time, Israel has agreed to a ceasefire and a partial withdrawal of its forces while leaving its other war aim unfulfilled. Hamas remains entrenched on Israels borders as an ongoing threat to the Israeli people. President Trumps 20-point peace plan stipulated that Hamas would lay down its arms and play no further part in the government of Gaza. Yet no public reports suggest that these terms were part of the Phase One ceasefire deal struck Wednesday. On the contrary, officials from the region admit that negotiators have not even begun substantive discussions for what comes next in Gaza. Hamas, for one, holds out hope that it will not be forced from the leadership role in Gaza it usurped 18 years ago. The ceasefire marks the beginning of a complete end to the brutal war against the Gaza Strip, a Hamas spokesperson said. There are certainly guarantees for Hamas that the war will not return after the exchange process is completed, and we also heard the American president speak directly, publicly, and clearly on this matter. Indeed, the current ceasefire, billed as Phase One of Trumps peace plan looks similar in substance to other ceasefires struck between Israel and Hamas throughout their two-year-long war. Hamas is releasing Israeli hostages in exchange for Israel releasing a disproportionate number of Palestinian terrorists. Israeli forces are withdrawing from their hard-won positions and allowing in international aid caravans, which Hamas will likely steal. Hamas has shown its ability to use the reprieve not to mention proceeds from stolen aid resold to Gazans to rebuild its terrorist army. In one sense, then, the first phase of this peace process looks much like any other ceasefire. The main difference is that Hamas has now agreed to return all remaining hostages to Israel, fully expending their best bargaining chip and fulfilling one of Israels main war goals. At the same time, Israel now faces greater pressure not to resume their campaign because the ceasefire is attached to a peace plan with broad international support. Hamas may also have received private guarantees from certain governments that Israel would not be allowed to resume the war. Thus, while Israel will now receive all their hostages back, they have yet to figure out how to remove Hamas as a threat on their border. Much could still go wrong, admits Reuters. Further steps in Trumps 20-point plan have yet to be discussed by the sides including how the shattered Gaza Strip is to be ruled when the fighting ends, and the ultimate fate of Hamas, which has so far rejected Israels demands [that] it disarm. Despite the future uncertainty, Israel has chosen to relish this moment, when it has finally secured the release of the final living hostages, just over two years after Hamass invasion. A great day for Israel, Netanyahu echoed Trump in his own statement Wednesday. Tomorrow I will convene the government to approve the agreement and bring all our dear hostages home. I thank the heroic soldiers of the IDF and all the security forces thanks to their courage and sacrifice we have reached this day. I thank from the bottom of my heart President Trump and his team for mobilizing for this sacred mission of freeing our hostages. President Trump will reportedly head to Israel on Sunday to celebrate with the government in person, meeting with Netanyahu and addressing the Knesset. For his part, Trump has thrown the full force of his personality behind the 20-point peace deal, insisting that the parties move on to fulfill the remaining terms of the deal. There will be disarming, there will be pullbacks, there will be a lot of things happening, he reiterated Thursday. Were going to create something where people can live. Originally published at The Washington Stand. Home Opinion Why you can't debate unbelievers into the Kingdom of God In an age addicted to argument, Christians have become remarkably good at talking and remarkably poor at listening. Scroll through social media or walk past a campus debate table, and youll see believers armed with microphones, cameras, and carefully memorized rebuttals. The object is not conversion but conquest. The applause line has replaced the altar call. Somewhere along the way, we began to confuse winning debates with winning souls. Yet Scripture presents a very different picture of how truth changes hearts. The Gospel was never designed to be wielded like a sword in a duel of intellects; it was meant to be offered like bread to the hungry. The problem with the debate mindset Apologetics has its place. Reasoned defense of the faith can clarify misunderstandings and expose falsehoods. But when the believers primary instinct is to defeat rather than to disciple, something sacred is lost. Too many of todays discussions look more like verbal brawlscomplete with highlight reels and hashtags than like Gospel witness. Paul warned Timothy, Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lords servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness (2 Tim. 2:2325). Those words are as necessary in the digital age as they were in the first century. Debate can inform minds, but only the Spirit can transform hearts. Why argument alone fails The apostle also wrote, The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him (1 Cor. 2:14). That verse dismantles the modern illusion that we can reason people into the kingdom. An unbeliever can grasp theological vocabulary yet remain blind to its beauty. Explaining the Gospel without the Spirits illumination is like shouting at a blind man to look at the light. He needs not louder words but the miracle of sight. This blindness is spiritual, not intellectual. Humanity still bears the image of God rational, moral, capable of faith but sin clouds perception. That is why Paul told the Corinthians that his own preaching was not with plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power (1 Cor. 2:4). The early church did not rely on argumentation to move hearts; they relied on the Spirit who alone convicts and converts. Proclamation over performance The Great Commission is strikingly simple: Go therefore and make disciples teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you (Matt. 28:1920). It says nothing about dominating discussions or collecting debate trophies. Evangelism in the New Testament is personal, compassionate, and Spirit-dependent. It is proclamation, not performance. When we elevate argument above proclamation, two distortions follow. First, the unbeliever becomes an opponent rather than a person. We see a sparring partner, not a soul. Second, we begin to trust in rhetorical strength rather than divine power. The gospel becomes an intellectual exercise rather than a supernatural encounter. Apologetics can prepare the soil but only the Spirit plants the seed. Our confidence must rest not in our ability to speak persuasively but in Gods ability to open blind eyes. As Paul wrote, The god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers but God, who said, Let light shine out of darkness, has shone in our hearts (2 Cor. 4:46). Only He can say, Let there be light. A different kind of courage None of this means Christians should retreat from public life or silence truth. Courage still matters. But biblical courage looks less like shouting and more like steadfast gentleness. It is the boldness to speak the truth in love, knowing that truth without love hardens and love without truth deceives. Jesus modeled that perfectly. He could dismantle the Pharisees logic with a single question, yet with sinners, He was tender. With Nicodemus, He reasoned patiently; with the woman at the well, He offered living water. Even on the cross, He prayed for His enemies rather than out-arguing them. His power lay not in debate but in divine compassion. If we truly believe in the sovereignty of the Spirit, then we can rest from striving. We can speak clearly and then trust God with the outcome. The goal is not to win but to witness. The way back How do we recover a Gospel posture in a culture of contention? Recover humility. We do not save; Christ does. Recover gentleness. Kindness disarms hostility more effectively than sarcasm ever could. Recover dependence. Prayer accomplishes what arguments cannot. Recover clarity. Keep the main thing the main thing: Christ and Him crucified. When believers trade argument for invitation, the Church regains its moral authority. The world has heard enough of our outrage; it needs to see our love. As Paul reminded the Romans, The kindness of God leads to repentance (2:4). Kindness, not combativeness, is the soil where conviction grows. Conclusion The temptation to debate will always be strong. It flatters the intellect and feels like action. But the Gospel advances not through cleverness, volume, or viral moments it advances through the quiet power of the Spirit working through humble messengers. Our generation does not need louder Christians; it needs Spirit-filled ones. Let us trade applause for repentance, microphones for ministry, and arguments for the simple, Spirit-empowered message of the cross. For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe (1 Corinthians 1:21). North Korea showed off its "most powerful" intercontinental ballistic missile at a military parade attended by top officials from Russia and China, Pyongyang's state media reported Saturday. The event to mark 80 years under the ruling Workers' Party came as leader Kim Jong Un has been emboldened by the war in Ukraine, securing critical support from Russia after sending thousands of North Korean troops to fight alongside Moscow's forces. Dmitry Medvedev, deputy head of Russia's Security Council and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, attended the parade Friday alongside Chinese Premier Li Qiang and Vietnam's leader To Lam -- all seated near Kim, according to images released by the official Korean Central News Agency. The spectacle featured some of the country's most advanced weapons, including its new Hwasong-20 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), which KCNA described as its "most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system". Thousands of people in colourful traditional dress filled the streets of the North Korean capital for the late-night event, the images showed, waving national flags and cheering as weapons rumbled down the main streets. Among the featured weapons, long-range strategic cruise missiles, drone launch vehicles, and ground-to-air and ground-to-ground missiles paraded one after another, KCNA added. The country's "invincible" army "has always added doubled strength to our Party's efforts to overcome difficulties and bring earlier a bright future", Kim said in a speech. He made an apparent nod to North Korean troops fighting alongside Moscow's forces in Russia's war against Ukraine. "The heroic fighting spirit displayed, and the victory achieved, by our revolutionary armed forces on the foreign battlefields for international justice ... demonstrated the ideological and spiritual perfection," he said, according to KCNA. Around 600 North Korean soldiers have been killed and thousands more wounded fighting for Russia, Seoul has said. The parade displayed the isolated, nuclear-armed country's "inexhaustible defense technology potential and its astonishing pace of development that the world can no longer ignore", KCNA said. The celebrations in Pyongyang come after Seoul said a meeting between North Korea and the United States "cannot be ruled out" on the sidelines of this year's APEC summit in South Korea. US President Donald Trump met Kim three times during his first term and once said the pair had fallen "in love", but he ultimately failed to secure a lasting agreement on North Korea's nuclear programme. Since then Pyongyang has repeatedly declared itself an "irreversible" nuclear state. Last month, Kim appeared alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping and Putin at an elaborate military parade in Beijing. In a joint statement from Moscow and Pyongyang released by KCNA earlier this week, Russia's ruling party said it "expressed firm support for the measures taken" by North Korea "to bolster up the country's defence capabilities". Seong-Hyon Lee, a visiting scholar at the Harvard University Asia Center, told AFP: "It is crucial to see this parade not as an isolated event, but as the culmination of a deliberate, structural shift in regional geopolitics." "It serves as a stark warning that Seoul's strengthened alliance with Washington will be met with a consolidated and powerful trilateral bloc on its doorstep." Sign up for the daily CJR newsletter. On August 31, in Barcelona, Alex Colston, an editor for Drop Site News, boarded a vessel of the Sumud flotilla along with some thirty-seven other passengers, a collection of politicians and humanitarian workers carrying aid bound for Gaza. (Sumud, an Arabic word for steadfastness, refers to Palestinian resilience.) Colston, who is thirty-four and lives in Brooklyn, has a beard and wears a metal chain necklace; he packed a black T-shirt, sleeves cut off, bearing the word PRESS in capital letters. He grew up in Florida, where he worked as a deckhand as a teen. This was slow sailing; en route, he reported on the nautical happenings surrounding Israel and edited colleagues work about ceasefire talks. He also kept night watch and helped repair the boats water system. He lost weight. It felt like a purposeful thing to do, he told me. The trip lasted until October 1, when the vessel was intercepted by the Israeli navy and Colston was detainedas were some twenty other members of the international press, on a fleet of aid boats scattered across the sea. Ships approached the Sumud about fifteen miles off the coast of Gaza. They circled us like sharks, Colston said. The Israeli navys commander at sea made remarks to his sailors: The Navy stands up to a mission that requires determination and professionalism, to ensure that any attempt to breach the maritime security blockade will be stopped far from our shores. I have full confidence in you that you will carry out the mission successfully while upholding our values. Then officers grabbed a ladder, which they attempted to latch on to Colstons boat. It took a few tries until they affixed it, which struck Colston as absurd, even as the officers made it on board, carrying assault rifles. It just felt really goofy to me, he said. For hours, the officers confined passengers on deck, as they steered to the Port of Ashdod, south of Tel Aviv. Israels military detailed the operation in an announcement: The IDF will continue to resolutely maintain the maritime security blockade around the Gaza Strip, the message went. In all, according to Israels account, hundreds of individuals aboard 41 naval vessels were taken into custody over a period of twelve hours. One more boat arrived a few days later. Following the operation, the flotilla members were safely transferred, per the statement, for further processing by the Israel Police. (The IDF did not reply to a request for additional comment.) When they arrived, Colston said, passengers were strip-searched. One of the port authority people or naval people put their foot on my head and told me to sit on my knees: Dont move, he said. They would tell us, Dont smile, dont laugh, dont show any emotion. That was tough for him. I have a strong sense of humor about this stuff. He saw Greta Thunbergthe activist, who had been on another vessel in the convoywrapped in an Israeli flag, pushed to the ground and forced on her knees. Itamar Ben-Gvira far-right leader who has been convicted of supporting terrorism and is now Israels minister of national securityarrived. He was yelling in Hebrew at us. Most of us didnt understand what he was saying, Colston said. We only understood the word terrorist. (In a statement, the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs referred to the Sumud as the Hamas Flotilla.) The group was held in detention for days. As if we were terrorists, Colston said. Footage of the Hamas attacks of October 7, 2023, were played for them on a continuous loop. Colston couldnt sleep and felt increasingly ill. Gradually, people were released; after about a week, Colston was sent to Amman, Jordan. There, he described his experience to a group of diplomats, and expressed his frustration thatas a United States citizen, and a journalisthe hadnt been better protected. A few times, he recalled, a diplomat told him, We are not here to babysit you. Colston told me that one of the diplomats cried. Its been, from my point of view, incredibly underwhelming and disappointing, he said, of the response. We got out of prison. Why are you the one crying? (The American consulate in Amman did not respond to a request for comment.) Colston was one of many journalists sailing around the region. According to Reporters Without Borders, members of the press were on board naval vessels covering the story for El Pais, the Spanish newspaper; RAI, the Italian public broadcaster; and Al Jazeera, among others. All were taken into Israeli custody along with the five hundred or so other members of the flotillas crews. Most recently, on October 8, Emily Wilder, a reporter from Southern California working for Jewish Currents; Noa Avishag Schnall, a Los Angelesborn visual journalist based in Paris, reporting for Drop Site News; and Henri Sulku, a Finnish editor at Turning Point magazine, were detained with about ninety others from a boat called The Conscience. For Colston, the experience was revealing. In early September, during a stop in Tunisia, he reported on Israeli drone attacks on ships. Later, he covered blasts off the coast of Crete. I could see all of our other ships, he said, referring to flotilla vessels. Every once in a while, you could see an explosion. And so journalistically, I thought, Well, I need to be able to capture that. But then my first thought is, I should probably look up to make sure theres no drone above our boat. Since the start of Israels military campaign in Gaza, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, at least 237 journalists and media workers have been killed. Sign up for CJRs daily email There is now, with news of peace, hope that another chapter of the story will begin. And yet, when Colston landed back in the United States, at John F. Kennedy Airport, he was a bit miffed: no American news outlet was there to interview him. The first video on his ordeal was by Anadolu, a Turkish news agency. Hes brought home a media critique: coverage tends to defer to Israeli press statements, he said. It just wouldnt capture anything about the flotilla. China's countermeasures against U.S. port fees "legitimate defense": commerce ministry Xinhua) 08:16, October 11, 2025 BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's countermeasures against the U.S. additional port fees on Chinese ships are "legitimate defense" actions aimed at maintaining a fair competition environment in the international shipping and shipbuilding markets, the Ministry of Commerce said Friday. "The U.S. move is a typical unilateralist action of apparent discriminatory nature, which severely harms the interests of Chinese companies," a ministry spokesperson said in an online statement. To safeguard the interests of domestic industries, Chinese authorities will charge special port fees on ships with U.S. affiliations, including those flying the U.S. flag, built in the United States, or owned, controlled, or operated by U.S. companies, in accordance with China's international maritime regulations, the spokesperson said. These countermeasures are set to take effect simultaneously with the U.S. additional port fees on Chinese ships on Oct. 14. China urges the U.S. side to correct its wrongdoings and work with China to find a solution through equal-footed consultation and cooperation, the spokesperson added. (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) After Air India expanded its UK services by adding a fourth daily Delhi-London flight to its 2025 winter schedule, following suit is IndiGo, which has launched daily, non-stop flights between Delhi and Guangzhou, China. The service will begin on November 10, 2025. Moreover, the budget carrier will also operate a direct service between Delhi and Hanoi, starting December 20, 2025, both destinations will be operated via Airbus A320 aircraft.The move comes after India and China agreed to resume flight services after five years to normalise bilateral relations between the two Asian giants. The new route will provide improved connectivity from the Indian capital to Hanoi, which is a key cultural and commercial centre in Southeast Asia.IndiGo at present operates 14 weekly flights linking Kolkata with both Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. The airline's latest initiative aims to meet the growing travel demand between India and Vietnam, a destination that has gained popularity among Indian tourists and business travellers in recent years.On the launch of the new service to Vietnam, Vinay Malhotra, Head of Global Sales at IndiGo, commented, Vietnam has emerged as one of the fastest-growing travel and business destinations for Indians, driven by its cultural vibrancy, natural beauty, and economic dynamism. We are pleased to announce daily direct flights between Delhi and Hanoi, in addition to the already popular services from Kolkata to Hanoi as well as Ho Chi Minh City, as a convenient avenue for travel to Vietnam. As we continue to enhance connectivity across the ASEAN region, our endeavour remains to provide seamless, affordable, and on-time travel options to our customers. For Canada to be strong at home, we need strong, stable partnerships abroad. I am building bridges and increasing cooperation with India, Singapore and China.https://t.co/TZsQ46fwu4 Anita Anand (@AnitaAnandMP) October 10, 2025 A good meeting with FM @AnitaAnandMP of Canada this morning in New York. The appointment of High Commissioners is welcome as we rebuild ties. Discussed further steps in that regard today. Look forward to welcoming FM Anand in India. ???????? ???????? #UNGA80 pic.twitter.com/74hYE1Bju5 Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) September 29, 2025 Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand will soon embark on a diplomatic tour to India, Singapore, and China. On Saturday, the Liberal Party leader stated that Anand would visit India as part of her three-nation tour, set to take place from October 12 to 17.Announcing the trip, the Canadian Ministry of External Affairs said it would aim to advance cooperation and strengthen bilateral relations under Canadas Indo-Pacific Strategy. In an official statement, the Canadian government said, Today, the Honourable Anita Anand, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced she will travel to India, Singapore and China from October 12 to October 17 to advance bilateral relations and cooperation with these countries as part of Canada's Indo-Pacific Strategy."This visit marks her first official trip to India since assuming the role earlier this year. It comes after a period of strained relations and amid ongoing efforts to reset bilateral ties between the two nations.During her visit to the country, she will meet External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Union Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal in Delhi, as both countries move toward establishing a framework for strategic cooperation on issues such as trade diversification, energy transformation and security.She will also travel to Mumbai to engage with Canadian and Indian firms working to support investment, job creation and economic opportunity across both countries.For Canada to be strong at home, we need strong, stable partnerships abroad. I am building bridges and increasing cooperation with India, Singapore and China. In line with Canadas Indo-Pacific Strategy, I will be working to advance efforts to position Canada as a trusted, reliable partner of choice for Indo-Pacific countries and their economies, she added.Earlier, on September 29, Dr Jaishankar met Anand on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. Calling it a good meeting, he said, Look forward to welcoming FM in India.On X, he wrote, A good meeting with FM @AnitaAnandMP of Canada this morning in New York. The appointment of High Commissioners is welcome as we rebuild ties. Discussed further steps in that regard today. Look forward to welcoming FM Anand in India.The visit follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bilateral meeting with Canadian counterpart Mark Carney in June on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Kananaskis, Alberta.This was the first in-person interaction between the two leaders since Prime Minister Carney assumed office following Canadas recent general elections. The meeting provided an opportunity for both sides to hold frank and forward-looking discussions on the state of India-Canada relations and the way ahead, he said. The most popular and potentially unifying Palestinian leader Marwan Barghouti is not among the prisoners Israel intends to free in exchange for hostages held by Hamas under the new Gaza ceasefire deal.Israel has also rejected freeing other high-profile prisoners whose release Hamas has long sought, though it was not immediately clear if a list of around 250 prisoners issued Friday on the Israeli governments official website was final.Senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk told the Al Jazeera TV network that the group insists on the release of Barghouti and other high-profile figures and that it was in discussions with mediators.Israel views Barghouti as a terrorist leader. He is serving multiple life sentences after being convicted in 2004 in connection with attacks in Israel that killed five people.But some experts say Israel fears Barghouti for another reason: An advocate of a two-state solution even as he backed armed resistance to occupation, Barghouti could be a powerful rallying figure for Palestinians. Some Palestinians view him as their own Nelson Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid activist who became his country's first Black president.With the ceasefire and Israeli troop pullback in Gaza that came into effect Friday, Hamas is to release about 20 living Israeli hostages by Monday. Israel is to free some 250 Palestinians serving prison sentences, as well as around 1,700 people seized from Gaza over the past two years and held without charge.The releases have a powerful resonance on both sides. Israelis see the prisoners as terrorists, some of them involved in suicide bombings. Many Palestinians view the thousands held by Israel as political prisoners or freedom fighters resisting decades of military occupation.Most of those on the Israeli prisoner list are members of Hamas and the Fatah faction arrested in the 2000s. Many of them were convicted of involvement in shootings, bombings or other attacks that killed or attempted to kill Israeli civilians, settlers and soldiers. After their release, more than half will be sent to Gaza or into exile outside the Palestinian territories, according to the list.The 2000s saw the eruption of the Second Intifada, a Palestinian uprising fueled by anger over continued occupation despite years of peace talks. The uprising turned bloody, with Palestinian armed groups carrying out attacks that killed hundreds of Israelis, and the Israeli military killing several thousand Palestinians.One prisoner who will be freed is Iyad Abu al-Rub, an Islamic Jihad commander convicted of orchestrating suicide bombings in Israel from 2003-2005 that killed 13 people.The oldest and longest imprisoned to be released is 64-year-old Samir Abu Naama, a Fatah member who was arrested from the West Bank in 1986 and convicted on charges of planting explosives. The youngest is Mohammed Abu Qatish, who was 16 when he was arrested in 2022 and convicted of attempted stabbing.Hamas leaders have in the past demanded that Israel release Barghouti, a leader of the militant groups main political rival, Fatah, as part of any deal to end the fighting in Gaza. But Israel has refused in previous exchanges.Israel fears history could repeat itself after it released senior Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a 2011 exchange. The long-serving prisoner was one of the main architects of the Oct. 7, 2023, attack that ignited the latest war in Gaza, and he went on to lead the militant group before being killed by Israeli forces last year.One of the few consensus figures in Palestinian politics, Barghouti, 66, is widely seen as a potential successor to President Mahmoud Abbas, the ageing and unpopular leader of the internationally recognised Palestinian Authority that runs pockets of the West Bank. Polls consistently show Barghouti is the most popular Palestinian leader.Barghouti was born in the West Bank village of Kobar in 1959. While studying history and politics at Bir Zeit University, he helped spearhead student protests against the Israeli occupation. He emerged as an organiser in the first Palestinian uprising, which erupted in December 1987.Israel eventually deported him to Jordan. He returned to the West Bank in the 1990s as part of the interim peace agreements that created the Palestinian Authority and were meant to pave the way for a state.After the Second Intifada broke out, Israel accused Barghouti then head of Fatah in the West Bank -- of being the leader of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, a loose collection of Fatah-linked armed groups that carried out attacks on Israelis.Barghouti never commented on his links to the Brigades. While he expressed hopes for a Palestinian state and Israel side by side in peace, he said Palestinians had a right to fight back in the face of growing Israeli settlements and the militarys violence against Palestinians.I am not a terrorist, but neither am I a pacifist, he wrote in a 2002 editorial in The Washington Post.Soon after, he was arrested by Israel. At trial, he opted not to defend himself because he didnt recognise the courts authority. He was convicted of murder for involvement in several Brigades' attacks and given five life sentences, while acquitted over other attacks.In 2021, Barghouti registered his own list for parliamentary elections that were later called off. A few years earlier, he led more than 1,500 prisoners in a 40-day hunger strike to call for better treatment in the Israeli prison system.Barghouti showed he could build bridges across Palestinian divisions even as he reached out to Israelis, said Mouin Rabbani, non-resident fellow at Democracy for the Arab World Now and co-editor of Jadaliyya, an online magazine focusing on the Middle East.Barghouti is seen as a credible national leader, someone who can lead the Palestinians in a way Abbas as consistently failed to, he said.Israel is keen to avoid that, since its policy for years has been to keep Palestinians divided and Abbas administration weak, Rabbani said, adding that Abbas also feels threatened by any Barghouti release.Barghouti is not connected to the corruption that has plagued Abbas Palestinian Authority and turned many against it, said Eyal Zisser, the vice rector of Tel Aviv University and an expert in Arab-Israeli relations.His popularity could strengthen Palestinian institutions, a terrifying thought for Israels right-wing government, which opposes any steps toward statehood, Zisser said.Barghouti was last seen in August, when Israels far-right national security minister, Itamar Ben-Gvir, posted a video of himself admonishing Barghouti inside a prison, saying Israel will confront anyone who acts against the country and wipe them out. This recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is a boost to conclude our task: to conquer Freedom. We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic Maria Corina Machado (@MariaCorinaYA) October 10, 2025 #WATCH | US President Donald J Trump says, "The person who got the Nobel Prize called me today and said, 'I'm accepting this in honour of you because you really deserved it'... I didn't say, 'Give it to me', though. I think she might have... I've been helping her along the pic.twitter.com/XY1HH1OG5x ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2025 US President Donald Trump may not have won the Nobel Peace Prize 2025, but he received an unexpected shoutout from Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, who was the honoree this year. The 58-year-old activist won the Nobel Peace Prize for her tireless work promoting democratic rights. Machado dedicated her prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and also expressed gratitude towards Trump. The mention of the President was made in a social media post. She also lauded the relations between the US and Venezuela.In a post on X, she wrote, This recognition of the struggle of all Venezuelans is a boost to conclude our task: to conquer Freedom. Highlighting the support she hopes to continue receiving from international allies, Machado said, We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy.She dedicated the honour to her fellow citizens and also thanked US President Donald Trump . I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause! she added.The President claimed that he had extended assistance to the Venezuelan opposition leader on several occasions. He stated that Machado called him and accepted the prize in honour of him.While speaking to reporters at the White House, he said, The person who got the Nobel Prize called me today and said, 'I am accepting this in honour of you because you really deserved it'... I didn't say, 'Give it to me', though. I think she might have... I've been helping her along the way. They needed a lot of help in Venezuela during the disaster. I am happy because I saved millions of lives. Trump also posted a screenshot of Machado on his Truth Social platform.Announcing the award earlier, the Nobel Committee described Machado as a brave and committed champion of peace who keeps the flame of democracy burning during a growing darkness." Trump had repeatedly insisted he deserved the prize for stopping multiple wars. Soon after the announcement on Friday, the White House criticised the committee's decision to award the Venezuelan opposition leader instead of Trump.On X, White House spokesman Steven Cheung said, President Trump will continue making peace deals, ending wars, and saving lives. He has the heart of a humanitarian, and there will never be anyone like him who can move mountains with the sheer force of his will. The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace. Russian drone and missile strikes wounded at least 20 people in Kyiv, damaged residential buildings and caused blackouts across swaths of Ukraine early Friday, authorities said. A child was also killed in separate attacks in the southeast of the country.In the heart of the Ukrainian capital, rescue crews pulled more than 20 people out of a 17-story apartment building as flames engulfed the sixth and seventh floors. Five people were hospitalised, while others received first aid at the scene, authorities said.Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Moscow of lashing out against Ukrainian cities in response to frontline failures in the east. They can show nothing on the battlefield. All they can do is attack our power sector... and attack our cities, Zelenskyy told reporters late Friday.Everyone was sleeping and suddenly there was such a sharp sound; it was clear that something was flying. I managed to pull the blanket over my head, and then the strike hit it blew out the windows, and the glass flew almost all the way to the door," 61-year-old resident Tetiana Lemishevska told The Associated Press."The fire was on the sixth or seventh floor at first, and the flames went up quickly and spread to other floors. So all the people who could left the building without knowing how it would end, she said.Prime Minister Yuliia Svyrydenko also described the attack as one of the largest concentrated strikes" against Ukraine's energy infrastructure.Ukraine's national energy operator, Ukrenergo, reported power outages in Kyiv and the wider region, as well as in the Sumy, Kharkiv, Poltava, Dnipropetrovsk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Cherkasy regions.Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said that Friday's attack knocked out power on both sides of the city, divided by the Dnipro River, while Ukraine's biggest electricity operator, DTEK, said that repair work was already underway on multiple damaged thermal plants.Russia's Defence Ministry on Friday said the strikes had targeted energy facilities supplying Ukraine's military. It did not give details of those facilities, but said Russian forces used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and strike drones against them.Each year, Russia has tried to cripple the Ukrainian power grid before the bitter winter season, apparently hoping to erode public morale. Ukraine's winter temperatures run from late October through March, with January and February the coldest months.Ukraine's air force said Friday that the latest Russian barrage included 465 strike and decoy drones, as well as 32 missiles of various types. Air defences intercepted or jammed 405 drones and 15 missiles, it said.In the southeastern Zaporizhzhia region, residential areas and energy sites were pounded with attack drones, missiles and guided bombs, killing a 7-year-old boy and wounding his parents and others, military administration officials said. A hydroelectric plant in the area was taken offline as a precaution, they said.A senior Ukrainian delegation is due to visit the United States next week. Zelenskyy said he was counting on US President Donald Trump to apply pressure on Moscow, adding that he was in discussions with US officials about the possible provision of various long-range precision strike weapons, including Tomahawk cruise missiles and more ATACMS tactical ballistic missiles.Ukraine, he said, would need a substantial amount. When you have 40, 50 or 60 ACATMS, between us, it's nothing, he said. If you want to have something and see real effect, then you have to provide, to deliver, the number which can give you this effect. Zelenskyy said was encouraged by the US-brokered ceasefire aimed at ending the war in Gaza and urged Trump to exert similar pressure on Russian President Vladimir Putin to stop the war in Ukraine.I hope he will use all the instruments: Tomahawks, sanctions, the diplomatic way, the financial way, tariffs, everything to stop Putin, he said. Xenu knows how many children have been saved from trauma and indoctrination because South Park got to them before they could be preyed upon by the Super Adventure Club. Throughout South Parks long history of religious controversies, no satire of a specific faith has had a larger impact on the world of the show than the 2005 episode Trapped in the Closet, when Trey Parker and Matt Stone first set their sights on the Church of Scientology. In the episode, Stan gets taken in by a branch of the Church that promises to rid him of his depression (for a small fee, of course), but, upon measuring his Thetan levels, the Scientologists determine that Stan must be the reincarnation of Church founder L. Ron Hubbard. Naturally, Stan sniffs out that Scientology is a scam and exposes the Church as a bunch of manipulative con artists, thus infuriating the real-life Church of Scientology and compelling them to seize ailing voice actor Isaac Hayes and remove him from the show (according to Hayes son, Isaac Hayes III). Because, when you really look at what Scientologists actually believe, even a kid can figure out that the whole religion is a ruse. Don't Miss During a 2011 interview with 60 Minutes, Stone said that hes glad that, for an entire generation of impressionable young people, their first experience with the Church of Scientology wasnt from a recruiter pulling them in off the street with promises of healing and community, but from learning what Scientologists actually believe: Wed made fun of a lot of religions, and then we finally decided to just make fun of Scientology, Stone said of the inception of Trapped in the Closet. We felt like, Come on, man, weve made fun of everybody!' Advertisement The South Park team famously had to take an abundance of legal precaution in anticipation of a reaction from the famously litigious Church of Scientology Parker and Stone even struck everyones name from the credits, listing each cast and crew member as either John or Jane Smith but, after treating every other religion to their iconoclastic ridicule, they knew it would be an injustice to comedy to back off of the dangerously fragile Church. While Scientology did, indeed, have a spaceship-sized meltdown about their South Park parody, as Stone gloated to the dismay of Scientology recruiters everywhere, the fallout to Trapped in the Closet only increased the general publics curiosity in the comedic takedown, and it would go on to become one of the most popular and beloved South Park episodes of all time. Whats cool about this episode, and what kind of makes us feel good about it is that, a lot of times, the first time a 17-year-old or 18-year-old who is kind of lost walking down Hollywood Boulevard hears about Scientology is when someone walks up with a copy of Dianetics or an e-meter thing, Stone explained of the dangers Scientology poses to the young and easily influenced. And now theres this whole generation who, this was the first time they heard of Scientology, this episode making fun of it. And thats kind of cool. Advertisement The Church of Scientology can try as they may to sue South Parks ass and balls, but Scientology will never be able to dislodge them from its cosmic mouth. A friend of mine is being followed. She said she'd seen the same man sitting in the same car outside her house twice that week and even once spotted him behind her at traffic lights. So, she panicked and started driving in loops through backstreets until she lost him. It left her completely rattled. Our friends were horrified. Did she call the police, they asked. No, of course, she didn't. I knew the likely truth: her husband had hired a private investigator. She'd been having an affair with a close family friend for at least a year. When the truth came out to our girl's group no one was particularly surprised. We all knew they were in the middle of a divorce. They'd been high-school sweethearts, together for 17 years, through three kids and the accumulation of his rather large fortune. They still fought like teenagers, so fireworks on their split seemed inevitable. But hiring a private investigator? Turns out, it's far more common than you'd think. These days the chatter's all about covert ops, stings and receipts. Catching up for a wine with the girls recently, we covered all the usual ground. Sex lives, holiday plans, work dramas. Then one of the ladies dropped a bombshell. 'I think my husband has hired a Private Investigator to follow me' Not only have we officially entered divorce season, there's a new weapon in everyone's armory: the PI Forget the trench coat and magnifying glass. The modern PI is a social-media-savvy detective with a laptop, a drone and a terrifying knowledge of your digital footprint. One former colleague didn't find out until months after his divorce that his wife had secretly hired a PI to follow him. He admitted he had been out partying too much, trying to numb the pain. He was just blowing off steam, but when the custody battle rolled around, his ex pulled out a folder of timestamped photos and bar tabs. The PI had documented every drink he'd ordered and every late-night Uber ride home. They even a photo of him laughing (and looking tipsy) outside a bar. His ex presented it all as 'proof' that he was a reckless drunk and a danger to their children. He wasn't. He was just sad. He lost shared custody for almost a year. Then there was the woman who went full FBI on her husband after she realized money was disappearing from their joint account. She paid a PI to investigate and discovered he'd been quietly transferring thousands into his business account to hide it before the divorce. When she confronted him, he acted confused and claimed it was for 'tax reasons.' Then there are the stories of PI's who flaunt their adventures online. One detective, Cassie Crofts, went viral after catching a cheating husband through his supermarket loyalty card. He was clocking up points in another suburb the one where his mistress lived. Imagine your Costco card being your downfall. Divorce filings spike from October through to January. People have slogged through another year of broken promises, cancelled therapy sessions and Sunday-night dread Forget the trench coat and magnifying glass. The modern PI is a social-media-savvy detective with a laptop, a drone and a terrifying knowledge of your digital footprint Another investigator shared a story about a wife who discovered her husband's 'gym sessions' were actually date nights. His Apple Watch betrayed him his heart rate went through the roof every Tuesday night between 9pm and 9:10pm. I had to chuckle at that. Then there was the husband who used his business account to pay a 'consultant' every month. The PI followed the money and discovered the consultant was an OnlyFans creator he'd subscribed to for two years. His wife had been wondering why their marketing budget kept disappearing. And the biggest case I heard about, was a man who claimed to be broke, pleading poverty to avoid paying a settlement. The PI found fifteen million dollars worth of cryptocurrency hidden in digital wallets under fake names. 'Cheating used to be the scandal,' one PI told me. 'Now it's the spreadsheets. The wildest affair we see is between a spouse and their own money.' It's bleak, but it's true. Modern relationships aren't romantic; they're forensic. People don't talk, they track. And once you've hired someone to spy on your partner, it's already over. You're not looking for answers, you're gathering evidence. Which brings me back to my friend. When she whispered about that car following her, as shocked as I was, I didn't doubt her. Because that's what the end of a marriage looks like now. Everyone's watching everyone and we're all just one login away from exposing a truth we probably didn't really want to know. So, if you see me sipping champagne this December, don't assume I'm celebrating someone's engagement or a promotion. I might be toasting the friend who just won her divorce thanks to a PI and her ex's Fitbit. Every day, all over the world, scores of parents discover that they have been lied to and so their lives are ruined. Their children have first gone off the rails at school, then become crazy, angry, kicking holes in doors and swearing, sometimes actually violent. Years of careful nurturing, years of education, have come to nothing. Skunk cannabis has wrecked their minds. But they have nobody to turn to. The NHS does not want any more mental patients, thank you. Its few remaining mental hospitals are quite full enough of marijuana victims already. There is no cure for the ghastly sickness which has lodged in their childrens heads. The available treatments are miserable and offer no hope, except that the worst of the craziness may stop. Some of these tragic cases go on to do serious violence, and even to kill. There are more of them all the time. We had such a case only the other day, but I will come to that. The lie, embedded in our culture, is that the drug called marijuana or cannabis or pot or dope or weed is soft, that it is harmless, that it makes its users mellow but does no damage, unlike the bogeyman drugs such as heroin and cocaine. 'The Manchester synagogue killer Jihad Al-Shamie was a squalid lowlife with a Class B drug conviction whose behaviour was the act of a crazy person, not of a political or religious zealot,' writes Peter Hitchens TV programmes and movies make light of it. Politicians urge its legalisation, as do billionaire businessmen hoping to make even more money from the misery it brings. Dimwits say it is a medicine and their claims are readily accepted without serious research. The police treat it as unimportant. Schools, where it is nowadays vaped or sold in the form of sweets to children of 11 or even younger, turn a blind eye to it. Of course, youd expect some people to pretend this is not happening. The noisiest of these are the marijuana community, the logically-challenged, fact-free multitudes of angry potheads who shriek enraged insults at me when I raise this on anti-social media. Their tweets, the obvious products of fizzing, garbled minds, prove my point. They all gibber that it has never done them any harm. They may not be the best judges of that. But now they have an unexpected new ally. This is the group of Right-wing thinkers who are preoccupied with what they believe is an Islamist terrorist threat to this country. I do not know why there should be such a threat, now we have helped to instal an actual Al Qaeda government in Syria and recognised a Palestinian state, but there it is. They are outraged when I point out that the Manchester synagogue killer Jihad Al-Shamie was a squalid lowlife with a Class B drug conviction whose behaviour was the act of a crazy person, not of a political or religious zealot. Each week, acclaimed columnists Sarah Vine and Peter Hitchens pull apart and debate one 'big idea' on the Mail's new politics show, Alas Vine & Hitchens. Listen wherever you get your podcasts Terrorists, like the IRA bombers or the 9/11 hijackers, have aims and achieve them (a truth we hide from ourselves). What possible cause was served by his unhinged, random murder? How did he help Islam, or Gaza or anybody? Like many crazy people, he wanted most of all to be dead, for even the simplest person knows that if you wear something that looks like a suicide vest, the police will shoot you. He mauled and scarred and smashed the very cause he is supposed to have been pursuing. And if he had been sane, rather than driven mad by THC, the key ingredient in dope, he would have known that. So would the similar people, totally non-Muslim, who recently engaged in similar unhinged rampages in Minneapolis and Dallas in the USA. But they too had been taking (youve guessed it) lots and lots of marijuana. The same is true of many non-political violent crimes in this country, where complacent media often dont bother to report the presence of the drug, blast them. There is one other thing about crazy people, which all psychiatrists know. They often like to attach themselves to big causes. It makes them feel important and significant. You will remember the proven maniac Muhaydin Mire, who in 2016 attacked passers-by at Leytonstone Underground station, shouting what seemed to be Islamist slogans. A bystander called out: You aint no Muslim, bruv! To begin with, the police and media treated the event as a political attack. But after Mire had been locked up in Broadmoor, it turned out that he was considerably madder than a very large box of frogs. He actually thought with literal cold certainty that Sir Anthony Blair KG was his guardian angel. His family had long been begging the authorities without success to put him away where he could not harm himself or others. Well, if you dont want to see any more of these horrible attacks, then join me in calling for the renewed enforcement of the laws against possessing marijuana which are still very much on the books. Start now and we may get it under control again. Do nothing about drugs, fret and sloganise about Islamism, and you will achieve nothing. And you will condemn hundreds more parents to the tragedy of watching their children turned into husks of their former selves by this cruel and vicious drug. Writing's on the wall for the Church of England The graffiti scarring beautiful Canterbury Cathedral The Very Rev David Monteith, Dean of Canterbury, says: There is a rawness which is magnified by the graffiti style which is disruptive.' Canterbury Cathedral is one of Earths 20 most beautiful buildings, which must be why the Church of England has plastered its interior with garish daubs which, as one visitor says, make it look like an underground car park in Peckham. No vandals broke in. They were already there. The Dean and Chapter, entrusted briefly with the care of this lovely, treasured place, the heart of the Church of England, chose to inflict this ugliness. It is an art installation. The Very Rev David Monteith, Dean of Canterbury, drivels: There is a rawness which is magnified by the graffiti style which is disruptive. No, Mr Monteith, it is cheap desecration. I am still making my mind up about the new Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally, but she would make a very good start by ordering the Dean to scrub this pollution off the cathedral walls and pillars, right now. On Friday, December 20, 2019, the website at Companies House was updated with a fresh entry. A new limited company with the uplifting, if slightly derivative, title Movement For Another Future Ltd had just been incorporated. It was given the company number 12373398. Movement For Another Future had only one officer, a solicitor who listed his name in the filing as Alexandre Samuel Barros-Curtis. But it had a very important purpose. It was the official campaign vehicle for Keir Starmer and his Labour leadership campaign. We know this because, although Barros-Curtis didnt advertise the fact, nor did Keir Starmer subsequently declare the establishment of the company in the Register of Members Interests, a data licence was discreetly obtained which stated its purpose was to register you as a supporter of Keir Starmer and inform and engage you about the Campaign. Immediately after the companys incorporation, the campaign was joined by Morgan McSweeney, at that time the director of another company called Labour Together, who would spend the next four months attempting to guide Sir Keir to the leadership. As this newspaper recently reported, Labour Together used its donors network, own campaign data and staff to boost Starmers bid. Even though, at the time, no one except McSweeney was aware Labour Together was itself being financed by a secretive 750,000 political slush fund. McSweeney and Barros-Curtiss hard if surreptitious work paid off, and Starmer was duly elected. At which point something odd started to happen. A perusal of the Companies House register reveals that, four days before formally registering Keir Starmers campaign company, Alexandre Samuel Barros-Curtis quietly resigned as director of a third company entitled Owen2016 Campaign Ltd. This was the campaign vehicle hed established for Owen Smiths doomed challenge to Jeremy Corbyn. It had been effectively dormant for two years. Keir Starmer has made great play over the need for full transparency and accountability within British politics. But the nature of his campaign company means that the full nature of its activities remain obscured from public view But despite this, on the same day Owen Smith was himself appointed as the new director. The entry also shows that when Barros-Curtis had registered that company he had used a derivation of his name, Alex Barros-Curtis. Meanwhile, a further examination of Companies House reveals that on December 19, the day before Movement For Another Future was incorporated, Morgan McSweeney formally resigned as a Person Of Significant Control from a fourth company called Centre For Countering Digital Hate Ltd. This company was supposedly established to counter online extremism. But, by fortunate coincidence, it also seems to have been used to target Keir Starmers political opponents, within the Labour Party and externally, including Nigel Farage and members of the Brexit Party in the run-up to, and during, the 2019 European Election campaign. Again, there seems to have been no attempt to register this activity with the Electoral Commission. And the mystery deepens. The use of a company structure to support party leadership campaigns is not of itself unusual. And they are quickly wound up once the campaign is over. But Movement For Another Future continues to function. According to the accounts, at the end of Starmers campaign the company had current assets of 34,227, of which 3,600 were debts to creditors. It reportedly had employed an average of nine permanent staff over the relevant reporting period. A year later the company had no permanent staff, but was still operating. Yet now it had current assets of 28,322, but had somehow accrued 27,695 of debt. The year after, the company supposedly established solely to get Keir Starmer elected Labour leader, and that apparently had zero staff, now had current assets of 9,812, but debt of 16,574. And, according to the latest accounts, this Mary Celeste of campaign vehicles currently has assets of 9,777, but has increased its debt to 19,664. Alex Barros-Curtis (pictured) has been aggressively pursuing Reform leader Nigel Farage over his purchase of a house in Clacton On Friday, December 20, 2019, a new limited company called Movement For Another Future Ltd was incorporated. It was given the company number 12373398 There is no suggestion of any wrongdoing on the part of Alexandre Samuel Barros-Curtis, or Alex Barros-Curtis or Morgan McSweeney. But theres something decidedly murky about this network of seemingly interconnected political campaign companies, all of which have dabbled in internal and external Labour politics. And which directly and indirectly have had a significant role in ushering Starmer into power. Some of this opaqueness is due to be further challenged in a forthcoming book, The Fraud, due to be published later this week. But the imminence of its publication also seems to have coincided with another mystery. The director of Keir Starmers campaign was also director of a fifth company, entitled Good Campaigns Company Ltd. This time he was registered on Companies House with the spelling Alexandre Samuel Barros Curtis, hyphen deleted. He reportedly resigned as director in January 2024, a few months before being parachuted into the safe Labour seat of Cardiff West. Last month, as rumours began to circulate about apparently damning emails relating to Morgan McSweeney and his campaigning work for Starmer, an application was filed to strike the company from the register, and dissolve it. Again, there is no suggestion of any breaches of electoral law similar to those uncovered relating to McSweeneys management of Labour Together. But there are still a number of questions that remain to be answered. Its now a matter of record Movement For Another Future directly supported Keir Starmers leadership campaign. But there is no mention of the company in any of his entries in the Parliamentary Register. Morgan McSweeney was the director of another company called Labour Together in 2019, which worked to guide Sir Keir to the leadership The campaign concluded on April 4, 2020. But the company used to transport him to the Labour leadership continues to operate as a going concern, with seemingly significant internal cash-flows. Keir Starmer has made great play over the need for full transparency and accountability within British politics. But the nature of his campaign company as a micro-company it is not required to publish audited accounts means that the full nature of its activities remain obscured from public view. And in recent weeks the companys sole director, the multi-monikered Alex Barros-Curtis, has been aggressively pursuing Nigel Farage over his purchase of a house in Clacton. The man who likes to bang on about fairness, standing up for ordinary people and holding others to account, he charges in a slickly produced campaign video. In response, the Tories are starting to smell a rat. There may be nothing illegal here. But it has all the hallmarks of a classic sock-puppet operation. Using different campaign skins to hide whos actually behind it, a Tory source told me. A senior Labour MP who has worked closely with McSweeney and Barros-Curtis agrees. Its not necessarily against the rules. But all these interconnected campaigns are suspicious. Theyve been up to something. Its time for the PM to come clean. And tell the country the truth about precisely whats going on inside Company 12373398. Any time someone passes away or suffers a life-changing injury at an amusement park it sends shockwaves around the globe. Millions put their trust in ride operators and engineers every year, and while rollercoaster accidents are rare, it's extremely devastating and terrifying when one does occur. Most recently, Kevin Rodriguez Zavala, 32, died after riding the Universal rollercoaster Stardust Racers last week. Rodriguez Zavala, who used a wheelchair due to an unspecified past spinal injury, was found unresponsive on the ride at Universal Studios' brand new park Epic Universe in Orlando, Florida, which opened in May. He was later pronounced dead at the hospital and the cause of death was 'blunt force trauma.' Local media reported that he did not fall from the ride, but sustained injuries while on board. The exact cause is being investigated by the Orange County Sheriff's Office. The incident has raised many questions, but it's sadly not the first tragic theme park incident to occur. From terrifying crashes and derailments to gruesome decapitations and amputations, take a look back at the most horrific rollercoaster accidents of all time. A teen was decapitated after being struck by a rollercoaster at Six Flags Over Georgia In June 2008, 17-year-old Asia LeeShawn Ferguson IV was then struck by the Batman coaster (seen on a different date) and decapitated The teen (seen) had jumped over two fences and entered into a restricted area of Six Flags Over Georgia In June 2008, 17-year-old Asia LeeShawn Ferguson IV jumped over two fences and entered into a restricted area of Six Flags Over Georgia. He was then struck by the Batman rollercoaster and decapitated. At the time, it was reported that the teenager was trying to retrieve a hat that had fallen into the area, but police later ruled out that theory. 'We do not know why this person was intent on gaining access to this restricted area. Multiple signs clearly state "Do Not Enter" and "Authorized Personnel Only,"' a spokesperson for the park said afterwards. His parents also told the Associated Press at the time, 'Nobody knows but my son and the Lord. We don't know because we weren't with him at the time.' To this day it's still not known when he entered the area. State regulators required Six Flags to increase the size and number of warning signs on their fences afterwards. Four riders were brutally crushed to death on a river rapids ride at Dreamworld in Australia In 2016, the Thunder River Rapids ride (seen on a different date with different riders) at Dreamworld theme suffered a terrifying mishap that resulted in the deaths of four people A malfunction of a water pump caused the water level on the ride to suddenly drop, which resulted in an empty raft getting stuck. A raft full of riders came barreling into the empty one In October 2016, the Thunder River Rapids ride at Dreamworld theme park in Queensland, Australia, suffered a terrifying mishap that resulted in the deaths of four people. A malfunction of a water pump caused the water level on the ride to suddenly drop, which resulted in an empty raft getting stuck just before the load area. A raft full of riders came barreling into the empty one, flipping and throwing two passengers into the water. But four others became trapped underneath the tube and the wooden conveyor belt, ultimately getting crushed to death. The ride was permanently closed afterwards. In 2020, Dreamworld's parent company plead guilty to three breaches of workplace health and safety laws and was fined $3.6 million. In addition, a settlement amount for $2.1 million was paid to the family of one of the victims. A 14-year-old plummeted to his death at ICON Park in Orlando 14-year-old Tyre Sampson tragically fell to his death while he was riding the Orlando Free Fall ride (seen on a different date) at ICON Park in March 2022 Tyre (seen) reportedly weighed 380 pounds and the ride had a 287-pound weight limit It was later revealed that the restraint proximity sensors of the harness on his seat had been manually adjusted to accommodate his bigger size, which allowed him to slip out. He's seen on the ride Tyre Sampson, 14, tragically fell to his death while he was riding the Orlando Free Fall ride at ICON Park in March 2022. The ride was the world's tallest free-standing drop tower when it opened just three months prior, taking guests up 430-feet before dropping at 70 mph. Tyre reportedly weighed 380 pounds and the ride had a 287-pound weight limit, per CBS News. It was later revealed that the restraint proximity sensors of the harness on his seat had been manually adjusted to accommodate his bigger size, which allowed him to slip out. The ride was demolished after the incident, and the Tyre Sampson Act was passed that says any rides over 100 feet high must have both seat belts and harnesses. The attraction's manufacturer was ordered to pay $310 million to the victim's family in March 2022. A young girl had both her feet severed after a cable snapped while on a ride at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom Kaitlyn Lassiter had to get her leg amputated after a cable snapped while she was riding Superman: Tower of Power (seen on a different date) at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom in 2007 Thirteen-year-old Kaitlyn Lassiter's life was changed forever after a cable snapped while she was riding Superman: Tower of Power at Six Flags Kentucky Kingdom in June 2007. Similar to the Orlando Free Fall, the ride brought passengers up a 177-foot tower before dropping. When the cable broke it wrapped around her legs, resulting in both of her feet getting severed above the ankles as the ride dropped. Doctors were ultimately able to reattach her right foot but the left had to be amputated. According to reports, ride operators heard Kaitlyn and her friends screaming for help but did not hit the emergency stop button until it was too late. The ride was closed afterwards, and Kaitlyn's family later sued Six Flags and reached a confidential settlement. Two riders needed amputations after a rollercoaster at Alton Towers crashed into another train at full speed Tragedy struck Alton Towers in the UK in June 2015, when a train full of riders on The Smiler rollercoaster crashed into an empty one. The ride is seen on a different date The gruesome incident led to 17-year-old Leah Washington-Pugh (left) needing to amputate her left leg above the knee and 19-year-old Vicky Balch (right) needing a partial leg amputation Tragedy struck Alton Towers in the UK in June 2015, when a train full of riders on The Smiler rollercoaster crashed into an empty one. The empty train was doing a test run but stalled due to a gust of wind. While the ride's protection system shut down the ride, it was overridden by an operator on duty who didn't realize the train was stopped on the tracks. The cart full of passengers came barreling into the empty one at full speed, resulting in 16 guests getting injured. The gruesome incident led to 17-year-old Leah Washington-Pugh needing to amputate her left leg above the knee and 19-year-old Vicky Balch needing a partial leg amputation. Joe Pugh, 18, shattered both of his kneecaps and severing some of his fingers. The ride reopened in March 2016 with additional safety features added. The company operating the ride was fined roughly $6.6 million. A six-year-old fell to her death at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park after failing to put on her seatbelt In September 2021, a six-year-old girl named Wongel Estifanos tragically died after she fell 110-feet from the Haunted Mine Drop ride at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park in Colorado It was later revealed that she was sitting on top of the two seatbelts for the ride rather than them being on her lap. The ride is seen on a different date In September 2021, a six-year-old girl named Wongel Estifanos tragically died after she fell 110-feet from the Haunted Mine Drop ride at Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park in Colorado. It was later revealed that she was sitting on top of the two seatbelts for the ride rather than them being on her lap. The workers checking riders' seatbelts didn't notice. According to reports, an indicator light alerted employees there was an issue with her harness but they 'did not know how to respond, so they dispatched the ride.' The ride was closed for two years but reopened in 2023 with a new name, Crystal Tower. Last week, a jury awarded the girl's family $205 million. A spokesperson for the park said afterwards that while their 'hearts go out to the family of Wongel Estifanos and everyone affected by the tragic accident that happened on September 5, 2021, if the jury verdict remains as it is, hundreds of local jobs are in peril.' The spokesperson also noted that the jury allocated significant fault to the other defendant that designed the ride, which they say told Glenwood Caverns that the ride met 'all applicable standards, which was untrue.' A 10-year-old boy was decapitated after his raft on a waterslide became airborne at a Kansas water park In August 2016, a 10-year-old boy named Caleb Schwab was horrifically killed while riding the Verruckt slide at Schlitterbahn Kansas City water park (seen on a different date) The raft he was on went airborne during its ascent up the second hill and crashed into a metal support holding up some safety netting, resulting in the young boy getting decapitated When the Verruckt slide opened at Schlitterbahn Kansas City water park in 2014, it was hailed as the tallest water slide in the world, towering at 168 feet. But two years after it debuted, in August 2016, a 10-year-old boy named Caleb Schwab was horrifically killed while riding it. The raft he was on went airborne during its ascent up the second hill and crashed into a metal support holding up some safety netting, resulting in the young boy getting decapitated. The other two passengers were also injured, with one suffering from a broken jaw and another enduring a facial bone fracture. According to court documents, investigators found 'physical evidence that indicated that other rafts had gone airborne and collided with the overhead hoops and netting before the fatality.' It was also revealed that just a week before the ride opened, an engineering firm hired to test the slide issued a report that 'guaranteed that rafts would occasionally go airborne in a manner that could severely injure or kill the occupants.' The slide's designers were indicted on charges of aggravated battery, aggravated endangerment of a child, interference with law enforcement, and involuntary manslaughter. One of them also faced a second-degree murder charge. A judge dismissed all the charges in 2019, however, ruling that the prosecution 'abused the grand jury and tainted the indictments,' per NPR. The ride was demolished and the park closed in 2018. A cart derailed on a coaster at Galaxyland in Canada resulting in three deaths In June 1986, one of the cars on the Mindbender rollercoaster at the West Edmonton Mall in Alberta, Canada, derailed while it was moving at 62mph. The ride is seen on a different date In June 1986, one of the cars on the Mindbender rollercoaster at the West Edmonton Mall in Alberta, Canada, derailed while it was moving at 62mph. Its wheel became detached from the track and when the car got damaged, the lap bar restraints unlocked and released. All four passengers riding at the time were thrown to the concrete floor below - three of them died. The fourth person survived, but shattered his lower legs, crushed half his left shoulder and broke his feet, pelvis, lower back, and every rib on his left side. The ride reopened the next year with the trains redesigned. It was demolished in 2023 after 37 years to make way for a new ride. A woman fatally fell from her seat off a rollercoaster at Six Flags Over Texas 52-year-old Rosy Esparza died after she fell from the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas in July 2013. The ride is seen on a different date An employee told investigators afterwards that her seatbelt was 'a little high or not as tight as it should be.' Rosy is seen Rosy Esparza, 52, died after she fell from the Texas Giant roller coaster at Six Flags Over Texas in July 2013. An employee told investigators afterwards that her seatbelt was 'a little high or not as tight as it should be.' Another said they thought 'the restraint wasn't all the way down on her thigh' but brushed it off because the safety system said the restraint was locked. They also said the train she was on 'gave them problems earlier in the week,' per NBC DFW. 'The sensors had not been working properly, and park maintenance came out to fix them,' the outlet said. Police ruled it as an accident and said there were no signs of any criminal misconduct. Six Flags ultimately added extra 'safety measures' to the ride including a 'redesigned lap-bar restraint pads and seat belts.' A derailment of a rollercoaster at the Battersea Park Funfair in London led to the death of five children One of the most gruesome theme park tragedies of all time took place at the Battersea Park Funfair in London in 1972 when a train on the Big Dipper coaster came off its tracks Five children died and thirteen others were injured during the horrific mishap. A photo of the aftermath is seen One of the most gruesome theme park tragedies of all time took place at the Battersea Park Funfair in London in 1972. Five children died and thirteen others were injured when a train on the Big Dipper coaster came off its tracks. It was going up the hill when it book loose from its haulage rope and as it gained speed it came off the track and crashed. 'As soon as we started shooting backwards everything went into slow motion... I turned around and saw the brake man desperately trying to put the brake on but it wasnt working,' one of the survivors later recounted to the Independent. 'Most of the carriages didnt go around the bend, one detached and went off the side through a wooden hoarding. 'People were groaning and hanging over the edge. It was awful ... There was blood everywhere.' A report found that there were over 50 faults on the ride, and three men involved were charged with manslaughter, however, they were acquitted. Geneva, Switzerland (PANA) - As displaced Gazans jammed the main route leading north on Friday after the ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas reportedly came into effect, UN aid teams repeated their call to open all crossings into the devastated enclave to prevent famine spreading Two Australian cities have just been named among the world's friendliest - but if recent commentary is anything to go by, there are plenty who'd disagree. Conde Nast Traveller magazine announced its 2025 Readers' Choice Awards - including the top 10 'friendliest cities in the world'. This year, Australia was the only country to have two cities on the list. Melbourne and Sydney were featured at 6th and 7th place respectively. The reason? The winners report mentioned Melbourne's 'nostalgic Victorian architecture, atmospheric bars in graffiti-covered alleyways and a booming coffee culture' as big wins for tourists. They also noted its 'splendid standards of public transport, public institutions, and work-life balance'. Meanwhile, sunny sister city Sydney (which dropped from second place in 2024), was praised for the 'allure' of its 'outdoorsy lifestyle' and 'stunning beaches'. However, there is an underlying problem in Australian cities these rave reviews shroud. The list is picked by travel-loving readers who are enjoying a short-term visit. This year, Australia was the only country to have two cities on the list. Melbourne and Sydney were featured at 6th and 7th place respectively Meanwhile, sunny sister city Sydney (which dropped from second place in 2024), was praised for the 'allure' of its 'outdoorsy lifestyle' and 'stunning beaches' While visitors may enjoy a warm and welcoming reception Down Under, there are increasing reports suggesting it can quite the opposite for those who relocate to Australia on a long-term basis. Scrolling through TikTok and online forums reveals a myriad of confessions from travellers revealing they've struggled to make friends since moving to Australia - and particularly the Harbour City. These anecdotal reports discuss how it's a struggle to break into social cliques, and that expats often find themselves spending their weekends alone in a city full of strangers. Questions like 'Is Sydney usually this lonely?' and 'Struggling to make friends Down Under' dominate online forums, where many agree it's difficult to meet people. And over on TikTok, expats have vlogged in droves about the isolation they feel. Despite being breathtakingly beautiful in appearance, many described how the sprawling and fast-paced city of Sydney has loads of liveability concerns. With one of the highest costs of living in the world, expats noted that rent is through the roof, commutes can be long, and friendship groups are notoriously hard to penetrate. In August, a Reddit post written by an international student struck a chord with thousands after describing Sydney as 'beautiful but lonely'. The young man, who moved to Australia from India for university, sparked a wave of responses from locals and expats who agreed the city's social scene can be notoriously hard to crack. A post from an international student has struck a chord online, after they described Sydney as 'beautiful but lonely' Scrolling through Reddit or TikTok reveals a myriad of confessions from expats who've struggled with loneliness since relocating to Australia Sharing his experience, the man said that while the harbour city is 'absolutely stunning', he's found it 'antisocial' and difficult to connect with people, both on campus and in day-to-day life. 'Everybody's on their phones all the time, everybody seems very busy all the time,' he wrote. 'Making friends seems like a hard task for now.' Many agreed, with some saying it's not just Sydney, but a wider Australian cultural pattern where friendliness doesn't necessarily translate into friendship. 'People will be friendly and it's easy to chat, but that's not the same as getting someone [to slow down enough to] befriend them,' one replied. They advised joining regular groups or hobbies and spending more time outside the CBD, where social circles can be more open. But some also pointed to what they saw as a deeper social problem. 'There's an unspoken Australian culture of being friendly to many, but only friends with people [who] can get them somewhere,' one wrote. Traveller Amy (pictured) posted a TikTok about how alone she felt in Sydney: 'This is the reality of moving across the world by yourself' TikTokker Fallon Duroy (left) posted a video about her struggle to make friends in Sydney. Heather Grace McGee (right) also shared a video about being homesick while in Sydney 'If you're out solo, it looks like you're [not worth talking to].' Others described Sydney as a place where established social networks go back decades, making it tough for outsiders to break in. 'Unless you were raised here and made school friends in affluent suburbs, they aren't interested in making friends with you. You're irrelevant and invisible,' one commenter claimed. Several shared similar experiences in other Australian cities, saying smaller capitals like Adelaide could also feel closed off. 'Everyone knows everyone from childhood. It's almost impossible to make friends with the locals here and they look at you weird if you even walk alone,' a woman shared. However, a few argued that the drinking culture in Australian cities was one of the few remaining avenues for spontaneous socialising. While a few commenters insisted it's possible to build a thriving social life in Sydney, they admitted it takes extra effort - and often the most welcoming circles are made up of other 'out-of-towners' in the same boat. As one long-term resident summed it up after seven years. 'Even with friends it's a lonely city. It's superficial, not very friendly. Melbourne and Perth are significantly more welcoming,' they wrote. Gisele Bundchen has been named as a Prize Council Member at the Prince of Wales's renowned environmental awards - The Earthshot Prize. The supermodel and philanthropist, 45, is the first Brazilian to take on the role as she joins other notable names on the council, including the future king himself, Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan, Oscar winner Cate Blanchett and Sir David Attenborough, among others. In her new role, she will help select five winners championing sustainability initiatives all over the world. 'Im honored to join The Earthshot Prize Council,' Gisele shared. 'Protecting nature has always been close to my heart, and Ive seen the power of the global communities coming together and supporting innovation to create real change. 'Every action matters big or small and together we can nurture change to protect the planet we call home. 'The Earthshot Prize shines a light on solutions that inspire hope and transformation, and Im proud to represent Brazil in sharing these stories with the world.' Jason Knauf, CEO of The Earthshot Prize, added: 'As we head towards our greatest Earthshot Prize Awards yet in Rio, we are thrilled to welcome Brazilian climate leader Gisele Bundchen, with her unique record of leadership and environmental progress. 'Her passion and commitment to the environmental movement in Brazil and beyond, and her dedication to amplifying solutions will be invaluable to our mission. Supermodel, philanthropist and environmental activist Gisele Bundchen has joined Prince William's Earthshot Prize as a Prize Council Member 'Her voice, leadership and dedication, will inspire everyone to keep building the future we all want for people and the planet.' Gisele has advocated for environmental and social causes since the early 2000s, after a Victoria's Secret fashion show she was walking in was interrupted by a PETA protest against the use of fur. Since then, she has worked closely with the United Nations Environment Programme and helped lead their awareness campaigns, and also supported water conservation through the Clean Water Project in southern Brazil. One of Gisele's passions is reforestation. In 2020, to celebrate her 40th birthday, the supermodel had 40,000 trees planted in Brazil using seeds from a seed bank project she supported in 2006. She is also involved in initiatives that focus on regenerative agriculture and wildlife protection all around the world. Gisele also founded the Luz Foundation in 2007, which provides funding and support for impactful projects in uplifting women and children, education, health and the environment. She has spent the last few years allocating funds through the Luz Alliance Fund to protect Brazil's biomes, including the Amazon, Cerrado, Caatinga, Mata Atlantica, Pampa, and Pantanal, as well as the country's coastal marine ecosystems. She is also as a United Nations Goodwill Ambassador and raising awareness about deforestation in the Amazon. The 45-year-old is the first Brazilian to take on the role ahead of the first Earthshot Prize ceremony in Latin America later this year Gisele's passion lies in reforestation, regenerative agriculture and wildlife protection, and she works closely with the United Nations Environment Programme To mark her 40th birthday in 2020, Gisele had 40,000 trees planted using seeds from a seed bank project she supported in 2006 The mother-of-three, who has been one of the highest paid supermodels in the world since 2001,is a supporter and board member of The Lotus House in Miami, the largest women and children's shelter in the United States. She donated US$1 million to the new Children's Village that opened this year, providing after-school programmes and therapeutic and social services, in addition to housing community-based non-profits. The Earthshot Prize said that Gisele's appointment on the council 'strengthens its presence in Latin America at a pivotal moment for the global awareness'. It comes as the awards ceremony is set to take place in Latin America for the first time this year. The glamorous event will be hosted in Rio de Janeiro at the Museum of Tomorrow on Wednesday November 5. Earlier this month, Prince William unveiled the 2025 finalists for the award and said he was 'deeply proud' of the work that the Earthshot Prize has supported so far. The five finalists are vying for a 1 million prize pot awarded to each winner of five categories, with the money earmarked to develop their ideas. The prize recognises solutions from different geographies, sectors and stages in their life cycle, and is dedicated to solving the planet's greatest challenges. The mother-of-three's advocacy work began in the early 2000s, after a PETA protest during one of her Victoria's Secret shows enlightened her Gisele also founded the Luz Foundation in 2007, which provides funding and support for impactful projects in uplifting women and children, education, health and the environment The event in 2025 marks the halfway point in the Earthshot decade. In a video message posted on social media, William, who will be travelling to Brazil in November, said: 'Back then, a decade felt a long time. George was seven, Charlotte five and Louis two; the thought of them in 2030 felt a lifetime away. 'But today, as we stand halfway through this critical decade, 2030 feels very real. 'The Earthshot Prize was founded because this decade matters. 2030 is a threshold by which future generations will judge us; it is the point at which our actions, or lack of them, will have shaped forever the trajectory of our planet.' He said he is 'deeply proud' of what the Earthshot Prize has done in its first five years and is 'enormously excited' for the next five. 'Not just for the new finalists we'll welcome into our network, but to see the continued impact of our 60 existing finalists,' he said. 'Together, they are moving us towards achieving vital global goals that will improve and secure lives and livelihoods for all of us - goals such as protecting 30% of our land and sea by 2030. 'It is impossible to hear these finalists' stories, to see the impact they are already having and not feel encouraged by their energy and momentum. 'For me, it is that urgent optimism that has been at the heart of this prize from the beginning. And it feels unstoppable. 'The people behind these projects are heroes of our time, so let us back them. Because, if we do, we can make the world cleaner, safer and full of opportunity - not only for future generations, but for the lives we want to lead now.' Among the 15 finalists is a British company, Matter, headquartered in Bristol, whose simple washing machine filters remove the greatest cause of microplastics in the ocean. Adam Root, chief executive and founder of Matter, said: 'Being a finalist for the Earthshot Prize and representing Matter at the awards ceremony in Rio is like winning an Olympic gold medal in innovation. 'Matter's mission is to create impact at a size and scale that meets the enormity of the microplastic pollution challenge.' Wedding toasts and married couples have long echoed the advice: 'Don't go to bed angry', - but an expert has revealed why it may harm the relationship not to sleep on it. Dr Samantha Whiten, a clinical psychologist in Maryland, told the Associated Press that never going to bed angry at your significant other is 'completely wrong'. 'All it does is make sure that people are fighting when they're tired,' she added. Instead, couples can develop habits that help them get rest while also boosting their long-term relationship. Its understandable to want to discuss a problem before letting it fester, Whiten said, but it's unrealistic to expect conflicts wrap up quickly and lovingly before drifting off to sleep. Whiten disputed the age-old advice, arguing that couples are 'emotionally dysregulated' when they're tired. She referred to the acronym HALT, a common reminder in therapy that people should avoid serious discussions when hungry, angry, lonely, or tired. Many people also drink alcohol at night, which she said doesnt help create a calm environment. Newly-married couples are often told to 'never go to bed angry,' however two experts in psychology have revealed that the advice couldn't be more wrong Dr Samantha Whiten, a clinical psychologist, said that couples shouldn't fight when they're tired, citing the acronym HALT, which reminds people not to fight when they're hungry, angry, lonely, or tired 'They are more likely to say and do things impulsively that they may regret,' she said. Discussing problems at night might seem easiest because it's when your partner is most available, Dr Sabrina Romanoff, a clinical psychologist in New York City, added. However, Romanoff suggested that it's better to acknowledge that something needs to be discussed, take a pause, and set a time to revisit it. Romanoff explained that it would be better to discuss the problem over lunch or coffee the next day, adding that the key is to follow through. 'It speaks to a skill, to trust that your partner is really going to return to this thing that is really important to you,' Romanoff said, noting that most couples have to practice. Its also about understanding your partner and being empathetic to what each of you needs. When one partner needs space, its incumbent on the other person not to interpret that space as rejection, Romanoff added. Whiten said many couples in her practice have at least one person who feels they wont be able to sleep until they resolve a fight. Thats often a sign of anxiety and discomfort with uncertainty. 'People need to individually learn how they can regulate themselves and tell themselves its okay,' she explained. Dr Sabrina Romanoff agreed that it's better to carve out time for hard conversations rather than cram them in at night before bed The experts advised that couples take a beat when they're arguing and revisit the discussion when they both are ready to maturely address the topic 'The idea of being able to self-soothe is really key'. Whiten clarified that the opposite extreme - avoiding tough topics altogether - is no better. Many people may need space to process an argument, but they eventually need to return to their partner to address the topic. The goal is that both people feel secure enough to acknowledge the disagreement, remember their relationship is more important than one argument, and agree to talk about it later, Whiten said. 'When people can learn to do that, its really transformative.' Romanoff suggested that couples establish regular check-ins. They dont have to talk about the worst problems in their lives at a given point, but they should make a habit of small gestures of communication. Even regularly asking how your partners day went creates a kind of scaffolding of emotional safety, she said. When there is an issue, use 'I' statements, be clear about what you need, and try to create a plan for how the other person can deliver, Romanoff added. A request posed at an appropriate time will often be better received. 'Timing is everything when it comes to communication,' she said. Scientists may be one step closer to a new therapy that could 'fix' the faulty genes at play in people with brain disorders such as autism and epilepsy. About a million people worldwide are thought to have a SYNGAP1-related disorder (SRD). This is a group of brain disorders that disrupt normal brain development and can lead to intellectual disability, epilepsy, movement problems and impulsive behavior, as well as symptoms associated with autism. In most cases, the conditions are caused when someone only has one functional copy of the SYNGAP1 gene instead of the usual two. Now, scientists in Washington state say they have found a way to repair the damaged gene and potentially help patients function better in daily life. In a new study, researchers administered juvenile mice suffering from the brain disorder with an altered adenovirus, or a cold virus, that carried a healthy copy of the SYNGAP1 gene. The virus successfully delivered the gene to brain cells, with the rodents then experiencing broad improvements in their behavior up to two weeks later, including the near elimination of epilepsy, a neurological disorder where patients suffer from recurrent and unprovoked seizures, and a reduction in hyperactive and risky behavior. The mice also saw a substantial shift in their brain wave patterns, or electrical pulses generated by the brain, from abnormal to much closer to normal. Dr Boaz Levy, a biochemist at the Allen Institute for Brain Science who led the study, said: '[This study] is an important milestone for the field that provides hope for those who suffer from this class of severe neurological diseases.' Scientists say they have found a potential new therapy for a brain disorder that can cause autism symptoms in children (stock image) Your browser does not support iframes. He added: 'Gene supplementation is providing a functional new copy of a defective gene, a strategy that has great potential for correcting diseases where a gene is completely missing or where a single copy of a gene is lost. 'This [study] provides a clear demonstration that SYNGAP1-related disorders can be treated with a neuron-specific gene supplementation strategy.' The research is in the early stages and was only carried out in mice, with researchers saying clinical trials still need to be done in humans to confirm that the therapy works. But scientists heralded the results as a positive step towards developing a treatment for the condition. It was particularly notable that the study was successful in juvenile mice, which is around the same age at which humans are diagnosed with SRDs and could, therefore, receive treatment. About 1,500 Americans have been diagnosed with a SYNGAP1-related brain disorder, activists say, although estimates suggest many cases have been missed. Not all autism and epilepsy cases are caused by SYNGAP1-related disorders, although patients with SRDs may be diagnosed with these conditions. The disorders are considered to be a spectrum because the faulty genes often do not affect the brain in exactly the same way or to the same level of severity. There is currently no specific treatment or cure for the condition, but doctors say they can help patients to manage symptoms using antiseizure medications or implanting devices into the body that can help to control nerve activity. About one to two percent of all intellectual disability cases, including autism spectrum disorder and epilepsy, are estimated to be caused by SRD. In the therapy, a healthy copy of the faulty gene is delivered to brain cells by an adenovirus, or cold virus. It was successful at improving symptoms in juvenile mice About one in 31 children in the US has autism, a surge on the one in 150 estimated to have the condition in 2000. Some research has suggested that about 80 percent of autism cases are linked to inherited genetic mutations. But Robert F Kennedy Jr, the Health and Human Services Secretary, is among those who have argued that the surge in cases cannot be blamed on genetics alone and is likely also down to unidentified environmental factors. About 470,000 children in the US have epilepsy, with experts also suggesting that the condition is caused by both genetic and lifestyle factors. Epilepsy is a common symptom in patients with SYNGAP1-related brain disorders, with more than 80 percent of sufferers also diagnosed with this condition. For the research, published in the journal Molecular Therapy, scientists injected the altered adenoviruses into the mice's cerebral ventricles, the fluid-filled cavities in the center of the organ. The injection was carried out by inserting a needle past the eye and into the brain. Shown above is Dr Boaz Levy, left, who led the research, and associate investigator Dr Rong Guo and scientist Dr Meagan Quinlan The above is the cross section of the brain of a mouse in the study. The highlighted areas represent locations where the adenovirus delivered the treatment to the brain One to two weeks later the rodents were put through a battery of tests to measure the impact of the therapy. Tests included tracking the movements of mice in a 7.8inch by 7.8inch arena, to check for erratic behavior, and placing them in an elevated maze and monitoring their behavior to estimate anxiety and risk-taking behavior. The team concluded: 'Our findings provide the first evidence that... gene therapy can restore SYNGAP1 function and reverse key [symptoms], supporting its potential as a transformative therapeutic for patients.' When Peter Atkinson first heard a faint ringing in his ears one Monday morning at work, he thought it was nothing to worry about. But the noise refused to go away and soon the 62-year-old business owner was barely sleeping. Despite how much it was affecting him, doctors dismissed his concerns, saying his scans were clear and that he'd simply have to live with the ringing in his ears. It was, they told him, 'just tinnitus'. And he's far from alone. Around 1.5 million people in the UK suffer with severe tinnitus that disrupts their daily lives. As well as ringing, they may hear buzzing, hissing, whistling, humming or even distant voices sounds that can rise and fall in pitch, come and go, or drone on continuously. For Peter, the noise in his right ear grew worse, triggering anxiety and depression. 'I was on a downward spiral,' he says. 'I was in a bad place, having some really dark thoughts that scared me. I knew I had to look for help.' That was when he discovered OTO, a phone app designed for tinnitus sufferers. He joined a University of Cambridge trial comparing the app with traditional therapy, with results expected in the coming weeks. Now, Peter, from Barnsley, has learned to manage his condition thanks to OTO's personalised guided help plan. Peter Atkinson, from Barnsley, has learned to manage his condition thanks to OTO's personalised guided help plan 'The app has given me a way of coping with my condition,' he says. 'I can better operate on a day-to-day basis now without the tinnitus taking over.' Experts say the revolutionary app that helped Peter could soon be rolled out on the NHS to support the one in seven adults in the UK almost 8 million people who experience some form of tinnitus. 'The aim following the trial is that all patients are able to access OTO free at the point of use,' says Dr Edmund Farr, the company's founder. 'Tinnitus treatment is very difficult to access for patients, and our app can help solve that.' It works by creating a personalised self-help plan based on users' survey responses. From there, they commit just ten minutes a day to guided audio sessions meditation, breathing techniques, sound calibration or cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) designed to shift the brain's reaction to the noise so that it becomes less noticeable over time. The company says 90 per cent of users report a reduction in symptoms over a three-month course. Last year, Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust announced it would begin referring tinnitus patients to OTO, which they could use for free. However, anyone can download the app, at a cost of 36 a month. Experts say the technology could help relieve pressure on face-to-face CBT services, where long waits often prevent people from receiving timely treatment. Research from Leeds Trinity University found that only 8 per cent of people who visit their GP suffering from tinnitus are referred for CBT. 'There is a real problem in the NHS with patients who see their GP being referred on to psychological services,' says Dr James Jackson, a psychologist and tinnitus researcher at the university, who has helped develop a similar app called MindEar. 'We have a postcode lottery in access to care, but utilising accredited smartphone apps that provide an introduction to therapy could help patients, particularly while they are waiting for appointments with a specialist. 'Tinnitus is, for many, a condition that comes and goes throughout the day, so having an option for instant relief that is able to calm anxiety when you are woken up at 3am is incredibly important and until now, not something that we had available.' Dr Jackson says that the gold standard for tinnitus treatment is CBT delivered by a tinnitus or audiology specialist but he estimates that there are only a handful across the country trained to provide this. An app, he says, can help bridge the gap in education and self-help resources, with many audiologists already recommending OTO to their patients. 'While there is no replacement for face-to-face therapy, this is a really exciting and useful tool for patients,' says Sue Falkingham, a Yorkshire-based audiologist. 'It can be difficult to find CBT designed specifically for tinnitus patients, but this app does that.' She adds: 'When patients are dismissed by their GP which they so often are they go hunting online for cures that don't exist. What this does is collate accredited advice in one place.' Great writers and the cats who owned them by Susannah Fullerton (Bodleian 16.99, 280pp) Great Writers & the Cats Who Owned Them is available now from the Mail Bookshop Cats and writers are spiritual soulmates. That, at least, is the opinion of Susannah Fullerton, who has rounded up stories about well-known scribes and their furry companions. In this entertaining book, you will meet all those Siamese, Persians and workaday tabbies who insist on walking across keyboards, sitting on top of manuscripts and greeting each new book their owner produces with a suspicious sniff, as if to say they could probably have done better themselves, if only they had the time. Take Bob, the moggie who used to get so cross with his master Charles Dickens for reading late into the night that he repeatedly snuffed out the candle with his paw. When Bob eventually died, Dickens had that paw made into the furry handle of a paperknife, so that every time the author of David Copperfield opened one of his many letters, he remembered his departed feline friend. (You can still see this gruesome gadget in the New York Public Library.) Then there is Mark Twain, author of the Huckleberry Finn books, who was so dependent on feline companionship that whenever he was away, he rented local kittens to help him feel at home. A genuine animal lover, when Twain quit his temporary digs he left money to ensure that the hired-for-the-holidays cats would be looked after for life. Or what about Edward Lear, author of The Owl And The Pussy-Cat, who was so worried that his elderly cat Foss would get confused by moving house that he insisted on building his new villa on exactly the same plan as the old one. This kind of exquisite care wasnt unique to Lear. In the previous century, Dr Johnson, of Dictionary fame, exhibited just such thoughtfulness to his sable cat, Hodge. Hodge loved oysters, which in the 1760s were as cheap as chips. But Johnson worried that if he sent Francis Barber, his servant, to buy his cats supper, Barber might feel insulted and take his frustration out on the animal. So every day, Johnson, by now pretty much the most famous man in England, could be seen lumbering off to the market to buy Hodges favourite tea-time treat. Paws for Thought: Dickens's memento of Bob Fullerton doesnt confine herself to moggies of English-speaking writers, telling tales of the Argentinian novelist Jorge Luis Borges, who wrote poems to his felines, and the scandalous French poet Charles Baudelaire, who declared a cat is beautiful; it suggests ideas of luxury, cleanliness, voluptuous pleasures. Then there is the Canadian L.M. Montgomery, beloved author of Anne Of Green Gables. She hoped that, when she died, the spirits of all the cats shed ever loved would greet her with purrs of gladness at the pearly gates. All the stories in this book have been told many times before. However, such is their charm that it would feel like bad manners something you could never accuse a cat of to make too much of this. Instead, the best way to enjoy this book is to sink into a comfortable armchair, pour a glass of something delicious, and imagine that there is a soft, furry bundle purring like a tractor on your lap as you reacquaint yourself with Bob, Hodge and all the other feline mews who have inspired and consoled our greatest literary minds. Olivia Attwood opens up on divorce rumours as she admits she and Bradley Dack 'really weren't getting on very well' as she reflects on using partying to cope Connecticut officials are continuing to offer both the Women's Infants and Children (WIC) program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for young children and low-income families despite the government shutdown. The decision was made to ensure that eligible pregnant people, breastfeeding parents, and children aged up to five years continue to receive much-needed food assistance and medical benefits. Connecticut's Food Program In a statement, Lt. Gov. Susan Bysiewicz said that the state is able to fund the program despite the ongoing federal shutdown. She noted they have a "very large rainy day fund" and will not let women, babies, and children go hungry. Additionally, State Public Health Commissioner Manisha Juthani said that every day the WIC program runs, they spend roughly $200,000. Gov. Ned Lamont said on Oct. 1 that Connecticut can cover such costs using its emergency state reserves, which will last at least through the month of October, according to CT Public. The governor said that while they expect the federal government to reimburse them for the costs of the program, it is not something they can be sure of right now. When Lamont was asked about what would happen if they were not reimbursed, he did not have an answer. Read more: Childcare Funding Cuts Result in Protests by Education Advocates in Front of Arkansas State Capitol What the governor did say is that they want to take things one step at a time right now, emphasizing that they are now taking care of people. Lamont said he wants to believe that the government shutdown will end soon. Connecticut's announcement follows through on a commitment that the state's governor made last week. This was to have the state pay for healthy food, infant formula, and other necessities that are offered through SNAP and WIC, CT Insider reported. Much-Needed Assistance City director of Health and Human Services, Ebony Jackson-Shaheed, said If the federal government does not address its current issue, the roughly 6,100 women, infants, and children in Hartford who receive benefits from WIC could have their assistance taken away. The situation comes as the CT Summer Meals Program, which offers free breakfast and lunch to anyone aged 18 years and under and operates at hundreds of sites across Connecticut, was at risk over proposed SNAP and Medicaid cuts in June. The program, which is part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's SUN programs, is responsible for distributing more than 1.75 million meals to more than 37,000 children across the state, as per the New Haven Register. Don Lemon was left humiliated during a cringeworthy street interview after he incorrectly claimed it is not a crime to cross the border illegally. The former CNN host was given a lesson in the law by a legal Mexican migrant in Chicago who he stopped to interview about the immigration crisis. During the discussion, the woman rhetorically asked Lemon whether it was illegal to come to the US without proper documentation. Lemon fired back that it wasn't a criminal act to illegally cross the border, but a misdemeanor crime. 'Ok, so why are they being sent back and saying that they're breaking the law?' the woman retorted. 'That's the point!' Lemon replied before incorrectly insisting that a misdemeanor is not a crime. At that point, a second individual interrupted the street interview to ask Lemon whether speeding or drink driving, other misdemeanor offenses, would also be deemed a crime. During a discussion on the southern border, a woman pressed Don Lemon on whether it was illegal to come to the US without proper documentation Lemon said crossing the border was not a criminal act, but rather a misdemeanor 'We have different levels of crime,' Lemon argued. 'Everything is not the same.' 'So it is a crime,' the woman responded. Lemon said: 'It's not a crime, you're not breaking the law I mean, you are breaking the law, but it's not a criminal act.' He then dismissed the conversation as 'semantics,' adding: 'You guys are getting things mixed up!' Title 8 of the US Code prohibits illegal entry and reentry between ports of entry to the US. A first offense is a misdemeanor, which is still a criminal offense punishable by a fine or up to six months in prison. The offense becomes a felony with a maximum sentence of two years in prison if a person who was already deported, ordered removed or denied admission reenters the country. Lemon went on to argue that those being rounded up and deported under Donald Trump's immigration crackdown are not all being given due process. Title 8 of the US Code prohibits illegal entry and reentry between ports of entry to the US A first offense is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine or up to six months in prison and the offense becomes a felony if a person reenters the US The president has also previously claimed that his mass deportations are designed to weed out violent criminals however many migrants without such histories have been caught up in the removals. The car crash interview was widely ridiculed on social media. Ben Pawson wrote on X: 'Is this guy for real? A misdemeanor is not a crime???' Another user identified as RepublicCourier said: 'This is Olympic level gold mental gymnastics.' A third X user showed support for the woman talking with Lemon. They wrote: 'She's smarter than him and she's the only one that knows it.' Roderic Deane said he was 'surprised' Lemon even posted the footage. The star had shared it to his YouTube channel on Friday. He wrote: 'Extremely surprised he actually published this video. It just goes to show you how totally clueless he is.' The Daily Mail has contacted Lemon for comment. When LED facial experts Beauty Tech listed in London last week, it wasn't just its customers who were sporting a youthful glow. The Stock Exchange itself seemed to be putting its best face forward thanks to an exciting new member. And the beauty firm is not the only company coming to market. Companies including digital bank Shawbrook and food firm Princes have announced they're planning to float a relief to all of us hoping for some new stories to buy into. Investing in a company at the beginning of trading often pays off. Dan Coatsworth at AJ Bell calculates that someone who bought into the 12 companies that went public in London in 2025 before Beauty Tech would have made 10.9 per cent on average so far. There's often a 'bump', he explains, as companies choose to position themselves at a bargain price to encourage early adopters to snap them up and make a bit of extra cash. It doesn't always work. While investors in health data business Medpal AI are celebrating a 35 per cent gain since floating, defence consultant RC Fornax has left initial buyers nursing a 66 per cent loss. There are plenty of rumours about who will be next to launch on the London stock market, with travel group LoveHolidays, fintech payment group SumUp and Norwegian software group Visma all names in the frame. Whether you're more interested in acne zappers, specialist banking or Branston pickle, these new investment opportunities for UK investors could deliver some zing. British success story: Beauty Tech sells LED face masks, app-connected electric zit zappers and laser hair removal tech Beauty Tech A British success story, Beauty Tech sells LED face masks, app-connected electric zit zappers and laser hair removal tech. CEO and founder Laurence Newman is targeting them both at the younger end of the market, who he says use the tech to stave off ageing, as well as older people who are becoming accustomed to using technology to improve their skin. Its positioning seems to be working. The company posted a 27 per cent increase in sales in the first half of this year, with underlying earnings of 22.9 million. Shares in the business were priced at initial public offer (IPO) at 271p, and closed at 276p last week, giving those who had got in at the beginning a small profit already. LED masks are popular, and while Newman acknowledges his is a premium product, many people are prepared to shell out for a solution they can use at home rather than at a pricey salon. Beauty Tech has been growing faster than the rest of the beauty sector, particularly in the US, UK and Germany. The publicity has been good, too. As the first business of its kind to float in London, it should bring more customers to Beauty Tech's door. Newman is excited by further possibilities, such as using microcurrents to provide non-invasive treatments for lips. The wrinkle on Beauty Tech's countenance is the competition. When giants such as L'Oreal announce they are focused on 'becoming a beauty tech powerhouse', you know interest in the company's space will be intense. For those seeking dividends, it will be a while before Beauty Tech pays out, but if you believe in this part of the market the shares are worth a look for the long term. Traded on: Main market Ticker: TBTG Contact: thebeautytechgroup.com Princes There's many a slip between cup and lip, but Princes' announcement of its flotation intentions last week may give us a chance to buy into some of the big names we put into our shopping baskets. From Napolina tomatoes to Batchelors soup and Princes tuna, the company owns some of our best-known brands and produces others under licence. Despite being owned by Milan-listed Newlat, Princes is headquartered in Liverpool and recently underscored its commitment to the city by buying the iconic Liver Building. Family favourite: From Napolina tomatoes to Batchelors soup and Princes tuna, Princes owns some of our best-known brands British pride is all very well. The question is whether, when purse-strings are tight, people will put their love of Branston pickle above their need to bring down the shopping bill. The company believes they will, stating that it is 'largely insulated from consumer downtrading' because it is spread across sectors and segments. Assuming the float goes ahead, small investors will be able to take a bite of Princes. The company says it will offer shares through RetailBook, which works with wealth managers and investment platforms such as Hargreaves Lansdown, AJ Bell and Interactive Investor, to offer small buyers the same terms as big institutions. The company is expected to be valued at 1.5 billion and, depending on final valuation, is a good bet for those looking for a secure, cash-generative business with a commitment to the UK. Expected to trade on: Main market Contact: princesgroupinvestors.com Shawbrook Companies returning to the UK stock market are few and far between, but specialist bank Shawbrook may become one of this select club. The bank, which specialises in business lending and more complex mortgage products, went private in 2017. It was valued then at 868 million but is now expected to achieve a 2 billion valuation if its float is successful. Shawbrook's growth is down to its success in target areas. Almost 90 per cent of the traditional banking market is off limits to the company, which chooses to deal with small and medium businesses, self-employed home buyers and landlords instead. Comeback: Shawbrook, which specialises in business lending and more complex mortgage products, went private in 2017 The bank recently bought ThinCats, a specialist lender for small businesses, and has a plan to grow its loan book the amount of money it is lending out to 30 billion by 2030 from 17 billion. Shawbrook is expected to make shares available to retail investors, and there's already a page on the RetailBook website to register your interest (retailbook.com/eitf/shawbrook). There are certainly compelling reasons to take a look. For a start, the company makes plenty of cash and is determined to return some of this to shareholders. There are risks, too, with Shawbrook having been involved in a court case over car finance compensation, announced by the Financial Conduct Authority recently although the company has said it expects the potential liability to be immaterial. An economic downturn may affect its customers' ability to repay loans, although the business points out it has been through storms such as Brexit and Covid without seeing slowing growth. There will be more information on Shawbrook's initial public offering in coming weeks, so it's sensible to sign up to notifications to find out more about its valuation as soon as possible. Expected to trade on: Main market Contact: retailbook.com/eitf/shawbrook Fears of a global stock market crash deepened this weekend amid dire warnings that the semiconductor sector powering the artificial intelligence boom would be 'completely destroyed' if China invaded Taiwan. It comes after the Bank of England, the International Monetary Fund and the boss of America's biggest bank sounded the alarm, saying that the AI-fuelled growth in share prices had pushed valuations towards levels last seen at the height of the dot-com mania 25 years ago. Meanwhile traders are braced for a turbulent start to the week after President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to slap 'massive' tariffs on China, causing global stock markets to sink. Much of the rapid growth in share prices has been driven by a small number of technology stocks, led by Nvidia the world's biggest quoted company with a price tag of around $4.5 trillion Rapid growth: Nearly all of Nvidia's powerful computer chips used in the most advanced AI models are made in Taiwan by one company, TSMC Nearly all of Nvidia's powerful computer chips used in the most advanced AI models are made in Taiwan by one company, TSMC. Taiwan also supplies 60 per cent of the world's semiconductors silicon discs with billions of transistors carved into them which underpin all computing. But the supply of these chips could be halted and share prices could collapse if as security experts increasingly fear China carries out its long-standing threat to 're-unite' itself with Taiwan, by force if necessary. In the starkest warning yet from a senior official, Francois Wu, Taiwan's deputy foreign minister, said an invasion would be 'the end of the world'. 'I do not mean that a nuclear war will happen, but the modern world economy will be finished for ever,' Wu told The Mail on Sunday. 'We will not weaponise our chip industry, but if China invades Taiwan the sector will either be completely destroyed or occupied by Beijing.' Moving Taiwan's chip factories to another country would not solve the problem, Wu added. The US has vowed to defend Taiwan with force in the event of an attack. It recently warned the threat to the island was 'imminent', with Beijing capable of a full-scale invasion by 2027. Taking action: Taiwan has unveiled plans to build a new air defence system, dubbed the T-Dome, to protect it from what he called 'hostile threats' On Friday, Taiwan's president William Lai unveiled plans to build a new air defence system, dubbed the T-Dome, to protect it from what he called 'hostile threats', though he stopped short of mentioning China by name. The island is also planning to increase its defence spending to 5 per cent of its national output (gross domestic product or GDP) by 2030, double its current level of about 2.5 per cent. Chancellor Rachel Reeves has pinned her hopes on AI to kickstart sluggish growth in the UK by boosting productivity how much useful output in goods or services each worker achieves. Energy-hungry data centres that house computer systems are springing up across the country in support of this, but the threat of the AI bubble bursting could derail her plan entirely. 'Cutting off Taiwan's semiconductor production, including the advanced chips that only Taiwan knows how to make at scale, would have a far reaching impact,' said Andrew Yeh, of the China Strategic Risks Institute, a London-based think-tank. 'The effect on the global AI boom could be severe, and a real brake on economic growth for the UK and other countries betting big on AI,' he said. 'Taiwan's chip supply is the backbone of advanced manufacturing worldwide. With the surge in demand for computing driven by AI, these semiconductors are more important than ever.' Both the Bank of England and the International Monetary Fund warned last week that the risk of a sharp market 'correction' a sudden drop in share prices had increased, fuelled by the AI hype. They were joined by Jamie Dimon, boss of JPMorgan Chase, who said he was 'far more worried than others' about the risk of a serious market correction in the next six months to two years. Some of the billions being poured into AI would 'probably be lost', he added. A spate of 'circular' deals in the sector has also sparked concerns that a new technological bubble in AI spending is brewing. They include a tie-up between OpenAI the firm behind the ChatGPT chatbot and Nvidia's rival AMD. Under the deal OpenAI will buy AMD's chips in return for AMD receiving an option to buy its shares. Nvidia also plans to invest $100 billion in OpenAI. Humans don't hibernate. But we do tend to sleep more in winter. This ought to be good news for the boss of Britain's biggest bed brand as the dark nights draw in and Vitamin D levels dip. Silentnight's Tracey Bamber insists it's not just seasonal factors that are driving a growing interest in getting a good night's kip. 'The sleep economy is a fast growing sector,' she says, with customers increasingly interested in the quality of their 40 winks. 'After nutrition and hydration, you might argue sleep is right up there with exercise because it's something you essentially need. 'It improves your immune function, it regulates your metabolism, enhances your cognitive functions, and also supports and enhances your emotional and mental well-being.' Bamber cites the fact that people are changing their mattress more often. They used to be chucked out every eight to ten years. Cosying up: Tracey Bamber has a sleep tracker to ensure she gets her 40 winks 'Now they are now being replaced on average every 7.2 years,' she says. Most beds are bought out of need such as moving house but about 40 per cent of purchases relate to want. Bamber says: 'People want to sleep better, they want to feel better.' There is still 'a correlation' between housing market activity and performance, she admits, but 'it's not make-or-break'. She says: 'We still have a really solid, reliable business even if the housing market is quite stagnant.' Silentnight, whose beds are sold through retailers and online, leads the market with a 15 per cent share that is growing. Results out soon will show profits above the 10 million posted in 2024 on slightly lower sales than the 143 million reported last time. 'We're really pleased with the performance,' says Bamber. Silentnight makes all its beds in a Tardis-like factory in Barnoldswick a Pennine village that has flip-flopped between Lancashire and Yorkshire down the years. With more than 700 workers it is easily the biggest employer in the area. Big corporate customers include hotel chain Premier Inn, whose adverts featuring comedian Lenny Henry promote the virtues of a good night's sleep. 'We invested heavily in supporting their renovation programme,' says Bamber proudly. She admits increased labour costs from the recent increase in employers National Insurance contributions are 'a headwind'. But she is relaxed about the prospect of a property tax in the upcoming Budget forcing some homeowners to downsize or put off moving altogether. 'This market is really stable. It grows every year,' she maintains. Bamber won't comment on reports that HIG Europe, Silentnight's private equity owners, are looking for an exit beyond saying it was 'inevitable at some point' given the owner's business model. In 2011 HIG Europe bought the business out of insolvency in a controversial deal that saw it transfer some of its pension liabilities to the industry lifeboat scheme. Under pressure from the pensions watchdog HIG Europe later agreed to pay 25 million back into the company's scheme. Silentnight, which celebrates its 80th birthday next year, caters for all sorts of sleeper types. 'Twisters and turners' prefer mattresses with more gel in them to absorb the body's restless movement while 'sink-in snoozers' are more suited to body-hugging memory foam beds that absorb pressure on joints and muscles. There's even a new 'comfort breathe' range which has its own 'microclimate system' within 2000 pocket springs for 'hot' sleepers who want to stay cool and dry. Talking of bed springs, Bamber is quick to dispel the myth that more is better. 'We don't think about spring counts. We think about the kind of sleeper who needs a good night's sleep,' she says. 'You might not know if you sleep better with an 800 or a 1,500 spring mattress but you'll know if you twist and turn, or lie still or get hot in bed. This is what guides our thinking about how we innovate.' So what type of sleeper is she? 'I always lie on my left and don't move,' Bamber reveals. What keeps her awake at night? 'Not getting enough sleep!' she exclaims. 'I'm one of those people who is on the verge of obsession about getting a good night's sleep. 'I have a sleep tracker I know they're not great for everybody, but I track my sleep every night. 'I aim to get my seven and a half hours of optimal sleep, which means I have to be in bed for over eight hours.' Her wind-down routine includes reading with a Kindle. She says: 'Sometimes I wake a few hours later and find I've still got it in my hand.' Washington DC, in October, is notable for its bright orange and russet foliage and platoons of black limousines ferrying finance ministers, commercial and central bankers from endless meetings to champagne receptions and sumptuous meals. The annual jamborees of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank, with the G7 pulling the purse strings, aim to bring order to a troubled economic world. The early indication from the fund's emollient managing director Kristalina Georgieva is that the world has so far emerged from Donald Trump's blizzard of tariffs less damaged than feared. As a result, the fund will be able to raise its global growth forecast on Tuesday when the World Economic Outlook is published. In the spring the fund estimated that average tariffs of 23 per cent across the globe would see fierce reprisals, wrecking globalisation. The reality is that by negotiation the effective tariff rate has been lowered to 17.5 per cent and there have been few cases of tit-for-tat retaliation so far. Fear of trade wars and the removal of the independence of the US central bank, the Federal Reserve, will continue to cast a pall at the fund. Early indications: IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva looks set to say that the world has so far emerged from Donald Trump's blizzard of tariffs less damaged than feared In these gatherings, the latest crisis will always occupy the policy-makers and banking titans. Britain, one of the founders of the fund, has found itself at the heart of these events too often. In 1976, after a wrestle with the US Treasury and the fund, Britain got its infamous bailout requiring the Government to take an axe to public spending and the Bank of England to crush credit creation. Three decades later it was in Washington that the then Tory Chancellor Norman Lamont admitted to 'singing in the bath' after Britain had been turfed out of the exchange rate mechanism, the forerunner of the euro. The 2008 meeting was held against the backdrop of the Great Financial Crisis, which threatened to destroy Western capitalism. And after the Liz Truss mini-Budget of 2022, her Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng was ticked off by the fund before flying home early to be fired by Truss. Last year Rachel Reeves chose the fringes of the IMF to outline her new fiscal rules which in practice trapped her in a doom-loop of ever higher taxation. At least the Chancellor, who is due in Washington later this week, is protected by Labour's big majority in Parliament. France, without a functioning government, and the US, in shutdown, have no such luxury. When fighter jets screamed over downtown Taipei in the early hours of Wednesday morning, it sparked a mild panic among visitors not used to the constant threat of invasion. Fortunately for them and for the global economy China had not finally followed through on its designs on its neighbour. Instead, it was Taiwan's air force practising for a show two days later to celebrate the 1911 republican revolutionary uprising that ended millennia of rule by China's emperors. But as well as celebratory military parades on streets decked with the national flag, Taiwan's citizens also witness increasingly aggressive and often unannounced 'military drills' by Chinese warships and aircraft entering its airspace and coastal waters. The island nation, which its neighbour across the water views as a renegade province, has lived with the looming danger of invasion for decades, ever since the defeated nationalists, led by Chiang Kai-shek, fled Communist China for Taiwan in 1949. It is not just the Taiwanese who have reason to fear Chinese aggression, with Beijing's bellicose rhetoric rising during the reign of Xi Jinping. The surge in demand for artificial intelligence means Taiwan is more vital to the global economic order than ever before, with any invasion likely to trigger one of the biggest economic crises in history. Threat: Chinese troops in Tiananmen Square last month - Beijing has vowed to seize Taiwan in a move that would burst the stock market bubble Despite its relatively small size, Taiwan dominates global production of semiconductors, tiny computer chips that power mobile phones, cars, aircraft systems, missiles and just about every other electronic device. Taiwan's microchip industry accounts for over two-thirds of the global market. Crucially, it makes about 90 per cent of the most advanced chips, which are critical for firms hunting for the computing power needed to create ever more sophisticated AI systems. This is down to the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), a 1.1 trillion chipmaker based in the city of Hsinchu, considered the country's equivalent to Silicon Valley due to its proliferation of technology and electronics firms. TSMC is so revered by the Taiwanese it is nicknamed the 'guardian sacred mountain', referring to the central mountain range, which protects Taiwan's more populated western side from typhoons. One of TSMC's biggest clients is US computer processor giant Nvidia, the world's biggest firm, valued at 3.4 trillion. Its boss, Jensen Huang, is Taipei-born. The leap in demand for advanced chips to feed the rapidly expanding growth of AI is cementing the country's hegemony, with Taiwan's semiconductor industry set to produce 158 billion of chips this year. It has reaped rewards for holders of TSMC shares, which have tripled in the past five years, though this is dwarfed by Nvidia's huge ascent in the same period. But as the appetite for advanced chips grows, so does the risk that any disruption to Taiwan's factories could bring to the sector, and with it the global economy. 'If China invades Taiwan the modern world economy will be finished for ever,' said Francois Wu, Taiwan's deputy foreign minister. An invasion which the US has vowed to repel with force or even a naval blockade that restricted Taiwan's exports, would slam the brakes on the AI revolution, potentially causing a stock market meltdown similar to the dotcom crash of the early 2000s. Yet Wu says it is unrealistic to think Taiwan's industry could be easily relocated or replaced. 'Moving the factories to another country will not solve the problem. And it is naive to think we will abandon the semiconductor industry under pressure from abroad. 'We will not weaponise our chip industry, but if China invades the sector will either be completely destroyed or occupied by Beijing.' While officials and local analysts are sometimes coy to say the country's chip sector forms a core part of its national security strategy, their desire to guard its most valuable capabilities is undeniable. This month, vice-premier Cheng Li-chiun said Taiwan would 'not agree' to produce half its chips in the US despite pressure from Donald Trump, who has accused it of 'stealing' US chip business. Hsien-Ming Lien at Taiwan's Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research said TSMC's efforts to build new chip factories in the US had run into trouble. 'In Taiwan, TSMC's workforce act like A&E doctors,' he said. 'They come back to the factory at any time to try and fix problems. This is not common in the US. 'This cultural difference is difficult to overcome. It's a challenge to find workers so dedicated.' Your browser does not support iframes. Any move would also face fierce resistance from the local population, many of whom view the sector as part of its national identity and a crucial factor in its transformation into an advanced economy. In a speech at the national day celebrations, Taiwan's president William Lai said the industry was 'forged by decades of combined efforts' and pledged to protect the country's 'valuable assets'. Taiwan, like many long-time American allies, now finds itself seeking other partners on the world stage to support its position against Beijing's belligerence. It was unable to escape Trump's tariff barrage, with the US slapping a 20 per cent levy on exports. Trump's erratic foreign policy has also thrown into doubt the presumption that the US would use its military to protect Taiwan. Like most countries, the UK does not officially consider Taiwan to be an independent nation mainly to avoid invoking the ire of Beijing. But as the AI revolution makes Taiwan's chip industry more vital to the health of the global stock market and wider economy, many nations may find themselves having to pick sides sooner than they expect. And traders, fearful of a stock market bubble bursting, are watching Taiwan more closely too. They are acutely aware that the sound heralding the next market meltdown may not be the opening bell on Wall Street, but the roar of Chinese fighter jets over the skies of Taipei. My pension savings have hit 27,412. In cash terms, that may sound like a decent sum. But right now, that's all I have to last me for my full retirement. That, I'm told, would be enough to cover around two years of outgoings and that's assuming I'm willing to make do with a minimum standard of living. According to industry body the Pensions And Lifetime Savings Association, it would just about cover the basics, plus a self-catering holiday in the UK once a year and eating out perhaps once a month. You may think it's my own fault and that, at the age of 43, I should have put away more by now. But the thing is, I have been careful with money all my life, have never taken on debt and have always saved. It's a terrifying reminder that even the prudent among us, who have worked all our lives, can come unstuck with pension saving. There's so much I wish I'd known sooner. Cutting back: Joe Minihane has been forced to make sacrifices in his spending so he can pay into his pension I started my career in journalism in 2005 and every company I worked for offered me a pension. Each time I felt I had to turn it down. I was young, renting in London and the cost of living was high. In my first job I earned 1,500 a month, and that had to cover rent of 600, tax of around 300 a travelcard to get to and from work, plus bills, food and day-to-day living. I also wanted a bit of money to go out because I was young and living my dream in London. Saving for retirement was not an option and, if I'm honest, neither was it something I gave much thought to it was such a long way away. Four years later I became a self-employed writer and so the money I earned was no longer paid on a set date. Rather than being frightened by this prospect, though, I followed the advice my grandad had given me as a child and kept a keen eye on my incomings and outgoings. His mantra of 'don't buy what you can't afford' meant I never had a credit card or spent on things I didn't need. As my career took off and I started earning more, I saved into a tax-free Isa, but not with retirement in mind. At first I saved up so that my now wife Keeley and I could spend six months travelling around Asia. I saved 20,000 and spent half. When we returned, aged 30, we started saving for a house and managed to get 30,000, buying a small flat in Brighton in 2016, when I was 34. We had our first child a year later, which, inevitably, came with a high financial cost. It wasn't until November 2019, aged 37, that it dawned on me that I needed to save for retirement. Middle age and parenthood sharpened my mind and gave me a new perspective on life. It wasn't just the immediate needs of me and my family that had to be considered I had to tend to the future as well. I was never educated about this at school or university. It was certainly not something I spoke about with friends. It was only when a fellow writer told me that he had set up his own pension and that I could too in a matter of minutes that I decided to look into it. As soon as I did, I knew I had to get started immediately. Now I pay 400 each month into a self-invested personal pension (Sipp). A Sipp is a pension you can set up and manage yourself. You can dial your contributions up or down depending on how much you can afford each month. Like all pensions, it benefits from tax relief from the Government. As I'm a basic-rate taxpayer, I get an extra 20 per cent added to my pension for every sum that I put in. Higher rate taxpayers get 40 per cent added and additional rate 45 per cent. Unfortunately, as I'm self-employed, I don't get contributions from an employer as other workers do, and I have to manage my pension myself rather than receiving one automatically through my workplace. If I'm able to keep saving at this level, I should be able to retire with a pot of 219,234 in 2049, when I hit the current state pension age of 68. If things go well, according to the pension calculator on the Nutmeg website, this could reach 368,786. Badly, and I'm looking at 141,150. Of course, a lot could change. I could be forced to change my contributions and the value of my investments could fall. If I stay on track, this could be enough to buy me an income of 12,300 at retirement unlikely to be sufficient to maintain my current standard of living, even with the state pension to top it up. I have to keep going though, because if I stopped saving now, my pot would get me a grand total of 1,647 a year from retirement age. Because I didn't start earlier I am having to make sacrifices and save more now to improve my financial position. Fortunately, I don't consider it a hardship to forgo meals out, make coffee at home, opt for cheap camping holidays and resist my lifelong vinyl shopping habit. I don't really mind right now. But I can't help but think what a better position I would be in if I'd saved even small amounts from my early 20s. If I'd started paying 250 into a pension pot at 21 and I'd benefited from contributions from an employer, I'd be looking at a nice income of around 25,000 per year from the age of 68 on top of the state pension. The latest HMRC figures show 360,000 self-employed people are paying into a pension, but more than three million aren't. There are good reasons for this. Low pay, poor understanding of how pensions work and the increased cost of living all take their toll. I should know I had no clue how pensions worked until I was 37. I wish there was an option for self-employed workers to have a default pension scheme, that we could opt in or out of when completing our tax returns. And we need proper financial education in schools, teaching not just the value of money but the necessity to save for later life. If there's one thing I know now, it's that time moves quickly. One day you may find that you haven't got enough to stop working and enjoy life while you still can. So best get saving. The sister ship of the notorious Bayesian superyacht that sank last year has gone on sale under a name tempting fate. Seven people died when the 'unsinkable' 27million Bayesian capsized off the coast of Sicily during a freak storm on August 19 last year. British tech tycoon Mike Lynch, 59, died along with his daughter Hannah, 18, the yachts chef, and four guests who were among his party. His wife, Angela Bacares, 58, only survived the ordeal because she got out of bed just a few moments earlier after the boat had tilted sharply and had made her way to the deck to speak to the crew. Investigations are understood to have showed that all but one Bayesians 59-year-old chef Recaldo Thomas found air pockets inside the hull, suggesting they did not die immediately as the vessel sank to the seabed. Yet although the authorities are still looking into the Bayesian's sinking, its sister ship, with a slew of identical measurements and features, has gone on sale for 26million. Like Bayesian, sister ship Fidelis, was built by Italian shipyard Perini Navi, designed by Ron Holland Design, is 56m long and made of aluminium. Fidelis, meaning 'faithful', also has an 11.5m beam, an extendable keel and the ability to house 12 guests and 10 crew, just like the doomed Bayesian. Your browser does not support iframes. This is thought to be the last photo of the Bayesian superyacht, taken minutes before it sank Its sister ship Fidelis, meaning faithful, (pictured) is now on sale for 26million. It shares more than a few similarities with the doomed Bayesian Mike Lynch, 59, and his daughter Hannah, 18, were among seven people who died when the Bayesian sank in August last year Bayesian was part of a ten-ship series of 56m length boats from Perini Navi. Fidelis's brochure from Edmiston said: 'As the final yacht in the series, Fidelis benefited from all the improvements made to her predecessors.' 'Fidelis has a timeless and elegant style that recalls the classic days of sailing, with wide-planked teak floors and silk-polished walnut walls. 'The warm atmosphere is well suited to long-term cruising, with lots of comfortable furniture and personal touches that will encourage guests to consider it their home from home.' It added: 'She has been used to the limit by her adventurous yet conscientious Owner, circumnavigating the globe and visiting destinations few other yachts get to see.' The main difference between Bayesian and Fidelis is the fact the latter has two masts. Bayesian had the tallest mast in the world, giving a total sail surface area of 2,900 square metres. Although Fidelis has an additional mast, the total surface area only comes out to 1,500 square metres. Its two masts are 48.37m and 47.97m tall. Bayesian's, which has now been recovered from the seabed, was 75m. Bayesian was originally called Salute, which although is commonly used as the equivalent of 'cheers' in Italian, literally means 'health'. The Bayesian superyacht, which sank off the coast of Sicily, had the tallest mast in the world at 76m The luxury superyacht was said to be 'unsinkable' by the chief of the shipyard that built it The moment the doomed Bayesian sank in the early hours of August 19 last year was captured by security cameras of a nearby villa on the coast Before it sank, the Bayesian boasted a plush saloon with golden pillars and classy decor This is how the palatial saloon looked after the huge ship sank, killing seven people The Bayesian's sister ship Fidelis was designed and built by the same people and has a similarly elegant saloon Your browser does not support iframes. In 2013, the Superyacht Times said: 'Salute represents the ultimate evolution of the successful 56 metre series whose architecture was optimised by Perini in consultation with Ron Holland Design for excellent sailing performance.' Italian rescuers attempted to save the six guests and one missing crew member after the disaster struck but their efforts failed. Post mortems on all seven victims were carried out in the days following the disaster were carried out by Italian authorities. Inquests of the four British victims have been adjourned pending the conclusion of the investigation into the disaster. A pre-inquest hearing at Suffolk Coroner's court gave the time of death of all four British victims as 5am - almost an hour after the yacht was hit by the freak storm. The salvaging of the 183ft yacht, lifted from the seabed in June, started a reckoning in the maritime industry, with many asking whether Bayesians safety and stability had been trumped by fashionable design The hull was recovered on June 21 this year, and transported around 12 miles to Termini Imerese the next day by one of the most powerful floating sea cranes in Europe The ship's mast had to be cut off from the hull by salvagers using a precision diamond wire tool to allow the boat to be raised from the seabed A few days later, balloons were attached to the mast to bring it to the surface on June 25 The ship will now be examined as part of ongoing investigations into the tragedy. The cost to recover it was around 22.5million, which was paid by the ship's insurers The brief hearing heard that Mr Lynch's preliminary cause of death was drowning, while that of the remaining British victims was yet to be determined. In June 2025, Bayesian was refloated by a specialist Dutch salvage squad and taken 12 miles to the port of Termini Imerese, where Italian investigators examined the boat in forensic detail, assessing whether vital watertight hatches were secured. The results of this examination will be passed to prosecutors who will determine if anyone was criminally liable for the sinking and the tragic deaths of seven people. When it was raised, the superyacht was missing its 236ft mast, which was cut down and left on the seabed for future removal. The mast had to be detached to allow the hull to be brought to a nearly upright position that would allow the craft to be surfaced, TMC Maritime said at the time. Plans for the three decks of the Bayesian show in detail just how luxurious it was However, plans for the Fidelis also show the similarities between the two superyachts Jonathan Bloomer's wife Judy (pictured) was among the seven people who died when the 56m yacht sank Clifford Chance lawyer Chris Morvillo and his wife Neda Morvillo (pictured) were killed when the yacht was hit by a storm Crew member Recaldo Thomas, 59, (pictured) was among the seven people who died when the yacht sank British investigators said in an interim report issued last month that the yacht was knocked over by 'extreme wind' and couldn't recover. The report stated that the Bayesian had chosen the site where it sank as shelter from forecast thunderstorms. Wind speeds exceeded 70 knots (81 mph) at the time of the sinking and 'violently' knocked the vessel over to a 90-degree angle in under 15 seconds. Three crew members, including the New Zealand-born skipper James Cutfield, first engineer Tim Parker Eaton and night watchman Matthew Griffith, both from Britain, were placed under formal investigation for manslaughter and causing a disaster. Lynch and Hannah lost their lives in the tragedy, as did a lawyer, Chris Morvillo, and his wife, Neda; Jonathan Bloomer, a banker, and his wife, Judy; and the yachts chef, Recaldo Thomas. Nine other crew members and six guests were rescued. A desolate eerie town in northeastern Pennsylvania has been on fire for over 60 years. Founded in 1866, Centralia is now a ghost town but was once a flourishing coal mining hub with 2,800 residents, two theaters, multiple hotels and saloons, along with 14 mines. But a horror was developing underneath residents' feet - a coal mine fire was brewing that would soon ravage the entire town. The inferno erupted in 1962, hundreds of feet underground, stretching for about 3,700 acres. It spread rapidly through the labyrinth of abandoned mines fueled by the abundant supply of natural coal in Columbia County. The blaze was unable to be extinguished and flames crept through an unsealed opening. Smoke can still be seen rising from vents today. Travel influencer Josh Young - who has over four million YouTube subscribers on his channel Exploring with Josh - took his followers inside the spooky town and revealed to Daily Mail what it is really like there. 'First off when you go to Centralia and you don't know the history, you can already feel like something is off,' he told the Daily Mail, 'like something bad happened. Today Centralia is a ghost town with boarded up homes A fire broke out in 1962, hundreds of feet underground, forcing residents to flee. Smoke still rises from the highway today An aerial view of the ghost town surrounded by beautiful scenery is seen above Founded in 1866 in Centralia, Pennsylvania, was known for its coal mines 'It's something out of a horror movie but yet peaceful at the same time.' Observing the devastating empty lots of land that once was a bustling community, Young said: 'Every now and then you'll see new smoke appear from different locations and areas depending on whether the tunnels underground are smoked out or not.' Speaking about the natural vents and sinkholes that the smoke still rises from, he said: '[It's] super hot and can fog up your camera if you film it.' The smoke is a big draw for tourists but it is hazardous. Active vents emit dangerous levels of carbon monoxide which can cause headaches and prolonged exposure can be deadly. The exact date the fire started remains unknown, but it was estimated to have begun on May 27, 1962, when the town was conducting its yearly controlled-burn of the local landfill before Memorial Day weekend. The town had 1,000 residents in the 1960s but now it's believed fewer than five people live there after the government condemned Centralia and claimed all the real-estate through eminent domain. It even revoked the town's zip code, 17927, and today it shares one with the nearby town of Ashland. But despite the government spending $42 million buying residents' homes and offering relocation packages, a handful of people refused to leave. Carbon dioxide gas, heat and steam from the underground fire has caused serious pollution and health dangers Lamar Mervine (pictured) was the former mayor of Centralia There are various 'natural vents' all over Centralia, which remains a popular tourist attraction. Young (pictured) stuck his hand over the vent and felt the heat, he even saw smoke occasionally rising from the hole Smoke, caused by an underground coal fire, rises on a hill overlooking Centralia In 2013, after filing a federal lawsuit and a decades-long battle with the government, they were eventually allowed to stay. The settlement gave the residents ownership of their properties until they died as well as a $349,500 payout. 'Everything is pretty much gone,' Young told the Daily Mail. 'Last year there was an empty house and I think that got demolished. 'The streets are empty with just roads that are cracked. 'There's always old locals from towns over that come back and visit, some of them take their motorbikes around there.' He believes that the church on top of the hill is still active. Daily Mail reached out to the church. Young said: 'It's a beautiful church and it brings that eeriness and freakiness because it looks over the entire Centralia town.' George Kashouh, another avid explorer, agreed with Young that the town gives off a spooky vibe. The church in Centralia on top of the hill is believed to still be active A before and after picture taken in 1983 (left) and 2000 (right) shows the drastic changes done to Centralia's main street, Locust Avenue that was reclaimed by the government through imminent domain A wide angled view of a graffiti covered abandoned highway in Centralia, Pennsylvania, before it was demolished and covered with dirt A dump truck unloads a pile of dirt onto the 'Graffiti Highway' in an effort to stop people visiting Kashouh told Daily Mail: 'I went with three friends as part of a road trip, and we ended up stopping in Centralia at midnight after spending the day elsewhere. The whole place looked abandoned, with empty roads covered in graffiti. 'We werent even sure if we were allowed to be there, and just minutes after driving in, air raid sirens suddenly started blaring. 'At first we thought it was because wed trespassed and were about to get arrested, but they kept going for nearly half an hour. 'We even saw firetrucks pulled over with crews outside, but nobody stopped us. It was one of the most surreal nights Ive ever had.' Young compared Centralia to Silent Hill, a horror media franchise centered on a series of video games and movies. There are four main video games that are classified in the psychological horror genre. It is set in the fictional town of Silent Hill that is a quiet town haunted by the memories of a tragic house fire. A character named Alessa Gillespie 'died' and still haunts the town seven years later. A lot of Silent Hill fans believe the fictional town shares similarities to Centralia, both having a dark, traumatic past involving a fire. Toxic sinkholes started to eventually appear throughout the town, allowing for carbon monoxide and other gases to fill the resident's homes. Picture: 1981 The once bustling town of Centralia, now desolation plagues it as fewer than five people still live in there Young traveled back to the Graffiti Highway after it was covered over in dirt, he was able to find a remaining sliver of the highway that still has smudged colorful art engrained against the concrete However creator Keiichiro Toyama has stated it is not inspired by Centralia. 'I'm a huge fan of Silent Hill which doesn't necessarily correlate, it just has the same kind of vibe and history,' Young said. One of the biggest draws for dark tourists previously was the Graffiti Highway - a 0.74-mile long abandoned stretch of Route 61 in the town covered in art. The roadway was permanently closed in 1993 when it became too expensive to repair and tag artists started to spray over the cracks. But the area became overrun with visitors during the Covid-19 pandemic and dirt was poured over it to deter tourists. Young, who last visited the town in October 2024, loves to explore abandoned houses, 'haunted neighborhoods' and uncover history in creepy places. Most Centralia visitors say the same - it's eerily peaceful. The deserted landscape provides a sense of nostalgia and melancholy. Young concluded: 'I think it's a good place to kind of just walk and relax, and forget about the life around you.' Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer's silence over a city councilman accused of beating up his girlfriend has emerged as a troubling flashpoint in her second term and one that could undercut her likely White House ambitions. Leon El-Alamin, who was arrested in July, faces charges of domestic battery and assault for allegedly beating his girlfriend. The Flint City councilman once spent a month in a coma after a drug turf war turned violent it's a criminal past that was erased under a law Whitmer herself signed. 'I benefited a lot from the [Clean Slate Act],' El-Alamin, 45, told the Daily Mail in an interview, 'and I hope to continue to benefit from it.' It's an admission that could come back to haunt Whitmer, who is seen as seriously considering a run for president in 2028. Whitmer signed the 'Clean Slate' law in 2020, which expanded eligibility for wiping criminal records off the books. As a result, El-Alamin's record of drug trafficking throughout Flint, Michigan, was erased. At age 30, El-Alamin was released from prison after serving part of a 12- to 20-year sentence for drug and weapons charges. The length of time he spent in prison and the exact charges he was convicted of are unclear, due to Whitmer's law. The expungement paved his path to public office where he remains today a remarkable trajectory that now appears short-lived. Leon El-Alamin (pictured right with Whitmer, left) faces charges of domestic battery and assault for allegedly beating his girlfriend El-Alamin was arrested after his girlfriend claimed he pulled her hair out and choked her Prior to joining Flint city council, El-Alamin had his entire criminal record, which included drug and weapons charges, expunged by a law signed by Whitmer Whitmer has not commented on El-Alamins arrest, and her office declined to address concerns from Michigan Democrats despite multiple requests from the Daily Mail. El-Alamin, however, thanked the governor, offering her an early endorsement if Whitmer runs for president, support that could be raised by her opponents and detractors. 'She's showing true leadership,' El-Alamin told the Daily Mail when asked about Whitmer's silence over his criminal charges. 'The governor's commitment to justice and rehabilitation should not be undermined by baseless allegations or political maneuvering. 'It is disheartening to see political opponents attempt to use this situation as a weapon against the governor.' But Whitmer faces mounting pressure from fellow Democrats urging her to break her silence and call for his resignation. 'What is she [Whitmer] telling women that have been abused?' City Councilwoman Jerri Winfrey-Carter told the Daily Mail. 'You can see clearly by what his charges are that he hasn't been fully rehabilitated.' County prosecutors claim that El-Alamin allegedly dragged an unnamed woman by her hair, punched her in the face and choked her after an argument. His accuser told police she locked herself in a bathroom to escape El-Alamin and call 911. El-Alamin, who is out on bond while he awaits trial, was spotted wearing a police ankle bracelet during a city council meeting following his arrest back in July, according to Michigan Live. El-Alamin maintained his innocence and denied any wrongdoing. 'I stand firmly in my innocence,' he told the Daily Mail. Whitmer has not commented on El-Alamins arrest, and her office declined to address concerns from Michigan Democrats despite multiple requests from the Daily Mail 'I benefited a lot from the [Clean Slate Act],' El-Alamin told the Daily Mail in an interview, 'and I hope to continue to benefit from it' Michael Clack, a former Flint school board member and longtime Democratic operative, now leads 'Dearly Beloved & Cared For,' a group supporting survivors of domestic violence and sexual abuse in Flint. When asked if Whitmer should denounce El-Alamin, Clack was clear: 'I do. It sends a dangerous message to victims and survivors that political favors and friendships can secure special treatment.' Clack added, 'If I were one of her rivals, I'd absolutely use this against her. I wouldn't be surprised if someone runs on this issue five, ten, or even 20 years from now.' City Councilwoman Tonya Burns, a frequent critic of El-Alamin, agreed that this councilman from a city of less than 80,000 people poses a major threat to Whitmer's future if left unaddressed. 'I'm quite sure that Republicans will commit him [El-Alamin] to her [Whitmer] like a chainany political party would,' Burns told the Daily Mail. The silence on El-Alamin's case extends beyond the governor to Flint Mayor Sheldon Neely, who has refused to condemn him since his recent arrest. City officials claim Neely protects El-Alamin because he is part of a loyal council coalition that rubber-stamps the mayor's agenda. Winfrey-Carter called their loyalty 'disgraceful,' urging representation for survivors of domestic abuse. Janez Jackson, mother of El-Alamin's accuser, accused Neely of mentoring El-Alamin into politics after Whitmer expunged his record. The mayor's office ignored multiple Daily Mail requests for comment. 'What is she [Whitmer] telling women that have been abused?' Democratic City Councilwoman Jerri Winfrey-Carter told the Daily Mail City officials claim Neely protects El-Alamin because he is part of a loyal council coalition that rubber-stamps the mayor's agenda When asked if Whitmer should denounce El-Alamin, Clack was clear: 'I do. It sends a dangerous message to victims and survivors that political favors and friendships can secure special treatment' Since entering the political arena, El-Alamin's past and public antics have haunted him. During the 2024 city council election, footage emerged of El-Alamin holding a gun at the front of a home while trying to evict a tenant. El-Alamin claims that the tenant illegally changed the door locks and set up the security camera during the eviction. The footage show El-Alamin wielding a Draco semiautomatic pistol while approaching the property. Since the Whitmer law expunged his record, El-Alamin is legally allowed to carry a firearm, even though he spent time in prison for gun-related crimes. While speaking to members of the press in 2024, El-Alamin claimed the weapon was registered and he presented his license to carry a firearm in the state of Michigan. 'They have investigated me, and I welcomed it! I'm not hiding anything. I would not put myself in this position if I couldn't be in this position,' said El-Alamin in an interview with Flint's ABC12 at the time. 'I'm not here to try to harm no one, but I don't wanna be harmed neither.' In a statement to Daily Mail, longtime Democratic strategist James Carville dismissed the concerns of Michigan Democrats calling for El-Alamin to resign. They could use anything! Carville told the Daily Mail. I think youre getting kind of in the woods here. HENDERSON, Nev., Oct. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Christian Bishop today announced his campaign for Nevada Assembly District 29 with the following statement: Today, I am excited to announce my candidacy for Nevada Assembly District 29. Henderson is my home. I love the people, the local businesses, and most of all the sense of community that makes this district so special. Vote Bishop I'm a husband, a father of three, and a community leader raised by a single mom who taught me resilience, responsibility, and the importance of service. My story is rooted here. I'm proud of my diverse heritage and the values my family passed down: hard work, giving back, and standing up for others. Growing up, I saw firsthand the power of neighbors supporting neighbors and families working together to build a better future. That spirit drives me to serve. I'm not your average Democrat. Our party needs to create real, lasting change not just talk about it. We are the party in power, and with that comes the responsibility to lead boldly. We need to stop getting caught up in cancel culture battles and start focusing on the issues that matter most to working families: the economy, education, housing, and public safety. That's where our energy belongs, and that's the leadership I intend to bring to Carson City. Many people don't realize that some candidates move into this district just to run for office. That's not me. I live here, I work here, and I raise my family here. This community isn't a stepping stone it's my home. I believe our party must diversify and uplift new voices, but that should come from people who are already part of the community not those who parachute in for political opportunity. As a Democrat, I believe government should work for working families not special interests. I understand the daily challenges so many of us face: rising costs, housing pressures, childcare struggles, and the uncertainty of an economy that often seems stacked against everyday people. I'm running because we need leadership that ensures prosperity is shared not concentrated. My vision is simple: an economy that works for everyone. That means fighting for good-paying jobs, supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs, protecting workers, and ensuring families can keep more of what they earn. Whether it's opening your own business, growing your career, or simply having more time with your loved ones, I want to make sure opportunity is real not out of reach. I've spent my career building partnerships, creating opportunities, and bringing people together to solve complex challenges. At Method, I helped launch major programs that generated tens of millions in revenue and created pathways for diverse communities to thrive. And right here in Nevada, I helped establish a world-class esports studio on the Las Vegas Strip an example of what's possible when we invest in innovation and our people. Public safety is about building healthy, resilient communities. It's about firefighters and emergency responders having the resources they need. It's about well-maintained infrastructure, safe streets, strong neighborhoods, and reliable public health systems. Real safety comes from prevention making sure families have access to good schools, mental health resources, affordable housing, and infrastructure that works. As a Commissioner for the City of Henderson Redevelopment Agency, I've focused on revitalizing neighborhoods, improving infrastructure, and supporting the systems that keep communities strong. I'm proud to serve this community in many ways whether as Executive Vice President of Finance for the Las Vegas Boy Scouts, a board member of Leaders in Training and No Racism in Schools, or working with the Nevada Veterans Caucus to support those who've served. For me, leadership isn't about a title, it's about showing up, rolling up your sleeves, and delivering for the people you represent. This Democratic primary is about who will fight hardest for working families, who will reflect our shared values, and who has the experience to deliver real results. I'm ready to bring my energy, my experience, and my commitment to service to the Legislature. This is our home. This is our community. Together, we can strengthen education, grow our economy, create opportunity for all, and build a fairer, safer, more prosperous Nevada. Christian Bishop [email protected] www.christianbishop.com SOURCE Christian Bishop An heiress accused of trying to kill her estranged boyfriend with rat poison had two children from an affair with a plumber during her previous marriage. Kristen Hogan, 33, was charged with two counts of attempted murder for allegedly sneaking into their home in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and spiking a bottle of wine with antifreeze. She was on Thursday ordered by the Danbury Superior Court to undergo a psychiatric evaluation before being released on a $1million bond. Hogan was living with her parents at their $4million, four-acre rural estate in New Canaan since she 'fled' the Ridgefield home on May 30. Her father is Frank W Hogan III, general counsel and executive vice president of $6.2billion packaging giant Silgan Holdings. He did not post her bail. Hogan allegedly spiked the wine amid a bitter custody battle with her boyfriend Timothy Scott Lacouture, 34, over their son Ryan, who turned two on Friday. And the Daily Mail can reveal an equally messy incident in Hogan's past, as the alleged poisoner previously had two lovechildren with a plumber named Nicholas Van Houten. Kristen Hogan with her childhood sweetheart Nicholas Van Houten (left), a plumber whom she had two children with during an extramarital affair. After her husband divorced her, she started dating finance worker Tim Lacouture (right) - only to allegedly try to poison him Hogan was on Thursday ordered by the Danbury Superior Court to undergo a psychiatric evaluation before being released on a $1 million bond Hogan has two children - Emma, 5, and Luke, 3, - born around the time of her previous marriage to schoolteacher Anthony Abraham, 34. Abraham filed for divorce in December 2020, just months after their March 22 wedding, likely after discovering she was having an affair with her childhood sweetheart Van Houten. Abraham ordered paternity tests as part of his divorce filing and the results showed he was not Emma's biological father. Instead, both Emma and Luke were the product of Hogan's affair with Van Houten. The pair dated from 2012 with an engagement announced in September 2012 and a June 2019 wedding planned. The announcement said Van Houten got a certification in plumbing in 2015 and worked as a residential and commercial plumber. Hogan graduated Bates College in 2014 after studying psychology and chemistry, and at the time was a senior development coordinator with the Women's Business Development Council. Blue-collar Van Houten was an odd match for the daughter of a wealthy, upper-class executive and they broke up in 2019. Hogan was living with her parents at their huge estate (pictured) in New Canaan since moving out of her home with Lacouture on May 30 Hogan's father is Frank W Hogan III (far right), general counsel and executive vice president of $6.2 billion packaging giant Silgan Holdings But Van Houten claimed they 'reconnected' and had sex in January 2020, which resulted in Emma's conception. He also claimed that after an over-the-counter paternity test in January 2021 showed he was the father, he began paying child support. This increased after Luke was born and he had visitation with both children. But Van Houten claimed his child support payments were returned without explanation from March 2022 onwards and that Hogan banned him from seeing the children. Hogan later claimed in court that she stopped having sex with Van Houten in December 2019, before Emma was conceived. She admitted they had sex again in January and February 2021 but claimed Luke was conceived in March 2021. Hogan said she knew who Luke's father was but refused to name him. Van Houten launched a paternity suit on February 17, 2023, which was granted, but the tests not only found he wasn't the father - Hogan wasn't their mother. Hogan was accused of doctoring the sample after the lab tasked with establishing paternity said there were multiple inconsistences that suggested Hogan herself was not the children's mother. 'These inconsistencies indicate the possibility that a sample was collected from an incorrect person(s) for one or more of the tested parties,' the September 2023 letter read. Anthony Abraham (pictured) filed for divorce from Hogan in December 2020, just months after their March 22 wedding, likely after discovering she was having an affair Hogan's parents Frank and Kim Hogan bought the four-acre rural estate in 2006 for $3 million Despite the alleged tampering, Van Houten's petition was denied by the probate court due to the many inconsistencies, leaving him confused and heartbroken. Then he developed a sinister theory: Hogan was bringing her niece and nephew to the DNA testing instead of her own kids. 'I had very little knowledge of what the children physically looked like' when he filed his 2023 petition, he wrote. 'The mother relied on this fact to try to dupe me throughout the probate process of bringing the wrong children to the testing.' He eventually won an appeal and yet another DNA test was ordered. Swab samples of 'Luke' were taken on April 23, 2024, but Van Houten wrote in a subsequent legal filing that the boy who was brought for testing was 'wearing large headphones and didn't speak'. Van Houten said the boy Hogan claimed to be Luke was not his son at all and instead a different, younger child she was using in a fresh bid to disguise her son's paternity. He made the claim after hiring a private investigator to follow Hogan, which suggested she'd used her sister's son in place of Luke to cheat the test. Sure enough, the DNA tests again showed neither Hogan nor Van Houten were the biological parents of either child. Hogan claimed at a November 2024 hearing that both children were conceived through IVF and that was a reason for the result, but gave no medical evidence. Hogan has two children - Emma, 5, and Luke, 3, - born around the time of her previous marriage to Anthony Abraham, 34, but actually from her affair with Van Houten Then at a December 5, 2024, hearing Van Houten produced the video evidence the investigator took. Judicial authorities responded by making an unannounced visit to Hogan's home in January 2025. Photos taken of the children looked markedly different to both images Hogan previously shared with the court that she claimed were her offspring, and with the children who were brought to the DNA testing. The probate court found on July 17 that the evidence showed Hogan was bringing children that weren't hers for testing. 'The court finds that Hogan has intentionally sabotaged [Van Houten's] efforts to obtain DNA evidence identifying him as the father of the minor children,' it ruled. Van Houten was finally declared the father of both children, and filed for sole custody on July 31. 'I have missed out on all my children's lives. [Hogan] has completely alienated me from fundamental early years of my children,' he wrote in that filing. Hogan sued to overturn the paternity ruling on August 15, 2025, and to prevent custody until the appeal was resolved. She claimed the children would be confused and harmed by spending time with Van Houten should he turn out to not be their father. Lacouture was poisoned at a house (pictured) the couple bought on Shadblow Hill Road in Ridgefield for $980,000 in September 2023 and lived until May 30 this year Hogan admitted spiking the wine but claimed 'she never wanted to kill him but just wanted to make him sick as payback for being mentally abusive' Van Houten mysteriously withdrew his petition six days later on August 21, and the issue remained unresolved when Hogan was arrested on October 3. He could not be reached to clarify why. This was just days after Lacouture drank a small amount of the allegedly spiked wine on August 10. Lacouture and Hogan bought a house on Shadblow Hill Road for $980,000 ahead of Ryan's birth little over a week later. Hogan 'fled' the house on May 30, claiming Lacouture subjected her to psychological abuse and she and the children were terrified of him. The warring couple were supposed to appear in court as part of their custody battle on August 7, but Hogan was a no-show. Instead, she sneaked into the house for the first time in months while he was in court, where she allegedly poured the antifreeze into a half-drunk bottle of wine. The day after he drank the wine, Lacouture began to vomit, according to documents released by the Connecticut State Police. Lacouture called his mother, who arrived to find him slurring his words, staggering, and vomiting. He was rushed hospital, where doctors initially thought he was having a stroke. The Hogan family estate in a rural part of New Canaan where Hogan spent her teenage years Hogan (center) with her brother and sister at her daughter Emma's christening in 2020 They soon came to realize he was suffering from ethylene glycol poisoning, an ingredient in antifreeze. He was admitted to the ICU and placed on dialysis with renal failure. Doctors asked him what he had consumed, and he told them about the wine. Ridgefield Police detectives seized the wine and submitted it to the Connecticut Forensic Laboratory for testing. Lacouture immediately suspected Hogan was the culprit because he was notified while he wasn't home that she had connected to his Wi-Fi. When detectives asked him why he believed it was her, he said Hogan would become the owner of the house and gain full custody of the couple's son Ryan. Lacouture had filed a lawsuit on July 22 seeking to have the house sold and the proceeds split between them. Police allegedly found internet searches on Hogan's phone that included potassium cyanide, potassium ferricyanide, citrate-cyanide, potassium thiocyanate, and monoethylene glycol. She denied knowing what the chemicals were during initial questioning. Additional searches for how much of these substances a person would need to ingest to die were also found, police alleged. Lacouture with his brother and sister Hogan initially claimed she'd bought monoethylene glycol on Amazon just to clean her mother's carpets. She later admitted spiking Lacouture's wine but claimed 'she never wanted to kill him but just wanted to make him sick as payback for being mentally abusive'. Hogan said she didn't know how much of the chemical she poured into the bottle. Detectives told Hogan that the child she shared with Lacouture may have consumed some of the poison, which she denied being possible. Ryan was also rushed to hospital and spent two weeks there, according to an emergency custody motion Lacouture filed on Monday. Police wrote that before Hogan's arrest, she began acting with an unusual friendliness towards Lacouture, even offering to come over to cook a meal. Hogan was charged with two counts of attempted murder and one count of interfering with an officer. 'This case is not what it seems,' Hogan's lawyer Mark Sherman said outside the courthouse on Thursday. 'There's a lot more to this story... Kristen is a loving mother. She cares about her kids more than anything and she's looking forward to keeping this case moving and resolving it.' Dust and debris filled the air as lights failed and the sound of shifting rock echoed through the tunnels, trapping miners in darkness. Some tried to climb to safety, only to find their escape routes blocked. On 5 August 2010, a section of the San Jose copper and gold mine in northern Chile gave way, trapping 33 men deep underground. What began as a local mining accident quickly became one of the world's most terrifying and tense rescue missions. Amid the unfolding disaster, a bizarre love triangle took centre stage: both a man's wife and his mistress arrived at the mine, anxiously awaiting news, as people across Chile and beyond watched on, glued to their screens and holding their breath. The mine sat in the Atacama Desert, about 45 kilometres north of Copiapo, a region long associated with mining and the dangers that come with it. The collapse occurred shortly after 2 pm local time, when a block of rock, estimated at more than 700,000 tons, sealed the main passage to the surface. When it became clear that every exit had been blocked, the men regrouped under the direction of their shift foreman, Luis Urzua, and made their way to a reinforced refuge chamber about 700 metres below ground. Your browser does not support iframes. In August 2010, 33 miners were trapped deep underground when a section of the San Jose copper and gold mine in northern Chile collapsed Miner Mario Sepulveda, after he was rescued. The plight of the miners and the rescue mission that followed gripped international headlines Inside, conditions were far from safe. The air was heavy and stifling, and temperatures hovered around 30 degrees. The men found emergency rations - tins of tuna, biscuits, and small cartons of milk. But it was clear the supplies would not last long. Water was scarce and had to be collected from industrial tanks and nearby pipes. Above ground, families began gathering at the mine's entrance, seeking answers that no one could yet provide. The company and local authorities launched efforts to locate the men, though early drilling attempts offered little hope. The tunnels were unstable, and rescuers feared that further collapses could bury the miners beyond reach. Deep underground, the miners' radios did not function. They had no idea whether any escape route still existed. Some tried pressing ahead, crawling through tight tunnels, only to be met with fresh debris. Others sat in the darkness, listening for the sound of shifting rock above, terrified that another collapse could come at any moment. In the days that followed, efforts above ground were complicated by unstable tunnels and further collapses. On 7 August, a secondary rockfall blocked one of the ventilation shafts that might otherwise have helped reach the trapped men. A camera was lowered 700 metres below ground level for the men to speak to their loved ones Claudio Yazes, one of the trapped men, spoke to the camera after rescuers successfully lowered the camera to them. Before the incident, the mine had a history of safety concerns A banner showing the pictures and names of all 33 workers trapped in the incident Drilling plans were hampered by outdated maps of the mine's layout and by the hardness of the rock that surrounded the entombed miners. It was known that the mine had a history of safety concerns. Between 2004 and 2010, San Jose and its parent company had been fined repeatedly for regulatory violations, and there were past accidents, including rock falls and explosions. In 2007, a fatality had temporarily closed the mine, but it reopened months later under pressure to restore production. Meanwhile, underground, the men were forced to establish strict routines and rationed food to two spoonfuls of tuna, one biscuit and a sip of milk every other day. They prayed together and tried to keep hope alive. For 17 intense days, there was no telling whether they were alive or had perished in the collapse. But August 22 offered the first sign of a miracle - a listening probe had picked up faint tapping. When the probe was pulled back to the surface, there was a note attached to it, written with red ink that read: 'We are fine in the shelter, the 33 of us.' Chile's president at the time, Sebastian Pinera, who had been a mainstay at the site, triumphantly held up the note as the news of the miners still alive reverberated throughout the world. He declared: 'Today all of Chile is crying with excitement and joy.' A video camera was sent down the probe shaft. It showed some of the miners stripped to their waist due to the underground heat, waving enthusiastically, knowing help was on the way. Engineers working on the capsule that was used to rescue the miners. The mission encountered many challenges - some experts warned it could take several months Omar Reygadas fell to his knees in prayer after he finally saw the light of day The president told reporters: 'I saw eight or nine of them. They were waving their hands. They got close to the camera, and we could see their eyes, their joy.' After drilling efforts reached the miners, rescuers began sending down glucose solutions and liquids, then small quantities of solid food through narrow boreholes to supplement their rations. From then on, the term 'Los 33' became a global phenomenon. Spurred on by confirmation of life, the government launched three parallel rescue efforts known as Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C. Each of them used different rigs and techniques to bore towards the miners. But it was not plain sailing - progress was slow and drill bits broke or veered off course. It was feared that the rescue mission would take several months. Eventually, it was Plan B's Schramm T130XD that proved decisive. On October 9, after nearly two months of drilling, it finally broke through to the miner's refuge. The next day, engineers began to widen and stabilise the shaft. They fitted a steel casing to prevent it from collapsing. Chile's Navy built the Fenix rescue capsule with input from NASA. It was designed to fit through the 66-centimetre shaft. It had retractable wheels, oxygen supply, communication systems and a reinforced roof to guard against falling rock. Although the rescue mission had been given new hope, doctors at NASA were quick to warn that there could still be some stumbling blocks. Dr James Duncan said: 'It's important not to build false hopes and it's also important to be honest with our patients - in this case, with the miners.' Shortly before midnight on October 12, rescuer Manuel Gonzalez went down to test the shaft. Other rescue workers waited with bated breath, with all hopes hinged on the outcome of what he would report back. Yonni Barrios was cheerfully greeted by his girlfriend, Susana Valenzuela. While he was trapped underground, the two women in his life traded barbs Marta Salinas showed up to the site of the mine with the loved ones of the other miners. She claimed she had no idea about Valenzuela On October 13 at 9:55pm, foreman Urzua became the final person to be pulled to safety. He was greeted by president Pinera, who praised his leadership A few moments later, he radioed back saying: 'I have reached the miners.' Shortly after 11pm, Florencio Avalos began his ascent. When the capsule surfaced, he stepped out to cheers, hugs and tears. Over the next 24 hours, one by one, the minders were lifted to safety. They were given protective sunglasses to shield their eyes as they had not seen sunlight for 10 weeks. When Omar Reygadas emerged, he emotionally fell to his knees in prayer. Mario Sepulveda, who had kept morale high while they were trapped underground, described the moment he was lifted up. 'On the way out, it was terrible, terrible,' he said. 'I screamed. I just wanted to get out, to see the light.' The son of Florencio Avalos, seven-year-old Bairon, captured the hearts of the world when pictures showed him anxiously waiting for his father's arrival with tears in his eyes. Among the men to emerge from the shaft was Yonni Barrios. While most of the men were greeted with tears of joy, Barrios, who was the 21st man to be pulled up, faced a unique storm. Waiting on the surface for him were both his wife, Marta Salinas and his mistress, Susana Valenzuela. Miner Florencio Avalos' seven-year-old son was emotional as he waited for the arrival of his father following the 10-week ordeal Jose Ojeda is helped out of the Fenix capsule. Chile's Navy built the capsule with input from NASA Mario Sepulveda waved to well-wishers as he was examined by medical personnel Tensions between the two women were high, adding an unexpected human drama to the momentous rescue. Unbeknownst to Barrios, his wife had found out about his extramarital affairs, leading to squabbles between the two women. While Salinas said she had no idea who her husband's other woman was, Valenzuela also hit back, saying her rival had only married Barrios for his money. Before Barrios could be pulled up, president Pinera, who had been at the other rescues, fled the scene, claiming he had to accompany his Bolivian counterpart to the airport. Critics and Barrios himself later suggested the leader did not want to be around the controversial story. Luckily for Barrios, Salinas gave up the fight and refused to attend his rescue. She said: 'I am happy because he made it, it's a miracle of God. 'But I'm not going to see the rescue. He asked me to, but it turns out that he also asked the other lady, and I am a decent woman.' In an interview with the Daily Mail in 2015, Darios admitted that while he was still legally married to Salinas at the time of the rescue, he was actually living with Valenzuela. The oldest miner, Mario Gomez, during an interview for the TV documentary Chilean Miners: 17 Days Buried Alive Loved ones who had camped at the site burst into cheers when the men were brought to the surface At 9:55pm on October 13, foreman Urzua became the final miner to be rescued. He was embraced by Pinera, who had later returned to the scene. The rescue was hailed as a triumph of engineering and human spirit - but as the celebrations faded, criticism started to grow. Some argued that the government had turned the disaster into a political spectacle. Others warned that the miners were victims, not heroes, pointing to the corporate failures that led to the incident. The 33 miners became overnight celebrities. Several interviews with international media outlets were lined up. The government had promised them six months of free healthcare and counselling. But the miners' attendance was inconsistent due to international travel, forcing the government to threaten to withdraw the offer. Although their underground ordeal was over, they were forced to face other traumas, and some quickly found themselves in debt and illness. Two of them were diagnosed with silicosis, while others said they were suffering from chronic anxiety. Alex Vega told CBS News: 'Whenever I hear a noise, I get scared... My heart beats faster. 'I can't go into small spaces. I'm taking five or six pills a day now. If I don't take them, I wouldn't even be able to sit with you.' Legal and compensation claims dragged on for years; some miners ended up in debt, some spoke publicly of feeling abandoned. President Pinera was told how they felt like soldiers - heroes during the war and forgotten after peace is restored. He replied to CBS: 'Well, that's part of life. That's part of human nature. 'They were heroes. They will always be heroes.' He added: '...each of them have to come back to their normal lives. To their families. Find a new job.' In 2015, the miners received renewed interest after the film The 33 was released. Starring Antonio Banderas as Mario Sepulveda, the movie told the story of both the physical struggles underground and the emotional toll above. Fifteen years on, the San Jose mine remains sealed. A small memorial marked with the number 33 stands nearby, where families still leave flowers and flags. For Chile, the rescue endures as a story of unity and hope. But for the men who lived it, the memories are heavier. As the applause faded and the cameras were put down, they had to face the harsh realities of the outside world. This was a reckoning that proved too difficult for some. An Italian vigilante is taking revenge on pickpockets by catching them in the act before publicly shaming them. The man, 36, has become so effective at thwarthing thieves in Florence that residents in Venice and Rome are begging for his help. Florence welcomes around 10million tourists a year but the renaissance city, known for its gothic architecture and iconic cathedrals, has been plagued by an army of pickpockets targeting holidaymakers in the city center or on public transport. The public hero first started foiling thieves after he was scratched in the face when he intervened as two women in their 70s were targeted for their wallets while shopping at H&M. The vigilante, who arrived in Italy from Albania as an unaccompanied minor 20 years ago, claims to know all the pickpockets in the city - and is so notorious he has to hide his face or they will flee. Armed with just a whistle and his phone, he spends up to three hours a day policing the crooks before plastering their faces and videos of their crimes on social media. He recently helped one tourist retrieve a camera worth 1,700 (1,485) and has been attacked multiple times for recording the pickpockets, while many have been arrested following the footage. One video, posted on his firenze_ pickpocket Instagram account, shows him scuppering a pickpocket as she reached out to snatch valuables from a tourist's bag. Footage shows a woman reaching into a man's pocket on the tram before he alerts the victim In another video, the vigilante blows his whistle at a pickpocket as she tries to snatch valuables from a tourist's bag He confronts the pickpocket after loudly blowing his whistle at her in the crowded city centre space He loudly blows his whistle, stopping her in the act before chasing the thief away from the crowded city centre spot. Another shows a woman reaching into a man's pocket on the tram before he alerts the victim. The thief pushes the camera away as he films her. And in an attempted theft from last week, which he thwarted, a pair of young women, including a repeat offender, followed a Chinese tourist up a staircase before opening her backpack and trying to steal her money. The do-gooder was attacked by the thieves as they scrambled away to avoid being filmed. 'They attacked me, laying hands on me just to escape,' he said. 'It wasn't the first time I'd been attacked like that, but I couldn't turn away and leave that tourist defenceless.' In another video on the T2 tram, a theft hotspot, an ashamed pickpocket tries to hide her face under her hat after he warns members of the public on the tram after catching her approaching two elderly people. While in other dramatic footage, he caught a 'pregnant' pickpocket who was grabbed by the hair and prevented from running away by an irate husband as she tried to steal his wife's backpack in Italy. The woman, who claimed to be pregnant after being caught, was held by the hair and arms and stopped from 'stealing' the tourist's bag at Piazza di San Lorenzo, a popular square in Florence. In another video on the T2 tram, a theft hotspot, an ashamed pickpocket tries to hide her face under her hat The vigilante warns members of the public on the tram after catching her approaching two elderly people Footage of the fracas shows two men keeping hold of the 'thief' as she tries to wriggle free. One man clutched onto her hair, before she drops the backpack, while another gripped her left arm. The woman appeared to shout 'I'm pregnant' in Spanish. Another pickpocket then appeared demanding the woman should be released, while a tourist can be heard repeatedly shouting for the police as they recover the backpack. Two thieves were reportedly later arrested. 'Sure, I know them all by now.' the vigilante told La Nazione. 'There are about fifty of them, all women. If you didn't know what they do, you'd never guess from the way they dress that they were pickpockets.' He said the thieves are often Bosnian, Peruvian, Chilean or Bulgarian, adding that there are occasionally male pickpockets who steal 'to buy their fix of drugs'. He has gained huge support from Florence locals but has frustrated police, as well as pickpockets, with his loud whistling. He also fears the pickpockets are fighting back. 'When they see me, they disappear. Or they insult me, call me a scoundrel, or flash me. I change my clothes every day, I change my hat, sometimes I wear a COVID mask. Now I've ordered Ray Ban sunglasses with cameras so I don't need to hold my phone to film. But they're smart, they can spot me from a hundred metres away.' A pair of young women followed a Chinese tourist up a staircase before opening her backpack before they were thwarted A 'pregnant' pickpocket was grabbed by the hair and prevented from running away as she tried to steal a tourist's backpack The woman, who claimed to be pregnant after being caught, is held by the hair and arms and stopped from stealing the bag at Piazza di San Lorenzo, a square in Florence Florence is far from the only Italian city grappling with pickpockets. In Venice, gangs are grooming children to work as pickpockets as they seek to prevent police crackdowns from eating into their profits, officials and activists have warned. Venice, as one of Italy's top tourist attractions, has long been a hotspot for criminal activity targeting unsuspecting holidaymakers. The scourge has led furious residents to form their own associations to publicise the identities of those caught in the act and work as volunteer informants for police. Officials have warned that legal loopholes already allow adult pickpockets, particularly women, to operate with little concern for law enforcement. Deputy Chief of the local police, Gianni Franzoi, told Secolo d'Italia: 'There are now more female pickpockets, drawn to the city by a bubble of legal impunity... '(The law) stipulates, in addition to a formal complaint, the injured parties' presence at the hearing,' he said, explaining that in order for a pickpocket to be convicted, the victim must also attend the court date. 'The victims are mostly foreigners, and they hardly ever come to the hearing. So, there are no trials and no convictions. Venetian gangs are grooming children to work as pickpockets as they seek to prevent police crackdowns from eating into their profits, officials and activists have warned But even amid an increased police presence and efforts by citizen activists to catch opportunists, those under the age of 14 cannot bear criminal responsibility. Gangs are therefore stepping up efforts to recruit 'baby borseggiatori' - or baby pickpockets - into their ranks. Meanwhile, Monica Poli, spokesperson for the association Cittadini Non Distratti (Undistracted Citizens), denounced the involvement of children in criminal activities. 'The problem is that there are many minors under 13, including girls (who are pickpockets). 'What drives us forward is above all to defend the most vulnerable groups, namely the elderly and disabled, who are the preferred victims of these increasingly violent pickpockets, and we do so out of civic duty.' Poli has garnered significant notoriety on social media, particularly on TikTok, where she and her fellow citizen activists routinely post videos of suspected pickpockets. Her catchphrase 'Attenzione, borseggiatori!' (Attention, pickpockets!) went viral in 2023 and has been remixed into dance tracks and used to mock everyday scenarios, like animals trying to nibble their owners' food. The newfound social media fame helped to shine a light on the work Poli and her fellow volunteers, who first began combing the streets for pickpockets some three decades ago, have done. Monica Poli, a middle-aged Italian woman from Venice, became an internet sensation in 2023 as she publicised the work of her citizens' association against pickpockets Poli says that her group aims to protect tourists and raise awareness about pickpocketing in Venice, claiming her group protects US and UK tourists from being targeted. 'I have been part of a group of disturbance against pickpockets for 30 years - together with 40 other people,' she told Newsweek shortly after erupting to social media stardom. 'People are pickpocketed for their American or English passport, then to return to their country they have to go to the embassy in [...] Rome.' 'This incurs additional expenses for them, so it is better to prevent this by warning tourists of the problem.' Poli claims she has never been asked to stop by police, but runs a physical risk for her actions, adding she was once attacked by a group of women who fell foul of her vigilantism When the Apollo 13 NASA mission to the moon famously suffered a catastrophic oxygen tank explosion, astronaut commander Jim Lovell's radio call to Mission Control exclaimed: 'Houston, we have a problem.' Through a mixture of teamwork, hard yakka and outside-the-box thinking, the NASA collective managed to safely steer the mission home. They never made it to the moon, but the team's ability to 'work the problem' and successfully re-enter Earth's atmosphere turned the failed mission into NASA's finest hour. Fifty-five years on, in Australia, the Liberal Party has a problem - a big problem. Having suffered a catastrophic defeat at the federal election earlier this year, what's left of its parliamentary party is a hollowed-out rump. There are only 43 Coalition seats in the 150-seat House of Representatives, but that total includes 15 Nationals. The Liberal Party only holds a paltry 28 lower house seats. The tensions within the Coalition are its own problem. There are no guarantees the coalition will hold, or that new right-of-centre parties won't rise up. It's a mess. The electoral carnage in May has also left the remaining Liberals in a state of disarray as the major party tries to understand its purpose going forward, and who can play the lead roles in wrestling back government from Labor. For decades, the Liberal Party was seen as the natural party of government at the federal level, dominating elections and time in office since the post-WWII period. That dominance might well be over now. At the very least, the Liberals look set to be consigned to opposition for at least the next two terms, meaning that future leaders and senior members when it next returns to power are likely to be next-generation candidates. Three key figures in the Liberals, including Andrew Hastie, must put their differences aside if they want to be serious contenders to lead the party back into government By definition, with so few lower house MPs to choose from right now, future leadership options are thin on the ground. It may well be that the next Liberal prime minister isn't even in parliament yet. Or they will need to recycle someone who lost their seat but is willing to return to Canberra to try again. It's a dire state of affairs, and that's before even discussing the policy disagreements within what's left of the team - on the net zero emissions target, on immigration levels, and what to do on the economic front. Put simply, Liberals are all over the place, and their disagreements might not be reconciled without things getting worse before they get better. If we assume that time in opposition will burn through some of the older MPs who previously held senior positions in Liberal governments led by the likes of Tony Abbott, Malcolm Turnbull and Scott Morrison, there aren't many names to choose from in the search for the next Liberal messiah. The major party of the right has never been great at courting women or younger voters, which is reflected in its ageing, male-dominated ranks. Working out who are the ones to watch for the rebuild is a limiting exercise. Working within such confines, the triumvirate of names who need to put their differences aside and find common ground to help return the Coalition to power are Tim Wilson, Andrew Hastie and Melissa McIntosh. They are all in their 40s and have spent time in government before the wipeout, albeit in junior roles. Whether they have what it takes to lead the rebuild remains questionable. But right now, they represent the side's best hope for generational change. An important fourth name in the mix is Senator James Paterson. He is just 37, but already a wise head playing a calming role. Unlike the lower house contenders of the future who might flame out quickly if they don't succeed, Paterson will be in it for the long haul. Shadow Minister for Industrial Relations Tim Wilson is a Liberal moderate, openly gay and, like Hastie, also driven by ideological convictions. He defines himself by his economic goals The Victorian senator is articulate, policy driven and a realist capable of playing a team game in the name of returning to power. He has the potential to become what Robert Hill and then Nick Minchin were for John Howard in the Senate in a forthcoming Coalition government. Even if that moment is still a long way off. Hastie, 43, has made headlines recently, butting heads with party leader Sussan Ley on matters of immigration and the net zero target. Hastie has moved to the backbench with plans to develop a manifesto for the future - his pitch for how the Liberal Party can remake itself and, no doubt, why he's the man for the job. The former SAS officer has already been in parliament for a decade, a gruelling slog for an MP based in Western Australia. But Hastie is an ideologue and a religious conservative. While he may be a natural leader of the party's conservative right, there are real questions over whether Hastie can work with colleagues who don't share his worldview. His rigidity could become a barrier to the sort of teamwork needed to lead a major political party in a preferential system with compulsory voting that must capture the middle ground to succeed. We'll know more when we see his manifesto in the months - or years - ahead. Wilson, 45, is a Liberal moderate, openly gay and also driven by ideological convictions. He defines himself by his economic goals and won't be afraid to spell out an alternative agenda that includes remodelling the broken tax-and-spend system. That kind of policy platform isn't typically considered 'retail politics' - the kind of easily digestible, vote-winning promises oppositions usually rely on - but Wilson has proven himself capable of winning tough fights: he was the only Liberal to reclaim a seat from a teal independent, returning to parliament after losing under Morrison's leadership in 2022. The challenge for Wilson will be to find a way to help his party reclaim city seats. One of the most telling features of the 2025 election defeat was the loss of urban electorates. That trend was already well-established before the last election, but a bad situation got even worse. Appealing to voters who reside in these all-important electorates is a key element of a Coalition comeback - assuming that it's achievable without losing regional and outer metro seats in the process. Shadow Communications Minister Melissa McIntosh is seen as an exemplar of how Liberals can avoid the out-of-touch tag they are so often labelled with McIntosh, 48, is an endangered species inside the parliamentary Liberal Party: a woman holding a once-Labor marginal seat in western Sydney. Yet she's done so since 2019, and she is seen as an exemplar of how Liberals can avoid the out-of-touch tag they are so often labelled with. While some of her colleagues say she's got enormous potential, others see her limitations - a familiar dynamic in a party that has long struggled to attract and retain women. She isn't defined by her gender, but in a party with a poor record of attracting female voters and candidates, her presence is optically important. As shadow communications minister, McIntosh showed this week she can land blows in parliament, taking Labor to task over its failures in the Optus scandal. More importantly, she's positioned to drive the Liberal pitch in crucial outer metro seats, where her focus on local infrastructure hits the kind of bread-and-butter issues that resonate with voters - when done properly. In time, as the current crop of older hangers-on from past Coalition glories falls or moves on, these emerging names could become the Liberal Party's best shot at returning to government. But only if they find a way to work together, with a long-term plan to reshape the party's future. That will involve compromises to maintain the big-tent credentials of the Liberal brand - without appearing compromised in the process. It's a tough ask. An important fourth name in the mix is Senator James Paterson (centre). He is just 37, but already a wise head playing a calming role - he will be in it for the long haul We'll get a much better picture of what the future for the Liberals looks like after the next election, which is still more than two years off. But that election is already lost - make no mistake. Turning this year's defeat into victory next time is near-impossible. How the next election is lost will matter - and the groundwork laid between now and then will shape whether the Coalition can rebuild a core base of seats and credibility. Only then can it mount a serious challenge for power in the election after next. The long haul of opposition must be a depressing thought for Liberals used to occupying the government benches - but it's also an opportunity to do what the party failed to do after Howard's defeat in 2007. Things looked dire back then too, but Labor stumbled in government, and the scale of Howard's defeat was overstated. That allowed the Coalition to fight its way back into power - not by selling a compelling alternative, but by relentlessly attacking the government of the day. This time around, it will need to do both. Oppositions are always negative - it's part of their job. But when the voting public decides you're a joke to the point where they would rather stick with a government they don't particularly rate, more is needed. Liberals need to convince mainstream Australia that they offer an alternative vision worth voting for. But they first have to settle on what that actually is for themselves. A Vermont substitute teacher was arrested after allegedly bringing cocaine into her classroom and becoming so intoxicated she mistook one of her students for her dog. Melissa Martin, 47, a substitute teacher at Barre Town Middle and Elementary School, pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges of cocaine possession and reckless endangerment after she was caught with cocaine while on the job. Barre Town Police were called to the primary school during the late morning hours of October 1 after reports of an adult 'under the influence of drugs,' according to Barre Town Police Chief William Dodge. When police arrived, Martin allegedly admitted to having cocaine in her jacket pocket. However, a K-9 search of her classroom turned up more suspected cocaine in both her jacket and backpack, police said. 'The charges that we have cited her for are possession of cocaine and reckless endangerment, based on the fact that she was under the influence while she was in control of the students in her classroom,' Dodge said. The seized white powder weighed less than 2.5 grams, according to court documents. Melissa Martin, 47, a substitute teacher at Barre Town Middle and Elementary School, was arrested after allegedly bringing cocaine into her classroom and becoming so intoxicated she mistook one of her students for her dog A K-9 search revealed just under 2.5 grams of cocaine found inside Martin's jacket pocket and backpack. Pictured: Barre Town Middle and Elementary School in Barre, Vermont One mother, identified only as Brittany, said her eighth-grade son was in Martin's class that day and immediately noticed something was wrong. 'He looked visibly shaken and upset, and I asked what had happened today,' she told NBC5. 'He said that his substitute teacher was clearly on drugs and was acting crazy. Those were his exact words.' According to Brittany's son, Martin had been nodding off during class before suddenly running out of the room. Concerned, he followed her - and that's when things took a bizarre turn. 'So he followed her, and I guess found her, and [Martin] said to him, "Hey Teddy, why are you off your leash?" and my son was like, what?' Brittany said. She later learned that Teddy is Martin's dog. The school quickly called 911 after students raised concerns about Martin's behavior. 'He did the right thing, and that is part of the curriculum. If you hear something, you're concerned about something, you say something,' Joan Canning, superintendent of the Barre Unified Union School District, told NBC5. Joan Canning, superintendent of the Barre Unified Union School District, told NBC5 Martin was fired immediately, citing the district's zero-tolerance policy Martin allegedly confused one of her students for her dog, Teddy, while under the influence of drugs, according to a Barre Town Middle and Elementary school parent Martin pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges of cocaine possession and reckless endangerment after she was caught with the stimulant Canning added that Martin, who had worked as a permanent substitute for about three years, admitted to drug use and was fired immediately under the district's zero-tolerance policy. 'In fact, we completed another background check, and both times this person's background came back clean. We did not see anything,' she said. Parents, however, have since expressed outrage and disbelief over the incident. 'A lot of us were just shocked, just wowed, because we never expected something like this to happen in a school,' Sabrina Shea, whose son attends Barre Town Middle and Elementary, said. 'I was furious. School is supposed to be safe. They're supposed to be able to go to the teachers. Now she was intoxicated and acted funny. How are students supposed to feel safe around her?' Martin was released on court conditions, including a prohibition on entering any school grounds, NBC5 reported. Sabrina Shea (pictured), whose son attends Barre Town Middle and Elementary, said the incident made her 'furious.' 'School is supposed to be safe. They're supposed to be able to go to the teachers. Now she was intoxicated and acted funny. How are students supposed to feel safe around her?' Canning said that, despite the disturbing nature of the case, parents should feel confident their children are safe. 'The person is not at school now,' she said. 'The parents should feel totally confident that their students are safe.' Still, Brittany said she wants to see stronger safeguards in place. 'Where was the vetting? Why is there not drug testing? Why are we not following up and making sure these adults around our children are safe?' she asked. 'The utmost priority should be our children's safety.' Yosemite National Park has been stormed by squatters and thrill-seekers who are scaling dangerous cliffs and leaping from mountain peaks amid the government shutdown. The federal lockdown has dragged into its ninth chaotic day, with no resolution in sight as Congress remains at a standstill amid a bitter blame game over the stalled funding bill. Iconic landmarks across America are bearing the brunt of the closure, as nearly two-thirds of National Park Service workers have been furloughed without pay. Under the Trump administrations contingency plan, parks must stay open to the public - even with only a skeleton crew of staff left to protect their fragile resources. Now, Yosemite has been overrun by rogue campers overstaying their reservations and extreme adrenaline junkies parachuting off deadly peaks - with no laws to stop them. A park employee, speaking anonymously, said theres just one wilderness ranger covering the entire park - and hes only a volunteer, according to SFGate. 'This is different,' John DeGrazio, founder of the tour company YExplore Yosemite Adventures, told the outlet. 'It's like the Wild Wild West,' he added. 'These people are counting on no enforcement because of the shutdown.' Yosemite National Park has been stormed by squatters and thrill-seekers who are scaling dangerous cliffs and leaping from mountain peaks (BASE jumper pictured) amid the government shutdown Iconic landmarks across America are bearing the brunt of the closure, as nearly two-thirds of National Park Service workers have been furloughed without pay John DeGrazio (pictured), founder of the tour company YExplore Yosemite Adventures, described the past week in Yosemite as 'the Wild Wild West' In the California park, BASE jumping - leaping from fixed objects with a parachute - is illegal, but since the government closed its doors, the number of daredevils leaping from Yosemite's El Capitan summit has dramatically increased (pictured) In the renowned California park, BASE jumping - leaping from fixed objects with a parachute - is illegal and prohibited by the NPS to manage serious safety risks and protect fragile resources. While BASE jumping has occurred discreetly since the 1960s, the number of daredevils leaping from Yosemite has surged dramatically in recent days. Since the government closed its doors, chilling footage has revealed crowds swarming El Capitan - the park's 3,000-foot summit and the globes largest granite monolith. On Monday, local climber Charles Winstead, 57, shared an Instagram video capturing BASE jumpers floating down Yosemites iconic summit, soaring past cars and the sprawling wilderness below. 'Base jumpers coming off El Cap in the middle of the day. Must be taking advantage of the government shutdown to get away with it,' Winstead captioned the post. In a second video shared the following day, Winstead captured another BASE jumper parachuting through the sky toward the vast rock formations towering in the distant valley. 'More base jumpers!' he wrote. 'Definitely feeling some freedom to flout the rules due to the shutdown. Second group today.' Winstead told the San Francisco Chronicle that he has witnessed at least a dozen BASE jumpers launching from El Capitan in broad daylight this week. Local climber Charles Winstead captured a BASE jumper parachuting through the sky toward the vast rock formations towering in the distant valley on Tuesday (pictured) Winstead (pictured) said that he has witnessed at least a dozen BASE jumpers launching from El Capitan in broad daylight this week While fatalities from the extreme sport are rare, 23-year-old influencer Balin Miller (pictured) died climbing El Capitan on the first day of the federal shutdown While livestreaming his climb last week, Miller fell to his death (pictured: screenshot of Miller on El Capitan during his final climb) 'You hear them before you see them,' he told the outlet. 'Then the parachute pops and there's no more noise. But it's been happening so much, I hardly look up.' While fatalities from the extreme sport are rare, El Capitan remains dangerous - a young influencer died climbing it on the first day of the federal shutdown. While livestreaming his climb of El Capitan last week, 23-year-old Balin Miller fell to his death, his mother told the Associated Press. Its unclear what went wrong during Millers climb, but his older brother, Dylan Miller, told the AP that he was lead rope soloing a 2,400-foot route called Sea of Dreams. This technique gave him a rope for protection, though experts warn it remains inherently risky. Dylan said his brother had completed the climb and was likely hauling the rest of his gear when he rappelled to the end of his rope - and fell. But reckless visitors exploiting the lack of enforcement have also invaded Yosemites Half Dome - a famous rock formation with one sheer face and three smooth, rounded sides. Known as one of the countrys most grueling hikes, Half Dome offers a mountaineering-level challenge and can only be attempted with a permit. A park employee, speaking anonymously, said theres just one wilderness ranger covering the entire park - and hes only a volunteer (pictured: climbers on El Capitan) Reckless visitors exploiting the lack of enforcement have also invaded Yosemites Half Dome (pictured) - one of the countrys most grueling hikes offering a mountaineering-level challenge and can only be attempted with a permit The last stretch is a treacherous cable climb, where steel handrails and resting planks guide hikers up the steep granite for the final 400 feet to the summit of the 8,836-foot monolith (pictured) Campers have also reportedly turned the beloved park (pictured) into squatter central due to visitors 'thinking they can do whatever they want' with no rangers The last stretch is a treacherous cable climb, where steel handrails and resting planks guide hikers up the steep granite for the final 400 feet to the summit of the 8,836-foot monolith. On Tuesday, a YouTube user named Abhi shared a video of his visit to Yosemite during the federal shutdown, hiking Half Dome and handing out three extra permits to strangers hoping to secure a spot. In a later scene, a tense line of hikers is stuck on the packed Half Dome cables, while some - even the cameraperson - duck under the rails to surge forward and skip the line. However, hikers squeezing past each other on Half Domes cables are a leading cause of death, and the more people jammed onto the narrow trail, the greater the risk of disaster, according to The Travel. Aaron Willits, a four-time Half Dome climber and nurse, saw a Facebook post from a woman describing her recent trek without a permit, noting she was pleasantly surprised that no rangers were enforcing the rules. 'Sadly, this gives hikers a bad name and frustrates the ones who do go through the proper channels and wait for a permit or who choose to follow the rules and do not hike at all,' Willits told SFGate. 'As a healthcare worker, it makes me sad that those who break the rules do not consider the potential danger you put others in who may need to rescue you or recover your body,' he added. In total, there have been 25 accidental deaths on Half Dome, as reported by SFGate. Last year, Grace Rohloff, 20, plummeted 200 feet down the treacherous Half Dome after she lost her footing while descending cables during a hike with her father (both pictured) Hikers squeezing past each other on Half Domes cables (pictured) are a leading cause of death, and the more people jammed onto the narrow trail, the greater the risk of disaster In total, there have been 25 accidental deaths on Half Dome (pictured at sunrise) While it's unclear whos on hand for emergencies, the Department of the Interior said essential work - law enforcement, emergency response, wildfire fighting and federal property protection - will continue (pictured: Yosemite climber) Last year, while hiking Yosemite with her father, a college student slipped and cried, 'Dad, my shoes are slippery,' just seconds before her deadly fall. Grace Rohloff, 20, plummeted 200 feet down the treacherous Half Dome after she lost her footing while descending cables on the cliff. She and her father, Jonathan Rohloff, were both experienced hikers, but had slowed their descent to accommodate less experienced climbers and became trapped in a sudden rainstorm. Rohloff watched in horror as his daughter tumbled down the sheer rock face near the end of the descent. It was an agonizing three hour wait until rescue teams could reach Grace, who had suffered a catastrophic head injury. Campers have also reportedly turned the beloved park into squatter central since the federal shutdown, the anonymous employee told SFGate. 'There are lots of squatters in the campgrounds,' he told the outlet. 'There are lots of people that truly believe they can do whatever they want because of the lack of rangers. Theyve told us.' While it's unclear whos on hand for emergencies, the Department of the Interior said essential work - law enforcement, emergency response, wildfire fighting and federal property protection - will continue. But services are limited, leaving visitors to rely on park websites and social media for updates. An Arizona school board member who was caught on a hot mic calling her district's nutritional director 'morbidly obese' Carine Werner, a Scottsdale Unified School District board member and Arizona state senator, has faced a petition calling for her ouster signed by 1,500 and protests for her comments about Patti Bilbrey. Earlier this week, Werner attended the district's October board meeting where she again faced protesters and calls to resign but said she's refusing to backdown to phony outrage. Werner claimed that she has reached out privately to Bilbrey, the Director of Nutrition Services, and apologized. 'I did take full responsibility for the comments, I reached out immediately to Patti and apologized. We had a very constructive and respectful conversation,' she said. 'It is deeply disappointing that a vocal few have taken the opportunity to manufacture a controversy for their own political gain.' She also said that there have been threats made against her since the initial comments surfaced, AZCentral reported. Werner said people have even made threats against her, and that she remains focused on improving the schools. Bilbrey, in a statement, said that while Werner expressed regret, she never actually apologized. Carine Werner, a Scottsdale Unified School District board member and Arizona state senator, made a humiliating blunder during a recorded meeting Carine Werner, a Scottsdale Unified School District board member and Arizona state senator, has faced a petition signed by 1,500 and protests for her comments about Patti Bilbrey (pictured) 'While I acknowledge that she called to express regret that I became caught up in this mess, she did not, and has not, apologized for the personal and inappropriate comments made about my appearance or for her dismissive words about the presentation,' she said. During the school board meeting, some spoke up in favor of Werner but many continue to ask her to apologize publicly or even resign her position. The Daily Mail has reached out to Senator Werner for further comment. The controversy started when Werner joined a governing board meeting virtually back on August 5. In a cringeworthy moment, Werner appeared to forget to mute her microphone and made a scathing comment about a mystery colleague. 'See what I have to listen to?' she is heard saying to someone off-screen. The audio is then briefly muffled, before she adds: 'She's like, morbidly obese.' The outrageous comment came while the speaker was discussing Scottsdale Community College's partnership with SUSD Nutrition Services. Werner attended the governing board meeting virtually on August 5 (pictured: other members of the school board attending the meeting in person) Werner was unmasked as the culprit as she was the only female attendee to call in virtually to the livestreamed meeting. The comment bothered Mike Norton, a Scottsdale parent, enough that he took to his Facebook page 'Respect Our Scottsdale Students' to call Werner out. On the page, which has almost 4,000 followers, Norton described Werner as a 'vicious, hateful, venom spewing' person. 'I considered sitting on this video,' Norton said. 'But it's already burning its way around town. So screw the high road. Werner's earned this blast.' He called for Werner to issue a public apology for her comments. 'Join me in demanding a public apology by Werner and her censure by the other 4 Board members,' he said. Other community members took to the comments to join in the outrage. In a cringeworthy moment, Werner apparently forgot to mute her microphone and called one of her colleagues 'morbidly obese' 'What a despicable person,' one person chimed in. Others called for Werner 'to resign immediately'. Werner serves as chair of the Health and Human Services Committee, vice chair of the Education Committee and as a member of the Appropriations Committee. She is also the Arizona state senator who represents parts of Scottsdale, north Phoenix and Paradise Valley in Legislative District 4. Julie Cieniawski, a former governing board president, said the issue here isn't Werner's politics or policies, 'it's about human decency'. Cieniawski told Azcentral that it is the sign of a weak leader to judge another person by their physical appearance instead of their work. 'I think it's important for the public to know who they elect, and that their votes have consequences,' she said. A runaway military horse that rampaged through London after being startled by builders has retired. Quaker was one of the five animals from the Household Cavalry which raced across the centre of the capital in April last year after bolting from a routine exercise. Striking images of the frightened horses on the loose from the military unit, which is the King's ceremonial guard, were broadcast worldwide. A series of particularly dramatic pictures saw one of the animals, named Vida, with his white coat drenched in blood from colliding with vehicles. The unit was rehearsing for a Major General's Inspection in the central area of Belgravia, near Buckingham Palace, ahead of the King's Birthday Parade. But the seven horses and six soldiers were sent into chaos after the animals were spooked by rubble being dropped through a plastic tunnel. Four people were injured, including one member of the public and three service personnel thrown from their horses - but all, along with the animals, recovered. And now Quaker is stepping down from military duties to enjoy a well-deserved retirement with The Horse Trust in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire. Quaker (the black horse), a runaway military horse that rampaged through London after being startled by builders has retired. Pictured: He and a blood-stained Vida bolted through London's Aldwych Quaker (Black, left) and Vida (grey) have made progress in their recovery Quaker is stepping down from military duties to enjoy a well-deserved retirement with The Horse Trust in Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire. The household Cavalry horse seen enjoying a field on a sunny day The sanctuary has cared for service horses ever since it was founded 139 years ago, in 1886. It is currently the permanent retirement home for 32 former military working horses. The charity also hosts so-called horse turnout days, giving hard-worked animals the chance to take some time off and go out to pasture to graze, exercise and socialise. Some 3,430 of these days took place last year, including for horses from the King's Troop Royal Artillery and the Metropolitan Police. Louise Sandher-Jones, minister for veterans and people, said: 'We have a commitment to all who serve our nation, including our much-loved service animals. 'Quaker's well-deserved retirement comes after a stellar career in the Armed Forces and after a high-profile bolting incident, which captured the nation's attention. 'This partnership with The Horse Trust also shows how the Army looks after its military working horses and will improve animal welfare.' Lieutenant Colonel Mathew Woodard, commanding officer of the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, said: 'The partnership between the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment and The Horse Trust is a shining example of what can be achieved when tradition meets compassion. A series of particularly dramatic pictures saw one of the animals, named Vida, with his white coat drenched in blood from colliding with vehicles The Horse Trust sanctuary has cared for service horses for 139 years, including horses from the King's Troop Royal Horse Artillery and The Met Life Guard Squadron Leader Major Tom Stewart says goodbye to Household Cavalry horse Quaker as he begins his retirement 'This initiative plays a crucial role in supporting long-term physical and psychological welfare, ensuring they return to duty refreshed and well-balanced.' Ambulance crews treated four people in three separate incidents in the space of just ten minutes after the chaos began last year. Three service personnel were treated in hospital for non-life threatening injuries, while a fourth person, a cyclist and member of the public, was also injured. The horses went on a six-mile rampage, colliding with vehicles including a double-decker bus and a taxi. But they were eventually recovered - two from more than five miles away, in the Limehouse area of east London - and returned to their unit. Of the horses that bolted, Quaker and Vida, the animal seen covered in blood, were more seriously injured and spent time recovering at The Horse Trust. But the other three, Tennyson, Trojan and Vanquish, made 'swift and successful' recoveries - and even participated in last year's Trooping the Colour ceremony. Floppy-eared mutt Jackson gets so panicked every time he's alone in a room his owner has no choice but to work-from-home. When Ann Lowe, 45, first laid eyes on the scruffy Cavapoo-Basset cross she knew something wasn't quite right with him, but he was so heartbreakingly cute she couldn't walk away. Ann and her wife Lyn, 52, had wanted a dog for some time before hearing there was a dog in need of rehoming advertised on a pet rehoming platform. Little did they know it at the time, but Jackson would bring untold joy while adding untold complication to their lives. Their little mutt is reduced to a ball of nerves if he's ever left alone. Ann says the flexibility of her freelance job, and understanding clients, means she is able to manage both Jackson and her busy 9-5. Jackson's story comes as new research from leading animal welfare charity Blue Cross reveals more than two-fifths (45%) of UK staff have swapped to remote or hybrid roles because they offered greater flexibility to care for their pet. Nearly half of dog-owners (46%) said they had felt judged or unsupported at work due to their responsibilities to their pet. More than one in 10 (16%) would even consider changing jobs if they had to return to the office full-time, while over half (55%) would sacrifice a pay rise or holiday days in exchange for flexibility. When Ann Lowe, 45, first laid eyes on Jackson, the scruffy Cavapoo-Basset cross, she knew something wasn't quite right with him, but he was so heartbreakingly cute she couldn't walk away Floppy-eared mutt Jackson gets so panicked every time he's alone in a room his owner has no choice but to work-from-home And half of dog-owning staff (50%) admit they are currently considering moving jobs to better meet their pooch's needs. It comes as ever more staff return to the office five years after the pandemic when global lockdowns sparked a work-from-home revolution. But the return-to-office movement is taking a toll with rehoming centres feeling the strain. Blue Cross has seen an 18% increase in dogs coming into the charity's care - many due to changing work circumstances that make pet care difficult or impossible. Recalling the day she first set eyes on Jackson, Ann said: 'The woman who sold him to us arrived home as we were waiting in the driveway, so we walked into her house at the same time as her. 'My heart melted the moment I saw him. He was in this huge, very clean house all on his own - no mum, no litter mates, no toys, no smell of dog. 'When he wandered across to us to say hello, we knew something was very wrong with him and the situation he was in and that we had to get him out of there. 'He was a really sick puppy. What we later discovered was he had been left alone for long periods of time after suffering extreme trauma when he came over from Ireland as a tiny pup.' Jackson's start in life was harrowing. Ann believes he came from a puppy farm, transported across the Irish Sea in a car boot, with another puppy that died beside him during the trip. 'Wounds like that don't heal,' says Ann. 'I've heard of cases of puppies being in a bad state, but this was one of the worst.' Ann and Lyn only discovered a year later, reading in a newspaper, that the woman who had sold them Jackson had gone to prison for puppy farming. Ann says the flexibility of her freelance job, and understanding clients, means she is able to manage both Jackson and her busy 9-5 Jackson's start in life was harrowing. Ann believes he came from a puppy farm, transported across the Irish Sea in a car boot, with another puppy that died beside him during the trip Once they brought him back to their home in Warrington, near Manchester, Ann and Lyn realised just how unwell he really was. 'He was so small, and his eyes weren't alive the way you'd expect with a puppy. He was sick on Lyn on the way home and we put it down to motion sickness, but then when we got him home, he didn't want to drink water or eat.' 'He would have very short moments of interaction with us but would go downhill so quickly. We then started to notice blood in his poo.' Taking him to the vets for treatment, their fears were validated. The vet confirmed Jackson had been severely neglected. Leaving Jackson alone thereafter was impossible. They were both terrified he would stop breathing if they did. 'His breathing was very slow, especially in the night and so we would bring him up onto the bed to sleep on our pillows, with him on our heads, or with a hand on his chest to feel his heart beating. It was an incredibly difficult time,' she remembers. But the bigger challenge soon emerged: Jackson simply could not cope with being left - even for a few minutes. 'If I so much as went into another room, he would have an absolute meltdown,' Ann explains. She tried leaving him in the bathroom with the radio on, surrounded by comforts. But every time she returned home, she was greeted by 'absolute carnage'. 'The bowls of food and water would have been thrown around and emptied and there would be poo, wee and vomit everywhere. I could hear him crying and howling as I left and then the same when I got home and our neighbour told me he didn't stop the whole time I was gone.' Taking him to the vets for treatment, their fears were validated. The vet confirmed Jackson had been severely neglected Leaving him always triggered a tummy upset for a few days. 'The devastation of him being left would make him really ill, physically sick,' she says. 'And to this day, if we have to leave him with someone, there tends to be a similar relapse.' Eventually Ann decided the only option was to build her life around Jackson. As a freelancer, she now works with artisan food firm Spice Kitchen, who she says have been hugely supportive of her need to work from home. 'Working from home means there isn't an issue with caring for him. I'm always here, while Lyn is at work (three days per week) and then I try to arrange my meetings/appointments on days when she is here.' Once they discovered the impact on Jackson of being left alone, they decided not to renew their passports so for the time they have left with him it's just UK holidays and he and their second dog Marla always come with them. They either get shopping delivered or work it around when Lyn is at home. The main thing is Jackson is never left on his own. Ann said: 'For emergencies, my mum - who he loves - is just around the corner. She can look after him and sometimes he will settle with her, sometimes not. 'She is 83 and so we only ask her for small amounts of time, special occasions and emergencies. 'Out of everyone we know, she has been the most constant 'other' human in Jackson's life so he does love and trust her more than anyone else and she buys his favourite treats so that's a big tick in her favour.' Once they discovered the impact on Jackson of being left alone, they decided not to renew their passports so for the time they have left with him it's just UK holidays Overall, Jackson has come through the worst of his difficulties and is lovely to family and friend visitors. He copes well with short visits but can retreat if people stay for a night or more and will keep to himself. 'People bringing deliveries to the house will always result in barking but as soon as he meets people, he is very friendly!' says Ann. 'And I know at work, if it wasn't a food environment they'd welcome him with open arms,' she smiles. 'Even though he's not there, they adore him and he does sometimes even feature on a work Zoom meeting, if he's in the right mood. If he gets bored he just leaves!' laughs Ann. Slowly, Jackson has found his voice quite literally. 'He's a real communicator,' Ann laughs. 'He'll bang the door when he needs a wee or make a cry if he needs a poo. It's completely different to his 'I want food' cry. He's very much alive and expressing himself it's so lovely.' The bond, she says, runs deeper than many outsiders would ever understand. 'People who don't have pets don't get it. A friend's cat died and she was back at work the next day. If it had been a child, that would be unthinkable.' 'I really believe we should have statutory allowance for grieving when a pet dies. The pain of bereavement from losing a pet needs to be acknowledged.' For Ann, there's no question of compromise when it comes to leaving Jackson to go to work. Ann added: 'If the freelance work dried up and the only way was to take a pay cut to work from home, I'd do it. Even though it would hurt me financially, I'd do it for Jackson.' 'He's taught me patience, respect, and how to go at his pace. Sometimes the amount of love I feel for him takes me by surprise. He's been an absolute gift. I'm so glad we found him.' For Ann, there's no question of compromise when it comes to leaving Jackson to go to work 'I think that work policies need to be more inclusive, to let people bring their dogs in where practical.' Blue Cross is calling on businesses to embrace more compassionate and flexible work arrangements policies; including remote or hybrid flexibility and dog-friendly offices to prevent staff having to choose between their dog or their job. The study suggests firms that are more pet-inclusive stand to benefit from improved team morale, to picking from a wider pool of talent. According to the research, a third (33%) of UK bosses are considering pooch-friendly policies in view to enticing more of their own hybrid or WFH staff back into the office. While more than one in ten already (12%) have a policy in place. Ann said: 'I respect that employers need to be able to make choices too. My main client, Spice Kitchen, is in food manufacturing and so I realise that I can't demand a space for Jackson (and our other dog Marla) there as there are all sorts of risks.' 'But, bereavement policies, being able to take time for vet appointments in the same way as people with children are able to leave to care for their kids if needed is a step in the right direction.' 'And of course if a workplace is suitable for a dog and the dog is ok with being there, then this is the ideal scenario.' According to the Blue Cross research, nearly six in ten business leaders (59%) believe dog owners should be given similar flexibility to parents. And, more than half (58%) of dog-owning employees say they would spend more days in the office if they were allowed to bring their faithful Fido in to work with them. A quarter of applicants say they actively look for firms offering pet-friendly offices with doggy daycare (26%) and hybrid flexibility arrangements (46%) to accommodate their four-legged friend. However, companies reluctant to make allowances for man's best friend, could ultimately pay the price. According to the study, 15% of dog-owners would put their pooch before their pay cheque, insisting they would quit if they were ordered back into the office full-time. A chilling new dossier that landed on Donald Trump's desk this week claims to expose a hidden web of money connecting Antifa militants, homelessness nonprofits, and billionaire donors and Trump allies are already calling it a 'blueprint' to dismantle the far-left network. The report, Infiltrated: The Ideological Capture of Homelessness Advocacy, was produced by the Capital Research Center and handed to the White House on Wednesday by Jonathan Choe, a Seattle-based researcher who tracks progressive activists in the Pacific Northwest. The bombshell 113-page document says America's homeless services system has been 'captured' by what it calls radical nonprofits that funnel taxpayer and philanthropic money into political activism instead of helping people get off the streets. It says well-funded advocacy groups, protected by charitable tax status, are 'diverting billions of public dollars' into campaigns that oppose police, resist drug enforcement, and push 'extremist political agendas.' Among the groups named are the Western Regional Advocacy Project (WRAP), National Homelessness Law Center, Southern Poverty Law Center, Los Angeles Community Action Network (LACAN), and the Alliance for Global Justice which the report describes as 'ideological gateways' between homelessness activism and the far left. It also points to major foundations including Ford, Hilton, and Tides, as well as George Soros' Open Society accusing them of 'reinforcing extremist agendas' by funding legal challenges to public camping bans and police enforcement. 'What's most sinister and I think the average American is clueless on is the fact that there's so much taxpayer money going through these homeless nonprofits and housing providers, and indirectly it's going to Antifa,' said Choe. Choe, a fellow at the conservative Discovery Institute who helped produce the report, told the Daily Mail he first became suspicious while covering Stop the Sweep Seattle, a mutual-aid group that intervenes when police clear homeless encampments. The loose coalition of activists known as 'Antifa' could be tackled by targetting the cashflows that underpin it, a report claims Progressive megadonor George Soros' foundation is behind violent US street protests, a shocking new report alleges 'I would see a lot of these volunteers at a weekend Antifa rally, and then the following week, I'd see them at the anti-Israel rally,' he said. 'We just started to connect the dots and realized a lot of these Antifa militants were using these nonprofits as cover.' At Wednesday's White House roundtable, Choe briefed Trump, Attorney General Pam Bondi, and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem. He said he handed them copies of the dossier personally, calling it a road map to track extremist financing. 'The long game,' Choe said, 'is to disrupt the financing of these Antifa-related groups.' According to Choe, Bondi told those gathered in the West Wing that several suspected Antifa organizers in Portland had already been 'rounded up' and questioned by federal investigators. 'A lot of these groups funding Antifa will now be outed,' he said. The report released publicly on Friday with a foreword by conservative activist Christopher Rufo and the names of scores of homelessness non-profits from Maine to California is already making waves among right-wing influencers. A previous report from the Capital Research Center, a conservative research group, was cited by one Department of Justice official as the basis for a nationwide probe into Soros funding to violent far-left activism. The new study claims that more than 700 nonprofits that filed legal briefs in a 2024 Supreme Court case over a public camping ban in Oregon received $2.9 billion in government funding. This, it says, is proof of a 'homeless-industrial complex' that enriches activists instead of helping the unhoused. The anti-ICE demonstrations currently roiling Illinoisare part of a bigger netwrok of social justice activism and funding, the report says President Trump, his top lawyer Pam Bondi and homeland security chief Noem learned about the dossier this week The dosser comes amid a wave of protests at federal immigration lockups against the president's crackdown on illegals The report warns US cities are becoming 'ideological playgrounds' where activists set policy 'under the guise of compassion,' while crime, addiction, and chaos spiral out of control. Its recommendations are blunt: Audit public funding for nonprofits engaged in advocacy or litigation. Refocus homeless programs on treatment, accountability, and enforcement. Investigate links between extremist networks and tax-exempt charities. Choe admitted that Antifa remains decentralized and leaderless, and that many of its adherents have already fled overseas, but insisted that researchers have now mapped its financial support structure. 'That's the reason they've been so successful for so long but we've now identified secondary and tertiary nonprofits that are funding them,' he said. Trump, who declared Antifa a terrorist group in an executive order in September, used the meeting on Wednesday to renew calls for a federal crackdown on left-wing extremism. 'They have been very threatening to people, but we're going to be very threatening to them far more threatening than they ever were with us, and that includes the people that fund them,' Trump told attendees. The meeting came nearly a month after the assassination of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, though authorities have found no ties between the killing and any left-wing group. So far, US law enforcement has not identified any Antifa funding networks or brought related criminal charges. Trump reportedly asked attendees to name groups they believe are behind political violence. A demonstrator receives assistance after getting tear gas in his eyes at an anti-ICE protest in Chicago, Illinois Protesters carry an 'Antifascist Action' flag outside a prayer vigil for Charlie Kirk, the slain conervative influencer Jonathan Choe, a Seattle-based researcher who has tracked far-left activism in the Pacific Northwest for the past five years, addressed the White House gathering Guests included right-wing personalities Jack Posobiec, Savannah Hernandez, and Andy Ngo. There was no discussion of violence against left-wing or Democratic figures. Trump has recently ordered National Guard troops to Chicago and Portland, citing threats to federal officers, following earlier deployments to Los Angeles and Washington, DC. He has also vowed to send troops to Memphis moves now under judicial review and opposed by local Democratic leaders. He has even threatened to invoke an anti-insurrection law last used during the 1992 Los Angeles riots to override court challenges. Choe described the mood in the room as 'urgent and determined.' 'I believe we're going to see the National Guard deployed in Portland,' Choe said. 'A lot of Antifa acolytes and followers are going to go into hiding.' He added: 'We believe the Trump administration is saying the same thing we are: the key is to cut off the financing.' The Daily Mail contacted the groups named in the report but received no immediate response. Soros has long been a boogeyman for the right. His foundation has called similar allegations 'false,' saying the group does 'not support or fund violent protests' and that critics are 'politically motivated.' State Police clashe with demonstrators outside a federal immigration facility in Broadview, Illinois The 113-page report says America's homeless services system has been 'captured' by radical nonprofits The Ford Foundation, and other groups mentioned in the report, have similarly rejected past allegations that it bankrolls violent groups. While there has been an uptick in left-wing violence in recent months, many studies show that right-wing extremist groups have carried out more politically motivated violence overall than those on the left. While the dossier is detailed, it provides little hard evidence linking Antifa's street fighters to the named nonprofits or foundations. Even the US Congressional Research Service describes Antifa as 'decentralized' and without formal leadership. Still, Choe insists the investigation has sparked interest at the highest levels of government. 'There's never been an effort like this to go after Antifa,' he said. 'This is an unprecedented move by the Trump administration and it's only just beginning.' SHANGHAI, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- A news report from english.shanghai.gov.cn The 37th International Business Leaders' Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai is set to be held in Shanghai on Oct 12. The video for IBLAC. [Video/International Services Shanghai] The poster for IBLAC. [Photo/International Services Shanghai] Shanghai Port became the first in the world to surpass 50 million twenty-equivalent units in annual container throughput in 2024, solidifying its position as the world's busiest container port for the 15th consecutive year. Nearly half of this volume was handled at the Yangshan Deep-Water Port, the world's largest automated container terminal. Few, however, know that the origins of this modern port can be traced back more than 30 years to a meeting of foreign business leaders at the International Business Leaders' Advisory Council for the Mayor of Shanghai. Established in 1989, the council was founded with a clear mission: to provide Shanghai's leadership with international perspectives and advice to drive economic development and deepen the city's integration with the global economy. Its inaugural meeting brought together 12 prominent members from eight countries. At the third meeting in 1991, Huub Crijns, then chairman of the board of Dutch company Pakhoed, raised a critical concern. He said that the shallow waters of Shanghai Port would restrict access for the new generation of container ships and bulk carriers. His insight helped inspire the development of the Yangshan Deep-Water Port, which today stands as the cornerstone of Shanghai's status as a global shipping hub. The evolution of IBLAC The Yangshan Deep-Water Port is a prime example of IBLAC's tangible impact on the development of Shanghai. Since its inauguration, IBLAC has grown from 12 members from eight countries to 46 members from 15 countries, along with 11 honorary members. Forty members have confirmed their participation in this year's meeting. Among the current 46 members, 24 are Fortune Global 500 companies and seven are listed on the Forbes Global 2000. These companies have a combined market value exceeding $3.5 trillion and contribute more than 35 billion yuan ($4.9 billion) in annual tax revenue in Shanghai. The members come from both developed economies such as the United States, Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, and emerging markets including Thailand, Singapore, and South Korea. Over the years, the industry representation has expanded beyond manufacturing and mining to include semiconductors, biomedicine, energy conservation, and environmental protection. This evolution mirrors Shanghai's development transformation over the past three decades, from a traditional industrial and commercial hub into an international center for economy, finance, trade, shipping, and science and technology innovation. The themes of the meetings, which provide a lens through which to view Shanghai's evolving priorities and strategic shifts, have also changed over the years. In the 1990s, when the city was still primarily an industrial and commercial base, discussions focused on how to increase the added value of manufacturing, remove barriers to foreign investment, and revitalize State-owned enterprises. With the turn of the century and Shanghai's deeper engagement with the world, the agenda shifted toward strengthening innovation, building an environmentally sustainable city, and accelerating the modern service industry. Since the 2010s, themes have reflected the city's growing ambition to enhance soft power, develop a resilient, low-carbon city, and establish an international science and technology innovation center. Beyond its specific proposals, IBLAC's lasting legacy may well be the culture of candid dialogue it has fostered. Members particularly value the afternoon closed-door sessions introduced in 2009. This format allows for more frank and direct conversations with the mayors following the general meeting. This open exchange has built trust and confidence among the international business community. As Severin Schwan, chairman of the board of directors of Roche Group and current chairman of the IBLAC, said: "We all share both commitment to Shanghai and China and a strong belief in the city's future and potential." SOURCE english.shanghai.gov.cn Every time Hailey Valdez looks in the mirror, she winces at the scars streaking down her face like bolts of lightning. When she takes her baby to hospital, memories of the four days she spent in the ICU, including two on a ventilator, come flooding back. Just nine months ago, on her 24th birthday, she was sprawled in her blood-soaked bedroom in Las Cruces, New Mexico, so viciously beaten that police thought she was dead. 'Police go to the bedroom and see blood on the door. They enter finding Isaiah Ortiz naked, wearing only socks, crying over my body,' Valdez told the Daily Mail. 'I am laying off the bed dripping blood from my head and my eye. I was exposed. No bottoms on and my crop top pushed up exposing my breasts. 'Officers try to talk to me and it takes me a while to respond. I cant really speak as I lost two teeth. Isaiah Ortiz punched me until my teeth fell out.' Valdez, 24, watched the harrowing police bodycam footage too many times as she prepared to testify at her ex-boyfriend's trial last month. The 27-year-old unemployed alcoholic took three minutes to be wrestled out the door and was charged with second-degree rape, aggravated domestic battery, and attempting to escape police custody. But despite a rape kit showing forced intercourse, damning witness statements, and blood all over the house, he will spend only four years behind bars. Hailey Valdez spent four days in hospital, two on a ventilator, after she was raped and viciously beaten on her 24th birthday last December Her boyfriend Isaiah Ortiz, 27, was arrested while wearing only socks and charged with second-degree rape, aggravated domestic battery, and attempting to escape custody Just three days before his September 15 trial, prosecutor Anne Marie Swank accepted a plea deal to drop the rape charge. 'How can you just let a rapist back out there with a slap on the wrist. As if I am nothing? Like what happened to me was nothing?' Valdez said. Valdez and Ortiz had been dating for about two years before the night of December 22, and their daughter was born in May last year. But she was straining under the load of having to work long hours to pay for everything as Ortiz no longer had a job. 'I tried to leave him so many times, but he always was just like, "I'm gonna do better" and I'd give him another chance,' she said. 'He had a really bad alcohol problem and when he was drunk he would be really aggressive, really mean - but he never hit me before this. 'He was already on probation for having three DUIs, and he still never stopped drinking.' Her older two children were in Arizona with her parents and the baby in Las Vegas with Ortiz's parents so she could work hard over the holidays. Valdez as she was before she was beaten so savagely that two of her teeth were knocked out A rape kit found swelling, lacerations, and bruising and she had other bruises on her thighs, legs and around her neck consistent with being choked Scars still visible on Valdez's head today that may be permanent Valdez got home about 10pm from her job serving food at a country club to find Ortiz once again drinking with his cousin. Not wanting to deal with him, she and her friend went back out and returned sometime later when he was asleep. But when they entered the bedroom 'he just woke up in a rage'. Valdez has no memory of anything that happened after she arrived home, but her friend gave a vivid and shocking description of what happened next. 'He immediately grabbed me by my head and started putting my head on his genitals. I yelled stop get off me help,' Valdez said. 'He threw me to the floor and I was laid out.' Ortiz then went after the friend, who ran out the front door to her car and called police. When she went back to try to save Valdez, she found Ortiz had locked her out. Police took 10 to 15 minutes to arrive and realized Valdez was still alive when an officer found a pulse. Bodycam footage showed her eventually come to and start crying hysterically, only pausing to tell them it was Ortiz who attacked her. Police bodycam footage of the moment cops found Valdez after she was attacked The aftermath of the attack with bloodstains all over her bed Valdez was rushed to Mountain View Medical Hospital where staff had to get every male cop, doctor, and nurse out of the room before they could work on her. 'I was so traumatized, still exposed and helpless just trying to keep my legs closed, still fighting,' she said. A rape kit found swelling, lacerations, and bruising and she had other bruises on her thighs, legs and around her neck consistent with being choked. Gnarly stitches stayed in her head for five months and the scars remain today, and the left side of her face is still partially numb. 'Everyone tells me it's a good thing that you don't remember because you must have been in a lot of pain. I know that I was screaming for help,' she said. Then came the heartbreaking call from Swank on September 12 telling her about the plea deal that dropped the rape charge in exchange for Ortiz pleading guilty to the other two. He wouldn't even have to register as a sex offender. Valdez said Swank told her the DA's office took the plea deal because a jury may fail to convict because she was in a relationship with her attacker. 'It would be hard to convince a jury despite the DNA coming back positive, the rape kit showing all the trauma, the police statements, the witness, all the pictures and evidence... I don't understand,' Valdez said. 'I wanted to take my chances at trial and I never once agreed to drop the rape charge. That was very traumatizing for me. 'She didn't even give me a choice, she said it's her choice. I feel completely failed by the justice system. This isnt justice.' Gnarly stitches stayed in her head for five months and the scars remain today, and the left side of her face is still partially numb Valdez had to quit her job as she didn't want anyone to see her face as it healed Valdez also to this day doesn't know the extent of Ortiz's cousin's involvement. He told police he was asleep and didn't hear anything. 'When the cops arrived and he is the one that opened the door and he is shirtless, his boots are tucked in, and he has blood on him,' Valdez said. Her shoes were also in the living room where he was sleeping and broken glass from a picture frame, and there was blood all over the house, according to police reports. Valdez had to quit her job as she didn't want anyone to see her face as it healed. 'I'd have nightmares just looking at myself,' she said. She is still unable to date anyone and only recently began working as an Uber Eats driver after moving to Arizona. 'I'm trying to move on but I'm really scared for when he gets out, that he'll come after me or try to take the baby,' she said. 'Hes not telling the truth, said former Tory leader Iain Duncan Smith when I spoke to him this week. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp was even blunter: Hes lying. Both were referring to Keir Starmer and the reasons the Prime Minister had given for the collapse of the case against two British citizens accused of spying for China before their trial had even started. Last May, I wrote in these pages that the Starmer Government had taken lying and deceit to a new level the worst Id seen in 55 years of covering Westminster politics. I warned then that it was endemic and likely to get worse. It has. But the lies and obfuscation are no longer just the usual political porkies about broken election promises, policy U-turns and personal matters, like property portfolios and extravagant gifts from wealthy benefactors. Now they concern matters of national security. It doesnt get more serious than that. Starmer claimed last week that the case collapsed because, when the alleged offences were committed (between 2022 and 2023), the previous Conservative Government had failed to designate China as a national security threat. The accused were being prosecuted under the Official Secrets Act and, without China being officially deemed an enemy, Starmers camp was arguing, the chances of conviction were much reduced. You cant prosecute someone two years later, claimed Starmer, in relation to a designation that wasnt in place at the time. The Tories were to blame, he added, for the case collapsing. The blatant untruth of Starmers claim is breathtaking. But even more astounding is the ease with which his words can be disproved. Youd think a former Director of Public Prosecutions, about which hes always boasting, would have realised that. Its not just Tories calling him out. Starmers cavalier attitude to the truth has provoked an unprecedented on-the-record assault on a sitting Prime Minister from a panoply of recently retired panjandrums of Whitehall. The blatant untruth of Keir Starmer's claim on the scandal is breathtaking, Andrew Neil writes Christopher Berry, left, and Christopher Cash appearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court Ex-intelligence chiefs, former senior civil servants, even another one-time DPP have effectively challenged and destroyed his account of events. This is serious for Starmer. But then the documented evidence refuting his claims is overwhelming. In 2021, the Tory Governments review of security and defence stated unequivocally that China presented the biggest state-based threat to the UKs economic security. For those jumping in to say, Ahh, but economic security is not the same as national security, the review went on to add, rightly, that the distinction between economic and national security is increasingly redundant. Two years later, in response to an investigation by the House of Commons Intelligence and Security Committee into China, the Governments official submission reiterated its warning that Beijings ambitions posed a national security threat to the UK. This was reiterated in an updated security and defence review published in 2023, which stated: We will increase our national security protections in those areas where Chinese Communist Party actions pose a threat to our people, prosperity and security. So just before, during and immediately after the spying is alleged to have taken place the British Government had clearly designated China as a national security threat. On the very day the accused were arrested, the Government published a report promising to tackle areas in which Chinese Communist Party actions pose a threat to our people, prosperity and security. The record couldnt be clearer. Im mystified, even flabbergasted, as to why Starmer thinks he can get away with claiming the opposite. Im not alone. Former national security adviser and cabinet secretary (the most senior position in the British civil service), Mark Sedwill, is genuinely puzzled by the PMs remarks and finds them very hard to understand. Of course China is a national security threat, he said directly, digitally, through espionage and the through its aggressive behaviour in the South China Sea, which threatens our trade routes. Ken Macdonald, one of Starmers distinguished predecessors as DPP, said it was difficult to understand why the case had been dropped, as it was self-evident that China posed a threat. Another former cabinet secretary, Simon Case, who was in post when Starmer became PM, also challenged his version of events, pointing out that the heads of our intelligence agencies had been describing China as a threat to national security for years. Hes right. Four years ago the then head of MI6 described China as the biggest of the big four threats facing Britain, alongside Russia, Iran and international terrorism. A year later, the then head of MI5 concurred, describing China as a game-changing strategic challenge to the UK. He subsequently highlighted the epic scale of Chinas espionage efforts in Britain. Richard Dearlove, who ran MI6 between 1999 and 2004, says the idea that China is not a threat to national security when its acting in this manner is completely absurd. Its sort of inexplicable. But is it? In the 15 long, miserable months since Starmer became PM, weve had several indications that he regards cosying up to China its vast domestic market and huge funds for overseas investment as an essential part of his mission to inject some growth into a stagnant British economy. This has become ever more evident since former Tony Blair consigliere, Jonathan Powell, became Starmers national security adviser. Powell and organisations hes been associated with have long cultivated contacts in the upper echelons of Beijing. He is now spearheading Starmers Chinese charm offensive. The aim is to clinch an invitation from President Xi for the PM to visit next year. So Starmer needed a Chinese spy trial like a hole in the head. When Stephen Parkinson, the current DPP, sought witness statements from the Government to confirm China was (and still is) a threat to national security in the run up to the trial of the alleged spies, none was forthcoming. There were reports that Powell attended a high-powered Whitehall meeting last month to stop any official designation of China as an enemy or a national security threat in the trial. The most that could be conceded was that China was a challenge. Who knew? More evidence of this new softly-softly approach to Beijing accumulated. A dossier compiled by the security services to warn government departments of the scale of the Chinese threat contained hundreds of examples of its malign behaviour. But it was not passed to Parkinson at the Crown Prosecution Service. The published version of the Governments long-awaited China audit, which came out in June, was thin gruel. Details of the full extent of Chinas espionage were left out after Treasury officials said it would damage the push for Chinese investment. Powell is said to have played a role in watering it down. His deputy national security adviser, Matthew Collins, who had originally assessed Chinese activities as prejudicial to the safety or interests of the UK then declined weeks later to say China was an active threat to Britain. So Parkinson pulled the spy case on the eve of the trial, leading to widespread suspicions that the Government deliberately scuppered proceedings to protect its efforts to create a new era of good feelings with China. The Government, of course, denies it did any such thing. But its hard to divine any other reason the case was aborted. Certainly none of the public explanations from the PM down mired in lies and disinformation make any sense. For example, the Government is citing in its support an appeal court ruling last year in another spy case involving Bulgarians in a Russian spy ring. It seemed to confirm that the use of the Official Secrets Act was best confined to cases in which spies were passing secrets to clear enemies and the Government was not going to designate China as an enemy. This, the Government argued, raised the threshold for spy convictions. As is so often the case with the Starmer Government the truth is the opposite. Yes, designating the recipient of our secrets an enemy strengthened the prosecutions case. But the appeal judge went on to rule that any state which presently poses an active threat to the UKs national security can properly be described as an enemy in ordinary language. So the Bulgarian spy ring case actually lowered the threshold regarding the enemy aspect of any spy prosecution. Yet the official line is that it raised it. Thus has truth become whatever the Starmer Government wants it to be. The Government didnt have to call China an enemy for the spy trial to proceed, just a threat to national security, something which the previous government and sundry officials and intelligence wallahs had done multiple times. But Starmer et al wouldnt do it and had the temerity to blame the previous government for the case collapsing. I guess if youre going to lie, make it a whopper. Starmer is a lucky man. The Chinese spy scandal blew up last week when he was on his trade mission to India, so not easy to pin down, and when events in the Middle East were dominating the news. But the party conference season is over, Parliament returns on Monday and the PM will not so easily escape being held to account. Opposition politicians and the media have an obligation to hold his feet to the fire and expose his untruths. No Prime Minister can be allowed to play fast and loose with national security or bend the truth to secure their own self-serving agenda. Starmer will also face formidable scrutiny from Jonathan Hall KC, the independent reviewer of terrorism and state threat legislation. He is also unconvinced by official explanations about why the spy case had to be ditched and has mounted an official investigation. I dont think the public explanation thats been given so far is at all adequate, he says, agreeing that the appeal court ruling which led the DPP to seek more information and greater clarity from the Government should have made it easier to mount a prosecution, because it expanded the legal test for determining whether China was an enemy. There are so many things that dont add up. Since the DPP had plenty of evidence to prove the UK regarded China as a threat when the alleged spying took place, why did he need confirmation from the Starmer Government that it was still a threat now to proceed? Why did the DPP go along with the Governments misreading of the appeal court ruling that it raised the bar for prosecuting spies rather than lowering it? He could have taken it as a green light to proceed. The DPP has almost as many questions to answer as the Prime Minister. Starmer says government ministers were not involved in the decision to abort the trial. But who in government took the decision to refuse to designate China a national threat and did they do so on the basis that they knew that would sabotage the case? The suspicion is this goes to the very top to a Prime Minister who was once a Director of Public Prosecutions and who would therefore think his professional expertise essential to taking the right decision. I wouldnt rule that out, by any means. There are those who think, given it involves national security, that this could bring Starmer down. I rather doubt that. It is certainly no small matter to interfere in the prosecution of those accused of spying simply for Chinas convenience. But its a complicated matter and the news cycle moves with unprecedented speed these days. However, more will come out and it will not be to Starmers advantage. His untruths will be further exposed and the perception that is already widespread in the land that you can rarely trust a word he says will be indelibly imprinted on the nations consciousness. There is no coming back from that. A young woman has recalled the terrifying moment she was chased by a naked man while hiking alone on one of Perth's most popular bush tracks. Elizabeth Straughan says she was stalked by the stranger while walking her dog at Canning Mills Reserve, a scenic trail in the city's foothills, in late September. What began as her routine walk quickly spiralled into one of the most frightening experiences of her life. The experienced hiker said nothing seemed out of the ordinary at the familiar reserve until she noticed a man appear behind her on the trail. At first, she thought little of it, until she realised he was getting closer. Moments later, the situation took a sinister turn. Elizabeth said she froze in disbelief as the man suddenly tied his shirt around his face, concealing his identity. 'The terror just sieged through me. (I thought) what's going to happen now. I knew. I need to outrun him,' she told 7NEWS. Elizabeth Straughan (pictured) says she was chased by a naked man while out hiking Overcome with fear, Elizabeth's instincts kicked in. She sprinted down the path, clutching her phone and calling triple zero as she ran. Emergency operators assured her help was on the way, and within minutes, Elizabeth could hear the wail of sirens cutting through the quiet bushland. She ran toward the sound, desperate to reach safety. But when she finally stopped and turned around, the man was gone. He had vanished into the scrub without a trace. Police arrived within moments and conducted a search of the area, but couldn't find the man that Elizabeth had described. Still shaken, the young woman said the ordeal had left her traumatised and hesitant to return to the place she once loved. 'It really did affect me,' she said. 'He's stripped [me of] my love of nature.' In the days after she shared her experience, other women came forward with similar stories of encounters on the same track. Elizabeth was chased while walking her dog at the Canning Mills Reserve in Perth (pictured) One woman reportedly told police a man had approached her while she was walking with her baby strapped to her chest, and allegedly tried to touch her child. Locals say the reports have rattled the hiking community, sparking renewed fears about safety on isolated walking trails. While police confirmed that officers had responded immediately to Elizabeth's call, the man has not been identified or located. Authorities are urging anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers. There is no stronger believer in free enterprise than this newspaper. But we do not believe it should come at any cost. When national security enters any equation concerning Britain PLCs balance sheet, it must always trump any other concerns. That is why every new detail that emerges about the China spy case causes ever-deepening consternation about what has gone on behind the scenes. What exactly persuaded some person yet to be identified somewhere in government to kibosh the prosecution? Was the case scuppered, as seems increasingly likely, in order to curry favour with Beijing amid promises of increased trade with Britain? If so, Labour must carry deep shame at its role in such a contemptible degradation of this countrys reputation. The damage caused to Britains global status is almost incalculable. What is clear even to a casual observer of Sir Keir Starmers government is that it is in a state of sheer desperation. What is clear even to a casual observer of Sir Keir Starmers government is that it is in a state of sheer desperation First came its 25 billion tax bomb against business in last years Budget. Since then the National Institute of Economic and Social Research think-tank has estimated the Chancellors second Budget, next month, will need to plug another 50 billion gap in public finances. Fettered by its ideological blinkers, the party remains obsessed with introducing regulations on business under the guise of workers rights, ignoring a succession of City figures who say the unaffordable measures are sure to stifle growth. While the economy treads water, Sir Keirs backbenchers and his trade union paymasters are demanding billions more in spending commitments. This succession of blunders is sending this once great country, cap in hand, to a superpower-in-waiting that wishes us harm, and in many cases has actually acted upon those wishes. The astonishing details that emerge in the Daily Mails interview today with Alicia Kearns show just what is at stake. The MP tells of her fears that Chinese dissidents living in Britain were, allegedly, betrayed by her parliamentary aide Chris Cash and that she was spied upon in her hotel room during an official visit to Taiwan. Senior figures have expressed incredulity at the Governments failure to provide a statement to the Crown Prosecution Service that would have allowed the spy case to go ahead. Many have pointed out that, despite the Governments unwillingness to say so, it is a matter of simple fact that China is a threat to our national security. Now it has emerged that even the Deputy Prime Minister, David Lammy, labelled China one of Britains enemies in a Commons debate last October, which begs the question: if they could say it then, why cant they say it in a critical court case? Yet again, Labour is taking the public for fools. The Government is failing to defend our national interest because it does not have a credible economic policy, and instead stands accused of relying on dodgy deals with this countrys enemies. Under Starmer, is this birthplace of Henry V and Winston Churchill really reduced to proffering the begging bowl to an authoritarian state? Every right-thinking Briton can accept as a certainty that China spies on this country. What is impossible to stomach is that our own Government could be complicit in skulduggery that leaves Britain demeaned and debased. Donald Trump began his promised mass purge of federal workers Friday, as more than 4,100 people were laid off as the government shutdown rolls on. The president previewed the pink slips in a press conference in the Oval Office earlier Friday, blaming them and the shutdown on the Democrats. 'It'll be a lot and it'll be Democrat-oriented because we figure they started this thing. It'll be a lot of people, all because of the Democrats,' Trump said. It's the biggest set of firings in government since Elon Musk's DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) purge early in Trump's second term. The White House budget office said Friday that mass firings of federal workers have started in an attempt to exert more pressure on Democratic lawmakers as the government shutdown continues. Russ Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, said on the social platform X that the 'RIFs have begun,' referring to reduction-in-force plans aimed at reducing the size of the federal government. The White House previewed that it would pursue the aggressive layoff tactic shortly before the government shutdown began on Oct. 1, telling all federal agencies to submit their reduction-in-force plans to the budget office for its review. It said reduction-in-force could apply for federal programs whose funding would lapse in a government shutdown, is otherwise not funded and is 'not consistent with the Presidents priorities.' Donald Trump began his promised mass purge of federal workers Friday, as more than 4,100 people were laid off as the government shutdown rolls on The White House budget office said Friday that mass firings of federal workers have started in an attempt to exert more pressure on Democratic lawmakers as the government shutdown continues. Pictured: A USAID worker carries out their belongings after being fired in February during the Elon Musk-led DOGE purge In a court filing, the budget office said well over 4,000 employees would be fired, though it noted that the funding situation was 'fluid and rapidly evolving.' The firings would hit the hardest at the departments of the Treasury, which would lose over 1,400 employees; Health and Human Services, with a loss of over 1,100; and Housing and Urban Development, set to lose over 400. The departments of Commerce, Education, Energy, and Homeland Security and the Environmental Protection Agency were all set to fire hundreds of more employees. It was not clear which particular programs would be affected. The aggressive move by Trump's budget office goes far beyond what usually happens in a government shutdown and escalates an already politically toxic dynamic between the White House and Congress. Talks to end the shutdown are almost nonexistent. Typically, federal workers are furloughed but restored to their jobs once the shutdown ends, traditionally with back pay. Some 750,000 employees are expected to be furloughed during the shutdown, officials have said. Trump said that, going forward, 'Were going to make a determination, do we want a lot? And I must tell you, a lot of them happen to be Democrat oriented.' 'These are people that the Democrats wanted, that, in many cases, were not appropriate,' he said of federal employees, eventually adding, 'Many of them will be fired.' It's the biggest set of firings in government since Elon Musk 's DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) purge early in Trump's second term The firings would hit the hardest at the departments of the Treasury, which would lose over 1,400 employees; Health and Human Services, with a loss of over 1,100; and Housing and Urban Development, set to lose over 400 Still, some leading Republicans were highly critical of the administration's actions. 'I strongly oppose OMB Director Russ Voughts attempt to permanently lay off federal workers who have been furloughed due to a completely unnecessary government shutdown,' said Maine Senator Susan Collins, the chair of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee, who blamed the federal closure on Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. Alaska Senator Lisa Murkowski called the announcement 'poorly timed' and 'yet another example of this administrations punitive actions toward the federal workforce.' For his part, Schumer said the blame for the layoffs rested with Trump. 'Lets be blunt: nobody's forcing Trump and Vought to do this,' Schumer said. 'They dont have to do it; they want to. Theyre callously choosing to hurt people - the workers who protect our country, inspect our food, respond when disasters strike. This is deliberate chaos.' The White House had previewed its tactics shortly before the government shutdown began on Oct. 1, telling all federal agencies to submit their reduction-in-force plans to the budget office for its review. It said reduction-in-force plans could apply to federal programs whose funding would lapse in a government shutdown, are otherwise not funded and are 'not consistent with the Presidents priorities.' On Friday, the Education Department was among the agencies hit by new layoffs, a department spokesperson said. Russ Vought, the director of the Office of Management and Budget, said on the social platform X that the 'RIFs have begun,' referring to reduction-in-force plans aimed at reducing the size of the federal government Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said the blame for the layoffs rested with Trump A labor union for the agencys workers said the administration is laying off almost all employees below the director level at the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, while fewer than 10 employees were being terminated at the agencys Office of Communications and Outreach. Notices of firings have also taken place at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, which leads federal efforts to reduce risk to the nations cyber and physical infrastructure, according to DHS, where CISA is housed. The agency has been a frequent Trump target over its work to counter misinformation about the 2020 presidential election and the COVID-19 pandemic. DHS said the layoffs were 'part of getting CISA back on mission.' Federal health workers were also being fired, though an HHS spokesman did not say how many or which agencies were being hit hardest. A spokesperson for the EPA, which also has an unspecified number of layoffs, blamed the Democrats for the firings and said they can vote to reopen the government anytime. An official for the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents federal workers and is suing the Trump administration over the firings, said in a legal filing Friday that the Treasury Department is set to issue layoff notices to 1,300 employees. The AFGE asked a federal judge to halt the firings, calling the action an abuse of power designed to punish workers and pressure Congress. 'It is disgraceful that the Trump administration has used the government shutdown as an excuse to illegally fire thousands of workers who provide critical services to communities across the country,' AFGE President Everett Kelley said in a statement. Democrats have tried to call the administrations bluff, arguing the firings could be illegal, and had seemed bolstered by the fact that the White House had not immediately pursued the layoffs once the shutdown began. But Trump signaled earlier this week that job cuts could be coming in 'four or five days.' 'If this keeps going on, itll be substantial, and a lot of those jobs will never come back,' he said Tuesday. A man who threatened to kill himself has been left with life-changing injuries as a result of being shot by police. Police were called by his family on Friday morning to a home in Walthamstow, north-east London, to report that he had a gun and was making threats to harm himself, Scotland Yard said. It is understood he was alone at that time. The man was in life threatening condition in hospital, but is now stable despite being left with horrific injuries following the shooting. Police and negotiators spent around four hours on the scene but as the incident developed the man threatened to seriously harm anyone coming into the house and shoot himself. But after hearing a bang from inside, officers entered the property 'by force', which is when the man was shot. The events and circumstances of what happened prior to this and within the property have not been revealed and will form part of an investigation. A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: 'Police were called to an incident within an address in Stow Crescent, Walthamstow, at around 10:00 on Friday 10 October. Police were called by his family on Friday morning to a home in Stow Crescent, Walthamstow, north-east London, to report that he had a gun and was making threats to harm himself, Scotland Yard said 'It was reported a man inside the property had a firearm and was making threats to kill. 'Officers and trained negotiators were on scene for a number of hours and a cordon remained in place. 'At around 14:00, officers had reason to enter the property by force, and following this discharged their weapons. 'The circumstances of what happened will form part of the investigation.' 'Officers found what they believed to be a gun inside the property. 'Cordons remain in place and we ask the public to stay away from the area. The incident is contained and there is no wider threat to the public.' Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said: 'Our thoughts at this time are with the injured man and his family. 'I know this news will be concerning for the community in Walthamstow and the wider public in London. However, I want to reassure you, incidents where officers discharge their firearms are incredibly rare. 'Armed officers do a difficult job for London, they respond to 4,000 calls a year, placing themselves in danger to protect others. They make split-second decisions in incredibly difficult and challenging circumstances, and I am grateful to all of them for their professionalism and bravery.' He added the incident was referred to the Directorate of Professional Standards, who in turn made a mandatory referral to the IOPC who have declared an independent investigation. An IOPC spokesperson said: 'We can confirm that we have started an independent investigation into the actions of the Met Police during an incident at an address in Walthamstow, east London, where we understand a man was shot by police this afternoon and taken to hospital. 'After being notified by the Met Police we declared an independent investigation at 4.13pm this afternoon and have sent investigators to the scene and to the post-incident procedure to begin gathering evidence. 'Our investigation is in the very early stages.' A memo that government officials tried to bury shows Jeffrey Epstein met with Sir Tony Blair while he was Prime Minister on the insistence of Lord Mandelson. The meeting was arranged after the former ambassador to the USA sent an email to Jonathan Powell, who was Sir Tony's chief of staff and is now national security adviser, the BBC reported. In it, Lord Mandelson described convicted paedophile Epstein as 'a friend'. And added he had 'ascertained from Jeffrey that he is flexible - he could be here any time from Tuesday onwards to fit round the diary - but would obviously need to know reasonably quickly so as to re-schedule accordingly'. A memo dated May 14, 2002, written by senior civil servant Matthew Rycroft, briefs Sir Tony about the 'super-rich' financial advisor ahead of their meeting that afternoon. A spokesperson for Sir Tony said the former Labour leader recalled his meeting was 'less than 30 minutes' and took place 'long before' Epstein's crimes were known about. Lord Mandelson also suggested former US president Bill Clinton wanted to introduce 'his travelling friend' Epstein to Sir Tony. The document and several others were released by the National Archives after a Freedom of Information request. A memo that government officials tried to bury shows Jeffrey Epstein met with Sir Tony Blair while he was Prime Minister on the insistence of Lord Mandelson Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in June 2008, he died by suicide in 2019 in a New York jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges Lord Mandelson also suggested former US president Bill Clinton wanted to introduce 'his travelling friend' Epstein to Sir Tony They had previously been buried by government officials over concerns about the impact on UK-US relations. A spokesperson said: 'As far as he can remember, Mr Blair met with him for less than 30 minutes in Downing Street in 2002, and discussed US and UK politics. 'He never met or engaged with him subsequently. 'This was, of course, long before his crimes were known of and his subsequent conviction.' Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor in June 2008. He died by suicide in 2019 in a New York jail while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges. A Chicago pastor says he was praying when ICE agents fired a pepper ball at his head during a protest outside a federal detention facility. Reverend David Black, a senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, was participating in a demonstration outside the Broadview ICE facility in Chicago last month when he was struck by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents. The incident, captured in a now-viral video, shows Black dressed in his clerical collar, standing among demonstrators before being hit in the head by a pepper ball fired from the roof. He quickly collapsed to the ground as fellow protesters rushed to his aid. Black alleged that officers fired without warning, striking him multiple times before spraying him with the chemical irritants. 'They shot me in my head and my face and multiple times in my torso, arms and legs,' he said. 'I was shielded by the bodies of others who were there who rushed in to support me and took many more hits that were intended for me. I was then guided away to where a street medic helped to wash out my eyes and tried to keep me safe. But I was completely disabled at that point.' Reverend David Black (pictured), a senior pastor at the First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, was participating in a demonstration outside the Broadview ICE facility in Chicago last month when he was struck by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents The incident, captured in a now-viral video , shows Black dressed in his clerical collar, standing among demonstrators before being hit in the head by a pepper ball fired from the roof. Pictured: A police officer keeps watch as demonstrators protest outside the immigration processing and detention facility on October 10, 2025 in Broadview, Illinois Following the incident, the Chicago-based pastor said he heard ICE agents 'laughing' as they were 'shooting' protestors from the facility's roof. 'We could hear them laughing as they were shooting us from the roof, and it was deeply disturbing,' Black told CNN. 'We got to witness a few things about these ICE agents operating in Broadview, and really it has shown us how disorganized they are and how poorly supervised and trained they are.' Black explained that he had been standing to the side, praying for both the detained immigrants and the ICE officers themselves moments before he was 'shot.' 'There were no ICE vehicles attempting to leave the facility,' he said. 'I was standing to the side in a gesture of prayer and praying verbally for the ICE officers and those detained inside.' Tricia McLaughlin, an assistant secretary with the Department of Homeland Security, has since disputed Black's account, claiming demonstrators had blocked ICE vehicles and thrown rocks, bottles, and fireworks at agents on the roof. Black said he was praying when ICE agents fired the pepper ball at his head. Pictured: David Black seen at the September protest outside the ICE detention facility in Broadview, Illinois Black alleged that officers fired without warning, striking him multiple times before spraying him with the chemical irritants. Pictured: An ICE agent wielding a pepper ball gun with his finger on the trigger on September 26, 2025 outside the Broadview ICE Facility in Broadview, Illinois He quickly collapsed to the ground as fellow protesters rushed to his aid. Pictured: David Black on the ground after being struck by a pepper ball outside the ICE detention facility in Broadview, Illinois The Chicago-based pastor later said he heard ICE agents 'laughing' as they were 'shooting' protestors from the facility's roof. 'We could hear them laughing as they were shooting us from the roof, and it was deeply disturbing,' Black told CNN 'Obstructing law enforcement puts officers, detainees and the public at risk. If you are obstructing law enforcement, you can expect to be met with force,' McLaughlin said in a statement to People. But, Black called those claims 'categorically false,' saying the protest was peaceful and that demonstrators were 'standing and speaking and singing peacefully and chanting peacefully' before the violence began. 'I find it interesting that this individual believes I flipped them the bird,' he said, adding, 'because theologically as I have been praying for all of these people, I've been hoping that the Holy Spirit will descend upon them and open their hearts and minds. 'To the extent that the Holy Spirit appears as a bird, perhaps there is spiritual truth to her claim,' he continued. In the aftermath, Black joined a lawsuit against the Trump administration alongside journalists and other protesters, accusing ICE and federal officials of violating their First and Fourth Amendment rights, The Independent reported. Tricia McLaughlin (pictured), an assistant secretary with the Department of Homeland Security, has since disputed Black's account, claiming demonstrators had blocked ICE vehicles and thrown rocks, bottles, and fireworks at agents on the roof However, Black called McLaughlin's claims 'categorically false,' saying the protest was peaceful and that demonstrators were 'standing and speaking and singing peacefully and chanting peacefully' before the violence began. Pictured: Security measures are taken as tensions rise over protests targeting federal ICE operations near the ICE facility in Broadview, Illinois Black has since joined a lawsuit against the Trump administration alongside journalists and other protesters, accusing ICE and federal officials of violating their First and Fourth Amendment rights. Pictured: Police clash with demonstrators protesting near the immigration processing and detention facility on October 10, 2025 in Broadview, Illinois The complaint alleges 'a pattern of extreme brutality' meant to 'silence the press and civilians' through the use of tear gas, flash grenades, and rubber bullets against peaceful demonstrators. 'No legitimate purpose exists for this brutality or for these arrests,' the lawsuit states. 'The officers are not physically threatened. No government property is threatened. Defendants are acting to intimidate and silence the press and civilians engaged in protected First Amendment activities.' The legal filing also claims the government violated the Religious Freedom Restoration Act, arguing that ICE agents' actions 'substantially burdened' clergy members' ability to exercise their faith. 'I am grateful to show up with these protesters - people who deeply believe in democracy and are bringing peaceful and moral witness against what the Trump administration is trying to do in Chicago,' Black said. Distraught families who lost loved ones to terrorists that will now be freed from Israeli prisons have said 'no other country would pay such a price for peace'. Relatives of those whose lives were so cruelly cut short have spoken of their 'outrage' and 'betrayal' at the terms of the peace deal with Hamas. Israel will release 250 of the worst extremists serving life along with 1,700 Palestinians captured since the October 7 attack - in exchange for 48 hostages. It means there will be just 20 terrorists left in the country serving life sentences. 'Of course I have anger,' Oren Hubara, 42, told the Mail after learning that the leader of a terror group that killed his sister, Odelia, 26, and four others in a nightclub in 2005 will be freed. 'This is a price that no other country in the world is willing to pay for peace,' he said from his home in Jerusalem. But, through his anger, he accepted there may be no alternative to bring the bloodshed to an end. He said: 'The moment I heard that people had been kidnapped by Hamas on October 7, I was willing to pay this price for their families. Oren Hubara, 42, told the Mail he feels anger after learning the leader of a terror group that killed his sister, Odelia, 26, and four others in a nightclub in 2005, will be freed 'If this is a present for them, from my sister and from me, then that is some comfort to me. I only wish their families quiet and I know if Odelia is looking down, it would make her happy.' Odelia was celebrating a friend's birthday at Stage Club in Tel Aviv when a suicide bomber - part of a terror group led by Iyad Abul al-Rub - detonated his device. She was on life support for two days but could not be saved and died from brain injuries and collapsed lungs. Abul al-Rub is among those who will be freed. 'When I heard it brought everything back,' says Oren who is being supported by the OneFamily group. 'It was two days of hell sitting next to her. All her injuries were internal, there was barely a scratch on her - just one cut near her eyebrow. 'She looked so quiet and so beautiful, we thought she was going to make it. Then the doctor said he wanted to speak to us, and we all knew what he was going to say. 'It was the middle of the night. I was crushed, I couldn't stop crying - my whole life changed in that moment. I still miss her every day.' Odelia was due to move to America with her boyfriend two days after the attack and they only learnt after she died that he had bought a ring to propose to her. 'He was in our home, just crying and screaming. I felt more sorry for him than I did for myself. He was so close to his new life, and now it was gone.' Of his parents, Dalia and Shimon, both 73, having to bury their daughter, the father of three said: 'I don't think there are words that can describe this pain. Still my dad can barely speak about it. 'There are memories of her everywhere. Every time I look at my kids I think of how life would have been - if she had children, what they would have been like, how our children would have played.' There is only one terrorist linked to his sister's death who remains in jail after previous deals and the mastermind was freed in an exchange just months before the Stage Club bombing. 'It feels like we are in a never-ending heartbreaking loop,' Oren said. British-Israeli Tal Hartuv, 59, was hiking with guide Kristine Luken in the Judean Hills in 2010 when they were ambushed and tied up by Iyad Fatfata. Ms Hartuv was stabbed 18 times while Kristine was killed. On learning Fatfata will be released, Ms Hartuv told the Mail: 'When I saw my attacker's name on the release list, I felt betrayed. Israel will release 250 of the worst extremists serving life, along with 1,700 Palestinians captured since the October 7 attack, in exchange for 48 Israeli hostages. Pictured: Israelis previously gathered in Tel Aviv in February to watch Hamas hand over hostages taken to Gaza 'Can you imagine the British government ever agreeing to release those who killed Lee Rigby or the Manchester arena bombing? It's absolutely unbelievable. 'This is a miscarriage of justice, an outrage, hidden in the small print of the hostage deal.' Ms Hartuv had to play dead before walking barefoot, covered in blood. 'My recovery took years - thirty broken bones, a collapsed lung, crushed shoulder,' she said. Alon Mizrachi, 22, was among seven killed in a suicide bomb attack on the Cafe Hillel in Jerusalem in 2003. Baher Mohammed Mahmoud Badr, in the Hamas cell responsible, will also be freed. Alon's sister, Sigi, 57, said: 'I want to cry every moment I think that he will be freed. 'I see all of Alon's friends growing up and having families and I think he should be there. 'But if this is the price to bring our soldiers and our hostages home, then that makes me happy,' Other terrorists to be released include Ra'id Sheikh who took part in the lynching of two IDF reservists in the West Bank in 2000, Ibrahim Alkam who killed a mother and her 12-year-old son, and Mohammad Daoud, who murdered a pregnant mother and her five-year-old son with a Molotov cocktail. Crying shoppers were forced to take cover after two masked men armed with machetes began trading blows inside a Melbourne shopping centre on Friday night, in the latest of a string of violent incidents to rock the suburb. Chaos erupted after two groups of men began brawling in the car park of the shopping centre, roughly 15km north of the Melbourne CBD, about 7.20pm. The fight spilled inside the centre as stunned onlookers scrambled to safety. Shocking footage shows two men dressed head-to-toe in black swinging machetes at each other as horrified shoppers hid behind locked store doors. A bystander can be seen holding a chair and trying to separate the pair. Witnesses described scenes of fear and confusion inside the centre. 'The fear in the centre was real,' one woman, who was trapped inside a store as the fight ensued, wrote on Instagram. 'When it was finally safe to leave, all I could see were terrified faces, people crying, shaken and in shock.' A brawl between two groups, which involved a machete, spilled into Broadmeadows Central The machete-wielding attackers fled the scene, escaping in a silver Honda and a white Mazda before police arrived at the centre. Victoria Police said detectives were investigating 'a fight between two groups which started in a car park on Pascoe Vale Road'. No arrests have been made. Miraculously, no injuries were reported. Police are urging anyone with information or footage of the incident to come forward. The disturbing scenes come just two weeks after a 22-year-old man was shot outside the same shopping centre and rushed to hospital with serious injuries. A 26-year-old Roxburgh Park man and a 31-year-old Glenroy man were arrested in connection with the shooting, though no charges have been laid. And it's not the first time the centre has been the backdrop for a vicious brawl. On September 24, two groups of men were filmed holding machetes as they brawled in the centre's car park. One man was hospitalised following the clash. Police are investigating reports of a brawl in the centre carpark, no one has been arrested The brawl is yet another shocking attack involving machetes at Broadmeadows Central In an ironic twist, the brawl unfolded across the road from a machete amnesty bin. It's one of 45 bins that have been placed across Melbourne for people to dispose of weapons after Victoria introduced a ban on the sale and possession of machetes. The ban was fast-tracked to come into effect on September 1 to tackle the state's escalating crime crisis. According to the Victorian Government, more than 1,300 machetes have been surrendered since September 16. The latest attack has renewed concerns over rising youth violence in the state, which is now grappling with its highest youth crime rate since electronic records began. MindClay Offering Attendees a First-of-its-Kind Immersive Wellness Space LOS ANGELES, Oct. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- MindClay will host the Interactive Museum Wellness Lounge at the Behavioral Health Tech 2025 Conference, offering attendees a first-of-its-kind immersive wellness space. The Behavioral Health Tech Conference is the premier gathering of leaders across care, payors, technology, and policy, with more than 300 speakers. The event is November 11-13, 2025 at the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina. Unlike a traditional booth or a sponsorship, the Interactive Museum is a dedicated wellness lounge located prominently adjacent to the main conference hall. Attendees will be invited to step into a curated environment of body-based interactive artwork, designed to evoke reflection, play, and embodied engagement. MindClay, currently serving the Ventura County Behavioral Health populations, and populations from other organizations worldwide, offers interactive tools grounded in evidence-based practice, spanning interactive drawing, music, creative writing, and movement. Unlike meditation-based apps, MindClay's multi-sensory activities meet users where they are engaging the body and imagination as much as the mind. The interactive artworks at the Wellness Lounge have previously been exhibited at museums and festivals and directly inspired several of MindClay's signature activities. This bridge between museum artwork and digital platform reflects MindClay's creative roots and its mission to engage people in mental wellness through the arts. The upcoming December cover story of Leonardo highlights exactly this foundation showing how museum installations like those at the conference evolved into the MindClay platform. "We want attendees to not only talk about wellness but to experience it directly through art, movement, and interaction," said Dr. Marco Pinter, Founder and CEO, MindClay. The Interactive Museum Wellness Lounge will be open throughout the conference, located just outside the main session hall, and welcomes all participants to explore and engage. Featured speakers at the conference: Chris DeCou, PhD, Director of Amazon Health Benefits, Amazon Director of Amazon Health Benefits, Amazon Sandy Balwan, MD, Chief Medical Officer, Northwell Chief Medical Officer, Northwell Tuoyo Louis, Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Seae Ventures Co-Founder & Managing Partner, Seae Ventures Nancy Wongvipat Kalev, Sr. Director, Systems of Care, Health Net Sr. Director, Systems of Care, Health Net Eric Arzubi, MD, CEO & Co-Founder, Frontier Psychiatry To experience MindClay's wellness lounge at Behavioral Health Tech 2025 Conference, register by visiting www.BehavioralHealthTech.com. To learn more about MindClay, visit www.MindClayHealth.com. About MindClay MindClay is dedicated to reshaping the landscape of mental wellness apps through the power of creative arts. Our platform is carefully designed to translate traditional creative arts into activities that are both engaging and therapeutically grounded. This innovation offers a welcome approach that makes mental wellness accessible to those who might not seek traditional support. Inspired by the profound potential of the arts to heal and connect, MindClay offers a diverse suite of self-guided interactive activities in art, music, movement, and writing. Each activity is grounded in robust empirical research and crafted by licensed professionals, including art therapists, music therapists, dance-movement therapists, and experts in therapeutic writing. Our vision is clearto become a cornerstone in digital mental wellness, offering solace, growth, and empowerment to users worldwide. Media Contact: Frank Tortorici [email protected] SOURCE MindClay A big sister came to the rescue in Texas when her brother suddenly started choking while they were playing on a trampoline. The siblings were jumping on a backyard trampoline when the young boy abruptly stopped, clutched his chest and began to choke. Lia, 10, bounced beside her 7-year-old brother Logan as they played a daring game that involved swallowing a piece of sour candy before each bounce. As Logan began choking on the candy, Lia immediately patted his back and performed the Heimlich maneuver. The candy flew from his throat just in time, with Logan still on the trampoline platform. The video was shared by local police, who said the young girl had learned the life-saving technique from a babysitting guide and her mother. 'It was a hard watch,' their mother, Heather James, told NBC News. A big sister came the rescue in Texas when her brother suddenly started choking while they were bouncing on a trampoline Moments before the horrific accident, Lia, 10, bounced beside her 7-year-old brother Logan as they played a daring game that involved swallowing a piece of sour candy before each bounce As Logan began choking on the candy, Lia immediately patted his back and performed the Heimlich maneuver The candy flew from his throat just in time, with Logan still on the trampoline platform 'As much as it hurts my heart to watch, I'm just so proud of her.' Heather is a member of the Lavon Police Department's special program's division which teaches course including one on the importance of choking rescue techniques. 'I'm so proud of my kid,' she said. Their mother was in the kitchen when the terrifying moment unfolded, and Lia quickly rushed in to recount what had happened. Heather said her son has 'swore he will never be on the trampoline with a piece of candy again.' NHS workers who have been striking for months have demanded they are given a 472 pay rise on their 200th day of industrial action. Members of Unison at Gloucestershire Royal and Cheltenham General Hospitals have been on strike since March - becoming one of the longest in NHS history. They work as phlebotomists, taking blood samples from patients, at both hospitals. The union said the staff should be regraded after performing extra duties at work. Unison general secretary Christina McAnea said: 'It's a scandal that hospital managers have allowed this dispute to drag on for 200 days. 'They must pay up now and show the phlebotomists the respect they deserve for the skilled work they do. 'These dedicated NHS staff help diagnose illnesses and keep services running smoothly. They didn't want to strike but were left with no choice after years of being underpaid and ignored.' They are currently paid 24,465 'despite their expertise and vital role in patient treatment, with some having worked in the NHS for more than two decades'. Members of Unison at Gloucestershire Royal (pictured) and Cheltenham General Hospitals have been on strike since March - becoming one of the longest in NHS history They work as phlebotomists, taking blood samples from patients. Pictured: Cheltenham General Hospitals Union organisers said the 'complex nature' of the phlebotomists' work should put them on Band 3 pay, rising their pay to 24,937. However they are currently on Band 2 - the lowest salary band of the NHS. Unison South West regional organiser Chris Roche previously said: 'The trust has had over 12 months to correct the pay of their staff, but has instead chosen to miss deadlines and break promises. 'Phlebotomists are vital to the health service and deserve much better than the treatment they've received. They should be paid fairly for the work they do, not left struggling to pay their bills. 'NHS staff want to be at work caring for their patients. They don't want to be on strike and have tried everything to get hospital bosses to do the right thing. 'But the phlebotomists now feel they've no choice but to stand-up for themselves and the health service they provide. Hospital managers must act quickly and pay the wages its staff deserve.' It comes as first year resident doctors 'overwhelmingly' voted to strike amid a row over jobs. British Medical Association (BMA) officials announced 97 per cent of those balloted previously known as junior doctors voted in favour of taking action. It comes as first year resident doctors 'overwhelmingly' voted to strike amid a row over jobs The move could see the NHS face six months of disruption. A third (34 per cent) of resident doctors responding to a BMA survey, which closed today, said they had no substantive employment or regular work from August 2025. This rose to more than half (52 per cent) among second year doctors. The BMA said no strikes are currently planned, but talks with the Government on pay 'will now have to produce a solution on jobs as well as the 21 per cent pay erosion resident doctors have endured since 2008 to avoid future action'. Resident doctors have already taken industrial action 12 times since 2023, crippling services and forcing health bosses to cancel an estimated 1.5million appointments. The United States has warned travelers to stay on high alert when visiting the Maldives amid fears of unexpected terrorist attacks. On Tuesday, the US State Department issued a fresh travel advisory for the Republic of the Maldives, an independent nation of roughly 1,190 coral islands scattered across the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean. The warning came in at Level 2 (Level 1 being the lowest risk and Level 4 the most severe). Officials cautioned that every corner of the Maldives - from tourist attractions to transit hubs, markets, and government buildings - could be in the crosshairs of terrorist groups. 'Exercise increased caution in the Maldives due to terrorism,' the travel advisory read. The department also noted that these terrorist organizations 'may attack with little or no warning.' Officials cautioned that possible attacks on the Maldives iconic, remote islands could stretch emergency response times, given their unique locations. Those headed to the famed destination are being urged to follow local and breaking news closely and prepare a backup plan in case of any sudden setbacks. The United States has warned travelers to stay on high alert when visiting the Maldives (pictured) amid fears of unexpected terrorist attacks On Tuesday, the US State Department issued a fresh, Level 2 travel advisory for the Republic of the Maldives (pictured), an independent nation of roughly 1,190 coral islands scattered across the turquoise waters of the Indian Ocean The department also noted that these terrorist organizations 'may attack with little or no warning' (pictured: Capital City of Male, Maldives) As in many regions, the US State Department advised travelers to remain aware of their surroundings and to avoid demonstrations and large gatherings, which could be potential targets. Buying travel insurance is also highly recommended, which can offer means of protection for medical emergencies, evacuations and trip cancellations. Over two million people visited the Maldives in 2024 alone, drawn by its white-sand beaches and luxury private waterfront resorts, according to their government's database. More than 43,000 Americans had flocked to the popular tourist destination as of August 2025, according to Tourism Analytics. Despite its allure and its status as a top 10 US tourist destination, Maldivian authorities have thwarted several planned terrorist attacks since 2017. In 2022, one such plot involved a knife-wielding extremist targeting a politician in Males Hulhumale neighborhood, according to Newsweek. But Maldivian officials have long taken terrorism seriously - with President Solih in 2019 signing the Second Amendment to the nations Anti-Terrorism Act. The law redefined terrorism, classifying political and religious extremism - and even radicalization - as terrorist acts. Officials cautioned that possible attacks on the Maldives iconic, remote islands could stretch emergency response times, given their unique locations (pictured) Officials cautioned that every corner of the Maldives - from tourist attractions to transit hubs, markets, and government buildings - could be in the crosshairs of terrorist groups (pictured: Maldives beach bar) The US State Department advised travelers to remain aware of their surroundings and to avoid demonstrations and large gatherings, which could be potential targets (pictured: Maldives) The Maldives also takes part in the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy (GCTS) review, which is evaluated by the UN General Assembly every two years. 'The Maldives has a zero-tolerance policy on terrorism and violent extremism,' the country's Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote on its counterterrorism information page. 'The Maldives pledged to take swift measures against anyone committing an act or acts of terrorism, or financing, joining, encouraging or providing any manner of assistance or support to, terrorists and violent extremists.' This island paradise lies in South Asia, nestled between the eastern Arabian Sea and the northern reaches of the Indian Ocean. Made up of more than one thousand islands spread across 26 coral atolls, only 200 of them are inhabited - spanning more than 500 miles of turquoise sea across the equator. The Maldives boasts one of the planets most fragile ecosystems, where coral reefs underpin both the islands natural defense systems and the nations economy, according to the country's tourist website. Home to just over half a million people, the nation blends influences from across the Indian Ocean into a culture shaped by sea and sand. Fish and coconut form the heart of Maldivian cuisine, inspiring dishes unlike any found elsewhere in the region. The national language, Dhivehi, uses the Thaana script - developed in the 16th century from Arabic numerals. More than 43,000 Americans had flocked to the popular tourist destination (pictured) as of August 2025 The Maldives boasts one of the planets most fragile ecosystems, where coral reefs underpin both the islands natural defense systems and the nations economy (pictured: snorkeler in Maldives) Made up of more than one thousand islands spread across 26 coral atolls, only 200 of them are inhabited - spanning more than 500 miles of turquoise sea across the equator Maldivians are also renowned for their masterful boat-building; the traditional dhoni, perfected over centuries, remains ideally suited for navigating the island nations waters. Though much of its early history remains a mystery, scholars believe the Maldives has been home to settlers for over 2,500 years - making it one of the oldest island nations in the world. Roughly a third of Maldivians live in the bustling capital of Male, while others are scattered across 200 serene islands. For generations, Maldivians lived and thrived by the sea - fishing was not just their food, but the heart of their culture. Today, the turquoise waters still provide sustenance, but tourism now fuels the islands economy. Socialist New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani claimed Stephen Colbert's late night CBS show asked him to 'play a game' that explained his opinions on Gaza. Mamdani, currently favored to win in November, has made headlines for his anti-Israel views in addition to his far left economic plans for the Big Apple. Set to appear on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert before the primary, Mamdani was asked to creatively discuss his views. Prior to the interview, Jewish leaders had urged Colbert to press Mamdani over his refusal 'to condemn calls to "globalize the intifada" - incendiary language in which he has publicly trafficked for at least a decade.' The New Yorker reported that before Mamdani and rival-turned-ally Brad Lander went on stage, the producers wanted to ask if they could play a 'thumbs up or thumbs down' on the conflict. Examples included giving a thumbs up or a thumbs down to Hamas or simply a Palestinian state. 'I just couldnt believe what was happening, that a genocide could be distilled into a late-night game,' Mamdani said. His handlers couldn't believe it either, wondering why the famously liberal Colbert wouldn't ask him about things like being the first-ever Muslim mayoral candidate in the city's history. Socialist New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani (pictured center) claimed Stephen Colbert's (pictured right) canceled CBS show asked him to 'play a game' that explained his opinions on Gaza The New Yorker reported that before Mamdani and rival-turned-ally Brad Lander went on stage, the producers wanted to ask if they could play a 'thumbs up or thumbs down' on the conflict The Daily Mail has reached out to CBS for comment. During the interview, Colbert, 61, asked Mamdani and Lander about Israel and whether they believe it 'has the right to exist.' 'Yes, like all nations. I believe it has a right to exist, and a responsibility also to uphold international law,' Mamdani said. Colbert faced backlash for failing to ask Mamdani tougher questions about his stance on Israel. Instead, Colbert simply stated that some voters are 'very upset by some of the things that you've said in the past,' adding that 'they are afraid that your mayorship would actually lead to increased antisemitism.' The question teed up Mamdani, 33, to denounce antisemitism while not addressing his past statements, which have included calls to 'globalize the intifada' that some say is a call to violence against Jews. Critics of the interview ripped Colbert for not more forcefully broaching the subject of Mamdani's past remarks. The news comes as the first phase of a new peace deal between Israel and Hamas brokered by Donald Trump appears to be underway. Critics of the interview ripped Colbert for not more forcefully broaching the subject of Mamdani's past remarks Trump claimed the Israel and Hamas peace deal would bring an everlasting peace to the Middle East, where residents have been dancing in the streets celebrating the anticipated end to the two-year-long war. 'On Monday the hostages come back,' the president said triumphantly on Friday evening, characterizing the deal as an 'everlasting success.' He also asserted that not only that Gaza would be rebuilt, but 'the entire Middle East' as part of the process -- and claimed the rehabilitation of the war zone would be paid for by investments from neighboring Middle Eastern states. 'I can tell you that I saw Israel dancing in the streets, but they were dancing in Qatar and Saudi Arabia and UAE, and many, many countries,' the Republican stated, adding that officials in Iran, Russia, Egypt, Qatar were also eager to support the deal. The Israeli military announced on Friday that the ceasefire is now in effect across Gaza city. Israel's government approved the deal last night as thousands of Gaza citizens now roam the war-torn city. Israeli forces pulled back in accordance with the deal approved by the government. The next phase of the ceasefire includes a 72-hour period where Hamas will release the remaining living hostages along with the bodies of the deceased. In exchange, Israel will free up to 2,000 Gaza prisoners as part of the deal. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu noted in his televised remarks last night that it is not likely all the bodies of the deceased hostages will be recovered. Trump claimed Friday that the Israel and Hamas peace deal would bring an everlasting peace to the Middle East, where residents have been dancing in the streets celebrating the anticipated end to the two-year-long war Meanwhile, Trump also shared that he will be speaking to the Knesset, or the Israeli parliament, on his trip, which will also include a stop in Egypt. The president announced the breakthrough on his Truth Social platform yesterday by quoting from the Gospel of Matthew: 'Blessed are the peacemakers.' Even before a deal had been signed, he was looking forward, saying that 'Iran wants peace', and ending the war in Ukraine was 'going to happen' next. Trump told his cabinet: 'The whole world has come together for this. People who didn't like each other, neighboring countries. This is a moment in time. 'We reached a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East, something people said was never going to be done. We ended the war in Gaza. An everlasting peace.' He added: 'It's really peace in the Middle East. You remember October 7 was terrible, but from the Hamas standpoint, they've probably lost 70,000 people. That's big retribution. At some point, that whole thing has to stop.' Trump expected to be feted as a hero when he visits the region on Sunday used the force of his personality to broker the deal. The President's 20-point peace plan hammered out in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh along with negotiators from Qatar, Egypt and Turkey was achieved despite America refusing to follow the lead of Sir Keir Starmer and French president Emmanuel Macron in controversially recognizing a Palestine state. Securing the return of the hostages comes at a price, though, with Israel agreeing to release 2,000 Hamas prisoners. A Fijian national accused of raping a four-year-old girl could soon be extradited to Australia after he was allowed to leave a free man. Arvind Ajay Singh, 39, was charged in 2022 with raping a child in his care at a Sunshine Coast childcare centre. After being remanded in custody, Singh was granted bail in April 2023 under strict conditions, including surrendering his passport and staying away from airports. Three years later with no trial in sight, Singh was detained in a Brisbane hotel by Border Force officials for staying in Australia as an 'illegal non-citizen'. Despite being subject to active criminal charges and bail conditions, Singh somehow regained his passport and was permitted to voluntarily fly back to Fiji in July. The shocking immigration bungle has devastated the family of the young girl. 'How can immigration make a decision on somebody that is on a rape charge? How do they get to walk out of this country free?' her mother told A Current Affair. However, in a major development, Queensland Police said it was 'undertaking proceedings' to extradite Singh, who has a bench warrant out for his arrest. Alleged child care rapist Arvind Ajay Singh (pictured) left Australia, a free man, in July It comes after Liberal Senator Claire Chandler asked senior Home Affairs officials during Senate Estimates on Wednesday how such a failure could occur. 'How is it that the department let a childcare worker standing trial for the rape of a four-year-old girl leave the country?' Chandler asked. Home Affairs officials explained that the department must deport anyone staying in Australia unlawfully, unless police issue a special criminal justice certificate, which allows the person to stay in the country while facing criminal charges. 'Once that's in place, a criminal justice visa can be granted That's the typical process that occurs,' Deputy Secretary Michael Thomas told the committee. But when pressed on whether this process was followed in Singh's case, Thomas refused to answer, citing privacy concerns. The department also confirmed it was aware of Singh's active charges two years before his departure, raising serious questions about inter-agency communication. Clare Sharp, head of Immigration, defended the department's position. 'We are under a duty to remove someone, so it's not an option for us,' she said. Prosecutors have sought Singh (pictured) to be arrested an extradited from Fiji to Australia Liberal Senator Clare Chandler (pictured) grilled Home Affairs officials over Singh's departure Critics argue this explanation ignores the fact Singh's bail conditions prohibited him from entering an airport or leaving the country. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions confirmed Border Force was notified of Singh's charges and court proceedings well before his removal. In August, Singh failed to appear at Maroochydore District Court, leaving prosecutors scrambling to seek extradition. A bench warrant has now been issued for Singh's arrest, and prosecutors will seek extradition from Fiji. A California State University art student was stabbed to death by his own roommate in a sudden, violent attack. Spencer Timms, 22, a Cal State Long Beach industrial design student, was stabbed repeatedly in the chest at a Temple Avenue home last week and tragically died at the scene, according to authorities. His roommate, 34-year-old Alejandro Iniestra, was arrested at the residence and is being held on $2 million bail. 'I just thought it was really sad. It's never that serious,' Isaac Wright, a student and resident of campus, told KTLA 5 News. 'We're just here trying to get an education,' He added. 'You never expect something like that. Everybody here is super nice, so you would never think something like that would happen.' Just after 10:30am on October 4, Long Beach Police Department officers responded to an 'assist fire' call at a residence on the 1300 block of Temple Avenue. Inside the home, authorities were confronted with two men heavily bleeding from stab wounds to the upper body, including Timms, who was declared died at the scene. The second victim - a third roommate whose identity has not yet been released - was fortunately transported to the hospital in stable condition. Spencer Timms (pictured), 22, a California State University Long Beach industrial design student, was stabbed repeatedly in the chest at a Temple Avenue home last week and tragically died at the scene His roommate, 34-year-old Alejandro Iniestra, was arrested at the residence on charges of murder and attempted murder and is being held on $2 million bail (pictured: CSULB campus) Iniestra, who remained throughout, was taken into custody by authorities without any incident. Homicide detectives are now trying to determine what led to the seemingly random attack, though they believe the 34-year-old suspect attacked one roommate before unleashing violence on the other, according to authorities. He was taken into custody on murder and attempted murder charges, where a judge slapped him with a hefty bail. 'We are profoundly saddened by the loss of our student, Spencer Timms,' university spokesperson Jeffrey Cook said in a statement to the Los Angeles Times. 'We have been in touch with Spencers family, and have been reaching out to and supporting his Beach classmates and faculty,' he added. In a statement to students obtained by The Independent, Royce W Smith, the dean for the school's College of Arts, described Timms as an 'incredibly positive and impactful student' who maintained a 4.0 GPA and shared a passion for design. 'I remember quite well meeting Spencer on one of my visits to the department and clearly recall seeing and admiring the creative fire in him and his work,' Smith wrote. 'A student who knew he had something special to offer and who put all of himself into honing his talents and focusing his ambition,' he added. The second victim - a third roommate whose identity has not yet been released - was fortunately transported to the hospital in stable condition (pictured: CSULB campus) Along with murder and attempted murder charges, Iniestra faces special allegations for wielding a deadly weapon in both assaults, according to court records. Detectives are preparing to forward the case to the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office for evaluation and potential prosecution. He is set to be arraigned on October 21 and could spend life behind bars if convicted, as reported by the LA Times. Authorities are urging anyone with information to call Long Beach homicide detectives Juan Carlos Reyes and Jesus Espinoza at 562-570-7244. Anonymous tips can also be submitted via LA Crime Stoppers at 800-222-TIPS (8477) or LACrimeStoppers.org. A Georgia judge was arrested after allegedly driving drunk and backing his Mercedes-Benz into a pickup truck in the parking lot of a Florida strip club. Superior Court Judge Robert Guy Jr., 48, president of Georgia's Council of Superior Court Judges, allegedly backed his Mercedes-Benz into a Ford F-150 in the parking lot of Wackos Gentlemens Club in Jacksonville. Authorities say the incident occurred around 3 a.m. on Tuesday. Witnesses told police that after the crash, Guy exited his car and briefly spoke with the truck driver before attempting to leave the scene. The club's parking valet also told deputies that the driver appeared 'highly intoxicated' and that he had to be guided back into a parking space. Following the crash, the valet and another patron escorted him back inside the club, where staff took away his keys and cellphone and 'kept a watchful eye on him' until officers arrived, according to an arrest report obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Superior Court Judge Robert Guy Jr. (pictured), 48, president of Georgia's Council of Superior Court Judges, allegedly backed his Mercedes-Benz into a Ford F-150 in the parking lot of Wackos Gentlemens Club in Jacksonville Authorities say the incident occurred around 3 a.m. on Tuesday in the parking lot of Wackos Gentlemens Club in Jacksonville (pictured) The driver of the Ford F-150 told investigators that when he tried to exchange insurance information, the judge refused and instead offered $500 in cash to 'settle the damages' privately. When deputies confronted him, officers wrote that Guy smelled strongly of alcohol, slurred his speech, and appeared confused. He repeatedly said he didn't have his keys and told authorities he couldn't remember whether he had been driving when the crash occurred. Guy - who presides over the five-county Brunswick Judicial Circuit - was arrested at the scene and charged with driving under the influence and DUI-property damage, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office. He later refused to submit to a breathalyzer test, resulting in an additional charge, records show. Guy was booked into the Jacksonville jail and released hours later after posting a $3,000 bond. The sheriff's office declined to release his booking photo, citing his status as an active judge. Guy has already self-reported his arrest to Georgia's Judicial Qualifications Commission (JQC), which oversees judicial conduct in the state. Guy - who presides over the five-county Brunswick Judicial Circuit - was arrested at the scene and charged with driving under the influence and DUI-property damage. Pictured: Judge Robert Guy Jr. at his swearing in ceremony in 2016 In his current role, Guy (pictured) represents Georgia's judges during the state's legislative sessions and serves on the Judicial Council of Georgia JQC Director Courtney Veal has since confirmed that an investigation is underway. 'It arose out of a minor fender-bender in the parking lot there, and we're hopeful that we'll be able to resolve the matter,' Guy's attorney, Lester Tate, said in a statement to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Tate added that Guy has retained a Florida lawyer to handle the criminal proceedings. Guy, a native of Camden County near the Florida border, was first elected to the bench in 2016 and took office the following year, The Independent reported. In his current role, he represents Georgia's judges during the state's legislative sessions and serves on the Judicial Council of Georgia. Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has sent an ominous message to his 'enemies' after he sensationally quit the Opposition frontbench over its immigration strategy. The short email was addressed to those subscribed to the Western Australian politician's e-newsletter on Friday night. It was the first sitting week since Hastie announced his shock resignation from the frontbench after being told he would not lead the Coalition's migration policy. 'This week has been a big one,' the MP began. 'Many people have had their say about my resignation from the front bench. 'I've watched closely, as our enemies have unmasked their guns. But silence has been prudent. 'To quote the great British Prime Minister, Benjamin Disraeli: 'Though I sit down, the time will come when you will hear me'. 'Thanks for standing with me. Let me know what you're thinking.' An email sent by Hastie to his supporters on Friday night made note of his 'enemies' (pictured) Hastie (pictured) quit as a Liberal frontbencher, over his limited influence on migration policy Hastie's resignation came after it was made clear that immigration policy would be led by Senator Paul Scarr, not Hastie, despite the issue being central to his portfolio. 'Immigration is the responsibility of Home Affairs,' Hastie said last week. 'When it was made clear that I wouldn't have any leadership in that role, I thought it was time for me to depart.' He insisted the move was not a challenge to Deputy Opposition Leader Sussan Ley, saying, 'There's no challenge to Sussan, I support Sussan'. Hastie's e-newsletter comes after Senator Paul Scarr, who leads the Coalition's immigration policy, issued a thinly veiled rebuke to Hastie and Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price, warning against inflammatory rhetoric. Speaking at the Migration Institute of Australia's conference on Friday, Scarr said immigration policy must be based on 'evidence and facts' and cautioned against creating a vacuum that could be filled by 'extreme fringe elements'. Without naming names, he drew a parallel to British MP Enoch Powell's infamous 'Rivers of Blood' speech, calling instead for a more respectful national conversation. Hastie previously declared Australians felt like 'strangers in our own home', a remark that drew sharp criticism from Independent MP Allegra Spender. Hastie and Senator Price have both denied plans to challenge leader Sussan Ley (pictured) 'Andrew Hastie used words that echoed those of Enoch Powell,' Spender said. 'Falsehoods or sly innuendo in this debate can damage the country we all hold dear.' Supporters of Hastie were quick to defend him, pointing out that UK Labour leader Keir Starmer had used similar language when he described Britain as 'an island of strangers', a comment Starmer later said he regretted. Senator Price also backed Hastie, saying, 'Concerns about mass migration are not from a fringe movement. They are grassroots issues driven by Canberra's failures'. Price has also ruled out any challenge to Sussan Ley's leadership, denying claims of a push to unseat her on Wednesday. Hundreds of attendees of the popular PAX Australia gaming festival were evacuated from the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre over fears of a fire. The fire alarm was triggered around 3.40pm on Saturday, prompting a swift response from Fire and Rescue Victoria. Footage from inside the convention centre showed people rushing towards the doors and spilling onto the pavement outside. A spokesperson for the MCEC told Daily Mail that it had been a 'false alarm' and that people were already returning to the convention centre. There was no fire and no injuries have been reported. 'On Saturday 11 October at approximately 3:40 pm a fire alarm was activated at the Melbourne Exhibition Centre during PAX Aus 2025. Melbourne Fire Brigade attended and identified that it was a false alarm,' the spokesperson said. 'The venue, MCEC, has assured us there is no need for further concern.' The situation saw a number of reactions on social media. Footage from inside the convention centre showed people rushing towards the doors and spilling onto the pavement outside (pictured) An MCEC spokesperson said the incident was a 'false alarm' with hundreds forced to evacuate One user wrote the evacuation had been 'calm' on X (pictured, people move towards the exit) 'That was an eventful 15 minutes of evacuating PAXAus,' one person wrote on X. 'PAX got evacuated due to a fire but turns out it was a false alarm,' a second said. False rumours circulating online suggested someone had been arrested for activating the fire alarm inside the convention centre. Victoria Police told Daily Mail they had received no reports of any arrests. Other users on X noted that the evacuation was calm, praising the convention attendees for moving out safely. 'That evacuation felt very smooth. And we're already allowed back in,' they said. It's a record for the area A lock-up garage in highly sought-after beachside suburb has sold for more than $100,000 above its initial asking price. The 15sqm single-space garage at an Ewos Parade apartment complex at Cronulla in Sydney's south went under the hammer for a jaw-dropping $165,000 at an auction on Wednesday. Realtor Jon Brookes from Brookes Partners Real Estate initially listed it at the reserve price of $60,000 - $105,000 less than what it sold for. The sale is believed to be a record for Cronulla and the Sutherland Shire. The garage is separately zoned from the 60-year-old apartment building, which allowed its previous owners to sell it separately. It had been marketed as a 'truly unique opportunity to secure the ultimate beachside investment and/or convenience'. The only similar recent sale in the area was in a modern building and only attracted an offer of about half the amount of this latest sale. Some of the 10 registered bidders lived in the apartment complex. An empty parking garage in Cronulla, Sydney, sold for $165,000 on Wednesday The 15sqm space had initially been listed at a reserve of $60,000 However, the new owner is not among them, who plans to use the garage for their car in an area notorious for its lack of parking, particularly on weekends. Mr Brookes said the sale price 'blew everyone out of the water'. 'It went for phenomenal money,' he told NewsWire. He told Domain: 'It's very seldom you will get a separately titled garage within a strata plan. Usually theyre attached to other lots. 'Theres pedestrian access to it from one side and a garage door on the other side.' The enclosed parking spot is located village shops in a 'highly sought beachside precinct locale'. 'Only moments to Cronulla's vibrant mall, eateries, train station, beaches and bays,' the listing read. 'Highly sought and convenient location - No stairs, ground floor position - Additional rear pedestrian door access - Easy vehicular and/or pedestrian ingress and egress.' The garage is near Cronulla's markets and several hundred metres from Blackwoods Beach The previous owners were able to sell the garage separately from their unit due to the building's zoning outline The council rates for the garage are $265 per quarter, while strata fees will set the new owner back just $44 every three months. The previous owners were an elderly couple who decided to sell the space and put the proceeds towards another purpose. Median property prices in Cronulla have soared to $3,375,000 for houses and $1,060,000 for units, according to realestate.com.au. Lively, chic and open: Palace Museum marks 100 years of living heritage Xinhua) 08:29, October 11, 2025 This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) BEIJING, Oct. 10 (Xinhua) -- Wang Hao, a university student from north China's Tianjin, queued for nearly five hours outside Beijing's Palace Museum to see "Five Oxen," the world's oldest surviving Chinese paper painting by 8th-century artist Han Huang. The ancient painting, as well as other priceless cultural relics, has been on display at a special exhibition organized by the museum to mark its centenary on Friday. Wang was among a wave of visitors flocking to the museum, situated on the site of the Forbidden City, during the just-concluded National Day and Mid-Autumn Festival holiday. "If you actually stand in front of the painting and see the brushstrokes crafted over a thousand years ago, you'll understand why the wait is worth it," Wang said, brimming with excitement. For centuries, ordinary people could only catch glimpses of the palace's yellow roof ridges from beyond its towering walls, while the mysteries of its inner world remained a matter of imagination. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. "Treasures once reserved for emperors have become shared cultural heritage for the entire Chinese nation. This shift was groundbreaking and epoch-making," said Shan Jixiang, former curator of the Palace Museum. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. In recent years, the museum has digitally documented more than 1 million artifacts and ancient structures, and made high-definition images of more than 100,000 artifacts available online, greatly enhancing public access to its collections. To make more of its cultural relics accessible to the public, the museum is building a new branch in Beijing's Haidian District. With 33,000 square meters of exhibition area, the new branch will be able to display 20,000 to 30,000 relics each year, two to three times the number shown at the Palace Museum, according to museum officials. MODERN EXPERIENCE Against the backdrop of the Palace Museum's red walls and yellow glazed tiles, countless young visitors in traditional attire pose for photos, immersing themselves in the over 600-year-old complex. Visitors can also enjoy ice creams shaped like the animal statues perched on the roofs of the palace buildings at the restaurants in the museum. One of these restaurants once served as the royal family's ice storage in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Inside and beyond the museum, its merchandise has grown increasingly popular in recent years. Among nearly 20,000 cultural and creative products, the Palace Museum Calendar stands out as a favourite among consumers. Published annually for 17 consecutive years, it has a cumulative circulation of over 8.5 million copies. The 2025 edition, containing images of 400 items from the museum's vast collection, has sold 1.2 million copies. Some buyers seek inspiration from the patterns of artifacts in the calendar, while others view it as a way to introduce traditional culture to their children. "To me, it is the most beautiful calendar, rich in both pictures and texts. It is truly worth collecting," commented a netizen. Through these products, the Palace Museum has created meaningful connections between traditional culture and contemporary life. CULTURAL EXCHANGES With its growing global influence, the Palace Museum has increasingly become a gateway for the meeting of different cultures. Earlier this year, the museum hosted an exhibition on Greece's Minoan civilization. Jointly organized by the Palace Museum, the Heraklion Archaeological Museum and other Greek cultural authorities, the exhibition showcased 172 precious artifacts, marking the first major Minoan civilization exhibition ever held in China. Official data show that since 2012, the Palace Museum has hosted nearly 30 cultural exhibitions from Asia, Europe and the Americas, and organized 79 exhibitions overseas. The museum also collaborates with institutions such as the Louvre Museum, the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum of Art to jointly hold exhibitions and academic forums and promote digital projects. These efforts have earned the museum an international reputation as an inclusive institution. In May, to mark the museum's centenary, the UN Postal Administration issued a commemorative stamp sheet, the first ever dedicated to a single museum. "Through its exhibitions, research and international collaborations, the Palace Museum has brought Chinese civilization into conversation with the world," said UN Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare at the stamp unveiling ceremony. This combo photo shows the Hall of Preserving Harmony (Baohe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows a turret of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (L, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (R, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Gate of Divine Prowess (Shenwu men) and a general view of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Palace of Heavenly Purity (Qianqing gong) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Supreme Harmony (Taihe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Union (Jiaotai dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This combo photo shows the Hall of Central Harmony (Zhonghe dian) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a Swallow-Wing Pavilion (Yanchi Tower) of the Palace Museum in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua/Jin Liangkuai) This combo photo shows the Meridian Gate (Wu men) and a Swallow-Wing Pavilion (Yanchi Tower) of the Palace Museum in the early 20th century (above, provided by the Palace Museum) and on Oct. 10, 2025 (below, photo by Xinhua photographer Jin Liangkuai) in Beijing, capital of China. This year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the Palace Museum. On Oct. 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established based on the Forbidden City, once the imperial palaces of the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties, and opened to the public for the first time, along with its priceless imperial art collections. Today, the museum ranks among the most visited museums in the world. In 2009, the attendance surpassed 10 million for the first time, with the figure exceeding 17.6 million in 2024. (Xinhua) (Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun) NEW YORK, Oct. 10, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Rokid, a pioneer in human-computer interaction and augmented reality, today announced the successful completion of its Kickstarter campaign for Rokid Glasses , raising an extraordinary $3,613,470 from over 5,000 backers in 45 days. This achievement ranks Rokid among the highest-funded wearable technology projects in Kickstarter history and establishes a new global record for XR (Mixed Reality) campaigns. Breaking Records: A New Era of Everyday Mixed Reality The campaign's success underscores the accelerating demand for practical, intelligent wearables that integrate into daily life. The Rokid Glasses campaign now holds the highest-ever Kickstarter funding total for any XR device, surpassing all previous records set by global AR and smart glasses projects. The campaign's rapid rise, reaching over $1 million within the first three days, and its sustained international traction over 45 days illustrate a fundamental market shift: users are no longer waiting for Big Tech's vision of the future, but funding their own. Weighing just 49 grams, Rokid Glasses are the world's lightest full-function AI & AR smart glasses. Built on the Qualcomm AR1 platform, the device features dual Micro LED waveguide displays, a 12-megapixel Sony IMX681 camera, and integrated AI-powered tools such as real-time translation, object recognition, live transcription, navigation, teleprompter functions, and voice interaction. Rokid Glasses is raising the bar for what consumers expect from smart eyewear, showing that functional glasses are ready for mainstream adoption. Challenging Industry Standards Rokid's achievement directly challenges industry leaders like Meta, whose Ray-Ban Display smart glasses have sparked consumer interest but are limited by availability and a closed ecosystem. Unlike competitors, Rokid's open platform offers greater freedom and capabilities. Its main features are compatible with ChatGPT, Gemini, Google Maps, Microsoft Translator, and custom large language models via Rokid's Open SDK, enabling users to connect with the world in new ways. "Meta has reintroduced smart glasses to the market," said Zoro Shao, Global General Manager of Rokid. "But Rokid is pushing the limits of what's possible. We are thrilled to have set a new Kickstarter funding record in this category. Surpassing $3.6 million validates our direction that users are seeking intelligence, freedom, and genuine usability. We are hoping to set more new standards in wearable AI." Global Momentum: From Launch to Movement The campaign's success was propelled by a global community of supporters spanning over 80 countries. Rokid's "Future in Sight" global launch developed into a full-scale world tour, featuring live events and demos across the United States, Germany, Singapore, France, and beyond. The tour offers hands-on experiences, uniting thousands of developers, creators, and early adopters within its expanding ecosystem. Alongside the campaign, Rokid launched the " Go Global with Rokid Glasses " initiative. The program invited users and creators worldwide to fund and share their dream adventures through Rokid's immersive technology. Under the slogan "Your Story, Our Ticket: Explore the World Through Rokid Glasses," participants documented their travels using Rokid's AI-assisted storytelling tools to bridge languages and cultures. From desert explorers to urban storytellers, Rokid directly supported dozens of creator journeys, highlighting the power of technology not only to connect people but to amplify human creativity and empathy. Looking Ahead Rokid's achievement represents more than a crowdfunding milestone ; it marks the beginning of a new phase for the wearable AI industry. By merging augmented reality, AI intelligence, and cultural exploration, Rokid is establishing a new global benchmark for mixed reality experiences. With the campaign now complete, Rokid is shifting focus from crowdfunding to global rollout. About Rokid Rokid is a product-oriented platform company with a focus on human-computer interaction for over ten years. As a pioneer in augmented reality, Rokid develops both hardware and software for AR headsets and their surrounding ecosystem, with a mission to ensure that the magic of AI and AR leaves no one behind. With the largest XR developer community in China, its products are consistently regarded among the best wearable devices in the country. It has won the Las Vegas CES Innovation Award for three consecutive years and the German IF Design Award five times. Website: https://global.rokid.com/ SOURCE Rokid Donald Trump has said that Hamas are currently gathering hostages in Gaza before handing them over to Israel as part of a historic peace deal. The US President said the terror group is gathering hostages 'now' to hand over to the Israeli military in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners, adding that some were being held in 'some pretty rough places'. Hamas is set to release about 20 living Israeli hostages by Monday, while Israel is to free some 250 Palestinians serving prison sentences, as well as around 1,700 people seized from Gaza the past two years and held without charge. The Israeli military has already begun positioning troops along an agreed border after it completed a partial withdrawal from the territory as set out in a ceasefire agreement with Hamas which came into effect at 12 noon on Friday. Tens of thousands of Palestinians have since begun making their way back to their devastated homes in the north of Gaza, which has been flattened by intense bombardments from Israel since the war began more than two years ago. Details of the hostage exchange remain unclear, although the peace agreement between Israel and Hamas states it will take place 'without any public ceremonies or media coverage'. The Red Cross is also expected to play a part in the handover, although it has not been given details of when, how or where the releases would occur. The humanitarian organisation has called for the exchanges to be carried out 'safely and with dignity' following chaotic scenes on past occasions when Hamas paraded hostages before crowds. The US President Donald Trump (pictured) has said that Hamas are currently gathering hostages in Gaza before handing them over to Israel Displaced Palestinians walk with their belongings along the coastal road towards Gaza City Palestinians, carrying the belongings they managed to take with them, move toward the northern part of the Gaza Strip The releases have powerful resonance on both sides. Israelis see the prisoners as terrorists, some of them involved in suicide bombings. Many Palestinians view the thousands held by Israel as political prisoners or freedom fighters resisting decades of military occupation. Most of those on the Israeli prisoner list were convicted of involvement in shootings, bombings or other attacks that killed or attempted to kill Israeli civilians, settlers and soldiers. After their release, more than half will be sent to Gaza or into exile outside the Palestinian territories, according to the list. The oldest and longest imprisoned to be released is 64-year-old Samir Abu Naama, a Fatah member who was arrested from the West Bank in 1986 and convicted on charges of planting explosives. The youngest is Mohammed Abu Qatish, who was 16 when he was arrested in 2022 and convicted of an attempted stabbing. Marwan Barghouti, a leader of Hamas' main political rival Fatah, is not among the prisoners Israel intends to free as part of the exchange. Barghouti, 66, is widely seen as a potential successor to President Mahmoud Abbas, the aging and unpopular leader of the internationally recognized Palestinian Authority that runs pockets of the West Bank. Senior Hamas official Mousa Abu Marzouk told the Al Jazeera TV network that the group insists on the release of Barghouti and other high-profile figures and that it was in discussions with mediators. But Israel views Barghouti as a terrorist leader. He is serving multiple life sentences after being convicted in 2004 in connection with attacks in Israel that killed five people. Marwan Barghouti, a leader of Hamas' main political rival Fatah, is not among the prisoners Israel intends to free as part of the exchange. He is pictured during his arrival to testify in a trial at a Jerusalem court in 2012 Palestinians, who were displaced to the southern part of Gaza at Israel's order, make their way along a road as they return to the north Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City Rescue workers began retrieving dozens of bodies from vast stretches of debris in Gaza after the ceasefire took effect on Friday. Under the ceasefire deal proposed by Trump, Hamas will hand over 47 remaining hostages - living and dead - from the 251 abducted during the October 7 attack two years ago. The remains of one more hostage, held in Gaza since 2014, are also expected to be returned. Trump has expressed confidence that the ceasefire would 'hold', telling reporters that Israel and Hamas were 'all tired of the fighting'. The Israeli military said its troops had halted fire at noon 'in preparation for the ceasefire agreement and the return of hostages'. Three hours later, the Pentagon confirmed Israel had completed the first phase of a pullback laid out in Trump's peace plan. Gaza's civil defence agency also confirmed that Israeli troops and armoured vehicles were pulling back from forward positions in both Gaza City and Khan Yunis. The withdrawal set the clock running on a 72-hour deadline for Hamas to release the remaining hostages held in Gaza. Israel has warned some areas of Gaza are still off-limits and that Palestinians should steer clear of its forces while they were 'adjusting operational positions in the Gaza Strip'. Gaza civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that around 200,000 Palestinians had returned to the north since the ceasefire took effect. Palestinian families who have been displaced by Israel's two-year war on Hamas return to their destroyed homes in Gaza after the Israeli military announced a ceasefire with Hamas This picture taken from a position along the Israel-Gaza border fence, shows destroyed buildings in the Gaza Strip on October 11 The United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting Sunday, according to an official. The aid shipments, carrying food, medical supplies, shelter, cooking gas and fuel for essential services, are meant to address severe malnutrition and famine conditions triggered by Israeli offensives and restrictions on humanitarian help. UN officials and Israeli authorities have engaged in a series of discussions in Jerusalem over the last 24 hours about the volume of aid humanitarian organizations can bring in and through which entry points. A spokesperson for the organisation told reporters on Friday that fuel, medical supplies and other critical materials have started flowing through the Kerem Shalom crossing. UN officials want Israel to open more border crossings and provide safe movement for aid workers and civilians who are returning to parts of Gaza that were under heavy fire until only recently. One crucial border crossing - the Rafah Crossing - is set to open on Tuesday, according to Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto. 'In compliance with the Trump agreement, the Rafah Crossing Point will be opened in two directions alternately, outbound to Egypt and inbound to Gaza, on Oct. 14, 2025,' Crosetto said in a statement. He added that about 600 trucks carrying humanitarian aid will flow into Gaza from other crossings every day. Trucks carry aid for Palestinians, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in Khan Younis A truck carries aid along a road in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip Meanwhile, Israel carried out intense airstrikes on southern Lebanon early on Saturday, which have killed one person and wounded seven others, according to the country's Health Ministry. The pre-dawn airstrikes on the village of Msayleh struck a place that sold heavy machinery, destroying a large number of vehicles and briefly cutting a highway that links Beirut with parts of south Lebanon. A vehicle carrying vegetables that happened to be passing by at the time of the strikes was hit, killing one person and wounding another, according to Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV. The Health Ministry later said that the one slain was a Syrian citizen, while the wounded were a Syrian national and six Lebanese, including two women. The Israeli military said it struck a place where machinery was stored to be used to rebuild infrastructure for the militant Hezbollah group. Israel has carried out almost daily air strikes on Lebanon, which have killed dozens of people, since its 14-month war with Hezbollah ended in late November with a US-brokered ceasefire. The war started when Hezbollah began firing rockets across the border on October 8 2023, a day after a deadly Hamas-led incursion into southern Israel sparked the war in Gaza. Israel responded with shelling and air strikes in Lebanon, and the two sides became locked in an escalating conflict that became a full-blown war in late September 2024. Firefighters douse the flames at the site of an overnight Israeli strike in Al-Msayleh area in southern Lebanon A man walks at a site that sold heavy machinery, where a large number of vehicles were destroyed in Israeli airstrikes, in the southern village of Msayleh Earlier this month, UN human rights chief Volker Turk called for renewed efforts to bring a permanent end to hostilities in Lebanon following the war. He said that until the end of September, they have verified 103 civilians killed in Lebanon since the ceasefire. The most recent Israel-Hezbollah war killed more than 4,000 people in Lebanon, including hundreds of civilians, and caused an estimated 11 billion dollars worth of destruction, according to the World Bank. In Israel, 127 people died, including 80 soldiers. Three people died in the fiery inferno A builder and his wife were heading to the Bathurst 1000 when their light aircraft crashed and burst into flames shortly after take-off. Emergency services rushed to the Shellharbour Airport in NSW's Illawarra region after the aircraft plummeted to the ground and crashed on the tarmac at about 10am on Saturday. The single-engine Piper Saratoga plane caught fire upon impact and all three people on board were killed, including local builder Andrew Connors and his wife Julieanne. The couple leave behind two children and had operated local company Connors Building for more than three decades. They have been described by shocked friends and neighbours as a 'beautiful family' who were friendly and generous and fun-loving. The Connors and family friend Colin McLachlan had just taken off from the airport to take a 38-minute flight to the annual Bathurst 1000 car race in central-west NSW when tragedy struck. 'When young people die like that it's very sad, they were very good people,' a neighbour told the Daily Telegraph. '(Andrew) loved flying, it was his hobby.' Andrew Connors and his wife Julieanne were among three people killed in a fiery aircraft crash seconds after take-off Andrew and Julieanne Connors have been described as generous and fun-loving The plane (pictured) caught fire shortly after crashing, and was extinguished by firefighters Photos from the scene show debris from the destroyed aircraft scattered across the runway. Lake Illawarra Chief Inspector Aaron Wunderlich said that a 'gruesome' scene confronted emergency responders. 'The plane has taken off on the tarmac and gone about 30 meters into the air. At that point, witnesses (said) the aircraft dipped with its left wing coming down and it contacted the tarmac,' Inspector Wunderlich said. 'Unfortunately, the plane was engulfed. 'The crime scene will be in place for some period of time.' Firefighters arrived at the scene 'within minutes' of the crash but there was nothing they could do. 'It was a pretty intense fire from what I've heard, and there was no chance of surviving that kind of impact,' Fire and Rescue NSW Inspector Andrew Barber said. 'It did disintegrate upon impact with the ground. One wing came off completely.' Andrew Connors and his wife Julieanne were on their way to the Bathurst 1000 The couple and a family friend died after their light plane crashed after taking off at Shellharbour Airport Dozens of first responders arrived on the scene, shortly after 10am on Saturday Dozens of emergency responders rushed to the scene Among the emergency responders were members of NSW Rural Fire Service, who had been on the tarmac for a training exercise at the time and witnessed the crash. Locals and motorists feared the worst as soon as they spotted the smoke billowing from the scene. 'It kept turning and then it was back over the other runway, hit the runway and burst into flames,' one local told Nine News. Another added: 'I was just driving down the highway and a massive plume of smoke came up over the buildings and I knew it was at the runway.' NSW Police and the Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) have launched separate investigations. Shellharbour Airport had been hosting a special event, showing aircraft from the Historical Aircraft Restoration Society (HARS), which has a museum at Albion Park. The crash is not connected to the nearby event. Family says disappearance is concerning A desperate family who has spent the last four months scouring the streets of Sydney for their missing son remain hopeful that he will be found. Hayden Grainger, 28, from the city's eastern suburbs, disappeared without a trace in June and has not made contact with his family since. Police are no closer to providing his parents, Brendan and Debra, with answers, despite numerous unconfirmed sightings across Sydney and up and down the NSW coast. Police believe that Hayden was last seen in a supermarket in Martin Place on August 12. Mr Grainger took to social media on Wednesday to launch a heartfelt public appeal for information about his son's whereabouts. He detailed the extent of the family's search efforts and described Hayden's disappearance as 'concerning' due to his mental health battles in recent years. 'His mum and me have constantly searched the streets of Sydney for four months and come up with nothing,' Mr Grainger wrote. 'Hayden is a kind, caring, loving young man whose family and friends miss him so much.' Debra Grainger has spent the last four months searching for her son Hayden, 28, Hayden Grainger, 28, from the Sydney eastern suburbs disappeared without a trace in June and hasn't been in contact with his family since Mr Grainger said his son's disappearance was out of character. 'We have had no contact since (June), which is concerning as we are all so tight,' he wrote. 'I need to find my son and I'm hoping with the help of Facebook we can. 'If anyone sees him, please take a photo and send it to me privately. 'Please share the hell out of this far and wide and to all corners.' Hayden's mum Debra has also posted on numerous community pages about his disappearance. She claimed that Hayden was captured on CCTV catching a ferry from Barangaroo to Balmain East on August 12 but he has not been spotted since. She has since extended her search beyond Sydney. Hayden Grainger has not been in contact with his family since June, which they say is 'concerning' 'With it getting warmer and his love for the beach I thought I'd reach out further,' Mrs Grainger posted in September. 'Hayden has not done anything wrong, he is an amazing young man. 'It's just extremely out of character for him not to be in contact with his family so we are all really concerned. 'Police have been incredible searching this, but is just a mum trying to reach out further.' Both NSW and Queensland Police launched investigations into Hayden's disappearance. However, the case has since been handed back to South Sydney Police. Police believe Hayden was seen in a CBD supermarket in Martin Place about 8.30am on August 12. 'When he could not be located or contacted, officers from Sydney City Police Area Command were notified and commenced inquiries into his whereabouts,' a spokesperson said. Mr and Ms Grainger have pleaded with any members of the public who might know where their son is to come forward with relevant information 'Police and family have concerns for his welfare due to a medical condition.' Hayden was last seen in August wearing a black and tan flannel shirt, black pants, brown boots, a grey/beige beanie, dark glasses, and black and white headphones. He is described as Caucasian, thin build, about 180cm tall with brown hair and a beard. Anyone with information is urged to call Crime Stoppers. The husband of a North London woman who cut off yellow ribbons for Jewish hostages held captive in Gaza says he and his wife have been attacked by a group of people 'working for Mossad'. Nadia Yahlom, 36, who is married to a Palestinian actor, was filmed using scissors to chop down the memorial bands which Jewish citizens had tied to railings in Muswell Hill, North London, on Monday in honour of those taken hostage by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023. When confronted by horrified bystanders, Ms Yahlom, who is a PhD student at the University of Westminster, declared that the bands were 'condoning genocide'. The Met police confirmed a woman has been interviewed in connection with the incident, which is being treated as racially-aggravated damage. Ms Yahlom's husband is Mo'min Swaitat, a Palestinian actor and director from the West Bank who moved to London in 2011. After removing all his Instagram posts this week, he wrote on the social media platform that he and his wife had been attacked by a group he believed worked for Israel's national intelligence agency - Mossad. 'If I'm not responding to emails or messages I just want to let you know that me and Nadia have been attacked by [an extremist group] probably working for the Israeli [Mossad] in our neighbourhood in North London', he wrote, adding that the couple had been 'attacked and stranded to be killed'. 'This now has been investigated by the police', he said. Nadia Yahlom was filmed this week using scissors to chop down the yellow memorial bands which Jewish citizens had tied to railings in Muswell Hill, North London in honour of those taken hostage by Hamas terrorists on October 7, 2023 When confronted by horrified bystanders, Ms Yahlom declared that the bands were 'condoning genocide' Her husband Mo'min Swaitat, a Palestinian actor, has claimed that he and his wife have been attacked by a group who 'probably' work for Mossad Meanwhile, a woman who said she was Ms Yahlom's mother told The Times that her daughter had been 'pounded by death threats' since the incident, including at her daughter's school and at university. Ms Yahlom was filmed on the eve of the second anniversary of Hamas' attacks on Israel, in which around 1,200 peiple were killed and 251 taken hostage. Following the incident, a group of Muswell Hill residents gathered at the memorial to replace the ribbons cut down by Ms Yahlom. Miranda Levy, who captured the original footage of the vandalism, said: 'As a Jewish person I felt that pull to do something. It feels personal.' 'These ribbons are to remember all the people who were kidnapped and those who are still there. 'There is a climate that it's acceptable, you can get away with it and even more than that, that people applaud it. People think [they] are on the side of the good, the side of the righteous by standing against Israel and the Jewish people. 'Frankly what she was doing was anti-Jewish, anti-Israel and anti-humanity.' The incident came as Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said this week that the UK will 'always stand tall' against those who wish harm and hatred upon Jewish communities, and urged students not to protest on the second anniversary of the October 7 attacks. The incident involving Ms Yahlom was came on the eve of the second anniversary of Hamas' attacks on Israel, in which around 1,200 peiple were killed and 251 taken hostage Muswell Hill residents gathered to replace the yellow ribbons cut down by Ms Yahlom today The Ocotber 7 attacks prompted a deadly two-year war in Gaza. Israel's campaign in the Palestinian enclave has killed more than 67,000 people and wounded 170,000 others. This week, Israel and Hamas agreed to the 'first phase' of US President Donald Trump's plan to pause fighting and release all of the remaining hostages held in Gaza, a key step to ending the two-year war that has destabalised the Middle East. A brief statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said on Friday the Cabinet approved the 'outline' of a deal to release the hostages, without mentioning other aspects of the plan that are more controversial. The broader ceasefire plan includes many unanswered questions, such as whether and how Hamas will disarm and who will govern Gaza. But the sides appeared closer than they have been in months to ending a war that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, reduced much of Gaza to rubble, brought famine to parts of the territory and left dozens of hostages, living and dead, in Gaza. The Israeli military confirmed the start of the ceasefire Friday, and the remaining 48 hostages, around 20 of them believed to be alive, are to be released by Monday. Palestinians said heavy shelling in parts of Gaza earlier on Friday had mostly stopped after the military's announcement. Netanyahu said in a televised statement Friday that the next stages would see Hamas disarm and Gaza demilitarised. Palestinians, who were displaced to the southern part of Gaza at Israel's order, make their way along a road as they return to the north, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, in the central Gaza Strip, October 11, 2025 alestinians, including children, gathered in the city of Khan Yunis celebrate after the announcement of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza on October 09, 2025 in Khan Yunis, Gaza People react as they celebrate following the announcement that Israel and Hamas have agreed to the first phase of a peace plan to pause the fighting, at a plaza known as hostages square in Tel Aviv, Israel, Thursday, Oct. 9, 2025 ormer hostages Omer Shem Tov and Amit Soussana embrace as people celebrate at the "Hostages square", after U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas agreed on the first phase of a Gaza ceasefire, in Tel Aviv, Israel, October 9 'If this is achieved the easy way so be it. If not it will be achieved the hard way,' Netanyahu said. The Israeli military has said it will continue to operate defensively from the roughly 50 percent of Gaza it still controls after pulling back to agreed-upon lines. Meanwhile, the United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting Sunday, a U.N. official said. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss details not yet made public. The aid shipments are meant to address severe malnutrition and famine conditions triggered by Israeli offensives and restrictions on humanitarian help. The International Criminal Court is seeking the arrest of Netanyahu and his former defense minister for allegedly using starvation as a method of war. Israeli officials deny the accusations. An NHS doctor has been spreading the conspiracy theory that the Manchester synagogue attack was a 'false flag operation' designed to boost sympathy for Israel amid international pressure over their treatment of Palestinians. Dr Asad Khan, a respiratory consultant from Manchester, posted on Instagram and in the Facebook group the On-Call Room, where registered doctors engage in 'lively banter and debate' casting doubt on the motive for the terror attack. Islamic extremist Jihad Al-Shamie, 35, was shot dead by armed police outside the Heaton Park Synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester, after driving a car into members of the Jewish community before stabbing them. He was also wearing a fake suicide belt at the time. Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, were killed and four people were injured in the attack. It later emerged that Mr Daulby's fatal injuries, and serious injuries to a second victim who survived, were the result of a police bullet. On the day of the attack Dr Khan, who was forced to give up working after contracting Covid in November 2020, was already posting online suggesting the terror attack was a 'false flag'. It comes amid a string of NHS staff who have been accused of making anti-Semitic posts online in the wake of the attack. Posting in the On-Call Room, the Times reports Dr Khan said he was 'raising the possibility of this being a false flag'. Dr Asad Khan, a respiratory consultant from Manchester, posted on Instagram and in the Facebook group the On-Call Room claiming the synagogue terror attack was a 'false flag' operation Dr Khan, who was previously forced to stop working after contracting Covid in November 2020, said he had the 'right to speculate' over the synagogue attack He added: 'I may be right or wrong. I have the right to speculate. There have been false flag antisemitic incidents before, including synagogue attacks.' He later allegedly promoted the same conspiracy theory on Instagram. Dr Khan is also said to have posted a screenshot on X which read: 'The synagogue incident in Manchester is a conveniently-timed false flag. A little warm up for the next October 7. Israeli sympathy is running low and obviously needs a boost.' In a separate post, the consultant reposted a thread that argued Israel is to blame for attacks on Jewish people outside of Israel. 'If a pro-Israel Zionist synagogue in the UK was attacked because of the genocide in Palestine, then we shouldn't be surprised or horrified,' it read. 'It's really quite simple. If you want Jews to feel safe, stop allowing Zionist Jews to annihilate Palestinians in the name of their Jewishness.' And this week, he retweeted an X post calling for Israel to be 'invaded and occupied'. Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting said: 'Two years on from the horrific events of October 7th and just days after a despicable attack on our nation's Jewish community, we must be unequivocal that antisemitism has absolutely no place in our NHS, or anywhere in our society. 'The NHS is a universal health service, which means that everyone, regardless of race, religion, or creed, should feel safe seeking its care. I deplore the fact that this is frankly not the current reality for many Jewish patients and staff, and I am determined to change this for once and for all. 'It should go without saying that doctors making racist comments about Jewish people is abhorrent and demands action. Yet all too often, appropriate action by regulators has been sorely lacking. 'It is clear that the current medical regulatory system is completely failing to protect Jewish patients and NHS staff. I am looking urgently at how we can overhaul the current regime, which has been found completely wanting.' Dr Khan is far from the only NHS employee accused of anti-Semitism. Palestinians who had evacuated to the southern part of Gaza begin the journey home after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was agreed this week Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City this morning Ten days after the October 7 attack by terror group Hamas, in which members killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped 251, who they took into Gaza, a Dundee GP called for Zionism to be eradicated. Dr Shamroz Afghan described it as an 'inherently racist apartheid system based on Jewish supremacy'. In a second post, Dr Afghan wrote that Gaza was a 'military testing ground, organ harvesting area where tourists go to watch bombs be dropped on people'. And in December Dr Oyin Abiki, from NHS North East, described Hamas as a 'liberation army'. Since October 7, Israel has been accused of 'genocide' by pro-Palestinian activists, and of starving hundreds of Gazans to death. International bodies previously declared a famine in areas of the Gaza Strip and countries including the UK have recently recognised Palestine's right to statehood amid backlash over Israel's treatment of Palestinians. More than 67,000 Palestinians have been killed in the conflict since October 7. Campaigners have warned that anger at the treatment of Palestinians since has allowed extreme anti-Semitism to 'fester unchecked' in the medical profession, including the NHS. NHS medic Dr Rahmeh Aladwan, a trainee trauma and orthopaedic surgeon, has come under investigation over social media posts in which she described the Holocaust as a 'concept' The Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service ruled last month that no suspension was necessary, allowing Dr Rahmeh Aladwan (pictured) to carry on working The Mail previously covered the case of Dr Rahmeh Aladwan, a trauma and orthopaedics doctor, who described the Holocaust as a 'concept' and said she would 'never condemn' the October 7 attack. A recent tribunal allowed her to keep her job - to the outrage of Health Secretary Wes Streeting - after a series of posts emerged which also saw her describe a hospital in north London as a 'Jewish supremacy cesspit'. The trainee surgeon appeared to deny the Holocaust as she described it as a 'concept' and 'a fabricated victim narrative'. Another post reads: 'I will never condemn the 7th of October'. As well as slaughtering 1,200 Israelis, Hamas fighters have been accused of brutal acts of sexual violence against their victims, both men and women. Dr Aladwan and Dr Khan have posted shared posts on social media denying this took place - with Dr Khan reposting claims that Israeli women 'lied'. This week the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service ruled last month that no suspension was necessary, following a referral from the General Medical Council. The tribunal ruled there was not sufficient evidence to show that Dr Aladwan posed a real risk to patients, despite warnings that Jewish patients may feel unsafe in her care. Dr Aladwan now faces a new tribunal hearing scheduled for October 23 Following the ruling, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said he had no faith in the medical regulator. 'The racist language of 'Jewish supremacy' reflects the values of Nazis, not the NHS,' he wrote on X. 'I fail to see how medics using such language with impunity doesn't undermine confidence in the medical profession. I have no confidence in our regulation system.' But now the General Medical Council, which had brought that original case demanding she be suspended, has now had the case referred back to the MPTS. Law firm Rahman Lowe, representing Dr Aladwan, has hit back at Mr Streeting's comments in a letter to the Health Secretary. In a statement, the London based company said: 'The letter expresses grave concern about the minister's intervention in live quasi-judicial proceedings, without knowledge of the evidence or submissions before the MPTS. 'The comments, made in apparent alignment with complainants, undermines the independence of regulatory and judicial processes and raise serious questions about the Secretary of State's adherence to the Ministerial Code, the House of Commons Code of Conduct, and the principle of the Rule of Law. 'We have demanded that the Minister ceases all further commentary or involvement in Dr Aladwan's case, and that he discloses details of any meetings or communications held with complainants or the GMC.' Around 500 complaints relating to 123 doctors have been submitted to the General Medical Council (GMC) since the Hamas attacks, according to figures obtained by Jewish News. As the centenary of Margaret Thatcher's birth approaches, few remember the night Britain's first female Prime Minister almost died in a fiery plane crash - just weeks after surviving the IRA's Brighton bombing. It was December 22, 1984 and Mrs Thatcher's RAF VC-10 had spent nearly 20 hours in the air, returning from high-stakes talks in China over the future of Hong Kong. Exhausted and eager for a quiet festive summit with US President Ronald Reagan and his wife Nancy at Camp David, the Iron Lady settled in as the aircraft began its descent through thick fog over Washington. However, instead of the tranquil landing, what happened was exactly the opposite. Chaos. A thunderous bang shook the jet as the pilot aborted a third landing attempt at Andrews Air Force Base. The tail clipped treetops, catering trolleys tore loose and crashed down the aisle, and the cabin filled with screams. A few feet lower and there would have been no survivors. It was only after the plane finally stabilised that passengers realised they had been seconds from disaster. The jet had landed with a Christmas tree, literally, lodged in its tail. Instead of the normal Air Force base where foreign heads of state and US Presidents land when they're heading to the White House, the pilot was forced to divert to Dulles Airport, 45 miles west, where Thatcher emerged calm but shaken, having escaped death for the second time. Mrs Thatcher in the place with press photographers during an election campaign Margaret Thatcher in December 1984 as she relaxes at an impromptu party on board the VC-10 plane with Downing Street Staff and Press, Just eight weeks earlier, on the night before the last day of the Conservative Party conference at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, Mrs Thatcher had been spared from death. It was the early hours of October 12, 1984, and the Prime Minister had been about to turn in 'early', around 2:30am, when her private secretary, Robin Butler, brought her a last piece of paperwork. Minutes later, the IRA bomb planted a month earlier by Patrick Magee tore through the sixth floor, in a blast that ripped open the building, sending masonry and debris cascading through the hotel. Mrs Thatcher's bathroom, which she had been in moments earlier, was destroyed. Five people, including former deputy chief whip Sir Anthony Berry, were killed. Thirty-one others were injured, among them Trade Secretary Norman Tebbit and his wife, Margaret. Amid the dust and falling masonry, Mrs Thatcher ventured into her shattered bedroom, calling for her husband Denis, who had gone to bed earlier. Moments later, she emerged, leading him by the hand - calm, composed, and already back in control. Firefighters led the Prime Minister, Mr Denis and senior Cabinet members through the wreckage and out into the street, where they were taken to safety at a police training centre in nearby Lewes. Hours later, Mrs Thatcher appeared on the conference stage, her trademark handbag at her side, defiant and unshaken. In that same spirit of determination, and this time having her life spared not by luck by the pilot's efforts, Mrs Thatcher walked out of the plane and refused to blame him. Daily Mail double page spread on the day Mrs Thatcherarrived in Washington after her world tour How the bomb planted by Patrick Magee devastated the Grand Hotel in Brighton on October 12, 1984 Handing the pilot a scrap of paper with her private number, she said simply: 'If there are any problems, just call.' Next Monday marks 100 years since Margaret Thatchers birth, and while many still debate her legacy, the Iron Ladys survival in that fog-bound Washington night remains one of the most extraordinary near-misses in modern British politics. Donald Trump has thanked Vladimir Putin for saying the US President is too good to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize after he missed out on the prestigious honour despite brokering peace in Gaza. The Russian leader was quick to praise Trump after Venezuelan opposition politician Maria Corina Machado was named as the peace prize laureate. 'I don't know whether the current US president deserves a Nobel Prize. But he's truly doing a lot to resolve complex crises that last for years, even decades. 'He's definitely trying, he's definitely working on these issues, on achieving peace and resolving complex international situations. 'The most striking example is the situation in the Middle East. If Donald can achieve everything he's strived for, everything he's talked about and is trying to accomplish, it will be a historic event', Putin said. 'But, I repeat, it is not for me to decide whether this is worthy of a prize or not, and whether this prize is worthy of achievements of this kind. That said, the credibility has largely been lost.' Trump responded by thanking Putin in a post on his Truth Social platform and shared a video of the Russian leader's speech. Nobel Peace Prize winner Machado, who was announced as the winner on Friday morning for her fight for freedom against communist leader Nicolas Maduro, dedicated the prize to Trump and thanked him for his 'decisive support' for Venezuela's pro-democracy movement. Vladimir Putin praised US President Donald Trump after the Nobel Peace Prize was coveted to Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado Trump reacted to Putin's remarks and thanked him in a Truth Social post Maria Corina Machado (pictured) was named as the latest Nobel Peace Prize laureate and dedicated her award to Trump 'I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump,' she wrote on X. 'We are on the threshold of victory and today, more than ever, we count on President Trump, the people of the United States, the peoples of Latin America, and the democratic nations of the world as our principal allies to achieve Freedom and democracy,' she added. Trump called Machado, White House sources told Bloomberg, without revealing further details of the conversation. The president's reaction to Machado taking the prize he has actively campaigned for may come as a surprise to critics given speculation he would be furious about not receiving the prize himself. In the months leading up to the decision, Trump had vigorously pitched himself as a peacemaker. He offered himself as a bridge builder, pointed to his 20-point Gaza peace plan, and repeatedly insisted he had ended multiple wars. The two-time US President has been on a not-so-subtle Nobel Prize campaign since his first term in office when he claimed 'many people' thought he had earned it. Speculation he could win the award this year began after he brokered the historic peace agreement between Israel and Hamas to end the two-year war in Gaza. Both sides have agreed to the first phase of Trump's plan to pause fighting and release hostages, a deal that could open the way to ending a brutal conflict that has killed tens of thousands of people and unleashed a humanitarian catastrophe. Pro-Palestine supporters marching through central London were filmed chanting 'death, death to the IDF' today as police officers arrested pro-Israeli demonstrators who managed to infiltrate the protest. A small group of people from Our Fight, a pro-Israeli organisation that describes itself as mostly made up of non-Jewish Brits, were seen facing off with protesters while holding signs that read: 'We stand with Britain's Jews'. The Met Police made a 'small number of arrests' after breaking up a scuffle between the two groups. Officers were 'quickly' on the scene and were seen escorting away counter protesters, some bedecked in the Union flag. Officers have also thrown a ring of steel around hundreds of pro-Israel supporters near Waterloo Bridge. The group was heard shouting 'losers' while a man speaking through a megaphone declared pro-Palestinian protesters 'animals'. Meanwhile pro-Palestine protesters were heard chanting 'death, death to the IDF' and 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free'. It is understood that arrests have also been made among the pro-Palestinian marchers. The pro-Palestine march, which was attended by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, made its way through central London one day after a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas came into effect. It marks the 32nd national demonstration in support of Palestine since October 2023, according to organiser Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), with protesters setting off from Embankment at midday for a march ending in a rally in Whitehall. Organisers are expected to call for the ceasefire, which was announced by US President Donald Trump, to become a permanent agreement. A counter protest organised by Stop The Hate is taking place at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand. Conditions have been imposed on both demonstrations by the Met Police, which set out specific areas protesters can gather and the routes they can march on. The Met Police has since confirmed 14 people were arrested, seven for breaching conditions under the Public Order Act while others were taken into custody for other offences which included supporting a proscribed group and affray. A demonstrator from Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, is seen in the crowd among pro-Palestinian supporters, ahead of a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street, central London Police officers lead away a demonstrator from Our Fight after the group infiltrated a pro-Palestine march this afternoon A Stop The Hate counter protest demonstrator speaks to a person taking part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street Pro-Palestine protesters were heard chanting: 'Death, death to the IDF' A man with a megaphone leads a chant of 'death to the IDF' as pro-Palestine activists march from Victoria Embankment to Whitehall Officers from the Met Police were forced to intervene and escort multiple counter-protesters, holding signs that read 'We stand with British Jews' away from the scene An anti-Palestine protester from the group Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, stands amidst pro-Palestine protesters on Saturday morning Pro-Palestine protesters are seen marching along Westminster bridge in central London on Saturday, a day after a peace deal was reached between Israel and Hamas A protester holds a sign depicting two halves of a face - one is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the other is Adolf Hitler Demonstrators from the 'Palestine Coalition' gather in support for Palestinians, after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza went into effect, in London today Pro-Palestinian supporters hold placards and wave flags in central London, on October 11 Police officers make arrests on Westminster Bridge during today's rally in solidarity with the Palestinian people Palestinian protesters march past a counter-demonstration organised by Stop The Hate on Saturday at the Strand Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is pictured at Saturday's pro-Palestine march Counter-protesters at a demonstration organised by Stop The Hate gathered at the Strand on Saturday Counter-protesters held British and Israeli flags, with a banner in support of US President Donald Trump also seen PSC director Ben Jamal said pro-Palestine protests will be held less frequently if the ceasefire holds - but believes it is 'not a viable path to ending decades of apartheid' in Gaza. 'We share the huge relief of Palestinians that a ceasefire is now taking effect,' he said. 'However, we also know that Israel has violated every ceasefire agreement it has ever signed. 'In the last two years we have seen Israel commit a live-streamed genocide in Gaza that has killed at least 67,000 Palestinians, including 20,000 children. And we have seen our governments, Conservative and Labour, continue to arm and politically support Israel. 'We will keep protesting and campaigning all over the UK to end the complicity of our government, public bodies and corporations with Israel's crimes under international law.' But campaigners against anti-Semitism have argued that protests should no longer go ahead as they have no legitimate aim. On Saturday thousands of pro-Palestine protesters gathered along Victoria Embankment to the sound of drums, ahead of a demonstration to mark two years of the war in Gaza. Stalls were selling keffiyehs and outside Embankment station people were handing out placards that said 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free', 'it's not a crime to act against genocide' and 'Starmer has blood on his hands, free Palestine'. Controversial signs spotted among marchers included the slogan 'globalise the intifada'. Other signs include a cartoon of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, with a Nazi swastika drawn across it, and several appearing to compare the Israeli Prime Minister to Adolf Hitler. A leaflet has also been handed out by the Socialist Worker, entitled: Palestine resistance, revolution and the struggle for freedom. It includes a section on the banned terrorist organisation Hamas. People pass Westminster as they take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street A sign held by a protester depicts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next to a picture of Adolf Hitler with the caption: 'Same evil' A person holds a sign during today's pro-Palestine protest that reads: 'We would not have negotiated with the Nazis' A man holds a sign as he passes pro-Israel counter-demonstrators at the Strand in central London People take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march in central London on Saturday Police officers marshal crowds as pro-Palestine protesters pass close to a counter-demonstration People attend a pro-Palestine protest in central London on Saturday afternoon Protesters march through the streets of central London calling for a permanent ceasefire on Saturday People hold signs reading 'Stop the genocide' as they protest in support of Palestinians today A woman holds a sign that reads: 'I say no to genocide and no to anti-Semitism' as she joins pro-Palestine protesters A man holds a sign in London on Saturday depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a dalek from the Doctor Who franchise Pro-Palestine activists cross Westminster Bridge on Saturday, October 11 Pro-Palestine protesters gather in central London on Saturday afternoon as they march towards Whitehall Protesters are seen on Waterloo Bridge as they take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march in central London A pro-Palestine protester holds a sign depicting Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump with a swastika Thousands gathered on Victoria Embankment in central London ahead of the pro-Palestine march to Whitehall At the counter-protest, organisers played loud music and attendees shouted 'losers' as pro-Palestine demonstrators passed The counter-protest took place at the junction of Aldwych and The Strand Police officers monitor the two rival protest groups to avoid them coming together Protesters chanted: 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free'. A large stationary crowd of counter-protesters waving Israeli and English flags blared loud music as they faced pro-Palestinian protesters passing from Waterloo Bridge onto the Strand. A man with a megaphone declared the pro-Palestinian group to be 'animals', adding: 'They are all Jew haters'. The group had a deafening loud speaker that blared heavy rock metal music that included the lyrics 'you can stick your Palestine up your hole'. The song also said 'with your twisted goals, we will bleed for your lies', referenced Islamic State, and said '(we are) sick of all your burning hate'. It ended with the line 'you're not welcome anymore', before someone on the megaphone shouted 'Shalom losers'. A blue Trump 'make America great again' flag was flown at the front of the counter-protest, as well as several Union flags. Your Party co-founder and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was pictured at the protest, and co-founder Zarah Sultana later spoke to those gathered in Whitehall. Ms Sultana criticised the Home Secretary for switching sides on Palestine and 'locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action', who she described as 'heroes'. The Independent MP for Coventry South said Shabana Mahmood 'doesn't want to just ban demonstrations, she wants to criminalise dissent - she wants to send a message that if you march for Palestine, if you speak out against genocide, if you demand justice, then the state considers you the problem. Shame on her.' Your Party co-found Zara Sultana MP speaks to pro-Palestine supporters at a rally in Whitehall on Saturday Protesters gather in Victoria Embankment on Saturday before marching through central London The head of a march in support of Palestinians is pictured on Friday in central London From a stage outside Downing Street, she told tens of thousands of protesters that in 2014 Ms Mahmood took part in two demonstrations for Gaza: Lying on the floor of a Sainsbury's supermarket and weeks later addressing 'a Palestine protest like this' with expressions of compassion. Today 'she is locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action and calling them terrorists - they are heroes', Ms Sultana said. 'The real terrorists are the war criminals that continue to drop bombs on Gaza and the politicians here in Britain who welcome them with open arms - shame on them', she added. Earlier at around 12:45pm, police ushered away multiple people carrying placards that said 'we stand with Britain's Jews', taking them out of the crowd of pro-Palestine protesters after they managed to infiltrate the march. Shouts of 'shame' and 'free Palestine' came loudly from the pro-Palestine crowd gathered along Victoria Embankment, which at that point numbered in the tens of thousands. 'A small group of counter protesters breached their conditions by demonstrating at the form up point of the Palestine Coalition protest. This led to a scuffle between several individuals from the two groups. 'Officers were quickly on the scene to separate those involved, making a small number of arrests,' the Met later said in post on X. People stage a protest to demand the British government to lift its ban on Palestine Action in Trafalgar Square on Saturday, October 4 Protesters unfurl a banner on Westminster Bridge as part of a demonstration organised by Defend our Juries, in support of Palestine Action in Trafalgar Square, on October 4 In Manchester, between 50 and 100 people turned out in the rain to protest in Manchester on October 4 Pro-Palestine protesters have been told they must march along this pre-agreed route before gathering in Whitehall Counter-protesters must remain in the red area just off the Strand during today's protest Announcing plans for its policing this weekend, the Met made reference to recent Government proposals to give police greater powers to restrict repeat protests but said that 'at this time, the law remains unchanged'. The measures announced last weekend follow frequent pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including in London and Manchester last Saturday. The Met said 492 people were arrested at last week's protest in Trafalgar Square, with the majority on suspicion of supporting the banned terror organisation Palestine Action. Calls for restraint had been made following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on October 2 in which two people were killed, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urging protesters to 'respect the grief of British Jews'. It followed scuffles between police and pro-Palestine protesters on the evening of the attack after supporters of a flotilla headed to Gaza gathered in Whitehall. Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, were killed following the attack outside Heaton Park Congregation Synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester on October 2, carried out by Islamic extremist Jihad Al-Shamie. Greater Manchester Police said that one of the deceased men was shot by officers, adding a second victim sustained a non-life threatening gunshot wound. In the wake of the attack, the Met had also urged organisers to call off the plans, with Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley saying policing the protest would mean drawing officers away from communities 'at a time when they are needed most'. The demonstration in support of Palestine Action went ahead, with human rights campaigner Sir Jonathon Porritt saying protesters should not be asked to 'give up on our right to stand up for those who are being devastated by an ongoing, real-time genocide in Gaza'. On Thursday, around 2,000 protesters gathered outside Downing Street to mark a week since the synagogue attack. At the protest, Gideon Falter, chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: 'This is a Jewish community that has clamoured for two years in the face of mounting hate.' Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said repeated large-scale protests had caused 'considerable fear' for the Jewish community. Police scuffle with Pro-Palestine protesters at the south end of Whitehall following a protest in Parliament square on Thursday, October 2 Police were seen scuffling with protesters at the south end of Whitehall following a protest in Parliament Square on the day of the terror attack Ben Jamal, PSC director, said the group will 'never stop' supporting Palestinians to 'achieve a free Palestine'. Of the planned protest this weekend, he said: 'For two years we've seen Israel commit a no holds barred genocide with the political and military support of successive UK governments. 'In response, a community of resistance in this country has responded with an historic show of solidarity - actively and intensively campaigning, day in day out, to demand politicians, public bodies and corporations end their complicity with Israel's crimes. 'This is a movement supported by millions of people in this country and around the world who want freedom and justice for Palestine. 'That work will go on. Because we know Israel is capable of breaking the ceasefire at any time, as it has done on every previous occasion. And we know this ceasefire based on (US President Donald) Trump's plan does nothing to address the root causes of Israeli occupation and colonisation of Palestine, and its system of apartheid against Palestinians. It also does nothing to hold those responsible for genocide to account. 'The rights of the Palestinian people are enshrined under international law - they are inviolable and non-negotiable. They will never give up those rights, and we will never stop supporting them to achieve a free Palestine.' The Israeli military said on Friday that the ceasefire agreement came into effect at noon local time (10am BST). The pause in the two-year war in the Middle East follows Hamas agreeing to release the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. News of the ceasefire agreement came just two days after the second anniversary of October 7, the attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel. Keir Starmer's national security chief has been accused of being too close to China following allegations over his involvement in the collapse of a Chinese spy trial. Jonathan Powell is facing scrutiny across the political divide after he reportedly refused to call Beijing an 'enemy' of the UK in evidence for the case against a parliamentary researcher and a business consultant. Christopher Cash, 30, from Whitechapel, east London, and Christopher Berry, 33, of Witney, Oxfordshire, were each charged with the offence of spying under the Official Secrets Act. They both denied the charges. They were set to face trial this month, but proceedings against them were stopped after the Crown Prosecution Service said it could 'no longer proceed to trial' due to a lack of evidence, sparking criticism from Downing Street and MPs. Government sources have stressed Powell did not have any decision-making role in the case following allegations that he met with top Whitehall officials to discuss the trial and how China would be presented. But his relationship with Beijing has been put under the spotlight, with Cabinet Ministers reportedly fearing that his close ties could make his position unsustainable. One cabinet minister voiced concerns that Powell is too soft on China and the UK's strategic approach towards the country 'is a little bit fuzzy' under his leadership. Another said Powell had become a lightning rod those criticising the government's stance on China and suggested he needed to be replaced. Jonathan Powell (pictured in 2014) has been accused of being too close to China following allegations over his involvement in the collapse of a Chinese spy trial Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and director of the Office of the Central Commission for Foreign Affairs, holds talks with Jonathan Powell in Beijing in July this year 'It feels difficult for him to carry on,' the minister told The Times, adding that the Government will face increased scrutiny if he remains in place. A third added: '[Powell] thinks you can ride both horses, that you can have the economic benefits of the relationship with China while managing the security risk. 'You can't and he's wrong. They are completely entwined because China takes a whole state approach. It isn't sustainable.' Powell began facing scrutiny after it emerged that he was allegedly included in a meeting with top Whitehall officials to discuss the trial and how China would be presented. The meeting is said to have included Jonathan Powell, the UK's national security adviser, and Sir Oliver Robbins, the permanent secretary at the Foreign Office. According to the Sunday Times, Powell is said to have told attendees of the meeting that Matthew Collins, the deputy national security adviser set to give evidence for the prosecution, would not describe China as an enemy, but rather as a 'challenge'. This term has its roots in the National Security Strategy 2025 report, a document that sets out the major security risks the UK faces. However, prosecutions under the Official Secrets Act require proof that defendants acted in the interests of an enemy. However, a spokesperson for the Cabinet Office told the Daily Mail: 'This is completely false. There has been no material change provided by the government, nor were any of the witnesses limited in the sources upon which evidence could be based.' Parliamentary aide Christopher Cash, 30, (pictured) and British teacher Christopher Berry, 33, were each charged with the offence of spying under the Official Secrets Act Cash and Berry (pictured) were set to face trial this month, but proceedings against them were stopped after the Crown Prosecution Service said it could 'no longer proceed to trial' due to a lack of evidence Downing Street has confirmed that Powell will appear before senior MPs and peers to face questions in Parliament about the Chinese spying case. But his appearance before the Joint Committee on the National Security Strategy will be in private even though his predecessors have given evidence to the same committee in public. The decision by Labour ministers who had previously claimed Mr Powell should not appear at all because he is a special adviser rather than an official means the public will not hear his response to the allegations that he was involved in top-secret discussions that led to the collapse of the case. Former defence secretary Sir Gavin Williamson, who sits on the joint committee which will question Mr Powell in private, told the Daily Mail: 'With such a high level of public interest in this case, it would be beneficial for Mr Powell and for Parliament for him to set out quite clearly his involvement or non-involvement. 'There's an ability for part of the session to be in private and part in public. I think he has whole series of questions he's got to answer.' But he added that a minister should also provide a statement to the Commons about the case, on the first day back after the conference recess. 'There's a lot of people who have a lot of questions,' Sir Gavin said. Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle is considering bringing a private prosecution against Cash, 30, and Berry, 33, after the espionage charges against them under the Official Secrets Act were dropped. However, the Daily Mail has learnt that any private prosecution is unlikely to succeed because the Director of Public Prosecutions Sir Stephen Parkinson can take over a case and discontinue proceedings if it does not meet the Code for Crown Prosecutors 'evidential test'. This means that the suspects are unlikely to face any further prosecution over the same issue after Sir Stephen halted the case last month. Commons speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle (pictured) is considering bringing a private prosecution It has emerged that Scotland Yard also has no plans to pursue the pair for any other offences including lesser crimes such as a breach of data protection rules. Senior Tory MP Alex Burghart told the Daily Mail: 'Thanks to Labour, two alleged Chinese spies may never be prosecuted. In their desperation to cosy up to China, the Government have put our democracy and our country in danger. 'Now we hear Starmer's national security adviser will appear before Parliament but only in private. Why won't Labour be open with the public?' Another leading Tory said that Sir Keir himself had questions to answer over the collapse of the case and the involvement of his national security adviser and Foreign Office mandarin Sir Olly Robbins in the discussions over whether China could be called an enemy. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp told a Politico event at the Conservative Party conference: 'Apparently, that was an instruction given by Olly Robbins and by Jonathan Powell. 'I can't imagine Jonathan Powell, who's one of Keir Starmer's closest and most senior advisers, would have done that without discussing it with the PM first, so Keir Starmer has some very serious questions to personally answer.' The Home Office and domestic security agency MI5 wanted the case to go ahead but the Foreign Office feared it would damage relations with China at a time when Labour is trying to rebuild links and boost trade, it has been reported. Downing Street insisted the decision to drop the case had been taken solely by the CPS 'entirely independently of the Government'. It is understood the Government's evidence in the case related to the period when the Conservatives were in power, during which ministers declined to call China an enemy. Brits have been fighting over the final supplies of alcohol in Spanish supermarkets amid 'extraordinary danger' as Storm Alice floods batter the nation. Intense downpours have ravaged south coast resorts popular with British tourists for several weeks, but Storm Alice has now brought horrific floods with 250mm of rain expected to pummel the region by Sunday. Tourists in Costa Blanca have been left stranded as flights are diverted and cancelled, while the holiday hotspot was placed on high alert with officials warning of 'extraordinary danger' with flash floods likely. Others have been trapped in cars as roads turned into fast-flowing rivers while schools shut on Friday. But Brits have been grappling for booze amid the extreme conditions as fears mount over supplies. One poster in the La Zenia Facebook group, which is popular with British expats and holidaymakers across the Alicante, said: 'If you're thinking about going to Lidl, don't do it. All the British are there to buy all alcohol they can find. 'Police need to come all the time because they're fighting for the last alcohol.' La Zenia, near Alicante, has many housing estates where expat Brits have moved to. Intense downpours have ravaged south coast resorts popular with British tourists for several weeks Others have been trapped in cars as roads turned into fast-flowing rivers while schools shut on Friday Spain's Guardia Civil rescued people trapped in cars on flooded streets late into the night Footage on social media shows Brits wading barefoot through flooded roads and emergency workers rescuing people stuck in cars late into Friday evening. Evacuations have been underway and at least 12 flights heading for Alicante-Elche airport have been diverted. The city's fire service said they carried out 31 emergency operations on Friday. Spain's Guardia Civil rescued people trapped in cars on flooded streets early on Saturday morning after Storm Alice hit the Murcia region, in the southeast of the country. Murcia and Valencia have orange and yellow weather alerts in place, while the head of Murcia's regional government has appealed for aid from the Military Emergency Unit. Flights have been delayed in airports in both regions. On Friday the Foreign Office issued a warning to Brits planning to travel to Spain, warning of 'severe' weather conditions on its eastern coast. 'Severe weather warnings are in place today in Murcia and Valencia, including the province of Alicante. Disruptions to travel are likely. If you are in the affected areas, follow the advice of the local authorities and monitor local weather updates. If you are planning to travel, check for messaging from your travel provider or airline', it said in a statement. AEMET, Spain's weather agency, wrote on X: 'Extraordinary danger. Flooding and flash floods may occur. Follow the advice of civil protection.' Rainfall totals could exceed 140 millimetres in 12 hours, especially in Valencia, the weather office said. Murcia and Valencia have orange and yellow weather alerts in place, while the head of Murcia's regional government has appealed for aid from the Military Emergency Unit On Friday the Foreign Office issued a warning to Brits planning to travel to Spain, warning of 'severe' weather conditions on its eastern coast AEMET said the red alert would be in effect from 10:00 am (0800 GMT) on Friday in Mediterranean coastal regions of the province of Alicante, as well as in the neighbouring region of Murcia Other Mediterranean coastal regions are also expected to be affected, including the neighbouring province of Murcia and the Balearic islands, with 'very heavy and persistent rainfall' was expected until Monday, AEMET added. Showers may result in local flash flooding in low-lying areas, streams and gullies, so the potential danger level of this situation is high', the agency said. The Balearic government said on Thursday it had reinforced emergency services in party island Ibiza after it was placed on an orange alert for rain and storms. Heavy rainfall began lashing down on eastern Spain on Wednesday evening and is expected to persist throughout the week. Tourists heading to Spain's Mediterranean shores have been urged to monitor local weather updates and follow official guidance. Footage shared on social media displays how heavy rainfall has already been affecting the coastal regions in eastern Spain, with videos showing cars attempting to drive down flooded roads and volunteers clearing water and mud from streets. Another video shows how a car was trapped in water after heavy rainfall. During the early hours of Friday morning, emergency services said they carried out several water pumping operations in the Valencian municipality of Alcasser and reported some fallen trees. Authorities are taking heightened measures as the storm comes nearly a year after widespread flooding in Valencia killed more than 200 people, Spain's worst natural disaster in decades. The catastrophe sparked public fury over warning systems and the emergency response. Residents continue to protest, accusing officials of having failed to provide timely alerts. Authorities are taking heightened measures as the storm comes nearly a year after widespread flooding in Valencia killed more than 200 people Heavy rains lashed the region again last month, forcing the closure of schools and universities, disrupting rail and road travel and causing localised flooding. Because a hotter atmosphere holds more water that evaporates from a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea, climate change increases the risk and intensity of flooding from extreme rainfall in the region. Almost 240 people died in the country after torrential rains last October triggered floods that swept through eastern and southeastern Spain. The most severely hit area was Valencia's southern suburbs where more than 220 people died. AMSTERDAM, Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Sungrow, global leading PV inverter and energy storage system (ESS) provider, announced last month the successful grid connection of the first 400MWh of ENGIE's 200MW/800MWh battery energy storage project in Vilvoorde, Belgium. The largest of its kind on mainland Europe, the project utilizes 320 units of Sungrow's innovative PowerTitan liquid-cooled battery storage units. Sungrow and ENGIE Complete First 400 MWh ESS Project The second and final phase of this 200MW/800MWh battery energy storage project is set to connect to the grid by the end of 2025. The two-phase development is set to enhance grid stability and provide reliable, clean energy for up to 96,000 households in Belgium. "Battery storage is one of the most critical, yet often overlooked, components of a successful energy transition. This project is a key demonstration of how Sungrow's technology provides the grid flexibility that is essential for the next phase of Europe's renewable energy journey," said Moritz Rolf, Vice President of Sungrow Europe, responsible for the business in DACH, BeNeLux, Nordics, and Turkey. "Our strategic and successful partnership with ENGIE on the Vilvoorde project, emphasizes the important role of battery storage in delivering clean power for all, and strengthens our commitment to the European market." Optimistic step forward for modern energy infrastructure The Vilvoorde project represents an optimistic step forward in modernizing Europe's energy infrastructure as the continent works towards its 2050 sustainability goals. By absorbing surplus energy during periods of high production and releasing it back to the grid when demand is high, large-scale battery storage ensures flexible, but stable electricity supply from renewable sources. This installation of a large-scale Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) serves as a blueprint for effectively integrating renewable energy into legacy infrastructure balancing the grid and mitigating issues with net congestion. Safe, smart and efficient BESS Both phases of the ENGIE project are enabled by Sungrow's PowerTitan units deployed on-site. Sungrow's BESS solutions are engineered with compact design for quick deployment and operational efficiency both of which are critical factors for large-scale infrastructure. The system's slim design optimizes land use and features intelligently connected, liquid-cooled technology, ensuring a temperature-controlled, cost-effective, and reliable system. These technological elements guarantee a safe and sustainable integration of large-scale energy storage into the power grid. "With the first series of batteries now operational in Vilvoorde, ENGIE is delivering part of the additional flexibility the electricity grid requires to balance supply and demand. The efficient construction of this battery park is only possible thanks to strong partnerships. By working hand in hand with trusted and innovative partners such as Sungrow, we can continue to accelerate the integration of renewables into the grid, and help deliver a more reliable, sustainable and affordable energy system," said Vincent Verbeke, CEO of ENGIE Belgium. Strong local presence Sungrow has established a strong local presence in the BeNeLux region, with a dedicated team providing technical support, sales, and after-sales services with its main offices as well as an RnD center in Amsterdam. The company also takes part in the important industry events like Intersolution or Laadinfra congress and hosts own events like an EV Charging Summit in Amsterdam in October. This strong local presence ensures that Sungrow can offer timely and effective solutions to its partners, reinforcing its commitment to the renewable energy sector in BeNeLux. Please find more information about the project here: CASE STUDY. About Sungrow Sungrow, a global leader in renewable energy technology, has pioneered sustainable power solutions for over 28 years. As of June 2025, Sungrow has installed 870 GW of power electronic converters worldwide. The Company is recognized as the world's most bankable PV inverter and energy storage company (BloombergNEF). Its innovations power clean energy projects across the globe, supported by a network of 520 service outlets guaranteeing excellent customer experience. At Sungrow, we're committed to bridging to a sustainable future through cutting-edge technology and unparalleled service. For more information, please visit: www.sungrowpower.com. Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2793961/Sungrow_ENGIE_BESS_First400MWh_2.jpg Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/1344575/Logo.jpg A man has been left with life-changing injuries after being shot by police during a four-hour stand-off, during which he allegedly threatened to shoot others. Police rushed to the scene in Stow Crescent, Walthamstow, around 10am yesterday after a 999 call from family members reporting that a man inside the house had a gun and was threatening others as well as harming himself. Officers believed he was alone in the house at the time, and armed units, along with trained negotiators, surrounded the address for several hours. A large police cordon was put in place as the situation escalated. Hours after, around 2pm, police barged into the property after hearing a loud bang from inside. After entering police firearms were discharged. What happened immediately before and inside the property is now the focus of an official investigation. The man was given first aid by police medics and paramedics from the London Ambulance Service before being taken to hospital. His condition has since been described as non-life-threatening but life-changing. He remains in hospital under police supervision. Police rushed to the scene in Stow Crescent, Walthamstow, around 10am yesterday Police remain at the scene, but the incident has been contained and there is no wider risk to the public Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist said: 'Our thoughts at this time are with the injured man and his family. I know this news will be concerning for the community in Walthamstow and the wider public in London. 'However, I want to reassure you, incidents where officers discharge their firearms are incredibly rare. 'It is right that there is a full investigation into the circumstances around this incident, and the Independent Office for Police Conduct is leading this. 'This process must take its course, and while that is ongoing, it would be inappropriate for us to comment further. 'Armed officers do a difficult job for London, they respond to 4,000 calls a year, placing themselves in danger to protect others. 'They make split-second decisions in incredibly difficult and challenging circumstances, and I am grateful to all of them for their professionalism and bravery. 'Our officers remain on scene, and I would like to thank residents for their assistance and cooperation throughout the day.' The Independent Office for Police Conduct (IOPC) has launched an independent investigation into the incident, following a mandatory referral from the Mets Directorate of Professional Standards. Police remain at the scene, but the incident has been contained and there is no wider risk to the public. A theme park photographer is seeking almost $1million in damages from her employer after she slipped from a rocky bank while working in the dolphin enclosure. Therese Anne Kerrins, 50, has launched a lawsuit in the Queensland District Court against Sea World's operators, Village Roadshow Theme Parks for injuries she allegedly sustained in February 2023. Ms Kerrins had been taking photos of visitors swimming with dolphins at the Gold Coast tourist attraction when she lost her footing and fell. The painful ordeal left her with numerous physical and psychological injuries, including a 'major depressive disorder', according to the lawsuit. Village Roadshow Theme Parks has indicated that it will contest the lawsuit, alleging that Ms Kerrins should have taken photos from a safer spot and that the injuries she suffered were her own fault. The operators also described her $959,488.23 claim for damages as 'excessive', the Courier Mail reported. Ms Kerrins had been taking photos for Sea World's Family Dolphin Program in a 'back pool' instead of the main one when disaster struck. Ms Kerrins, who was not familiar with the back pool, had to manoeuvre herself onto the top of rocks to take an 'acceptable' photo, the claim alleges. Sea World photographer Therese Anne Kerrins has launched a lawsuit against Village Roadshow Theme Parks over injuries suffered in 2023 Ms Kerrins had been taking photos of families swimming with dolphins at Sea World when she was injured (stock image) 'The plaintiff (Ms Kerrins) climbed to the top of a large set of rocks so that she could take photographs of the family while they were in the pool,' the lawsuit claimed. 'As she was taking photographs, she lost her footing and fell. In the course of falling, her left lower leg impacted the rocks a number of times before she fell on her left shoulder.' As she fell, Ms Kerrins' foot became lodged in rocks at the bottom of the pile which required her to forcefully yank it free, which caused abrasions and bleeding. These injuries resulted in immediate pain in her left ankle and both swelling and sharp stabbing pain, the claim alleges. It added that Ms Kerrins suffered 'complex regional pain syndrome of the left ankle [and] musculoskeletal pain of the left shoulder' as a result of her injuries. This contributed to an aggravation of her pre-existing eating disorder and 'major depressive disorder', the claim alleges. Two-and-a-half years on, Ms Kerrins continues to endure 'pain, suffering, inconvenience and loss of enjoyment of the amenities of life' due to her injuries, the claim alleges. These factors caused an initial loss of earning capacity which have extended into medical costs and still impact Ms Kerrins to this day, it added. The Sea World photographer claims she was injured while working in February 2023 Sea World operators Village Roadshow Theme Parks will contest the 'excessive' claim, claiming that Ms Kerrins was responsible for her own injuries In its defence, Village Roadshow claimed that Ms Kerrins could have taken photos from a 'flat, level ground surface' or a sand bank. If neither of these options were viable, Village Roadshow claimed she should have requested the dolphin trainer move to a more suitable position. The theme park operator claimed that no other photographer had ever taken photos from the rocky bank and that it was 'unnecessary for the plaintiff to position herself on the set of rocks'. It also alleged that Ms Kerrins fell because of a 'syncopal event', or due to her fainting. Village Roadshow conceded that Ms Kerrins had 'some pain and suffering' but insisted her claim for damages was 'excessive and inconsistent with evidence'. Daily Mail Australia has contacted Village Roadshow Theme Parks for comment. UK drugs firm AstraZeneca has agreed a deal with Donald Trump to lower drugs prices for US patients - as the NHS faces rocketing bills for pills. The British-Swedish company will now charge a 'Most Favored Nation' rate, matching the lowest price offered to other wealthy nations, to Medicaid, America's health insurance offered to those on the lowest incomes. The deal was announced late on Friday and will grant the pharmaceutical giant relief from tariffs after Trump threatened to introduce an additional 100 percent levy on drug imports. The agreement, which follows a similar accord announced last month with US giant Pfizer, will also see AstraZeneca participate in a website called TrumpRx that would allow direct drugs purchasing at reduced prices. It comes as it was warned this week that the NHS could face a 20 billion yearly increase in its drugs bill as ministers close in on a deal which would increase NHS England's 'value for money' spending threshold by 25 percent. The UK government has admitted higher prices will be 'necessary' to stave off the threats from the US and industry, and negotiations are at an 'advanced' stage. Some drugs manufacturers, including the firm behind weight-loss treatment Mounjaro, are already predicting large price increases as a result of Donald Trump threatening tariffs in a global drugs price war. AstraZeneca bosses delivered a stark message earlier this week that investment would be reduced unless there is a settlement. UK drugs firm AstraZeneca has agreed a deal with Donald Trump to lower drugs prices for US patients - as the NHS faces rocketing bills for pills Trump has threatened 100 percent tariffs on pharma imports unless prices are made 'fairer' In the US, the new deal will see the prices of some drugs lowered, making them more accessible for poorer Americans. Mehmet Oz, the Trump-appointed leader of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said the drugmaker would also provide 'massively' discounted drugs for lung disease. In exchange, Trump administration officials agreed to a three-year delay on new tariffs on AstraZeneca, which had previously announced plans to invest $50 billion in the United States in response to the looming threat. 'Most of our products are locally manufactured, but we need to transfer the remaining part to this country,' said AstraZeneca Chief Executive Pascal Soriot, who appeared with Trump, Oz and other officials at a White House event early Friday night. In a statement Mr Soriot said: 'Every year AstraZeneca treats millions of Americans living with cancer and chronic diseases and, as a result of today's agreement, many patients will access life-changing medicines at lower prices. 'This new approach also helps safeguard America's pioneering role as a global powerhouse in innovation and developing the next generation of medicines. It is now essential other wealthy countries step up their contribution to fund innovation.' According to Politico, the offer briefed to Washington would potentially allow Brits access to more expensive drugs - but would also drive up costs. The UK's National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (Nice) assesses medicines based on a number of factors including clinical effectiveness, cost effectiveness and the overall cost to the NHS. It uses quality-adjusted life years (QALYs), which combines both the length of life gained from a treatment and its impact on quality of life, represented as a number. In general, Nice considers medicines costing between 20,000 and 30,000 per additional QALY gained to represent good value for money for the NHS. The cost of 'King Kong' fat jab Mounjaro has almost tripled in Britain after Donald Trump sparked a global drugs price war Increasing the threshold would make it easier for NHS patients to access more expensive drugs, but it would also mean that the health service pays more for medicines overall. It comes after science minister Lord Patrick Vallance conceded that an increase in the price the NHS pays for medicines will be 'necessary' to prevent pharmaceutical investments from continuing to leave the UK. In an early warning sign, Mounjaro manufacturer Lilly announced in August it would more than double the wholesale price of the weight-loss jab in Britain, pushing the cost for private users to 4,000 per year. The list price of a 15mg KwikPen, which is the highest dose available and enough for four weekly shots, has increased from 122 to 330 a rise of 170 per cent. The cost of a 2.5mg pen, the lowest dose available, has risen 45 per cent from 92 to 133 from September 1, the US firm said. AstraZeneca's agreement comes on the heels of a drug price deal between the US government and Pfizer on September 30 that also included three-year tariff relief. Sky-high drug prices are a perennial source of widespread ire in the United States, and have sparked numerous legislative and administrative actions the impact of which can be difficult to determine. The White House announcement on Pfizer did not detail all of the drugs expected to see price cuts. An administration fact sheet listed three medications, but none are among Pfizer's top-selling products in the United States. Shares of Pfizer and other drugmakers surged after the September 30 announcement, suggesting they are not viewed as a major drag on profits. 'From a company perspective, you have more visibility going forward,' said CFRA Research analyst Sel Hardy. 'They know they'll not be facing tariffs for three years.' Hardy said it was too early to discern the breadth of the Trump administration's impact on drug prices in a broad sense. Part of that will be determined by pricing negotiations in November on 15 leading drugs under legislation signed by former president Joe Biden in 2022. There are new hints that Donald Trump will supply Ukraine with American long-range Tomahawk missiles which could reach Moscow. Ukraine's foreign ministry said Washington and Kyiv are engaged in 'a very detailed and active discussion about the possibility of providing these missiles'. The weapons could be a game changer for Ukraine, allowing precision attacks at Russian military and energy assets far from the frontline. The jet-powered, subsonic cruise missile costing up to 3 million each have been requested by Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky. They have a range of 1,500 miles and could hit targets around both Moscow and St Petersburg. 'Currently, the Ukrainian and American teams are working to coordinate all these details, discussing all the nuances regarding in what forms and configurations the missiles can be provided to Ukraine,' said foreign ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi. Putin has labelled a Tomahawk deployment as 'monstrous' and said such a move would destroy his relationship with Trump. But Trump has expressed anger that Putin goes on killing and refuses to strike a peace deal. There are new hints that Donald Trump will supply Ukraine with American long-range Tomahawk missiles This came as Russia overnight staged new ruthless attacks on Ukrainian electricity facilities, triggering a fresh wave of blackouts In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, emergency services personnel work to extinguish a fire following a Russian attack in Odesa, Ukraine this week This came as Russia staged new ruthless attacks on Ukrainian electricity facilities, triggering a fresh wave of blackouts. Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the attack as 'one of the largest concentrated strikes' against Ukraine's energy infrastructure. Power was restored to over 800,000 residents in Kyiv on Saturday after Russian attacks caused blackouts across the country. Ukraine's largest private energy firm, DTEK, said today that 'the main work to restore power supply' had been completed, but that some localised outages were still affecting Kyiv following Friday's attacks. Meanwhile, Russian drone and missile strikes wounded at least 20 people in Kyiv, damaged residential buildings and triggered blackouts across swaths of Ukraine early Friday. Russia's Defense Ministry on Friday said the strikes had targeted energy facilities supplying Ukraine's military. It did not give details of those facilities, but said Russian forces used Kinzhal hypersonic missiles and strike drones against them. The energy sector has been a key battleground since Russia launched its all-out invasion more than three years ago. File photo: A Tomahawk missile is launched over the Mediterranean sea in March 2011 Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko described the attack as 'one of the largest concentrated strikes' against Ukraine's energy infrastructure Each year, Russia has tried to cripple the Ukrainian power grid before the bitter winter season, apparently hoping to erode public morale. Winter temperatures run from late October through March, with January and February the coldest months. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly address Friday that Russia was taking advantage of the world being 'almost entirely focused on the prospect of establishing peace in the Middle East,' and called for strengthening Ukraine's air defense systems and tighter sanctions on Russia. 'Russian assets must be fully used to strengthen our defense and ensure recovery,' he said in the video, posted to X. Monty Python's famous fish-slapping dance ended up saving Sir Michael Palin from gun-toting Venezuelan paramilitaries, the comedian has revealed. Palin, 82, had been shooting his Channel 5 documentary in the troubled South American country when he found himself in hot water. Armed soldiers stopped the crew from filming before taking Palin captive and holding him at gunpoint. In a desperate attempt to save himself, Palin told the paramilitaries he was an English comedian, The Times reported. A quick search on YouTube led the gunmen to the fish-slapping dance from Monty Python's Flying Circus. 'Then they realised that we were not a threat in any shape or form and they let us on our way,' Palin said. Speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, the Python star revealed it was the second time the 'very silly' sketch had helped him escape trouble in a totalitarian state. Palin, who was discussing his new Venezuelan travel book, said he and his crew had travelled to Sabaneta - the birthplace of the late president Hugo Chavez - where a statue of the Socialist leader stands as a gift to the nation from Vladimir Putin. Monty Python's famous fish-slapping dance ended up saving Sir Michael Palin from gun-toting Venezuelan paramilitaries, the comedian has revealed Palin, 82, had been shooting his Channel 5 documentary in the troubled South American country when he found himself in hot water Armed soldiers stopped the crew from filming before taking Palin captive and holding him at gunpoint. Speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, the Python star revealed it was the second time the 'very silly' sketch had helped him escape trouble in a totalitarian state. Pictured: Sir Michael Palin They were stopped from filming and soon confronted by an armed squad of paramilitaries, who rifled through their belongings and took them prisoner. Eventually, Palin and his team persuaded their captors to let them go to a nearby restaurant after complaining of hunger. The paramilitaries, rifles in hand, sat at one table, while Palin and his crew sat nervously at another. It was there that the gunmen looked up Palin's name on YouTube after being told he was a comedian. The first clip they found was an old interview with John Cleese, Malcolm Muggeridge, the Bishop of Southwark, and Palin. 'They looked at this and said 'he's not funny',' Palin recalled. 'It was one of the first times I'd been really serious on television, so that didn't do me any good.' He then slipped them a note suggesting they search for 'Monty Python' - and everything changed. 'They got the fish-slapping dance, which is a very silly thing, and they realised that we were not a threat,' he explained. The author and travel presenter said the same sketch had also 'saved' him years earlier, when he was stuck for hours at an airport in North Korea while filming his first Channel 5 documentary. Under constant watch by a female guide and interpreter, Palin said the pair had little to talk about and were growing bored - until he showed her the fish-slapping dance. 'She ended up roaring with laughter,' he said. Palin told the festival he welcomed the news that Venezuelan opposition politician Maria Corina Machado had been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her dogged fight to rescue her country from authoritarian rule. Machado, 58, has been in hiding in Venezuela for the past year following elections that authoritarian leftist President Nicolas Maduro is accused of stealing. A heartbroken family has paid tribute to a 'miracle' young girl who overcame open heart surgery before dying suddenly following an incident at a primary school this week. Eight-year-old Olivia-Grace Huxter passed away in hospital after a 'freak accident' at the 99-pupil Penrhys Primary School in Ferndale, Rhondda, on Wednesday. Speaking to the Mail, her family told how 'determined, brave' Olivia-Grace, who was 'the centre of our family', was loved and adored by all. The youngster, who loved the Christmas season so much that her mother would sing Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer every night to help her sleep, suffered a 'tragic incident' from which she did not recover. Now her family has revealed how Olivia-Grace previously overcame major open heart surgery and pneumonia that was so severe doctors warned that she may not survive. In a statement to the Mail, they said: 'Olivia-Grace was our perfect miracle baby. Her superpower was her incredible ability to make anyone feel better, whether it was family, a friend or simply a stranger in the street or down an aisle at Asda. 'She loved to dance and sing. One day to country and western, the next day to Stormzy. 'She over came major open heart surgery and pneumonia even though the doctors thought she might not battle through it. Eight-year-old Olivia-Grace Huxter passed away in hospital after a 'freak accident' at the 99-pupil Penrhys Primary School in Ferndale, Rhondda, on Wednesday On Saturday her devastated family told the Mail how Olivia-Grace previously overcame open heart surgery and pneumonia that was so severe doctors feared she would not survive 'She was determined, brave and would put the strongest man to shame. She was a very gentle soul but had the ability to flip a dining room table at the slightest inconvenience. 'She had everyone wrapped around her little finger and she knew it. You couldnt not smile around her. If you were having a bad day, Olivia-Grace was the one you needed to see, she was the magic that could fix anything. She was the centre of our family.' The family has launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for Olivia-Grace's funeral. So far, members of the public have donated more than 9,000. Sharing a picture of little Olivia-Grace with Santa, her family added: 'Her favourite time of year was Christmas. Her bedtime song was Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer all year round and she had her Christmas tree up in her bedroom from August. 'She loved the magic of Christmas, but for us she was the magic of Christmas.' They also thanked emergency service staff for their efforts to save Olivia-Grace's life. 'She went to Our Ladys and Penrhys Schools where she was adored and loved as if she was their own,' her family said. 'We cant thank them enough for the love and compassion that they always showed her. 'We also want to thank the paramedics, police and hospital staff who took care of our little girl and gave us the opportunity to say goodbye. 'Go dance with the Angels baby girl.' The family has launched a GoFundMe page to raise money for Olivia-Grace's funeral The tragedy occurred at Penrhys Primary School (pictured) and was the result of a 'freak accident' The tragedy occurred on Wednesday at Penrhys Primary School in south Wales. A relative said that no-one was to blame for the 'freak accident'. South Wales Police were called to the school on Wednesday and said in a statement that there were no suspicious circumstances. An investigation into the incident on behalf of the coroner is under way. The force added in a statement officers would not be revealing the youngster's cause of death until a post-mortem examination is completed. In a post on Facebook after Olivia-Grace's death, her devastated mother Melanie said: 'My beautiful beautiful baby girl, I can't eat, I can't sleep without you. 'I'm so grateful I was able to hold you and sing you to sleep one last time with your favourite bedtime song. 'You were wanted, admired and absolutely adored by everyone lucky enough to have known you. 'I don't know what life will look like now. I love you to the moon and back twice.' Olivia-Grace's aunt, Adrianne, added in a touching online tribute: 'Words can't express how broken I feel right now, I keep wanting it all to be a nightmare and for someone to wake me up from it. 'I am going to miss your smile, your cuddles, your kisses and most of all us dancing in the kitchen, fly high beautiful angel and rest in peace.' South Wales Police said they had been called to the school on Wednesday but there were no suspicious circumstances surrounding Olivia-Grace's death Penrhys Primary School initially shut to all pupils following the incident, but reopened on Friday. In a post on the school's Facebook page on Wednesday afternoon the headteacher thanked parents for their messages of support and confirmed the school would be closed after the tragedy. It said: 'Due to the traumatic event that happened at our lovely school this afternoon we will be closed for all children tomorrow. 'School will be open for children and staff again on Friday.' Local councillor for Tylorstown and Ynyshir Julie Edwards said the matter was being investigated by South Wales Police and urged residents to not speculate to stop misinformation spreading. She added: 'I've been made aware of a tragic incident which occurred in Penrhys on Wednesday. South Wales Police are fully investigating the matter and more details will be released shortly.' A spokesman for South Wales Police said: 'South Wales Police is investigating the sudden death of an eight-year-old girl in Ferndale. 'Emergency services were called to Penrhys Primary School in Ferndale just after 2pm on Wednesday, October 8, to reports of a medical episode. The girl was taken to hospital where she later died. 'There are no suspicious circumstances and an investigation on behalf of the coroner is now under way.' A 12-month pill testing trial in NSW has come under scrutiny after a popular music festival recently recorded more than a dozen drug overdoses. About 60,000 music fans flocked to the Knockout Festival at Sydney Olympic Park last Saturday, where at least 14 suspected overdoses were reported. NSW Health confirmed five attendees were rushed to hospital as 'urgent medical transfers' while another three were later admitted due to drug use at the event, the Daily Telegraph reported. It comes just two years after Jason Lee, 26, and Edward Lui, 21, died in separate drug-related incidents at the Knockout Festival. Pill testing was conducted at last Saturday's event as part of the NSW government trial introduced last December. Just 319 of the 60,000 festivalgoers took advantage of the trial to check the substances inside the illicit drugs they had planned to take. It has raised questions about whether the trial will continue into 2026 with NSW Opposition Leader Mark Speakman claiming there was 'no evidence it saved lives'. 'In fact it may encourage a false sense of security,' he told the publication. At least 14 suspected overdoses were reported at the Knockout Festival in Sydney Olympic Park last weekend Questions have been raised about the NSW pill testing trial NSW Health Minister Ryan Park said that the trial gives health workers the opportunity to intervene before someone takes a drug. 'It may be that an individual who intends to use an illicit substance will do so, irrespective of the warnings and intervention of health workers through the drug-checking initiative,' he said. 'Ultimately, this trial is based on the reasoning that intervention from health workers through drug checking is preferable than no intervention at all.' Queensland became the first Australian state to ban pill testing last month. Trials continue in NSW and Victoria, while the ACT, the first Australian state/territory to trial drug checking will continue pill testing until June 2027. An NHS doctor has sparked fury after spreading a conspiracy theory that the Manchester attack was a 'false flag operation' designed to boost sympathy for Israel. Dr Asad Khan, a respiratory consultant from Manchester, posted on Instagram and in a Facebook group casting doubt on the motive for the terror attack, which claimed the lives of two Jewish people last week. But he is far from the only NHS employee accused of anti-Semitism . Dundee GP Dr Shamroz Afghan (pictured below) called for Zionism to be eradicated just ten days after the October 7 attack, in which Hamas killed some 1,200 people and kidnapped 251. And in December Dr Oyin Abiki, from NHS North East, also described Hamas as a 'liberation army'. In light of these vile posts, we are asking Mail readers whether they think that NHS staff who similarly downplay the October 7 atrocities should be sacked? In yesterday's poll, Mail readers were asked: Does Donald Trump deserve to win the Nobel Peace Prize? Some 51 per cent of you said 'yes' and 49 per cent said 'no'. A school board meeting in Maine descended into chaos when residents began to strip in protest of the board's decision to uphold a federal law protecting transgender students. The meeting extended into late hours on Wednesday, with multiple community members speaking about the Augusta School District's vote to maintain expanded Title IX policies, which prohibit discrimination based on gender identity. Maine resident Nicholas Blanchard, who previously hit the headlines for his anti-transgender rants, took the podium towards the end of the meeting and chastised the school board. 'You guys had the opportunity tonight to be heroes and you guys became zeroes,' Blanchard said as he slammed the board's decision to follow the Maine Human Rights Act, which prohibits discrimination based on gender identity. As he spoke, two women and a man stood up and took off their clothes while others looked on in shock. A board member attempted to quell the chaos, but Blanchard interrupted, stating that the demonstrators were 'covered,' and questioned the board: 'You feel uncomfortable?!' 'Yeah, you feel uncomfortable right? That's what these young girls feel like every time a young boy changes in front of them.' Blanchard accused the board of not caring for students' safety and prioritizing politics over the safety of girls. Nicholas Blanchard chastised the school board for not obliging with the Trump administration's executive order on policies for transgender students during a meeting in Augusta, Maine People stood up and began to strip during the meeting as Blanchard spoke Nicholas Blanchard continued to speak and berate the board as people took their clothes off During the meeting's livestream, a message appeared on the screen advising viewer discretion. The shocking scene unfolded after hours of commentary from the community on the topic. Others spoke in favor of following the Maine Human Rights Act, with a high-schooler advocating for transgender students. 'When we talk about rolling back the policies, we are sending a message to students,' high school senior Matteo Hardy said. 'Its saying who they are is up for discussion, and their safety is negotiable. We should focus on making sure students feel supported in their education.' Augusta School Board Member Charles Hicks noted that Trump's executive order contradicted Maine state law over whether Title IX prohibited discrimination against transgender students. 'This is going to be pretty unpopular with some of you, but I'm going say it. Executive order is not the law until it has gone through the process,' Hicks told the community. Board member James Orr brought the amendment forward, which sought to align district policies with Trump's executive order recognizing only two sexes as male and female. The amendment also stated that all private spaces and applicable extracurricular activities should be assigned by sex. The board was tied 4-4 on the resolution, with the chair casting the tie-breaking vote in favor of keeping the district's policy in line with Maine's state law. Blanchard previously criticized the board during a meeting in April, and he was later removed from the podium Daily Mail reached out to Nicholas Blanchard and the Augusta School Board for comment. Title IX was passed in 1972 to prohibit discrimination based on sex in education programs and activities that receive federal assistance. The law has come under scrutiny as to whether it allows transgender students to participate in sports. In 2021, the Biden administration expanded the definition of sex-based discrimination to include gender identity. However, the Trump administration issued an executive order this year defining 'sex' as a biological classification excluding gender identity. Maine enshrined transgender rights in the Maine Human Rights Act, which has caused controversy over whether schools are obliged to follow the federal or state law on the topic. Maine's state government has fought against repeated demands from the Trump administration to comply. In April, the US Justice Department sued the Maine Department of Education on the issue. The state's attorney general filed a legal response denying the Justice Department's claims in May. As the dispute continues, some Maine schools have decided to roll back protections for transgender students to be in line with the Trump administration's policy. Augusta School District includes four elementary schools and a middle/high school The issue has divided residents in Augusta, disrupting multiple community meetings. Blanchard attended another meeting in April on the topic in a MAGA hat, where he compared Maine to 'Communist China.' Blanchard clashed with chair Martha Witham as he took aim at the president of the Maine Principals' Association, Kim Liscomb, and was ordered off the podium. Schools across the nation have been met with similar outbursts during tense debates on the topic of transgender girls participating in women's sports. Last month, Beth Bourne, the chair of Moms for Liberty in Yolo County, California, also stripped down at a school board meeting. She told the board that she wanted to give them an idea of what it looked like when she undressed and stripped down to reveal a bikini. Board members objected to her shocking act, but Bourne fired back that her protest was allowed. New York Attorney General Letitia James is being ruthlessly mocked for smug posts she made taunting Donald Trump about his legal woes following her own indictment. James is charged with alleged mortgage fraud over a loan she secured for a property in Norfolk, Virginia. The charges are widely viewed as retribution by Trump after James successfully led a civil fraud case against him in 2023. The attorney general did not waste the opportunity to stick in the knife in at the time, with a series of jeering posts on social media. In one penned in February last year, she said: 'Roses are red. Violets are blue. No one is above the law. Even when you think the rules dont apply to you. Happy Valentines Day!' Days later, Trump was barred from operating his business in New York for three years and was found liable for more than $350 million in damages. The verdict was overturned by a higher court in August but James plans to appeal. But now James' own words have come back to bite her and she has been mercilessly trolled online. Congresswoman Elise Sefanik was among those leading the pile on. She said: 'No one is above the law. Letitia James is going to find out how true her own words are. For years, I fought to hold her accountable for abusing the courts to tear down Donald Trump. Now she faces prison for her alleged crimes.' James mocked Trump in February 2024 over his indictment Trump's supporters are using her post to mock her over her indictment MAGA acolyte and conservative influencer Benny Johnson re-shared James' old post with the caption: 'This aged perfectly.' 'Roses are red. Violets are blue. If you commit mortgage fraud, a grand-jury will indict you!' one online commenter joked. 'If you didn't complain about this blatant politicization and mocking of the justice system, then please spare me your complaints today,' wrote another conservative journalist. 'Karma is fascinating to watch in real time,' remarked another. 'Loud mouth Letitia James tweets comeback to haunt her,' another person wrote. Even CNN's Anderson Cooper has gone after James for her criticism of Trump. He remarked that her 2018 vow to judicially target the president was 'not a great look.' 'I mean that's not a great look for somebody who has just been elected, who just been campaigning, who hasn't even looked, I guess deeply, at any evidence,' Cooper said. A federal grand jury in Virginia indicted James for bank fraud and false statements to a financial institution. If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in prison per count, up to $1 million per count, and forfeiture. James stood tall in response to the indictment in a video response posted Thursday. US Representative Elise Stefanik was among those piling onto James over the tweets 'This is nothing more than a continuation of the president's desperate weaponization of our justice system,' she wrote on X. 'I am not fearful - I am fearless,' she declared, vowing: 'We will fight these baseless charges aggressively and my office will continue to fiercely protect New Yorkers and their rights.' In her video, James also accused the president of 'forcing federal law enforcement agencies to do his bidding, all because I did my job as the New York State Attorney General. 'These charges are baseless and the president's own public statements make clear that his only goal is political retribution at any cost,' she continued. Trump himself and many of his supporter's claimed that his own indictment was also politically motivated. James is expected to make her first appearance in federal court on October 24. Featuring Megan Thee Stallion, Wale, Sherri Shepherd, Abby Phillip, Lisa Vidal, Dr. Jay Barnett and More. BLHF, in Partnership with Prince George's County Council Chair Edward P. Burroughs III, Will Present the Can We Talk? Multi-Cultural Arts & Wellness Summit To Recognize World Mental Health Day with Three Days of Culture, Healing, and Community, October 10-12, 2025 at National Harbor, MD. NATIONAL HARBOR, Md., Oct. 11, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF), founded by Academy Awardnominated actress, producer, author, entrepreneur, and mental health advocate Taraji P. Henson in partnership with Prince George's County Council Chair Edward P. Burroughs III, proudly announces the return of its transformative 5th AnnualCan We Talk?(CWT) Multicultural Arts & Wellness Summit, taking place October 1012, 2025 at National Harbor. The summit will honor World Mental Health Day (Oct. 10) with a three-day experience blending art, culture, and healing to break down mental health stigma in marginalized communities. The Summit convenes therapists, wellness practitioners, cultural leaders, policymakers, celebrities, and community members for an immersive three-day experience centered in culture, healing, belonging, global wellness practices and will feature a World Art Bazaar. Made possible in part through funding provided by the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission, Department of Parks and Recreation, Prince George's County. Rooted in BLHF's mission to eradicate the stigma around mental health in marginalized communities, the Summit has become a cultural homecominga space where stories are shared, ancient traditions honored, and families and communities strengthened. On Sunday, October 12th - BLHF will present the inaugural "i AM The Table" Benefit Brunch: Hosted by Taraji P. Henson with celebrity guests; Megan Thee Stallion (Three-time, Grammy award-winning superstar, entrepreneur and philanthropist), Wale (Artist, Entrepreneur), Sherri Shepherd (Actress, Comedian, Emmy-winning Daytime Talk Show Host), Abby Phillip (CNN Anchor), Lisa Vidal (Actress, Producer), Dr. Jay Barnett (Author, Mental Health Expert). Through inspiring conversations, our guests will honor tradition, uplift resilience, and celebrate joy. "Humans need Humans," said Taraji P. Henson, Founder of BLHF. "We want communities everywhere to collectively build tables of joy. We're creating spaces that honor safety, belonging and dignity, where people feel seen, and empowered to heal, here at home and in communities around the world." "I'm honored to partner with the Boris L. Henson Foundation on our biggest event to date," said Prince George's County Council Chair Edward Burroughs. "At the close of the weekend, I will be making an exciting announcement regarding a substantial extension of our partnership that will bring meaningful and lasting benefits to Prince George's County. BLHF exemplifies a true dedication to its mission, demonstrating its commitment through transformative action. Together we are not just envisioning change, we are making it a reality." Tracie Jade Jenkins, Co-Founder and Executive Director of the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation, states: "The 'Can We Talk?' Summit is both a community celebration and a global call to action. We need each other now more than ever. Behind every number is a heartbeat. A dreamer. A survivor. Someone who deserves not only to survive, but to thrive. Together, leaning on the traditions of those who came before us, we want to remember our power to heal both individually and collectively. We will raise funds to support wellness resources for communities in need." Event Highlights Friday, October 10 World Mental Health Day Panel Discussions & Healing Circles: Groundbreaking conversations such as "When the Village Feels Divided: Bridging Beliefs & Generations" and "All God's Children Got Wings", "They Look Like Us", with Healing circles that feature cultural practices such as Ring Shouts and Afro-Indigenous Choctaw sound medicine. Groundbreaking conversations such as and with Healing circles that feature cultural practices such as Ring Shouts and Afro-Indigenous Choctaw sound medicine. Networking & Concert: An exclusive networking reception at MGM National Harbor. Summit participants will attend an electrifying concert to end the evening. Saturday, October 11 Art & Integrative Wellness Activations: Workshops across National Harbor featuring over 20 traditional multicultural healing practices, including Japanese forest bathing, Capoeira, and a Heritage Aroma Bar. Workshops across National Harbor featuring over 20 traditional multicultural healing practices, including Japanese forest bathing, Capoeira, and a Heritage Aroma Bar. World Art Bazaar: Exhibitors presenting multicultural art, crafts, and therapeutic resources. Sunday, October 12 Signature Event "i AM The Table" Benefit Brunch: Hosted by Taraji P. Henson with live jazz, red carpet arrivals, an intimate VIP experience and inspiring conversations with special guests; Megan Thee Stallion, Sherri Shepherd, Abby Phillip, Lisa Vidal, Wale, and Dr. Jay Barnett. A Cultural Movement in Mental Wellness Corporate partners, sponsors, and community allies are invited to join this cultural milestone. Every conversation plants seeds of transformation, and every dollar raised fuels BLHF's mission of breaking down mental health stigma and building lasting resilience in marginalized communities. About the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF) Founded in 2018 by Taraji P. Henson and Tracie Jade Jenkins, the Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF) honors the legacy of Taraji's father, Boris Lawrence Henson, a Vietnam veteran who battled untreated mental health challenges. Born from personal experience and a lack of culturally relevant support, BLHF is dedicated to destigmatizing mental health in BIPOC and underrepresented communities. Through culturally competent therapy referrals, wellness resources, awareness campaigns, and educational initiatives, BLHF provides vital support and empowers individuals to prioritize their well-being. With a trusted reputation and unwavering commitment, the foundation continues to break barriers, promote acceptance, and expand access to mental health care. Website:www.borislhensonfoundation.org Social Media: Media Contact: Priscilla Clarke Clarke PR Global, LLC [email protected] 202-723-2200 Photos: https://www.prlog.org/13104427 Press release distributed by PRLog SOURCE Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation A conservative influencer isn't backing down after she was berated for wearing a Charlie Kirk shirt in public. Cassie Clark's content usually doesn't skew political, but after getting berated in front of her daughter for wearing a red Charlie Kirk shirt that read 'freedom' across the chest and featured the late influencer's name and signature, that changed. On September 28, a man harassed her for wearing the shirt and told her Kirk hated people like him. She also received mean looks from another person in a different interaction all because of her attire, she told Fox News Digital. 'A part of me didnt believe how hated conservatives were until this morning,' she wrote in a now-viral X post, which has garnered 21.2million views. 'He started just berating me that Charlie Kirk didn't like people like him. Every time I would try to respond, he would start speaking over me,' she told Fox News Digital. 'I was frustrated, and I wrote a post about it [which] blew up.' In the post, Clark said she was 'disgusted' by the behavior. 'Want a reason to hate me?' she wrote. 'I am a Constitutional Conservative. I am a Christian. And I am not going to be silent anymore. 'I AM CHARLIE KIRK.' Cassie Clark usually spends her time celebrating the State of North Carolina as an eighth generation native and sharing how great it is with her followers. But Clark's feed took a different turn on September 28 after a man harassed her for wearing a red Charlie Kirk shirt She was berated multiple times in front of her children throughout the day by others who disagreed with her alliance with Kirk's brand In a follow-up post, Clark bared down on speaking out, saying that she will be sharing more political content. She also hosts bipartisan discussions on Thursdays, she revealed. 'Though, I never had any intentions of becoming political these days youll find a little local political commentary and interviews on my page too,' she wrote. 'I'm sweet - but Im sassy. So be warned, I clap back. If you can handle the heat - well be great friends.' The Daily Mail reached out to Clark for comment. Kirk was fatally shot in the neck at the age of 31 at a Turning Point USA event in Utah on September 10. The father-of-two, known for his fierce MAGA views and combative debates with college kids across the country, collapsed immediately after being hit in the neck by a single shot from about 200 yards. Kirk was answering a question about mass shootings mere seconds before he was struck. He was rushed to the hospital in a critical condition, but was declared dead two-and-a-half hours later. Tyler Robinson, 22, has been arrested for Kirk's murder. Kirk was fatally shot in the neck at the age of 31 at a Turning Point USA event in Utah on September 10 'Want a reason to hate me?' she wrote. 'I am a Constitutional Conservative. I am a Christian. And I am not going to be silent anymore. I AM CHARLIE KIRK' Tyler Robinson, 22, has been arrested for Kirk's murder He was taken into custody 33 hours after the shooting. He was ultimately caught after being handed in by his father and a local minister, rather than through direct police intervention. Robinson is said to have let off one round from a bolt-action rifle before making use of the chaos that ensued to make his escape. Robinson fled the scene and traveled some 250 miles south to his home in St. George, Utah, eluding capture for nearly two full days. In the hours he remained free, Robinson messaged friends on Discord, openly admitting he was the shooter, and exchanged messages with his transgender lover, revealing details about the murder weapon and the attack. He now faces capital murder charges and the possibility of the death penalty. Fears of a serial killer continue to consume Houston after the discovery of 23 bodies in the city's bayous this year - and a retired detective has now offered his eerie perspective on the mystery murders. The rumors around America's fourth-largest city started in late September after officials announced that five dead bodies had been found over five days. Houston police claimed that took the city's total for 2025 to 14 deaths. However, the real number of deaths for the year was 22, KPRC revealed using medical examiner records, and a new body found Wednesday would bring that figure to 23. Houston authorities, including mayor John Whitmire, have forcefully denied the possibility of a serial killer. Whitmire said on September 23: 'Enough of misinformation [and] wild speculation by either social media, elected officials, candidates, the media. 'We do not have any evidence that there is a serial killer loose in Houston, Texas.' However Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and criminal justice professor at Penn State Lehigh Valley, is not buying it. Serial killer rumors continue swirling around Houston after the discovery of 23 bodies, including 20-year-old Jade McKissic (pictured), in the city's bayous this year Joseph Giacalone, a retired NYPD sergeant and criminal justice professor at Penn State Lehigh Valley, believes that the deaths being a 'coincidence' is 'unlikely' At least 22 bodies have been recovered from Houston's bayous in 2025 - and a new body found on Wednesday would bring that number to 23, just one less than 2024's total 'Something is afoot,' he told Fox News. 'A coincidence? Unlikely.' The former detective said there was still more work to be done to resolve the 23 deaths. Giacalone said: 'A careful inspection of each case is warranted, including the 48 hours prior to the discovery of their disappearance.' Police said that 24 bodies had been discovered last year, meaning only one less has been found in 2025 until now. The most recent individual was found Wednesday in White Oak Bayou at 100 Marie Street around 9.10am, the Houston Police Department said. There were no 'obvious signs of foul play' on the body, which was recovered by a dive team, and autopsy results and cause of death by the medical examiner were pending. The Daily Mail reached out to Houston Police and the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences, which serves as the medical examiner, for further comment about when their respective investigations and autopsies might be concluded. Houston Police said there were no new updates to provide. Giacalone is not the only one who does not believe Houston authorities about the bayou deaths. Kevin Gannon, a retired NYPD sergeant, told Fox News that he believed the bayou deaths could be connected to the smiley face killings. The smiley face killings is a theory that claims young, college-aged men found dead across the US were murdered by one or more serial killers. Gannon said: 'Weve never seen drowning numbers like this before, especially with a drowning occurring every other day in the same location.' He did not provide any evidence to back up his claims, and the FBI has previously rejected the smiley face killings theory. Gannon added: 'This is an aberration and not the normal age of our 700-plus 'potential victims' but that doesnt mean they couldnt be involved in killing these older individuals also, as they feel like they are pretty invincible right now and can act with impunity due to the police response.' Around the city, Houston residents have launched their own Scooby Doo-style hunts for the supposed mystery murderer. The far-fetched efforts to track down the serial killer have been documented across social media. Giacalone, the ex-detective, said still more work needed to be done to resolve the 23 deaths. A body was recovered from White Oak Bayou on October 8 The most recent individual was found Wednesday in White Oak Bayou at 100 Marie Street around 9.10am TikTok user Darius Stcyr said: Lets set up a trap. As you know, we have a serial killer on the loose.' He added: Just the thought that could possibly be my baby girl one day [who] gets snatched up and found in a bayou. That really bothers me, you know? 'The police is clearly having a problem doing their job. Im not understanding after the first body. Why arent there people staking out and watching? The first individual found last month was Jade Elise McKissic, 20, who studied at the University of Houston. McKissic had been seen leaving a local bar four days earlier, leaving her cellphone behind and going to a gas station next door to buy a drink, the Houston Police homicide division said. She then walked towards Brays Bayou, where her body was discovered on September 15 around 10am. Police said there were no signs of trauma or foul play. Houston Police said there were no 'obvious signs of foul play' on the newly-found body Lauren Johnson, who sang with McKissic in her youth church's praise team, previously told the Daily Mail: 'Jade was such a light in our room. She was talented and always had a smile on her face. 'Jade was also a great friend to me, whom I looked up to for her ambition and her "go-get-it" attitude. I miss her so much, and I hope her family finds closure on everything regarding her loss.' The latest three bodies to be identified were Seth Hansen, 34; Arnulfo Alvarado, 63; and Michaela Miller, age unavailable, per the Houston Chronicle citing the medical examiner's office. Hansen's body was discovered on September 16 - one day after McKissic - in White Oak Bayou around 1.25pm. Two days later, Alvarado was found in Buffalo Bayou at 400 Jensen Drive around 2pm. Police captain Salam Zia said authorities had not found 'any kind of typical pattern' in the five bodies discovered between September 15-20. Houston mayor John Whitmire previously said: 'We do not have any evidence that there is a serial killer loose in Houston, Texas' Krista Gehring told the Daily Mail that serial killers tend to have a 'cooling off period' and 'signatures' with how they kill Zia said: 'It runs the gamut [of] genders, ethnicities, age range.' Other bodies and dates of death identified by the Houston Chronicle were: Douglas Swearingen, 44, found on January 11; Carl Newton, 24, on February 14; Rodolfo Salas Sosa, 56, on March 22; Anthony Azua, 33, on March 30; Juan Garcia Loredo, 69, on March 31; Kenneth Jones, 34, on May 7; George Grays, 54, on May 9; Culcois Racius, 39, on May 9; Anthony Curry, 35, on May 17; Shannon Davis, 14, on May 30; Ernest Armstrong, 62, on June 9; Brent Brown, 28, on June 12; Raymond Hatten, 30, on July 7; Latrecia Amos, 57, on August 21; Jamal Alexander, 31, on August 27; Rodney Chatman, 43, on September 15; and Michael Rice, 67, on September 20. Krista Gehring, a professor of criminal justice at the University of Houston-Downtown, previously explained to the Daily Mail whether fears about a serial killer on the loose added up. She said: 'When serial killers kill an individual, there's a cooling off period - so to find multiple bodies all at once or one day after the next is not characteristic.' Serial killers also have 'signatures' with how they kill and tend to prey on vulnerable people, Professor Gehring added. In Houston, she told the Daily Mail, the only pattern seemed to be that 'these bodies show up in a bayou.' The Daily Mail reached out to Giacalone for further comment. Coronation Street star Philip Middlemiss has been declared bankrupt for the second time. The 62-year-old, who starred as Des Barnes in the ITV soap for eight years from 1990 to 1998, filed for bankruptcy after failing to pay off a large tax bill. Mr Middlemiss's latest bill included interest and is believed to be 'a hefty five figure sum', according to the Sun. It is the second time he has been forced to file for bankruptcy, having first done so in 2012. At the time he blamed financial difficulty spiralling from a film which he was directing in Ghana grounding to a halt after more than three years. '[The film] was partly-funded by myself but I didn't have the money to fund the rest of the film,' he said. 'Filming came to a grinding halt. It was nearly three-quarters of the way along the line. It has been a difficult time. Three-and-a-half years is a long time to fund myself without any income. 'I have had to get money from family and friends.' Coronation Street star Philip Middlemiss has been declared bankrupt for the second time The former soap star was falsely sought by police in Ghana over an alleged 5million air bribery in 2020. Prosecutors named the actor, who denied any wrongdoing, among four people they wanted to question in relation to the 50million sale of three Airbus C-295 military planes to the country. Mr Middlemiss, who had travelled to Ghana to make a film, claimed to have befriended the brother of the country's vice-president, before heading back to the UK. Ghana's special prosecutor Martin Amidu stated he was believed to have been a project manager for Airbus, which sold the planes, when the alleged bribery took place. It was also alleged that he incorporated a company in the UK in 2010 through which he assisted Airbus with the suspect deal. But he was never charged and was formally cleared by investigators, later stating the ordeal turned his life upside down. The actor made his TV debut in 1986 on the show Ladies In Charge and also appeared in The Bill and Waterfront Beat. During his Coronation Street days, the actor starred as newlywed Des Barnes who arrived on the famed cobbles alongside on-screen wife Steph, played by Amelia Bullmore He played his first role since 2014 as DI Travis Lennox in the final series of the BBC series Doctors last year. His most notable post-Coronation Street role was as David Buckley in the ITV drama Where The Heart Is which he starred in from 2000 to 2006. During his Coronation Street days, the actor starred as newlywed Des Barnes who arrived on the famed cobbles alongside on-screen wife Steph, played by Amelia Bullmore. A British model has been jailed for three years after admitting trying to smuggle nearly 200,000 worth of drugs into Spain. Clara Wilson, from Huthwaite, Nottinghamshire, was arrested at Barcelona's El Prat airport after travelling from Thailand with more than 34 kilos of cannabis in her suitcase. The pretty 36-year-old was remanded to a local jail by an investigating judge and learnt in March public prosecutors wanted her caged for four years and fined more than 750,000 after being charged. Today it emerged she had put her hands up to wrongdoing as part of a plea bargain deal after being offered a more lenient punishment ahead of her full trial. Clara, one of a string of young British women to fall foul of the law in airport drug busts in recent months, accepted a three-year prison sentence and a fine matching the estimated value of the cannabis she tried to smuggle into Spain of 185,000. Her defence lawyer Yaiza Garcia told Barcelona's Criminal Court Number 23 she wanted the sentence suspended but a state prosecutor opposed the application and a decision was put off to a later date. Wilson was arrested at the Catalan capital's El Prat airport as she got off a flight from Bangkok. Police held her after finding 60-vacuum packed packages containing a green-coloured substance weighing 34,074 grams that tested positive for marijuana. Clara Wilson, 36, (pictured) has been jailed for three years after admitting trying to smuggle nearly 200,000 worth of drugs into Spain Wilson was detained at Brians 1 Prison near Barcelona after she was arrested at the Catalan capital's El Prat airport as she got off a flight from Bangkok Public prosecutors said in an indictment drafted before her trial: 'The drugs were transported by the accused with the intention of selling it to third parties on the black market where its value would have been 213,991.' The OnlyFans model has been warned she will be jailed for another two months if she fails to pay her six-figure fine. The time she has already served in Brians 1 Prison near Barcelona would be taken into account in determining her extra jail time after sentence. Earlier this week it emerged British 'drug mule' Bella Culley's family have been given more time to pay a fine which could allow her to go free. The 19-year-old, who is six months pregnant, sparked a massive international search operation in early May after she was reported missing while she was believed to be holidaying in Thailand. It was later revealed that Bella, from Billingham, County Durham, had been arrested 4,000 miles away in Georgia after allegedly carrying 30 pounds (14kg) of cannabis into the ex-Soviet nation. Charlotte Lee May, 21, a former cabin attendant from south London, remains in custody in Sri Lanka after being arrested in May with 46kg of cannabis she allegedly attempted to smuggle into the country on a flight from Thailand. Last month a British tourist travelling from Benidorm to Ibiza was arrested after police discovered nearly 300,000 worth of cocaine in his car. The 27-year-old was apprehended after trying to board a ferry from the Costa Blanca resort of Denia to the Balearic island. Clara (pictured), one of a string of young British women to fall foul of the law in airport drug busts in recent months, accepted a three-year prison sentence for the offence Bella Culley,19, from Billingham, County Durham, was arrested in Georgia after allegedly carrying 30 pounds (14kg) of cannabis into the ex-Soviet nation Cops said he reacted to an initial stop by handing them a bottle with a small amount of cannabis resin inside in an apparent attempt to throw them off the scent. They discovered the seven kilos of cocaine during a full search in the storage compartment between the two front seats. Video footage of the drug discovery released by the Civil Guard showed an officer hauling the narcotics which had a lizard logo on them out of the 'hidden compartment' and the Brit being taken away in handcuffs in a T-shirt and shorts. Well-placed sources said at the time the cocaine had a potential street value of around 280,000 and would have fetched a higher price in islands like Ibiza than on the Spanish mainland. On Tuesday Brit Martin Renwick Hunter, 69, was jailed for nearly four years after being convicted of trying to smuggle almost 100,000 of drugs onto a Spanish car ferry. He was stopped as he tried to board the Algeciras-bound vessel in Spain's North African enclave of Ceuta on July 13. Luigi Mangione's lawyers are seeking to dismiss the charge that could get him the death penalty if he's convicted of murdering the UnitedHealthcare CEO. His lawyers are arguing that Manhattan prosecutors shouldn't be able to use his statements given to police and his backpack where the gun was found due to him not being read his rights. They also argued that police did not have a warrant to search the backpack, violating the 27-year-old's rights, papers filed in Manhattan federal court on Saturday said. Mangione is accused of murdering Brian Thompson outside of a Manhattan hotel on December 4, 2024. The Ivy League graduate has pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges against him. In September, the terrorism charge was dropped, to the delight of the huge fanbase he has attracted. Judge Gregory Carro said that the evidence was 'legally insufficient' for the counts of murder in the first degree in furtherance of an act of terrorism, and murder in the second degree as a crime of terrorism. The decision is a huge legal win for Mangione and comes after his lawyers claimed prosecutors were rushing to bring the case against him. Luigi Mangione's lawyers are seeking to dismiss the charge that could get him the death penalty if he's convicted of murdering the UnitedHealthcare CEO Mangione is accused of murdering Brian Thompson outside of a Manhattan hotel He still faces one count of murder in the second degree, which is now his most serious charge. Mangione is also accused of two counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree, four counts of criminal possession of a weapon in the third degree, one count of criminal possession of a weapon in the fourth degree and one count of possession of a forged instrument in the second degree. The killing set off a multi-state search after he slipped away from the scene, rode a bike to Central Park, then took a taxi to a bus depot that offered service to several states. Five days later, a tip from a McDonald's about 233 miles away in Altoona, Pennsylvania, led police to arrest Mangione. He has been held without bail since then. Last month, lawyers for Mangione asked that his federal charges be dismissed and the death penalty be taken off the table as a result of public comments by US Attorney General Pam Bondi. In April, Bondi directed prosecutors in New York to seek the death penalty, calling the killing of Thompson a 'premeditated, cold-blooded assassination that shocked America.' Murder cases are usually tried in state courts, but prosecutors have also charged Mangione under a federal law on murders committed with firearms as part of other 'crimes of violence.' It's the only charge for which Mangione could face the death penalty, since it's not used in New York state. The Ivy League graduate has pleaded not guilty to the state and federal charges against him In September, the terrorism charge was dropped, to the delight of his fans The 27-year-old wore typical prison grab with a white t shirt and sweatpants in the picture captured inside the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, New York The papers filed early Saturday morning argued that this charge should be dismissed because prosecutors have failed to identify the other offenses that would be required to convict him, saying that the alleged other crime - stalking - is not a crime of violence. The assassination and its aftermath has captured the American imagination, setting off a cascade of resentment and online vitriol toward US health insurers while rattling corporate executives concerned about security. After the killing, investigators found the words 'delay,' 'deny' and 'depose,' written in permanent marker on ammunition at the scene. The words mimic a phrase used by insurance industry critics. In July, Mangione sent his fans into a tizzy as a new photo of him smiling inside jail went viral. The image of the 27-year-old shows him crouching down and smiling while in custody at the Metropolitan Detention Center in New York. He is wearing a white T-shirt, gray sweatpants, and a simple digital watch. Mangione threw up a shaka sign with his left hand in the picture, which is popular in Hawaii where he is known to have spent at least half a year living in 2022. A man who recalled his shock at being denied entry to a popular club due to its strict ban on neck tattoos has divided Aussies online. Marcos Clavijo shared footage of his confrontation with security guards in front of his father at Burleigh Pavilion on the Gold Coast earlier this week, in an incident that left him 'speechless'. Several bouncers are heard in the video explaining why they can't let him into The Tropic Restaurant, which is part of the venue. 'You can't come in with tattoos on your neck,' one told him. A stunned Mr Clavijo replied: 'Seriously, because of my tattoos?' 'Please, I just want to show this place to my father, and then we'll leave.' He and his father walked away without incident after he was again refused entry. 'I got banned from entering a club in Australia because of my tattoos,' a shocked Mr Clavijo captioned the footage on TikTok afterwards. Marcos Clavijo was refused entry into The Tropic, on the Gold Coast, because of his neck tattoo this week The Burleigh Pavilion on the Gold Coast has strict policies regarding neck tattoos 'The security stopped me at the door and said I couldn't go in because I have tattoos on my neck. At first, I thought it was a joke, but it wasn't. 'It's wild to think that in 2025 this kind of rule still exists.' Mr Clavijo acknowledged that venues in many parts of Australia have a strict 'no visible tattoos' policy to keep out gang members. But he claimed these rules were outdated as they now also punished normal people with tattoos and asked viewers for their opinions. 'Now Im curious. Do you think this policy makes sense, or is it just pure discrimination?' Mr Clavijo asked. The question sparked a divided response. Many argued that the security guards did the right thing. 'But would they turn away celebrities with neck tattoos? Doubt it,' one said. Social media users were polarised on who was to blame over the entry refusal 'Why the problem with neck tattoos? It doesn't determine the person you are. I think it's a pretty outdated rule,' another added. Others pointed out that one of security guards had tattoos. 'They say no visible tattoos, but the security man is visibly showing his tattoos on his arm, so how's that any different,' one commented. Many defended the venue's strict policy. 'Their club, their dress code and rules,' one wrote. 'Life decisions!! Live with yours,' a second said. 'You're not banned It's just a rule they have. It's common in high-end places and clubs/bars,' a third pointed out. Mr Clavijo is not the first patron in recent weeks to be refused entry to the venue over his neck tattoo. Many viewers were divided over the tattoo ban at Burleigh Pavilion Several weeks earlier, Caleb Pokai, 24, was refused entry into Burleigh Pavilion over his traditional ta moko tattoo, which runs from behind his ear down to his shoulder. 'I was dressed nice, I was presentable, polite, and wasn't intoxicated. I should be able to sit down with a group of mates and eat dinner,' he told ABC. 'I'm proud of my culture, my ta moko represents myself, my family, where I've come from and what I've been through.' Burleigh Pavilion states that management reserves the right to refuse entry to anyone with head, face, or neck tattoos. 'Entry is at the discretion of management and depends on the size and nature of the tattoo,' its policy states. Daily Mail has contacted Burleigh Pavilion for comment. Tech billionaire Marc Benioff seemingly shed his liberal ties and directly clashed with his longtime friend Gavin Newsom by praising the president in a recent bombshell interview. The CEO of the San Francisco-based software company Salesforce recently confessed to the New York Times that he believed President Donald Trump was 'doing a great job' and that he'd support the National Guard's presence in his city. 'I fully support the president,' Benioff declared. The CEO, who's also the godfather of the California governor's daughter and a previous donor to Hillary Clinton's campaign, supported Trump's controversial call to send the National Guard to US cities. When speaking about San Francisco, he told the Times: 'We dont have enough cops, so if they can be cops, Im all for it'. Benioff is planning on giving the keynote address at the Dreamforce conference this week in San Francisco. He said in the interview that he's hired hundreds of off-duty law enforcement officers to patrol the convention area, claiming that the city's police force is underfunded. 'Youll see. When you walk through San Francisco next week, there will be cops on every corner. Thats how it used to be,' he told The Times. Marc Benioff, the CEO of software giant Salesforce, recently said in an interview that he 'fully supports' Donald Trump Benioff's interview comes as the president has made repeated calls to deploy the National Guard to American cities Benioff founded the company in San Francisco in 1999 and it's been headquartered there ever since At the end of his interview, the Times journalist noted that Benioff appeared to ask his publicist: 'What about the political questions? Too Spicy?' Benioff founded the idea for Salesforce in Telegraph Hill, a residential neighborhood in San Francisco, in 1999. The company has been headquartered there ever since. Benioff boasted in his interview that he doesn't believe anyone has hired more San Franciscans or given more money to the city than he has. However, since the pandemic, he confessed that he primarily resides in Hawaii but still spends time in the California city. Benioff has a long history with Newsom since the governor's tenure as the mayor of San Francisco. Newsom has attended the Dreamforce conference multiple times and has frequently spoken with Benioff on stage. The two discussed San Francisco's homelessness crisis at the conference in 2023, which Newsom described as 'deplorable' at the time, according to the San Francisco Standard. 'All I thought was, how damn demoralized everybody must be. There go all our tax dollars and who the hell is running this place?' Newsom questioned. Benioff then pointed out that he hadn't noticed the conditions when he arrived for Dreamforce, to which Newsom responded: 'Because were sucking up to you. We cant afford to lose you'. Benioff pictured with his wife Lynne Benioff in 2016 Newsom and Benioff have a long history dating back to when the governor served as the mayor of San Francisco. Benioff is a godparent to one of Newsom's children Newsom has been a fierce critic of Trump's decision to deploy the National Guard, but Benioff said he welcomed their presence in San Francisco Benioff said that his political affiliation is independent and he's supported both Democratic and Republican candidates. However, the billionaire CEO has also been a fierce advocate for the homeless and even launched the Benioff Homelessness and Housing Initiative. In 2018, he funded a city ballot measure campaign to tax businesses, including Salesforce, to fund services for the homeless, according to the Times. He's also called on his fellow tech leaders to do more to combat poverty. Benioff's recent comments to the Times infuriated and confused California leaders. Myrna Melgar, a supervisor in the city, told the Times that his remarks threw her. 'From the railroad barons until now, thats nothing new,' she said. 'But with Marc Benioff, its particularly disappointing. Its definitely out of step and out of touch with what most San Franciscans would want'. Benioff said San Francisco didn't have enough cops and that the Guard could reduce crime in the city The interview also generated fierce backlash on social media, with Matt Dorsey, a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, calling it a 'slap in the face.' 'Its insulting to our cops, and its honestly galling to those of us whove been fighting hard over the last few years to fully staff our @SFPD,' he added. San Francisco District Attorney Brooke Jenkins called the deployment of the National Guard a 'form of government sponsored violence against U.S. citizens, families, and ethnic groups'. 'Let me be clear. If you come to San Francisco and illegally harass our residents, use excessive force or cross any other boundaries that the law proscribes, I will not hesitate to do my job and hold you accountable just like I do other violators of the law every single day,' she wrote in a thread on X. 'Salesforce is a great San Francisco company that does so much good for our city. Inviting Trump to send the National Guard here is not one of those good things,' California State Senator Scott Wiener said. 'Quite the opposite. We neither need nor want an illegal military occupation in San Francisco'. Newsom hasn't publicly reacted to Benioff's remarks, but he's been vocal against National Guard deployments to California. Daily Mail has reached out to his office for comment. Benioff added that Trump was 'doing a great job' and that he fully supported the president during his recent interview with the New York Times The National Guard's presence has resulted in mass protests and legal battles brought on by Democratic lawmakers (Pictured: Protests in Illinois) Newsom called Trump's decision to send troops to Portland a 'breathtaking abuse of power'. (Pictured: Senator Tammy Duckworth speaking to protestors in Broadview, Illinois) Newsom called Trump's decision to send troops to Portland, Oregon, a 'breathtaking abuse of power' in a memo last week. 'The commander-in-chief is using the U.S. military as a political weapon against American citizens. We will take this fight to court, but the public cannot stay silent in the face of such reckless and authoritarian conduct by the President of the United States,' he added. Trump's decision to send the Guard to American cities like Portland and Chicago was widely criticized. States with a Democratic governor or attorney general signed a court filing on Wednesday to support legal challenges against the deployment. Daily Mail has reached out to the White House for comment on Benioff's remarks and whether the administration plans to send the National Guard to San Francisco. One of President Donald Trump's biggest allies has turned her back on his decision to allow Qatar to have an airbase on US soil. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Friday that Qatar will have a new Air Force base in Idaho as the Trump Administration continues to strengthen its ties with the Middle Eastern country. But the decision didn't sit well with Laura Loomer, who used to be a staunch Trump supporter. 'So what plans does the Department of War have to stop the inevitable construction of militarized Muslim Brotherhood Mosques all over Idaho to accommodate the animalistic, Qatari terrorist invaders our government is now forcing upon the majority white, Christian state of Idaho?' she wrote in a scathing X post. 'Just wait till one of those Qataris walks into a church and guns down Americans once they are on US soil,' she continued. 'Does this mean the call to prayer will be broadcasted in Idaho five times a day?' She also wondered if Americans would need to learn Arabic and if genital mutilation would become the norm for US women. 'Do we need to chop our cl**s off too to appease Mohammed while we walk around in black trash bags?' she wrote. Gender mutilation is not commonly practiced in Qatar. It is practiced more in other parts of the Middle East and Africa, varying by country. Laura Loomer is not happy with the Trump Administration allowing Qatar to have a military base in Idaho Loomer, 32, accused Republicans of continuing to 'Islamify our country' Loomer, 32, also previously slammed the Trump Administration for accepting Qatar's gift of a luxury Boeing jet earlier this year. 'I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400million gift from jihadists in suits,' she wrote at the time. On Friday morning, she slammed Republicans for continuing to 'Islamify our country and continu[ing] to allow funders of Islamic terrorism from Qatar to come into our country when they have a documented history of funding Islamic terror.' She said she would forfeit voting in 2026 and 'encourage' others not to vote if the GOP continues in this manner. 'I didnt vote for the Islamification of my country,' she wrote. 'If the GOP is going to allow Muslims to have military bases on US soil when they know these Qataris are funding HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood, then voting in 2026 is a waste of time. 'Why are we training the people who helped facilitate 9/11? Didnt we learn our lesson 24 years ago about jihadis and flight instructions on US soil? 'We are really living in such dark times. Its deeply disturbing.' However, Hegseth celebrated the announcement on Friday while sitting next to Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the Qatari defense minister. Trump and Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani at a May meeting in Doha Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Friday that Qatar will have a new Air Force base in Idaho. Hegseth celebrated the announcement while sitting next to Saoud bin Abdulrahman Al Thani, the Qatari defense minister She said she would forfeit voting in 2026 and 'encourage' others not to vote if the GOP continues in this manner President Trump has also previously denounced Qatar for funding Islamic terrorism in 2017 during his first term. Trump accused Qatar at the time of funding terrorism 'at a very high level,' and said solving the problem in the tiny Persian Gulf nation could be 'the beginning of the end of terrorism.' As he launched an extraordinary allegation against a key US military partner, Trump derided what he called Qatar's 'extremist ideology in terms of funding' terrorist groups, an accusation Qatar has repeatedly and vehemently denied. Former President Joe Biden will undergo radiation therapy to treat his aggressive form of prostate cancer. A spokesperson for the politician announced on Saturday that the 82-year-old will undergo the treatment, as well as hormone therapy. The radiation will last five weeks and the Democrat has already begun taking the hormone medication pill. Ailing Biden announced his cancer, which had metastasized in his bones, in May. He was also treated for skin cancer last month and was seen with a large bandage on his forehead while making public appearances. The May announcement came just one week after reports revealed that a 'small nodule' was found on Biden's prostate that needed 'further evaluation.' The 'small nodule' on his prostate was discovered during 'a routine physical exam,' his office said. A statement on his diagnosis at the time said: 'President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms. 'He was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterized by a Gleason Score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.' Former President Joe Biden will undergo radiation therapy and hormone treatment to fight against his aggressive prostate cancer Prostate cancers are given a 'Gleason score' that measures how the cancerous cells look compared with normal cells. Bidens score of nine suggests his cancer is among the most aggressive. His office noted that: 'While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.' Biden, who turns 83 next month, left office as the oldest serving president in US history he was also elected as the oldest ever person to hold the highest office. It's common for those of his advanced age to experience prostate issues. More than half of prostate cancers are found in men older than 65, according to the American Cancer Society. A nodule is a firm lump or swelling that can develop throughout the body. While it can be benign and harmless, some can be associated with bigger health concerns like infections or, in this case, cancer. Questions over the former president's age, health and fitness for office ultimately led him to ditch his reelection campaign and let then-Vice President Kamala Harris, 60, take over. Leaders within the Democratic Party have started to publicly admit that Biden should not have run for reelection in 2024. Some claim that they were duped by advisers who were shielding Biden from the public and telling members of the party he was fit behind the scenes. Sources told The Washington Post that Biden remains bitter about dropping out of the 2024 race, and regularly debates with his team about responding to President Donald Trump's actions and policies. The ailing politician announced his cancer, which has metastasized in his bones, in May Since leaving office, Biden has been working on a memoir and a foundation to build a presidential library, The Post reported. Biden's son, Beau Biden, also died of cancer at the age of 46 in 2015 after he was diagnosed in 2013 with glioblastoma multiforme, the most aggressive type of brain cancer. His father claimed the cancer was a consequence of his Beau's exposure to military burn pits when he was serving in Iraq. Thousands of pro-Palestine supporters are expected to take to the streets of Sydney today, despite a ceasefire in Gaza. At least 40,000 were expected to march to the Sydney Opera House before the NSW Court of Appeal thwarted those plans on Thursday. NSW Police challenged the Palestine Action Group's right to protest at the Opera House during a full-day hearing this week on the grounds of public safety, due to the likelihood of overcrowding around the Opera House forecourt. NSW Chief Justice Andrew Bell, Common Law Chief Judge Ian Harrison, and Justice Stephen Free agreed and declared the safety risk to participants and others would be 'extreme.' Instead, pro-Palestine supporters will meet in Sydney's Hyde Park from 1pm for a legal demonstration and then march down George Street along a route negotiated with police. Organisers have confirmed that Sunday's rally will still go ahead, despite US President Donald Trump announcing that Hamas and Israel have agreed to a peace deal in Gaza after days of negotiation. 'We are still marching because our government is still arming a genocidal state,' Palestine Action Group posted on Saturday. 'Sanction Israel now, stop the two way arms trade. Stop the complicity with genocide and apartheid by our government. Thousands of pro-Palestine supporters will march in the Sydney CBD on Sunday The pro-Palestine protest will go ahead, despite being banned from the Sydney Opera House A host of guest speakers will address the big crowd, including activists Abubakir Rafiq, Juliet Lamont, and Hamish Paterson. They were among seven Australians on board the Global Sumud Flotilla, a fleet of ships intercepted by Israel's navy off Gaza last week. They were detained in the high-security Ketziot prison near the Israel-Egypt border before they were deported to Jordan and returned home on Friday. Organisers insist they welcome a possible ceasefire in Gaza. 'But we do not trust Israel and we do not trust Donald Trump,' the group added. 'Previous ceasefire were broken by Israel and the genocide has continued apace. 'Our movement knows that real peace will only come with justice and accountability. 'We must continue to place demands on the Australian government to take concrete action to end its complicity in Israel's crimes.' Palestine Action Group organiser Josh Lees vowed activists will 'fill' George Street on Sunday Palestine Action Group has been organising weekly rallies in Australia's capital cities since Israel's military assault on Gaza began in 2023. About 1200 people killed after Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. As of the latest reports, 48 hostages taken during the October 7 attacks are still believed to be in captivity in Gaza, with around 20 of them thought to be alive. The subsequent war has already killed more than 67,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. There will still be a 'visible police presence' at the Opera House on Sunday to ensure the court order isn't defied. 'I would say to anyone who thinks that they could go to the Opera House still, and be part of any type of demonstration or public assembly, that you will be committing an offence and appropriate action will be taken by us,' NSW Police Assistant Commissioner Peter McKenna told reporters on Sunday 'I don't expect people to attend the Opera House but if people are silly enough to they want to flout the law, break the law appropriate action will be taken.' Pro-Palestine supporters will meet in Sydney's Hyde Park from 1pm for Sunday's CBD march NSW Premier Minns also welcomed the court's decision, and warned that those who don't comply will face 'the full force of the law'. 'If you litigate it in front of the Court of Appeal ... and they make a decision, then you've got to respect the umpire's call,' he said. 'The decision of the police and the government to [oppose the planned protest] ... on public safety grounds has been validated by the decision.' Premier Minns also shut down calls from rally organisers to light up the sails of the Sydney Opera House in the colours of the Palestinian flag in lieu of the banned protest. 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A Peace plan brokered by the US President came into effect at noon local time (10am BST) on Friday, marking an end to two years of devastating war that has ravaged Gaza and destabilised the Middle East. Tens of thousands of displaced Palestinians made their way back to their Gaza neighborhoods, while Israeli troops began withdrawing to new defensive lines under the first phase of a fragile truce. The deal will also see Hamas release the remaining 48 Israeli hostages by Monday, while Israel is to free some 250 Palestinian prisoners, as well as around 1,700 people seized from Gaza in the past two years and held without charge. As the ceasefire entered its second day, one senior Hamas official thanked Trump for his role in securing the agreement, saying such a historic step would not have been reached without his involvement. 'Without the personal interference of President Trump after in this case I don't think that it would have happened to reach the end of the war,' the terror group's former health minister Basem Naim told Sky News. 'Therefore, yes, we thank President Trump and his personal efforts to interfere and to pressure Israel to bring an end to this massacre and slaughtering.' Despite his gratitude, the senior Hamas official voiced concerns over whether Israel would stick to the arrangement and rejected plans for former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to play any part in governing Gaza in the future. Senior Hamas official Basem Naim (pictured) has thanked Donald Trump for his 'personal efforts' in bringing forward a ceasefire agreement with Israel A Peace plan brokered by the US President (pictured) came into effect at noon local time (10am BST) on Friday, marking an end to two years of devastating war Dr Naim told Sky News' Yalda Hakim: 'We believe and we hope that President Trump continues to interfere personally and to exercise the maximum pressure on Netanyahu to fulfil its obligation. 'First, as according to the deal, and second, according to the international law as an occupying power, because I think without this pressure, without this personal interference from President Trump, this will not happen.' Questions remain on who will govern Gaza after Israeli troops gradually pull back and whether Hamas will disarm, as called for in the ceasefire agreement. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who unilaterally ended the previous ceasefire in March, has suggested Israel could resume its offensive if Hamas fails to disarm. Asked whether the terror group would give up its weapons, Dr Naim said it would not completely disarm until the formation of a Palestinian state. 'We are ready to hand over government, we are ready to be totally away from any government or governing body. We are ready to leave the government for a Palestinian body but we (Hamas) are still there on the ground.' 'We are not going to be disarmed as long as we are not sure that this will not lead by any other means to have an independent self sovereign state which is able to defend itself. 'This question has to be directed to the aggressor, to the criminal who committed the genocide as you have done with the Nazis after World War Two.' Dr Naim told Sky News' Yalda Hakim (left) that Hamas rejected plans for former UK Prime Minister Tony Blair to play any part in governing Gaza in the future Tony Blair (pictured) will form part of an international body that will play a role in Gaza's post-war administration, as set out in the peace plan Dr Naim said Hamas were 'not part of the whole deal' and it has only accepted the first phase of the peace agreement set out by Trump. 'The rest of the points belongs to the whole of the Palestinian political arena and all other factions. They have to discuss it together and find ways of how we can move forward by our struggle for freedom and independence,' he added. Dr Naim was then asked whether there had been any discussions around Tony Blair's role in the next phase of Trump's plan. This calls for an international body - lead by Trump and including the former Prime Minister - to play a role in Gaza's post-war administration. He said: 'When it comes to Tony Blair, unfortunately, we Palestinians, Arabs and Muslims and maybe a lot people around the world they have very, very bad memories about him. 'We still remember his role in causing the killing of thousands or millions of innocent civilians in Afghanistan and Iraq. 'I don't believe that he will be very welcome or a very positive input in this case. 'Palestinians have a lot of independent technocratic cadres or leaders who can do the job in the best interest of the Palestinian people.' Displaced Palestinians carry their belongings as they walk along the heavily damaged Al-Jalaa Street in Gaza City Palestinians, who were displaced to the southern part of Gaza at Israel's order, make their way along a road as they return to the north Rescue workers began retrieving dozens of bodies from vast stretches of debris in Gaza after the ceasefire took effect on Friday. Under the ceasefire deal proposed by Trump, Hamas will hand over 47 remaining hostages - living and dead - from the 251 abducted during the October 7 attack two years ago. The remains of one more hostage, held in Gaza since 2014, are also expected to be returned. Trump has expressed confidence that the ceasefire would 'hold', telling reporters that Israel and Hamas were 'all tired of the fighting'. The Israeli military said its troops had halted fire at noon 'in preparation for the ceasefire agreement and the return of hostages'. Three hours later, the Pentagon confirmed Israel had completed the first phase of a pullback laid out in Trump's peace plan. Gaza's civil defence agency also confirmed that Israeli troops and armoured vehicles were pulling back from forward positions in both Gaza City and Khan Yunis. The withdrawal set the clock running on a 72-hour deadline for Hamas to release the remaining hostages held in Gaza. Israel has warned some areas of Gaza are still off-limits and that Palestinians should steer clear of its forces while they were 'adjusting operational positions in the Gaza Strip'. Gaza civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said that around 200,000 Palestinians had returned to the north since the ceasefire took effect. Palestinian families who have been displaced by Israel's two-year war on Hamas return to their destroyed homes in Gaza after the Israeli military announced a ceasefire with Hamas This picture taken from a position along the Israel-Gaza border fence, shows destroyed buildings in the Gaza Strip on October 11 The United Nations was given the green light by Israel to begin delivering scaled-up aid into Gaza starting Sunday, according to an official. The aid shipments, carrying food, medical supplies, shelter, cooking gas and fuel for essential services, are meant to address severe malnutrition and famine conditions triggered by Israeli offensives and restrictions on humanitarian help. UN officials and Israeli authorities have engaged in a series of discussions in Jerusalem over the last 24 hours about the volume of aid humanitarian organizations can bring in and through which entry points. A spokesperson for the organisation told reporters on Friday that fuel, medical supplies and other critical materials have started flowing through the Kerem Shalom crossing. UN officials want Israel to open more border crossings and provide safe movement for aid workers and civilians who are returning to parts of Gaza that were under heavy fire until only recently. One crucial border crossing - the Rafah Crossing - is set to open on Tuesday, according to Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto. 'In compliance with the Trump agreement, the Rafah Crossing Point will be opened in two directions alternately, outbound to Egypt and inbound to Gaza, on Oct. 14, 2025,' Crosetto said in a statement. He added that about 600 trucks carrying humanitarian aid will flow into Gaza from other crossings every day. Kim Jong Un rolled out his nuclear-armed military's most powerful weapons at a massive military parade attended by foreign leaders on Friday night. The North Korean leader's show of force included a new intercontinental ballistic missile he may be preparing to test in coming weeks. The parade, which began at Pyongyang's main square and marked the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party, highlighted Kim's growing diplomatic footing and his relentless drive to build an arsenal that could target the continental United States and his rivals in Asia. North Korean state media said Saturday that the parade featured a new, yet-to-be-tested ICBM called the Hwasong-20, which it described as the country's 'most powerful nuclear strategic weapon system.' Joined by high-level Chinese, Vietnamese and Russian officials at a podium, Kim said in a speech that his military 'should continue to grow into an invincible entity that destroys all threats,' but made no direct mention of the United States or South Korea. He also praised the thousands of North Korean soldiers he sent to Russia to join its war against Ukraine, saying they displayed 'heroic fighting spirit' and 'ideological and spiritual perfection' in a battle for 'international justice and genuine peace.' Edited footage from North Korean state television showed what appeared to be tens of thousands of spectators packed into the brightly lit square, cheering and waving the national flag as columns of goose-stepping soldiers and missile-mounted vehicles rolled through the rain-soaked streets. The soldiers included troops Kim had sent to Russia, who marched under North Korean and Russian flags as state media hailed them as 'invincible' warriors. Kim Jong Un rolled out his nuclear-armed military's most powerful weapons at a massive military parade attended by foreign leaders. The North Korean leader's show of force included a new intercontinental ballistic missile (pictured) he may be preparing to test in coming weeks North Korean leader Kim Jong Un meets with Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council and leader of the United Russia political party Dmitry Medvedev as he visits the country for an event marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers' Party of Korea (WPK), in Pyongyang, North Korea, in this pictured released October 11, 2025 In this photo provided by the North Korean government, Kim Jong Un, right, and Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary To Lam, left, at a reception at the headquarters of the ruling Workers's Party, in Pyongyang, North Korea This photo provided by North Korean government shows what it says a new intercontinental ballistic missile called the Hwasong-20, during a military parade marking the 80th anniversary of the founding of the ruling Worker's Party The Hwasong-20 is the latest addition to Kim's growing list of ICBMs North Korea in recent years has flight-tested a variety of ICBMs that could potentially reach the U.S. mainland, including missiles with built-in solid propellants that are easier to move and conceal and can be prepared for launch more quickly than the North's previous liquid-fueled missiles. Edited footage from North Korean state television showed what appeared to be tens of thousands of spectators packed into the brightly lit square, cheering and waving the national flag as columns of goose-stepping soldiers and missile-mounted vehicles rolled through the rain-soaked streets. The soldiers included troops Kim had sent to Russia, who marched under North Korean and Russian flags as state media hailed them as 'invincible' warriors. The Hwasong-20 is the latest addition to Kim's growing list of ICBMs North Korea in recent years has flight-tested a variety of ICBMs that could potentially reach the US, including missiles with built-in solid propellants that are easier to move and conceal and can be prepared for launch more quickly than the North's previous liquid-fuelled missiles. The parade saw the debut of the massive Hwasong-20, with at least three of them wheeled out on 11-axle launcher trucks. The new missile's existence was first revealed in recent weeks as North Korea tested a new solid-fuel rocket engine that it said was intended for future ICBMs. State media said the engine, built with carbon fibre, is more powerful than past models. The North Korean dictator hosted world leaders at a state banquet in Pyongyang A military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) is held in Pyongyang, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), Oct. 10, 2025 Kim has called for the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve the chances of penetrating missile defences, and some experts say the Hwasong-20 could be designed for that purpose. Other weapons on display included shorter-range ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles, which the North previously described as capable of delivering nuclear strikes against targets in South Korea. The parade saw the debut of the massive Hwasong-20, with at least three of them wheeled out on 11-axle launcher trucks. The new missile's existence was first revealed in recent weeks as North Korea tested a new solid-fuel rocket engine that it said was intended for future ICBMs. State media said the engine, built with carbon fiber, is more powerful than past models. Kim has called for the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve the chances of penetrating missile defenses, and some experts say the Hwasong-20 could be designed for that purpose. Other weapons on display included shorter-range ballistic, cruise and hypersonic missiles, which the North previously described as capable of delivering nuclear strikes against targets in South Korea. This photo taken on Oct. 10, 2025 shows a scene during a military parade celebrating the 80th founding anniversary of the Workers' Party of Korea (WPK) held in Pyongyang The parade also featured Kim's newest tanks, artillery systems and drones Kim has called for the development of multi-warhead systems that would improve the chances of penetrating missile defences Kim's weapons have been a key focus of his efforts to expand his conventional military capabilities after he spent much of his early rule concentrating on nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles The parade also featured Kim's newest tanks, artillery systems and drones, which have been a key focus of his efforts to expand his conventional military capabilities after he spent much of his early rule concentrating on nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles. Kim this week hosted a rare group of high-level foreign officials sent to Pyongyang to attend the anniversary celebrations, including Chinese Premier Li Qiang, former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, now deputy head of Moscow's Security Council, and Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary To Lam. During the parade, Kim took the central spot at the podium, flanked by Li to his right and Lam to his left, while Medvedev stood next to Lam. The high-level visits highlight Kim's increasingly assertive foreign policy as he seeks to break out of isolation and establish a larger role for North Korea in a united front against the U.S.-led West. North Korea has shunned any form of talks with Washington and Seoul since Kim's high-stakes nuclear diplomacy with Donald Trump fell apart in 2019 during the American president's first term. In a recent speech, Kim urged Washington to drop its demand for the North to surrender its nukes as a precondition for resuming diplomacy. Kim also visited China last month and shared center stage with Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin at a massive military parade. Kim on Friday separately met with Medvedev to discuss developing the 'comprehensive strategic partnership and alliance' with Russia, the official Korean Central News Agency said. Medvedev praised the 'bravery and self-sacrificing spirit' of North Korean soldiers who fought alongside Russian forces to repel a Ukrainian incursion into Russia's Kursk border region, and called for expanded exchanges and cooperation between the two governments. Kim had also met Li and Lam on Thursday for talks on strengthening ties. Since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Kim has made Russia the priority of his foreign policy, sending thousands of troops and large shipments of weapons, including artillery and ballistic missiles, to help fuel Putin's war. A 17-year-old boy is fighting for his life after being shot in north London. Police and paramedics rushed to the High Road in Arnos Grove just after 5pm on Thursday following reports of a shooting. Officers found a teenager with gunshot wounds and was treated by paramedics at the scene. He was then taken to hospital, where he remains in critical condition. Met Police detectives have now launched an urgent appeal for witnesses and information as they hunt for those responsible. Detective Sergeant Catherine Dempster, who is leading the investigation, said: 'We recognise the shock and concern this will have caused the local community in Arnos Grove and are working at pace to identify the perpetrators. Police and paramedics rushed to the High Road in Arnos Grove just after 5pm on Thursday following reports of a shooting 'This cannot be done without assistance from the public. 'Were you in or near to High Road, Arnos Grove around 17:00hrs? 'Do you know anything about this incident? Did you hear gunshots? Do you have any CCTV / dashcam footage within the vicinity of the incident? 'If so, please come forward.' Anyone with information is urged to call police on 101 quoting 5749/09OCT, or contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111. New Zealand's parliament was brought to a blood-curdling halt after one of its newly elected MPs burst into the traditional Maori haka dance - causing the session to be suspended. Oriini Kaipara, 42, of the left-wing Te Pati Maori party, had just finished delivering her maiden speech to the House of Representatives when the chamber erupted into a war-like scene of screaming and stamping on Thursday. The former newsreader-turned-politician was elected to parliament in September to fill a vacant seat, and members of the House burst into song to celebrate her arrival before she herself joined in. Speaker of the House, Gerry Brownlee, asked MPs to stop after they burst into the haka because politicians in New Zealand must be granted permission if they - or their supporters - wish to sing or perform the dance in the public gallery. The footage shows Ms Kaipara, who is 100 per cent Maori and adorns a Ta moko facial tattoo beneath her lips, facing down Mr Brownlee with her eyes bulging as the chamber breaks into the thumping movement. Mr Brownlee can be heard pleading 'No! Not that', as he gesticulates to the gallery adding: 'The guarantee was that would not be taking place'. As the haka grows louder in the chamber, the Speaker suspends the House before quickly exiting from his seat - with some other MPs seemingly following. While the parliament later resumed proceedings, Mr Brownlee said he would be launching a probe into whether any party or MPs had prior knowledge of the haka as he described the gallery's actions as contemptuous. Oriini Kaipara (above) had just finished delivering her maiden speech to the House of Representatives when the chamber erupted into the haka war dance The former journalist-turned-politician was elected to parliament in September to fill a vacant seat, and members of the House burst into song to celebrate her arrival before she joined in The footage shows Ms Kaipara, who is 100 per cent Maori and adorns a Ta moko facial tattoo beneath her lips, facing down Speaker Gerry Brownlee with her eyes bulging Mr Brownlee (above) could be heard pleading 'No! Not that' before he added: 'The guarantee was that would not be taking place' Ms Kaipara has made headlines across the globe with her first actions as an MP after moving into politics from a career in broadcast media. The mother-of-four, from Auckland, also sparked intrigue after she became the first person to anchor a TV news bulletin with a traditional face tattoo - which sits on her chin. She decided to get the ink after discovering her Maori ancestry following a DNA test in 2017, with the Ta moko tattoo in Maori women seen as a rite of passage to mark adulthood. Her role at the centre of the haka could prove controversial, though, after three members of the Te Pati Maori party received historically lengthy suspensions in June for doing the war dance to disrupt a vote on a contentious bill last year. The Treaty Principles Bill, which failed to pass, would have reinterpreted a 184-year-old treaty between the British and Indigenous Maori. Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke, 22, became an online sensation with her animated dismissal of the bill as she ripped it up and performing the war dance with her Maori Party co-leaders. The Treaty Principles Bill was a reform championed by the right-wing ACT Party to redefine the Treaty of Waitangi in law, stripping rights given to Maori at New Zealand's foundation. The Maori Party's protest inside parliament was sent to the privileges committee, which suspended Ms Maipi-Clarke for a week, and Rawiri Waititi and Debbie Ngarewa-Packer for three weeks each. Mr Brownlee suspended parliament after the House of Representatives erupted into song Others within the gallery could be seen joining in as the haka broke out on Thursday Hana-Rawhiti Maipi-Clarke MP (above) of the Te Pati Maori Party erupted into a haka last November in a move which saw her and other MPs suspended Judith Collins, the attorney-general and committee chair, said it was the toughest punishment it had ever handed out and 'the worst incident that we have ever seen'. 'Make no mistake. This was a very serious incident, the likes of which I have never seen before in my 23 years in the debating chamber,' she said after the suspensions. Ms Collins said the MPs used it to deliberately intimidate the ACT politicians - who championed the reforms - as they prepared to vote, adding: 'This was a very sad day for parliament.' The Maori Party condemned the bans as 'grossly unjust, unfair, and unwarranted' and - in a dissenting position within the report - as 'reinforcing institutional racism'. 'The finding that our actions constituted 'intimidation' sets a dangerous precedent for Aotearoa (the Maori name for New Zealand). It frames Maori protest, haka, and the assertion of rangatiratanga (Maori sovereignty) as inherently threatening,' it wrote. The left-wing indigenous rights party said the parliament's ruling that the haka was an intimidating act meant that it was inappropriate for the government to utilise haka, as often occurs, at diplomatic or cultural events. The haka was traditionally a way for Maori to welcome visiting tribes or to invigorate warriors ahead of battle. It is now performed at important events as well as ahead of matches by New Zealand's rugby teams. Prince Harry asked the Home Secretary for increased security before an obsessed stalker was found 'within feet' of him on two occasions during his latest visit to the UK. The Duke of Sussex, 41, wrote to Shabana Mahmood shortly after her appointment and submitted a formal request to the Executive Committee for the Protection of Royalty and Public Figures, a source close to him said. A female stalker entered a 'secure zone' at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in west London when the prince was attending the WellChild Awards on September 9. She was reportedly found hiding in a hotel toilet 'mumbling odd comments' about the Duke just 20 minutes before he arrived at a charity event. She was allegedly pictured next to his car after she was thrown out. Just two days later she was seen near the prince at the Centre for Blast Injury Studies. The woman is believed to have followed Harry around the globe, including during his three day trip with the Duchess of Sussex to Nigeria in May 2024. The prince's letter, which was sent before the two incidents last month, came after he lost an appeal against the Home Office over the stripping of his taxpayer-funded police protection in February 2020, following Megxit. Prince Harry has asked the Home Secretary for increased security after a stalker was found 'within feet' of him on two occasions during his latest visit to the UK Despite moving to the US and stepping back from royal public engagements, the Duke said the decision, made after a two-day hearing at the Court of Appeal in April, was 'difficult to swallow'. Following the appeal, he said he 'can't see a world in which I would be bringing my wife and children back to the UK'. The 41-year-old urged Keir Starmer to intervene and warned that the royal family's power over security means it 'can be used to control' family members. He also said he would ask then-home secretary Yvette Cooper to 'look at this very, very carefully'. In a summary of the ruling, judge Sir Geoffrey Vos said the decision was 'understandable and perhaps predictable'. While the Court of Appeal upheld the High Court's decision, the Metropolitan Police voluntarily provided personal security to the Prince during his visit last month, sources told the Mail. It is understood that senior Met officers 'acted on their own initiative' to offer him protection while he was in the capital for the WellChild Awards. The Duke is a patron of the charity, which supports seriously ill children and their carers. Prince Harry saw his taxpayer-funded police protection revoked in February 2020, following Megxit Sources say officers contacted Harry's representatives ahead of his arrival for the high-profile ceremony on September 8 to offer him protection for that day. The Met's decision was made without the involvement of either the Home Office or the Royal Family and was instead based on the highly publicised nature of the event and the fact that many children would be present. But the Duke, who made the trip from his home in Montecito, California, where he lives with his wife Meghan and children Archie, six, and Lilibet, four, was only given protection for the day of the event and was said to have felt 'abandoned' after having to fund his own security for the remainder of his visit. A friend of Harry said the Duke was acutely conscious that his status put those around him in danger, something over which he felt 'enormous guilt'. Harry, who alongside Meghan was crowned 'Humanitarians of The Year' at a glitzy gala run by the Project Healthy Minds charity in New York on Friday, has previously claimed he was singled out for inferior treatment after losing his security clearance. Multiple people have been handed jail time for either plotting to kill Harry or making threats against him. A Government spokesperson said: 'The UK Government's protective security system is rigorous and proportionate. 'It is our long-standing policy not to provide detailed information on those arrangements, as doing so could compromise their integrity and affect individuals' security.' More than 500 migrants crossed the Channel in just one day, taking this year's total to over 36,000 in a humiliating blow to Labour's 'one in, one out' policy. Around 1,659 migrants in 23 boats arrived on British shores in the past three days, Home Office figures say. And, on Wednesday alone, over a thousand people made the perilous journey across the English Channel. Now, a total of 58,718 migrants have entered the UK by boat since Labour took office, with 36,060 making the crossing so far this year. It comes as the Government's 'one in, one out' scheme was launched two months ago, and billed to be the answer to the migrant crisis. But, official data shows the scheme has only removed 26 people since it began, while more than 10,000 have arrived. Wednesday marked the fourth day this year when arrivals topped 1,000, edging closer to the record of 1,305 set in September 2022. People-smuggling gangs are now using 40ft 'mega-dinghies' to cram ever-larger numbers of migrants into deadly crossings. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer scrapped the Tories' Rwanda asylum deal which was designed to deter migrants and save lives - as one of his first acts in office. Border Force boats arrive in Dover filled with migrants as data shows 1,659 crossed the channel in the last three days It means 36,060 migrants have now crossed the Channel so far this year, bringing the total number to 58,718 since Labour took office Border Force escort migrants into Dover Docks on Saturday, October 11, 2025 Migrants being led by Border Force to the Dover Docks today The Labour Government started its 'one in, one out' scheme of sending a small proportion of migrants arriving in dinghies back across the Channel this week, while legitimate applicants from France are allowed into Britain in their place. Labour claims the 'one in, one out' scheme will undermine people traffickers' tactics and 'smash the gangs' by persuading would-be migrants that crossing the Channel may be fruitless. However, the programme has been slow to take off after being mired in legal difficulties and even when fully up and running is expected to remove only around 50 migrants a week. It comes after Keir Starmer's flagship small boats plan was described as 'no deterrent whatsoever' in September as hundreds of new illegal migrants continued to roll into Britain. On the second day of the Prime Minister's deal for reciprocal returns to France, just two asylum seekers were deported on a scheduled flight a day after an Indian migrant was also returned. At the time, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy, hailed the two deportations as an 'immediate deterrent'. But it was obvious they were having no effect on the hundreds of migrants openly heading to the beaches of Northern France even as an Eritrean was being flown to Paris the day before, followed by an Iranian man. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'Hundreds of illegal immigrants crossed the Channel [yesterday] alone and Labour want applause for removing just two both of whom will be replaced. Since their meagre returns deal was announced, over 10,000 have crossed. Removing only two is pathetic and boasting about it is absurd. 'A scheme that will ultimately let 94 per cent of illegal immigrants stay here will have no deterrent effect whatsoever.' However, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood previously trumpeted the numbers removed from Britain under the new deal with France. 'The contrast couldn't be clearer. The last government's Rwanda scheme took years and cost hundreds of millions of pounds, and failed to forcefully remove a single person,' she said. 'In a matter of weeks, we've returned 26 through our historic agreement with France. 'We must put an end to these dangerous crossings which put lives at risk and money in the pockets of criminal gangs.' But the Shadow Home Secretary maintained Labour was 'swindling the British public', branding the new scheme 'a massive con'. 'Since the deal became operational over 10,000 illegal immigrants have crossed the Channel and Labour have removed a mere 26. 'This will obviously not deter anyone. We need to leave the European Convention on Human Rights which will enable us to deport people in days - this would be a real deterrent.' Portland's mayor ignored the federal request for a perimeter around an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility as he ordered the removal of police tape. Democrat Mayor Keith Wilson, 62, had the yellow police tape ripped down from the South Portland ICE facility on Wednesday over fears keeping the makeshift barricade up would only entice protesters more, The Oregonian reported Saturday. The decision came after city council raised concerns to Wilson about the protesters, who have been out nightly rallying against the controversial agency. 'We want to listen to the council, we want to listen to community members,' he told the outlet. 'Having hundreds of more people down there is the last thing we want. We dont want people down in that area right now because they are at risk of getting hurt.' Wilson had originally planned to keep the area blocked off to help protect citizens after ICE agents began using force against protesters. 'The federal government, they dont share the same concerns for Portlanders that we do,' Wilson told the outlet. However, the Democrat has not fully ruled out bringing back the perimeter in the future if need be. On Wednesday, Democrat Mayor Keith Wilson, 62, had the yellow police tape ripped down from the South Portland ICE facility over fears keeping the makeshift barricade up would only entice protesters more Wilson met Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem, and other ICE agents on Tuesday The decision came after city council raised concerns to Wilson about the protesters, who have been out nightly rallying against the controversial agency Wilson met Homeland Security Secretary, Kristi Noem, and other ICE agents on Tuesday in a closed-door meeting, where the 'ICE barbie' reportedly demanded a permanent perimeter be set up around the facility that would keep protesters away. Noem also demanded 'free speech zones' be set up in the city, which would confine the objectors to certain locations. Those caught outside of those zones would be arrested and charged. The Department of Homeland Security also reported demanded that Portland Police 'prioritize' calls from the facility when requesting assistance for 'threats to federal property or persons,' a letter signed by Oregon US Attorney Scott Bradford. Wilson said in a return letter that the liberal city has been 'peacefully facilitating free speech throughout the city.' 'We continue to ask that your federal law enforcement officers raise their operational and legal standards in terms of use of force and munitions, officer identification, and body-worn cameras,' he wrote. 'The actions of certain officers continue to be deeply disturbing to our community, and the lack of accountability and transparency for what appears to be unconstitutional behavior against individuals expressing their rights will only serve to deepen the divide between this facility and our community.' Only a few dozen protesters are usually seen outside the site per night. Federal helicopters have been seen flying around the facility for the last week and a half, KPTV reported. 'Having hundreds of more people down there is the last thing we want. We dont want people down in that area right now because they are at risk of getting hurt,' Wilson said Protesters outfits have gotten more elaborate over the past few days The loud noise and the presence of the choppers has led to a state of concern from residents, who are annoyed by the sound. 'It changes how people sleep and view the area,' resident, Jesse Warden, told the outlet. 'The helicopters are here, so its not even that much of a deterrent, its just announcing: "Hey, were wasting your money." In recent days, Portland protesters have showed up outside the facility wearing Halloween costumes, including a wizard, a tiger, and a banana. ICE agents have been seen in tactical gear with guns on the rooftop of the facility. President Donald Trump called Portland a 'war-ravaged' city under siege by Antifa terrorists while announcing he planned on sending the National Guard to the city. However, US District Judge Karin Immergut, a Trump appointee, made the ruling after the city and the state sued the federal government, temporarily blocking the politician from sending in troops. It's a major blow to Trump. The temporary restraining order expires in 14 days on October 18, Immergut wrote in her order. The Department of Defense has been ready to federalize 200 members of Oregon's National Guard for the next 60 days to protect the ICE facility, which has been a site for protests throughout the summer and into the fall. Noem demanded 'free speech zones' be set up in the city, which would confine the objectors to certain locations ICE agents sit on the roof of the facility in tactical gear with guns Federal helicopters have been seen flying around the facility for the last week and a half Last Saturday, about 400 people participating in a 'No National Guard in Portland' rally marched from Elizabeth Caruthers Park to the ICE facility. As they marched, a helicopter continually followed them. And once they arrived at the facility, federal agents shot tear gas into the crowd and made six arrests. Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado has explained why she chose to dedicate the award to Donald Trump following her shock win. Machado, who leads the opposition to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, was announced as this year's winner 'for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela,' the committee announced. Her victory came as a surprise to many who believed that that Trump would be honored with the award. Shortly after her win Machado took to X where she explained that many people across the world are relying on the president, 'to achieve Freedom and democracy'. 'I dedicate this prize to the suffering people of Venezuela and to President Trump for his decisive support of our cause!' Machado wrote. On Saturday she further explained the dedication during an interview with Rachel Campos-Duffy on Fox News where she heaped praise on the president. 'Not only has he been involved in only a few months in solving eight wars, but his actions have been decisive to have Venezuela now at a threshold of freedom after 26 years of tyranny,' she said. She praised Trump as being a 'clear and courageous' leader, arguing that he's been an advocate for dismantling criminal structures in Venezuela. Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado explained in a recent interview why she dedicated her award to Donald Trump Machado praised Trump as a 'clear and courageous leader' and argued that he's ended numerous wars during his presidency Machado made the remarks during an interview with Rachel Campos-Duffy on Saturday morning Machado reaffirmed her gratitude to Trump on behalf of the Venezuelan people, insisting that he deserved the recognition. The opposition leader said the county was 'entering a totally new era' and 'everything had changed' in Venezuela since foreign actors began intervening in Maduro's reign of terror. Her Nobel Prize win came as a shock to some, as Trump stoked speculation that he would be awarded the title for his involvement in a peace deal between Hamas and Israel. The president boasted that he ended eight wars when a reporter asked him about Machado's win on Friday. After touting his record, Trump revealed that Machado had called him and said that she was accepting the honor on his behalf. 'That's a very nice thing to do. I didn't say "then give it to me, though." I think she might've, she was very nice,' Trump joked. Trump has positioned himself as a peacemaker during his second term, frequently campaigning for the prize. When it was announced that Machado received the honor instead, the president's director of communication, Steven Cheung, said: 'The Nobel Committee proved they place politics over peace.' The Nobel Peace Prize committee said Machado won the award 'for her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela and for her struggle to achieve a just and peaceful transition from dictatorship to democracy' Machado is the leader of the opposition in Venezuela and ran for president in 2023 before she was blocked from the election (Pictured: Demonstrators protesting Maduro's inauguration) The committee's chairman, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, was asked on Friday about speculation over whether Trump would win the prize. He answered the question by explaining how the committee picks the winner, adding: 'We base our decision only on the work and the will of Alfred Nobel.' Machado has been a fierce advocate for democracy in Venezuela and led the opposition against Maduro. In 1992, she established the Atenea Foundation, which helps children on the streets in Caracas. Machado is also a founder of Sumate, an organization that promotes free and fair elections. She served as a National Assembly member until she was expelled from office in 2014. Machado ran for president in 2023, but was blocked from running and replaced by Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who had never run for office before. The committee said that Machado was awarded the prize for her commitment to democracy, a founding principle of peace. Machado established a foundation in 1992 to help children on the streets in Caracas and founded an organization to promote free and fair elections (Pictured: Machado during a protest on January 9) The committee's chairman, Jorgen Watne Frydnes, said Machado has inspired millions and chose to stay in her country despite serious threats against her life The committee says that it makes its decision based on the 'work and the will of Alfred Nobel' 'In the past year, Ms. Machado has been forced to live in hiding,' Watne Frydnes said when she was announced as the winner. 'Despite serious threats against her life, she has remained in the country, a choice that has inspired millions. 'When authoritarians seize power, it is crucial to recognize courageous defenders of freedom who rise and resist'. The committee posted a video of Kristian Berg Harpviken, the Director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute, calling Machado to inform her of her win. He choked up when delivering the news, leaving Machado speechless. 'Oh my god... I have no words,' she replied. Machado said she was 'honored, humbled, and very grateful' for the award, but acknowledged that she was just one person in a movement. A satellite image showed the devastating aftermath of the blast at a Tennessee explosives factory that police have confirmed left 'no survivors'. Sixteen people were missing after the explosion at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant around 7.50am local time Friday but police confirmed at a Saturday press conference they were now looking for remains. Humphreys County sheriff Chris Davis said: 'We can probably make the assumption - and I'm not even going to use the word assumption - I think that we can - well, I have to use that word, forgive me - we can assume that they are deceased.' Davis added: 'As we get into this, we find it even more devastating than what we thought initially.' The Humphreys County sheriff did not rule out foul play and said it 'might be days or weeks or months' before an investigation into the origin of the explosion was concluded. The bomb factory site, which is made up of eight buildings, takes up 1,300 acres in Bucksnort. It was the second blast at the explosives factory - about an hour southwest of Nashville - in 12 years. In April 2014, an explosion at the rural Tennessee facility killed Rodney Edwards and injured four others. A satellite image showed the devastating aftermath of the blast at a Tennessee explosives factory The Accurate Energetic Systems plant before the explosion That fatal incident happened in an area where shotgun ammunition was stored, the Humphreys County Sheriff said at the time. Edwards' widow Kathryn told WSMV her husband Rodney 'worked seven days a week' and 'would go in any time he was called.' The explosion, which ignited two fires in an area operated by Rio Ammunition, also severely injured Joey Clark. Clark lost his left eye and two fingers in the blast. He said: 'I was walking in the door where it flamed up. 'I stopped to go get Rodney. I was going to turn around. I thought he was behind me. 'That stop, thinking about him, probably saved my life.' And five years ago, a 'costly and dangerous fire' also broke out at the plant, according to court filings seen by The Tennessean. James Creech, an employee in the company's maintenance department who maintained and completed quality control tests on the boilers at their McEwen facility, filed the suit after being terminated due to the fires. The explosion happened around at the Accurate Energetic Systems plant around 7.50am local time Friday The blast took place about an hour southwest of Nashville in Bucksnort The company claimed Creech's 'failure to perform his job duties in a responsible manner contributed to a costly and dangerous fire' on October 30, 2020. Creech's attorneys said he 'was never interviewed regarding the fire, his actions or the deficiencies of the building and/or building materials that were the precipitating cause of the fire'. The lawsuit was settled after mediation. One year earlier, the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspected the plant after two employees suffered 'seizure events' prior to their shifts for the day, and a third employee had also had a seizure at home that same morning. The inspection found that five employees experienced 'central nervous system impairment' and had been potentially exposed to the toxic chemical cyclonite. Accurate Energetic Systems contested the 'serious' violations found and settled a lawsuit with the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. Public records obtained by the Associated Press showed that Accurate Energetic Systems sold multiple types of weapons to the US military, including dynamite and landmines. The Humphreys County sheriff said it 'might be days or weeks or months' before an investigation is concluded Humphreys County sheriff Chris Davis said during a press conference on Saturday that there were 'no survivors' recovered from Friday's explosion The company uses its 'state-of-the-art' rural Tennessee campus to test explosives, according to its website. A message on Accurate Energetic Systems' website addressed Friday's blast: 'Our thoughts and prayers are with the families, coworkers, and community members affected by this incident. We extend our gratitude to all first responders who continue to work tirelessly under difficult conditions.' A leading SNP MSP who was quizzed by police probing SNP fraud claims was last night at the centre of a 20,000 cashforvotes controversy. Former SNP treasurer Colin Beattie offered to give his party money in return for being voted for by members choosing a candidate in next years Scottish Parliament election. Internal party documents seen by The Scottish Mail on Sunday show the 73yearold MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh made the cash offer to his local branch, but only if he is selected as candidate in the fullness of time'. Mr Beattie made the financial pledge last November and later won the partys nomination to contest the Midlothian seat. The promise of cash is in clear breach of the SNPs own selection rules which state: No candidate may offer money or any other advantages to any member or organisation as an incentive to support their campaign. Mr Beattie is now facing calls from within his own party for his selection to be nullified and a new vote to take place after he admitted offering the cash. His success in getting the partys nomination shocked some within the SNP after he had been previously arrested as part of the police fraud probe into party finances. Mr Beattie was questioned by police officers in April 2023 as part of Operation Branchform an investigation into nearly 600,000 from an online independence campaign crowdfunder which did not show in the SNPs accounts. Former SNP treasurer Colin Beattie is at the centre of a 20,000 cashforvotes controversy He was arrested and later released without charge. Police Scotland confirmed earlier this year that criminal inquiries into Mr Beattie, along with former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, had concluded, the pair had not been charged and are no longer under investigation. Scottish Conservative Deputy Leader Rachael Hamilton said: If these allegations are true, Colin Beatties position is completely untenable. He must immediately explain exactly what happened during his attempts to be reselected for this seat and release all relevant correspondence. If there is any suggestion that he attempted to offer improper inducements to secure the candidacy, it would be a huge scandal requiring, at the very least, his immediate withdrawal as a candidate. Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie MSP said: This will raise serious questions about the SNPs selection process and what promises were made by Colin Beattie as part of the decision to nominate him as the partys candidate for the Holyrood election next year. Colin Beattie must come clean about what promises he made to his local party branch in the full interests of transparency, otherwise people will have grave concerns about the process which led to him being chosen to stand for reelection. It is also incumbent on John Swinney and the SNPs new chief executive Callum McCaig to investigate any allegations of impropriety in order to give party members the confidence they need that selections are fair and free from any undue influences. Rachael Hamilton MSP, Deputy Leader of the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, has said Mr Beattie must explain exactly what happened during his attempts to be reselected Several party members have called for his nomination for next years Holyrood election to be scrapped, accusing him of a gross abuse of power and breaking internal rules. One furious Midlothian SNP member said: Mr Beattie has made a mockery of this contest and my trust in him has been destroyed. This bribe is a gross abuse of power in my opinion and has sullied the entire process. This should be nullified. The 73yearold was confirmed as the partys candidate for the Midlothian North constituency in May. Minutes of a Dalkeith SNP branch meeting held on November 19, 2024, show attendees discussing the money theyd need to campaign for the Midlothian North seat. The minutes state Mr Beattie feels Midlothian is a winnable seat which would need 2025k to win and he was confident well get the money. One member then offered to donate 2,000 for online campaign advertising before Mr Beattie committed to make up the shortfall in campaign funds if the branch is unable to secure the 20k target and if he is selected as candidate in the fullness of time. According to the SNPs selection rules no candidate may offer money or any other advantages to any member or organisation as an incentive to support their campaign. A member of the Dalkeith branch said they were shocked that Mr Beattie had promised money. They said: When I saw this in the minutes I was horrified to be honest. It is buying votes. The other two candidates wouldnt have the personal money to put towards a campaign like that and they would never offer to give money in exchange for a nomination because it breaks the SNP selection rules. A lot of us were surprised when he won the nomination. People felt like it was time for a new face and a fresh start but Colin won by more votes than both of the other candidates combined so Id say his promise of money for the campaign absolutely had something to do with it. It would have influenced people because they would think the SNP would have a chance of winning if we had the money to fight the seat. Since then people have asked about this funding but its been ignored. Nothing has been given and the branch is in chaos because of it. According to the Dalkeith branch minutes, at the time Mr Beattie pledged the funding the Dalkeith branch had just 450 in the bank and 519.26 in their account at SNP HQ far less than the 20 25,000 they believe would be needed to win the seat. Mr Beattie has been a member of the SNP since the age of 14 and was involved in international finance before being elected in 2011. Along with his doctor wife Lisa, the exbanker owns a 1m property empire via their company Ben Sheann Enterprises. They spent around 720,000 between 2018 and 2023 buying properties across the north of England and spent a further 196,000 in 2024. Midlothian council leader Kelly Parry and Midlothian East councillor Stuart McKenzie were both hoping to represent the SNP in the election next year but lost the contest in favour of Mr Beattie. Ms Parry said she had no knowledge of Mr Beatties financial promises and said: Governance and complaints are an internal process of the SNP and are a matter for the National Secretary. Scottish Labour candidate for Midlothian North Caitlin Stott, said: If Colin Beattie is not able to be transparent with members of his own party, how can he possibly be open and honest with members of the wider public? Colin Beattie said: Before the selection process begun, I reassured members if I were the candidate I would make sure the campaign was sufficiently funded. It is a falsehood to claim that any pledged donation formed part of the selection contest. A famously withering political putdown was once directed at former deputy prime minster Geoffrey Howe. Debating him, according to a rival, was like being savaged by a dead sheep. That jibe came to mind this week when a bleating flock of soggy dead-eyed sheep bared their blunt teeth at me inside the Scottish parliaments so-called debating chamber. The catalyst for my savaging by SNP Housing Secretary Mairi McAllan, along with Labour, Green and Lib Dem MSPs, was a Scottish Conservative debate we brought to Holyrood on Wednesday. I and my colleagues have spent months listening to the growing disquiet of constituents about immigration and its impact on our communities and the nations finances. Law-abiding and decent Scots, from parts urban and rural, are increasingly concerned about rising numbers of people entering the UK by small boat. Having paid a fat fee to organised crime gangs, these young men and its mostly young men from places like Syria and Afghanistan then claim asylum upon arrival on Britains south coast. This entitles them to free accommodation and meals, spending money, NHS treatment and schooling for children. The issue of illegal immigration comes amid weeks of protests outside so-called asylum hotels, such as the protests in Falkirk, above Mr Findlay said he has 'spent months listening to the growing disquiet of constituents' Mairi McAllan has 'an intolerance for debate,' writes Russell Findlay Many new arrivals are dispersed to Scotland, with Glasgow being a favoured destination due to decisions taken by SNP ministers. Scotlands largest city with debts of 1.6 billion and a housing emergency declared two years ago has more asylum seekers than anywhere else in the UK. Councils elsewhere are obliged to house those granted refugee status who are homeless but, crucially, this applies only to those in priority need, most typically people with children. However, since the SNP scrapped the priority need clause in 2012, Scottish councils have been legally required to house all homeless refugees, including single males. In 2022, the SNP also axed the local connection rule which means homeless applicants no longer need to have proven connections to an area to qualify for help. Asylum seekers are further incentivised to head north after John Swinney decided to spend 2 million giving them free bus travel a decision opposed at Holyrood only by the Scottish Tories. Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has pledged to withdraw from the outdated ECHR, after an exhaustive analysis by Lord Wolfson KC, above Ms Badenoch demonstrates the 'great diversity of the Conservatives,' said Mr Findlay Upon arrival in Britain, illegal migrants are ushered into the embrace of taxpayer-funded lawyers who ensure that they will almost certainly never be sent packing. The UK government even provides a handy website listing specialist firms touting for business. I wasnt surprised to discover one running sponsored Google ads boasting of a 98 per cent win rate. These lawyers usually rely upon the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), to which the UK was a founding signatory in 1950. When an asylum claim is first made, their favoured weapon is ECHR Article 3 which prohibits inhuman or degrading treatment. The definition of degrading treatment has been twisted far beyond its original meaning and intent. Furthermore, ECHR is why were unable to deport foreign criminals, no matter how heinous their crimes. The human rights of killers and rapists are platinum-plated. Thats why I back my UK leader Kemi Badenochs pledge to withdraw from the outdated ECHR, after an exhaustive analysis by Lord Wolfson KC. While immigration is rightly reserved to the UK government, mass illegal immigration and the ECHR is having a profound impact on Scotland. When I decided that we should debate these issues at Holyrood on Wednesday afternoon, I had a fair idea of how the cosily consensual Left-wing parties would respond. But nothing could have prepared me for their reaction, which I would categorise as wilfully dishonest and deeply intolerant. I began by celebrating Britains long history of immigration and diversity, of our tolerance and respect for other cultures. Having just returned from our party conference in Manchester, I cited a speech from writer and new Tory party convert Matthew Syed, who said of his father, an immigrant from Pakistan: He knew that this is perhaps the most meritocratic and least sectarian nation on earth. I pointed out the great diversity of the Conservatives, as demonstrated by Kemi Badenoch, the first black leader of any major UK party, and Rishi Sunak, the first ever non-white Prime Minister. It is, I told MSPs, not racist to recognise that our country has failed in its fundamental duty to control its borders or to note that too many come here illegally, overstay their welcome, or actively oppose our countrys values. In response, Mairi McAllan delivered a diatribe in which she asserted that the very term illegal migrant is divisive and dehumanising. She also ridiculously claimed that ECHR membership represents the difference between barbarity and civilisation. Ms McAllan is a protege of Nicola Sturgeon, with whom she shares an intolerance for debate, as seen during the former first ministers blinkered furtherance of radical gender ideology. When Ms McAllan started lobbing inflammatory accusations of racism, I made three separate attempts to intervene but she rejected them, just as she rejected five other attempts by my Tory colleagues. The SNPs lead attack sheep was not capable, or even interested, in debate. Instead she sought to shut it down and smear her opponents. The Labour, Lib Dem and Green MSPs were inevitably not much better. As they too deployed insults and peddled inaccuracies, I attempted 12 more interventions on them collectively, which were mostly refused. Why are these MSPs so afraid of pushback and questions? Jamie Hepburn, recently forced to resign as an SNP minister for angrily manhandling my colleague Douglas Ross, rejected my four intervention attempts and accused us of not once using the word refugee. He was right, but not in the way he thought. Id said it three times. Was he not listening or just lazily reliant on a pre-prepared script? Perhaps the most ludicrous rhetoric came from Maggie Chapman, who is extreme even by the standards of the Scottish Greens. She said that it is racist to spit on people in the streets just because of the colour of their skin and that I have witnessed all of the above and more by Tories or other far-Right groups. This depressing debate was further evidence of the culture of a parliament which has gained a deserved reputation for being largely performative. MSP Jamie Hepburn, above, who recently resigned as an SNP minister for angrily manhandling Tory MSP Douglas Ross, rejected four intervention attempts by Mr Findlay Mr Findlay said asylum seekers are 'further incentivised' to head to Scotland after John Swinney decided to spend 2 million giving them free bus travel As the opposition sheep bleated out their tropes and baseless accusations, while refusing to be challenged, I was eventually left with no option but to intervene on my own colleague, Meghan Gallacher. She duly agreed that the refusal of grandstanding SNP politicians to take interventions while hurling insults and inaccuracies was pathetic, and evidence of how out of touch they are with the concerns of people across Scotland. The Scottish Tories are made of strong stuff. We can take a savaging from any Holyrood sheep. Discussing immigration and reflecting the views of ordinary, mainstream Scotland is not far-Right. But it is right, and my party will continue to defy Scotlands sneeringly out of touch, Left-wing political class. The former head of a scandal-hit health board has tried to defend his record by citing a report prepared by an organisation that he is a member of. John Brown, chairman of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) until 2023, has been accused of marking his own homework after he ordered a review of his boards management by the Quality Governance Collaborative (QGC) in 2021. Mr Brown said the review, which gave NHS chiefs a positive rating, was independent. But it has emerged that he is an executive at the body, which is part of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. NHSGGC is currently at the centre of a public inquiry after dozens of patients, mainly children with cancer, contracted rare infections at the 847 million Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow. The long- running scandal saw former health secretary Jeane Freeman place the health board in special measures over safety concerns in 2019. In evidence to the Scottish Hospitals Inquiry earlier this month Mr Brown tried to defend his management record by highlighting the QGC review. Its report seemingly gave NHSGGC management a clean bill of health, stating: The Board is professional and its membership skills reflect the needs of NHSGGC. But The Mail on Sunday can reveal that Mr Brown was, and remains, a board member at the QGC, including at the time he commissioned the report, throwing its independence into doubt. Former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon with John Brown The Queen Elizabeth University Hospital (QEUH) which is at the centre of an inquiry Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane Scottish Tory health spokesman Dr Sandesh Gulhane said: This smacks of a senior figure at Scotlands largest health board marking his own homework. As a frontline doctor, I see first-hand how badly our local health services are being run thanks to gross mismanagement from those at the top of the health board. The health board must come clean about why it was deemed acceptable for this individual to be involved in this report, which failed to paint an accurate picture. Alongside his roles with NHSGGC and the QGC, Mr Brown held eight other jobs while the health board was in crisis. He left the health board in 2023. The NHSGGC said yesterday that it could not comment on an ongoing inquiry. A spokesman for the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh did not respond when asked whether its report was independent. But he said: John Browns connection with The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh has been widely known for many years, and published on the colleges website, including his role with the Quality Governance Collaborative. The demands of parenthood often require mothers to become adept at multitasking. However, Hollywood star Karen Gillan has taken that skill to the next level after revealing she wrote a screenplay while caring for her newborn daughter. The Guardians of the Galaxy star, 37, and her American husband Nick Kocher, 38, welcomed the arrival of baby Clementine last December. Now, in an insight into how she balances work and family life, the Scots actress revealed she wrote a horror script in the weeks following her daughters birth as she found the tot would often only sleep in her arms. Ms Gillan said: Ive written a pilot for television in that haze because I didnt figure out how to put the baby into the crib so it was all contact naps. So, I was like what can I do right now to pass the time? I know Ill create something. I was trying to type and then I was doing it on my phone and then I was like Ill just have it in my head and then get it out once the baby is not on me. Discussing the project, she said: It is probably going to be the biggest undertaking of my life and I cant really talk about it right now but it is in the horror space. It will be the hardest thing Ive ever done. The former Doctor Who star, who lives in Los Angeles, also spoke of how odd she finds it to think that her daughter will have an American accent. Shes going to be like Hey mom and Ill be like Its mum, she said. Karen Gillan has said she wrote a pilot for a horror show while caring for her newborn Ms Gillan cuddles her daughter Clementine Guardian of the Galaxy star Gillan said she started writing in the 'haze' of looking after her baby Ms Gillan also touched on how her fame affects daily life during the chat with Virgin Radio host Ryan Tubridy. Asked if she can move around London without being recognised, she said: I can. However, she added: I cant get round my hometown Inverness because thats a smaller place and people are much more aware of me. But I get around New York City fine. Also, when Tubridy suggested she was glamorous, Ms Gillan responded with surprise, saying: I just dont view myself that way. A local Labour party run by a chief who blamed empty schools on Essex parents 'not breeding' enough pressured a headteacher to be sacked for supporting Reform UK. In a since-edited post on Facebook, Basildon Labour Party described the political opinions of a headteacher as a 'serious and legitimate safeguarding concern'. The local party seemingly aimed to pressure Wickford Primary School into sacking headteacher Lorraine Ramet. Posting at 8.33am, it said: 'We are deeply disappointed that the headteacher of Wickford Primary School has failed to respond to serious and legitimate safeguarding concerns regarding their support for Reform UK Councillors.' The post sparked outrage with hundreds questioning how a person's political standpoint could be considered a safeguarding issue. Former Royal Navy Rear Admiral Dr Chris Parry said: 'This is about as evil as it gets in a democracy.' Baroness Kate Hoey said: 'This is a new low for the Labour Party. Do they want all Labour supporting heads to consider their positions too?' Former Reform MP James McMurdock, who now sits as an independent, said: 'This is not an isolated incident. Basildon Council is run by Gavin Callaghan, who was backed by Sir Keir Starmer during the councillor's re-election campaign In a since-edited post on Facebook , Basildon Labour Party described the political opinions of a headteacher as a 'serious and legitimate safeguarding concern'. Pictured: The original post at 8.33am and the edited post at 10.16am The local party seemingly aimed to pressure Wickford Primary School into sacking headteacher Lorraine Ramet (pictured) 'The depths to which the Labour group have repeatedly stooped is enough to disgust any fair, democratically minded person. 'I wonder if they'll look back on their conduct one day and feel ashamed of themselves.' Two hours after the original post, the local party edited it, claiming it took issue with the school allegedly hiring Reform Councillors to act as traffic enforcement officers without clearance from the local authority. The update post said: 'We are deeply disappointed that the Headteacher of Wickford Primary School has failed to respond to serious and legitimate safeguarding concerns regarding their support for Reform UK Councillors acting as traffic enforcement operatives. It's clear that no risk assessment was undertaken. 'This will now be taken to the Board of Governors to find out if the Headteacher made them aware of this decision.' The leader of Basildon Council's Reform party, Cllr Sam Journet, said: 'Basildon Labour cannot hide their disgusting rhetoric. 'You can edit your way out of what the public see, but we can see the history of the post.' He suggested their editing of the post could be an 'admission they've made a fatal error?' Basildon Council's leader, Gavin Callaghan, told the Daily Mail: 'Basildon Labour haven't asked for any teacher to be sacked based on who they individually support. Any teacher can vote for anyone they like. 'Schools themselves should remain politically impartial. You're referring to an issue relating to a traffic enforcement issue outside the school in which Reform UK Councillors were acting as traffic enforcement officers without any powers or clearance from the local authority, but with the apparent blessing of the school.' Previously, Callaghan made a bizarre claim to the Daily Mail that parents in Billericay were 'not breeding' enough children and the council was 'five years away from closing schools'. Despite Starmer's backing during Callaghan's re-election campaign, he also accused the PM's government of limiting the NHS's ability to build state-of-the-art GP and dentist surgeries in Essex, which the Department of Health, NHS and local integrated care system said was not true. There was a huge backlash to the original post on Basildon Labour Party's Facebook page The leader of Basildon Council's Reform party, Cllr Sam Journet, said: 'Basildon Labour cannot hide their disgusting rhetoric' Previously, Callaghan made a bizarre claim to the Daily Mail that parents in Billericay were 'not breeding' enough children Your browser does not support iframes. Callaghan had approached a Daily Mail reporter on social media after this site revealed how locals were furious at Basildon Council's controversial plan to build 27,000 new homes across the borough, 17,000 of which will be on green belt land. Asked whether he was worried the government would force extra services to be provided for the 27,000-home development, he said: 'In Billericay we are five years away from closing schools. I know the public don't want to hear it but they're not breeding in the town. 'There isn't a shortage of schools in Billericay and there will be new ones if these homes are built.' For the last three years on record, Basildon's fertility rate has decreased by 0.14, but remains higher than the national average and the third highest in Essex, and all 11 schools in Billericay are oversubscribed. Wickford Primary School, headteacher Lorraine Ramet and Reform UK have been contacted for comment. John Swinney has been accused of being out of touch with voters after vowing to spend every day until the next election furthering the case for Scottish independence. The First Minister made the comments on the first day of his party conference, as he put forward his strategy for ripping Scotland out of the union if a majority of SNP MSPs are elected at Holyrood next year. The proposal was overwhelmingly adopted by delegates, who rejected alternative suggestions including that a majority of MSPs from all pro-independence parties would constitute a mandate for separation. Mr Swinney has been accused of putting an obsession with separation over Scotland by opposition parties who condemned the SNP for spending the whole afternoon of their first day of conference discussing strategies for breaking up the union. Scottish Conservatives deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said the SNP were fighting over a fantasy. She said: The SNP showed themselves in their true colours at this debate, ludicrously labelling the same old obsession with independence a fresh start. Even on the one thing they always put first, they were squabbling like Nats in a sack over which version of this fantasy to back. One activist called John Swinneys plan a donkey and another, bizarrely, compared the SNP to Jesse Owens. Even Keith Brown, who claimed to be backing his leader, went off-message, talking about a majority of voters rather than of SNP MSPs. John Swinney has been accused of being out of touch with voters Scottish Conservative MSP Rachael Hamilton said the SNP are fighting over a fantasy Daftest of all, John Swinney proudly declared that nobody knows the tactics Ill deploy if he wins his majority. The SNP leader may be proud of selling a pig in a poke to his own supporters, but he and his party have lost all credibility with their renewed drive for an unwanted referendum. Scottish Labours constitution spokesman Neil Bibby said: One person dies from a drug overdose almost every seven hours in Scotland, one in six Scots is on an NHS waiting list, violence is rising in our schools and a housing emergency is causing misery for families across the country yet the SNP has no answers. Instead, they waste their time fighting among themselves over the constitution rather than focus on fixing Scotlands public services. The SNP is hopelessly out of touch while services across Scotland are at breaking point. He added: People deserve better than this tired, incompetent government that will put its own obsession with division before Scotland. During his address in Aberdeen yesterday Mr Swinney said an SNP majority was well within our grasp. He said his party would win big and said: We are within touching distance of the 65 seats that will make the world sit up and take notice. I did not take on this leadership to make a difference at the margins I took on the leadership to deliver independence and thats exactly what Im going to do for Scotland. Uniting behind it, spending every day between now and May advancing the case that independence is the fresh start we need. Mr Swinney's proposal was backed by SNP deputy leader Keith Brown Mr Swinney's proposal was overwhelmingly adopted by delegates at the SNP conference He later said: Nobody knows the tactics I am going to deploy if we get 65 seats in the Scottish parliament, so keep watching because Scotland is on the journey to independence. The proposal was backed by SNP deputy leader Keith Brown and finance secretary Kate Forbes while former SNP MP Tommy Sheppard spoke in favour of the alternative proposal. Mr Brown accused the UK Government of attempting to corrupt next years election by through its Pride in Place scheme which will see 14 communities given 20m each to transform town centres and high streets. He described the funding boost as an absolute scandal of Labour MPs being told they have 20m to spend in local constituencies by the UK Government on devolved functions in order, in my view, to try and corrupt the election next year. SNP activist Graeme McCormick, who threatened to run against Mr Swinney in the last SNP leadership contest, described the First Ministers plan as a donkey and said: We know that this party is hollowing out. There isnt a branch that hasnt suffered significant reductions. So people are not renewing their membership and theyre walking away. Weve got to reverse that. Another activist said Scots were being forced to seek the approval of our captors to break away from the United Kingdom. Former Justice secretary Kenny MacAskill, leader of the pro-independence Alba party, said the decision to support an SNP-only majority as a mandate for separation had been a missed opportunity to unite the independence movement and said: They are putting the electoral interests of the SNP ahead of the needs of the country. Wealthy Scots could be forced to pay an annual tax for simply owning a home, under plans for a controversial new levy being considered by the SNP. Delegates at the partys annual conference today voted to raise money for the government by introducing a wealth tax. Although no specific details were provided, the principle of the new levy is that the well-off would be taxed an amount each year based on the overall value of their assets - which could include savings, art, jewellery and antiques, as well as private pensions, land and property. Unlike most current forms of taxation, a wealth tax would be applied to all assets owned by high-worth individuals, even if those assets are neither bought nor sold. Whilst acknowledging that Holyrood does not have the legal powers to set up the new levy, the conference today voted for the Scottish Government to start discussions with HMRC on introducing a local wealth tax for Scotland. However the proposals immediately sparked a warning that, although the policy would most target the super-rich at first, the criteria could easily be changed - meaning more and more people becoming eligible to pay as the government sought to boost its coffers. Scottish Conservative spokesman for finance and local government Craig Hoy said: The SNPs solution to everything seems to be higher taxes, so Its no surprise they should have backed this muddled and counter-productive idea. Their high-tax agenda is already holding back the opportunities for growth for Scottish businesses and damaging Scotlands economy, which is stagnating compared with other parts of the country. Scottish Conservative MSP Craig Hoy said the SNP proposal is 'counter-productive' Former SNP MP Chris Stephens said that a wealth tax was necessary to address inequality This ill-thought out additional tax would only increase the gap with other parts of the UK, drive away investors, deter skilled workers, cost jobs and end up hammering ordinary Scots. The SNP has repeatedly introduced measures to ensure that households deemed to be well-off are taxed more highly in Scotland than elsewhere in the UK. Changes to income tax brought in the Scottish Government mean that anyone in Scotland earning more than 30,300 a year currently pays more than they would if they lived in England. Meanwhile anyone buying a home in Scotland pays more tax than they would in England on residential properties worth more than 330,000. And further changes introduced this year mean anyone buying a second home in Scotland must also pay an additional tax worth an extra 8 per cent of the property price. Although a blanket wealth tax has never been tried anywhere in the UK, the idea has been hotly discussed in recent months, after senior figures in the UK Labour party called on Chancellor Rachel Reeves to introduce the new levy in Novembers Budget to help plug a multi-billion pound hole in the public finances. Former Labour leader Neil, Lord Kinnock, argued that an annual tax of one or two per cent on the assets of the wealthiest in society - which he suggested should mean those with assets worth over 10million - would raise between 12billion and 24 billion. Supporters say that a tax which targets accumulated, inherited or invested wealth would both raise significant revenue and tackle inequality. SNP delegates voted to raise money for the government by introducing a wealth tax Former Labour leader Neil, Lord Kinnock, has similarly supported suggestions of an annual tax of one or two per cent on the assets of the wealthiest in society Exact details of how a wealth tax would work have not been spelled out, but would likely be based on a calculation of an individual, household or businesss total net wealth rather than their income, which would include the total market value of assets such as property, savings, investments, and other forms of personal or business wealth after subtracting liabilities such as debts. However critics argue that it would be difficult to agree what value of assets would be needed to define an individual as wealthy. They also point out that it would be hard to assess the exact taxable value of any individuals assets, given the variable nature of prices, particularly house prices. Another key argument put forward by opponents of the wealth tax is that introducing it would simply encourage the richest in society to leave the country. At the SNP conference, former MP Chris Stephens said that a wealth tax was necessary to address inequality. He said: Whilst families are struggling to ay their bills, a small handful are lining their own pockets. He claimed that the wealthiest two per cent of people in Scotland own more wealth than 50 per cent of the population combined. And he told delegates that imposing a modest two per cent wealth tax on assets over 10 million would raise 492million from just the countrys ten richest families. That would be enough, he said, to pay for 12,000 new nurses, 11,000 new teachers, or to double the Scottish child payment and lift more than 30,000 children out of poverty. Party members then voted by a clear majority in favour of a resolution entitled Maximising revenue for Scotland. It asked delegates to recognise that Scotland is facing a cost-of-living crisis and huge pressure on public services due to the failure of the UK Treasury, despite the efforts of the Scottish Government to mitigate the impact of this crisis. And it added: Conference therefore urges the Scottish Government... to begin discussions with HMRC on a local wealth tax in Scotland. Rising Scots actor Solly McLeod is due to star in a new film along side Hollywood A-lister Angelina Jolie. McLeod, who grew up in Orkney before moving to London at the age of 10, is the latest cast member to be announced for upcoming movie Anxious People. As well as Jolie, he will star alongside White Lotus actress Aimee Lou Wood, American star Jason Segel and Jessica Gunning, who famously portrayed a crazed stalker in Netflix smash Baby Reindeer. Sharing news of his casting online, McLeod wrote simple: Bit of fun. The storyline for the new film sees a reluctant bank robber take a group of strangers hostage as they attend a house viewing. A synopsis states that chaos and oversharing ensues, secrets are revealed, and literally nothing goes according to plan. The production was the first to use the newly launched Pinewood Indie Film Hub, a dedicated production facility for independent filmmakers at Pinewood Studios, in Slough, England. It isnt the only project McLeod has in the pipeline, with upcoming projects including a role in Practical Magic 2 - a sequel to the 1998 romantic fantasy starring Nicole Kidman and Sandra Bullock. McLeod is the latest cast member to be announced for upcoming movie Anxious People McLeod will star alongside Hollywood A-lister Angelina Jolie Mr McLeod played the central role in Tom Jones alongside Sophie Wild, who played the character Sophia Western Kidman and Bullock are reprising their roles as sisters Gillian and Sally Owens, respectively, who descend from a long line of witches. In the 1998 original film adaptation, the two sisters harness their powers to fight off a curse that kills the men they fall in love with. Plot details for the second film have not yet been revealed, but early reports say that the story will be based on a later installment in the author's Practical Magic book series. In the upcoming sequel, Dianne Wiest and Stockard Channing will also be returning to reprise their roles as Aunt Jet and Aunt Frances 'Fran' Owens, respectively. The star-studded cast also includes newcomers Lee Pace of Bodies Bodies Bodies fame as well as former child star Joey King. After 30 years of tourist trips, a famed pirate ship based on Christopher Columbus's vessel has sunk off the coast of Puerto Vallarta in Mexico. The iconic Marigalante, which is constructed entirely of wood, rapidly sank on Friday after a system failure. According to Civil Protection and Firefighters of Puerto Vallarta the incident was caused by a mechanical or electrical failure in the bilge pumps. Authorities said: 'Due to the strong waves, it was impossible to rescue the vessel, which unfortunately ended up sinking.' The ship's crew and passengers were safely evacuated before it sank. The Marigalante is a staggering replica of the Santa Maria galleon, one of the three ships used by Christopher Columbus when he sailed across the Atlantic in 1492. To commemorate the 500th Anniversary of Columbus's Discovery of America in 1987, it was built and is now used to give tourists a glimpse of life at sea. Tourists can expect a pirate show, featuring sword fights, fireworks and acrobats. The iconic Marigalante, which is constructed entirely of wood, rapidly sank on Friday after a system failure According to Civil Protection and Firefighters of Puerto Vallarta the incident was caused by a mechanical or electrical failure in the bilge pumps The ship's crew and passengers were safely evacuated before it sank 'The incident occurred as the crew was attempting to return to port to carry out technical repairs,' the company that owned the ship said. 'The system malfunction worsened, and the ship began to slowly submerge into the waters that had been its home for more than three decades. 'Thanks to the immediate and responsible actions of the crew, all passengers were safely evacuated without risk. 'Today, the Marigalante rests in the waters that were always her home, and she will forever remain alive in the memory and hearts of all who watched her sail.' In what has been dubbed an exciting new venture, its sister ship will 'continue its legacy of history'. The new vessel is expected to be operational in Banderas Bay within three months. The Secretary of Tourism for the State of Jlisco, expressed deep sorrow over the incident but excitement over the future. She said: 'We hopefully hear the announcement of the upcoming arrival of the Marigalante's sister ship to the bay waters, to continue its legacy of history, excitement, and Vallarta pride. 'Rest assured that, from @secturjalmx, we will contribute so that this arrival marks the beginning of a story full of new adventures for our beloved Puerto Vallarta.' Standing amongst thousands of Israelis in Hostages Square, Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, celebrated the ceasefire in Gaza. Ivanka Trump, 43, who converted to Judaism in 2009, stood alongside her husband and lauded the long-lasting peace expected to begin on Monday when the rest of the hostages are returned home. 'Tonight, we honor the strength of every family waiting, praying, and believing,' she told the crowd on Saturday. 'We're all praying for Monday and beyond. 'I am in awe of their strength and conviction in spite of such suffering... As we embark on the next chapter, which, God willing, after far too long, will be a lasting and enduring peace.' Ivanka and Jared, who is also Jewish, said they were waiting to fully celebrate once the hostages are released. Twenty living hostages are in Hamas' hands. Phase One of the ceasefire will also see the release of the deceased hostages in exchange for 250 Palestinian prisoners and 1,700 detainees from Gaza. Increased aid will also enter the Gaza Strip as Gazans move home. 'Each hostage is not only a moment of homecoming and relief, it's a triumph of faith, of courage, and of our shared humanity,' the mother-of-three told the huge Tel Aviv crowd, which is believed to be one of the biggest gatherings in Hostages Square. Ivanka Trump, 43, who converted to Judaism in 2009, stood alongside her husband to celebrate the long-lasting peace expected to begin on Monday when the rest of the hostages are returned home The Tel Aviv crowd is believed to be one of the biggest gatherings in Hostages Square Ivanka also brought a message to Israelis from her father, President Donald Trump. 'He sees you, he hears you, he stands with you, always,' she told the crowd to thunderous cheers. The crowd broke out in 'thank you, Trump' chants as they held signs of the hostages and even one of the president's official portraits. 'We pray this week is one of healing for you all,' she concluded her two-minute speech. 'God bless you all for standing in solidarity together through this dark chapter.' Her husband, 44, also spoke to the crowd. Jared was a key member in making the peace deal happen, as he traveled with US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, to Egypt to broker a ceasefire. 'Seeing these horrific acts shocked me to my core and I'll never be the same,' Jared said of October 7, 2023, when the conflict started after Hamas attacked a music festival, killing 1,200 and kidnapping 251 Israelis. 'I cried. 'Instead of replicating the barbarous of the enemy, you chose to be exceptional, you chose to stand for the values that you stand for, and I couldn't be prouder to be a friend of Israel's, somebody that supports Israel, and somebody that fights very strongly to see Israel survive and see it's fullest potential.' He also thanked the 'amazing soldiers of the IDF.' Her husband, 44, also spoke to the crowd. 'Seeing these horrific acts shocked me to my core and I'll never be the same,' he said Jared was a key member of making the deal happen, as he traveled with US Special Envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witkoff (pictured with Jared and Ivanka), to Egypt to broker a ceasefire 'Without their heroism, brilliance, and bravery, this deal would not have been possible, so really want to give a big tribute to them,' he said. Jared said he hoped this deal will make the world more 'peaceful,' help 'build bridges of understanding' and to 'eliminate hatred.' Kushner and Witkoff have been in Egypt helping to hammer out the details between the two sides after Phase One of the deal was announced on Wednesday. President Trump said he planned to travel to Egypt for the signing of the ceasefire deal, adding that he expected Hamas to free hostages on Monday or Tuesday. Speaking at a cabinet meeting on Thursday, Trump said the agreement between Israel and Hamas had 'ended the war in Gaza' and would lead to broader Middle East peace. Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said earlier that he had invited Trump to take part in a 'celebration to be held in Egypt' for the first phase of the ceasefire deal. Trump said he also expected to visit Israel, adding that he had been invited to address the Israeli parliament. 'They asked me to speak at the Knesset and... I've agreed to, if they would like me to, I will do it,' Trump said in response to a question from a reporter. Pictured: Ivanka praying at the Western Wall for the successful end of the Gaza war earlier this week The Republican gave few details about the second phase of the peace deal and the future of Gaza. Hamas is also not allowed to broadcast the return of the hostages, as they've done in previous ceasefire deals. Around 600 humanitarian aid trucks were expected to start rolling into Gaza yesterday. The region has been dealing with a famine through the war, and much of the Strip has been destroyed. Israel has also begun to withdraw its forces. The Jewish State will still control 53 percent of Gaza. More troops will withdraw in later phases. Donald Trump said Saturday he had directed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to use 'all available funds' to make sure that US troops are paid on October 15 despite the ongoing 'radical left' government shutdown. The US president's vow arrived on the 11th day of the government shutdown - and just days before troops were in danger of not receiving their next paychecks Wednesday. Trump wrote on Truth Social: 'We have identified funds to do this, and Secretary Hegseth will use them to PAY OUR TROOPS. 'I will not allow the Democrats to hold our Military, and the entire Security of our Nation, HOSTAGE, with their dangerous Government Shutdown.' There are about 1.3 million active-duty members of the US military, whose pay was in danger because of the shutdown. The Trump administration began their promised mass purge of federal workers on Friday, with more than 4,100 people laid off. Before the government shuttered on October 1, the White House had asked all federal agencies to submit their reduction-in-force plans to its budget office for its review. Trump wrote on Truth Social: 'We have identified funds to do this, and Secretary Hegseth will use them to PAY OUR TROOPS' Donald Trump said Saturday he had directed Secretary of War Pete Hegseth to use 'all available funds' to make sure that US troops are paid on October 15 Trump slammed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in his Truth Social post. He wrote: 'Chuck Schumer recently said, 'Every day gets better' during their Radical Left Shutdown. I DISAGREE! 'If nothing is done, because of 'Leader' Chuck Schumer and the Democrats, our Brave Troops will miss the paychecks they are rightfully due on October 15th.' The US president accused the Democratic Party of holding the US military and the 'entire Security of our Nation' hostage through the 'dangerous' government shutdown. Trump added: 'The Radical Left Democrats should OPEN THE GOVERNMENT, and then we can work together to address Healthcare, and many other things that they want to destroy.' The US government has been in gridlock since October 1, and the issue of military paychecks has become a hot point on Capitol Hill. Speaker Mike Johnson said Saturday on X that 'Democrats have voted to block the Republican CR bill to pay our troops EIGHT TIMES over the past 3 weeks!' The US president said the Democratic Party was holding the US military and the 'entire Security of our Nation' hostage through the 'dangerous' shutdown Trump slammed Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in his Truth Social post The Republican Speaker of the House lauded the US president's decision. Johnson added: 'Thankfully, our Republican Commander-in-Chief joins with us in refusing to let military families suffer due to the SCHUMER SHUTDOWN!' It was unclear how Trump's directive for Hegseth to use 'all available funds' would be implemented. Schumer was also the target of Johnson's ire, who accused the New York Democrat of being 'the only thing standing between our troops and their next paycheck.' Another X post from Johnson said: 'Republicans have voted to OPEN the government and get our troops, Border Patrol, TSA, and veterans PAID! 'But Chuck Schumer is terrified of a challenge from the Marxist left - so he and the Democrats voted to CLOSE the governmentand to STOP PAYCHECKS from being issued.' The Republican House Speaker attacked Schumer when he was confronted by a military mom on C-SPAN Thursday about the shutdown. The mother identified as Samantha from Virginia, said to Johnson: 'I have two medically-fragile children [and] I have a husband who actively serves this country. He suffers from PTSD from his two tours in Afghanistan. 'If we see a lapse in pay come the 15th, my children do not get the medication that is needed for them to live their life.' House Speaker Mike Johnson has blamed Chuck Schumer for the government shutdown There are about 1.3 million active-duty members of the US military She continued: 'I heard you earlier say you side with President Trump on anything that he says. 'Well, I just read an article this morning that said he absolutely, wholeheartedly believes there needs to be legislation put in [place] that we do not miss a paycheck.' Johnson responded that it was the Democrats 'preventing' her family from getting their money. The Speaker of the House said: 'If we get a vote on the floor to pay troops, it's not a lawmaking exercise because Chuck Schumer's going to hold that up in the Senate.' The US government shutdown is expected to continue into next week, with Republicans and Democrats refusing to concede ground on their demands so far. The House is out of session and the Senate isn't scheduled to return until Tuesday. The deadlock has already caused flight delays and prevented the Federal Drug Administration from processing new drug applications. Democrats are demanding that subsidies under the Affordable Care Act that are set to expire at the end of December be extended. Republicans have countered that government funding should not be linked to healthcare reform and accused the Democrats of wanting free health care for illegal immigrants. The mother of tortured toddler Baby P will be forced to reveal the details of her son's brutal death as part of a fresh bid for freedom. Tracey Connelly, now 44, will give her first ever public account of how her 17-month son Peter suffered more than 50 wounds over an eight-month period. She has always refused to answer questions over Peter's death, even choosing not to give evidence at her trial. But now that the Parole Board has ruled for her upcoming hearing to be made public due to the 'substantial public interest' of the case, she will finally have to face the consequences of her actions. At the hearing on October 22 and 23, Connelly is due to be quizzed by a panel of experts, who will forensically question her. A source told The Mirror: 'Connelly has always hid the truth about her role and the circumstances surrounding Peter's death. She has never been held to account and asked openly why she let it happen. 'But the Parole Board will rake over Peter's death and she'll have nowhere to hide. She'll finally have to give answers.' It will mark the abuser's first review since her second recall to prison in August last year for breaching her licence conditions. Tracey Connelly, (pictured) now 44, will give her first ever public account of how her 17-month son Peter suffered more than 50 wounds over an eight-month period The wounds Peter (pictured) suffered included a broken back, broken ribs, mutilated fingertips, and missing fingernails Connelly was jailed in 2009 for causing or allowing the death of her 17-month son Peter at their home in Tottenham, north London, August 3, 2007. She sought, alongside her lover Steven Barker and his brother Jason Owen, to cover up the injuries inflicted on the youngster - missed by social service and health workers. The wounds Peter suffered included a broken back, broken ribs, mutilated fingertips, and missing fingernails. Tracey Connelly was initially released in 2013 but was later recalled to prison in 2015 for breaching her parole conditions. She was released again in July 2022 after the parole board had rejected three previous bids in 2015, 2017 and 2019. It was heard she was considered to be at 'low risk of committing a further offence' and that probation officers and prison officials supported the plan. But after being called back to prison again in August last year - over breached licence conditions - Connelly will now face a review. The Parole Board received two applications for October's review to be held in public, which described Connelly's 'landmark case' as 'one of the most high-profile and devastating child protection failures in UK history' that 'permanently altered the conversation around safeguarding', according to Judge Peter Rook KC's judgment. It was argued the public still does not have access to the 'real details', citing that previous decisions around parole and recall have been made in private and a public hearing would 'provide crucial context to a case that remains deeply significant to the public'. Barker's brother, Jason Owen, (pictured) received a six-year jail sentence for allowing the toddler to die She sought, alongside her lover Steven Barker (pictured) and his brother Jason Owen, to cover up the injuries inflicted on the youngster - missed by social service and health workers A lawyer for Connelly argued against the hearing being made public, saying it poses a risk to her safety and that there is a 'high risk' her identity will be compromised as 'threats to her safety are real and current'. The legal representative also said Connelly has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety and depression, and that a public hearing will 'exacerbate' these issues and have a 'significant and detrimental effect' on her evidence at the parole hearing. But Judge Rook, on behalf of the chair of the Parole Board, said the lawyer acknowledged Connelly 'recovers well from these events'. According to his judgment, Connelly experienced 'offence-related bullying and aggression' after her recall to prison which 'led to a decline in her mental health' but the judge said she reportedly responded well, without resorting to violence, and has now 'stabilised'. Granting the application for October's hearing to be held in public, the judge said: 'There can be no doubt that there is a substantial public interest in this case. 'There is a strong public interest in the extent that Ms Connelly currently presents a risk and, if so, what measures are proposed in order to manage it.' He added that a public hearing could 'reassure' the public of the 'thoroughness' of the Parole Board's risk assessment and the probation resources which would be supervising her in the event of her release. 'This may go some way to address legitimate public concern about Ms Connelly,' judge Rook said. Tracey Connelly was initially released in 2013 but was later recalled to prison in 2015 for breaching her parole conditions Permission for Connelly to leave prison in 2022 came despite the Parole Board panel highlighting concerns over her ability to manipulate and deceive, and hearing evidence of how she had become embroiled in prison romances and traded secret love letters with an inmate. Then-justice secretary Dominic Raab appealed against the decision, but a judge rejected his bid to keep her behind bars. Condemning the move, Mr Raab said at the time this was proof the parole system needs a 'fundamental overhaul'. When Connolly was first released, she was made subject to 20 licence conditions, including having to wear an electronic tag and disclose all her relationships, having her internet use monitored or obeying curfew. She was also banned from going to certain places to 'avoid contact with victims and to protect children'. The Parole Board said that she had been cleared due to a low risk of reoffending and that probation officers and prison officials supported the plan. It will now be a matter for the Board to decide if the latest breach of her conditions was so serious that she should not be released. A Parole Board spokesman said back in April: 'It's been directed to an oral hearing now but no hearing date has been set yet.' Baby Peter's family had a violent history, with a report in the aftermath of the toddler's death concluding there were 'striking similarities' in 'patterns of care and abuse experience by Tracey Connelly' and those endured by the toddler. A 71-year-old man had his head ripped by a bear while picking mushrooms, as authorities issue a stark warning about the animals. Pensioner Fujiwara Yoyoshi from Nishine, Shizukuishi Town, went missing on Wednesday after going foraging for mushrooms. His head and torso were later found separated with 'scratch marks' on his body following what police concluded to be a bear attack. The force told Japanese media outlet IBC: 'A man in his 70s who went missing after going into the woods to harvest mushrooms was found dead. 'We suspect he was attacked by a bear based on scratch marks.' A local also told a local publication that while they anticipated bears may emerge 'eventually' but never expected an ambush. 'There are farms and other areas where people are doing their business, so I thought they might come out eventually, but I never thought someone would be attacked,' he said. Bears are becoming an increasing danger in the country, particularly Iwate, where police caught an adult bear breaking into sheds and warehouses in Kitakami City. Local authorities confirmed they captured the animal at around 8am in Iwasaki, Waga-cho. Pensioner Fujiwara Yoyoshi had his head ripped off by a bear while picking mushrooms near Shizukuishi Town The building had previously invaded 12 times by bears, as they managed to break sliding doors, windows and tore open bags of rice. No one was injured. A body believed to have been badly damaged by a bear was also previously found on a mountain in the Kitakami City area on October 8. The decapitation of the mushroom picker was was the latest in a string of bear attacks which has seen the animals venture close to where people live, police said. 'This is the forest where a man is believed to have been attacked by a bear,' an officer said. 'There is irrigation water flowing through it, and the bamboo grass is growing high. Once again, a bear attack has occurred close to where people live.' Police are not certain whether the bear responsible for the attack was the one later caught in the trap. The storm over first-cousin marriage deepened last night after experts linked it to terrorist financing, money laundering and people trafficking. Tories called for the marriages to be banned after The Mail on Sunday revealed last month that NHS guidance promotes their benefits despite an associated increase in birth defects. The marriages are also connected to unregulated, untraceable hawala financing a way of transferring money worldwide that depends on family ties and doesnt leave a paper trace. To make a transfer using hawala, someone deposits cash in one country with a password. The same amount can be withdrawn abroad using the password via a trusted middleman in both countries. It does not require physical movement of cash. The National Crime Agency says risks of money laundering and terror financing under this system are high. It says Hezbollah has received billions through the system and Isis depends on it. British funds have reached terrorist cells in Somalia and Syria, adds the crime agency. An Asian wedding ceremony where close relative marriages remain particularly common in the community Your browser does not support iframes. Government investigators believe hawala is being used to launder at least 2billion every year in the UK. Academic Dr Patrick Nash says because cousin marriages are typically made with foreign relatives, they are more likely to import hawala to the UK, as well as needing to transfer money abroad to family. He says: Labour must act swiftly to ban cousin marriage and hawala or be complicit in terrorist atrocities. Since being cut off from financial markets by the US, Iran has become adept at using hawala to transfer British funds to prop up terrorist regimes in the Middle East. The National Crime Agency has also found that hundreds of millions of pounds a year is being channelled through hawala to smuggle migrants and potential terrorists into Britain. Documents have been unearthed showing Government ministers, tax authorities and law enforcement officials promoting the hawala network. In one case they show how families can use hawala to pay people-smugglers to help to cross the Channel. Prince Andrew secretly told paedophile Jeffrey Epstein 'we are in this together' a day after The Mail on Sunday first published the infamous picture of the Duke with his alleged teenage sex victim, a bombshell email reveals. In the astonishing message, Andrew said he was 'concerned' about the impact this newspaper's revelations would have on his friend, but reassured the vile billionaire that the pair would 'rise above' press scrutiny. It was sent to Epstein 12 weeks after Andrew had supposedly ceased all contact with the convicted sex offender. The leaked email provides definitive proof that the Duke lied in his interview with BBC's Newsnight when he claimed he 'never had any contact' with Epstein after the pair were famously pictured walking together in New York's Central Park in December 2010. The revelation comes just weeks after the MoS exposed how the Duchess of York wrote Epstein a gushing message calling him her 'supreme friend' despite telling journalists she would never have anything to do with him again. The hugely embarrassing email will heap further pressure on the Royal Family to sever all ties with the disgraced Yorks and raise fresh questions about their future at Royal Lodge, a 30-room mansion in Windsor Great Park. Writing to Epstein on February 28, 2011 the day after the MoS published the now infamous picture of him with a teenage Virginia Giuffre that led to his downfall Andrew said: 'I'm just as concerned for you! Don't worry about me! 'It would seem we are in this together and will have to rise above it. Prince Andrew secretly told paedophile Jeffrey Epstein 'we are in this together' a day after The Mail on Sunday first published this picture of the Duke with his alleged teenage sex victim, Virginia Giuffre, a bombshell email reveals The email was sent to Epstein 12 weeks after Andrew had supposedly ceased all contact with the convicted sex offender. Pictured: The pair seen walking together in New York in 2011 Jeffrey Epstein pictured in a police mugshot from 2017, two years before he died in his prison cell while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges 'Otherwise keep in close touch and we'll play some more soon!!!!' Andrew signed off with: 'A, HRH The Duke of York, KG'. KG refers to Duke's 'Knight of the Garter' a prestigious position he has held since 2006 and which he still retains. The MoS has verified the email address used by Andrew, while Epstein's email address has repeatedly appeared in court documents. Prince Andrew last night declined to comment. Historian A N Wilson said Prince Andrew's behaviour is a 'major crisis for the Monarchyperhaps the gravest since the abdication of Edward VIII in 1936.' Writing in today's Mail on Sunday, he added: 'The King and the Prince of Wales cannot be seen to support or underwrite Andrew any more. 'His very existence as an official Royal is a scandal. So they must cast him out, for if they show him mercy, they are themselves implicated, and we are only a hair's breadth away from a republic.' The Duke sent Epstein the supportive message as the pair were reeling from the MoS publishing its world exclusive picture of Andrew with his arm around the naked waist of 17-year-old Virginia Giuffre at the London home of socialite Ghislaine Maxwell. The MoS has verified the email address used by Andrew, while Epstein's email address has repeatedly appeared in court documents. Prince Andrew last night declined to comment The leaked email provides definitive proof the Duke lied in his interview with BBC's Newsnight when he claimed he 'never had any contact' with Epstein after the pair were pictured walking together in New York's Central Park in December 2010 In his disastrous Newsnight interview in 2019, Andrew also suggested the picture with Ms Giuffre was a crude forgery - but a 2023 investigation by this newspaper provided incontrovertible proof the photograph is genuine Ms Giuffre, who had never before been identified, told this newspaper she had been sexually abused by Epstein for four years and that she was introduced to Prince Andrew during a six-week trip to Europe. Recalling how they drank tea at Maxwell's mews house before going dancing at Tramp nightclub in Mayfair, Ms Giuffre said: 'Ghislaine served tea from a porcelain pot and biscuits. She knew Sarah Ferguson and they talked fondly about Andrew's daughters. 'Then Ghislaine asked Andrew how old he thought I was and he guessed 17 and they all laughed. 'Ghislaine made a joke that I was getting too old for Jeffrey. She said, "He'll soon have to trade her in." Ms Giuffre later alleged that having trafficked her to London, Epstein forced her to have sex with Andrew, which the Duke has vehemently and consistently denied. In his disastrous Newsnight interview in 2019, Andrew suggested the picture with Ms Giuffre was a crude forgery, saying: 'Nobody can prove whether or not that photograph has been doctored but I don't recollect that photograph ever being taken.' But in 2023 an investigation by this newspaper provided incontrovertible proof that the photograph is genuine. And crucially, it can now be shown that the Duke did not question its authenticity in his shocking email to Epstein on the day after its existence was revealed. In 2022, the Duke reached a reported 12 million civil settlement with Ms Giuffre who suicided earlier this year with no admission of guilt. Last night Norman Baker, a former Minister and expert on royal finances, called for Andrew to be stripped of his remaining titles and removed from Royal Lodge. 'It is long overdue for him to have all his official titles removed, including HRH, and if that requires Parliamentary action, then it requires Parliamentary action. This can no longer be ignored by the Royal Family. 'He needs to understand that he hasn't got squatters' rights at Royal Lodge. He needs to be removed to somewhere smaller. The days of privileges should be over.' Mr Baker also called for the Duke to issue a new statement about his relationship with Epstein as his previous pronouncements are 'dubious'. The email was first referred to in court documents from a case brought by the Financial Conduct Authority against Epstein's personal banker Jes Staley. But its contents have, until today, never been revealed. The legal papers only said the email had been sent by 'a member of the British Royal Family' without naming Andrew. In separate emails, sent a day earlier on February 27, 2011, Epstein attempted to arrange a meeting between Andrew and Staley, a former Barclays boss who is now banned from top financial jobs in the UK over his links to Epstein. Epstein pictured in New York in 2011 around the time Andrew sent the damning emails to him The financier wrote: 'Jes staley will be in London on next tue afternoon, if you have time', to which Andrew responded: 'Jes is coming on 1st March or next week?'. The emails demolish Andrew's claim during his Newsnight interview with Emily Maitlis that he visited Epstein in New York in December 2010 to break off their friendship. The Prince spent at least five days at Epstein's 60 million mansion during the visit. Describing his walk with Epstein in Central Park Andrew said: 'We decided that we would part company and I left, I think it was the next day, and to this day I never had any contact with him from that day forward.' Ms Maitlis asked 'Did you see him or speak to him again?', to which Andrew replied 'No'. Asked why he stayed at the house of a sex offender, Andrew claimed it was a 'convenient place to stay', adding: 'I felt it was the honourable and right thing to do and I admit fully that my judgement was probably coloured by my tendency to be too honourable.' Author Andrew Lownie, who recently published a bombshell biography of the Yorks, said: 'This new disclosure is further evidence that Andrew lied in his Newsnight evidence, just as his ex-wife's public pronouncements about cutting links with Epstein proved to be untrue. 'From my own research, over four years, I learned not to trust a single thing the couple said. 'It also confirms what I discovered writing Entitled that Andrew was much more deeply involved with Epstein than he has hitherto admitted and I fear it is only going to get worse. This email is the tip of the iceberg and there are many more revelations still to come.' Epstein was found dead in his jail cell in August 2019, while Maxwell was jailed for 20 years in 2022 for finding girls for Epstein to abuse. Well-placed sources told the MoS last month that further potentially 'incriminating' emails between the Duke of York and the convicted paedophile are contained in hundreds of thousands of documents being reviewed by the US Congress before they are made public. It is understood that the Duke and Duchess of York will not be welcome at the Royal Family's Christmas celebrations at Sandringham this year as the King tries to keep the pair at arm's length. Meanwhile, it emerged yesterday that Sir Tony Blair met with Epstein in Downing Street while he was Prime Minister after lobbying from Lord Mandelson. The meeting in May 2002 took place six years before Epstein pleaded guilty to soliciting prostitution from a minor. Daphne Barak is a renowned interviewer and documentary film maker, whose subjects have included Donald Trump, Hilary Clinton, Johnny Depp and Michael Jackson among many others. Daphne is also a cancer survivor. She has a fast-growing charity with the University of California, San Diego. www.gamechangerevents.org For more about this story, see Prince Andrew and The Epstein Email Scandal, Monday October 13, 9pm on 5 Israeli hostages' will start to be released on Monday morning, according to senior Hamas officials. It comes as the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) completed their partial withdrawal of Gaza on Friday. It set the 72-hour timer ticking for the return of all the 48 Israeli hostages including 20 believed to still be alive as agreed under Donald Trumps peace plan. Osama Hamdan told AFP: 'According to the signed agreement, the prisoner exchange is set to begin on Monday morning as agreed, and there are no new developments on this matter.' Under Trump's deal, Hamas plans to release all remaining hostages in exchange for roughly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Meanwhile, the Israeli military will begin a withdrawal from the majority of Gaza. At the beginning of the week Hamas said it was still searching for some of the slain hostages held in the Strip. A taskforce was then established to locate the deceased missing hostages, including representatives from Israel, the US, Egypt and Qatar. Your browser does not support iframes. After both Israel and Hamas agreed to the first phase of a peace deal, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick held up a speaker phone to hostage families to speak to Trump The US President is expected to give a historic speech at the Knesset, Israels parliament, in Jerusalem on Monday. He will meet those freed before travelling to Egypt for a summit on Gaza with world leaders. The IDF now remains in control of 53 per cent of Gaza as some 200 American soldiers from US Central Command were dispatched to Israel to oversee the transition of power. No American boots will hit the ground in the Strip but they will coordinate and assist in bringing in humanitarian aid and the international peacekeeping force from Arab and Muslim nations. On Wednesday night, Trump announced that both Israel and Hamas had signed off on the 'first phase' of his proposed peace deal - a substantial step in ending the war in Gaza. He said the world 'coming together' had helped forge his landmark deal between Israel and Hamas. 'This is more than Gaza,' Trump told American TV presenter Sean Hannity during a telephone interview Wednesday night. 'This is peace in the Middle East.' Trump declared it was a 'great day for the world' as he imagined a prosperous future for the war torn area. Netanyahu's office said that he and Trump spoke and congratulated each other on the agreement to release all hostages 'The whole world has come together on this one, Israel, every country has come together. This has been a fantastic day,' he said. 'This is a great day for the world. This is a wonderful day, a wonderful day for everybody.' Hamas thanked Trump, as well as mediators in Qatar, Egypt and Turkey for the peace deal which they say provides 'the withdrawal of the occupation, allows the entry of aid and implements a prisoner exchange.' 'We call on President Trump, the guarantor states of the agreement, and all Arab, Islamic and international parties to oblige the government of the occupation to fulfill all the agreement's commitments, and not to allow it to evade or delay implementation of the accords.' Netanyahu's office said that he and Trump spoke and congratulated each other on the agreement to release all hostages, which Netanyahu's office described as a 'historic achievement.' According to a statement from the prime minister's office, the conversation was 'warm and moving.' Netanyahu thanked Trump for his 'efforts and global leadership,' while Trump praised Netanyahu's 'determined leadership and the actions he led.' The latest truce marks a key step toward ending a ruinous two-year-conflict that was triggered by Hamas' October 7, 2023, attack on Israel. The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage. Since then, around 1,000 Israeli soldiers have died while over 60,000 Palestinians have been killed according to the Hamas-run health ministry. Some Palestinians walk on foot along Rashid Street, carrying the few belongings they manage to save, as they hope to go back to their homes after enduring harsh living conditions for months in Gaza City President Donald Trump's put out the news in the anticipated Truth Social post, announcing that Israel and Hamas had signed off on the 'first Phase of our Peace Plan' Smoke rises to the sky following an Israeli military strike in the northern Gaza Strip, as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, October 8, 2025 The plan states that on agreement by both sides, 'the war will immediately end' with Israeli withdrawals timed to release of the last hostages held by Hamas. During that initial period, there would be a ceasefire. Existing 'battle lines' will be frozen in place and Hamas will lay down its arms with the terror group's offensive weaponry being destroyed. While 'full aid' will be immediately sent to the Gaza Strip. Key points include the deployment of a 'temporary international stabilisation force' and creation of a transitional authority headed by Trump. The deal demands Hamas militants fully disarm and be excluded from future roles in the government. However, those who agreed to 'peaceful co-existence' would be given amnesty. Following Israeli withdrawal, the borders will be opened to aid and investment. In a crucial change from Mr Trump's earlier apparent goals, Palestinians will not be forced to leave and instead, the document said, 'we will encourage people to stay and offer them the opportunity to build a better Gaza.' This will be the third ceasefire reached since the start of the war. The first, in November 2023, saw more than 100 hostages, mainly women and children, freed in exchange for Palestinian prisoners before it broke down. The second, in January and February of this year, saw Palestinian militants release 25 Israeli hostages and the bodies of eight more in exchange for nearly 2,000 Palestinian prisoners. Israel ended that ceasefire in March with a surprise bombardment. Britain's public sector is splurging 70million a year on woke diversity officers as front-line services are stretched to breaking point, an investigation by The Mail on Sunday shows. An audit of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) spending across the NHS, the police and councils has laid bare the extraordinary amount of taxpayer cash being spent on the controversial roles. Last night critics demanded public sector bosses stop wasting money and prioritise fighting crime and cutting hospital waiting lists. Our shocking audit of the public sectors diversity gravy train found: The NHS spends 40million on EDI jobs each year, despite millions of patients languishing on spiralling waiting lists. Health bosses earmarked 1.8million for staff events, including talks entitled Embracing Asexuality and International Pronouns Day. Recent NHS jobs have included a pro rata 122,000 diversity role, enough to pay for up to three new junior doctors. One police force spent 1.2million on diversity roles and related training despite its chief constable recently complaining about budgets. An audit of equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) spending across the NHS , the police and councils has laid bare the extraordinary amount of taxpayer cash being spent on the controversial roles The successful candidate for head of diversity at Newham Council in London which had a salary of up to 71,412 describes her interests as black womens issues, the politics of beauty and desirability, and the intersection of race, gender and fatphobia. The same council has just imposed a nine per cent rise in council tax, promising the money would be used protecting essential services, supporting the most vulnerable and delivering real improvements to residents lives. The year before it went bankrupt, Labour-run Birmingham City Council hired an Assistant Director Community Services and Equality, Diversity And Inclusion on over 100,000. Joanna Marchong, investigations campaign manager of the TaxPayers Alliance, said: Spending on EDI roles persist when they deliver little tangible benefits. All the while, police response times are up, NHS waiting lists are soaring and councils are cutting bin collections. Shadow home secretary Chris Philp said: This diversity industry madness has to end. It costs a fortune and more often than not stokes grievance and division. According to NHS representative body the NHS Confederation, the health service spends around 40million a year on EDI roles. It has justified the spending, claiming: Far from being a drain, EDI is an investment that can improve workforce wellbeing. The NHS spends 40million on EDI jobs each year, despite millions of patients languishing on spiralling waiting lists However, the salaries for diversity roles tend to far outstrip those of vital front-line workers. NHS England recently advertised a pro rata 122,470 role for Associate Dean with responsibility for equality, diversity and inclusion role in the South-West. The pay packet is equivalent to the entry-level pay of up to three NHS doctors. A recent advert for Head of EDI at Gloucestershire Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which pays up to 68,525 a year, required a broad and deep understanding of barriers to change, prejudices and unconscious bias. And an available position for EDI Officer at York and Scarborough Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust will pay the successful applicant up to 46,580 per year to ensure that the EDI agenda is part of daily functions and activities. The vast spending on these roles comes despite the NHS being ordered to stop recruiting for EDI jobs in 2023 by then health secretary Steve Barclay, who complained his edict was ignored by NHS bureaucrats. Separate figures revealed by the Mail this year found that the NHS budgeted for trusts to spend more than 1.8million on staff networks, usually linked to race, sexuality, gender, disability or religion, between 2022 and 2024. The more than 1,000 events run by these networks in that period included Embracing Asexuality at The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust in Essex and a talk on Embracing your Afro/Curly hair at University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. The biggest spender was West Yorkshire Police, which shelled out 1.2million on these roles Police forces spent 6million on diversity jobs in 2023-24. The number of these jobs also jumped by over a third from 147 in 2021-22 to 197 in 2023-24. Roles available during the period included a Head of Equality and Human Rights at Leicestershire Police, which pays up to 77,751, and a Positive Action Officer at Derbyshire Constabulary, which pays up to almost 40,000. The biggest spender was West Yorkshire Police, which shelled out 1.2million on these roles. Details of the cost emerged two years after the West Yorkshire Chief Constable John Robins complained to the BBC two years ago that the force was down 2,000 staff and 140million since 2010 and said: I cant deliver what I want to deliver as a professional police officer. West Yorkshire Police has said: Prioritising DEI in policing is essential to building trust and confidence and improving public safety. Thames Valley Police spent just under a million pounds on diversity roles over 2021 to 2024. Yet a recent review found the forces diversity programme lacked transparency and consistency after three white police officers won a discrimination claim for being passed over for promotion because of their race. Almost 23million of taxpayers cash was spent by local authorities on diversity roles in 2022/23, the most recent figures compiled by the TaxPayers Alliance show. The bankrupt Labour-run Birmingham City Council hired an Assistant Director Community Services and Equality, Diversity And Inclusion on an average salary of 103,165 in 2022, before it ran into financial difficulties. Chief Constable Rachel Swann, chair of the National Police Chiefs Council diversity equality and inclusion committee, said: It is vital that policing continues to focus on improving culture and making our service inclusive for every community. An NHS spokesman said: While it is right the NHS supports its staff at a time when anti-Semitism and other discriminatory behaviour is on the rise, these programmes must offer value for money and improve patient care. A Government Spokesperson said: 'Every pound spent of taxpayer money must deliver for the public - putting more police on the streets, cutting NHS waiting lists or investing in the front line. 'We expect all public organisations to fully scrutinise their spending to ensure value for money.' The senior Government adviser at the heart of the Chinese spying row was a member of a secretive network used by Beijing to cultivate Britains elites. Jonathan Powell, Keir Starmers national security adviser, was a fellow of the 48 Group, a lobby club founded by British communists which allegedly grooms British politicians and business leaders to fall under the sway of Chinas Communist Party. Sources have pointed the finger at Mr Powell for the Governments failure to state that China represented a threat to national security an omission which the Director of Public Prosecutions has said led to last months collapse of the trial of Chris Cash and Christopher Berry on charges of passing secrets to China between 2021 and 2023. Both men were formally declared not guilty and deny any wrongdoing. The Tories have accused ministers of causing the collapse of a major spying trial because they feared that calling China a national security threat might jeopardise trade relations. The Government has denied interfering with the case. The 48 Group, which is one of the most prominent pro-China lobbying organisations in Britain, says its aim is to improve trade relations between the two nations but has been accused of furthering the Beijing regimes wider causes in Britain, as this newspaper first reported in 2020. Its patrons have included Labour grandee Peter Mandelson, who was recently sacked as Britains Ambassador to the US over his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein. Both Tony Blair and former Tory Chancellor George Osborne have attended events hosted by the 48 Group in London. Jonathan Powell, Keir Starmer s national security adviser, with Chinese foreign minister Wang Li in Beijing in July Parliamentary aide Christopher Cash, 30, (pictured) and British teacher Christopher Berry, 33, were each charged with the offence of spying under the Official Secrets Act Cash (not pictured) and Berry (pictured right) were set to face trial this month, but proceedings against them were stopped after the Crown Prosecution Service said it could 'no longer proceed to trial' due to a lack of evidence Another member of The 48 Group is Yang Tengbo, 50, an alleged Chinese spy who has been accused of developing business relationships with Prince Andrew on behalf of the Communist regime. Tengbo, 51, was banned from re-entering the UK in December on national security grounds. Mr Powell is listed as a fellow of the 48 Group on its website. His elder brother, Lord Powell of Bayswater, 84, a former private secretary to PM Margaret Thatcher, is also listed as a fellow of the group alongside Blair, former Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond, former London mayor Ken Livingstone, former Lib Dem leader Vince Cable and Labour grandee Jack Straw. Jonathan Powell, 69, was Tony Blairs chief of staff from 1997 to 2007, and joined bankers Morgan Stanley shortly after leaving Downing Street. Then in 2011 he founded a conflict resolution think-tank called Inter Mediate. In that role, he has made several trips to China where he held meetings with the Grandview Institution, which has been called a front for Chinas main foreign intelligence agency, the Ministry of State Security (MSS). One former diplomat, who does not wish to be named, said: I was told before a visit I was going to make to Grandview that it was an MSS cover. I was told that officially. Some of Grandviews senior fellows either worked as MSS intelligence chiefs or were in the Peoples Liberation Army. Mr Powell attended an event hosted by Grandview entitled US-China Strategic Security and Stability Dialogue in September last year, a month before he was made Sir Keirs national security adviser. On Saturday, Clive Hamilton, the author of a respected book on Chinas influence abroad called Hidden Hand, said Mr Powell could be compromised because of his links to both the 48 Group and Grandview. He said: Powell seems to have close links with an organisation in China that is stacked with high-level intelligence officers. Grandview is a nest of spies. At best this looks like naivety. For the PMs national security adviser its beyond belief. My guess is he has no idea who his new friends are. Either he is spying on them or he has been won over to their way of seeing the world. Whatever the case, Powells position has become untenable, especially after [the collapse of the spy case] with the two Christophers. On Saturday, The Times reported that Cabinet ministers thought Mr Powells position was increasingly unsustainable. One said: I am concerned that a narrative builds up that we are not strong enough on China, Our strategic approach [under Powell] is a little bit fuzzy. He has become almost like a Cabinet minister in that the focus is on him and his policy positions, which is never really a great situation to be in as a non-elected official. Mr Powell did not comment but a Cabinet Office source said he is not now nor has ever been a member of the 48 Group, despite his name being listed as a fellow on its website. A State of Emergency has been declared in New Jersey as a storm barrels up the East Coast. The storm without a name is expected to bring flooding to the East Coast from South Carolina to New Jersey and high winds to New York City over the Columbus Day holiday weekend. 'I urge all New Jerseyans to exercise caution, monitor local weather forecasts and warnings, stay informed on evacuation protocols, and remain off the roads unless absolutely necessary,' acting New Jersey Governor Tahesha Way said in a statement. The emergency is effective from 10pm on Saturday. Maryland Governor Wes Moore told residents to stay vigilant along the coast and inland. The storm could result in huge travel disruption at major hubs including Washington, DC, New York City and Boston with strong winds likely causing delays and cancellations by Monday morning. The unnamed storm sent sea water again into Charleston, South Carolina, where three dozen roads were closed as floodwaters reached well above ankles before receding. Friday morning's high tide reached 8.46 feet which was the 13th highest in more than a century of recorded data in Charleston Harbor. Tidal flooding also closed roads for a few hours along the Georgia and Florida coasts. A view of the coast with high tides as New Jersey has declared a state of emergency for all 21 counties due to a powerful nor'easter expected to bring heavy rain, strong winds, and coastal flooding starting Saturday night in New Jersey The nor'easter is expected to bring drenching rain and winds that could gust up to 60 mph, with coastal areas potentially seeing the most severe impacts, including major coastal flooding Storm-force winds and seas of up to 20 feet will be possible on the ocean The persistent, strong winds from the unnamed nor'easter and unusually high tides, when the moon is closer than usual to the Earth, had forecasters predicting more problems this weekend along the North Carolina Outer Banks. A series of storms that moved well offshore have destroyed 10 houses in the past month and breached dunes. The pilings of some homes in Buxton were already in the waves before the worst of the storm. Officials warned highway NC 12 on Hatteras and Ocracoke islands would likely have to close again because of ocean overwash. The worst conditions will spread north this weekend and into the Columbus Day holiday on Monday as the storm moves up from Florida. Forecasters warned people on the shores of Delaware and New Jersey to prepare for major coastal flooding with water levels rising to levels not seen in nearly a decade. The flooding could submerge roads and homes while also causing beach erosion Gusts over 30 mph have been already measured near the North Carolina coast. Further north, a high wind watch was issued for parts of New York City and Long Island where forecasters warned gusts of up to 60 mph were possible Sunday. In New York, flooding could reach between 1.5 feet to 2 feet. As storms continue to thrash the coastal area, at least nine homes have now collapsed into the waters underneath them as 12-foot waves battered the stilts they perched on Five homes fell in under an hour just after 2pm on Tuesday alone, with another just before midnight Since 2020, the total number of homes that have fallen victim to the ocean has reached 21 along North Carolina beaches 'The storm won't be in a hurry to exit,' Bill Deger, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather said. While the storm isn't tropical, two other tropical storms are still churning in the Atlantic including Tropical Storm Jerry which dumped heavy rain on the northern Leeward Islands. There were rescues and one person died after being swept away by water in the French territory of Guadeloupe, officials said. Searchers found the body of a man inside a car that was swept away by floodwaters after scouring the area by boat, helicopter and two drones. Eight people were rescued on board two boats, the government said. Two tropical storms were also in the eastern Pacific Ocean. Tropical Storm Priscilla dissipated into a remnant low, but what remained was expected to bring heavy rain from coastal Mexico into the US Southwest through the weekend. 'Pointe-a-Pitre is badly affected and is struggling to drain this water. Many places are flooded,' Thierry Devimeux, the islands government leader, told radio station Guadeloupe La 1ere. Homes at risk of falling into the ocean are visible as a storm draws ever closer Debris washes up onto an old swimming pool as a storm approaches on Friday in Buxton, North Carolina Workers put a piling into the ground to reinforce a home at risk of falling into the ocean as a storm approaches The lone remains of a home stand in the ocean as a storm approaches in North Carolina A worker who is reinforcing a home at risk of falling into the ocean looks out toward the waves Areas of Guadeloupe, Antigua and Barbuda and the Dutch Caribbean territory of Saint Maarten saw as much as 8 inches of rain, closing government offices and schools. Jerry was centered about 750 miles south of Bermuda and moving north-northwest at 15 mph with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph. Way up in the northern Atlantic, Subtropical Storm Karen formed far from land, then lost its subtropical characteristics less than 24 hours later, the hurricane center said. A subtropical storm tends to have a wide zone of strong winds farther from its center compared to a tropical storm, which generates heavier rains, according to the US National Weather Service. Flood watches were issued for parts of Arizona, California and Nevada. In the Pacific, tropical storm warnings associated with Tropical Storm Raymond were in effect from Manzanillo to Cabo Corrientes, Mexico; for Las Islas Marias; and for Baja California Sur from Los Barriles to Santa Fe, Mexico. A couple vehicles had already been swept away by floodwaters in New Mexico late Friday afternoon. In northern Arizona, washes that are normally dry were filled with fast-flowing water. Raymond was forecast to remain off the southwestern coast of Mexico through Friday before nearing Baja California Sur on Saturday and Sunday. Raymond was about 145 miles west of Manzanillo. It had maximum sustained winds of 50 mph and was moving northwest at 17 mph, forecasters said. Police have arrested pro-Israel supporters who were holding placards which read 'we stand with Britain's Jews', while pro-Palestine protesters were filmed chanting 'death to the IDF' elsewhere in central London. A small group of people from Our Fight, a pro-Israeli organisation that describes itself as mostly made up of non-Jewish Brits, were seen facing off with protesters while holding signs that read: 'We stand with Britain's Jews'. Mark Birbeck, an activist from a non-Jewish but pro-Israeli group, was arrested after being escorted by police officers while holding the sign emblazoned with a Union Jack flag. Two others were also seen being taken out of the crowd by officers. In footage which has since emerged online, protestors could be heard chanting 'shame on you' and 'Zionists' while police 'quickly' descended on the scene, escorting away the counter-protesters. The Met Police made a 'small number of arrests' after breaking up a scuffle between the two groups. Meanwhile six other people holding a banner saying '"Globalise the intifada" is a call to murder Jews' were also taken into custody, Campaign Against Antisemitism has said. Officers also threw a ring of steel around hundreds of pro-Israel supporters near Waterloo Bridge. The group was heard shouting 'losers' while a man speaking through a megaphone declared pro-Palestinian protesters 'animals'. Elsewhere pro-Palestine protesters were heard chanting 'death, death to the IDF' and 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free'. It is understood that arrests have also been made among the pro-Palestinian marchers. A demonstrator from Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, is seen in the crowd among pro-Palestinian supporters, ahead of a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street, central London Police officers lead away a demonstrator from Our Fight after the group infiltrated a pro-Palestine march this afternoon A Stop The Hate counter protest demonstrator speaks to a person taking part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street The Met Police has since confirmed 14 people were arrested, seven for breaching conditions under the Public Order Act while others were taken into custody for other offences which included supporting a proscribed group and affray. They also made a 'number of arrests' in response to a group of Youth Demand activists blocking Tower Bridge and causing serious disruption. A Campaign Against Antisemitism spokesperson said: 'A week after Jews were murdered at a synagogue in Manchester on Yom Kippur, protesters have called again with impunity to 'Globalise the intifada', while brave and decent people daring to stand with Britain's Jews have been abused and arrested on the streets of London, because the 'Free Palestine' mobs cannot stand the sight of them. 'Holding signs saying "We stand with Britain's Jews" should not be controversial, but we have had to provide solicitors to represent those who held them in jail. 'There is a ceasefire now, but these marches were never really about a ceasefire. The marchers say that they are 'anti-Zionist', but this was never really about 'Zionists'. 'This is London just over a week after the Prime Minister said he would do 'everything in my power' to protect the Jewish community. 'This is the same Prime Minister who swore that he would tear out antisemitism by its roots. 'These are hate marches, this is two tier policing, and this must stop. We want actions, not words from the Prime Minister, so we are asking him, what are you going to do? We have yet to hear any answers.' The pro-Palestine march, which was attended by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, made its way through central London one day after a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas came into effect. It marks the 32nd national demonstration in support of Palestine since October 2023, according to organiser Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), with protesters setting off from Embankment at midday for a march ending in a rally in Whitehall. Organisers are expected to call for the ceasefire, which was announced by US President Donald Trump, to become a permanent agreement. A counter protest organised by Stop The Hate took place at the junction of Aldwych and the Strand. Conditions were imposed on both demonstrations by the Met Police, which set out specific areas protesters can gather and the routes they can march on. Pro-Palestine protesters were heard chanting: 'Death, death to the IDF' A man with a megaphone leads a chant of 'death to the IDF' as pro-Palestine activists march from Victoria Embankment to Whitehall Officers from the Met Police were forced to intervene and escort multiple counter-protesters, holding signs that read 'We stand with British Jews' away from the scene An anti-Palestine protester from the group Our Fight, a pro-Israel organisation, stands amidst pro-Palestine protesters on Saturday morning Pro-Palestine protesters are seen marching along Westminster bridge in central London on Saturday, a day after a peace deal was reached between Israel and Hamas A protester holds a sign depicting two halves of a face - one is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the other is Adolf Hitler Demonstrators from the 'Palestine Coalition' gather in support for Palestinians, after a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza went into effect, in London today Pro-Palestinian supporters hold placards and wave flags in central London, on October 11 Police officers make arrests on Westminster Bridge during today's rally in solidarity with the Palestinian people Palestinian protesters march past a counter-demonstration organised by Stop The Hate on Saturday at the Strand Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is pictured at Saturday's pro-Palestine march Counter-protesters at a demonstration organised by Stop The Hate gathered at the Strand on Saturday Counter-protesters held British and Israeli flags, with a banner in support of US President Donald Trump also seen PSC director Ben Jamal said pro-Palestine protests will be held less frequently if the ceasefire holds - but believes it is 'not a viable path to ending decades of apartheid' in Gaza. 'We share the huge relief of Palestinians that a ceasefire is now taking effect,' he said. 'However, we also know that Israel has violated every ceasefire agreement it has ever signed. 'In the last two years we have seen Israel commit a live-streamed genocide in Gaza that has killed at least 67,000 Palestinians, including 20,000 children. And we have seen our governments, Conservative and Labour, continue to arm and politically support Israel. 'We will keep protesting and campaigning all over the UK to end the complicity of our government, public bodies and corporations with Israel's crimes under international law.' But campaigners against anti-Semitism have argued that protests should no longer go ahead as they have no legitimate aim. On Saturday thousands of pro-Palestine protesters gathered along Victoria Embankment to the sound of drums, ahead of a demonstration to mark two years of the war in Gaza. Stalls were selling keffiyehs and outside Embankment station people were handing out placards that said 'from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free', 'it's not a crime to act against genocide' and 'Starmer has blood on his hands, free Palestine'. Controversial signs spotted among marchers included the slogan 'globalise the intifada'. Other signs include a cartoon of Donald Trump and Benjamin Netanyahu, with a Nazi swastika drawn across it, and several appearing to compare the Israeli Prime Minister to Adolf Hitler. A leaflet has also been handed out by the Socialist Worker, entitled: Palestine resistance, revolution and the struggle for freedom. It includes a section on the banned terrorist organisation Hamas. People pass Westminster as they take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march from Victoria Embankment to Downing Street A sign held by a protester depicts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu next to a picture of Adolf Hitler with the caption: 'Same evil' A person holds a sign during today's pro-Palestine protest that reads: 'We would not have negotiated with the Nazis' A man holds a sign as he passes pro-Israel counter-demonstrators at the Strand in central London People take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march in central London on Saturday Police officers marshal crowds as pro-Palestine protesters pass close to a counter-demonstration People attend a pro-Palestine protest in central London on Saturday afternoon Protesters march through the streets of central London calling for a permanent ceasefire on Saturday People hold signs reading 'Stop the genocide' as they protest in support of Palestinians today A woman holds a sign that reads: 'I say no to genocide and no to anti-Semitism' as she joins pro-Palestine protesters A man holds a sign in London on Saturday depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a dalek from the Doctor Who franchise Pro-Palestine activists cross Westminster Bridge on Saturday, October 11 Pro-Palestine protesters gather in central London on Saturday afternoon as they march towards Whitehall Protesters are seen on Waterloo Bridge as they take part in a Palestine Solidarity Campaign march in central London A pro-Palestine protester holds a sign depicting Benjamin Netanyahu and Donald Trump with a swastika Thousands gathered on Victoria Embankment in central London ahead of the pro-Palestine march to Whitehall At the counter-protest, organisers played loud music and attendees shouted 'losers' as pro-Palestine demonstrators passed The counter-protest took place at the junction of Aldwych and The Strand Police officers monitor the two rival protest groups to avoid them coming together Protesters chanted: 'From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free'. A large stationary crowd of counter-protesters waving Israeli and English flags blared loud music as they faced pro-Palestinian protesters passing from Waterloo Bridge onto the Strand. A man with a megaphone declared the pro-Palestinian group to be 'animals', adding: 'They are all Jew haters'. The group had a deafening loud speaker that blared heavy rock metal music that included the lyrics 'you can stick your Palestine up your hole'. The song also said 'with your twisted goals, we will bleed for your lies', referenced Islamic State, and said '(we are) sick of all your burning hate'. It ended with the line 'you're not welcome anymore', before someone on the megaphone shouted 'Shalom losers'. A blue Trump 'make America great again' flag was flown at the front of the counter-protest, as well as several Union flags. Your Party co-founder and former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn was pictured at the protest, and co-founder Zarah Sultana later spoke to those gathered in Whitehall. Ms Sultana criticised the Home Secretary for switching sides on Palestine and 'locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action', who she described as 'heroes'. The Independent MP for Coventry South said Shabana Mahmood 'doesn't want to just ban demonstrations, she wants to criminalise dissent - she wants to send a message that if you march for Palestine, if you speak out against genocide, if you demand justice, then the state considers you the problem. Shame on her.' Your Party co-found Zara Sultana MP speaks to pro-Palestine supporters at a rally in Whitehall on Saturday Protesters gather in Victoria Embankment on Saturday before marching through central London The head of a march in support of Palestinians is pictured on Friday in central London From a stage outside Downing Street, she told tens of thousands of protesters that in 2014 Ms Mahmood took part in two demonstrations for Gaza: Lying on the floor of a Sainsbury's supermarket and weeks later addressing 'a Palestine protest like this' with expressions of compassion. Today 'she is locking up pensioners and priests for opposing the ban on Palestine Action and calling them terrorists - they are heroes', Ms Sultana said. 'The real terrorists are the war criminals that continue to drop bombs on Gaza and the politicians here in Britain who welcome them with open arms - shame on them', she added. Earlier at around 12:45pm, police ushered away multiple people carrying placards that said 'we stand with Britain's Jews', taking them out of the crowd of pro-Palestine protesters after they managed to infiltrate the march. Shouts of 'shame' and 'free Palestine' came loudly from the pro-Palestine crowd gathered along Victoria Embankment, which at that point numbered in the tens of thousands. 'A small group of counter protesters breached their conditions by demonstrating at the form up point of the Palestine Coalition protest. This led to a scuffle between several individuals from the two groups. 'Officers were quickly on the scene to separate those involved, making a small number of arrests,' the Met later said in post on X. People stage a protest to demand the British government to lift its ban on Palestine Action in Trafalgar Square on Saturday, October 4 Protesters unfurl a banner on Westminster Bridge as part of a demonstration organised by Defend our Juries, in support of Palestine Action in Trafalgar Square, on October 4 In Manchester, between 50 and 100 people turned out in the rain to protest in Manchester on October 4 Pro-Palestine protesters have been told they must march along this pre-agreed route before gathering in Whitehall Counter-protesters must remain in the red area just off the Strand during today's protest Announcing plans for its policing this weekend, the Met made reference to recent Government proposals to give police greater powers to restrict repeat protests but said that 'at this time, the law remains unchanged'. The measures announced last weekend follow frequent pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including in London and Manchester last Saturday. The Met said 492 people were arrested at last week's protest in Trafalgar Square, with the majority on suspicion of supporting the banned terror organisation Palestine Action. Calls for restraint had been made following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on October 2 in which two people were killed, with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer urging protesters to 'respect the grief of British Jews'. It followed scuffles between police and pro-Palestine protesters on the evening of the attack after supporters of a flotilla headed to Gaza gathered in Whitehall. Melvin Cravitz, 66, and Adrian Daulby, 53, were killed following the attack outside Heaton Park Congregation Synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester on October 2, carried out by Islamic extremist Jihad Al-Shamie. Greater Manchester Police said that one of the deceased men was shot by officers, adding a second victim sustained a non-life threatening gunshot wound. In the wake of the attack, the Met had also urged organisers to call off the plans, with Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley saying policing the protest would mean drawing officers away from communities 'at a time when they are needed most'. The demonstration in support of Palestine Action went ahead, with human rights campaigner Sir Jonathon Porritt saying protesters should not be asked to 'give up on our right to stand up for those who are being devastated by an ongoing, real-time genocide in Gaza'. On Thursday, around 2,000 protesters gathered outside Downing Street to mark a week since the synagogue attack. At the protest, Gideon Falter, chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: 'This is a Jewish community that has clamoured for two years in the face of mounting hate.' Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said repeated large-scale protests had caused 'considerable fear' for the Jewish community. Police scuffle with Pro-Palestine protesters at the south end of Whitehall following a protest in Parliament square on Thursday, October 2 Police were seen scuffling with protesters at the south end of Whitehall following a protest in Parliament Square on the day of the terror attack Ben Jamal, PSC director, said the group will 'never stop' supporting Palestinians to 'achieve a free Palestine'. Of the planned protest this weekend, he said: 'For two years we've seen Israel commit a no holds barred genocide with the political and military support of successive UK governments. 'In response, a community of resistance in this country has responded with an historic show of solidarity - actively and intensively campaigning, day in day out, to demand politicians, public bodies and corporations end their complicity with Israel's crimes. 'This is a movement supported by millions of people in this country and around the world who want freedom and justice for Palestine. 'That work will go on. Because we know Israel is capable of breaking the ceasefire at any time, as it has done on every previous occasion. And we know this ceasefire based on (US President Donald) Trump's plan does nothing to address the root causes of Israeli occupation and colonisation of Palestine, and its system of apartheid against Palestinians. It also does nothing to hold those responsible for genocide to account. 'The rights of the Palestinian people are enshrined under international law - they are inviolable and non-negotiable. They will never give up those rights, and we will never stop supporting them to achieve a free Palestine.' The Israeli military said on Friday that the ceasefire agreement came into effect at noon local time (10am BST). The pause in the two-year war in the Middle East follows Hamas agreeing to release the remaining hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. News of the ceasefire agreement came just two days after the second anniversary of October 7, the attacks by Palestinian militant group Hamas on Israel. Brussels has been accused of treating the UK with contempt by not announcing which EU countries will implement the new visa arrangements for non-EU citizens despite the rules coming into force today. As the new Entry/Exit System (EES) digital border system goes live, experts are warning that British travellers could face queues of up to four hours at some airports to get through security. But many will not know if their plans are even affected by the changes until they arrive at the airport, as the scheme is being brought in gradually across the EU. The EES requires Britons and other non-EU citizens to register at the EU border by scanning their passport and having their fingerprints and photograph taken at an electronic booth. These will be checked at every entry and exit point, and the visa will have to be renewed every three years. Critics last night hit out at the EUs failure to share key details, with one senior MP describing it as a form of bullying. Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden MP said: Britons should not be surprised at being treated with bullying contempt by the EU and gaslit by Sir Keir Starmer, a man who neatly fills the role as the EUs pet poodle in Parliament. 'Its time for Sir Keir to get off his knees and stand up for Britain. As the new Entry/Exit System (EES) digital border system goes live, experts are warning that British travellers could face queues of up to four hours at some airports to get through security Critics last night hit out at the EUs failure to share key details, with Shadow Transport Secretary Richard Holden MP describing it as a form of bullying Meanwhile Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel said Sir Keir was weak for failing to stand up for Britain in the face of excessive demands of the EU. Passengers boarding international services from Londons St Pancras, the Port of Dover and Eurotunnels Folkestone terminal will also complete EES checks. The Government is organising car overflow sites to be used in the event of extreme queues at Dover. Border Minister Alex Norris insisted the Government was working to ensure the rollout goes as smoothly as possible. A Home Office spokesman added that the extra checks should only take one to two minutes, to complete, though warned they could lead to longer waits at busy times. But one senior Labour MP admitted the inevitable disruption was set to be deeply annoying. Passengers may also face questioning about their travel plans, including their accommodation, whether they have travel insurance and if they have enough money to cover their trip. Answering no to any of the questions could lead to them being interrogated by border guards. October 11, 2025: China has many impressive new warplanes entering service. The men, and a few women, who pilot these aircraft are a problem. Chinese pilots get plenty of flying time but have little to no combat experience. Intercepting and harassing American, Japanese, South Korean, and Taiwanese warplanes does not really qualify as effective training. Meanwhile, China alarmed Western governments three years ago by quietly hiring retired military pilots to help train Chinese pilots. The Chinese did this discreetly, using a South African firm that recruits retired pilots to work for the growing number of companies that provide various levels of training for military pilots. Many countries cannot afford the extensive training major nations, like the U.S. and larger NATO countries, have long provided. Even those countries are now using some of these contractor-pilot operations to ease the load on their military pilot-training programs. China used the South African recruiting firm to find Western military pilots it could approach with lucrative offers to work directly with the Chinese air force to improve pilot skills. China offered attractive pay, often over a quarter-million dollars a year for the most experienced candidates. Many potential candidates turned down the offer, and some mentioned it to pilots who were still on active duty. Soon, details of the Chinese recruiting reached senior air force leaders. This recruiting is not illegal, but when it was discovered that China was particularly interested in retired pilots with experience with the latest warplanes, especially the F-35, the legal Chinese recruiting morphed into another Chinese intelligence operation. China often tries, with some success, to convince Western contractors to engage in espionage. Large cash payments are often used, but in some cases, the candidates are entrapped, usually with an attractive Chinese female operative, and blackmailed into cooperating. The British, or at least the British media, turned this around by pointing out that British intelligence could debrief the officers hired to obtain a better idea of what capabilities Chinese pilots already had and exactly what they were seeking to learn. This debriefing procedure is not unusual, but the suggestion that it was also a search for men willing to be double agents while pretending to spy for the Chinese was a more serious matter for the Chinese. On the other hand, it offered former British pilots double pay and free access to smashing Chinese women. The training effort involved only about 30 pilots who were recruited. None of them had any F-35 experience. Now that this Chinese operation has been exposed, more details have emerged about what the Chinese were up to. The Chinese learn from their mistakes, as well as from history. The historical angle is interesting because China adopted a practice Japan used successfully over a century ago to improve its armed forces. In the case of Japan, Western nations, especially Britain, did not see this as aiding the enemy but rather as assisting a major customer and potential military ally. This all began unexpectedly in 1868 when Japan, after centuries of isolationist and technologically backward policies, decided that to survive, it must modernize and engage with the outside world. At the time, Japan had a medieval economy, and its plan was to rush through the industrial revolution to reform its economy and armed forces. China underwent a similar process a century later. The difference was that, until the 1920s, a modernized Japan was seen as an ally of the West. Then, Japanese attitudes toward the West changed. Paranoia toward the West and armed aggression toward neighbors, as well as the West, led to Japan starting the East Asian/Pacific portion of World War II. That did not end well for Japan, and China seems headed in the same direction in the early 21st century. While China has not purchased as many weapons from the West as Japan did over a century ago, China has used a lot of successful espionage to steal valuable intellectual property from the West and tried to hire Western military advisors to improve its air force. This is something the Japanese also did for decades until about a century ago when Japan was recognized as increasingly hostile toward the West and no longer an ally. The main cause of this shift was the Japanese perception that the Western powers, especially those Japan assisted in fighting the Germans during World War I, did not sufficiently recognize or appreciate Japanese assistance. The Japanese saw this as racist behavior and very insulting. At the same time, the Japanese, like most East Asians, always perceived Europeans as barbarians who developed and used some interesting new technology. The Japanese were, and still are, especially fond of this attitude, which they also apply to their East Asian neighbors. Most, but not all, Europeans were shocked and surprised at this Japanese change in attitude. So were some Japanese who had more experience in the West. Such individuals in Japan and the West were too few to change minds in their own homelands. History does repeat, or at least paraphrase, itself. Sir Keir Starmers closest political aide was last night described as a dead man walking after relinquishing control of key Downing Street meetings. A senior source told The Mail on Sunday that No 10 chief of staff Morgan McSweeney who engineered Sir Keir Starmers political rise was effectively done after a bruising period in which both former Deputy PM Angela Rayner and Mr McSweeneys political mentor Peter Mandelson lost their jobs in a swirl of scandal. The source said: Most of us believe that hes done a dead man walking. Hes increasingly less engaged. 'If he joins No 10 Zoom calls, he often does so with his camera turned off and lets his [recently appointed] deputy Vidhya Alakeson lead many of the meetings. Lord Mandelsons dismissal as US Ambassador, following revelations about his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, was a particularly savage blow for Mr McSweeney as he had lobbied for the peer to land the job. A source said that Mr McSweeney had told friends that the Mandelson sacking was the most brutal thing he has endured in politics. Mr McSweeney also faces new accusations that he was behind a covert Twitter campaign to interfere in the 2019 EU elections against a Brexit Party candidate. The claims, contained in a new book, come after other damaging allegations that 700,000 of donations to Labour Together a pro-Starmer think tank had been hidden from the elections watchdog when Mr McSweeney was in charge of it. A senior source told The Mail on Sunday that No 10 chief of staff Morgan McSweeney who engineered Sir Keir Starmers political rise was effectively done Lord Mandelsons dismissal as US Ambassador, following revelations about his links to paedophile Jeffrey Epstein , was a particularly savage blow for Mr McSweeney as he had lobbied for the peer to land the job And The Mail on Sunday columnist Dan Hodges today raises questions over why the Movement For Another Future firm, set up to promote Sir Keirs Labour leadership drive in 2020, is still in existence. Party insiders noted that Mr McSweeney was noticeably less joined at the hip with the PM at the Labour conference in Liverpool last month. Mr McSweeney and Lord Mandelson have long been close, and the peer once said that although he didnt know who and how and when [McSweeney] was invented... they will find their place in heaven. But the extraordinary revelation of Lord Mandelsons links with Epstein appeared to put huge strain on the aides relationship with Sir Keir. This newspaper revealed that after the PM endured a Commons mauling over the affair, Sir Keir is said to have yelled at Mr McSweeney, You are supposed to protect me from things like this, and the aide shouted back: Thats exactly what I was trying to do! Last night, No 10 denied that the chief of staff was being cut out of key meetings and dismissed the suggestion as rubbish. The new book on Sir Keir and Mr McSweeneys relationship will claim that Mr McSweeney was director of an organisation called the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), when it was behind an anonymous Stop Funding Fake News Twitter campaign against Brexit Party candidate Michael Heaver during the 2019 European Parliament elections. The book, The Fraud, by investigative journalist Paul Holden, alleges CCDH was funded by money from the 700,000 of undeclared donations to Labour Together. Last night, Labour MP Alex Barros-Curtis director of Movement For Another Future did not respond when asked why the company was still operating. But the CCDH said that Mr McSweeney had never had any operational involvement with CCDH or Stop Funding Fake News. A spokesman added: CCDHs work is non-partisan. 'The campaign did not target individuals. It focused on both Right-wing and Left-wing disinformation and hate outlets. Fears are growing that Hamas may not be able to find all the bodies of the dead Israeli hostages due for release under Donald Trumps ceasefire deal. The US President said that some of the 28 captives who have been killed and whose repatriation is expected to get under way tonight were being unearthed and declared it a tragedy. Hamas has until midday tomorrow local time to return the bodies along with 20 living hostages as part of the agreement for the first phase of the peace plan. If the terror group does not do so it risks complicating the next phases and will add to the anguish of relatives who simply want to bury their dead. A joint multinational task force led by Israel, the US, Turkey, Qatar and Egypt is being established to locate any bodies that are not returned. Mr Trump, who is due to arrive in Jerusalem tomorrow morning, told reporters: They are getting the bodies; approximately 28 bodies. Some of those bodies are being unearthed right now as we speak. Its a tragedy. The President plans to give a historic address to the Knesset, Israels parliament, and hopes to visit some of the freed hostages. He will then fly to Egypt to discuss the future of Gaza with a lot of leaders, including representatives from the UK, Germany, France, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Indonesia. Fears are growing that Hamas may not be able to find all the bodies of the dead Israeli hostages due for release under Donald Trumps ceasefire deal. Above, displaced Palestinians walk with their belongings along the coastal road towards Gaza City Its a great deal for Israel, but its a great deal for everybody, Mr Trump declared. His comments came as US troops began to arrive in Israel as part of a 200-strong force that will help to oversee the Gaza ceasefire. Admiral Brad Cooper, the head of the US militarys Central Command, was seen in Tel Aviv with lieutenant general Eyal Zamir, chief of staff of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF). They then travelled with US special envoy Steve Witkoff to visit an Israeli army post in the Gaza Strip to confirm the IDF had pulled back to the agreed withdrawal line. While no US boots will be deployed on the ground in the war-ravaged territory, American troops will oversee logistics from Israel. Some 50,000 refugees arrived in Gaza City yesterday, bringing the total number to return to their homes across the Strip to 250,000. One, Raja Salmi, told how she walked for hours to find the wreckage of her home in the territorys capital. It no longer exists. Its just a pile of rubble, she said. I stood before it and cried. All those memories are now just dust. In a further sign of difficulties ahead, Hamas, Islamic Jihad and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine released a joint statement rejecting any foreign guardianship over Gaza. It puts in jeopardy the plan to have a Board of Peace, with members including former Prime Minister Tony Blair helping to govern the Strip until it is handed to a Palestinian body. The terror groups stressed that any governance must be a purely internal Palestinian matter. Hamas has until midday local time on Sunday to return the bodies along with 20 living hostages as part of the agreement for the first phase of the peace plan. Pictured: Palestinians make their way along a road as they return to the north of the territory Meanwhile Lebanons president Joseph Aoun condemned Israel for carrying out overnight strikes which killed one and injured seven. Israel struck a peace deal with Hezbollah, the terror group that rules the south of Lebanon, in November. But it struck overnight on Friday, claiming it had targeted heavy machinery to use for rebuilding its terror infrastructure in southern Lebanon. Mr Aoun called for Lebanon to have a similar peace plan to Gaza following the conflict. Hezbollah started firing rockets at Israel a day after Hamas October 7 atrocity until their leadership was decapitated following Israels daring exploding pagers operation in September last year. Last night, there was heartbreak in Israel after it was revealed that Roei Shalev, a survivor of the Nova music festival massacre, had killed himself after struggling following the death of his girlfriend, Mapal Adam, on October 7. His mother also killed herself days after the attack. On Friday, he posted a note on his Instagram account, saying that he couldnt go on any more. Ive never felt such deep and burning pain and suffering in my life. Its eating me up inside, he wrote. His body was later found inside a burning car on a beach in Netanya. British taxpayers could face a multi-million-pound bill for Sir Tony Blairs security if he oversees an interim government in Gaza. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that plans for elite team of British bodyguards and special forces to protect the ex-Prime Minister have already been drawn up at the Ministry of Defence. And sources say that could cost UK taxpayers millions of pounds if Sir Tony works regularly in the region and heads up the new temporary supervisory board for the full five years. That could include regular flights for the former PM to and from RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus if it was deemed too dangerous for him to be based in the Middle East itself. It emerged last month that Donald Trump wanted Sir Tony to serve on a transitional board of peace to oversee Gaza if Hamas accepted the US presidents proposed settlement to end the war with Israel. But the move has sparked surprise, given the ex-PMs decision to take Britain into the Iraq War in 2003 and his wider reputation in the Middle East. Even Health Secretary Wes Streeting has admitted the choice will raise some eyebrows. It was unclear yesterday if Sir Tony would work in or near Gaza itself although critics yesterday insisted that any remote control authority would not work. The Mail on Sunday can reveal that plans for elite team of British bodyguards and special forces to protect Tony Blair have already been drawn up at the Ministry of Defence Much of Gaza has been reduced to rubble over the last two years. Pictured: Smoke rises following explosions in Gaza City on October 4, 2025 Leading Palestinian figure Nasser al-Qudwa, nephew of Yasser Arafat, told The Times that to govern Gaza you must be there - because you cannot just govern the place by remote control. However, last night, it emerged that contingency plans had already been drawn up to add to the protection Sir Tony will already have as a high-profile ex-PM if he does operate in and from the region. A senior military source said that would include a Royal Military Police close protection team and a small Special Forces unit for so-called atmospherics - potential threats on the street or the wider vicinity of any visit by a senior politician or VIP. There would also likely be RAF air transport and armoured vehicle protection provided for Sir Tony. One expert predicted last night that Sir Tony would need an overall protection team of up to 25 people which could cost taxpayers and could cost millions of pounds if Sir Tony served for the full five-year period envisaged in the proposed peace plan. The senior military source said: The situation is very fluid, but Mr Blair is not the most popular man in the Middle East. And if he is elevated to interim governor of Gaza, there will be a security concern and we are told it will be a UK responsibility. It emerged last month that Donald Trump wanted Sir Tony to serve on a transitional board of peace to oversee Gaza if Hamas accepted the US presidents proposed settlement to end the war with Israel He added: He already has a close security team but moving around Gaza will present much bigger challenges and that will require people with him all the time and another team watching him and the team for problems. The source said that some of these capabilities could be offered by the United Nations but that most UK politicians prefer to be looked after by UK forces. Sources at Sir Tony Blairs office dismissed the threat of UK taxpayers picking up the bill for enhanced security as rubbish last night. The MoD said: This is pure speculation. All former Prime Ministers already have security protection in place. 'Any protective security system utilised by the UK Government is rigorous and proportionate. When Prince Harry and Meghan Markle said 'I do' at St George's Chapel in 2018 it resembled a fairytale, with the besotted couple hoping to live 'happily ever after'. But behind the scenes, the build up to the Sussexes big day had been deliberately 'shrouded in secrecy' and required a 'cloak-and-dagger operation', it has been claimed. Indeed, the details surrounding the high-profile event were so concealed that even the late Queen was allegedly refused any access to drawings of Meghan's 100,000 dress. It was later claimed by Lady Elizabeth Anson, great-niece of the Queen Mother and goddaughter of King George VI, that the Monarch was 'not at all content' by the time she was sat in the pews during the ceremony. One particularly resounding absence from the nuptials was Meghan's Maid of Honour - traditionally a bride's most trusted confidante. But despite her entourage of star-studded friends, Meghan failed to fill this position. Instead, it was the designer of her Audrey Hepburn-inspired floor-length gown, Clare Waight Keller, that 'stepped in' to assist Meghan with her cathedral-length, five-metre-long veil. Writing in the book Finding Freedom, royal experts Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand explained that the 'then-artistic director for Givenchy rode ahead of the bride so that she would be waiting on the castle's West Steps when Meghan arrived.' One particularly resounding absence was Meghan's Maid of Honour - traditionally a bride's most trusted confidante. Instead, it was the designer of Meghan's Audrey Hepburn-inspired floor-length gown, Clare Waight Keller, that 'stepped in' to assist her (pictured right) It was later claimed by Lady Elizabeth Anson, great-niece of the late Queen's Mother and goddaughter of King George VI , that the late Queen was 'not at all content' by the time she was sat in the pews during the ceremony Behind the scenes, the build up to the Sussexes big day had been deliberately 'shrouded in secrecy' in a 'cloak-and-dagger operation', it has been claimed. Even the late Queen was allegedly refused any access to drawings of Meghan's 100,000 dress Indeed the top-secret planning of the wedding had became so strictly enforced that even Ms Waight Keller's own family were forbidden from having any knowledge of her involvement. It wasn't until she appeared on chapel's steps that her husband and three children realised that she 'had been given the all important role of the designer', Scobie and Durand said. Recalling the decision to keep her role in the wedding a secret from her nearest and dearest, the designer said: 'Like a doctor's law in that you don't talk about your parents, so I just stuck to that principle.' Yet Ms Waight Keller's confidential role, was, it appears, indicative of an intentional wealth of secrecy that overwhelmed the entire wedding process. Meghan had met the A-list designer at Kensington Palace shortly into her engagement to Harry, with the pair quickly developing an 'easy relationship'. Describing the moment she was tasked with creating the Royal dress as 'extraordinary', she later said it had been an 'incredible thing to be part of such an historic moment'. But it was not to be an easy feet. Outlining the lengths taken to ensure the dress' utmost secrecy, Scobie and Durand said that the designer had to undertake a number of fittings herself in a secure room at Cliveden House. The fittings, which were carried out 'in the early hours in a cloak-and-dagger operation', devised by Meghan's personal assistant, Melissa Toubati, and aide Jason Knauf, even 'involved several protection officers and a man-made tunnel.' Writing in the book Finding Freedom, royal experts Omid Scobie and Carolyn Durand explained that the 'then-artistic director for Givenchy rode ahead of the bride so that she would be waiting on the castle's West Steps when Meghan arrived' They added: 'The pair laughed at the insanity of their scurrying around with the world's most wanted dress. 'Everything about the dress had been shrouded in secrecy.' In February 2018, Meghan 'arrived in a discreet town car' at a property in south west London to discuss the dress' final design with the high-brow designer. Then, despite refusing to disclose any sketch details to the late Queen, she travelled to LA in March with sketches of the dress to show her mother, Doria, the authors claimed. Writing on her Substack channel 'Royals Extra', based on conversations with Her Majesty's cousin Lady Elizabeth Anson, royal biography Sally Bedell Smith described the late Queen's turmoil at Meghan's insistence on shielding her from any details. The late Queen was reportedly left saddened after 'Meghan wouldn't tell her' anything about the wedding dress, Ms Bedell Smith wrote. She added that while having tea with the Sussexes, 'she was trying to find out about the wedding dress, and Meghan wouldn't tell her', leaving her 'very upset'. Her Majesty was also said to have been 'very worried' about her 'besotted and weak' grandson and also became aggrieved about some of their decisions taken ahead of their ceremony. Scobie and Durand said that the designer (pictured) undertook a number of fittings herself in a secure room at Cliveden House. Devised by Meghan's personal assistant, Melissa Toubati, and aide Jason Knauf, they even 'involved several protection officers and a man-made tunnel' Meghan boarded a flight to LA in March 2018 accompanied with sketches of the dress to show her mother, Doria. The late Queen was reportedly left saddened after 'Meghan wouldn't tell her' anything about the wedding dress, royal biography Sally Bedell Smith wrote Meghan's gown featured long sleeves and a bateau neckline, which was a nod to the iconic Givenchy dress in the 1957 movie Funny Face, and cost 100,000. The dress referenced the codes of the iconic House of Givenchy, showcasing the expert craftsmanship of its world-renowned Parisian couture atelier which was founded in 1952. True to the heritage of the house, the pure lines of the dress were achieved using six meticulously placed seams, focusing on the graphic open bateau neckline that gracefully framed her shoulders and emphasised her slender sculpted waist. Meghan also added a personal touch, stitching a piece of blue gingham fabric from the dress she wore on her and Harry's first date in the hem. Appearing in the Sussexes Netflix series, Ms Waight Keller said that Meghan's dress had to be 'flawless', with the Duchess hoping to 'carve out' a new style of royal dressing. However, the late Queen, entirely excluded from the design process, was said to have been left somewhat disappointed by the gown, which involved the work of 50 people and had taken over 3,900 hours to craft. Ingrid Seward, one of the most prominent and respected writers on the British Royal Family, discussed the nuptials in her book, My Mother and I. The royal biographer wrote: 'The Queen never voiced her true opinions except to her close confidants, such as Lady Elizabeth Anson, or Liza as she was known to her friends. According to royal author Sally Bedell Smith (pictured), Her Majesty was also said to have been 'very worried' about her 'besotted and weak' grandson and also became aggrieved about some of their decisions taken ahead of their ceremony Author Ingrid Steward, in her book, My Mother and I, said that the Queen 'had made only one remark about Meghan and Harry's wedding and that was that Meghan's Givenchy wedding gown was "too white" for a divorcee, with Meghan previously married between 2011 and 2013 'She told me that the Queen had made only one remark about Meghan and Harry's wedding and that was that Meghan's Givenchy wedding gown was "too white".' 'Those two words embraced everything she felt about the dramas in the run-up to the marriage and the Disneyesque spectacle of the day itself', according to the royal expert. 'In the monarch's view, it was not appropriate for a divorcee getting remarried in church to look quite so flamboyantly virginal.' Meghan had previously been married to Hollywood film producer Trevor Engelson between 2011 and 2013. Queen Camilla, who had previously been married to Andrew Parker Bowles between 1973 and 1995, stuck with tradition and opted not to wear white for the blessing when she married Charles in 2005. Instead she wore a pale blue chiffon dress and coat with gold embroidery. But the late Queen's reservations were not just reserved for the secretive bridal gown she donned on the day. While Meghan had been 'full of charm' and appeared 'natural, intelligent and thoughtful' following the engagement, it was claimed that as the wedding approached she had become increasingly 'bossy', leaving the late Queen privately 'very worried'. Meghan had reportedly quickly dismissed any ideas Lady Elizabeth (pictured), a high-society party planner known as Liza to friends, had for their nuptials by saying that she couldn't 'make any decisions' until Harry returned to the UK from Botswana She had quickly dismissed any ideas Lady Elizabeth, a high-society party planner known as Liza to friends, had for their nuptials by saying that she couldn't 'make any decisions' until Harry returned to the UK from Botswana. 'He will write from Africa,' Meghan reportedly told Lady Elizabeth. One of the late Queen's most trusted confidantes, Lady Elizabeth later told Sally that Harry had been in touch to say they had decided to go 'another way' with their plans, and claimed his grandmother was 'content with this' decision. 'When I spoke with the Queen, she said she is not at all content,' Lady Elizabeth allegedly told Ms Bedell Smith. 'Meghan could turn into nothing but trouble. She sees things in a different way.' The royal author added: 'According to Liza, the Queen was dismayed that Harry had asked the Archbishop of Canterbury to perform the wedding service in St. Georges Chapel without first requesting permission from the Dean of Windsor.' She also said that Harry had been 'rude to her for ten minutes' during a meeting ahead of the wedding, with Lady Elizabeth believing that, as a result, Harry had 'blown his relationship with his grandmother'. Lady Elizabeth tried to console her by telling her she could 'look forward' to Royal Ascot and Princess Eugenie's wedding. However, the late Queen replied about the Sussex wedding: 'But it's my house. And Im paying for it'. Ms Bedell Smith wrote: 'When we spoke two weeks before the May 19 wedding, Liza had just heard from the Queen. The Number One LadyI call her Jemimasays the jury is out on whether she likes Meghan, said Liza. My Jemima is very worried. In Lizas view, Harry is besotted and weak about women. We hope but dont quite think she is in love. We think she engineered it all. Ms Bedell Smith also claimed that Harry had been 'rude' to the late Queen 'for ten minutes' during a meeting ahead of the wedding, with Lady Elizabeth believing that, as a result, Harry had 'blown his relationship with his grandmother'. The pair were said to have reconciled in April 2018 Lady Elizabeth allegedly tried to console the late Queen by telling her she could 'look forward' to Royal Ascot and Princess Eugenie's wedding. However, the late Queen replied about the Sussex wedding: 'But it's my house. And Im paying for it' Lady Elizabeth also apparently added: 'Its worrying that so many people are questioning whether Meghan is right for Harry. The problem, bless his heart, is that Harry is neither bright nor strong, and she is both'. Following these February rows, towards the end of April, Lady Elizabeth claimed that the late Queen and her grandson had 'patched things up'. Harry apparently visited her alone to smooth things over and later wrote to her with more wedding details. When Prince William married Kate Middleton in 2011, the late Queen asked Lady Elizabeth to organise a party for all the visiting royal guests. By then she was a veteran of royal party planning. No palace event, it seemed, was complete without input from Lady Elizabeth. She arranged the late Queen's 80th birthday party and that to mark the 50th anniversary of her coronation. In her later years, she became ill with lung cancer but continued to work despite breathing problems and spent time with the late Queen, who made her a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. She died in November 2020. Following her high-profile wedding Meghan wore a number of Ms Waight Keller's Givenchy designs - turning to the label to dress her for many prominent engagements, including her June 2018 outing in Cheshire alongside the late Queen. In December 2018, Meghan made clear how close the two women had become when she made a surprise appearance at the 2018 British Fashion Awards to present Ms Waight Keller with an award. Accepting her award, Ms Waight Keller said: 'This woman is so amazing' Ms Waight Keller was the first-ever female artistic director to hold the position in the brand's 68-year history. She was responsible for returning Givenchy back to the couture schedule, presenting a total of five couture collections during her occupancy. The designer left Givenchy in 2020 and, last year, created a new affordable line with Japanese high street retailer, Uniqlo. In December 2018, Meghan made clear how close the two women had become when she made a surprise appearance at the 2018 British Fashion Awards to present Ms Waight Keller with an award. Ms Waight Keller won the prestigious British Womenswear Designer of the Year award and thanked Meghan personally in her speech at the Royal Albert Hall in Kensington, London. Accepting her award, Ms Waight Keller said: 'This woman is so amazing. I got to know Meghan on such a personal level. 'To have someone like that trust you on such a personal moment in their life... I can't thank you enough because it was the most beautiful moment.' With a spicy sex scene in Buckingham Palace and the murder of three royal aides including one who chokes to death by having a long service medal stuffed down their gullet its fair to say The Hawk Is Dead isnt your average regal read. But its one that has been eagerly devoured by none other than Queen Camilla, a bookworm and self-confessed crime thriller fan who may just may have inspired some of the more mischievous aspects of the plot. Who on earth, I wonder, could have suggested the assassination of the Kings long-standing senior aide Sir Peregrine Greaves, a courtier so silky-smooth it appears he is gliding on wheels? And where did the inspiration for the character of Baroness Westwood, known to her friends as Tiny, come from? Surely not Camillas right-hand woman Jane von Westenholz known as Lofty to her friends? Perish the thought! Author Peter James is at pains to state at the start of his 21st Roy Grace novel: The roles of the Royal Household staff are real, but the characters are totally fictitious and my creation. But for anyone with knowledge about the workings and personalities of the palace it makes for a fun game of Whos Who. Today, in a publishing world exclusive, a first thrilling extract of this hotly-anticipated whodunnit set in the corridors of the nations most famous royal residence, is being serialised for Daily Mail readers. Camilla with best-selling author Peter James on the set of ITV's Roy Grace series in Brighton An illustration for James's The Hawk Is Dead, which was inspired by the Queen herself Peter James's Roy Grace series of books are immensely popular, leading to the ITV adaptation While it may come as a surprise to see one of Britains most successful crime writers (James boasts 21 Sunday Times No1 bestsellers and more than 23 million sales worldwide) relocate his famous detective hero from his Sussex motherland to the febrile hotbed of below-stairs intrigue, the plan has been some years in the making, he tells me. We speak over a cup of tea in his writing room, situated 72 thigh-aching steps up on the top floor of a light-flooded Georgian tower at his stunning Jersey home. Its panoramic views of the island are rivalled only by his eye-popping collection of crime memorabilia, from handcuffs to hats plus a cheeky sign which reads: Careful, or youll end up in my novel. With his slicked-back hair and penchant for top-to-toe black, James, 77, could easily pass for a villain in one of his own novels but in reality couldnt be more charming company. And while his book is not endorsed by the palace, its clear the author has had the opportunity for some extensive behind-the-scenes research there, as well as insight from members of the Royal Household including the Queen herself. His friendship with Camilla dates back to 2015 when he received an email from a friend telling him to rush out and buy a copy of the Daily Mail. On page three was a picture of the then Duchess of Cornwall in her office talking about her passion for literacy... with two of Jamess crime novels on the shelf behind her. He immediately wrote to the royal to say how he thrilled he was to see his work in the royal library and was shocked to receive a charming and chatty handwritten note in return. Mine is yet another fan letter, Camilla wrote (apparently she adores his pretty terrifying storylines and the heros tragic personal life). Since then the pair have become pen pals. In 2018, after accompanying Prince Charles to the opening ceremony of the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, Camilla wrote that his latest page-turner had kept me gripped on the endless journey to Australia and now she was wondering what on earth to read on the way back. In 2021, shortly after Camilla started the Duchess of Cornwalls Reading Room set up during the pandemic to share her favourite book recommendations and now a hugely successful online book club and literacy charity Camilla was invited to interview James for the book clubs website. She visited him on the set of Grace in Shoreham, West Sussex five series of James books have been televised for ITV, with a sixth in production and met stars of the show, led by actor John Simm. James and his wife Lara with their dogs Kyla, Wally and Spooky at their home in Jersey What I loved is that she knew more than me about my books and was completely unshockable. She liked the quite nasty and violent stuff. Shes definitely not a literary snob, he recalls. After the official meet and greets, Camilla was scheduled to grab a bit of lunch in private before her next engagement. To Jamess surprise, however, he was invited into the room by her private secretary, who proceeded to pull a Thermos flask of soup, a banana and a ham sandwich out of her handbag, which the Kings wife happily shared with him. Some time later another cypher-headed royal missive from Clarence House dropped through his letterbox asking whether he might consider setting a future book in London? James did little more than mull over the idea until he was invited to speak at Camillas first ever Reading Room literary festival at Hampton Court Palace in 2023, when a member of the Royal Household mentioned that Her Majesty actually seemed rather keen on the idea. Challenge accepted, thought James. And where better in London than Buckingham Palace itself? The plot developed quickly: after learning that the palace was slightly in chaos as a result of a ten-year, 369 million refurbishment, James decided it would present the perfect opportunity for someone to steal priceless items from the million-strong Royal Collection (including Grannys Chips the name given by the Royal Family to the famous Cullinan Diamonds, some of which are part of the Crown Jewels) and flog them on the dark web. It wasnt such a crazy idea, he was to later discover. In 2021 a palace catering assistant was jailed for stealing 100,000 worth of medals and photographs from the royal residence and selling them on eBay. When I devised my plot, I sent it to a contact at the Royal Household who said they would run it past HMQ when she is back from Kenya. A week later I got an email to say she laughed her head off and loved it but they needed to get it approved by comms [Royal Communications]. To Jamess amazement they signed it off in a couple of days. Apparently a senior member of staff said: Well at least Peter James had the courtesy to ask, which is more than some famous authors have. So we were on. James has always been fascinated by the soon-to-be decommissioned Royal Train and decided to set his opening scenes with his unconventional detective hero being commandeered to oversee the Queens security on a royal away day to visit hospices on the south coast. Murder, however, ensues before Camilla even gets there as the train is derailed in a tunnel just outside of the city. As its claret-coloured carriages clatter off the tracks, a shot rings in the air. Just who has derailed the royal train with Queen Camilla on board? And is it really an assassination attempt? While Queen Camilla didnt come up with the plot herself she did, however, speak to the writer several times about it. I met her [on royal engagements] a few times while I was writing so I seized the opportunity to ask her little details like what she had for breakfast, he says. Another occasion she asked how the book was coming along and I said: Well, Ive got you being quite heroic. The Royal Train is derailed in Clayton Tunnel on the way to Brighton and Ive got you helping people off the train. Hmmm, I dont know if I would be quite so brave really, Camilla amusingly remarked. Its fair to say that James has been given more access to the inner workings of Buckingham Palace than possibly any author in recent history as part of his research. On one fact-finding tour he switched on his fitness tracker and discovered he had walked three and a half miles by the end of it. I once asked a member of staff how they found their way round the place as its such a rabbit warren. They said: I asked the same question of Prince Philip about 15 years ago and he told me, You navigate by the paintings, of course! Trouble is they keep switching them, apparently! Hes quizzed everyone from senior palace figures to the Kings armourer and his novel is crammed with fascinating insights into royal life. When they recently dug up the floorboards in the late Queens apartment to put down some new piping they found that half the planks had inexplicably been sawn through, James reveals. Remarkably, it seems, Her Late Majesty could have accidentally plunged through the floorboards at any time in her 70-year reign. I have spent hours at the palace, up on the roof, down the basement... everywhere [an old Georgian light shaft is the scene of a raunchy sexual encounter between two protagonists]. I really wanted to get the geography of my big chase scene round the palace right, he adds. Everybody I have met in the household was really enthusiastic about the book. The only person less so was the head of the Royal Collection who was concerned the thefts might make us look like we are a little inefficient. Reader, be assured that in reality Grannys Chips are very much in safe hands. In another scene I have Roy Grace being summoned by the King to his sitting room to discuss the case as he fears for his wifes life. I had him standing up with his hands in his pockets but staff were quick to tell me, No, hed only have his hand in one, James says. And when I referred to them as Their Majesties I was told, No, you are being too formal. Everyone calls them The Boss or HMK and HMQ. The writer sent his first draft under the codename 001 to Queen Camilla earlier this year. I sent the book with a note telling her it was the first and only copy in existence and would she be willing to have a read and let me know if there was anything she was unhappy with as she and the King featured as themselves so prominently throughout, he says. I met her a week later at Clarence House [for a literacy event] and she came up to me beaming and said: I absolutely loved it. Is there anything you are not happy with? Anything you would like me to change? And she said: No, I dont want a word changed. Not. A. Word. Indeed Im told HMQ even teasingly refers to one member of her staff by their literary pseudonym now and even King Charles is a fan. Its something of a full circle for James, who describes himself as a total royalist. His late mother was Cornelia James, a remarkable Jewish refugee from Austria who held a royal warrant as the maker of Queen Elizabeths gloves (she even made the pair for her going-away outfit following her marriage to Prince Philip in 1947). My abiding memory is watching Bruce Forsyth on Sunday Night At The London Palladium on television at home and my mum sitting there with one of the Queens gloves and a needle and thread, repairing them. She wouldnt let anyone else touch them. The Queen and her dresser were very frugal and would always send them back to be repaired, he smiles. Jamess sister, Genevieve, still runs the family business. He has no doubt his mother would be thrilled by his own relationship with royalty and he is full of praise for the new Queens determination to champion reading and literacy through her Reading Room, which he enthusiastically supports. Some people have this attitude that if its not on the Booker Prize list then its not worth the paper its written on. In fact a lot of people will only say that crime is their guilty pleasure. But she makes no bones about how much she loves a good read, James says. The Queen has, in return, made no secret of her admiration for the writer, publicly revealing that Roy Grace is her favourite fictional detective, an honour which James says brought him to tears. When you read his thrillers its a shock to realise that for such a genuinely lovely man, James has a really rather morbid imagination (as part of his research, he once got an undertaker to lock him in a coffin to see what it felt like being buried alive.) Yes, he giggles, his dark eyes twinkling. People often say they are quite worried about meeting me but then they seem pleasantly surprised. With previous novels tackling issues as diverse as organ trafficking and county lines drug dealing, was he not slightly worried that the rarefied echelons of Buckingham Palace would fail to provide sufficiently gritty subject matter? They have the same petty jealousies and coveting of offices you would find anywhere, he says, with a knowing look. I only realised when I began talking to people how important medals are, for example, particularly the long service medals. People would almost actually kill for one, you might say. So, yes, I thought it would be a bit ironic to get a medal you really, really wanted stuffed down your throat. A particularly macabre ending but one that seems to have tickled our Queen. The Hawk is Dead: A Killer In The Palace will be published by Pan Macmillan on October 2l. Now read a gripping extract at dailymail.co.uk/royalthriller This is the emotional moment Prince William hugged a widow who brought tears to his eyes discussing her husband's suicide, before a warm meeting with her family. The Prince of Wales was overcome with emotion during the visit to the home of Rhian Mannings in a deeply moving conversation to mark World Mental Health Day. Her husband Paul died just five days after their one-year-old son George passed away suddenly in hospital in 2012. The film, shot earlier this month, sees William arrive at her house in Cardiff, for a frank discussion about the stigma surrounding suicide. And the future King nearly broke down as Mrs Mannings told him she desperately wished Paul had spoken to her about how he was feeling. They shared a heartwarming hug as the Prince left her house and walked out to his car. It came after the pair, during their sit-down conversation, shared a cup of tea and Welsh cakes her mother made, a treat William admits he 'loves'. But just as touching was his meeting with her family, who joined them in Mrs Mannings' kitchen after the duo's sit-down conversation. This is the emotional moment Prince William hugged a widow who brought tears to his eyes discussing her husband's suicide But just as touching was his meeting with her family (pictured, Mrs Mannings' mother and her two children, Isaac, 16, and Holly, 17), who joined them in Mrs Mannings' kitchen after the duo's sit-down conversation William says, 'Look who's here!', and greets Mrs Mannings' mother with a handshake, saying, 'Hello! Very nice to see you,' to which she replies, pleased, 'And you too'. He addresses her children, Holly, 17, and Isaac, 16: 'Thank you so much for letting me come and chat to Rhian, your mum, and it's been lovely seeing her again and having a chat so thank you so much.' William then jokes, in a heartwarming moment: 'And I'll take the Welsh cakes with me and have them in the car on the way back!' Mrs Mannings' mother laughs, 'There we go, there we go!', with the Prince concluding: 'Brilliant.' As he heads out to his car, the future King waves to the family stood outside the house: 'Nice to meet you all, bye bye.' Mrs Mannings gives her daughter a hug, asking, 'You alright?', who says, 'Yeah', and she checks in with her son too, with a, 'You?' Then, she jokes to her mother: 'He's taken your Tupperware!' It came after Mrs Mannings shared a warm hug with the Prince as he left her house and walked out to his car, saying: 'Lovely to see you.' Mrs Mannings gives her daughter a hug (pictured), asking, 'You alright?', who says, 'Yeah', and she checks in with her son too, with a, 'You?' She jokes to her mother: 'He's taken your Tupperware!' She responds in kind: 'Thank you. Take care, have a good trip and a good rest of the day. And you, take care, see you.' The pair first met in 2017, when she shared her devastating experience with him. And they decided to reunite for the video, posted to the Waleses official YouTube channel, to resume their conversation - and work together on suicide prevention. As Mrs Mannings first welcomes him into her home, she says: 'My mum made you a cake but she also wanted you to have some of her Welsh cakes.' He replies: 'Yes, this looks very impressive, look at this! Can I prioritise a Welsh cake first, would that be alright? Because I do love those.' She agrees enthusiastically and asks, 'Would you like to put them on the plate?', which the Prince gladly does as Mrs Mannings prepares tea. The royal asks how she has been doing since he last saw her, to which she replies: 'It's up and down, everything's up and down, life's up and down anyway, isn't it? 'But both of my kids are flourishing and Isaac's turning into quite a nice little rugby player. It came after the pair, during their sit-down conversation, shared a cup of tea and Welsh cakes her mother made, a treat William admits he 'loves' She asks, 'Would you like to put them on the plate?', which the Prince gladly does as Mrs Mannings prepares tea 'And he plays the same position as Paul, would you believe? So that's really nice as well.' The Prince, visibly touched by this, replies: 'Does he? That's really cool.' The touching film of their conversation has been released to mark the launch of The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales's National Suicide Prevention Network. The initiative is backed by more than 20 organisations and funding of more than 1million from the couple. Over the next three years they hope to tackle the root causes of suicide and create a single, universal pathway for suicide prevention which is evidence-based, effective and accessible to all. The Network will be chaired by Professor Ann John, a leading expert in the prevention of suicide and self-harm, and will cover all four home nations of the UK. Mrs Mannings herself has also been awarded an MBE for her work setting up the charity 2 Wish Upon A Star. It has helped more than 3,000 people in Wales affected by the sudden death of a child or young person. Little George was her and Paul's third child, a smiley, giggling baby who was crawling everywhere and had just learnt to say 'hiya' when he celebrated his first birthday in February 2012. The Prince of Wales was overcome with emotion during the visit to the home of Rhian Mannings (pictured together) in a deeply moving conversation to mark World Mental Health Day A week later he suffered a seizure but tragically died just two hours after being rushed to hospital. He was later found to be suffering from pneumonia and influenza A, which can be symptomless. While Mrs Mannings and her husband initially comforted each other, he soon began to blame himself terribly, saying he had let his family down. Five days later he went out for a drive - and never returned. The video with the Prince of Wales starts with her telling the camera: 'Everyone loved Paul, everybody. 'Always pinched myself when we were together that he'd chosen me really to be the one to marry. 'We very quickly got pregnant, had Holly, our eldest, and then went on very quickly to have Isaac. George was our third. 'He was just an incredible addition to the family and everyone used to say he was the happiest little boy ever. Five days after the couple's son George died, Mrs Mannings' husband Paul (pictured with George) went out for a drive - and never returned 'Did we take it for granted? Probably, I think a lot of people do at that age. We just presumed life would take us on that normal journey of growing old together.' But she recounts how painful things soon became, just days after she returned to her job in teaching following maternity leave with George. He suddenly fell ill at home and was rushed to hospital by paramedics. She said: 'You never think anything bad is going to happen because this is your family, you see these things happen on TV.' Unfortunately, her son was very unwell - and died within two hours of admission to hospital. Just five days later, she said: 'Probably the unimaginable, really, happened, something that we could never have ever been prepared for, totally unexpected, was Paul walked out of the house and took his own life. 'It's really difficult to explain how grief feels. Emptiness, physical pain, your heart hurts, your limbs hurt, you ache. 'But when you lose somebody to suicide, it leaves so many questions unanswered. The touching film of their conversation has been released to mark the launch of The Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales's National Suicide Prevention Network 'But I'm hoping by having increased awareness around what it is but also the effects it has on those left behind. What causes to people walk out and never come home? 'Let's stand together, let's talk about it, let's get people in the public eye talking about it. We can help each other, this really doesn't have to be what happens.' As she sits down for her chat with William, he asks: 'How have you managed to bring up your children so brilliantly as you have? How have they managed to thrive?' She replies: 'They've just grown up to be incredible kids and young adults. I look back and I still don't really know how we survived it. 'People ask me that a lot, "How do you do it?" And I don't really know. They were so young, the memories they've got now are memories that probably I've placed into their minds. 'I still worry a lot about what tomorrow is going to bring our family. But when I'm trying to be rational and trying to think positively, I just want my children to be happy.' As the royal nods thoughtfully, he responds: 'And unfortunately, there's still a lot of stigma around suicide. Did you feel that at the time?' She replies: 'I was quite surprised by it, I had never been touched by suicide, it was something that happened in the news. Mrs Mannings herself has also been awarded an MBE for her work setting up the charity 2 Wish Upon A Star 'Nobody would talk about it or actually say what happened. And I found that really confusing at the time.' The Prince also asks how or whether to talk to young children about the issue, as Mrs Mannings' own children were very small when her husband took his own life. 'I think it's important never to lie,' she says, 'there's ways of being truthful and just being gentle. As a parent, you know your children better than anybody else.' And he brought up how many unanswered questions suicide often leaves families with. She nods: 'I will forever go over those last few days with him wondering what I missed. 'Before we lost George, we were just so happy and I think this just shows it really can happen to anyone.' And as she thinks back to what she would say to her husband if she could, she concludes: '"Why didn't you speak to me?" I ask myself that every single day. 'He was absolutely devastated, he did keep blaming himself that weekend. Little George was her and Paul's third child (pictured together), a smiley, giggling baby who was crawling everywhere and had just learnt to say 'hiya' when he celebrated his first birthday in February 2012 'But I would just like to just sit him down like this and just say, "Why didn't you come to me?" 'Because he's missed out on just so much joy and we would have been OK. And I think that's what the hardest thing is, we would have been OK.' It is at this point William is visibly emotional, rubbing his face as he keeps back tears and Mrs Mannings asks: 'You OK?' He replies, putting his hand out to hold hers: 'I'm sorry. It's just it's hard to ask these questions that I ' 'No, it's fine. It's just you've got children,' Mrs Mannings told him. 'It's hard and you've experienced loss yourself.' He responds, with a deep breath: 'It's OK.' With the death of his mother Diana and the more recent cancer diagnoses of both his wife and father, William has been through a difficult time of his own. 'Life can throw you these awful curve balls but by talking about it by, you know, having hope, you can continue,' she adds. The Prince agrees, saying: 'The best way to prevent suicide is to talk about it. 'Talk about it early, talk about it with your loved ones, those you trust, your friends. So thank you for talking about it.' Mrs Mannings replies, as the pair smile at each other: 'Well, thank you for talking about it too.' Latest figures show 7,055 deaths are caused by suicide in the UK every year. The Prince of Wales said in a statement: 'The incredible partners who form this network reach those at risk of, or affected by, suicide with their inspirational work. 'I have had the privilege of meeting all of the founding partners to see firsthand their powerful community-based efforts to offer hope and support to those who need it most. 'Their efforts reaffirm the urgent mission of the National Suicide Prevention Network: to build a bold, unified national response to the heartbreakingand preventabletragedy of suicide.' Prince Harry believes that the memory of Princess Diana was being used as a stick to beat his wife with during her gaffe-laden trip to Paris last week, friends have told The Mail on Sunday. They say the Duke of Sussex was left hurt and upset after Meghan received backlash for a video which showed her stretching her feet out in the back of a limo close to the Pont dAlma tunnel where Diana died in 1997. The footage was criticised for being utterly bewildering and insensitive beyond belief and ensured her 48-hour PR blitz during Paris Fashion Week, including an appearance on the front row of the Balenciaga show in support of designer Pierpaolo Piccioli, was marred by controversy. It is understood the Duchess, 44, was not aware of the cars location, with friends saying it was a hell of a stretch to suggest she drove past the tunnel on purpose. And Harry, who has not spoken publicly about the row, is said to have been left despondent, but not surprised by the barrage of criticism his wife faced. A friend of the couple said: Harry was left hurt and upset. Dianas death was used as a stick to beat his wife with. [Meghan] did not even pass close to the tunnel. They added: The whole thing is a joke, but not a very funny one for Harry. Prince Harry believes that the memory of Princess Diana was being used as a stick to beat his wife with during her gaffe-laden trip to Paris last week, friends have told The Mail on Sunday The short clip Meghan posted on Instagram showed her putting her feet up while being driven through the French capital Critics have noted that after she passed Paris's Pont Alexandre III bridge (pictured), she was heading towards nearby Pont d'Alma - close to where Princess Diana died in 1997 He was left feeling hurt, but the depressing thing is he wasnt even that surprised. He was more despondent than shocked. For Meghan, the furore surrounding her trip which she had hoped would mark a flawless debut on the fashion social scene was so toxic, it went down like a sack of cold sick, the friend said. A source insisted last night that, unlike Diana in 1997, Meghan was wearing a seatbelt for her journey through Paris. And rather than noting her progress on the way to the 2,500 a night Hotel Plaza Athenee, the Duchess was in fact distracted by preparing a slick Instagram reel of breakfast trays, Eiffel Tower views and make-up prep. Homebuyers are about to get some serious coffee jitters. Starbucks just closed hundreds of locations, and while that's bad news for coffee drinkers, it could be even worse for the housing market. The Seattle-based coffee chain shuttered over 400 locations in September after reporting six straight quarters of sales declines. Closures spanned nearly all states, leaving people across the US uncaffeinated and raising questions about local economic health. Starbucks closures can have a surprisingly big effect on housing markets. This is because of the 'Starbucks effect' the phenomenon where the coffee chain's presence is associated with rising property values and a perception of neighborhood affluence. A Zillow study found that homes within a quarter-mile of a Starbucks appreciated far faster than those farther away. On a broader level, the term also refers to how Starbucks sells a lifestyle not just coffee. Its branding is aspirational, appealing to consumers who want a sense of comfort, community, and quality. There is a similar concept tied to neighborhoods that have Whole Foods grocery stores. The 'Starbucks effect' is a phenomenon where the coffee chain's presence is associated rising property values and an increase in perceived affluence With a grande latte now costing about $6, Starbucks popularity has become a quick indicator of how upscale a neighborhood has become When a Whole Foods opens in a neighborhood, property values and rents often rise. This is because the store signals a desirable, affluent area, attracting more upscale development and residents. 'Starbucks, like Whole Foods, has often been seen as a sign that a neighborhood has arrived,' Fort Lauderdale economist Michael Szanto told the Daily Mail. A Zillow study found that homes near a Starbucks tend to rise in value faster than those farther away suggesting the coffee chain often sets up shop in up-and-coming neighborhoods. At the start of the study, in 1997, a typical home within a quarter-mile of a Starbucks sold for about $137,000, while those farther away averaged around $102,000. But the gap only widened over time. Seventeen years later, the average US home price had risen 65 percent to $168,000 yet the homes near a Starbucks surged 96 percent to $269,000. 'Homes near Starbucks over 17 years appreciated at 96 percent. Homes near Dunkin' Donuts at 80 percent. And nationwide, home prices rose 65 percent,' Zillow's CEO Spencer Rascoff said. With a grande latte now averaging around $6, the presence and popularity of Starbucks has become a shorthand for neighborhood affluence. Starbucks has often been seen as a sign that a neighborhood has arrived. The effect is thought to be most obvious in small towns or city suburbs, where the arrival of a Starbucks - likely in a strip mall as in the photo - can have an outsized impact because it may be the only major coffee shop or gathering spot in the area William Stern (pictured), CEO of financial service company Cardiff, said: 'A Starbucks closing is the ultimate canary in the coal mine for a local housing market' Though, William Stern, CEO of financial service company Cardiff, told the Daily Mail that the 'Starbucks effect' is often misunderstood. 'A Starbucks opening doesn't make a neighborhood valuable; it's a signal from a data-driven giant that the neighborhood already is,' he explained. 'Their arrival is a confirmation of an existing trend, not the cause of a new one.' The same reasoning applies when a Starbucks shuts down. 'A Starbucks closing is the ultimate canary in the coal mine for a local housing market,' he continued. 'Their decision to leave isn't a guess; it's a data-driven declaration that the neighborhood's economic fundamentals foot traffic, disposable income, and future growth are already in decline. They are telling you the party is over before anyone else has realized the music has stopped.' Stern warns that buyers should take head when a neighborhood Starbucks closes: 'For a potential homebuyer, a local Starbucks shutting down should be a five-alarm fire.' He continued: 'It's a far more reliable indicator of a neighborhood's future than any realtor's pitch. It's an undeniable signal that the commercial viability of the area is weakening, and residential property values are almost certain to follow.' 'This isn't just about coffee,' Stern stated. Brian Niccol (pictured), Starbucks' top boss and Chipotle's former leader, is trying to turn around the chain's struggles Fort Lauderdale economist Michael Szanto 'When a company like Starbucks, with one of the most sophisticated commercial real estate teams in the world, begins 'rapid mass closures,' they are making a powerful macroeconomic forecast. They are betting that the consumer in those specific areas is getting weaker,' he explained. 'Homeowners in those neighborhoods should be paying very close attention.' 'When a major national brand like Starbucks starts closing doors, people notice,' Todd Drowlette, a real estate expert who once served as the youngest exclusive broker for Starbucks, told the Daily Mail. 'It doesn't tank a neighborhood overnight, but it can subtly shift the way buyers and renters perceive a neighborhood.' He added: 'For many buyers and renters, national brands signal convenience and familiarity. 'A Starbucks isn't necessarily the marker of an 'exclusive' neighborhood the way it might have been a decade ago, but it still communicates ease of access to everyday amenities.' If a Starbucks closes down in a neighborhood, other brands may also follow suit. 'Big brands often pay close attention to where other national brands are succeeding or struggling,' Drowlette explained. 'If multiple well-known brands scale back in the same area, it can create the perception of weakening demand, which may prompt other businesses to reconsider their own investment in the area. Starbucks just closed hundreds of locations across the country amidst financial struggles According to Drowlette, this can snowball and influence both commercial and residential confidence. The Seattle-based giant gave no notice of the closures last month, causing chaos for employees, landlords, and customers. The company laid off 900 workers just weeks earlier, which was its second round of mass layoffs this year, as part of a sweeping $1 billion restructuring plan. Chief executive Brian Niccol said the cutbacks were 'necessary to build a better, stronger and more resilient Starbucks.' With their ability to record and transmit video and audio, there's no doubt smart devices make our lives more convenient than ever. However, they also mean breaking up with someone is much more complex than it once was. Our goto gadgets are leaving us vulnerable to snooping and in many cases expartners are the perpetrators. Along with shared logins and apps, the devices mean your ex could be spying on you long after you have split up. Scarily, they could even be keeping tabs on your location and search history. Singletons have revealed their terrifying ordeals with their former partners thanks to the likes of Apple AirTags and Amazon Ring doorbell. Meanwhile, one man was left outraged when he discovered a friend of his ex had been using his login for years without his knowledge. So is your ex spying on you? Here are the creepy tactics to be on the look out for. Amazon's Ring doorbell has a builtin camera that allows you to see a live video feed of what's happening at your front door at any given moment (file photo) Ring doorbell Amazon's Ring doorbell has a builtin camera that allows you to see a live video feed of what's happening either side of your front door at any moment. It lets you keep an eye on your neighbours, the postman, or any suspicious characters lurking outside or even inside your home. The accompanying Ring app, which streams the doorbell's video feed, lets multiple people in a household to see the footage on their own device. But this means people have been able to monitor the activities of exhousemates even after they've moved out. On the Ring community page, one user asked people for help, saying 'My ex is in my account'. She wrote: 'I don't know if he cloned my phone or what but it's obvious he's in my ring account somehow.' In response, someone informed her that she'd probably given her ex 'shared user' access, which can be rescinded. Ring lets you keep an eye on your neighbours, the postman, or any suspicious characters lurking around your house (file photo) Two years ago, British man Jonathan Maybury was found guilty of coercive behaviour after using a Ring doorbell camera to spy on his girlfriend. Another man aired suspicions of his wife on Reddit after noticing that the video feed from the doorbell sometimes couldn't be reached. He hinted at some kind of sabotage taking place that might momentarily turn off the feed perhaps while an unknown person entered and exited the home. The man said: 'Just today, she sent a strangely worded text that piqued my curiosity so I checked into Live View to get that "Ring doorbell cannot be reached" error message for like 10 minutes. 'Allegations that I am paranoid while continuing to notice these cues is driving me insane.' Amazon Alexa Amazon's brand of 'Echo' smart speakers are fitted with Alexa, the company's intelligent virtual voice assistant. Whenever you directly address Alexa, the technology will listen to and record whatever you say before sending the audio to the cloud. Amazon's brand of 'Echo' smart speakers (pictured) are fitted with Alexa, the company's intelligent virtual voice assistant Is Alexa always listening? Alexa is always listening, although it's not always recording. The assistant is designed to listen only for its 'wake word' - which is either 'Alexa', 'Echo', 'Computer' or 'Ziggy'. Once it hears the wake word, it will start recording audio. Recordings will be sent to the cloud and be accessible on your Amazon account. Advertisement People can review and listen back to their Alexa conversation history in your Amazon account so if your ex is moving out, be sure that they take their Alexaenabled device with them. If they leave the device behind and you continue to use it to talk to Alexa, they could be keeping track of what you say. Alternatively, if you ex has moved out they may still have access to your Alexa. In 2020, a British woman discovered her expartner had been secretly listening to recordings from her Alexa device long after their relationship had ended. Taking advantage of an Alexa feature called Drop In which turns multiple Alexaenabled devices to intercoms he'd been granted access while they lived together and it had never been revoked. By the time she realised what was happening, he had been monitoring her private conversations from another location, using only his phone and her Alexa device. In another case, London woman Shelby Laidlaw found her abusive ex was snooping on her using a hacked Amazon Alexa smart speaker. Amazon has already received criticism for letting staff listen to and transcribe user conversations with Alexa. An Amazon spokesperson told the Daily Mail: 'We build easy-to-use controls for our customers, including microphone and camera controls on Echo devices, the ability to review and delete Alexa voice recordings, options to easily revoke shared users from Ring accounts, and Two-Step Verification to increase Amazon account security. 'We continuously work to enhance support in this important area and remain committed to innovation with privacy and security at the core.' London woman Shelby Laidlaw found her abusive ex Hassan Mehmet (left) was snooping on her using a hacked Amazon Alexa smart speaker Apple AirTags Another controversial gadget is the AirTag the little coinsized tracking device from Apple, which has let creepy men follow women. An AirTag user can potentially set the device up on their phone, slip it in someone's bag or pocket, and get a realtime update of their location on an app called 'Find My'. In 2022, a British woman was in her car when a message popped up on her phone saying that an Apple AirTag had been detected nearby. After a search, she found the AirTag under the carpet in the back put there by her expartner when he transferred their child's car seat from his car to her backseat. Another woman said she had been tracked without her knowledge for two hours around Disneyland when an AirTag was slipped about her person. She said she only found out that she was being tracked after two hours because she got a notification from the Find My app. According to a 2022 investigation by Vice, 150 police reports from dozens of US police departments had involved AirTags over an eightmonth period. AirTags, released by Apple in 2021, are small, circular tracking devices, slightly larger than a twopound coin. One AirTag costs 29; keychains are sold separately (file photo) May described her experience of being secretly tracked by an AirTag on June 25 in a Twitter thread Of the 150 reports, 50 cases involved women who'd started getting notifications that their whereabouts were being tracked by an AirTag they didn't own. iPhone Apple's Find My app also lets people track other Apple devices such as iPhones, which due to their ubiquity are tied even more tightly to people's location. One Reddit user reached out for advice after discovering a female friend was 'being stalked by her ex through her iPhone' using the app. It appeared that the ex had her iPhone linked to his Find My, which is linked to an Apple ID. The user posted: 'So my friend recently got divorced, now the thing is, the iPhone 13 she has was bought by her ex, so we believe he is currently using the find my iPhone feature to track her location. 'I think the best option would be to just buy a new iPhone and change her passwords on everything, but now i am wondering if she should also be creating a new apple id or is changing the password enough, considering he currently has access to it?' Other users advised that she disable all app tracking and location services on her iPhone. Apple has been contacted for comment. Apple's Find My app lets user locate iPhones and other devices on a map that shows their realtime location Netflix On Netflix, a single account can host multiple 'profiles', each named and curated for a particular person, letting couples share a Netflix account whether or not they're living in a different household. Unfortunately, in the event of a split, deleting an ex's profile is often a job that gets forgotten and as a result, people can potentially keep track of their ex's Netflix habits. Many people aren't aware that Netflix records not only what each profile has been watching but what date it was watched. This data found under 'viewing activity' reveals patterns that could suggest to an exboyfriend, for example, when their exgirlfriend is likely to be at home snuggled up on the sofa watching TV. According to one TikTok user, an ex used his Netflix login for three months after they broke up then called him 'stingy' when he changed the password. Another man was left outraged when he discovered a friend of his ex had been using his login for years without his knowledge. Yet another revealed how his brother's ex-girlfriend had been secretly logging into his Netflix by cunningly disguising her account as 'settings'. On Netflix, a single account can host up to five 'profiles', each individually named and curated for one person. One man revealed how his brother's ex-girlfriend had been secretly logging into his Netflix by cunningly disguising her account as 'settings' Netflix has also cracked down on password sharing, making it more difficult (and costly) for two people in different houses to use the same account (file photo) One Reddit user recently shared his concerns over his girlfriend using the same account as her ex living in another household. He wrote: 'According to her, it's totally harmless, they don't talk, they just still use the same login. 'I told her I'm not comfortable with that. I think it's weird to stay digitally tied to someone you used to date, especially when you're in a new relationship. 'She rolled her eyes and said I was being petty and immature over 'a few movies and shows.'' Of course, such an issue is not unique to Netflix, as streaming services like Disney+, Amazon Prime Video and Spotify all allow shared accounts. Harry Calder, solicitor at Tees Law, said tech 'has enabled new ways for people to harass expartners by tracking their movements and spying on their digital platforms'. 'When you part company with your partner, it's important to break any digital links you may have, such as shared passwords or PINs, or accounts on services such as Spotify or Netflix,' he said. 'If you don't cut these ties, you're potentially leaving yourself open to an expartner using that digital access to spy on you, or intimidate you in other ways.' Meteorologists are already predicting what the winter months will bring, with some regions of the US expected to see less snow than last year, and nor'easters anticipated to ravage parts of the Northeast. Paul Pastelok, chief meteorologist for AccuWeather's long-range forecasting team, told the Daily Mail that while he didn't expect above normal snowfall for the winter season, he warned that those in the Northeast should brace for nor'easters and it would still be a harsh winter. Pastelok explained that the nor'easter over this weekend is on trend with what is to come, as rapidly developing storms come in off the East Coast. 'People may say, "Well, you're forecasting less snow, so it doesn't look like a harsh winter." That's not true because the snow and the ice and the mixed precipitation are worse than having the snow sometimes,' he said. He added that the East Coast could still expect stormy patterns throughout the winter season, even as early as December. 'We have to be ready for the possibility of a sneaky storm or two in December, and then a lot of mixing storms in January in the East,' Pastelok said. The prediction may be a surprise to those who have been enjoying the recent 80-degree heat in the area but Pastelok said that those days would feel like 'a far memory' by the end of the month. Snow is expected to be below average across the East Coast but parts of the Midwest and Northeast will still be hit with snow. A forecast for December to February is seen above Paul Pastelok, chief meteorologist for AccuWeather's long-range forecast team, is predicting less snow this winter but with the potential for more nor'easters. Pictured: Winter Storm Lorraine hits Connecticut in February 2023 The East Coast is expected to see below-average snow, while parts of the Northwest, Midwest and Great Lakes region are likely to see above-average snow. Overall, the country is predicted to see less snow this year He also dispelled a common misconception - that warm weather in fall leads to colder temperatures in winter. 'A lot of times, that doesn't always work out. The tropics have a major influence on our patterns here in North America during the fall season and even in the early winter. Pastelok said Northeasterners should prepare for more nor'easters this winter 'I don't see a lot of recurving tropical systems toward the end of October; that pattern may be more short-lived in the fall,' he added. AccuWeather expects that seasonal snow totals may fall below the historical average, with Northeasterners facing storms with a mix of rain and snow. For example, New York typically sees 29.8 inches of snow a year based on averages from 1991 to 2020. This winter, AccuWeather predicts the city will receive between 17 and 21 inches. The company shared the graphs below with predictions for each region. Temperatures are expected to drop in December before thawing in January. However, the cold will return with a vengeance in February, with frigid air across central and eastern states. These cold temperatures are also expected to affect Texas and the Gulf Coast in January or early February, potentially bringing snow and ice. Snowfall predictions across the US are expected to range from 13 to 100 inches this winter. Predictions in inches from AccuWeather are seen above However, certain parts of the Eastern US, such as Buffalo, can expect 90 to 100 inches of snow this winter (Pictured: Fans of the Buffalo Bills covered in snow at a game last December) Pastelok said this winter could still be a harsh one with storms that mix ice and rain. File photo: Brooklyn, New York, in February 2023 Pastelok predicted more nor'easters for the Northeast as a storm develops off the East Coast Other regions across the country can brace for heavy snowfall and extreme weather conditions throughout the winter season. Pastelok said that Middle America, including parts of the Ohio Valley, can expect severe weather at the end of January into February. He added that the Northern Rockies, the Great Plains, through Tennessee, and the Southeast can expect the worst weather. The Upper Great Lakes, especially, will likely face heavy snowfall, and Northern cities around Buffalo should anticipate 90 to 100 inches of snow. Bitterly cold temperatures are expected in February, with the potential for even more snow in these regions. Tropical storms are also far from over, with Jerry hitting the central Atlantic Ocean and the Leeward Islands this past week. Pastelok said AccuWeather's long-range meteorologists expect at least another three major storms this season after Jerry. The team is keeping a close eye on the Western Caribbean and the Southwest Gulf for potentially extreme weather and hurricanes. Cities across the East Coast are bracing for heavy rain as a nor'easter builds A home in Erie, PA, last year when snow blanketed New York and Pennsylvania in December Areas such as South Carolina, Arizona and New Mexico may still be vulnerable to wildfires until February Meanwhile, areas such as Southern California, Arizona and New Mexico may still be vulnerable to wildfires. Pastelok noted that the fire season now continues into winter, and dry areas susceptible to flames may not get a break until February. October 11, 2025: The U.S. Armys latest watercraft demonstrated its ability to transport a Marine Corps NMESIS anti-ship launcher last week in Hawaii. The Armys next-generation landing craft transported a Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) in a cross-service test in Hawaii to enhance the interoperability and transport capabilities of the Marine Corps anti-ship launchers across the Indo-Pacific. This beach rehearsal at Marine Corps Base Hawaii involved the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment, one of the services units dedicated to countering threats from China, and the 7th Transportation Brigade. The latter unit recently received a Maneuver Support Vessel (Light), or MSV(L), the Armys replacement for its aging Landing Craft Mechanized fleet. Compared to the Cold War-era landing craft, these new transports can operate at longer ranges, a capability the service plans to utilize heavily in the Indo-Pacific amid Washingtons efforts to bolster its forces in the region against Chinas military modernization and expansion. The MSV(L) is designed for logistics in contested environments, capable of supporting both routine and combat operations by delivering troops and equipment to austere ports, degraded ports, and bare beaches throughout the Indo-Pacific region. U.S. Army watercraft have frequently transported missile launchers, such as the High Mobility Artillery Rocket System (HIMARS), in drills across the region, including in Japan, Australia, and the Philippines. A release from the 8th Theater Sustainment Command highlighted that the MSV(L) enhanced littoral maneuver across Indo-Pacific Commands area of responsibility. While the services watercraft have focused on sustainment and resupply, recent exercises have seen the service utilize its watercraft, as well as leased vessels, to support the maneuver of ground forces and missile launchers. Combining the new watercraft with the NMESIS unmanned anti-ship missile launchers also expands the deployment potential of the U.S. Marine Corps Marine Littoral Regiments. With delays to the Medium Landing Ships, a class of amphibious vessels dedicated to transporting the regiments forces, the Marines could utilize cross-service capabilities to deploy NMESIS to more austere locations. Equipped with two low-observable Naval Strike Missiles, NMESIS provides the Marine Corps with a highly mobile maritime strike capability. The service has recently deployed the system to first-island-chain chokepoints in Japan and the Philippines during Resolute Dragon and Balikatan exercises. Chinese state media noted the strategic implications of the missile deployments, including their locations near Taiwan. The test was also the latest effort by the ground-based service to validate its ability to transport missile launchers via vessels. Last November, a Washington-based Multi-Domain Task Force transported a Mid-Range Capability launcher on a chartered civilian vessel. On the northeastern edge of the Giza Plateau, I discovered three perfectly cut shafts hidden beneath the sands. They sit in the triangle between the Great Sphinx, Khufu's Pyramid and Khafre's Pyramid, and may open into a long-forgotten underground world. These are not water wells. They bear no inscriptions, no signs of casual digging, and their geometry is too precise, their walls too smooth, their design too deliberate. Could these shafts be the keys to the network of hidden chambers the Greek philosopher Herodotus once whispered about, possibly connected to the Nile? Herodotus described a massive 'labyrinth' in Egypt with 3,000 chambers, many hidden below ground, which included and a large underground pyramid. Explorers in the 1800s, like Giovanni Caviglia and Henry Salt, recorded strange wells near the Sphinx and Khafre's causeway. French archaeologist Pierre-Jean Mariette mapped additional anomalies in 1864 and 1885, and scholars like George Reisner, Hermann Junker, and Selim Hassan traced a line of cavities between the Sphinx and Khafre's Pyramid between 1929 and 1939. After that, the area was largely forgotten. Fragments of those old reports hinted at a larger pattern, one pointing to a vast, interconnected world beneath the plateau. Now, the three shafts I rediscovered may unlock that hidden map. The first shaft, northeast of the Sphinx, has a square limestone mouth and plunges 130 feetthe height of a 12-story building. Its walls are precisely squared and lined with limestone and sandstone blocks, resembling the structure of some ancient machine Egyptologist Armando Mei and his team with the Khafre Project have been studying Egypt's Giza Plateau for years, using advanced technologies to uncover hidden structures below the surface I came across the shafts while conducting fieldwork with the Khafre Research Project, where I serve as a researcher. Our team, including Professor Corrado Malanga and engineer Filippo Biondi, used Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellite technology to investigate subsurface structures beneath Giza. Guided by these spectral traces, we located the shafts, still standing, perfectly cut and utterly enigmatic. The first shaft lies northeast of the Sphinx. Its square mouth, framed by limestone blocks, plunges 130 feet, about the height of a 12-story building. Its walls are squared with astonishing precision, lined with limestone and sandstone blocks that resemble the walls of some ancient machine. At a depth of 40 feet, an 80-foot-wide cavity encircles the shaft, too intentional to be natural erosion. Satellite imaging suggested it continues even deeper beneath the rubble. Just feet away, the second shaft mirrors the first. Located beside Khafre's processional causeway, a covered ramp linking the Valley Temple to the area near his pyramid, it features the same smooth precision and perimeter channel. Scans of the first shaft (pictured) revealed a long passage way leading to what appeared to be other structures deep below the surface Forty feet down, an 80-foot-wide cavity encircles the first shaft, clearly too deliberate to be natural. Satellite imaging indicates it extends even deeper beneath the rubble Just feet away, the second shaft mirrors the first. Beside Khafres processional causeway, a covered ramp connecting the Valley Temple to his pyramid, it shows the same smooth precision and perimeter channel. Two shafts built to identical specifications suggest a deliberate system rather than randomness. The third shaft, on the eastern side of Khufu's Pyramid, is the most intriguing. Its entrance was once reinforced with retaining blocks, hinting at frequent access. A recess cut into the west wall appears designed to lift or guide objects from below. The surrounding cavity again appears, perfectly measured. Less than 165 feet separate the three, forming a pattern too deliberate to ignore. When mapped, their alignment mirrors the three great pyramids themselves, with a resemblance to Orion's Belt that is uncanny. Two smaller, rougher shafts nearby seem to be later additions. They lack the depth and polish of the originals, suggesting imitation rather than original intent. Even so, they hint at the underground's complexity, reminding us that Giza is far from fully explored. The purpose of these shafts remains uncertain. Were they for ritual offerings, hydraulic systems, or vertical transport chambers? Modern imaging, including Ground-Penetrating Radar, Electrical Resistivity Tomography and our own SAR technology, reveals further anomalies near the Sphinx, hinting at interconnected cavities beneath the plateau. Might these shafts unlock the hidden network of chambers that Herodotus once spoke of, perhaps even linked to the Nile? The Greek historian described a vast labyrinth in Egypt, containing some 3,000 underground chambers, including a massive subterranean pyramid The third shaft, on the eastern side of Khufus Pyramid, is the most compelling. Its entrance was reinforced with retaining blocks, suggesting frequent use, while a recess in the west wall seems built to lift or guide objects from below If confirmed, these shafts could be entry points to a vast, engineered network aligned with the pyramids themselves. Beneath the plateau, trenches and sockets carved in the limestone, along with deep rock-cut shafts and wells, show that the builders engineered the underground with the same care as the monuments above. This hidden dimension has fueled speculation about subterranean chambers and hydraulic systems, possibly connected to the Nile, and suggests a purpose far beyond what conventional archaeology has recognized. The precision and alignment of these shafts, coupled with their mirrored pattern of the pyramids, hint at a cosmic and terrestrial plan interwoven above and below ground. For decades, the true extent of Giza's underground world has been overlooked, but these shafts may finally reveal a lost chapter of ancient engineering and ceremonial practice. What lies at the bottom of these shafts remains a mystery. Yet every measurement, every radar image, points to a singular conclusion: the Giza Plateau still holds secrets that could reshape our understanding of ancient Egypt. The shafts are more than anomalies; they are doorways into a subterranean world waiting to be explored. Green turtles have been rescued from the brink of extinction thanks to global conservation efforts. The marine reptiles once hunted for their eggs, decorative shells and to be used in turtle soup have been listed as endangered since the 1980s. Now initiatives to preserve the species, such as releasing hatchlings on beaches and protecting eggs, mean they are no longer facing the threat of extinction. Data shows the green turtle population rebounding in a feat being hailed a major conservation victory by scientists. It comes after the Daily Mail launched its Banish the Bags campaign back in 2008 with a front page image of an endangered green turtle tangled in a trail of plastic bags. Our crusade led to the introduction of a 5p charge on plastic shopping bags which resulted in more than nine billion fewer being used every year. Dr Nicolas Pilcher, of the Marine Research Foundation, a non-profit organisation based in Malaysia, said yesterday: We must use this win as a catalyst to achieve numerous other wins. The latest list of endangered species, known as the Red List, was announced in Abu Dhabi at the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. Some 172,000 species are on the list, which is categorised based on the severity of threat. Green turtles have been listed as endangered since the 1980s. Now initiatives to preserve the species, such as releasing hatchlings on beaches and protecting eggs, mean they are no longer facing the threat of extinction If numbers start to dwindle a species can move from categories such as near threatened to high-risk categories such as endangered. Just under 50,000 species are threatened with extinction, but green turtles were downgraded from endangered to least concern. Yet despite these gains, the reptile is still below historic numbers due to past exploitation, particularly from overfishing and climate change. In places such as Raine Island, Australia, numbers remain low as fewer baby turtles are hatching. The Red List shows that Arctic seals have moved closer to extinction due to the loss of sea ice. The hooded seal has moved from vulnerable to endangered, while the bearded and harp seals are now near threatened. NASA has unveiled plans to send astronauts to live on the moon inside glass bubbles made from lunar dust. The US space agency is funding research into the large livable spheres which would be created in situ, the Telegraph reports. Tiny pieces of socalled lunar glass a component of the moon's soil, or regolith, along with rocks and mineral fragments would be collected upon arrival from Earth. The material would be melted down using the same technology as in a domestic microwave oven, along with a 'smart microwave furnace'. A 'smart microwave furnace' will be developed to aid melting and blow the glass into a bubble, which would harden into a large, transparent structure. The idea has been dreamt up by US space engineering company Skyeports, which has already proven that glass balls can be blown from lunar dust in this way. The firm's test spheres are only a couple of inches wide but the goal is to expand them by hundreds or thousands of feet, into workable astronaut homes. The compound used to build a spherical habitat which is hoped to be between around 1,000ft and 1,600ft wide could be altered to make the eventual glass selfhealing. The compound used to build a spherical habitat which is hoped to be between around 1,000ft and 1,600ft wide could be altered to make the eventual glass selfhealing. It is a special type of glass made of polymers which can reorganise themselves after any breaks caused by micrometeorites or 'moonquakes'. The moon homes could also be fitted with solar panels to generate their own energy. Skyeports chief executive Dr Martin Bermudez hoped to one day see entire cities of the spheres, connected by glass bridges, on the moon and elsewhere in space. 'You will never replicate Earth, but this is something that gets pretty close, and we could even put them into orbit one day,' he said. He has always been interested in space and wanted to start using his architecture background to explore how to make structures on the moon or Mars. Chemical compounds called silicates, often used to make glass, can account for up to 60 per cent of lunar dust which first got him thinking about the bubbles. And with further research, he discovered glass can be adapted to become less brittle and even stronger than steel. He contacted NASA around two years ago with the idea, which he said the agency liked from the start. The American space agency is funding research into the large livable spheres (pictured, in plans), which would be created in situ Lunar regolith would be melted down by a 'smart microwave furnace' and blown into concentric bubbles that would give the lunar base its structure NASA's Artemis Mission Timeline Artemis I Uncrewed lunar flight test Launched November, 2022 Artemis II Crewed Lunar Flyby Launch planned for April, 2026 Artemis III Crewed Surface Landing Launch planned for mid2027 Artemis IV Building First Lunar Space Station Launch targeting September 2028 Advertisement The concept is now being researched under the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) programme, for projects which have the potential to transform aerospace. And its in situ construction is attractive it is hard to build things on the moon, with shipping materials to its surface hugely expensive. Enormous gas pipes would be used to blow the melted glass and repurposed to create the entrance once the bubble has been created. Any interior fittings would be 3D printed using materials gathered from the surface of the moon. Skyeports has said a sphere was chosen because it is a particularly structurally sound shape, with an even distribution of pressure. Using transparent glass to build it, meanwhile, was said to be beneficial for astronauts' mental health. Dr Bermudez added: 'The spherical shape happens automatically, because at that temperature it becomes an amorphous liquid, and when it is extruded out of a furnace in low gravity it will form the shape of a sphere.' Along with the lunar glass, metals like titanium, magnesium and calcium will need to be mixed into the raw compound for strength. Interior fittings could be made via 3D printing. This would create a habitat that could be suitable for a longterm presence on the lunar surface It is also hoped that layers of bubbles could be created, with one warmer surface and another cooler to create condensation. This would allow astronauts to plant vegetables and plants and create an ecosystem to produce oxygen. And development teams also hope a glass bubble of that size could be used to produce enough electricity to power the whole system. The blowing technique will be tested in a thermal vacuum chamber in January, before moving to a microgravity environment. It will eventually be trialled on the International Space Station and tests on the moon itself could happen in the next couple of years. While NASA works out if humans could live on the moon, astronauts may well return to it for a visit. The agency could put men on the moon within the next five years under its Artemis programme and is currently searching for appropriate habitats for that mission. Dr Bermudez said: 'We're in a race against time because Artemis is moving so fast.' NASA currently plans to return to the moon in 2027 with the Artemis III mission (illustrated. However, the space agency has also expressed plans for a 'village' on the moon by 2035 Clayton Turner, from NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate, which is responsible for tech innovation, said: 'Our next steps and giant leaps rely on innovation, and the concepts born from NIAC can radically change how we explore deep space, work in lowEarth orbit, and protect our home planet. 'From developing small robots that could swim through the oceans of other worlds to growing space habitats from fungi, this programme continues to change the possible.' The study comes after researchers at Aalen University in Germany suggested in 2023 that buildings and roads could be built on the moon using bricks made from lunar dust zapped with a laser. The space agency's description of the research notes: 'This innovative approach involves insitu melting of lunar glass compounds and the creation of a large spherical shell structure, representing a significant departure from current habitat construction methods. 'Traditional construction methods, such as using prefabricated parts, 3D printing, inflatable systems and complex assembly, are labourintensive and timeconsuming. 'In contrast, the concept of blown scalable glass structures utilizes lunar glass resources and introduces a novel insitu manufacturing approach.' It adds: 'The idea of constructing monolithic glass habitats on the moon holds immense promise for the future of space exploration and habitation. 'It inspires a pioneering spirit by envisioning a new era of selfsustaining offworld habitats, offering significant benefits to NASA, the aerospace community, and humanity as a whole.' It's the time of year that Instagram becomes flooded with pictures of people posing with wheelbarrows in American-style pumpkin patches. Matching outfits are common - think sweatshirts adorned with 'little pumpkin' for tots - and dedicated photo spots provide the perfect Insta-worthy backdrop. It's a trend that has boomed in recent years with pick-your-own ('PYO' to those in the know) farms popping up across the country. But not all pumpkin patches are created equally. The owner of Europe's biggest pumpkin festival has revealed how his family business became a celebrity hotspot - and his ambitions to become the biggest in the world. Tulleys Farm in Crawley, West Sussex, has been in the Beare family for four generations. While its now known for its world-famous Shocktober Fest scream park, which attracts a host of celebrities and influencers, it wasnt until a trip to America that the Tulleys of today was born. Owner and director Sam Beare tells the Daily Mail: In the early 90s my father went to America and saw that Halloween was a huge thing in the US. While its now known for its annual Shocktober Fest scream park, which attracts a host of celebrities and influencers, it wasnt until a trip to America that the Tulleys of today was born Tulleys Farm co-owner Sam Beare (L) is pictured with his grandmother and his father The location is spot on for people travelling from the south-east, nestled between London and Brighton, in the heart of Sussex He brought this idea back to the UK with a small haunted house and pumpkin festival. 'If Im being honest, it wasnt very busy and we couldnt give pumpkins away quick enough. But ever since Harry Potter became popular and Halloween started to take off, it has transformed our business. Now were in this really fortunate position where were approached by celebrities and influencers who want to come and visit, everyday.' And its easy to see why. Throughout the year, Tulleys offers a huge range of events including escape rooms, tulip picking and a Christmas lights festival. But Halloween is when the farm truly comes into its own, with three distinct events: their pumpkin picking festival, Pumpkin Nights and Shocktober Fest. It's hard to overplay how many celebrities Tulleys attracts with YouTuber Zoe Sugg - aka Zoella - promoting the events every year for more than a decade, as well as decorating her porch with an enviable display of gifted pumpkins. Molly Mae Hague and Tommy Fury had their first date outside of the Love Island villa at Tulleys Influencers like Zoe Sugg and Alfie Deyes (pictured with their children) have been crucial to Tulleys' growth Love Islands Molly Mae Hague and Tommy Fury had their first date at Shocktober Fest, according to Sam, and the list of celebrities who have visited Tulleys is endless. Sam teased that there are some huge celebrities this year, but said he couldnt reveal who they are. In the past, celebrities such as Declan Rice, Rupert Grint, KSI and Rag'n'Bone Man have passed through the gates. Many of the celebrities who visit the farm come out of hours to avoid a fanfare, while others are there to be seen. When it comes to building our business, its all about relationships and becoming part of the Tulleys family,' Sam said. His father is still very much involved in running the farm and Sams grandmother, who is in her 80s, still comes to finance board meetings. Were very much a family business, he said. Were here every single day, 24 hours, wearing dirty jeans and boots. Its our passion and we love it. The location is spot on for people travelling from the southeast, nestled between London and Brighton, in the heart of Sussex. But with more pumpkin patches popping up across the country each year, what makes Tulleys different from any other? The list of celebrities who have visited Tulleys is endless LEFT: Pete Wicks at Tulleys Shocktober Fest. RIGHT: Sam Thompson at Tulleys Shocktober Fest Denise Van Outen at Tulleys Shocktober Fest The main difference is that other PYO locations have adorned their farms with pumpkins from countries like Morocco to give the illusion that the festive treats are grown at the farm. Morocco emerged as a leading pumpkin supplier to the UK in 2023, when sales soared to 11,000 tons, valued at 1million, with Spain and Portugal in first and second place, with exports of 51,000 tons and 14,000 tons, respectively. While Morocco has long supplied Britain with its fruits and vegetables, trade between the two countries has surged post-Brexit, leading to a 40 per cent increase of Moroccan food exports to the United Kingdom between 2021 and 2022. Retailers leaned on overseas pumpkin suppliers in recent times as growing conditions in the UK have declined significantly. Farmer Richard Jones of Llynclys Hall Farm, near Oswestry, Shropshire, told the BBC that last year's pumpkin harvest was the 'worst in 25 years'. He said at the time, 'The weather has never really played ball with us. The sun has not shone enough, and pumpkins like a lot of sunshine and don't really need a lot of water. 'In 25 years of growing pumpkins, this has been the most challenging one by a long chalk.' Elsewhere, customers have expressed their disappointment over the trend of picking foreign pumpkins. With more than 1.5million pumpkins growing across 100 acres of West Sussex countryside, the farm employs a huge farm team to harvest the produce Hannah Alothman caused a storm on X when she shared her suspicion that her local patch was reselling pumpkins purchased from Aldi. 'Pumpkin picking is the biggest scam going. Discovered last year, it's just a load of pumpkins from Aldi, chucked on a muddy field, for ten times the price. Never again.' Another customer, Rob came to the same realisation on X, saying, 'I did not realise the whole pumpkin-picking phenomenon was coming to a field where people have placed pumpkins to pick them up. 'We are quite, quite mad. I mean you could do this with anything "Come and pick your own sausage/bread bin/cat."' But Tulleys grows all of its own pumpkins - around 1.5million of them - across 100 acres of West Sussex countryside. 'We're farmers and the festival element grew out of that,' said Sam. Its main annual events are the Pumpkin Festival and Shocktober Fest, crowned Europe's largest scream park with various haunts, bars, and street food. Scream parks may be a new concept to most Brits, but they have been an important part of Halloween for Americans for decades. Their main annual events are the Pumpkin Festival and Shocktober Fest, Europe's largest scream park with various haunts, bars, and street food These parks utilise live actors, elaborate sets, atmospheric lighting and sound, and special effects to create immersive and intense horror experiences, though some also incorporate non-horror elements like fire and laser shows. What makes Tulleys different is the festival atmosphere,' Sam said. 'Weve tapped into a world of production and are doing things that havent been done before in the UK. Weve got more than 30 Instagram photo opportunities, live actors, roaming musicians and stilt walkers. Our Pumpkin Nights is a huge new thing for us with fresh cocktails being made, live music, a 35-metre observation wheel and around 20 different street food options. Guests feel like theyre in Pennsylvania, not Gatwick. Pumpkin Nights is a markedly not-scary Halloween event which runs alongside Shocktober Fest, which celebrates its 29th anniversary this year. As for the future of Tulleys, Sam can only see it getting bigger. Pumpkin Nights is a markedly not-scary Halloween event which runs alongside Shocktober Fest, which celebrates its 29th anniversary this year Asked about Shocktober Fests impressive 54.5k followers on Instagram, Sam said: I think one of the reasons we have grown so organically is because the celebrities and influencers love coming. Were the biggest pumpkin festival in Europe and are touching on being the biggest in the world. We have such an engaged audience which I think is probably why some of these bigger brands are wanting to get involved with us. We visit America three or four times a year for conferences and talks and have learned a huge amount from them. But now were the ones giving them tips! While Halloween was once a case of buying a pumpkin and some sweets from the supermarket for trick or treaters, for many, this no longer cuts it. With farms like Tulleys giving America - where everything comes supersize - a run for its money, it seems Halloween is reaching a whole new level in the UK. Some passengers choose a seat at the front of the plane, hoping to disembark quickly once it lands. But others are more interested in whether they are sat by a window, or near the aisle to avoid being cramped. But Professor Ed Galea from the Fire Safety Engineering Group, University of Greenwich doesn't consider any of those things. A new documentary This World: Why Planes Crash, Aviation's Deadly Year, looks into various shocking incidents, and is set to air on BBC One on October 13 at 8pm. One of the crashes the programme delves into is the Delta Connection Flight that crashed in Toronto on February 17, 2025. It shows footage of the plane descending through strong winds and flipping over as it touched down. Fortunately, all 80 passengers and crew members managed to evacuate successfully and survived the incident. But Professor Galea revealed which seats the passengers were most safe in, based on his research and what he has seen. Professor Ed Galea from the Fire Safety Engineering Group, University of Greenwich revealed which seats the passengers were most safe in, based on his research and what he has seen He admitted, 'There's no magic seat onboard an aircraft. 'But, personally, I always try and pick a seat that is within five seat rows of an emergency exit.' The professor explained the reasoning behind his choice, and revealed it was all down to survival during an evacuation. He added: 'Our research is showing that the closer you are to an emergency exit, the higher the chance that you will survive the evacuation.' In the documentary, a close-up analysis of video footage gives possible insight as to what went wrong for this flight. As the plane touches down, the landing gear seems to collapse, 'pushing the weight of the fuselage onto the right wing, the wing then sheers off and the plane rolls onto its roof,' it says. Footage shows the plane completely upside down on the ground, and water being sprayed on it as passengers are helped out. As the flight from Minneapolis to Toronto came in to land, the plane had to tackle freezing temperatures and 40mph winds. A new documentary This World: Why Planes Crash, Aviation's Deadly Year, looks into various shocking incidents, and is set to air on BBC One on October 13 at 9pm (stock) One passenger, Hannah Krebs, recalled how, after the plane flipped upside down, there was a moment of 'quiet' and a 'collective breath of fresh air where everyone goes, 'Oh okay, we're alive, everyone's alive, we're stopped, what do we do now?'.' Reflecting on the evacuation process, Hannah admits she doesn't remember how she managed to get down from her seat. 'There was no stampeding, no rush, everyone just got into an orderly line and evacuated,' she said. Hannah admitted that when she escaped, she did grab her belongings before evacuating from the vessel. However, a flight attendant who was guiding passengers out of the plane advised her to put her bag back down 'When I got to the front, the flight attendant stopped the line and told me, 'You need to leave your backpack,'' Hannah recalled. Prof Galea explained why picking up your belongings in a plane crash could be life-threatening. 'If you are unfortunate enough to be in an aircraft accident, and you're fortunate enough to have evacuated safely then you want to get well away from the aircraft as quickly as possible,' he said. Professor Galea revealed which seats the passengers were most safe in, based on his research and what he has seen (stock) 'Every second can make the difference between life and death.' The professor created a computer simulation that analyses the impact of people retrieving their belongings during an evacuation. He found that if several passengers paused to collect their bags, the time to evacuate soon accumulated. 'The time it took to retrieve an item of luggage varied from two or three seconds to maybe five seconds maximum,' Prof Galea explained. 'Once you have multiple people trying to do that, all of those times add up. If about 50 per cent of the passengers are trying to retrieve their luggage during the evacuation, this can extend the evacuation time by about 40 per cent, and remember, every second counts.' 'You look like a movie star ... I'm not sure which one,' the charming hotel receptionist says, while examining my passport at check-in. I definitely don't, but if this is the famous Albanian hospitality I've heard about, I'm all for it. We're overnighting here in the capital, Tirana, before a whistle-stop tour of some of the country's increasingly renowned beach resorts recently dubbed 'Europe's Maldives' for their splendid sands and turquoise waters. Quite a label. Albania is Europe's fastest-growing holiday hotspot (and second, after Qatar, worldwide). Last year an astonishing 120,000 Brits visited, a year-on-year rise of 61 per cent. It's sandwiched between Montenegro to the north and Greece to the south, with nearly 300 miles of coastline facing the Adriatic Sea towards Italy, while sharing the Ionian Sea with Corfu. Having been hidden from view under decades of communist rule, which ended in 1991, what is it really like? First, the capital. We're staying at the Tirana Marriott, which opened in 2023, acting as a harbinger of the tourist stampede to come. It's vast, sumptuous, central, and the tallest building in the city, close to a neighbourhood of restaurants with enticingly lit courtyards and directly north of the 700-acre Lake Park, ideally placed for a 'xhiro' (the Albanian's beloved sunset stroll). Relax on the Albanian Riviera's Ksamil Beach, with views of the Ionian Sea We dine on grilled red peppers with feta, a spinach pie that's first cousin to the Greek spanakopita, fresh pasta bowls and a bottle of wine. The price? Less than 50 (Euros preferred to the local Lek). And as we pay the bill we ask our cheery waiter what we should definitely see in Tirana. He replies without hesitation: 'The communist mosaic and Skanderbeg Square.' The next morning, we do as we've been told. Skanderberg Square is milling with people, yet strangely empty of traditional signs of tourism, not lined with cafes with holidaymaker prices or souvenir shops selling tat. On one side is an imposing horseback statue of national hero Skanderberg, who led the resistance to a 15th-century Ottoman invasion. Meanwhile, our waiter's 'communist mosaic' adorns the facade of the National History Museum. It was created by local artists, depicting Albanians from the ancients to the communist era led by a fearless woman in a white dress thrusting aloft a rifle. Inside the museum are priceless figurines from the 4th century, ancient vases, models of Albanian villages from the Middle Ages and information on struggles against the Ottomans, independence from 1912-1939, occupation by the Nazis in World War II and the period of communist 'terror' from 1945. You can also learn about the life of the country's beloved Mother Teresa, the famous Catholic nun and saint (1910-1997). But we've come to see what Europe's Maldives is all about. So we're soon off to the beaches. A four-hour drive south a second airport, Vlora International, is set to open in Akerni to better serve the coastal resorts is Himare, once a small fishing village with a sand-and-pebble beach that has grown to tourist destination. Yet, backdropped by undulating mountains, it's not lost any of its laid-back loveliness. It reminds me of the Cyclades, back when I first visited decades ago. We're staying at the charming family-run Rea Boutique hotel on the water's edge at the north of the glorious bay. This is close enough to saunter along the promenade for dinner, but far enough away for seclusion. Having opened in 1999, the owners are husband and wife team Nestoras and Arta, who took it over when Nestoras' father died in 2002. Fresh breakfasts (and dinner) are made to order by Arta and there are nine rooms, most overlooking the beach. The lower floors have private decks built over the water, and ours has a huge terrace with retractable roof and a hot tub. You fall asleep to the sound of the sea. Nestoras says that until 2015 their guests were mostly Albanians, then came a slow trickle of Europeans, particularly the Spanish, then the French, and in recent years Americans and Brits too. UK guests account for about a quarter of the hotel's total. Along the shorefront, I hear a multi-generational table of Australian accents, German, and plenty of British chatter. I speak to a trio of lads from back home, who are staying in a 'surprisingly nice' hostel. They have explored other parts of the Balkans and are intrigued by Albania. Albanias sandy beaches and blue waters, like these in Ksamil, are a magnet for tourists Byrek cheese pie is a delicious Albanian speciality The seafront is nothing flashy. There's a run of open-fronted casual restaurants, bars and cafes. We gravitate to one named Himare 28. Here, the waiters wear starched white shirts, speak excellent English (one says he picked up the language watching films) and are genuinely welcoming. Whole fresh-grilled seabass is about 10. A half-litre of 'home made wine' is 5 and, honestly, it's delicious. Himare is made for slowing down. My partner walks the length of it up to the edge of the promontory, but alas he can't get me out of the sea to join him. The water is ridiculously seductive bright aquamarine green, flat as a bath, warm, and no matter how far out you swim, clear to the bottom. This is true luxury, and it would easily hold its own with the Maldives' Indian Ocean. For a late summer/autumn budget break, however, Himare is the winner. Temperatures touched 23c in Albania this week, though daily highs of 18c are more common at this time of year. Last stop is the resort of Ksamil, 40 miles south. This is quieter than neighbouring Sarande, but it's much buzzier and more developed than Himare, though still with the gorgeous Ionian Sea waters. There are no high-rise hotels yet but there's plenty of building going on, and the ribbons of roads that follow the bay are jam-packed with bars and restaurants. The crowd is noticeably younger, too. Many are gathered by a huge beachside statue of an upturned, open hand. We watch as influencer-types queue in pairs one to pose, one to take the photo as they step up and stand in the palm, sure of a fabulous backdrop of blue skies meeting azure seas. Pop star Dua Lipa is proud of her Albanian heritage. She was given Albanian citizenship thanks to her promotion of the country Enjoy a bite to eat overlooking the Ionian Sea when visiting the Albanian Riviera I wonder how many are here thanks to the Dua Lipa effect. The award-winning pop star is an Albanian citizen as well as an ambassador for this endless stretch of coastline, known as the Albanian Riviera. She's talked of her great love for this country, and regularly posts impossibly glamorous photos to her 88 million social media followers of her holidays here, enjoying perfect sunsets, posing poolside and sunbathing on a yacht. Beach clubs here cost a reasonable 10 a day, with sun-loungers in neat rows and pop music playing at regular intervals on the beaches. We're staying at the Manta Resort, which has simple, modern rooms, all with balconies. Its selling point is its prime position by the sea with a huge deck flanked by sands. This is the ideal spot to watch beachside life unfold. As I do so, my mind casts back to childhood holidays on Corfu, when we'd see from the sunny shores the distant mountains of Albania on the horizon. How things have moved on in this south-eastern European nation. These days it's all change, change, change. Ivanka Trump and her husband Jared Kushner are even investing around 745 million for the right to a long-term concession to develop a luxury resort on the island of Sazan. Albania's dark communist days are long gone. It's a new Albania now, a new European Maldives, say many. A whole world away. TRAVEL FACTS Doubles at the Tirana Marriott from 199 B&B (marriott.com). Rooms at the Rea Boutique Hotel start from 65 B&B (reaboutiquehotel.com); the Manta Resort has rooms from 112 B&B (mantahotel.com). Gatwick-Tirana return flights from 75 (wizzair.com); Stansted or Manchester-Tirana return flights from 73 (ryanair.com); Heathrow-Tirana return flights from 129 (ba.com) Craig Revel-Horwood and Shirley Ballas seemed to be at loggerheads with each other over George Clarke's performance on Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday. On the latest instalment of BBC show viewers appeared to watch a live squabble between the two judges, as the pair disagreed and bickered during their feedback section on George Clarkes segment. The YouTuber and podcast host who is partnered with Alexis Warr danced their couples choice, to the viral KPop Demon Hunters song, Soda Pop. Wearing colourful outfits and performing a high energy dance, with lots of lifts, cartwheels and impressive moves, George and Alexis made sure to keep the viewers and audience at home entertained. But it was what happened next that had people talking. When it came to Shirley's feedback she said: 'That was synchronised, that was precision. Craig Revel-Horwood and Shirley Ballas seemed to be at loggerheads with each other over George Clarke's performance on Strictly Come Dancing on Saturday On the latest instalment of BBC show viewers appeared to watch a live squabble between the two judges, as the pair disagreed and bickered during their feedback section on George Clarkes segment 'Its not easy when you have to step on her back and go over because it can only be a limited amount of weight so she doesn't get hurt, but you were flying like an angel'. She concluded: our cartwheels were synchronised to perfection.That whole number, the kids at home are gonna go wild, we were going wild - it was great'. However after Anton Du Beke said he felt George didnt come alive until after he did his big lift, Craig echoed him and went one further. He said: Anton Du Beke is actually right. It needed to be sharper. Shirley I dont agree with you. It was out of sync a lot. K-Pop should be like a machine darling.' Despite Craig not finishing his critique, the audience responded with huge boos and jeers before Shirley who responded with a quick quip. Due to guest judge, broadway star and Wicked actress Cynthia Erivo being part of the judges lineup this week, Shirley was sat three seats away from Craig, as opposed to her usual two. With tensions brewing, the ballroom dancer said: 'From that end of the desk, it might look one way, but from this end, it looked b****y fabulous. It looked amazing'. Without batting an eyelid, Craig cut back: 'Im telling you Shirley, youre wrong!' The YouTuber and podcast host who is partnered with Alexis Warr danced their couples choice, to the viral KPop Demon Hunters song, Soda Pop Whilst Shirley described their routine as 'synchronised to perfection' Craig disagreed cutting back and saying Shirley 'was wrong' After witnessing the explosive exchange between the pair, Motsi Mabuse who was say next to Craig then joked that she was like the child 'sitting inbetween mummy and daddy having a fight' Fans headed over to X to share their thoughts on the two long standing judges arguing over their thoughts on the performance 'This type of dance, it has to be absolutely specific and that is why it looks like one type of person dancing throughout and it wasnt like that unfortunately.' After witnessing the explosive exchange between the pair, Motsi Mabuse who was say next to Craig then joked that she was like the child 'sitting inbetween mummy and daddy having a fight'. As George and Alexis made their way to the Clauditorium, host Claudia Winkleman joked that the pair had 'caused a ruckus with the judges'. Despite the squabble, George scored an impressive 31 out of 40 - with Shirley awarding him nine points and Craig just six. Fans headed over to X to share their thoughts writing: 'So where you sit at the judges desk determines what you see....Quick someone swap seats with Shirley before Lewis Cope and Katya dance because from her seat she only sees faults with him #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing' 'Im so pleased Craig said that to Shirley. #strictly' 'Shirley, youre wrong' 'craig: shirley, i dont agree with you ' 'I turn my back for 5 mintues and Craig and Shirley have gone at it over Soda Pop! #Strictly' 'Shirley and Craig at it again lol' 'Motsi must feel a lot safer knowing she has Cynthia for back up when Craig and Shirley fight. #Strictly' 'Poor Motsi always sat between Craig and Shirley beefing #Strictly #StrictlyComeDancing' It's not the first time Craig and Shirley haven't seen eye to eye. Last year things became particularly uncomfortable between the two judges when they discussed former Eastenders actor Jamie Borthwick and his dance partner Michelle Tsiakkas. The two became very heated with raised voices, meaning judge Motsi had to step in and interrupt them to successfully diffuse the situation. BBC Breakfast's Naga Munchetty couldn't resist taking a cheeky dig at a Saturday Kitchen star during a live link-up after a surprise shake-up saw him replaced. The presenter, 50, and her co-host Charlie Stayt, 63, were wrapping up their morning headlines when they handed over to Saturday Kitchen. But regular host Matt Tebbutt, 51, was notably missing, with The One Show's Alex Jones stepping into his shoes for the latest episode. Naga introduced the crossover, saying: 'We're with you until 10 o'clock this morning and then Saturday Kitchen takes over and at the helm is Alex Jones.' With her trademark dry wit, she then added: 'Hello, what an improvement. Don't tell Matt I said that.' A visibly shocked Alex laughed and replied: 'Naga, she went straight in! Good to see you, how are you both?' BBC Breakfast's Naga Munchetty couldn't resist taking a cheeky dig at a Saturday Kitchen star during a live link-up after a surprise shake-up saw him replaced As the presenter handed over to Saturday Kitchen, she made a quick jibe on Charlie Stayt being replaced by stand in Alex Jones who would be 'an improvement' Naga grinned and said: 'Very, very well. I'm just not used to seeing someone wearing something other than dark blue denim. It looks wonderful. What have you got, Alex?' The Welsh presenter laughed as she teased what was coming up, promising viewers 'a wonderful selection of people' on the show, including chefs Bryn Williams, Andi Oliver, and Ravneet Gill, plus special guest Ben Elton. During the show, Ben picked sweet potatoes as his 'food hell,' joking that he didn't like when they 'pretended to be real potatoes,' while his dream 'food heaven' was a classic battered fish and chips. Earlier this week Naga was replaced on BBC Breakfast as her usual co-host Charlie Stayt was joined by another familiar face in another cast shake-up. The morning programme returned to screens for another instalment as the hosts shared the latest headlines and stories with viewers. BBC Breakfast is usually presented by Jon Kay, 55, and Sally Nugent, 54, Monday to Wednesday, followed by Naga, and Charlie, Thursday to Saturday. Sunday's episode is presented by a number of stand-in hosts such as Roger Johnson, Tina Daheley, Ben Boulous, Ben Thompson and Rachel Burden. But Naga was missing from the line-up on the show on Thursday morning, with Charlie instead joined by one of the other BBC Breakfast stars. Naga Munchetty was replaced on BBC Breakfast earlier this week as her usual co-host Charlie Stayt was joined by another familiar face in another cast shake-up During Thursday morning's show, Naga was missing from the line-up and Charlie was instead joined by Sarah Campbell (pictured) It's not the first time in recent weeks that Naga has been missing from the line-up, with Naga going missing from screens last month on leave BBC Breakfast is usually presented by Jon Kay, 55, and Sally Nugent, 54, Monday to Wednesday, followed by Naga , 50, and Charlie, 63, Thursday to Saturday Viewers were surprised to see Charlie joined by Sarah Campbell, a BBC News presenter and royal correspondent for the broadcaster. Charlie didn't appear to acknowledge or mention why Naga had been replaced. It's not the first time in recent weeks that Naga has been missing from the line-up and last month also appeared to be on leave. Over the last few months, Charlie and Naga have hit a number of headlines. Back in June it was revealed that journalist Naga, who joined the morning programme in 2014, was facing 'bullying claims'. It was also claimed she had allegedly scolded a petrified intern for the way they spread Marmite on her toast. And in August it was also reported Charlie Stayt's alleged behaviour is also 'under review' after a string of complaints. Charlie has been part of the team since 2006. Earlier this year, it was reported that Naga had been allegedly planning to quit BBC Breakfast, despite receiving a hefty 10,000 pay rise, after she was accused of bullying and hauled into a meeting over an alleged sex jibe. The BBC Breakfast presenter and 5 Live host, 50, had been spoken to by executives after she reportedly made a sex jibe during an ad break while hosting the radio show. She is believed to have used a crude slang term for a sex act and asked a colleague 'if they had ever done it'. Naga's own conduct was thrown into doubt when BBC Breakfast's editor Richard Frediani reportedly took an extended period of leave, after an internal review of bullying and misconduct allegations was opened into the show. Amid the fallout, Naga's agents have reportedly 'held talks with rival station LBC' to explore opportunities for the highly-respected journalist. Breakfast airs daily on BBC One from 6am and is available to stream on iPlayer. Kelly Brook is reportedly 'set to travel to Australia' next month to appear on I'm A Celeb, despite previously claiming she would never do it. The Heart FM presenter, 45, is said to be joining the ITV series alongside other big name stars including UK rapper Aitch, TikTok star Angry Ginge and LBC presenter Nick Ferrari. Back in 2018, Kelly said there would be 'a million' other things she would rather do like working in her local pub, than appear in the jungle. 'I don't want to eat eyeballs or sheep testicles and all the things they have to eat on there,' she said on her Heart radio show. 'Even if I had a huge tax bill and I had to pay it really urgently, I still wouldn't do it.' Kelly finished with her honest opinion about appearing on the primetime show saying: 'It's kind of like the beginning of the end in my opinion!' Kelly Brook is reportedly 'set to travel to Australia' next month to appear on I'm A Celebrity...Get Me Out of Here, despite previously claiming she would never do it Seven years ago the Heart FM presenter said there'd be 'a million' other things she'd rather do, than appear in the jungle, even claiming appearing meant the beginning of the end of a celebs career That said - and with rumours that bosses have tried to get Kelly on the show for years - it is thought the model may been persuaded this time by a big money deal. A source told The Sun: 'She's glamorous, witty and a familiar face to ITV audiences, having appeared as a panellist for Loose Women and other shows. 'She's guaranteed to make perfect TV viewing.' They added: 'Many viewers will be excited to see her strip off for the famous jungle waterfall show too.' The Daily Mail reached out to Kelly's representative for comment whilst an ITV spokesperson told us: 'Any names suggested for Im A Celebrity Get Me Out of Here! are just speculation. The 2025 line up had not been announced yet.' Last year, Kelly and her husband Jeremy Parisi, 40, swapped glamour for grit as they joined the BBC reality travel series Celebrity Race Across the World. Over the years, shes been linked to several high-profile partners, including action star Jason Statham, Hollywood actor Billy Zane, and rugby aces Danny Cipriani and Thom Evans. The star met Italian model Jeremy in 2014 after sliding into his Instagram DMs and the pair tied the knot eight years later, in 2022. That said - and with rumours that bosses have tried to get Kelly on the show for years - it is thought the model may been persuaded this time by a big money deal Reality TV wouldn't be a new thing for Kelly, 45, as last year, she and her husband Jeremy Parisi, 40, appeared on Celebrity Race Across The World With the show's premise being to attempt to get to different locations across the world as quickly as possible often with basic accommodation, Kelly will be used to roughing it The star met Italian model Jeremy in 2014 after sliding into his Instagram DMs and the pair tied the knot eight years later, in 2022 Earlier this month Loose Women star Jeremy Parisi, 40, branded Kelly Brook's marriage as 'suffocating' as she opened up about the lengths she and her husband go to spend as much time together as possible. Kelly gushed over her husband during an episode of the ITV panel show at the beginning of October and told her co-stars how they both work hard to ensure their schedules align, as well as eating dinner together every single night. She explained: 'I'm very co-dependent and I think Jeremy and I just wanna be together all the time. 'Well, I definitely wanna be with him all the time, not sure he would say the same. 'We like to go off and work separately, but I think in the evenings, we really pride ourselves on having dinner together, that's really sacred to us. 'My marriage is really sacred.' Kelly continued: 'I've got a very old fashioned writing diary in my office, open, and he will check it for me and see what I'm doing. 'We will schedule things to make sure we are together most of the time.' At that point, long-serving panelist Jane Moore asked her whether Jeremy would accompany her if she had to go abroad or be away overnight for a job. The radio host replied: 'Yeah, he would either come with me or I just wouldn't go. 'I will always check in with him if I have a job. My marriage is number one.' Visibly stunned, Mariella Frostrup told her: 'I'm feeling quite suffocated just listening to you.' There is no shame in loving a little bit of kink when it comes to having alone time in the bedroom. But new research has now revealed exactly the kind of naughty searches that are prevalent in some of Australia's biggest cities. From continental tastes to good old Aussie hotties, a study of late night online activities by Babestation has uncovered all sorts of proclivities Down Under. So, just what kind of kinky things is your neighbourhood into? Starting on the east coast, it would appear Sydneysiders have a thing for European beauties. 'Sydney taking the top spot with Eastern Europeans shows the Harbour City has a real fascination with going continental,' a Babestation spokesperson said. There is no shame in loving a little bit of kink when it comes to having alone time in the bedroom. But new research has now revealed exactly the kind of naughty searches that are prevalent in some of Australia's biggest cities However, head a bit further north and you'll find Newcastle residents like to enjoy interracial content. Beth Bennett, a New Zealand-born model who has spent plenty of time in Australia, said she was more shocked by the top search result found in the NSW capital. 'I honestly thought Sydney would be topping the charts for something a little kinkier,' she said. 'You'd think a few stressed-out Sydneysiders would be searching for a mistress. Australia is keeping things classy!' Meanwhile, those up in Brisbane and on the Gold Coast seem to still be chasing their youth as they prefer 'college' students. Next on the list is the South Australia capital, with the spokesperson revealing: 'Adelaide can't get enough of MILFs.' While Melbourne is 'leading the way for lesbian searches' which 'shows the culture capital is keeping things steamy and playful'. However, in Canberra, frisky online users have been known to search up UK models, while Hobart likes to keep things traditional with well-endowed women. Beth Bennett (pictured), a New Zealand-born model who has spent plenty of time in Australia, said she was more shocked by the top search result found in the NSW capital 'Sydney taking the top spot with Eastern Europeans shows the harbour city has a real fascination with going continental,' a Babestation spokesperson said. Pictured: stock photo 'West Aussies are keeping it close to home,' the spokesperson said, revealing the top adult content search in Perth is for Australians. Darwin is perhaps the most romantic of them all with a penchant for 'couples'. 'All together, it proves Aussies are cheeky, varied and always ready to try something new when the lights go out,' added the spokesperson. They went on to say: 'What really stands out in Australia is the balance between fantasy and connection. 'While the top categories might seem traditional, we're seeing more viewers drawn to authentic, couple-led and personality-driven content. 'It's less about pure fantasy now and more about fun, chemistry and real-life appeal. 'And while new interests come and go, categories like "College" and "Big Breasts" show that some classics never fade.' WARNING GRAPHIC CONTENT As Halloween approaches, horror fans are on the hunt for the perfect scare - and few recommendations carry more weight than one from Stephen King himself. The master of horror has praised countless films and shows over the years, but French Netflix series Marianne in particular left him unsettled. The legendary author, whose name is synonymous with nightmares, once called the show 'perfect if you're one of those sickos -- like me -- who enjoys being scared.' In a viral post on X, King wrote: 'There are glints of humor that give it a STRANGER THINGS vibe. It also has (I say it with all due modesty) a Stephen King vibe.' Created by Samuel Bodin, Marianne is a French supernatural horror series that follows best-selling author Emma Larsimon, who discovers that the horrifying witch from her novels might actually exist in real life. When a childhood friend delivers a chilling warning, Emma returns to her small coastal hometown - only to find that the evil she thought shed left on the page has begun to seep into the real world. Blending witchcraft, possession, and psychological dread, the eight-episode series quickly spirals into a nightmarish descent that fans and critics alike have called one of Netflixs most disturbing originals. When King tweeted his seal of approval back in 2019, horror lovers immediately took notice. Stephen King praised the French Netflix horror Marianne as 'perfect for sickos like me who enjoy being scared' A scene from the terrifying Netflix series The cover art for Marianne, Netflixs chilling French horror series that fans say left them 'scarred for life' Kings viral tweet recommending Marianne sparked a frenzy among horror lovers, with fans calling it 'the scariest show ever' 'Oh, cool. S***s my pants in advance*,' one X user joked. Another wrote, 'Weird how recommendations from one of my fav authors can make me put down a book and turn on a show.' Others quickly added it to their Halloween watchlists. 'That's all I need to hear. I'm going to watch it now,' one person said, while another warned, 'It's crazy. Don't watch alone.' One IMDb reviewer raved: 'The acting was great, the setting and buildup just right and executed correctly. The twists were really good and that ending means we need a season two.' Though Marianne was canceled after just one season, its legend has only grown - and if viewers take the advice of the ultimate horror guru this Halloween, they may find themselves as 'scarred for life' as everyone else. Brad Pitt and longtime girlfriend Ines de Ramon have cemented their romance by 'fully living together.' The 61-year-old Hollywood fixture and 32-year-old jewelry entrepreneur have moved into a new home, People reported on Friday. 'Brad is really including Ines in all his travel plans, and when they are home, they just relax together,' a source told the outlet. 'They are really making their home into a home.' The couple have been together since 2022, but waited until the the 2024 Venice Film Festival to make their red carpet debut. And earlier this year Ines was often with him as he promoted his F1 blockbuster. Another insider dished to the publication, 'They are happier than ever,' adding that they are 'going really strong.' Brad Pitt and longtime girlfriend Ines de Ramon have cemented their romance by 'fully living together'; pictured in June The 61-year-old Hollywood fixture and 32-year-old jewelry entrepreneur have moved into a new home, People reported on Friday; pictured in London on June 23 It was added that the actor 'is so happy and in love' as they anticipate their future. It comes after a person close to the stars told People that Brad 'loved having Ines by his side' during his summer press tour. 'She's no drama, very supportive and they're doing really well,' said the source at the time. A defining moment in the relationship came when Ines supported the entertainer as he mourned the loss of his mother Jane Pitt, who died at age 84 in August. 'She wants to be there for him, and Brad is very much letting her be that person,' shared an insider during the ordeal. Brad sold his Los Feliz mansion to fellow Hollywood leading man Austin Butler in August. He offloaded the $5.2 million home three months after it was burglarized. The New York Post reported in September that the star purchased a $12 million Hollywood Hills mansion with upgraded security features. The couple have been together since 2022, but waited until the the 2024 Venice Film Festival to make their red carpet debut; pictured in NYC June 14 Earlier this year Ines was often with Brad as he promoted his F1 blockbuster; pictured June 16 The New York Post reported in September that the Brad purchased a $12 million Hollywood Hills mansion; pictured in September 2024 His new 8,385-sq-ft Spanish-style estate boasts six bedrooms, eight bathrooms, a theater, fire pit and pool. However, the outlet emphasized that the security features are what got Brad's attention. 'He wanted somewhere that could provide an optimal security system and privacy and this place caught his eye,' a source told The Post. 'Long before his home was burglarized, security was always a priority,' the insider said about Brad. And the publication noted that the Wall Street Journal reported the sprawling residence was previously owned by The Killers guitarist Dave Keuning and wife Emilie. Good Charlotte fans may be in for a treat soon, as the pop punk band appears to have teased an upcoming Australia tour. The American rockers left their mark on Sydney this week when signs began to appear in high-traffic areas with a message from the band. In photos shared with Daily Mail by Whatslively on Friday, one particular sign could be seen hanging on a bridge over a main street busy with cars. 'Sydney, this song is dedicated to every kid who ever got picked last in gym class,' the message read for passing drivers. Whatslively have now predicted the rock band will officially announce their tour this month, with concert dates expected to take place in autumn of 2026. Good Charlotte last toured Australia in September 2012, when they performed at the Fat As Butter Festival, as well as in Sydney and Melbourne. Good Charlotte fans may be in for a treat soon, as the pop punk band appears to have teased an upcoming Australia tour. Pictured: Benji Madden (L) and Joel Madden (R) of Good Charlotte The upcoming tour coincides with the recent release of the new Good Charlotte album, titled Motel du Cap, in August this year. It was the first music released by the band since 2018, with the band going on a five-year hiatus until they reunited in 2023 to play at a very special gig. The band membersJoel Madden, Benji Madden, Paul Thomas, Billy Martin and Dean Butterworthteamed up to play the wedding of Joel's sister-in-law, Sofia Richie. Sofia, the sister of Joel's wife Nicole Richie, tied the knot with his good friend, record label boss Elliot Grainge. Good Charlotte were asked to get the band back together and play at the milestone event, with the musicians saying the gig brought their group back to life. 'It reminded me of our first couple of gigs in a friend's basement, and then in a friend's backyard, where it's just all your friends and everybody rooting for you,' Benji told news.com.au last month. The hiatus prior to Motel du Cap was the second break the band has taken, with the first coming in late 2011 following the release of their Greatest Hits album and their 2010 Cardiology album. Twin brothers Joel and Benji, 46, said they took a break to focus on family and other projects, with Joel admitting upon their return in 2016 that they needed to figure out who they were outside of the band. The American rockers left their mark on Sydney this week when signs began to appear in high-traffic areas with a message from the band 'We love making musicit's a passion, and it's our outletbut that's not only who we are,' Benji said at the Grammy Awards this year. 'I think we really needed the time to just be ourselves in life separating our own value as people from music.' Good Charlotte formed in 1995 in Waldorf, Maryland, with the band's line-up remaining consistent since 2005. They released their self-titled debut album in 2000. Christmas has come early this year as Anya Taylor-Joy channelled a Greatest Showman-esque outfit for a new dazzling Dior Beauty campaign. The Dior Beauty Ambassador, 29, was every inch the leading lady as she struck a pose for the stunning shoot. Dressed head to toe in red, Anya looked incredible in her circus ringmaster costume, teamed with a matching top hat. In some parts of the Christmas campaign, the actress was joined by Italian model Deva Cassel who wore a striking swipe of eyeshadow. Anya complemented her platinum blonde locks with vibrant red lipstick and burnt orange eyeshadow. In 2021, Dior named Anya as its newest global brand ambassador and she has been the face of the fashion house ever since. Christmas has come early this year as Anya Taylor-Joy, 29, channelled a Greatest Showman-esque outfit for a new dazzling Dior Beauty campaign The Dior Beauty Ambassador was every inch the leading lady as she struck a pose for the stunning shoot Anya and her husband Malcolm McRae secretly tied the knot in New Orleans nearly three years ago before later going on to have a second wedding in Venice in October 2023. 'I love him so much,' she recently told Drew Barrymore when she asked about her partner. 'Oh yeah, he's, I'm very, I'm so lucky. I'm so lucky.' Back in February, she revealed where they crossed paths and the very first thing he said to her. 'We met in a music studio and he's like, I do. I love him. We're born on the same day. So that was the first thing he ever said to me,' she recalled. 'He was like, "When's your birthday?" And I was like, "April 16th." He's like, "I knew it." I was like, "Oh no, this is, yeah." He's the absolute greatest.' The Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga star also gushed that Malcolm is her other 'whole'. 'My dad once told me when I was a kid that you're not looking for another half to make you whole, that you are whole,' she said. 'And if you're lucky enough, you meet another whole,' she continued. 'And then you become, like, a greater sum of your parts.' Dressed head to toe in red, Anya looked incredible in her circus ringmaster costume, complemented with a matching top hat In some parts of the campaign the actress was joined by Italian model Deva Cassel, who wore a striking swipe of eyeshadow In 2021, Dior named Anya as its newest global brand ambassador and she has been the face of the fashion house ever since Anya and her husband Malcolm McRae secretly tied the knot in New Orleans nearly three years ago before later going on to have a second wedding in Venice in October 2023 The Golden Globe winner added: 'I just feel like I am encouraged to grow in the most unexpected and beautiful ways because he provides a soil that's, like, really nutritious and safe. 'Yeah, I just, he's the best,' she gushed. In a July 2024 interview with Letterboxd, she mentioned that the 1994 classic Forrest Gump played a significant role in her engagement. 'My husband accidentally proposed to me on the Forrest Gump bench in Savannah,' she said before adding that it was a 'complete accident.' Recalling their special moment, she gushed: 'And he's a boy from Alabama, and I'm blonde so... It just happened. I hear that music and I cry like a baby.' Emma Stone continued to flaunt her 'new face' while posing on the red carpet in London on Friday. The actress, 36, showcased her 'transformation' in a mustard yellow, custom Louis Vuitton dress after she left fans shocked with her 'unrecognizable' look earlier this month. Following her much-talked-about appearance, she attended the Headline Gala screening of her new movie Bugonia during the 69th BFI London Film Festival at The Royal Festival Hall. For the special occasion, the Oscar-winning actress wore a straight-neck, floor-length gown with a matching color scarf slung on her arms. She wore bronze, strappy heels and carried a brown, mini trunk bag from Louis Vuitton to complete her red carpet look with autumnal colors Emma showcased what fans are calling her major facial transformation in soft, radiant makeup featuring her eyebrows in a straighter and fuller style than her usual arched look. Emma Stone continued to flaunt her 'new face' while posing on the red carpet in London on Friday The actress, 36, showcased her 'transformation' in a mustard yellow, custom Louis Vuitton dress after she left fans shocked with her 'unrecognizable' look earlier this month She rocked a bold red lip, which was slightly overlined to accentuate her pout, and minimal eye makeup to show off her now-seemingly-upturned, cat-like blue eyes. The Superbad star styled her copper red bob with a soft bend and a deep side part for a glamorous, old Hollywood-inspired look. Earlier this month, she posed for a photo alongside Blackpink's Lisa Manobal at the Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2026 show during Paris Fashion Week. Fans were baffled at Stone's seemingly changed appearance as discourse ensued about what plastic surgery procedure she may have allegedly undergone. Many claimed that she looked unrecognizable in photos from the event and started speculating why she looked 'different.' It comes after Emma was branded as 'detached from reality' after she compared her latest film to the Luigi Mangione case and asked audiences if they had 'heard' of it. The actress plays a high-powered CEO of a medical company who gets kidnapped by an employee played by Jesse Plemons in Yorgos Lanthimos's latest film, Bugonia. Mangione is accused of murdering United Healthcare CEO Brian Thompson, a 50-year-old father-of-two, outside a Manhattan hotel while he was attending a work conference on December 4, 2024. Following her much-talked-about appearance, she attended the Headline Gala screening of her new movie Bugonia during the 69th BFI London Film Festival at The Royal Festival Hall For the special occasion, the Oscar-winning actress wore a straight-neck, floor-length gown with a matching color scarf slung on her arms. She showcased what fans are calling her major facial transformation in soft, radiant makeup featuring her eyebrows in a straighter and fuller style than her usual arched look She rocked a bold red lip, which was slightly overlined to accentuate her pout, and minimal eye makeup to show off her now-seemingly-upturned, cat-like blue eyes She wore bronze, strappy heels and carried a brown, mini trunk bag from Louis Vuitton to complete her red carpet look with autumnal colors She styled her copper red bob with a soft bend and a deep side part for a glamorous, old Hollywood-inspired look At the event, she posed alongside her co-star Jesse Plemons and their director Yorgos Lanthimos He has pleaded not guilty to both state and federal charges in connection with the December murder. If Mangione is convicted, federal prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty. Speaking at a Q&A for the project at Telluride Film Festival on August 30, Stone said that she found 'terrifying' similarities between the movie's plot and the Mangione case. 'What's really crazy, after we had shot the film I live in New York we heard someone was shot up the street,' she said. 'It was a healthcare CEO. You know, because Luigi. You guys heard about this?' Stone continued: 'It was wild, because we had all just been in a basement [filming] together, talking about these issues and the bigger meaning of everything. 'It keeps hitting you that the world is so deeply fraught and terrifying in so many ways.' Bugonia marks her second collaboration with her Poor Things director Yorgos Lanthimos. Earlier this month, she posed for a photo alongside Blackpink's Lisa Manobal at the Louis Vuitton Spring/Summer 2026 show during Paris Fashion Week Fans were baffled at Stone's seemingly changed appearance as discourse ensued about what plastic surgery procedure she may have allegedly undergone Many claimed that she looked unrecognizable in photos from the event and started speculating why she looked 'different'; pictured in October 2019 Bugonia is described as a 'satirical absurdist science fiction dark comedy' and is based on a screenplay by Will Tracy. The absurdist black comedy follows two conspiracy-obsessed men who kidnap the CEO of a major company when they become convinced that she's an alien who wants to destroy the earth. It is an English-language remake of the 2003 South Korean film Save the Green Planet! by Jang Joon-hwan. Stone plays the CEO named Michelle Fuller and stars alongside Jesse Plemons, Stavros Halkias and Alicia Silverstone in supporting roles. Bugonia premieres in theaters on Halloween, October 31. Wendy Osefo had described the alleged robbery at her home before she and her husband Eddie were arrested on fraud charges on Thursday. The Real Housewives Of Potomac star and her husband were indicted by a grand jury in Westminster, Maryland for insurance fraud, conspiracy insurance fraud, and making a false statement to police officer, per documents obtained by Us Weekly. The pair had claimed designer bags and jewelry were stolen from their property while the family was away on vacation during an alleged April 2024 burglary. However, police have learned several of the belongings worth $20k had allegedly been returned to the stores they had been purchased at for a 'full refund' prior to when they said the robbery had occurred. During an episode of the Gabbing With Gib podcast last year in September, Wendy had gotten into detail about the alleged incident. 'It happened because my family was away on spring break,' the 41-year-old Bravo star stated. 'It was our spring break trip with the kiddos and I was just so heartbroken.' Wendy Osefo, 41, had described the alleged robbery at her home before she and her husband Eddie were arrested on fraud charges on Thursday; seen in 2024 in Washington D.C. The Real Housewives Of Potomac star and her husband were indicted by a grand jury in Westminster, Maryland for insurance fraud, conspiracy insurance fraud, and making a false statement to police officer, per documents obtained by Us Weekly Wendy and Eddie tied the knot in 2011 and are parents to three children: Karter, 12, and Kruz, nine, and Kamrynn, six. The TV personality claimed that the incident took place shortly before filming Real Housewives and had left her 'uneasy.' 'We had just been violated so to speak. It was the worst thing and so unexpected especially since from my vantage point and from the investigator's vantage point it was targeted.' The reality star expressed that the neighborhood had been relatively safe for many years. 'Over 20 years there has been no burglary, like, nothing. It's so heartbreaking and again going back to my earlier statement at my core [what] centers me is motherhood. My first thought was my kids.' Wendy further called the alleged burglary 'gut wrenching' and explained that their home was now 'Fort Knox.' The star added that there have since been many changes in their lives, including how she approaches social media. 'It's altered the way I move and you want to be naive and feel like no one is watching you.' 'It happened because my family was away on spring break,' the 41-year-old Bravo star stated. 'It was our spring break trip with the kiddos and I was just so heartbroken'; couple seen in 2023 in Washington D.C. Wendy further called the alleged burglary 'gut wrenching' and explained that their home was now 'Fort Knox'; seen in 2023 Wendy added, 'You can just live life freely but unfortunately that is not the case so it has changed a lot of things.' The TV personality and her husband Eddie are accused of alleging they had designer bags and jewelry stolen from their home during a vacation to Jamaica. But police learned several of the belongings worth $20k had allegedly been returned to the stores they had been purchased at for a 'full refund' prior to when they said the burglary had occurred. They are accused by prosecutors of claiming a $450,000 personal property loss with an insurance company. The Daily Mail has reached out to the couple for comment but did not immediately hear back. Wendy was also allegedly seen wearing a diamond ring she claimed had been stolen during the burglary in a social media post uploaded after the alleged theft. The police investigated and allegedly learned other belongings the couple claimed to have been stolen were returned to the stores they were purchased at 'where a full refund was provided prior to the alleged burglary.' Wendy and her husband were released on Friday and released on a $50,000 bond. But police learned several of the belongings worth $20k had allegedly been returned to the stores they had been purchased at for a 'full refund' prior to when they said the burglary had occurred In a press conference, police claim it all started after deputies responded to their home on April 7, 2024 at around 10:13pm for a reported burglary, after Eddie called 911 to report the alleged theft. The couple claimed they had been burglarized some time between April 2 and 7 of that year during their trip to Jamaica. They alleged designer handbags and jewelry valued at more than $200K had been missing from their primary bedroom, which police noted was ransacked with the mattress thrown from the bed onto the floor to 'give an indication that a burglary did occur.' Police investigated their claims, looking into surveillance cameras from their residence and neighbors but found no indication of suspicious activity or evidence of a break-in. The police also reached out to the three different insurance companies that Osefos 'used to insure their property, which is common with this.. type loss that detectives actually communicate with insurance companies to share information,' the spokesperson said. The spokesperson also said the couple 'contacted detectives several times' to share more information about the alleged theft, evidence, and missing belongings, and also reported their losses to their insurance company. But detectives found photos Osefo posted weeks after the alleged burglary 'wearing jewelry that matched items she had reported stolen, specifically a diamond anniversary ring.' Police also combed through receipts the couple provided detectives with of the missing items, some of which dated back to 2018. The receipts were really what raised alarm bells. Wendy and her husband were released on Friday and released on a $50,000 bond; the star seen in 2022 in NYC Police also combed through receipts the couple provided detectives with of the missing items, some of which dated back to 2018; seen in 2022 in NYC The receipt in question was 'email addresses' and upon further investigation they found more evidence backing up their suspicions the claim was fraudulent. Police also claim the allegedly stolen items purchased in 2018 were returned in that same year. 'We can see as far back as 2018 and several items that have been purchased in 18 and receipts supplied to the insurance company, only those items had been returned to the purchaser, or to the store that she purchased them from, during the window in 2018 of the return policy,' police said. 'Meaning if it was a 90 day return policy back in 2018, she actually returned those items within that 90 day period.' The police obtained a search and seizure warrants for the accounts and saw that Eddie had allegedly emailed his wife: 'Are there additional high value items we can add to this inventory list? I'm trying to get the total to exceed $423,000, which is our policy maximum.' 'Based on a thorough investigation conducted by detectives in my office... it became clear that the Osefos have fabricated the burglary and filed a false report in an attempt to defraud their insurance company,' the police said. The couple were ultimately indicted by a grand jury 'on multiple counts of fraud and false reporting' and arrested at their home on October 9th in the afternoon. On Friday, a representative for Wendy says the couple are 'back home' and 'look forward to their day in court' A search and seizure warrant was executed at the home during the arrest, and detectives allegedly uncovered 15 more items the couple were 'believed to be reported stolen.' The items consisted of jewelry and high-end handbags. On Friday, a representative for Wendy says the couple are 'back home' and 'look forward to their day in court.' 'Dr. Wendy Osefo and her husband, Edward Osefo, are back home safely with their family and in good spirits. They are grateful for the outpouring of concern and support from friends, fans, and colleagues,' a representative for Wendy said in a statement obtained by Us Weekly. 'The Osefos, alongside their legal team, look forward to their day in court. At this time, they respectfully ask for privacy as they focus on their family and the legal process ahead.' Jackie 'O' Henderson was left fearing for her family's safety after a stalker sent her up to 2,000 social media messages and had flowers delivered to her home. The co-host of The Kyle & Jackie O Show, 50, was inundated with direct messages from a stranger on Instagram for over five months. She did not respond and instead recorded the messages in approximately 700 screenshots, each of which captured up to five missives. The man at the other end of the phone was David Gourlay, an unemployed 38-year-old who graphically detailed his sexual fantasies involving the radio host. Many of the messages were sent consecutively and reflected personal details about Henderson, including information about her family. Despite having never met the radio presenter, her stalker wrote as if they had a pre-existing relationship and a child together. Jackie 'O' Henderson, 50, was left fearing for her family's safety after a stalker sent her up to 2,000 social media messages and had flowers delivered to her home 'I am not giving up on us,' he wrote in one message sent on the morning of July 3. Later that day, Gourlay sent a bouquet of flowers to Henderson's home. Police traced the flower orderwhich was mistakenly addressed to 'Jackie Anderson'to Gourlay, who had listed his mobile number. They found him sitting on a bench opposite Henderson's house, which she shares with her 14-year-old daughter Kitty, on July 4. Gourlay was allegedly found to be in possession of an improvised weapon when police searched him. Officers arrested him and took him to Prince of Wales Hospital for a mental health assessment before he was released back into police custody. Gourlay faced Downing Centre Local Court on Wednesday to plead guilty to stalking the broadcaster and using Instagram in a menacing, harassing or offensive way. Five other chargesincluding being armed with the intention of committing an indictable offencewere withdrawn by prosecutors. David Gourlay, 38, was arrested outside the home Jackie shares with her daughter, Kitty, 14, on July Gourlay will be sentenced when he returns to court in December. A five-year apprehended violence order prohibits him from approaching Henderson or contacting her except through a lawyer. The order, which expires in 2030, bars him from assaulting, threatening, stalking or harassing the radio presenter or anyone with whom she had a domestic relationship. Henderson has previously spoken about having a stalker, though she said they did not live in the same state as her. In 2023, she spoke with co-host Kyle Sandilands about Sophie Monk's run-in with an allegedly 'catfished' man who showed up to her house. The shock jock, 53, jokingly asked Henderson why she didn't have any stalkers, to which the radio host replied: 'Mine don't live here thankfully.' When Sandilands pushed for more information, she added: 'They're in Australia but I'm not going to say [where]. No one has turned up to my house thank god.' He then joked Henderson moves around too much for any stalker to narrow in on her location. Richard Madeley has revealed the bizarre way he realised he was ready to move in with Judy Finnigan as their relationship progressed to the next level. The Good Morning Britain star went off to sit on a Greek beach alone for two weeks to think about the major milestone as he contemplated becoming a stepdad. The TV presenter, who like Judy had split from his first spouse at the time, said he wanted to be absolutely certain he was going to be happy being a stepdad to Judy's twin sons Dan and Tom, who were aged seven. And, after his deep-thinking holiday, Richard decided he did. The couple have now been married for 39 years. The two TV stars met in 1982 when they worked on separate programmes for Granada TV. It was some time - after both their marriages had broken down - Judy's to journalist David Henshaw and Richard's to Linda, who he proposed to two weeks after meeting, before they got together. Richard Madeley has revealed the bizarre way he realised he was ready to move in with now wife Judy Finnigan as he shares his worries about becoming a stepdad (pictured in 2023) The TV star went off to sit on a Greek beach alone for two weeks to think about the major milestone as he contemplated becoming a stepdad to Judy's twin boys (pictured in 1988) But as they became more serious about each other they still both thought hard before setting up home together. Opening up to Matt Willis on a coming episode of the Busted star's On the Mend podcast, Richard said: 'Judy and I worked together for years before we even talked about the prospect of getting together. 'One of Judy's main concerns was obviously her kids. They, you know, came first front and foremost in any move that she might make. 'I remember her saying to me when it became clear that we were falling for each other and we were tentatively beginning to talk about maybe having a life together, "you've got to understand I come in a three pack - it's me and Tom and Dan". 'And I took that very seriously. And this is before This Morning [which they presented together] started. 'We'd been working and sharing our days together at the office for three years by then, and we were on the point of deciding to live together. We were both divorced. 'But Judy was really concerned that I knew what I was doing as far as being a stepdad was concerned because the boys were going to live with her. 'So I went off on my own. I went off to Greece for two weeks on a kind of a solo holiday to think about it because I didn't want to rush. He said: 'One of Judy's main concerns was obviously her kids. They, you know, came first front and foremost in any move that she might make' The couple tied the knot in 1986 and now have two further children together, Jack and TV personality and personal trainer Chloe, 38 (pictured in 2001) The couple pictured most recently with their children Jack and Chloe and granddaughter Bodhi in 2023. Judy's twin boys are now in their late 40s and keep their lives private 'I didn't want to say with super confidence "Oh yeah, it'll be fine, I'm happy to be a stepfather". 'I needed to know that I could deliver and that I meant it, that I really meant it. 'So I went away for two weeks and just thought - basically sat on a beach for two weeks and just thought quite deeply about the future and about how I felt about it. And I felt very comfortable with it. 'And I went back and told her that. I mean, the boys were adorable. They were only seven at that stage, and they were absolutely adorable. 'And we went away for a week together, all four of us. We rented a cottage in Cornwall just as a little trial to see how we all got on. And it was fantastic. We had a great time. And that kind of sealed it. 'So I moved in. We got formally engaged and we got married as soon as we could.' The couple tied the knot in 1986 and now have two further children together, Jack and TV personality and personal trainer Chloe, 38. Meanwhile Judy's twin boys are now in their late 40s and keep their lives private. Richard Madeley on the On The Mend podcast is available from October 20. Ellie Bamber put on a racy display in a daring blazer dress as she attended the star-studded Moss and Freud afterparty at The Rex Rooms on Friday night. The Serpent actress, 28, flaunted her toned legs in the sexy number as she joined fellow stars after the film's premiere at 69th BFI London Film Festival. The star completed the look with a pair of glamorous black Louboutin heels and fishnet tights. New biopic Moss & Freud, released on Friday, explores the unlikely bond between supermodel Kate Moss (played by Ellie) and painter Lucian Freud (played by Derek Jacobi), who together curated Titled Naked Portrait in 2002. Channelling's Kate's signature edge, Ellie cut a striking look as she continued to turned heads at the A-list party. Runway legend Kate, 51, serves as executive producer of the biopic alongside Jason McNab. Ellie Bamber, 28, put on a racy display in a daring blazer dress as she attended the star-studded Moss and Freud afterparty at The Rex Rooms on Friday night The Serpent actress flaunted her toned legs in the sexy number which she teamed with glamorous Louboutin heels and fishnet tights as she joined fellow stars During the lavish celebration, Ellie was snapped posing alongside film producer Jason, who also co-owns The Rex Rooms with designer Marc Jacques Burton and actor Jason Momoa. The director was joined by his fiancee, Swedish actress Magdalena Sverlander, while Marc was seen chatting with Tom Glynn-Carney among the stylish crowd. The evening marked a full-circle celebration for Ellie, bringing together the films stars, producers, and Londons creative elite for one of the most glamorous nights of the festival. Guests were welcomed in the Meili main room with stunning canapes by Wild Tavern, accompanied by a champagne reception featuring Heloise Lloris Champagne, HAMA Rum, Palmarae Gin Premier Cru, and Meili cocktails mixed with London Essence. Later, in the Kings 1942 Room, each table was set with bottles of Heloise Lloris Champagne, alongside Palmarae Gin, Belvedere 10 Vodka, and Volcan de Mi Tierra Tequila. Earlier this week, the celebs' favourite hotspot hosted American rocker Machine Gun Kelly, who celebrated SlimXXs birthday. Recent appearances at the exclusive night club include the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio, Mick Jagger, Gene Gallagher, Lennon Gallagher, Post Malone, and Benicio del Toro cementing the venue as Londons ultimate A-list hotspot. Earlier in the evening, Ellie joined leading lady Kate as they graced the BFI's red carpet at the Curzon Mayfair for a glamorous premiere night. Channelling's Kate's signature edge, Ellie cut a striking look as she continued to turned heads at the A-list party During the lavish celebration, Ellie was snapped posing alongside film producer Jason, who also co-owns The Rex Rooms with designer Marc Jacques Burton and actor Jason Momoa The director was joined by his fiancee, Swedish actress Magdalena Sverlander Designer Marc (L) was seen chatting with actor Tom Glynn-Carney (R) among the stylish crowd Kate flashed a hint of cleavage as she went braless in the plunging suit and posed for photos with Ellie, who put on a racy display in a semi-sheer dress, alongside dapper Derek. Moss & Freud, aims to explore his life and art, and focuses strongly on how the 90s superstar came to be his beloved muse. The distinguished artwork captured a nude, then 28-year-old Kate while she was pregnant with her daughter Lila, who she welcomed with ex Jefferson Hack. Sexy, true and raw, the image, which was painted by Lucian - then 80 and at the time 52 years older than Kate - showcased the model in a way she'd never been seen before. The result was groundbreaking, with the painting fetching a whopping 3.5million at an auction years later. Lucian and Kate's time together established a one-of-a-kind friendship, and the model would later describe him as the most interesting person she'd ever met. So fierce was their bond, prying eyes have long questioned whether they shared something more than just friendship. The German-born painter - also famed for his modern and selfie-esque painting of The Queen in 2001 - passed away aged 88 over a decade ago. Kate's arrival on the scene in the early 90s signified a new era of models, joining the likes of Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford and Linda Evangelista as some of the biggest names in the industry. Earlier in the evening, Ellie joined leading lady Kate, 51, as they graced the BFI's red carpet at the Curzon Mayfair for a glamorous premiere night So close to her heart is the project that Kate will serve as executive producer, with Ellie playing the iconic supermodel and 86-year old Emmy winner, Derek Jacobi, starring as Lucian Freud Meanwhile Lucian Michael Freud, born in 1922 in Berlin, Germany, was by then a renowned painter and draughtsman who specialised in figurative art; his work on human subjects such as friends, family and lovers earned him the reputation as one of the foremost 20th-century English portraitists. Written and directed by James Lucas (and executive-produced by Moss herself), the film focuses not on the finished painting but on its creation, and the pair's evolving relationship. As the film tells it, it was her idea to take all her clothes off, a response to his desire to get to the core of the being. To her initial consternation, he required her to pose three evenings a week at his Holland Park studio until it is finished. The project took him nine months, and in that time (during which Moss found that she was pregnant) they struck up a close friendship somewhat at odds with their age gap of more than 50 years. It's an intriguing story but Moss & Freud doesnt tell it especially well, never quite capturing the chemistry between the mighty artist and his beguiling subject. Denise Welch confessed that she thought Australian pop star Troye Sivan was just 'some lad at the BBQ' after fans spotted him in her snaps from Charli XCX's wedding. Charli, 32, married with The 1975's George Daniel, 35, for the second time, in a stunning ceremony in Sicily last month with the Loose Women presenter, 67, in attendance with her son and band frontman Matty Healy. Sharing a fun montage of photos to Instagram, which fans branded 'iconic' Denise joined Troye for a photo, but later admitted she had no idea who he was. Speaking about the day while attending the Virgin Atlantic Attitude Awards, she told Metro she had the 'most wonderful time.' Denise added: 'I posted some of the party photos, it was only then I realised I was in a photo with Troye Sivan.' After he phone blew up she joked: 'It was only then I realised, I just thought it was a lovely lad a the BBQ. But it's given me a lot of cool points.' Denise Welch confessed that she thought Australian pop star Troye Sivan was just 'some lad at the BBQ' after fans spotted him in her snaps from Charli XCX's wedding Charli, 32, married with The 1975's George Daniel, 35, for the second time, in a stunning ceremony in Sicily last month with the Loose Women presenter, 67 in attendance She continued: 'It was testament to Charli and George just how lovely and relaxed it was. It was great, Im very happy for them.' Denise shared clips and photos after attending the island ceremony with her husband Lincoln Townley, her son Matty and his fiancee Gabbriette Bechtel. She certainly made the most of her chance to mingle with the stars' posing for an array of selfies and videos during the trip. Many showed her alongside her son Matty, who is George's bandmate in The 1975, with Denise dressed in a stylish black jumpsuit for the evening party. The guests also enjoyed a luxurious yacht day following the wedding ceremony, with Denise sharing a video of herself and newlywed Charli preparing to board the boat. Denise was also joined by her ex-husband Tim Healy, and her younger son Louis, 24, to celebrate Charli and George's nuptials. Posting the montage on Instagram, she captioned the post: 'All the feels. #georgeandcharli Sicily 2025. That's amore.' Last week Charli herself shared a behind-the-scenes look at her big day, and in typical party girl fashion, the nuptials were a raucous affair - with Charli taking to the DJ decks in her lingerie. Speaking about the day she told Metro: 'It was quite exciting for me to post pictures of lovely people that Id met at the BBQ. One of those turned out to be Troye Sivan' Denise shared clips and photos after attending the island ceremony with her husband Lincoln Townley, her son Matty (pictured) and his fiancee Gabbriette Bechtel Denise certainly made the most of her chance to mingle with the stars, taking videos and snaps of herself, husband Lincoln (left) and Gabbriette (right) Denise was also joined by her ex-husband Tim Healy and his wife Joan Anderton (pictured), and her younger son Louis, 24, to celebrate Charli and George's nuptials Matty and Gabriette were in charge of the DJ decks at Charli and George's wedding reception, following the intimate ceremony As she and The 1975 drummer shared their vows, Charli showed off her edgy sense of style in a Grecian-inspired bridal look. The newlyweds looked emotional as they said 'I do' all over again and exchanged rings in front of their loved ones. The bride's draped white dress boasted a dramatically long train, which flowed behind her as she walked down the aisle, and was completely sheer, revealing a figure-hugging corset underneath. And in true form for the Guess hitmaker, Charli - whose real name is Charlotte Emma Aitchison - ensured her white underwear was on full display. George cut a dashing figure by her side in a relaxed taupe suit and oversized silk shirt underneath, left partially unbuttoned to display his chain necklaces. The couple appeared deeply moved during the intimate ceremony, alternating between laughing, crying and holding hands, as they took turns reading out their vows. The romantic ceremony took place on a rocky outcrop right next to the idyllic sea, with rows of chairs laid out in front of an altar adorned with sprigs of eucalyptus leaves and baby's breath. Charli and George were the picture of love and devotion, as they shared a passionate kiss at the altar after becoming husband and wife for the second time. As they walked back down the aisle to applause and confetti from the attendees, Matty could be seen getting to his feet to cheer them on. In true musician style, after the heartfelt service Charli and George wasted no time in getting into the celebrations with their guests. Last week Charli herself shared a behind-the-scenes look at her big day, and in typical party girl fashion, the nuptials were a raucous affair (seen during their wedding yacht day) They were seen letting loose to the sounds of a live band, dancing and laughing while cocktails and drinks flowed. Forgoing the moody tones of The 1975 or the electric rave style of Brat, Charli and George opted for a traditional folk band, complete with an accordion, tambourine and harmonica. Popping bottles of fizz, the pair poured out a champagne tower for the guests to enjoy, unable to resist another smooch. And guests were also seen sipping on the classic Italian party staple of Aperol Spritz as they laughed and danced in the sun. Charli and George were the picture of wedded bliss as the two chart-topping stars enjoyed an intimate moment alone before joining the fun-filled reception. And displaying their shared love of music, the pair's seating chart revealed their wedding table names were all the titles of their favourite songs. These included Sweet Jane by The Velvet Underground, Billy Ocean's Loverboy, Cut the Cake by Average White Band, The Japanese House's Saw You in a Dream and the controversial track Lemon Incest by Serge and Charlotte Gainsbourg. Kwara State government plans to establish a modern geriatric centre to ensure proper care for the state's senior citizens. The government said the proposed centre, when operational, would provide employment opportunities for the youths. The state commissioner for Social Development, Dr Mariam Imam, disclosed this at an event titled, "National Older Persons Day" to celebrate the elderly for their contributions to the development of the state, held in Ilorin, the state capital. Follow us on WhatsApp | LinkedIn for the latest headlines She said the centre will be located at Amayo Rehabilitation Home in the Ifelodun local government area of the state. "The governor is already working on that. It's an opportunity to employ many people who will care for the elderly, thereby creating job opportunities for our youth. It's also an aspect of the nursing profession that needs to come on board: taking care of the elderly. It's also a humanitarian service that will make us compassionate, have empathy towards the elderly ones, and make us reflect that this is what we will experience when we grow older in life," she said. The celebration, themed "Unveiling Kwara State indigenous crafts and award presentation", was organised in partnership with Brafem Geriatric Foundation. The commissioner said it was aimed at reminding elderly people that they are loved, emphasising the need to take care of their health and showcasing their indigenous arts and crafts. "It is also to celebrate and reward retired civil servants and the elderly ones still in active service for their exemplary service", she said. Imam said that the state government, through its Social Investment Scheme, has reached out to thousands of elderly people in the state in the form of financial empowerment. "Also, at the national level, through the Renewed Hope Initiative of the First Lady, Senator Remi Tinubu, the empowerment of the elderly has been a continuous activity and not a one-time thing," she said. In his remarks, one of the senior citizens, 99-year-old Dr. Ajolore commended Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq on the regular payment of the monthly pension, but urged the governor to break the jinx and pay all arrears of gratuity owed Kwara pensioners. The executive director of the Brafem Geriatric Foundation, Mrs. Beatrice Oyegbade, who is also the Kwara state coordinator on Aging Affairs, appealed to the state and the federal governments as well as partners to support the course of the older persons. Mel B flaunted her jaw-dropping abs as she stunned in her signature leopard print crop top while attending the Red Bull Dance Your Style World Final red carpet in Los Angeles on Friday. The Spice Girls legend, 50, oozed fashion as she rocked smart grey trousers and a denim maxi coat for the occasion, adding a chic camel beret while stopping for shots at EDEN Sunset. Mel's appearance in the US comes just days after she sent her support to fellow Spice Girl Victoria Beckham ahead of her Netflix documentary's release. On Wednesday, Mel C, Geri Halliwell and Emma Bunton showed up to support their former band member Victoria, 51, at the premiere held at the Curzon Mayfair. And although Mel B was notably absent from the event, she had sent Victoria good luck flowers of support ahead of the premiere. Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Victoria tagged Mel B and Geri as she shared snaps of extravagant floral displays they had sent her and penned: 'Kisses'. Mel B, 50, flaunted her jaw-dropping abs as she stunned in an animal print top while attending the Red Bull Dance Your Style World Final red carpet in Los Angeles on Friday The Spice Girls legend oozed fashion as she rocked smart grey trousers and a denim maxi coat for the occasion, adding a chic camel beret while stopping for shots at EDEN Sunset While the Spice Girls are rarely all seen together, they often vocalise their support for each other over on social media. Back in July Victoria congratulated Mel on her wedding to Rory McPhee as she shared a throwback snap of the bandmates and penend: 'Congratulations @officalmelb @rorymcphee on your special day! 'I couldn't be more excited for you both and wish you a lifetime of happiness! kisses xx'. Meanwhile all five bandmates, including Mel C and Emma Bunton, attended Victoria's 50th birthday last year as they celebrated the milestone birthday together. During the lavish festivities, all five of the Spice Girls came together to sing one of their hit tracks, Stop, for the star-studded guests - which was all caught on camera by David Beckham. It comes after Victoria sent Spice Girls fans into a tizz last month as she admitted she was 'tempted' by a reunion on the final night of Oasis' reunion tour. Among a slew of snaps on her Instagram from the Wembley gig, Victoria shared a video panning around the sold-out venue with 'Tempting....' written over the top alongside tags of her bandmates' Instagram handles. In April, it was claimed the group are reportedly set to reunite to mark their 30th anniversary as they have been secretly planning an upcoming world tour. Mel's appearance in the US comes just days after she sent her support to fellow Spice Girl Victoria Beckham ahead of her Netflix documentary's release (pictured at the doc premiere on Wednesday) Former bandmates Mel C (pictured), Geri Halliwell and Emma Bunton attended the premiere held at the Curzon Mayfair, and although Mel B was absent - she had sent Victoria good luck flowers of support ahead of the event While the Spice Girls are rarely all seen together, they show often vocalise their support for each other over social media (pictured in 1995 in London) Geri, Emma, Mel B and Mel C were said to have met in Miami to discuss the finer details, yet Victoria is '90 per cent out of the running', with the foursome pushing ahead with plans without her for now. It was alleged at the time that Geri and band manager and guru Simon Fuller are reportedly in touch again which has moved things along after years of hints from various members that they would get back together. A source said: 'There have been rumours swirling for months, but Geri has always been too busy and had other things on, preventing her from saying yes. 'Nothing is yet confirmed but Geri and Simon are back in touch with a myriad of exciting ideas.' Victoria has often been named as the stopper on reunion plans - saying in 2019: 'I'm not going on tour. The girls aren't going on tour'. However she conceded she did not know what the future may hold, saying: 'It's a positive thing. You know, there's so much bad stuff going on, and the Spice Girls were about fun and celebrating individuality... 'I think there's so much that the brand can do, and it's such a positive message for young kids. What does that look like in the future? It's not me in a cat-suit'. Dr. Wendy Osefo of Real Housewives of Potomac fame is facing consequences from her shock arrest. On Thursday night the 41-year-old TV personality and her husband Eddie Osefo were arrested and charged with fraud in Westminster, Maryland. Now the network that made her famous, Bravo, has pulled her episode of the new series Wife Swap: The Real Housewives Edition. Variety reported on Friday that the show's premiere date has been delayed as a result of the last-minute scramble. Wendy's episode was expected be the series opener, according to the outlet, although the network previously advertised that her appearance would have been episode two. The show was initially slated to hit airwaves on October 14, but will now debut on October 21. Bravo has pulled Dr. Wendy Osefo's episode of the new series Wife Swap: The Real Housewives Edition following her shock arrest for fraud charges On Thursday night the 41-year-old TV personality was arrested and charged with fraud in Westminster, Maryland An official Wife Swap synopsis reads: 'Dr. Wendy Osefo, who runs her busy Maryland household prioritizing strict rules, a tight schedule and education at the forefront, swaps lives with free-spirited Floridian Alethea Shapiro, who prioritizes fun, independence, absolutely no rules and ferrets. 'Will Dr. Wendy be able to find the balance between structure and fun? Can Alethea bring a little more spontaneity to the Osefo family?' Wendy and Eddie parents-of-three are facing a combined 16 charges, per a TMZ report. The charges include seven felonies, one misdemeanor count of making a false statement to an officer, and false/misleading info fraud in excess of $300. They are parents to sons Karter, 12, and Kruz, nine, and daughter Kamrynn, six. Wendy and Eddie were released from jail after posting $50,000 bond. A rep subsequently shared with E! News, 'Dr. Wendy Osefo and her husband, Edward Osefo, are back home safely with their family and in good spirits.' The statement continued, 'They are grateful for the outpouring of concern and support from friends, fans and colleagues. 'The Osefos, alongside their legal team, look forward to their day in court. At this time, they respectfully ask for privacy as they focus on their family and the legal process ahead.' Wendy's husband Eddie Osefo was also arrested Wendy and Eddie were released from jail after posting $50,000 bond; pictured in April 2023 The couple's grave charges are in connection with a burglary they claim to have had in April 2024. The pair claimed designer bags and jewelry were stolen from their property while the family was away on vacation. However, police learned several of the belongings worth $20k had allegedly been returned to the stores where they were purchased for a 'full refund' prior to when the robbery occurred. During a September 2020 episode of the Gabbing With Gib podcast, Wendy went into detail about the alleged incident. 'It happened because my family was away on spring break,' she said at the time. 'It was our spring break trip with the kiddos and I was just so heartbroken.' Paul Mescal showcased his sense of style as he joined his co-star Jessie Buckley on the red carpet at the London premiere of their latest movie, Hamnet. The Irish actor, 29, who plays William Shakespeare in the historical drama, looked effortlessly cool in a black leather jacket teamed with tailored trousers as he posed alongside Jessie, 35, who portrays his on-screen wife Agnes. He layered a smart black shirt under his sleek leather ensemble and completed the look with shiny black dress shoes. Meanwhile, Jessie turned heads in a strapless black gown featuring striking red, black, and white feather detailing across the dramatic skirt. She elevated her look with pointed black heels and accessorised with elegant diamond drop earrings. The co-stars appeared in high spirits ahead of the screening, cosying up for several sweet snaps and sharing plenty of laughs on the red carpet. Paul Mescal showcased his stylish sense of fashion as he joined his co-star Jessie Buckley on the red carpet at the London premiere of their latest movie, Hamnet The Irish actor, 29, who plays William Shakespeare in the historical drama, looked effortlessly cool in a black leather jacket teamed with tailored trousers as he posed alongside Jessie, 35, who portrays his on-screen wife Agnes Also in attendance was Andrew Scott, 48, who made a statement in a black T-shirt emblazoned with the word 'Julius', paired with edgy black leather trousers. He completed the look with polished black shoes and beamed for the cameras as he struck a pose. Barry Keoghan, 32, opted for a more laid-back style, wearing a navy blue Axel Arigato jumper with relaxed-fit denim jeans. Emily Watson, 58, exuded elegance in a burgundy silk maxi dress, which she paired with matching burgundy trainers. Noah Jupe, 20, looked dapper in a black textured blazer and tailored trousers featuring statement gold buttons. Costume designer Malgosia Turzanska turned heads in a cropped black blazer with exaggerated short sleeves, teamed with a voluminous white skirt. Young star Olivia Lynes, who plays Judith in the film, looked adorable in a bubblegum pink faux-fur coat layered over a chiffon dress. Composer Max Richter, 59, kept things classic in a smart black coat and an off-white striped shirt as he posed with artist Yulia Mahr. He layered a smart black shirt under his sleek leather ensemble and completed the look with shiny black dress shoes Meanwhile, Jessie turned heads in a strapless black gown featuring striking red, black, and white feather detailing across the dramatic skirt She elevated her look with pointed black heels and accessorised with elegant diamond drop earrings as she wrapped her arm around Paul as they caught up on the red carpet The co-stars appeared in high spirits ahead of the screening, cosying up for several sweet snaps and sharing plenty of laughs on the red carpet Also in attendance was Andrew Scott, 48, who made a statement in a black T-shirt emblazoned with the word 'Julius', paired with edgy black leather trousers Barry Keoghan, 32, opted for a more laid-back style, wearing a navy blue Axel Arigato jumper with relaxed-fit denim jeans Emily Watson, 58, exuded elegance in a burgundy silk maxi dress, which she paired with matching burgundy trainers Noah Jupe, 20, looked dapper in a black textured blazer and tailored trousers featuring statement gold buttons Costume designer Malgosia Turzanska turned heads in a cropped black blazer with exaggerated short sleeves, teamed with a voluminous white skirt Director Chloe Zhao, 43, radiated elegance in a dusky pink, semi-sheer floor-length gown. Irish presenter Laura Whitmore, 40, opted for a tailored navy blue double-breasted blazer and wide-leg trousers as she posed for cameras on the red carpet. Film producer Liza Marshall, 53, stunned in a black sequinned top and wide-leg trousers as she put on a cosy display with her partner, actor Mark Strong, 62. Former actress Kate Capshaw, 71, exuded sophistication in a black blazer and mesh tulle skirt as she joined husband Steven Spielberg, 78, for the premiere. British director Sam Mendes, 60, looked sharp in a navy blue suit as he posed with Paul Mescal for a snap on the red carpet. Based on Maggie O'Farrell's award-winning novel, the movie follows Agnes as she struggles to come to terms with the loss of her 11-year-old son, Hamnet, to the plague. The star-studded cast also features Taylor Swift's ex Joe Alwyn, 34, alongside Oscar nominee Emily Watson and Alien Earth's David Wylmot. The historical drama is set to hit UK cinemas on January 9, 2026. Young star Olivia Lynes, who plays Judith in the film, looked adorable in a bubblegum pink faux-fur coat layered over a chiffon dress Composer Max Richter, 59, kept things classic in a smart black coat and an off-white striped shirt as he posed with artist Yulia Mahr Director Chloe Zhao, 43, radiated elegance in a dusky pink, semi-sheer floor-length gown Irish presenter Laura Whitmore, 40, opted for a tailored navy blue double-breasted blazer and wide-leg trousers as she posed for cameras on the red carpet Film producer Liza Marshall, 53, stunned in a black sequinned top and wide-leg trousers as she put on a cosy display with her partner, actor Mark Strong, 62 Former actress Kate Capshaw, 71, exuded sophistication in a black blazer and mesh tulle skirt as she joined husband Steven Spielberg, 78, for the premiere British director Sam Mendes, 60, looked sharp in a navy blue suit as he posed with Paul Mescal for a snap on the red carpet Diane Keaton, one of Hollywoods most distinctive and beloved stars, has died at the age of 79. A family spokesperson confirmed to People that the Oscar-winning actress passed away in California. Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss. No further details have been released. However, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a medical call at Keatons residence at 8:08 a.m. on Saturday, per TMZ. An ambulance transported an individual from the home to a nearby hospital, and sources familiar with the situation say Keaton was the person taken. Known for her quirky charm, wit, and timeless style, Keaton built a career spanning more than five decades from her early breakthrough in The Godfather trilogy to her Oscar-winning turn in Annie Hall. She became a defining face of 1970s cinema and later cemented her legacy with hits like Baby Boom, Father of the Bride, The First Wives Club, and Somethings Gotta Give. Diane Keaton, one of Hollywoods most distinctive and beloved stars, has died at the age of 79; (seen in 2023) A family spokesperson confirmed to People that the Oscar-winning actress passed away in California; (seen in 1996' First Wives Club with Goldie Hawn and Bette Midler) In recent years, she delighted audiences again with the Book Club films, proving her enduring appeal across generations. Born Diane Hall on January 5, 1946, in Los Angeles, Keaton grew up with a creative streak that would shape one of the most distinctive careers in Hollywood. After high school, she studied acting at Santa Ana College before heading to New York City to train at the prestigious Neighborhood Playhouse. Keaton made her Broadway debut in 1968 as part of the original cast of Hair. She spent nine months in the show but refused to disrobe during performances. She then auditioned for Woody Allens Play It Again, Sam, showcasing the charm and timing that would become her trademark. Her performance earned her a Tony nomination, marking an early milestone in a career that would soon make her a Hollywood icon Just two years later, she landed her first film role in Lovers and Other Strangers, but her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino. Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss, with no further details being released at this time; (seen in 2007) Her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino Her next milestone came with 1977s Annie Hall, which earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress and redefined her as both a comedic and romantic leading lady Keaton starred in The Family Stone Throughout the 1980s and 90s, Keaton built an unmatched resume with standout roles in films like Reds, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride (pictured) The role made her a household name and solidified her place in one of cinemas most celebrated franchises. Her next milestone came with 1977s Annie Hall, which earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress and redefined her as both a comedic and romantic leading lady. Of course my favorite is the obvious one, she once told People of the film. Woody didnt know if it would work. He didnt trust it hed say, Its just another sitcom. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, Keaton built an unmatched resume with standout roles in films like Reds, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride. Her performance in Baby Boom as a career woman suddenly thrust into motherhood became one of her most beloved roles. If I was the mother, I wouldnt have been happy about the way I tossed those babies around! she once joked. Keaton also made her mark on television, notably starring alongside Jude Law in the acclaimed 2016 miniseries The Young Pope. A year later, her decades-long contribution to film was recognized when she received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the American Film Institutes gala. Diane was renowned for her quirky fashion sense; (seen in 2023) Diane with her ex Warren Beatty in 1979 Diane with her First Wives Club costars Goldie Hawn and Better Midler in 1996 Diane and her buddy Jack Nicholson in 2003 In August 2022, the Hollywood icon was further celebrated with a Hand and Footprint Ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre. It was a moment that brought together her family, including her two children and sister Dorrie Hall, to honor her legacy. Reflecting on the milestone, Keaton said, It was just one of those things in your life where you dont expect it and then suddenly it comes your way. And then its like, wow. I was thrilled, of course. And I still am.' Keaton remained a force in Hollywood well into the 2000s, teaming up again with director Nancy Meyers for Somethings Gotta Give, starring opposite Jack Nicholson in one of her most acclaimed later performances. Diane adopted two children daughter Dexter and son Duke in her 50s; (Dexter Keaton, Diane, and Duke Keaton in 2022) Away from the screen, Keaton led a fiercely independent life. She adopted two children daughter Dexter and son Duke in her 50s and remained proudly unmarried, despite past relationships with major Hollywood names including Woody Allen, Warren Beatty, Al Pacino, and Jack Nicholson. 'I think I'm the only one in my generation and maybe before who has been a single woman all her life,' she once said. 'I don't think it would have been a good idea for me to have married, and I'm really glad I didn't.' Diane Keaton is being remembered by her Hollywood friends and colleagues after her shock death on Saturday at age 79. Steve Martin paid a special tribute to the late actress - after the pair previously starred in Father Of The Bride together in 1991, followed by a sequel four years later. The actor jumped to X to share a black and white photo of Keaton while also simply typing out, 'Loved.' Martin then added, 'La dee da,la dee da,' which is a famous line from Keaton's 1977 movie Annie Hall. Mandy Moore also remembered Keaton - 18 years after the two stars worked together on the 2007 romantic comedy Because I Said So. Alongside a photo of them in the movie, the actress wrote: 'They say don't meet your heroes but I got to work with one of mine and even call her "mom" for a few months. An honor of a lifetime.' Diane Keaton is being remembered by her Hollywood friends and colleagues after her shock death on Saturday at age 79; pictured in 2023 Steve Martin paid a special tribute to the late actress - after the pair previously starred in Father Of The Bride together in 1991 (seen above) followed by a sequel four years later The actor jumped to X to share a black and white photo of Keaton while also simply typing out, 'Loved' Moore added, 'What an incandescent human Di is and was. I am so sad she's gone for all the reasons but also because it felt like she'd be here forever, dazzling us with her talent and charm (and her style, c'mon)!!! 'One of the very best to ever do it. All my love to her children and loved ones,' she concluded. Bette Midler also paid tribute to the late actress, with whom she starred in the 1996 comedy-drama The First Wives Club. Sharing photos on Instagram, 79-year-old Midler wrote, 'The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died. 'I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me. She was hilarious, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she wasoh, la, lala!' Goldie Hawn also joined in and penned an emotional tribute to their former co-star and longtime friend. The actress, who is also 79, took to Instagram to share a black-and-white, throwback photo of Keaton smiling in her statement outfit. 'Diane, we aren't ready to lose you,' Hawn wrote in a heartbreaking message alongside the portrait. Mandy Moore also remembered Keaton - 18 years after the two stars worked together on the 2007 romantic comedy Because I Said So (seen above) Alongside a photo of them in the movie, the actress wrote: 'They say don't meet your heroes but I got to work with one of mine and even call her "mom" for a few months. An honor of a lifetime' Bette Midler also paid tribute to the late actress, with whom she starred in the 1996 comedy-drama The First Wives Club; L-R Goldie Hawn, Keaton, and Bette Midler pictured in 1996 Sharing photos on Instagram, 79-year-old Midler wrote, 'The brilliant, beautiful, extraordinary Diane Keaton has died; Hawn, Keaton, and Midler starred together in the late 90s comedy-drama The First Wives Club Goldie Hawn also joined in and penned an emotional tribute to their former co-star and longtime friend The actress, who is also 79, took to Instagram to share a black-and-white, throwback photo of Keaton smiling in her statement outfit. 'Diane, we aren't ready to lose you,' Hawn wrote in a heartbreaking message alongside the portrait Hawn also reflected on filming with Keaton back in the 90s and paid tribute to her friend's legacy. 'I'm going to miss the hell out of you,' she wrote in her tribute Bette also shared some kind words 'You've left us with a trail of fairy dust, filled with particles of light and memories beyond imagination. How do we say goodbye? What words can come to mind when your heart is broken?' She added: 'You never liked praise, so humble, but now you can't tell me to "shut up" honey. There was, and will be, no one like you.' Hawn also reflected on filming with Keaton back in the 90s and paid tribute to her friend's legacy. 'You stole the hearts of the world and shared your genius with millions, making films that made us laugh and cry in ways only you could,' she wrote. 'I was blessed to make First Wives Club with you, our days starting with coffee in the makeup trailer, laughing and joking, right through to the very last day of filming. It was a roller coaster of love.' Her heartbreaking post continued: 'We agreed to grow old together, and one day, maybe live together with all our girlfriends. Well, we never got to live together, but we did grow older together. Who knows maybe in the next life. 'Shine your fairy dust up there, girlfriend,' she wrote. 'I'm going to miss the hell out of you. My heart goes out to your beautiful children, Dex and Duke. I love you.' Piers Morgan also paid his respects via the social media app X, formerly Twitter. The 60-year-old broadcaster wrote, 'RIP Diane Keaton, 79. Oscar-winning star of Annie Hall, brilliant in the Godfather and Father of the Bride movies. One of Hollywoods greatest actresses, and a delightful lady. Sad news.' Film director Joey Kuhn expressed his heartbreak over the news as well. Piers Morgan also paid his respects via the social media app X, formerly Twitter Film director Joey Kuhn expressed his heartbreak over the news as well Amy Sedaris posted an Annie Hall excerpt, along with the note, 'Heartbreaking. A true original. Artist. Beautiful. Spirit in the sky' Paul Feig wrote on X: 'I was so honored to call Diane Keaton a friend' Taking to Instagram, he shared an excerpt from Keaton's performance of Seems Like Old Times from a scene in 1977's Annie Hall. He captioned, 'Rest in Peace to the incomparable Oscar-winning actress Diane Keaton (1946-2025).' The Those People filmmaker added via Instagram Stories, 'This one hurts,' with a broken heart emoji. Amy Sedaris posted an Annie Hall excerpt as well, along with the note, 'Heartbreaking. A true original. Artist. Beautiful. Spirit in the sky.' Paul Feig wrote on X: 'I was so honored to call Diane Keaton a friend. She was an amazingly kind and creative person who also just happened to be a Hollywood legend. She has been taken from us far too soon. We will miss you, Diane.' Actress Elizabeth Banks wrote on Instagram, 'She was beloved in her industry. Every one of us idolizes her. 'Her influence on culture, fashion, art and women cant be overstated. She was a delight. I am proud I have a career that allowed me to meet her and breathe her air.' A family spokesperson confirmed to People that the Academy Award-winning actress passed away in California. Banks wrote about Keaton on her Instagram grid, 'She was beloved in her industry. Every one of us idolizes her' Actress Elizabeth Banks posted a photo wearing a wide-brimmed hat similar to the ones Keaton was known for wearing Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss. Keaton never married but adopted two children, 29-year-old daughter Dexter and 25-year-old son Duke. Known for her quirky charm, wit, and timeless style, she built a career spanning more than five decades from her early breakthrough in The Godfather trilogy to her Oscar-winning turn in Annie Hall. She became a defining face of 1970s cinema and later cemented her legacy with hits like Baby Boom, Father of the Bride, The First Wives Club, and Somethings Gotta Give. Hollywood icon Diane Keaton was pictured smiling with her dog in her last photo before her death at the age of 79. The Godfather star was seen smiling brightly and looking healthy as she posed with her dog Reggie in an April 11 Instagram post promoting a Hudson Grace dog statue and dog biscuits. She was seen petting her pooch, who was also sporting a happy smile in hopes of snacking on the packaged biscuits, while sitting on the floor of her home. A family spokesperson confirmed to People the star passed away in California. No further details have been released. Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss. Bette Midler led the tributes for the actress. The pair starred in the 1996 comedy-drama The First Wives Club. 'I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me. She was hilarious, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she wasoh, la, lala!' Piers Morgan also paid his respects on X, writing: 'RIP Diane Keaton, 79. Oscar-winning star of Annie Hall, brilliant in the Godfather and Father of the Bride movies. One of Hollywoods greatest actresses, and a delightful lady. Sad news.' Diane Keaton is seen above in her last photo shared to Instagram on April 11 Actress Elizabeth Banks wrote on Instagram: 'She was beloved in her industry. Every one of us idolizes her. 'Her influence on culture, fashion, art and women cant be overstated. She was a delight. I am proud I have a career that allowed me to meet her and breathe her air.' Keaton's Hollywood career spanned five decades from her early breakthrough in The Godfather trilogy to her Oscar-winning turn in Annie Hall. She became a defining face of 1970s cinema and later cemented her legacy with hits like Baby Boom, Father of the Bride, The First Wives Club, and Somethings Gotta Give. In recent years, she delighted audiences again with the Book Club films, proving her enduring appeal across generations. She was born Diane Hall on January 5, 1946, in Los Angeles. Keaton studied acting at Santa Ana College before heading to New York City to train at the prestigious Neighborhood Playhouse. She made her Broadway debut in 1968 as part of the original cast of Hair, quickly earning attention for her wit and presence. Her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino Throughout the 1980s and 90s, Keaton built an unmatched resume with standout roles in films like Reds, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride (pictured) She would later go on to star in Lovers and Other Strangers, but her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino. The role made her a household name and she made quite the name for herself as she continued to act. Keaton also made her mark on television, notably starring alongside Jude Law in the acclaimed 2016 miniseries The Young Pope. A year later, her decades-long contribution to film was recognized when she received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the American Film Institutes gala. In August 2022, the Hollywood icon was further celebrated with a Hand and Footprint Ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre. Away from the screen, Keaton led a fiercely independent life. She adopted two children - daughter Dexter and son Duke - in her 50s and remained proudly unmarried, despite past relationships with major Hollywood names including Woody Allen, Warren Beatty, Al Pacino, and Jack Nicholson. 'I think I'm the only one in my generation and maybe before who has been a single woman all her life,' she once said. 'I don't think it would have been a good idea for me to have married, and I'm really glad I didn't.' Paris Fury has defended her daughter Venezuela's engagement as she opened up about the exciting news for the first time. Tyson and Paris' eldest child got engaged to her boxer boyfriend Noah Price at her sweet sixteenth last month. After the boxer hit back at critics following the news, Paris admitted: 'I did encourage her to wait as long as possible, but she was determined.' Venezuela's engagement had echoes of Tyson and Paris' romance, with the couple having met when they were 17 and 15 respectively. They reconnected and began a romance at her 16th birthday. Paris, 35, and Tyson, 37, married in 2008 when she was just 19 and he was 21-years-old during a ceremony in Doncaster. They later renewed their vows in April 2013 in New York City. Paris Fury has defended her 16-year-old daughter Venezuela's engagement as she opened up about the exciting news for the first time Tyson and Paris' eldest child got engaged to her boxer boyfriend Noah Price at her sweet sixteenth birthday party last month In August the couple married for the third time, with a ceremony held in the South of France, attended by their seven children. In an interview with The Mirror, Paris added: 'We're all really happy for her and Noah, theyre a great match and genuinely excited about this next chapter in her life. 'Yes, shes young, but as we all know, thats in line with our traditions and values. I was engaged to Tyson at 17, so were not far off in age.' Speaking about her third wedding this summer, Paris said it was to 'reaffirm' their love for one another. In another chat, she added: 'I told Tyson I wasn't doing it for anyone else this time. We did it to reaffirm our love and to embrace the fact that our kids are now such a big part of our life. It was just for us.' It comes after Venezuela posed for a photo with her proud dad Tyson at her 16th birthday after he hit back at critics who questioned her relationship. Giving a further insight into the night on Thursday, Paris uploaded a series of snaps to her Instagram Story. Later in the week, former heavyweight world champion Tyson appeared to respond to the criticism on Instagram. Venezuela's engagement had echoes of Tyson and Paris' romance, with the couple having met when they were 17 and 15 respectively, getting engaged two years later In August the couple married for the third time, with a ceremony held in the South of France, attended by their seven children It comes after Venezuela posed for a photo with her proud dad Tyson at her 16th birthday after he hit back at critics who questioned her relationship He shared a video by minaret minds, an Instagram account which states that it focuses on 'Islamic reminders, stories and reflections.' In the video, the narrator states '50 years ago people got married at 18 and stayed together until death. Today people wait until 30 to get married and divorce within three years. 'Back then, couples had nothing but built everything together. Now couples have everything but can't build anything together. Our grandparents shared one small room and called it paradise. We have five bedroom houses and call them prisons. 'The only difference is we now call commitment settling and call running away finding yourself.' The post added: 'Who convinced us that love expires, that compatibility is instant, that marriage should feel like a Disney movie every day. 'If we question ourselves, we might stop expecting perfection and start building connection. 'I ask have we become on focused on finding the one that we forgot how to become the one.' Nara and Lucky Blue Smith have welcomed their fourth child, expanding their family once again. The 24-year-old TikTok star and her 27-year-old model husband shared the happy news on Instagram, posting a video of themselves with their newest addition. 'Shes here! Welcome to the world little angel,' the couple wrote, though they have not yet revealed the babys name, birth date, or any further details. The clip also showed their three older children daughters Rumble Honey, 4, Whimsy Lou, 18 months, and son Slim Easy, 3 cozying up with their baby sister. Nara had announced the pregnancy in June, just months after the couple had previously said they were finished growing their family. At the time, they called the pregnancy 'Our little surprise' in a joint Instagram post, which included a playful video of the pair outdoors with Naras baby bump on display. Nara and Lucky Blue Smith have welcomed their fourth child, expanding their family once again The 24-year-old TikTok star and her 27-year-old model husband shared the happy news on Instagram, posting a video of themselves with their newest addition. 'Shes here! Welcome to the world little angel,' the couple wrote, though they have not yet revealed the babys name, birth date, or any further details A short caption over the clip read, 'Baby 4 Loading ' Nearly one year earlier, Nara and Lucky opened up about their family and shared that they were done having children. During an interview with GQ at the time, Lucky told his wife amid the joint interview, 'Well, we have three. So, you're done.' Nara then replied to her husband - who is also father to daughter Gravity with ex Stormi Bree - with, 'Yep, I'm done.' However, Lucky also pointed out to the Nara, 'You did want six. When we first met, you wanted six.' In regards to welcoming children at a young age, Nara - who was 19 when the couple welcomed their first child Rumble - said, 'And it worked out great. I love being a young mom.' She continued to the outlet, 'I want to build my life with them rather than trying to integrate them into my life later.' Nara is also known for her lifestyle and cooking content on social media - and boasts millions of followers. She then showed off her big baby bump by cradling her stomach as Lucky lovingly embraced her On Instagram, she currently posts to 4.6 million followers while on TikTok she notably has 11.7 million followers. Since uploading her pregnancy announcement on Sunday, the short reel on her TikTok page has already amassed a total of 8 million views. However, the star has previously gotten candid about the negative effects of being on social media - such as dealing with backlash. While talking to Who What Wear, Nara discussed how negative comments had affected her while pregnant with her third child. The beauty also shares Rumble, four, Slim Easy, three, and Whimsy Lou, one, with Lucky, 27 - whom she tied the knot with in 2020 She continued to the outlet, 'I want to build my life with them rather than trying to integrate them into my life later' 'I just felt so heavy,' the media influencer admitted, before adding, 'Nothing felt good to me anymore.' Smith - who suffered hardships when it came to postpartum - further expressed, 'I didn't understand why all of these people were saying things that were untrue and actually running with that. 'It became this insane thing...I was getting attacked for literally just posting cooking videos and not harming anyone.' Elsewhere during her conversation with the publication, the beauty explained that she did not identify with the term 'tradwife.' Nara stated, 'I'm a working mom. I take care of kids. I split the responsibility with Lucky. Our household is very 50/50. 'We try to figure out the kids while both of us work. It's very much this jigsaw puzzle that we're trying to work through every single day. Being labeled as [a tradwife], that just didn't fit.' Nara stated, 'I'm a working mom. I take care of kids. I split the responsibility with Lucky. Our household is very 50/50' And while talking to Harper's Bazaar last year, the influencer further pushed back on flak over the 'tradwife' lifestyle. She explained that when it comes to the term 'tradwife,' she has 'a really hard time' understanding what it actually means. Nara stated that what she posts on social media is 'really not that deep' and added that she is simply just 'a working mom.' Smith added, 'I never know what to say when people ask me [what I do], because technically, yes, I create content. But then I'm just living my life and sharing that with people, which a lot of people do.' Diane Keatons health reportedly took a sharp turn in recent months, and even her closest friends were unaware. A family spokesperson confirmed to People on Saturday that the Oscar-winning actress had passed away in California. Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss, and no further details have been released. She declined very suddenly, which was heartbreaking for everyone who loved her, a friend told People. It was so unexpected, especially for someone with such strength and spirit. The source added, In her final months, she was surrounded only by her closest family, who chose to keep things very private. 'Even longtime friends werent fully aware of what was happening. Diane Keatons health reportedly took a sharp turn in recent months, and even her closest friends were unaware; (seen in August 2024) She declined very suddenly, which was heartbreaking for everyone who loved her, a friend told People, adding It was so unexpected, especially for someone with such strength and spirit' The source added, In her final months, she was surrounded only by her closest family, who chose to keep things very private. Even longtime friends werent fully aware of what was happening. (Diane and her buddy Jack Nicholson in 2003) In a surprising move, Keaton put her cherished dream home on the market in March, per the source, despite earlier saying she intended to stay there for the long term.y. As news of her death spread, Hollywood stars paid tribute. The First Wives Club co-star Bette Midler led the pack, writing on social media, I cannot tell you how unbearably sad this makes me. She was hilarious, and completely without guile, or any of the competitiveness one would have expected from such a star. What you saw was who she wasoh, la, lala! Known for her quirky charm, wit, and timeless style, Keaton built a career spanning more than five decades from her early breakthrough in The Godfather trilogy to her Oscar-winning turn in Annie Hall. She became a defining face of 1970s cinema and later cemented her legacy with hits like Baby Boom, Father of the Bride, The First Wives Club, and Somethings Gotta Give. In recent years, she delighted audiences again with the Book Club films, proving her enduring appeal across generations. Born Diane Hall on January 5, 1946, in Los Angeles, Keaton grew up with a creative streak that would shape one of the most distinctive careers in Hollywood. After high school, she studied acting at Santa Ana College before heading to New York City to train at the prestigious Neighborhood Playhouse. Her loved ones have requested privacy as they mourn her loss, with no further details being released at this time; (seen in 2007) Keaton made her Broadway debut in 1968 as part of the original cast of Hair. She spent nine months in the show but refused to disrobe during performances. She then auditioned for Woody Allens Play It Again, Sam, showcasing the charm and timing that would become her trademark. Her performance earned her a Tony nomination, marking an early milestone in a career that would soon make her a Hollywood icon Just two years later, she landed her first film role in Lovers and Other Strangers, but her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino. Her breakout came in 1972 with The Godfather, where she portrayed Kay Adams-Corleone opposite Al Pacino Her next milestone came with 1977s Annie Hall, which earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress and redefined her as both a comedic and romantic leading lady Keaton starred in The Family Stone Throughout the 1980s and 90s, Keaton built an unmatched resume with standout roles in films like Reds, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride (pictured) The role made her a household name and solidified her place in one of cinemas most celebrated franchises. Her next milestone came with 1977s Annie Hall, which earned her the Academy Award for Best Actress and redefined her as both a comedic and romantic leading lady. Of course my favorite is the obvious one, she once told People of the film. Woody didnt know if it would work. He didnt trust it hed say, Its just another sitcom. Throughout the 1980s and 90s, Keaton built an unmatched resume with standout roles in films like Reds, Baby Boom, and Father of the Bride. Her performance in Baby Boom as a career woman suddenly thrust into motherhood became one of her most beloved roles. If I was the mother, I wouldnt have been happy about the way I tossed those babies around! she once joked. Keaton also made her mark on television, notably starring alongside Jude Law in the acclaimed 2016 miniseries The Young Pope. A year later, her decades-long contribution to film was recognized when she received the prestigious Lifetime Achievement Award at the American Film Institutes gala. Diane was renowned for her quirky fashion sense; (seen in 2023) Diane with her ex Warren Beatty in 1979 In August 2022, the Hollywood icon was further celebrated with a Hand and Footprint Ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre. It was a moment that brought together her family, including her two children and sister Dorrie Hall, to honor her legacy. Reflecting on the milestone, Keaton said, It was just one of those things in your life where you dont expect it and then suddenly it comes your way. And then its like, wow. I was thrilled, of course. And I still am.' Keaton remained a force in Hollywood well into the 2000s, teaming up again with director Nancy Meyers for Somethings Gotta Give, starring opposite Jack Nicholson in one of her most acclaimed later performances. Diane adopted two children daughter Dexter and son Duke in her 50s; (Dexter Keaton, Diane, and Duke Keaton in 2022) Away from the screen, Keaton led a fiercely independent life. She adopted two children daughter Dexter and son Duke in her 50s and remained proudly unmarried, despite past relationships with major Hollywood names including Woody Allen, Warren Beatty, Al Pacino, and Jack Nicholson. 'I think I'm the only one in my generation and maybe before who has been a single woman all her life,' she once said. 'I don't think it would have been a good idea for me to have married, and I'm really glad I didn't.' Farmers a key voting bloc that helped propel President Donald Trump back to the White House in the 2024 election are struggling. In the past three months, US farm bankruptcies have surged to 93 filings, more than double the same quarter last year. Soybean producers have been hit the hardest, largely due to the ongoing trade war between Washington and Beijing. For years, American soybean farmers shipped nearly a quarter of their $60billion crop to China. But Beijing responded to Trump's tariffs with 20 percent levies of its own, making US products uncompetitive. Imports from America have plunged to nearly zero, with Chinese buyers turning instead to Argentina and Brazil. Farmers who planted months in advance to meet Chinese demand are now forced to foot the bill. In Illinois, soybean growers expect to lose about $64 an acre this year. To keep more farms from going under, Trump is weighing $10 billion to $14 billion in bailout funds. Caleb Ragland, a Kentucky farmer, is happy that President Trump is worried about the plight of American farmers, but doesn't like 'being used as a bargaining chip' in the trade war 'The Soybean Farmers of our Country are being hurt because China is, for "negotiating" reasons only, not buying,' he said in a Truth Social post. Trump said he is meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in four weeks, and said the soybean trade will be a 'major topic of discussion.' The President has floated the idea of sending some cash from America's collected tariffs to the farmers. 'We've made so much money on Tariffs, that we are going to take a small portion of that money, and help our Farmers,' he added. Caleb Ragland, a Kentucky farmer who serves as president of the American Soybean Association, welcomed Trump's recognition of their challenges, but criticized the broader strategy. 'It's just unfortunate that we're being used as a bargaining chip in this trade war that's not of our own doing,' he said. Farmers were already under pressure before the trade fight. Domestic prices have slumped as growers try to unload a glut of supply, even as food costs for consumers have soared. On top of that, many producers are struggling to hire workers amid stepped-up deportation efforts. American farm bankruptcies have risen this year as the trade war between America and China intensifies President Trump is considering a $10billion to $14billion bailout for American farmers, including potentially using money taken in from the tariffs. He has bailed out US farmers in the past, sending $12billion to farmers during the first tariff fight with China Government aid could help farmers survive the year, but most say theyd rather rely on markets than subsidies. 'All farmers are proud of what they do and they don't like handouts,' Robb Ewoldt, an Iowa-based soybean producer, said. 'We'd rather make it with our own two hands than have it handed to us.' Trump has deployed this tactic before: in 2018, during his first administration, he sent soy farmers a $12billion bailout after China similarly restricted purchases of American agriculture. But Ragland and the American Soybean Association are urging a quick end to the trade war. 'US soybean farmers have been clear for months: the administration needs to secure a trade deal with China,' he said last week. 'China is the world's largest soybean customer and typically our top export market.'